Building a Civilization and Raising Cubs in the Beast World – CH94

Chapter 94

Hearing the noise outside, Hu Lian shuddered mid-explanation, nearly stumbling in fear. “What do we do? Chief Hong Tian will definitely find out…”

She was truly terrified. 

Although Hong Tian and Wu Lai’s relationship wasn’t as good as it appeared on the surface, they were still from the same tribe. No matter how strained their ties were, they had just killed Wu Lai—Hong Tian wouldn’t let them off so easily.

“It’s fine. The situation outside is already under control.” Bai Tu trusted Hei Xiao. If things weren’t settled, he wouldn’t have sent the signal.

Bai Tu walked to the entrance and tapped his knife against the stone slab a few times. Faint cheers rang out from outside, followed by the sound of people moving the stone.

Glancing back at Wu Lai’s corpse, Bai Tu silently took two steps to the side. Though the man was already dead, the massive snake lying in the middle of the cave was still unnerving to look at.

Lang Qi noticed Bai Tu’s reaction but said nothing. He simply walked toward the snake.

Reaching the middle of the snake’s body, Lang Qi bent down, intending to drag it aside—when suddenly, the snake’s head shot up from the ground.

Bai Tu’s heart nearly stopped.

“Watch out!” he shouted in alarm.

At the sound of Bai Tu’s warning, Lang Qi immediately rolled to the side.

The snake’s head had no strength left for another strike. It could only watch helplessly as Lang Qi moved farther away, its vision locking onto its own familiar body instead.

Wu Lai realized, in his final moment, that he had missed his last opportunity to take them all down. He wanted to release his venom and kill everyone in the cave—but it was too late.

His heart had been fatally wounded. He had only managed to hold onto a sliver of life thanks to years of survival instincts. But now, that last breath slipped away.

His own fangs sank into his flesh.

A lifetime of poisoning others, and in the end, Wu Lai died by his own venom.

“A feigned death?” Bai Tu’s face was still pale from the scare. 

Even though the danger had passed, he still felt lingering fear. He looked at the now completely motionless many-banded krait. We underestimated Wu Lai’s abilities.

“It’s over.” Lang Qi was unconcerned about whether Wu Lai had been truly dead before or just pretending. 

What mattered more to him was Bai Tu’s reaction. He reached out awkwardly and patted Bai Tu’s back a few times. “Don’t be scared.”

The moment Hei Xiao and his group entered, this was the scene they saw.

Hei Xiao, leading the group, immediately noticed the dead snake not far behind Bai Tu and Lang Qi. A thousand possibilities flashed through his mind in an instant, and his heart nearly leaped out of his chest.

“What happened to Tu?” he asked urgently.

“Wu Lai suddenly moved and almost attacked Qi,” Bai Tu quickly explained.

“Oh, it was a snake.” Hei Yan walked over for a closer look. 

Snakes were part of an eagle’s natural diet, so normally, the sight of one would be appetizing. But as soon as he remembered that this was Wu Lai—the same Wu Lai they had just spoken to—his appetite vanished entirely.

Bai Tu briefly summarized what he had learned. “Wu Lai used snake venom to ‘treat’ patients. After you left, he planned to inject venom into Qi while in his beast form.”

Wu Lai had some medical knowledge, and with years of experimentation, he was well aware of the effects of his own venom and how to manipulate it.

A small dose mixed with herbs could render someone mute for a few days and extend their periods of unconsciousness—this was what he had been feeding the cubs.

A slightly higher dose would cause a deep, coma-like sleep. 

Wu Lai used this alongside certain medicinal treatments on his patients. The agonized beastmen who came to him for help would suddenly fall into a peaceful slumber, leading others to believe his medical skills were extraordinary.

In reality, the venom often worsened their condition.

According to Hu Lian, Wu Lai had created other types of medicine as well. However, he was always extremely cautious—he only allowed Hu Lian to stay when he needed help. 

If it was something he could handle alone, he would send her away in advance.

Aside from the room they had just opened, there was a row of other chambers, each sealed with a massive stone slab. The wolves pushed them all open one by one.

The first three chambers contained piles of food. Some of the poorly preserved meat, left sitting for too long, had begun to emit a foul odor.

