Building a Civilization and Raising Cubs in the Beast World – CH95

Chapter 95

The cubs they rescued—the healthiest among them—had been locked up for nearly a month.

Cubs were naturally fragile at this stage of life, and after being confined in a dark cave for so long, they had become extremely wary of any approaching beastmen. Now, suddenly thrust into a completely unfamiliar environment, their fear was overwhelming.

These were still very young cubs, too small to have learned how to defend themselves. When frightened, all they could do was tremble or let out quiet, whimpering cries.

Last night, things had been relatively calm during mealtime. But this morning, a few cubs had started making sounds—Bai Tu knew that meant Wu Lai’s drug was finally wearing off.

This was good news. Even in small doses, poison placed a heavy burden on a cub’s liver and kidneys. However, as the effects faded, the cubs’ voices weren’t just soft little whimpers anymore.

One cub whimpering was cute.

Two cubs whimpering was still adorable.

Even ten or twenty cubs crying at once was tolerable.

But nearly two hundred cubs whimpering and mewling all at once? No matter how fluffy and precious they were, the sheer volume of their cries was enough to make anyone go weak at the knees.

Bai Tu had no choice but to scoop up the loudest ones and comfort them. Fortunately, many of the gatherers in their group were parents themselves and were able to help, preventing things from descending into complete chaos.

By the time they set off, the situation had finally calmed down.

The Lion Tribe warriors were visibly eager to approach the cubs, but Bai Tu stopped them.

Due to their species, some members of both the Lion Tribe and the Wolf Tribe tended to be rougher by nature. This wasn’t usually a problem—in fact, their strength was a major advantage in hunting.

But for these fragile cubs, even a little roughness could be disastrous.

Moreover, these weren’t ordinary cubs. Many had lost a significant amount of blood, making them even weaker than usual.

For the sake of their safety, Bai Tu simply refused everyone access, even those who might be the cubs’ lost relatives.

All reunions would have to wait until they reached the tribes.

Shi Zhen, a Lion Tribe warrior, stared longingly at the small lion cubs curled up together in a carrying basket.

His brother, Shi Jia, had lost his cub over a year ago, but Shi Zhen firmly believed that if he were allowed to approach, he would recognize his nephew instantly.

However, Bai Tu wouldn’t allow it, so all he could do was watch the little lions, yearning to hold them.

Aside from their rough handling, there was another reason Bai Tu refused to let people near the cubs.

These little ones had already been traumatized.

They were extremely wary of unfamiliar scents. Right now, only a few specific caretakers were rotating shifts to look after them. Once the cubs grew accustomed to their scents, they would stop resisting.

But if too many strangers approached at once, it would be like reliving their trauma all over again.

Bai Tu refused to let that happen.

Due to Hu Bu’s actions, lion cubs made up about one-sixth of the rescued group—over thirty in total.

Trying to identify their own missing cubs would require the lions to sniff every single one of them.

But with so much time having passed since their disappearance, scent recognition wouldn’t be immediate. It would take multiple attempts to distinguish them correctly.

Now imagine a towering lion beastman—who could swallow them whole in a single bite—looming over them, sniffing them repeatedly.

It was easy to imagine how terrifying that scene would be.

Fortunately, the Lion Tribe warriors understood the logic behind Bai Tu’s decision.

Ordinarily, some braver cubs would be curious when meeting new people, even sneaking closer to observe unfamiliar beastmen.

But these cubs had already been scared beyond their limits.

Now, they simply huddled together inside the baskets, clinging to each other in silence. Even their fearful cries were barely above a whisper.

From the other rescued beastmen, Bai Tu learned that most of these cubs were under ten years old.

The older ones—those who could shift into human form—had been let out of captivity.

“I shifted into human form when I was just over five years old,” a young tiger beastman said. “After that, I lived in the Red Eagle Tribe the whole time.”

The young beastman was named Hu Heng. He had been captured just before turning three.

Although he hadn’t yet been able to shift into his human form at the time, his natural strength as a tiger beastman, combined with the fact that he had not lacked food while in his tribe, made him slightly bigger than other cubs his age.

Cubs under three had very limited understanding of the world, but Hu Heng retained some memories from his time with the Tiger Tribe.

Even though he had suffered greatly afterward, he was braver than most of the other cubs.

Wu Lai would periodically feed them unknown substances mixed into their food and water.

Coupled with the constant bloodletting, the cubs imprisoned in that cave experienced severe developmental delays.

In fact, the water Wu Lai gave them contained something that actively slowed down their growth.

Normally, a cub could shift into human form around the age of three. Even those suffering from malnutrition would typically complete their first transformation by four.

