Building a Civilization and Raising Cubs in the Beast World – CH81

Chapter 81

The Beast God Continent had no marriage laws, nor any uniform regulations regarding the number of mates one could have. 

For the most part, tribes developed their own norms that were generally accepted by all members. 

Beastmen of the same species tended to share similar views on this matter. However, due to factors such as distance and limited transportation, even within the same species, there were small variations in these norms between tribes. 

Thus, even beastmen with identical beast forms could have different approaches to relationships depending on their tribe.

For example, rabbit tribes typically chose a single mate they were fond of. 

If their mate passed away or the relationship soured, they might seek a second mate, but it was rare for them to have more than one mate at the same time. Tu Cheng had been very dissatisfied with this rule in the past.

Wolf tribes were similar to rabbit tribes in that they only acknowledged one mate. However, due to their personality and temperament, it was rare for wolf beastmen to take a second mate after their first mate’s death. 

In some wolf tribes, when a leader died in a challenge for the position of wolf king, their mate would often take their children and leave the tribe to raise them elsewhere.

Lion tribes had two distinct approaches to relationships. Some, like the rabbit and wolf tribes, chose only one mate. However, most leaders or sub-leaders, such as Shi Hong, preferred to have multiple mates.

Many beastmen did not immediately present their cubs to the tribe after they were born. 

For lion tribes, the first step after returning to the tribe with their cubs was obtaining their mate’s acknowledgment. Only then would the cub receive the father’s protection and food. 

If a male lion discovered the cub was not his, some would drive both the mate and the cub away, while others would kill them outright. The most ruthless male lions would not only kill the cubs but also injure or even kill the mate.

In reality, the process by which male lions identified their cubs wasn’t entirely reliable, as it depended on the environment and the beastmen they interacted with. However, this practice had been ingrained for so long and was such a rare occurrence in the past—happening only once or twice a year—that no one had ever questioned its validity.

But in the past two years, nearly a quarter of all cubs born in the tribe had been killed under this pretense. 

Even for lion tribes, which had relatively high birth rates, this number was terrifying. 

The decisions to kill these cubs were primarily made by Shi Hong and the other sub-leaders. 

The beastmen who lost their cubs were usually of lower status than the decision-makers. 

Sometimes, after killing a cub, these leaders would “mercifully” spare the mother’s life. The injustice of these acts could only be felt by the beastmen who had lost their children.

Some mothers and their cubs were killed together. 

Others chose to remarry with different beastmen or left the hunting teams to join groups dedicated to raising cubs within the tribe. A few beastmen went mad after losing their cubs, lashing out by killing other young cubs in a frenzy.

After piecing this together, Bai Tu had the beastwomen who had experienced these losses, but who had not harmed other cubs, confined in a cave. He encouraged them to reflect and consider whether they had anything to share with him.

Bai Tu understood how important children were to their mothers and knew this was the most likely point of breakthrough. 

As mates of the leaders or sub-leaders, these women likely had more knowledge than those of lower status. Furthermore, they had conflicting interests with Shi Hong and his allies, making them less likely to align with them.

Bai Tu sympathized with these beastwomen’s plight. While he reminded them of the alarming increase in cub deaths over the past two years, he also treated them better than the other lion tribe captives.

Recently, some of these beastwomen had begun to reveal bits and pieces of information. Most, however, were disheartened and apathetic after having their cubs killed by their former mates, and they hadn’t paid much attention to important details. 

Still, there were some gains—several of them even chose to ask their families for further information.

Bai Tu also uncovered a significant lead: most of the beastmen who had lost cubs had relatives who were at odds with Shi Hong or Hu Bu. These relatives often held some level of respect within the tribe due to their abilities, though not enough to directly challenge the leadership.

The entire situation became much easier to piece together: the deaths of the cubs were undoubtedly connected to Shi Hong and Hu Bu. The beastmen who despised Shi Hong for the damage he had caused to the tribe were now doing their best to recall answers to Bai Tu’s questions—such as which beastmen had close contact with Hu Bu, or which tribes Hu Bu frequently communicated with.

The lion beastman delivering today’s message was called Shi Zhen, the father of Shi Hong’s deceased mate. 

Shi Zhen had two sons and two daughters. His eldest daughter had become Shi Hong’s mate and given birth to a child, who later died from a severe illness. 