“These must have come from the beastmen who sought treatment,” Hei Xiao deduced at a glance.

Wu Lai’s reputation was well-known, and many beastmen had come to him for medicine. The food they offered as payment had all been stored here.

At least a third of the food was already spoiled, which meant it had likely been accumulating for a long time.

Bai Tu frowned. “Leave the food for now. We’ll ask Hong Tian which tribes it belongs to once he wakes up.”

Their target this time was the Red Eagle Tribe, but they couldn’t take all the food with them. 

Even if they could physically carry it all, the food originally belonged to those who had been scammed by Wu Lai. 

Those beastmen had already suffered enough, being tricked into eating poison—losing their supplies on top of that would be even worse.

Most tribes barely had enough food for daily consumption after trading a portion for salt. 

Offering food to heal a sick or injured member meant someone else in the tribe would have to go hungry. And with the snow season approaching, those tribes that had recently brought food here were likely already struggling to prepare for winter.

Instead of touching the stored food, they moved on to check the other chambers.

As Bai Tu approached the next one, his steps faltered ever so slightly.

Lang Qi noticed immediately. “Are you feeling unwell?”

He glanced briefly at the already lifeless snake outside, then gently patted Bai Tu’s back—just as Bai Tu often did to soothe young cubs.

“I feel… familiar with this place.” Bai Tu frowned.

“All the cubs were kept in the previous chamber, right?” Bai Tu turned to confirm with Hu Lian, feeling that something wasn’t adding up.

If he had been locked up here since childhood, why didn’t he have any memory of that chamber? And why did this one feel strangely familiar?

Hu Lian hesitated, caught off guard by the question. “I only know about that one…”

She had only ever seen Wu Lai drawing blood from cubs in that chamber. Since she had spent some time there herself, she had occasionally been tasked with delivering food to them when Wu Lai was busy.

Bai Tu nodded and didn’t press further. Instead, he stepped into the chamber to investigate.

Unlike the previous rooms, this one didn’t store food—it was filled with medicinal herbs.

It was unclear what Wu Lai had been planning, but the proportion of poisonous herbs was abnormally high. 

While some toxic plants could be used for medicine, the overwhelming presence of poisons in this chamber was unsettling.

Bai Tu warned everyone not to touch anything and used animal hides found in the cave to carefully wrap up the most dangerous herbs and the various unidentified bottles and jars before continuing the search.

“This should be everything, right?” Hei Yan asked, puzzled. The poisonous materials had already been packed up, yet they still weren’t leaving.

“What are you waiting for?” he added impatiently. “There are still two more caves to check.”

“Hold on a moment,” Bai Tu said.

He raised his knife and tapped it against the stone wall beside him.

The first part of the wall inspection went smoothly, but when Bai Tu reached the deepest section of the chamber, the sound of his tapping suddenly changed—it was hollow inside.

Frowning, Bai Tu examined the area closely. 

On the ground sat a half-meter square stone block, resembling the stools scattered throughout the cave. Similar stone blocks could be found all over the cave, with the most concentrated in the outermost chamber—at least twenty in total.

At first glance, the stone seemed ordinary, but something about it felt off to Bai Tu. Given that the wall behind it was hollow, he immediately called for Lang Qi. “Move the stone.”

Lang Qi nodded, lifted the stone, and tossed it outside.

Before, they had tried to minimize noise to avoid alerting the Red Eagle Tribe outside. But now, with the situation under control, there was no need for such caution.

Bai Tu crouched down and studied the exposed ground. Beneath the stone was a slightly smaller square slab. He slid his knife into the narrow gap and, despite not exerting much force, easily pried the stone loose.

A passageway, just large enough for a small child to crawl through, appeared before them.

Bai Tu turned to look at the others.

The Rabbit Tribe members weren’t here, which made excavation more difficult. While the Wolf Tribe was superior in hunting, the Rabbit Tribe excelled in digging tunnels.

Since there were no rabbits available, they had to rely on someone else. Bai Tu pointed to two wolf orcs. “Widen the passage.”

Right now, it was too small—unless they shifted into their beast forms, neither he nor Hei Jian could fit through.

As soon as Bai Tu finished speaking, several Wolf Tribe members immediately transformed into their beast forms. Their nearby tribemates helped remove their animal hides, and they joined the digging effort.