However, cubs who were underfed or weakened by Wu Lai’s medicines would not shift until around ten years old—and even then, they would be frail.

This was evident in the beastmen they had just rescued.

Hu Heng was in a slightly better condition than most.

Thanks to the energy he had stored in his first three years, he was able to shift into human form just two years after being captured by the Red Eagle Tribe—despite being force-fed drugs the entire time.

Once a cub successfully transformed, they were taken out of the cave and handed over to the Red Eagle Tribe to be raised. When they got a little older, they were forced to work.

Since Hu Heng had lived in the Red Eagle Tribe longer than Hu Lian, he had learned even more about Wu Lai’s dark dealings, even though Wu Lai tried to keep things secret.

In the minds of Hu Heng and the other rescued beastmen, Wu Lai’s crimes ran even deeper.

“Wu Lai also captured pregnant beastmen and forced them to drink blood. Once they gave birth, he killed the mothers and took the cubs away.”

“One time, I heard Wu Lai complaining that a cub was too big—he sounded really unhappy.”

“If the cub was particularly small, though, Wu Lai would be satisfied. He would spare the mother so she could give birth again…”

Bai Tu suddenly recalled something Hei Xiao had mentioned before—that some beastmen specifically kidnapped small-sized individuals.

Connecting that with what he had just learned—and remembering the cubs that had been locked in iron cages—he instantly realized the truth.

Wu Lai had been raising those cubs to trade them to other tribes or shamans in exchange for goods.

*

Traveling from the Red Eagle Tribe’s territory to the Snow Rabbit Tribe would take eight days.

Since the temperature had dropped sharply in recent days, everyone ran the entire way back, barely stopping.

Some of the Red Eagle captives were reluctant to leave.

They were familiar with their own territory.

If they tried to fight back while still within Red Eagle lands, they might have a chance.

But once they were taken out of their own territory, even if they could resist, they would have to consider the dangers of lingering near an unfamiliar tribe’s borders.

However, Bai An and the others didn’t give them any opportunity to rebel.

Didn’t want to move? Fine.

They would simply be tied up completely, tossed onto the ground, and dragged along by wolf or lion beastmen in their animal forms.

This wasn’t some gentle pulling, either.

With the fast pace of the group and their bodies tightly bound into immobile balls, the vultures who refused to walk quickly realized that their exposed skin was starting to burn from the friction.

By the time the group finally stopped, the sensation had long passed “burning”—the animal hides they wore had been completely worn away.

The exposed skin, now scraped against rough gravel, had been left with deep, blood-red wounds.

“Anyone who refuses to walk will be dragged like this,” Bai An stated coldly.

He had already heard Bai Tu’s explanation and knew these beastmen had committed countless atrocities.

They deserved no mercy.

So he didn’t hold back in the slightest.

Anyone who delayed their return to the tribe would be punished. All of them.

Seeing the wounds on the captive’s body—and his shivering form, now exposed to the cold after his animal hide had been worn away—the other vultures who had been planning to resist quickly changed their minds.

They were even relieved that they had reacted fast enough, fearing that if they had hesitated any longer, they would have ended up like him.

Just imagining being tied up and dragged along the ground was horrifying enough.

Bai Tu heard about what Bai An was doing but made no move to stop him.

The method was a bit harsh, but compared to what the Red Eagle Tribe had done, it wasn’t severe at all.

The one who had refused to walk had only suffered minor injuries, whereas the stolen cubs had endured far worse.

As expected, the rest of the Red Eagle captives quickly fell in line.

At first, Bai Tu walked on his own. But when he felt it was slowing him down, he simply shifted into his beast form and hopped onto Lang Qi’s back—just as he had done before.

It was undeniably easier this way.

The beastmen closest to them were already used to it.

After all, they had seen Bai Tu’s beast form when they went to the market. Though they were still surprised at how small he was, they didn’t gather around to gawk anymore.

Hu Heng and the other rescued beastmen, however, had never seen Bai Tu or Lang Qi’s beast forms before.

When they saw Lang Qi’s massive wolf form, their first reaction was one of understanding.

No wonder he was able to kill Wu Lai.

After all, they had only heard Hu Lian’s story but had never witnessed Wu Lai’s death firsthand.

But when they saw Bai Tu’s tiny rabbit form, their shock went beyond mere surprise.

They had never imagined that the one who had saved them was this small.

It felt like they could cover him with just one hand.

A timid girl, who had remained silent all this time, suddenly froze, staring at him.

She didn’t move until the little white rabbit disappeared into the thick fur on the giant wolf’s back.

