Chapter 27
Lang Qi’s gaze swept across Bai Tu’s pale, almost dazzling arm and immediately noticed the subtle change in his mood.
His sharp eyes shifted back to Bai Tu’s arm, where he spotted the faint scars that were barely visible unless one looked closely. His face darkened instantly. “You were captured by them before?”
“I don’t remember. I’ve forgotten everything from the past,” Bai Tu shook his head. It was just a suspicion.
Beastmen healed quickly, which explained why the scars were nearly invisible now. He was probably the only one who would connect this matter to Hu Bu.
After all, Hu Bu had left the healers two years ago, and these scars were from before Bai Tu had joined the Snow Rabbit Tribe.
As for the original host of this body, the conflict with Hu Bu had occurred half a month ago at the border of the territory. Even the Snow Rabbit Tribe only believed that the two had quarreled over gathering resources.
Even if he had figured it out, Bai Tu wouldn’t act recklessly. It was the same principle he’d told Leopard Duo: don’t confront the healers for now.
Hu Bu had the Lion Clan backing him, and Bai Qi had already mentioned before that Hu Bu’s status was on par with Shi Hong.
Some members of the Lion Clan didn’t even acknowledge Shi Hong but still followed Hu Bu. With the Snow Rabbit Tribe’s population barely reaching a hundred, facing the Lion Clan head-on would be nothing short of suicidal.
The wise do not stand under a crumbling wall. Bai Tu didn’t consider himself wise, but he certainly wasn’t going to put himself in unnecessary danger.
He valued his life. Challenging a far stronger opponent wasn’t bravery—it was stupidity. Under the current circumstances, all he could do was avoid Hu Bu’s sharp edge, stay as far away from him as possible, and proceed cautiously when dealing with tribes that had healers. The Rabbit Tribe was simply too weak, and Bai Tu couldn’t ignore the growing sense of crisis that rose in his heart.
Frowning, Bai Tu glanced at the basket beside him.
The medicine he had prepared was originally intended to be traded for supplies. However, since they had managed to exchange food for plenty of salt today, he hadn’t needed to use it.
It seemed wiser to take it back to the tribe instead. If the healers noticed the medicine, it could lead to trouble.
Given that the healers in the area were all part of Wu Jiu’s lineage and were extremely territorial, they definitely wouldn’t tolerate anyone else selling medicine and threatening their authority.
Moreover, the marketplace was the fastest way for news to spread. There was no need to take unnecessary risks. Fortunately, healers prided themselves on their lofty status and rarely showed up at marketplaces, so the chances of encountering one directly were almost nonexistent.
Lang Qi, who had been silently watching Bai Tu the entire time, grew increasingly curious. He could see Bai Tu thinking and frowning, seemingly deep in thought.
He wanted to know what exactly was going through Bai Tu’s mind. When Bai Tu’s gaze eventually settled on the basket, Lang Qi hesitated briefly, wondering whether to ask. But before he could, Bai Tu spoke first.
“I’ll take these back,” Bai Tu said, making up his mind. “I can’t let those healers find out about this.”
Lang Qi recalled how quickly Bai Tu had treated Bao Tong earlier. From cleaning the wound to applying the medicine, the entire process had taken less time than it would to eat a meal. After thinking for a moment, he suggested, “You could sell it at other marketplaces.”
Bai Tu froze. “There are other marketplaces??” This was something Bai Qi and the others hadn’t mentioned to him before.
“Only the nearby tribes come to the Eastern Market. Other tribes go to the Southern Market, Western Market, or Northern Market. But those markets are too far away, not suitable for trading food for salt.”
Food was heavy, and a single beastman could only carry one basket. Transporting it in beast form wasn’t an option, as it would damage the food, so they had to travel in human form. The round trip would require more food than what they could trade for salt.
Medicine, on the other hand, was a different matter—it was lightweight, and Bai Tu’s medicines were ready to use. Their effectiveness rivaled, or even surpassed, the black medicine used by healers. If taken to market, they would fetch a far higher price than salt.
“The medicine you make could be sold on the Southern Continent,” Lang Qi added. “The iron knives there are much better than bone knives.” He had long noticed that Bai Tu struggled to use his bone knife. Switching to an iron one would make things much easier for him.
“Iron knives?!” Bai Tu was stunned. He’d never seen any iron tools among the beastmen and had assumed they didn’t exist yet. He hadn’t expected that they were available, just not in this region—tribes on the Southern Continent were already using them.
“Yes,” Lang Qi replied. “Iron knives are expensive. A single iron knife costs an entire basket of salt. But if you trade medicine for it, it would only take a few packs.”