“Be careful while digging,” Bai Tu reminded them. His instincts told him there was something inside—and quite a lot of it.

Using stones to break through would have been faster, but he worried that the noise and falling debris might damage whatever was inside. He chose the safest method instead.

The wolves, unable to speak in beast form, merely nodded in acknowledgment before quickly getting to work.

Even though they weren’t as skilled as the Rabbit Tribe, their numbers made up for it. The wolves dug upward along the passage, and in no time, they had reached the hollow space Bai Tu had tapped earlier.

They had only dug up to shoulder height, but that was enough. Bai Tu waved away the dust stirred up by the excavation, waiting until the visibility improved before stepping forward.

“I’ll go in first,” Lang Qi said, lowering his head to enter the tunnel. Bai Tu followed right behind him.

The moment Bai Tu got a clear view of the cave’s interior, he froze.

Compared to the previous chambers, this one was in even worse condition. It was pitch-dark, with only the faintest sliver of light seeping through the newly dug opening.

And in the dimness, they saw them—cubs locked inside iron cages.

Unlike the previous group, who had been tied up with vines, these cubs were imprisoned in metal cages, their confined spaces barely larger than their own bodies.

Flashes of memory surged through Bai Tu’s mind.

He was almost certain—he had been here before.

The surrounding darkness, the suffocating oppression—it was even more stifling than it was now.

Realizing that the cubs’ condition was worsening, Bai Tu immediately ordered the wolves to move them outside.

Worried that the sudden exposure to bright light would be too harsh, they covered each cage with thick animal hides before carrying them out.

Perhaps sensing the change, a few cubs began to stir.

But even after waking, they made no sound. Instead, they gazed cautiously at the outside world, their tiny eyes filled with silent wariness.

Hu Lian’s eyes widened in shock.

She had spent over a month by Wu Lai’s side—yet she had never seen these cubs before.

From the looks of them, they had also been drugged. However, Bai Tu didn’t know why they had been separated into this chamber. That question would have to wait.

For now, the priority was ensuring the cubs’ safety.

Once they were settled, Bai Tu turned his attention to the remaining stone walls and began tapping again.

The others remained silent, watching as more iron cages were placed outside, but no one interrupted Bai Tu’s work.

The hollow sound from the stone wall was different from the dense, heavy thuds of solid rock. The next two chambers contained supplies such as animal hides and other materials. However, in the last chamber, Bai Tu once again noticed an unusual sound when he knocked against the walls.

Unlike the previous hidden area, this one was concealed differently—it was covered by layers of animal hides hanging from the wall.

This time, there was no need to dig. Once they moved the hides aside, the hidden storage was immediately revealed—a large stockpile of salt and ironware, including iron cages, iron knives, and iron pots and bowls.

“These came from the Iron Elephant Tribe,” Hei Xiao immediately concluded.

He had only ever seen these types of tools in the Iron Elephant Tribe, and the tribe had previously maintained close ties with the Red Eagle Tribe.

Hei Jian glanced around. “No wonder they’ve been so reluctant to trade iron tools lately.”

In recent years, the Iron Elephant Tribe had only traded a limited number of iron knives, making them almost legendary tools among many beastmen.

This chamber wasn’t very large—smaller than the one where the cubs were held—but it was nearly overflowing with iron goods.

The number of Iron Elephant Tribe members who trusted Wu Lai was far greater than they had assumed. 

Hei Xiao had mentioned before that the tribe had loyal followers of Wu Lai, but judging by this stockpile, there were likely hidden supporters they hadn’t uncovered yet.

Bai Tu frowned. “We shouldn’t send these back for now, and don’t inform the Iron Elephant Tribe that we found them.”

Wu Lai had gone to great lengths to conceal this chamber. They could simply restore its original state and claim they never saw anything.

Bai Tu’s gaze swept across the various iron tools.

Hei Xiao considered for a moment. Though their relationship with the Iron Elephant Tribe was decent, he ultimately decided to follow Bai Tu’s advice.

Food, salt, and ironware were not their immediate concerns—rescuing the cubs was the top priority.

Before Bai An and the others arrived, Bai Tu led the group in removing the bindings—the vines, ropes, and iron cages that restrained the cubs.