Then, as if something clicked in her mind, she suddenly cried out excitedly, “Bai Tu! Are you Bai Tu?!”

The same Bai Tu who had been captured and taken to the Red Eagle Tribe with them—only to later be taken away by Hu Bu.

Very few people in the Red Eagle Tribe knew Bai Tu’s name.

Aside from Wu Lai and Hong Guo—who were both dead—only a handful of Wu Lai’s trusted vultures were aware of him.

This girl, however, was a special case.

Her beast form was very small.

She had once been imprisoned in the same place as Bai Tu. Even after she could shift into human form, she had continued to be bled and had rarely interacted with others.

Recently, with the drop in temperature, Wu Lai had planned to move to a cave at the front of the mountain, bringing the cubs and supplies along with him.

However, since there were too many things to move at once—and because Wu Lai didn’t want Hong Tian to find out—he had chosen to relocate everything in batches.

Beastmen with small beast forms who could shift into human form had been moved ahead of time.

This was why Bai Tu hadn’t been able to find them at first—they had been kept in a different cave.

After leaving the cave, the girl had remained silent.

Listening to Hu Heng and the others talk about Wu Lai’s atrocities—especially when they mentioned his obsession with size—only made her shrink into herself even more.

Beastmen with small forms never had an easy life, no matter which tribe they ended up in.

Few tribes treated them well.

Hu Heng was able to speak so freely with their rescuers partly because he was a tiger beastman.

No tribe would reject a tiger cub about to enter his prime—every tribe valued the Tiger Tribe’s hunting abilities.

As long as he wasn’t stuck in a place like the Red Eagle Tribe, Hu Heng would thrive anywhere.

But the girl?

She didn’t dare speak.

She was terrified that if she drew too much attention, someone would ask about her species and her size.

She feared that once they knew, they would trade her off to another tribe for supplies—just like salt or food.

Having spent so much time in the Red Eagle Tribe, she understood this reality all too well.

Beastmen like her—small and weak—were little more than trade goods in the eyes of many.

When she first saw the person who had rescued them, she had found him somewhat familiar.

But she hadn’t dared to say anything.

This morning, his hair was lighter than before.

She had her suspicions, but she didn’t dare confirm them.

After all, the moment she spoke up, she would expose her own identity.

And since she hadn’t heard anyone else call out Bai Tu’s name, she had chosen to remain silent.

But then—

He had shifted into his beast form right in front of them.

At that moment, she knew she was right.

It really was Bai Tu—the one who had escaped the Red Eagle Tribe!

In an instant, all the fears and worries she had been holding onto vanished.

Hearing someone call Bai Tu’s name, Lang Qi stopped walking and turned his head to look at the girl who had spoken.

His gaze alone made her shudder.

Thankfully, Lang Ze was a little more reliable this time.

Realizing that both Bai Tu and Lang Qi were in their beast forms and couldn’t speak, he stepped in and asked, “You know Bai Tu?”

Lang Ze was still young.

Even though he was also a wolf beastman, he didn’t look nearly as intimidating as Lang Qi.

Because of that, the girl’s fear lessened slightly.

She nodded. “Before, Bai Tu and I were imprisoned in the same cave.”

Hearing this, Lang Qi glanced at her, as if assessing her combat strength.

After a brief evaluation, he concluded—She wouldn’t survive a single swipe of my claws. No threat. She can’t steal Bai Tu.

Lying on Lang Qi’s back, Bai Tu suddenly regretted acting so quickly earlier.

Now that he had come out from under the animal hide, if he wanted to shift back into human form, he would have to grab the hide and find a tent.

But the group had already set off, and stopping now just to transform wasn’t practical.

So, he simply grabbed onto Lang Qi and listened to the conversation between Lang Ze and the girl.

After all, they were already uncovering a lot of information.

Bai Tu yawned.

Another reason he didn’t want to shift back into human form was that he was simply exhausted.

Caring for so many cubs—even with help—had taken a lot of effort.

On top of that, he had to keep an eye on Lang Qi’s temper.

Both physically and mentally, he was completely drained.

Lang Qi’s body temperature was slightly higher than his own, especially in beast form.

With his thick fur wrapped around Bai Tu, it was comfortably warm.

Right now, he didn’t even need an animal hide—he could sleep soundly just like this.

One of the little wolf cubs, still half-asleep, caught Bai Tu’s familiar scent and instinctively crawled toward him.

As soon as it got close, it sniffed at Bai Tu’s paws and belly—only to find that he carried the scent of someone else.

Unhappy, the cub began licking his paws, trying to cover up the unfamiliar scent with its own.

Bai Tu sighed helplessly and lifted a paw to press it against the cub’s head.