Medicine was a precious commodity across all tribes. Even in the wolf clan, which had little regard for healers, its value was undeniable. On the Beast God Continent, medicine was far scarcer than food.
The half-basket of medicine Bai Tu had brought with him was worth several baskets of salt. However, not in the Eastern Market. Here, apart from healers of Wu Jiu’s lineage, there were almost no healers staying in the area, and no beastmen openly sold medicine.
This made medicine a rare, highly sought-after commodity that was often priceless in the Eastern Market. However, it could only be sold secretly here. In the Southern Market, things were different—the price was higher, and one could trade for items unavailable in this region.
As Bai Tu listened to Lang Qi’s explanation, he couldn’t help but feel tempted. But after the initial excitement, he quickly calmed down. “Unfortunately, it’s too late to make it to the market now.”
It had taken them eight days to travel from the tribe to this market. Going to another market would only take longer, and by the time they arrived, the market would already be over. No matter how valuable the medicine was, it would have to wait until the next market.
Seeing Bai Tu’s expression shift from delight to disappointment, Lang Qi hesitated for a moment before saying, “You might run into beastmen from the Southern Continent here.” Most of the beastmen at the Eastern Market were locals, but not all of them. Some beastmen liked to wander and explore other places.
“Alright, let’s wait and see,” Bai Tu replied, though he knew Lang Qi was only trying to comfort him.
Realistically, the chances weren’t great. Even if beastmen from the Southern Continent came, the market was crowded with countless tribes, making it difficult to single anyone out.
Adult beastmen didn’t usually retain distinct features in human form. At most, one could guess their fighting capability from their physique or distinguish their beast form by their fur color, but it was nearly impossible to identify their specific species.
On the second day of the market, the number of people didn’t decrease compared to the first. Only a few tribes had already finished trading salt and left, while most stayed to purchase other essential goods. Many beastmen remained in the area for a day or two, searching for needed items with their newly acquired salt or other goods.
Having learned his lesson from the previous day, Bai Tu decided to bring along Lang Zuo and Lang You, the two wolf brothers. The pair didn’t even ask for payment—just a meal was enough to get them to work.
The Leopard Clan’s healer might have been a manipulative liar, but there was one thing he wasn’t wrong about: at present, only the Leopard Clan had corn. No other tribe at the market was selling it.
However, the amount of corn the Leopard Clan had brought was enough for two tribes to plant this year. With that taken care of, Bai Tu started searching for other types of food at the market.
Yesterday, he had already inquired about most of the prices, so today he moved efficiently—he would simply glance at the contents of a basket to see if it was what he needed. If not, he would move on to the next stall without hesitation.
Lang Qi, knowing that Bai Tu was specifically looking for things unfamiliar to the Snow Rabbit Tribe, helped sort through goods like animal hides and common tools such as bone knives and stone tools. If it was something Bai Tu didn’t need to waste time on, Lang Qi would filter it out, leaving Bai Tu to focus on less recognizable items.
This approach more than doubled their efficiency. By the end of the day, Bai Tu had found both wheat and pumpkins. The Beast God Continent indeed had a wide variety of food, though it seemed as if the resources had been scattered and redistributed randomly. The food available near each tribe varied greatly.
For example, the wheat and pumpkins Bai Tu found today didn’t exist near the Snow Rabbit Tribe.
Neither Bai Tu, Bai Qi, nor any of the Snow Rabbit Tribe members had ever seen them before. Even Lang Qi and the wolves, whose combined territories were vast, had never come across them in their land. That meant it wasn’t a matter of these foods simply being overlooked—it was certain that they weren’t available there.
Pumpkins, like most gourds, were typically large in size. The ones here were as big as watermelons, but they were surprisingly cheap—about the same price as watermelons.
For just one bowl of salt, Bai Tu could get three large baskets full. Whenever he encountered deals like this, Bai Tu didn’t hesitate and bought the entire stock.
Wheat was a bit more expensive, but it was still much cheaper than meat. One bowl of salt could buy two baskets of wheat. There were three or four tribes selling it, and Bai Tu ended up purchasing a total of seven baskets.
It wasn’t the right season to plant wheat, but if stored properly, the seeds could remain viable for years and still sprout. Buying it now and saving it for later was no issue. Of course, Bai Tu agreed to purchase it. He even made arrangements with the sellers to bring more wheat to the next market, promising to buy all of it. If planted before winter, the timing would be perfect for it to grow after the next market.