“The Red Eagle Tribe should have carrying baskets. Find as many as possible,” Bai Tu instructed.

There was still some time before the Red Eagle beastmen regained consciousness, but not all of them had been affected. Carrying the cubs out one by one wasn’t feasible; using proper containers would be more efficient.

“The baskets we used for food earlier are at the foot of the mountain,” Hei Xiao said before immediately leading a group of wolves to retrieve them.

The food they had brought came in a great variety, most of which the Red Eagle Tribe had never seen before. Now, nearly all the carrying baskets were empty.

*

Meanwhile, Hei Xiao had noticed the tension between Hong Tian and Wu Lai, so he deliberately fanned the flames. He reminded Hong Tian that if they ate all the food now, Wu Lai wouldn’t be able to say anything about it.

The conflict between Hong Tian and Wu Lai hadn’t developed overnight. Hong Tian had long been displeased with Wu Lai hoarding all the food brought by visiting beastmen instead of sharing it with the Red Eagle Tribe.

After all, the tribe had assigned dozens of its strongest warriors to protect Wu Lai—an entire hunting team’s worth of manpower. 

Many of their people had also followed Wu Lai’s orders to steal or abduct cubs, making enemies of numerous tribes in the process. And yet, despite all this, Wu Lai refused to share even his excess food with them.

Additionally, there was a power struggle between the shaman and the chief. The more influential the shaman became, the less authority the chief held. As Wu Lai’s reputation grew, his attitude toward Hong Tian worsened.

Hong Tian had endured being publicly humiliated by Wu Lai in front of his own tribe, which only deepened his resentment.

With all these tensions building up, it was only a matter of time before they exploded.

Hei Xiao’s words simply accelerated the process.

Hong Tian, thinking this was a great idea, made up his mind. Wu Lai wouldn’t be finished treating patients for at least half a day—by the time he came out, the food would already be gone. What could he do about it?

Although the wolves had brought a substantial amount of food, the Red Eagle Tribe had over two thousand members. Each person would only get a handful at most.

Fearing Wu Lai might retaliate once he returned, Hong Tian waved his hand and ordered his people to grab food and eat quickly.

Among the Red Eagle Tribe, Wu Lai was the only one living in luxury.

Since they had offended the surrounding tribes and couldn’t travel far for resources, the decline in game this year had made life much harder than in previous years.

They hadn’t experienced outright starvation yet, but food had become scarce. Now, with such fragrant meals placed before them and their chief himself giving them permission, what reason did they have to hesitate?

While Wu Lai was being pinned down and beaten by Lang Qi inside the cave, the feast outside was in full swing.

The drug Bai Tu had used was similar to the one he had given Lang Qi previously. While not completely tasteless, it blended seamlessly with the rich spices. Unless someone was highly knowledgeable about medicine, they wouldn’t notice anything unusual.

The drug didn’t take immediate effect. Instead, as it was digested, it slowly induced drowsiness.

Many who had eaten soon felt sleepier than usual, but they simply attributed it to being full.

At first, some vultures who dozed off were mocked by their peers.

But as more and more people fell into a deep slumber, Hong Tian realized something was wrong.

By then, it was too late.

Nearly two-thirds of the Red Eagle Tribe had already eaten the food!

The remaining ones were either out of the settlement or were young cubs who hadn’t been given any food.

Expecting them to fight off the Wolf Tribe was laughable.

Even worse, Hong Tian himself began to feel drowsy.

As the chief, he had eaten later than most, so the effects took longer to set in.

He tried to resist, forcing himself to stay awake, but his body wouldn’t listen.

In the end, he succumbed, unwillingly falling into unconsciousness.

When Bai An and the others arrived, the Red Eagle beastmen were still fast asleep.

Everyone swiftly got to work—some carried the cubs, while others tied up the unconscious enemies.

Though Wu Lai had imprisoned the cubs, the actual kidnappings had mostly been carried out by the Red Eagle Tribe.

Neither side was innocent. Wu Lai’s death didn’t erase the Red Eagle Tribe’s crimes.

“We’ll stay behind to deal with the supplies. You all return to your tribes first,” Hei Xiao volunteered to handle the distribution.

As members of the Hawk Tribe, their flying speed was unmatched. Even if they stayed a few extra days, they could still make it back before the snow arrived.