But he forgot—he was currently in his beast form.

And in this form, he was actually smaller than the wolf cubs.

His raised paw barely managed to reach, and instead of holding the cub down, he nearly slipped off Lang Qi’s back entirely.

The cub didn’t notice his struggle.

Seeing Bai Tu move, it immediately pounced on him, displeased by the unfamiliar scent.

It latched onto Bai Tu, nipping and biting him all over in protest.

Bai Tu, who had been listening intently to the girl’s words: “……”

By the time he managed to pry himself free from the cubs’ grasp, Bai Tu shook his head and let out a long sigh.

Finally, he could focus on what was being said.

Thankfully, Lang Qi’s thick fur had hidden him from view, so no one had seen the humiliating sight of him being smothered and chewed on by two tiny cubs.

Bai Tu yawned again.

He was so tired.

But he really wanted to hear what the girl had to say.

So, he forced himself to stay awake.

The girl who had recognized Bai Tu was named Mao Yuan.

Her beast form was that of a small feline, but she wasn’t from the Black-footed Cat Tribe.

Unlike Black-footed Cats, which were naturally small as a species, Mao Yuan’s size was due to something else.

Before she was born, Wu Lai had forced her mother to drink the blood of other small-sized beastmen, mixed with various drugs.

As a result, Mao Yuan was significantly smaller than the rest of her kind.

She had been born in the Red Eagle Tribe.

Because of her small size, she had been kept with other similarly tiny cubs.

Small cubs were already difficult to raise, and with Wu Lai’s methods, survival was nearly impossible.

Every so often, another cub would die.

Mao Yuan had been luckier than most.

Not long after she was born, she met Bai Luo.

Even after being captured and subjected to regular bloodletting, Bai Luo still took care of the other cubs.

Mao Yuan had been one of them.

In fact, Bai Luo was the one who had given her a name.

Whenever Wu Lai wasn’t around to drain their blood, Bai Luo would groom the cubs and teach them small things.

He had a lot of experience taking care of young ones.

When Bai Luo was alive, the cubs in their cave were always the healthiest.

Wu Lai had probably realized that having someone like Bai Luo looking after the cubs made things easier for him—so he had never moved Bai Luo to a different cave.

Mao Yuan was smarter than most cubs.

She remembered everything Bai Luo had ever told her.

She knew that the water Wu Lai gave them was drugged.

Unless Wu Lai was watching, she never drank it.

But in front of him, she always acted just as dull and vacant as the other cubs.

Sure enough, Wu Lai never suspected her.

Later, after Bai Luo passed away, Mao Yuan took it upon herself to care for Bai Tu—who, despite being older than her, was smaller in every other way.

Bai Tu rarely shifted into human form.

Mao Yuan had only seen it a handful of times, and most of those instances had been in the near-lightless cave.

But she was very familiar with his beast form, which was why she recognized him at a glance.

Even though Bai Tu was extremely tired, he still tightened his grip on Lang Qi and asked to be let down.

After shifting back into human form and changing into his clothes, he walked back out and asked Mao Yuan a question.

“How did Bai Luo die?”

Hei Jian had never been able to answer that question.

Or maybe he had found out but hadn’t had the heart to tell Bai Tu.

Mao Yuan looked up at Bai Tu and softly replied, “Wu Lai wanted to send him to Wu Jiu. The next day, Bai Luo was gone.”

Bai Luo knew some medicine.

As a child, Mao Yuan hadn’t understood, but later, she figured it out.

Bai Luo had poisoned himself.

Bai Tu thought back to the dreams he often had.

Even though he had no memories of his father, every dream was filled with warmth.

Even in the dream, he could feel the happiness.

“Bai Tu, you’ve already killed Wu Lai,” Mao Yuan said, lifting her head. “You avenged Bai Luo.”

Bai Luo had cared deeply for the cubs in their cave, but he had been most concerned about Bai Tu.

Even though all the cubs in that cave were small, Bai Tu had been the smallest—even newborns had been bigger than him.

Mao Yuan had tried to take care of Bai Tu, but before long, Wu Lai had locked him away separately.

After that, their chances to meet became rare.

Even though they hadn’t spent as much time together later on, Mao Yuan was still relieved that Bai Tu had been the one to save them.

Because Bai Tu would never trade them away for resources.

Hearing Mao Yuan’s words, Bai Tu made a promise.

“I never will.”

The tribe didn’t lack food now.

But even if they were starving, Bai Tu would only think about how to find more supplies—he would never consider trading beastmen, no matter their size.

To him, all people were equal.

And besides—he was also a small-sized beastman.

