Chapter 261: Chapter 261: That’s Not My Cub

Hearing the commotion, Jin Ling and the others quickly scrambled up. One of them managed to grab the little black snake as it was thrown.

But the instant Jin Ling grabbed the little black snake, it shifted into a human boy, his arm now clutched in Jin Ling’s hand.

Sunxiao walked in holding a glowing pearl. Its soft, lustrous light illuminated the entire shelter, allowing them to get a clear look at the little black snake cub.

His long, black hair was messily draped over his shoulders. He had eyes as black as ink, a straight, elegant nose, and exquisitely delicate features. This was especially true of his almond-shaped eyes, which tilted up at the corners—completely different from the large, round eyes of Qiao Ang and the others.

The beast-hide clothes on his body were in tatters, and he was so thin and frail that you could clearly see the outline of each rib on his exposed chest.

He furrowed his brow, struggling to break free from Jin Ling’s grasp. But a frail cub was no match for a high-rank male; no matter how much he struggled, it was useless.

"Little female, why aren’t you asleep so late at night? Did you want to play together?"

Sangze threw the prey from his shoulder, bent over, and ducked into the shelter.

However, the moment he saw the strange cub, the smile on his face instantly turned vicious.

"Well now, I go take a piss and when I come back there’s another cub here, hm?"

The moment Sangze finished speaking, the gazes of Sunxiao and the others all fell in unison on Qiao Xixi.

Qiao Xixi’s scalp immediately went numb!

She roared internally.

’Xiao Yao, Xiao Yao, get your ass out here! You better f*cking tell me, just how many cubs have I given birth to in the last few years?! And what’s the deal with this little black snake??’

’Hiss~ Host, calm down. I was just about to get some shut-eye.’

’You’re a program, what the hell do you mean "shut-eye"?! Spit it out! What is going on?’

’Host, he’s not a cub you gave birth to. Let me see, now... where did this little cub come from!~’

Xiao Yao’s words allowed Qiao Xixi’s heart, which had been lodged in her throat, to drop back into her stomach.

’Holy shit, Host! This is the male protagonist! The male protagonist!’

Qiao Xixi: ??

’Wow, who would’ve thought! The male protagonist with the tragic, miserable backstory has actually fallen into your hands, Host! In the future, he’s supposed to team up with the female protagonist and tear your entire family to shreds! Hiss~ How awful!’

’So?’

’So, Host, you must use your boundless love to win him over! Make him stay away from the female protagonist and become one big, happy family with your cubs!’

Qiao Xixi looked at the little male protagonist, who was surrounded by several large males. Even though he was trembling with fear, he continued to glare at them stubbornly. She frowned.

’What if I don’t want to?’

’Then he’ll be found by Huang Ying. He and the female protagonist will grow up together and develop feelings for each other, and then he’ll become your family’s mortal enemy.’

"Cat got your tongue? He must be the kid she had with that big black snake! Let’s see how old he is... well, what do you know! He’s even younger than Qiao Lie. Sunxiao, I told you you weren’t up to snuff, didn’t I? If you were any good, would Xixi have gone and found a big black snake after being with you?"

By the time Qiao Xixi snapped out of her daze, Feiyan was already getting agitated.

Although they couldn’t smell Qiao Xixi’s scent on this cub, they hadn’t been able to smell it on Xiya at first either. Who knew what was going on.

In any case, the cub who had appeared out of nowhere was already being judged as Qiao Xixi’s child!

A murderous aura was already radiating from Sunxiao.

Qiao Xixi no longer had the time to bicker with Xiao Yao. All that mattered was one certain point: this cub was not hers. That was enough.

"No, no! This is absolutely, definitely not my cub, I swear!"

Qiao Xixi’s assurance was sincere, but her mates remained skeptical.

Not that she could blame them; the precedent had been too painfully vivid.

Qiao Xixi appealed to their emotions, laid out the facts, and tried to reason with them.

Jin Ling was the first to relent. "I just checked him over. I didn’t find anything on him that could suppress a bloodline’s aura. He probably isn’t Xixi’s cub."

Sunxiao’s crimson pupils swept over the cub, and he suddenly noticed two very inconspicuous bumps on the boy’s forehead.

After leaning in for a closer look, he slowly straightened up. "He’s not a black snake. He’s a Black Dragon Beast."

Sunxiao’s words surprised them all. The Black Dragon Clan lived in a mysterious and remote region and rarely appeared in any tribe or Beast City. Why would a cub from the Black Dragon Clan be here?

Sangze snorted. "Legend says the blood of the Black Dragon Clan can cure all illnesses. I think I’ll put that to the test tonight."

Hearing Sangze’s words, the Black Dragon cub’s expression changed drastically. He immediately adopted a fierce look, preparing to fight.

With a flick of his fingertip, Sangze sent a tendril of black mist to wrap around the boy and lift him into the air.

Sangze beckoned with a finger, and the black mist carried the Black Dragon cub before him. He deliberately bared his sharp fangs, scaring the boy so badly his little face went deathly pale. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Qiao Xixi remembered that this cub was the world’s male protagonist. ’There’s no need for my own people to give him a traumatic experience.’

"Sangze, stop it! You’re scaring him."

Sangze’s eyes darkened. He dissolved into black mist and drifted behind Qiao Xixi. "Little female, are you feeling sorry for him? Hm?"

Qiao Xixi felt that the business with the system was already absurd enough for them to handle. Telling them that they were all just side characters in a story would be too cruel. Even though she didn’t see them that way, she still decided against saying anything.

"We should figure out how he got into the shelter first."

Qiao Xixi’s question did get their attention. The shelter had only been built that afternoon, and they hadn’t noticed anything unusual.

Feiyan pinched the Black Dragon cub’s ear and asked, "How did you get in here?"

The Black Dragon cub clearly disliked being touched. He just glared stubbornly and said, "I don’t know. When I woke up, I was here."

He didn’t look like he was lying to Qiao Xixi, but she couldn’t figure out how he could have gotten here.

"You’re a cub from the Black Dragon Clan. Why are you here?"

The Black Dragon cub looked at Qiao Xixi and said with determination, "I’m here to find my mother."

As soon as he said this, the males, whose doubts had only just begun to fade, once again focused their gazes on Qiao Xixi.

Qiao Xixi felt she was being wrongly accused to death.

Feiyan asked in a sour tone, "What’s your mother like?"

"I don’t know."

Sunxiao hoisted the Black Dragon cub up and turned to walk outside. "It’s late. Go to sleep. I’ll handle this."

"Hey, Sunxiao, don’t hurt him."

Sunxiao stopped in his tracks, his crimson eyes gazing darkly at Qiao Xixi.

Qiao Xixi forced herself to say, "He... the system says that raising him will benefit us. So, let’s let him stay for now."

"What bullshit system is that! All it does is stir up useless trouble!" Feiyan fumed.

Silently eavesdropping, Xiao Yao clenched its nonexistent fists. ’Damn that stinky fox!’

Sunxiao merely withdrew his gaze coolly. "Understood."

Sangze followed him out. "Big Snake, I want to play too."