In just two days, Bai Tu had managed to find four or five new types of food. He had used less than ten bowls of salt out of the portion Bai An had allocated to him, and the team was already preparing to return to the tribe. Everyone had purchased most of what they needed, and the remaining items could be bought in the morning.
They planned to leave by midday, which would give them enough time to reach their next resting spot before nightfall. The next location was much more comfortable than the noisy, crowded market area.
The market was swarming with beastmen, and the hot weather made the nights unbearable. The loud noises from the other tribes were torture for beastmen with sensitive hearing.
Staying any longer than necessary would only make things worse. Bai Tu had no objections to the plan to leave early. He still had plenty of salt left, which he planned to use to trade with the Horse Tribe (Ma Tribe) for silkworms and mulberry trees, both of which he had already arranged.
Moreover, Bai Tu was already looking forward to the next market. The allure of iron tools was hard to resist, and he was deeply tempted. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t be able to trade for them in the short term and would have to wait until the market opened again before winter.
What amazed Bai Tu, though, was how little animal hide the wolves traded for. Bai An alone had used up an entire basket of salt, while the wolves had only spent two baskets, despite having a larger supply of hides. Their per capita consumption was much lower than that of the Rabbit Tribe.
When asked about this, Lang Ze’s response was both sincere and envy-inducing.
Lang Ze said, “Our tribe doesn’t lack animal hides. We only trade the ones that are damaged, and the ones that aren’t can still be used.”
Lang Qi felt a small sense of pride—at least Lang Ze seemed to be growing up. But just as he began to feel relieved, Lang Zuo, ever straightforward, blurted out the second half of the explanation:
“When we hunt, the hides get damaged. So, we just don’t wear them while hunting. You could try that too!” Lang Zuo offered this suggestion with complete sincerity, adding, “It really saves on animal hides. I only ruined less than ten this year!”
Lang Qi: “…”
Bai Tu fell silent for a moment, thinking to himself, Please stop talking, kid. Your wolf king is about to start beating wolves.
Lang Qi took a deep breath and, somewhat helplessly, explained, “Only their hunting team does this.”
The Wolf Clan had four hunting teams, generally divided by age.
The first team consisted of beastmen over forty, led by an experienced veteran. The second team was made up of beastmen a few years older than Lang Qi; it had been the hunting team of the previous wolf king.
After the previous wolf king’s death, leadership of this team was handed over to another beastman within the group.
The third team, which Lang Qi led, consisted of beastmen closest in age to him, with a difference of at most two or three years. Lastly, the fourth team, led by Lang Ze, was composed of his peers.
This structure was shaped by the Wolf Clan’s personality and lifestyle.
Wolves of similar ages grew up together, developing a level of mutual understanding and cooperation through years of playing and living together that couldn’t be learned later in life.
Given the Wolf Clan’s large population, sending all the beastmen to hunt in the same location would only lower the success rate. Dividing them into smaller teams not only increased hunting efficiency but also improved teamwork and reduced conflict.
Overall, each hunting team had its own small leader. However, the wolf king was the strongest in the entire tribe, and the smaller leaders were not prone to developing the kind of ambition seen in the Lion Clan.
Take Lang Qi as an example. From the age of twelve or thirteen, he dared to lead his companions in chasing antelope herds.
By the time he was fifteen, he was already leading his team on solo hunts. At one point, his abilities were on par with the then-wolf king, Lang Yu, yet he still followed Lang Yu’s commands.
It wasn’t until Lang Yu’s death that Lang Qi defeated the temporary leader of the second team and claimed the position of wolf king. The hunting teams quickly returned to harmony, and there were no further disputes over leadership.
To this day, Lang Qi’s hunting team remained the largest in the tribe. Each of the hunting teams operated independently when apart but became an unstoppable force when united. However, after losing both his father and older brother, Lang Qi became far more cautious.
Every hunting team in the Wolf Clan had grown up in this way. For years, everything had gone smoothly, with no major issues—until it came to Lang Ze’s team. Somehow, something had gone terribly wrong. By the time Lang Qi and the others realized it, the entire team’s behavior had become… peculiar.
In terms of hunting ability, Lang Ze’s team was every bit as competent as the others. But in every other aspect, they were… difficult to describe.
For instance, they would tear through animal hides at an alarming rate, going through one every few days. After being scolded countless times by the tribe members responsible for sewing hides, this group of half-grown teenagers came up with a “brilliant” solution: they decided to hunt without wearing animal hides at all, using leaves to cover themselves when returning.
Bai Tu: “…”
hahaha I don’t get tired of Lang Ze embarrassing his brother xD
Thank you for the chapter 🙂