How could he possibly treat others like objects when he himself had been treated that way?

*

Bai Tu had fought off sleep all day.

But after preparing food for the cubs in the evening, he could no longer hold on.

He fell asleep instantly.

Maybe it was because he had seen Mao Yuan that day.

Or maybe it was because he hadn’t slept well the night before.

But that night, Bai Tu dreamed.

He dreamed of when he had first been taken to the Red Eagle Tribe.

The once-plump little white rabbit had grown thin, its body much smaller than before.

Beside him, a gentle young man—now visibly thinner as well—sat with furrowed brows, lost in thought.

The youth seemed troubled by something.

Holding the little rabbit in his arms, he stared absentmindedly at a fixed point in the darkness.

After a while, he lowered his head and gently kissed the rabbit’s ear.

His lips moved slightly, as if whispering something.

The cave was dark.

A moment later, the youth placed the sleeping rabbit among the other cubs and silently retrieved a few sections of an herb from a crevice in the cave wall.

The sleeping rabbit must have sensed something.

It suddenly jolted awake.

The youth reached out and stroked the rabbit’s head, soothingly.

The rabbit left the other cubs and curled up beside the young man instead.

A flicker of sorrow flashed through the youth’s eyes.

With his other hand, he clutched his stomach.

The entire process was silent.

Finally, he closed his eyes.

*

When Bai Tu woke up, he stared blankly at the ceiling of the tent.

He felt as though he had just dreamed of something unbearably painful.

But he couldn’t remember what it was.

This wasn’t the first time it had happened.

Nor was it the first time he had forgotten the details of his dreams.

All that remained in his memory—

Was a small white rabbit—And a gentle young man.

Bai Tu rubbed his head against the pillow. He didn’t know why, but his heart felt strangely empty.

The next second, something bumped against his forehead, casting a shadow over him. Bai Tu looked up and saw the giant wolf, already awake for who knows how long, gazing at him with confusion and concern.

Lang Qi, noticing that the little rabbit seemed even more dejected than usual after waking up, carefully nuzzled his head and ears, trying to soothe him. 

Bai Tu raised a paw and pushed against Lang Qi, but, unsurprisingly, he couldn’t move him an inch.

Thanks to Lang Qi’s distraction, the dull ache in his heart eased somewhat. Bai Tu lifted his head and rubbed lightly against Lang Qi’s chin.

Lang Qi, who had just been about to reach out a tentative paw, froze completely the moment Bai Tu took the initiative to nuzzle him. His entire wolf body went stiff, not daring to move at all.

Bai Tu rarely let his emotions interfere with important matters, and he knew there was much to do. 

Quickly adjusting his mood, he rubbed against Lang Qi a few more times before decisively shifting back into human form. 

Outside, nearly two hundred young cubs were still waiting to be fed, not to mention the need to plan for their return to the tribe.

In total, 193 cubs rescued from the Red Eagle Tribe were unable to take human form. 

Among them were lion cubs, eagle chicks, leopard cubs, tiger cubs, elephant calves, young bulls, fawns, bear cubs, and others—almost every race they had encountered. Surprisingly, the number of fox cubs was nearly as high as the lions, totaling twenty-six.

The number of cubs who could already shift into human form was much smaller, with only sixty-seven individuals, and they were from various races as well. Among them, the eagle and tiger tribes had slightly higher numbers.

The Red Eagle Tribe had originally shared territory with the Black Hawk Tribe, the Tiger Tribe, and the Elephant Tribe. 

Among these three races, elephant cubs were the rarest. This was because elephants could only give birth once every ten years or so, making their birth rate much lower than other species. As a result, the Elephant Tribe valued their young even more, rarely letting them out of an adult beastman’s sight unless absolutely necessary.

Furthermore, elephant cubs were significantly larger, making them less likely to be targeted by the Red Eagle Tribe. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the other two races—their cubs had suffered the most.

The eagle tribe members who had originally belonged to other tribes but had remained in the Red Eagle Tribe would return to their own tribe with Hei Xiao. The rest of the cubs would follow Bai Tu and his group.

Bai Tu quickly calculated the number of young cubs and began making plans along the way. 

He decided that once they returned to the tribe, he would set up a small daycare center to bring all the cubs together for education and care.

These cubs came from a wide variety of races, spanning the four continents—east, south, west, and north. 

Since winter was not a suitable season for travel, and Hei Xiao and the others couldn’t afford to stay in the Red Eagle Tribe for too long, it would likely take more than half a year before these cubs could return to their respective tribes. 

Many of them were already three years old, but due to the drugs fed to them by Wu Lai, their development had been stunted. 