And even if they couldn’t, as long as they stocked up on enough food, returning during the early snow season wouldn’t be impossible.

But for the Wolf and Rabbit Tribes, waiting wasn’t an option.

The temperatures during the first snowfall would be dangerously low, and the ground could become icy, making travel treacherous.

Returning to the Snow Rabbit Tribe required crossing multiple mountains, and climbing in snowy conditions was one of the most dangerous things one could do.

Even though Hei Xiao was reluctant to part ways with Bai Tu so soon, he had to consider the well-being of their allied tribes.

“As soon as the snow season ends, I’ll come find you,” Hei Jian said, looking at his younger brother. 

It felt like the past ten-odd days had passed in the blink of an eye, and before they could even have a proper conversation, it was already time to part ways.

“Alright.”

Even though he had no memories, Bai Tu had long since accepted this older brother. 

Thinking back, he realized that he had barely spent any time alone with Hei Xiao on this journey. 

Hei Xiao had been taking care of him the whole way, yet most of Bai Tu’s attention had been on the two cubs and Lang Qi—after all, the cubs were still young and on their first long journey, and Lang Qi was always at risk of suffering side effects from the medicine.

Fortunately, neither of them were the sentimental type. They both knew that dealing with the current situation was the priority.

The two of them briefly discussed the Red Eagle beastmen. It was impossible to leave them all here—keeping that many in one place wouldn’t change anything, and using the same method to deal with them again in the future would be nearly impossible.

After some thought, Bai Tu said, “We’ll take half of them with us.”

Even in winter, there was plenty of work to be done in the tribes. These captives could be put to use. As for how they would be treated—so long as they were given food, that was enough.

After seeing the imprisoned cubs, Bai Tu felt that even forced labor was too light of a punishment for them. 

The number of surviving cubs they found was already much higher than what Hu Bu had mentioned before. 

If they factored in those who had been tortured to death by Wu Lai and the beastmen killed by the Red Eagle Tribe, the number would easily double.

The Red Eagle Tribe and Wu Lai had committed too many atrocities—there was no need to show them any mercy. 

Bai Tu had no hesitation about making them do hard labor. If they let them off too easily, who knew if they would repeat the same crimes in the future?

Wu Lai’s so-called method of obtaining the Beast God’s power was nothing more than drinking the blood of cubs—an idea so absurd that Bai Tu didn’t even know how to respond.

If it were really that simple, Wu Lai wouldn’t have ended up being killed by Lang Qi—twice.

As these thoughts ran through his mind, Bai Tu noticed that some of the tribes weren’t tying up the Red Eagle captives properly. 

He immediately gave instructions. “Tie up their arms and hands completely—only leave their legs free. That way, we can just drag them along.”

The Red Eagle Tribe, like the Eagle Tribe, could fly. If their arms weren’t restrained, they could easily flap their wings and escape. Bai Tu wasn’t about to give them that chance.

Hei Xiao had no objections to Bai Tu’s plan. The Hawk Tribe had brought just under two hundred warriors—not enough to fight over a thousand vultures, but more than enough to manage them once they were bound.

Hei Xiao decided to split the remaining captives into two groups—one group would be sent to the Black Hawk Tribe for labor, while the other would stay behind to return the stolen food to the rightful tribes before being transported to the Black Hawk Tribe as well.

Once they settled on their plan, they split up to carry it out.

Bai Tu took charge of the cubs imprisoned by Wu Lai, while the Black Hawk Tribe took custody of the Red Eagle cubs.

There were two reasons for this: first, the Red Eagle cubs all had wings, so the Eagle Tribe would be better suited to train them. Second, they couldn’t place the burden of caring for all the cubs solely on the Wolf and Rabbit Tribes—they already had enough responsibilities.

Neither side had any objections.

Bai Tu and his team prepared a meal that was easy for the cubs to digest. After ensuring everyone was well-fed and had rested for the night, they set out again early the next morning.

Their group had grown significantly—nearly 200 cubs and dozens of adult beastmen who had managed to survive captivity under the Red Eagle Tribe had joined them.

The latter had lived in constant fear of Wu Lai and the Red Eagle Tribe. But now, realizing that they were finally leaving this place, they smiled—truly smiled—for the first time.