His younger daughter, two years ago, had become the mate of another sub-leader in the tribe, but the cub she gave birth to last year had been killed by that sub-leader. 

Furious, Shi Zhen and his two sons retaliated by biting off one of the sub-leader’s legs, but the three of them were punished by Shi Hong afterward.

Shi Zhen recalled that Shi Hong and Hu Bu frequently communicated with the Bald Tribe.

The Bald Tribe’s official name was the Red Eagle Tribe. 

Despite their name, their feathers weren’t red. The tribe earned the name “Red Eagle” because their faces and necks would turn bright red when competing for food. 

As for the nickname “Bald Tribe,” that was given to them by other beastmen because, in both their beast and human forms, they were completely hairless, their heads smooth and shiny.

Bai Tu asked, “Is the Bald Tribe located on the Southern Continent?” 

Feathered beast tribes typically lived on the Southern Continent. Back in the day, Bai Tu would have simply asked Lang Qi about such things, and sometimes Lang Qi would proactively provide the information without being asked. Bai Tu sighed softly—things just weren’t as convenient as before.

“Their territory is at the junction of the Southern and Eastern Continents,” came a reply.

Bai Tu was just about to nod when he realized the answer hadn’t come from Shi Zhen. Stunned, he turned to look at Lang Qi, who stood beside him, disbelief written all over his face. “You remembered?” This was big news—more exciting than anything else he had heard so far.

Lang Qi shook his head. He didn’t actually remember anything, but when Bai Tu asked the question, the answer simply came to him.

And that wasn’t all. Lang Qi continued, sharing more information: “The Bald Tribe used to live next to the Black Eagle Tribe. Due to conflicts, they were driven out by the Black Eagle Tribe and a few neighboring eagle tribes. Eventually, they moved to the area between the Southeastern Continents.”

Seeing Lang Qi shake his head, Bai Tu’s initial excitement deflated. However, he quickly reminded himself that the current situation was already a huge improvement compared to where they started.

With the amount of information they were uncovering, they would eventually find the answers they sought. With that thought, Bai Tu calmed his emotions and regained his composure.

Shi Zhen looked on with admiration. “The Wolf King was absolutely right. The Red Eagle Tribe was driven out by other eagle tribes, but no one knows the exact reason.” 

After all, the distance was too great. Market exchanges typically only occurred between beastmen of the same continent. 

Few would risk traveling such vast distances to another continent—not just because of the dangers, but also because of the immense amount of food and supplies needed for such a journey, which most tribes simply couldn’t afford.

This lack of travel also meant that communication between continents was severely delayed. 

News of events from two or three years ago might only reach other continents now. For example, it had been a long time since the Iron Elephant Tribe had traded iron knives, but the Eastern Continent still hadn’t received word of this development.

Bai Tu nodded. 

Finding out the cause of the conflict wouldn’t be too difficult—Hei Xiao was on his way. Bai Tu had a strong intuition that the Red Eagle Tribe being ostracized by the other eagle tribes was directly tied to Hu Bu’s connections with them.

However, Shi Zhen only knew that Hu Bu had ties to the Bald Tribe and couldn’t provide much more. 

Since his eldest daughter’s death, Shi Hong had accused Shi Zhen of failing to raise the cub properly, using it as an excuse to undermine him. Later, Shi Zhen clashed with another sub-leader, which only made Shi Hong more wary of him.

As Shi Zhen regretted not observing more closely back then, he suddenly remembered something else. “There was one time I overheard someone from the Bald Tribe say something to Hu Bu.”

Bai Tu straightened up. “What did they say?”

Shi Zhen glanced at Lang Qi before replying, “That person told Hu Bu, ‘Master Wu Lai misses you greatly.’ After hearing that, Hu Bu’s face turned very unpleasant.”

Shi Zhen didn’t think much of Hu Bu. After all, Hu Bu had taken his daughter’s place as Shi Hong’s mate, and he even suspected Hu Bu was involved in his daughter’s death. 

His daughter had been one of the strongest members of the hunting team—how could it be such a coincidence that she died shortly after Hu Bu’s arrival? Back then, seeing Hu Bu’s dark expression had only given Shi Zhen a sense of satisfaction.

Bai Tu frowned. “Wu Lai?” The name made him uneasy. He’d developed a psychological aversion to anyone with “Wu” (witch) in their name. While he knew he couldn’t lump all witch doctors together, every mention of them so far had been tied to trouble.