Bai Tu decided to take advantage of the winter season to carefully nurse them back to health and see if they could regain their normal growth.

Although he didn’t have a favorable impression of the Red Eagle Tribe’s people, he had no intention of letting them starve to death either. 

For the first two days, they hadn’t been given any food, but on the third night, since they stopped earlier than usual, Bai Tu instructed the group to cook a portion of food for the vultures to eat.

After two days of traveling on empty stomachs, most of the Red Eagle Tribe members had become obedient. 

The farther they got from their own territory, the less chance they had of mounting a counterattack. After all, if they were still near their tribe’s land, there was always a possibility that their kin could come to their aid—but now, that was no longer an option.

Due to the large population of the Red Eagle Tribe, their internal relationships were much weaker compared to other tribes. 

Even their leader, Hong Tian, and the shaman, Wu Lai, had a strained relationship, let alone the common beastmen beneath them. 

The closest bonds were usually between blood relatives, followed by those who had grown up together. These individuals often formed hunting teams, and after spending time together, their relationships grew stronger, turning them into tightly knit groups.

However, different hunting teams were in constant competition with each other. With so many people in the Red Eagle Tribe, there were numerous hunting teams, and a single team’s catch would never be enough to feed everyone. Most of the time, they would keep a portion of their prey for themselves while handing over the rest to the tribe.

The amount of prey a hunting team caught directly impacted their food supply. 

The closer they were to the tribe’s core territory, the scarcer prey became, as numerous hunting teams had already scoured the area. This meant that some teams had to venture farther out to find food.

The Red Eagle Tribe’s territory was vast, with the outermost border requiring a full day of flight to reach. However, they were not particularly skilled at hunting large prey. 

Even if they managed to take one down by sheer luck, transporting such a heavy carcass back using only their wings was a major challenge. If they couldn’t carry it all at once, anything left behind was likely to be stolen by other tribes before they could return for it.

The Red Eagle Tribe, in particular, would eat anything, even scraps and leftover bits of meat. In such a large tribe, there were always people going hungry, and no one would turn down food, no matter how little.

The fierce competition between hunting teams was compounded by the ever-watchful outsiders eager to snatch up whatever food was left behind. As a result, relationships among their own tribe members were fragile at best.

If they were still within Red Eagle Tribe territory, the uncaptured vultures might have come to rescue their kin—after all, no one wanted another tribe invading their land and taking their people. But now, with such a great distance between them and their home, it was unrealistic to expect mere acquaintances to risk traveling so far for a rescue.

Rather than clinging to false hopes, it was better to seize the opportunity to eat and restore their strength. 

The Wolf Tribe, Rabbit Tribe, Leopard Tribe, and Lion Tribe all ate twice a day, but the Red Eagle Tribe members had only been given one meal after two days of marching, leaving them physically weaker than the rest.

The food prepared for the Red Eagle Tribe was certainly not the same as what Bai Tu and his group ate. 

Before leaving the Red Eagle Tribe, Bai Tu had taken some food supplies with him—their own stored provisions. 

Since winter was approaching, the Red Eagle Tribe had also been stocking up in advance. Even with Wu Lai as their backer, it didn’t change the fact that the food he allocated to them was limited.

The Red Eagle Tribe’s method of handling their prey was to roast it over a fire. Instead, Bai Tu instructed the beastmen in charge of cooking to cut the meat into chunks and boil it in a pot. This way, when it was served, they could eat it directly—saving them the trouble of drinking water separately.

As soon as they got their food, most of the vultures buried their heads and started eating. However, a few defiant ones refused to submit. 

For the past two days, their mouths had been gagged and their hands bound, but now that they finally had a chance to speak, they immediately began hurling curses at the tribe that had captured them.

One young man, who looked around seventeen or eighteen, shouted furiously, “Despicable scum! The Beast God will punish you! The Beast God will take away all your cubs—you won’t be able to raise them! It was the great witch doctor who gave them life! You’re stealing their lives away—”

Upon hearing this, the children helping Bai Tu take care of the cubs instantly turned pale with fear.

Lang Ze reacted the fastest. The young man had been on the opposite side of him while cursing, but before he could even finish his sentence, Lang Ze had already delivered a swift kick to his chest.

The vulture youth collapsed to the ground instantly. But as an elite of the Vulture Tribe, he quickly struggled to get back up. “The Beast God will punish you! Those cubs will all die—”

“I’ll make sure you die first!” Lang Ze didn’t believe a word of it. 

He had seen the cubs raised by Bai Tu himself—not to mention the two little wolves, even the rabbit cubs were much healthier than before! Even the smallest one, whom he had once thought wouldn’t survive, was now alive and well.

“Tie his mouth shut. If he doesn’t want to eat, then let him starve.”

Bai Tu wasn’t the least bit concerned about the young man’s curses. 

Whether the Beast God existed or not was one thing, but when it came to raising these cubs, he had absolute confidence. However, the children around him were visibly shaken by the ominous words, so he reassured them, “It’s fine. The cubs are all doing well.”

“But…” One boy, about the same age as Hu Heng, hesitated before speaking. “Wu Lai used to say that the reason his cubs survived more than those in other tribes was because they were under the Beast God’s protection.”

Everyone despised Wu Lai, yet at the same time, they feared that without the Beast God’s blessing, the cubs might not make it. These young cubs were too fragile. The children didn’t voice it outright, but deep down, they all hoped the cubs would survive. 

However, with Wu Lai dead, finding another shaman capable of conveying the Beast God’s will would be extremely difficult. No matter how many terrible things Wu Lai had done, he was still a witch doctor.

“They’ll survive.” Bai Tu’s tone was firm and unwavering. 

The survival of the cubs depended on various factors—health, environment, nutrition—and he was confident in raising them properly. 

Even if he couldn’t save every single one, their chances were far higher than they ever had been under Wu Lai. 

The reason Wu Lai had managed to keep so many cubs alive was simply because he captured large numbers each year. 

If a tribe only had ten or so newborns annually, of course, their numbers would seem lower in comparison. It wasn’t a fair way to measure survival rates.

Since the cubs were still young, their fur was sparse, making them less capable of retaining body heat compared to adult beastmen. 

Throughout the journey, Bai Tu had prioritized keeping them warm. Fortunately, they had exchanged for plenty of animal hides at the market, enough to wrap each cub in two layers.

As they made their way back to the tribe, Bai Tu finally experienced what a true drop in temperature felt like. 

Just the day before, he could still nap comfortably on Lang Qi’s back, but by the next day, they had to wrap themselves in animal hides to ward off the cold.

Even though they had traveled as quickly as possible, detouring through the Red Eagle Tribe had delayed them by several days. By the time they reached their tribe, snow had already begun to fall.

Despite having been away for only half a month—barely even a full month—the area surrounding the tribe looked as if it had completely changed. The most noticeable difference was in the vegetation.

Fortunately, Bai Tu had arranged for people to cut and store grass for the animals well in advance. 

There were still large patches of untouched plants within their territory, as it was impossible for the beastmen to harvest everything. When they had left, the land had been lush and green. Even with the drop in temperature, only a small portion of the grass had turned yellow.

Now, nearly everything in sight was a withered yellow. 

If Bai Tu hadn’t been certain that he had only been gone for about twenty days, he might have thought he’d been away for several months. When they left, it had been the early days of autumn—but by the time they returned, winter had already arrived.

Even with multiple layers of animal hides on, Bai Tu still felt the chill. The first thing he did upon entering the cave was instruct Lang Qi to heat up the kang bed.

During their absence, the construction team had completed all the heated brick beds. 

Since the caves naturally had low temperatures, the newly built kang beds took longer to dry. Bai Qi, who had stayed behind in the tribe, had arranged for fires to be lit inside the caves to raise the temperature, ensuring they would be ready by the time everyone returned.

The once-young Bai Qi, who had still been somewhat inexperienced when Bai Tu first woke up, had now grown capable of managing things on his own. 

The tribe was in even better condition than Bai Tu had planned. Even with nearly two hundred cubs and several hundred Red Eagle Tribe captives brought back, everything had been quickly and efficiently arranged.

With such a large number of Vulture members, it was impossible to house them in the caves. The caves were spaced far apart, making management difficult. 

When they had brought the Lion Tribe over last time, the numbers had been manageable, but now the vulture’s numbers were more than double that of the lions. The caves, already fully occupied, simply couldn’t fit them all.

Fortunately, when Bai Tu had initially planned the livestock area, he had deliberately designed it to be larger than necessary to accommodate potential future needs. 

There were still large unused sections, so they decided to settle the Vulture members there.

By this point, the Vulture no longer had any objections about their living arrangements. 

The temperature had dropped significantly during their journey, and despite the animal hides they had been given, many of them were shivering from the cold. 

Having shelter at all was a blessing—choosing where to live was the last thing on their minds.

However, the few troublemakers remained as stubborn as ever. Led by the same youth who had initially claimed they wouldn’t be able to raise the cubs, about a dozen Vulture members refused to move in.