Lang Qi automatically followed up. “Wu Lai is Wu Jiu’s eldest disciple. He used to be inconspicuous, but about a decade ago, he suddenly gained Wu Jiu’s favor, and his status rose rapidly. Three years ago, he officially became Wu Jiu’s top disciple.” 

Lang Qi added a note of explanation: “Wu Jiu’s disciples are ranked by ability—the more capable they are, the higher their rank. Becoming the top disciple places him just below Wu Jiu in status. That’s far above that fool who once tried to curry favor with Wu Jiu by naming himself Wu Jiulun.”

“Three years…” Bai Tu murmured, considering the timeline. That was the same year Hu Bu returned to the Red Fox Tribe.

As he pondered, another question came to mind. “When exactly did the Red Eagle Tribe move to their new territory?”

Lang Qi answered, “Fifteen years ago.”

“How old is Hu Bu now?”

This question stumped Lang Qi. He had little interest in either the Red Fox Tribe or the Mad Lion Tribe, and he certainly hadn’t bothered to learn Hu Bu’s age.

Shi Zhen, watching their exchange, finally had something to contribute. “He’s twenty-three. He was twenty-one when he became Shi Hong’s mate.” At the time, his eldest daughter was still alive, so of course, Shi Zhen had made a point of investigating Shi Hong’s new mate’s identity and age.

Bai Tu nodded and pieced together the timeline: Sixteen years ago, a seven-year-old Hu Bu left his tribe and wandered far away. 

Fifteen years ago, the Red Eagle Tribe, after provoking conflicts with neighboring tribes, moved to a new territory. 

Shortly after, the previously obscure Wu Lai began rising in prominence under Wu Jiu’s favor. Three years ago, Wu Lai became Wu Jiu’s top disciple, and at the same time, Hu Bu returned to the Red Fox Tribe, claiming to have learned medical skills in a large tribe.

The connection between Hu Bu and Wu Lai was now blatantly obvious. The only thing left to uncover was what had happened back then.

Bai Tu’s anticipation for Hei Xiao’s arrival grew even stronger.

Since Shi Zhen and his daughter were cooperative and their family hadn’t harmed the wolf tribe, Bai Tu approached Lang You and arranged for them to choose some work.

The lion tribe’s numbers were too large to keep everyone idle and locked up. 

Those who had shown no signs of troublemaking were given the opportunity to work. While their current jobs didn’t earn them any points yet, they were provided with enough food—more than enough to convince the lions, who had been heavily oppressed in the Mad Lion Tribe, to comply. 

After all, they were doing the same work, but here, they weren’t beaten and could eat their fill. This life was already far better than before. The prospect of possibly becoming an official member of the tribe if they performed well only made it even more enticing.

Some, like Shi Zhen, who actively cooperated during questioning, were treated slightly better. 

They were given the opportunity to choose their work assignments. Different tasks offered different benefits, and they could select jobs based on their needs—a more humane system overall.

As for the small lion tribe leaders who still harbored thoughts of taking over the rabbit tribe, they weren’t so lucky. 

The harshest, most exhausting tasks awaited them, and these jobs were mandatory. Those who refused to work would face beatings and hunger. No tribe would waste resources on idle troublemakers.

After making these arrangements, Bai Tu held Lang Qi’s hand as they walked back. 

Along the way, Bai Tu asked him numerous questions, noticing an interesting pattern. Lang Qi hadn’t fully recovered, but it was as if his mind held a storage of knowledge that he could only access when given specific keywords.

Feeling like he’d gained an AI assistant, Bai Tu found the questioning process amusing.

Bai Tu: “Who is Lang Ze?”
Lang Qi thought for a moment before answering, “A brat who needs a beating.”
Bai Tu: “Who is Bai Tu?”
Lang Qi glanced at him but remained silent.

Bai Tu wanted to ask about the cubs next but remembered that cubs weren’t given names until they turned three. He sighed.

Just as the two were in the middle of their question-and-answer session, Lang Ze came sprinting over, looking panicked. “Brother! Tu! Help me!”

Bai Tu was startled. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s Hu Bu! He’s gone crazy!”

“Hmm?” Bai Tu frowned. He had planned to keep Hu Bu alive a little longer to extract more information. Was he already falling apart?

Lang Ze frantically nodded, his face filled with fear. “He…he…he’s groping people!”