The youth was Hong Tian’s son, named Hong Ku. As the only son of the Red Eagle Tribe’s leader, he had been accustomed to a privileged life in the tribe. Naturally, being captured and thrown into this situation had been a hard pill to swallow.

From the very beginning, he had been making trouble, hardly stopping for even a moment throughout the journey.

Every time they sat down for a meal, he couldn’t resist running his mouth. But after a beating from Lang Ze, he would obediently eat. Yet by the next meal, he would have already forgotten his previous lesson and would repeat the same mistake—only to receive the same punishment again.

Even after being beaten so many times, Hong Ku still hadn’t learned his lesson. 

When he saw that their assigned living quarters were next to a building filled with prey, he immediately realized that this place probably wasn’t meant for people to live in—and he was, unsurprisingly, dissatisfied.

“These are livestock pens! We’re not staying here!” Hong Ku shouted. “I refuse to live here!”

“Alright.” Bai Tu nodded and pointed outside. “Ze, throw him out.”

Even though most of the eight hundred captives had become obedient, they still couldn’t let their guard down. 

Hong Ku wasn’t particularly capable—only a few people echoed his words, which showed just how little authority he actually held among the captives. However, Bai Tu didn’t want to give him the chance to stir up dissent. 

Even if the Vulture Tribe never staged a rebellion, having people refuse to cooperate with work would be just as troublesome.

Since he didn’t want to stay, Bai Tu might as well fulfill his wish. There was no thermometer to measure the exact temperature, but judging by the ice forming outside, it was already below freezing at night.

For beastmen, this kind of cold was unbearable but not life-threatening. Rubbing his temples, which were aching from the noise, Bai Tu added, “Anyone else who doesn’t want to stay here can leave too.”

Lang Ze immediately grabbed Hong Ku and dragged him outside. He had been wanting to do this for a while now. 

The livestock pens might have been built for prey, but they were far from shabby! 

Back when they were first constructed, even they themselves had wanted to live there, but Bai Tu hadn’t allowed it. Now these captives were being given such good treatment, yet they still had complaints? 

The more Lang Ze thought about it, the angrier he got. He carried Hong Ku to the entrance and unceremoniously tossed him out, following up with a swift kick.

Lang Ze’s actions were rough, but no one objected. Their priority was the rescued cubs—these Vulture Tribe members had no right to make demands.

In Bai Tu’s eyes, these vultures weren’t even on the same level as the lions. 

Many of the Lion Tribe members had only attacked other tribes because of Shi Hong’s oppression—they had simply been unable to resist their leader’s orders.

The Vulture Tribe, however, had done far worse. 

According to Hu Heng, Mao Yuan, and the others, these vultures had willingly crossed mountains and seas to steal cubs from other continents, all to please Wu Lai. 

The tribes closest to them had long been on guard, so they traveled even farther to steal from others. 

Since Wu Lai wanted cubs and pregnant beastmen, some vultures even went so far as to kidnap mates from other tribes, keeping them until they conceived before delivering them to Wu Lai. 

Pillaging, slaughtering, and looting—there was nothing they wouldn’t do.

There was no way Bai Tu would ever feel sympathy for such people. 

Sure, they had been obedient during the journey and had behaved well since arriving—but that was only temporary. If the Vulture Tribe were given their freedom, they would only bring disaster upon themselves in the end.

To restrict their movements, Bai Tu had all the iron chains previously made by the tribe brought out and shackled to the captives’ wrists. 

With the chains in place, they couldn’t transform their hands into wings, rendering them incapable of fighting properly—but they could still work.

Once he was certain the Vulture Tribe couldn’t escape or attack the beastmen in the tribe, Bai Tu finally turned his attention to the cubs.

The young ones were still at an age where they were easily frightened, but they also had short memories. 

After enduring days of mistreatment in the Red Eagle Tribe, they had gradually relaxed under the group’s care. 

They were no longer as skittish as before. Some of the bolder cubs even crawled forward curiously when they saw people approaching.

As Bai Tu stepped closer, a small black bear cub nearby scooted over and latched onto his leg.

Bai Tu picked him up, running a hand over his fur. “Time for a bath.”

The bear cub let out a soft whimper. The first time he had been picked up, he had trembled in fear—but now, the first thing he did was look up at Bai Tu expectantly, hoping for food.

“You can eat after your bath. Be good.” Bai Tu gently rubbed the cub’s head.

The reason he hadn’t arranged living quarters for the cubs immediately upon their return was because he wanted to clean them up first. 

After spending so long in such terrible conditions, their fur was caked with grime and layers of grease. 

Not only was it uncomfortable for them, but it also made it impossible to tell their original colors. Washing them thoroughly before settling them into their new home would be much better.