Beast World: A Fragile Beauty Blessed with Many Children-Chapter 241 - 240: North Head Tribe
After Si Shuo got pregnant with the cubs, she hadn’t used Teleportation to go to Ji Liang even once during his trading trip. For Ji Liang, seven or eight days had passed, but for Si Shuo, it had been eleven or twelve days!
Every day, Ji Liang would place a few small trinkets into the space—some for her, and he never forgot to bring some for the cubs, too.
He didn’t neglect his calligraphy practice. He wrote a travelogue entry for her daily, describing everything he saw and heard along the way in simple, straightforward language.
Si Shuo would then read them to everyone during dinner. Who didn’t yearn for the outside world? But for the sake of survival and their families, they had responsibilities and couldn’t just travel around to see things for the time being.
Ji Liang’s travelogues injected a sense of vitality and positivity into the group, broadening their horizons and knowledge and expanding their perspectives.
Si Shuo counted on her fingers. Ji Liang was supposed to be back today, so she was waiting at home to return to the valley with him.
But as the sky grew dark, she had already finished a piece of corn and still hadn’t seen him. Worried, Si Shuo sent a note to Ji Liang to ask what was going on.
"Little Shushu, we ran into some trouble on our way back. A group of Rogue Beasts attacked the Traveling Merchant Team! The Rogue Beasts seized all their goods, and the members of the team were captured to be Male Slaves."
"Kouba and I had just left Gubei and narrowly missed the Rogue Beasts. Now they’re searching and tracking us everywhere."
Ji Liang’s handwriting was a bit messy; the situation must have been critical.
Si Shuo’s heart leaped into her throat. She took out the note and went to discuss the matter with her other Beast Husbands.
Yin Jiang’s expression was grave. "The place Ji Liang went to this time is quite remote. The Beastmen there are savage and unreasonable, and a group of vicious and cruel Rogue Beasts has been entrenched there for years."
"However, the area has several types of rare resources, like stones with good heat-retention properties, which are great for warming the beds of young females and cubs in winter; ores for crafting tools for ordinary Beastmen; and a type of beautiful gemstone that females particularly adore."
"Their medicinal herbs are also good, with things for fertility, skin whitening, heightening... It’s because of this group of Rogue Beasts that Gubei is practically cut off from our Central Continent. Many traders risk their lives for the chance to earn more Crystal Stones..."
"Right, I’ve heard about that too. Things from Gubei are very expensive, yet they’re highly sought after everywhere. Getting goods from there is like pulling teeth from a tiger’s mouth," Xiao Cheng nodded. "Brother Ji Liang, why did he go there this time?"
Si Shuo pressed her lips together, acting as their messenger.
"This Traveling Merchant Team has been going to and from Gubei for many years. They spend a lot of Crystal Stones on bribes every year, so they shouldn’t have had their goods stolen and been made into Male Slaves. This is no different from killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. Rogue Beasts usually prefer long-term business," Ji Liang replied. "Besides, Kouba and I left the team early. Why would they mobilize twenty to thirty percent of their forces just to search for us? If I hadn’t used my Stepping Point Superpower along the way to help Kouba and me escape quickly, we’d have been captured by now."
"It’s because this is so unusual that Kouba and I want to figure out the reason before we head back. I’ve made Little Shushu worry, but rest assured, we’ll retreat immediately if we sense any real danger."
An incident of taking Crystal Stones and then breaking a deal, once it happens, is bound to happen again. For traders, profit is paramount. When isn’t it about seeking wealth through danger? High risk brings high rewards.
If Ji Liang wanted to pursue the path of a trader, form his own team, and stock his own shop full of goods, he had to ensure his inventory was both complete and of high quality.
Unless it was absolutely necessary, he didn’t want to give up this trade route.
The males all wrote notes, telling him to stay in contact with the group and to let them know if he needed their help with anything.
Since Ji Liang wasn’t coming back for now, Si Shuo led everyone back to the valley. Xu Chi was the one staying behind to guard the home today.
As they continued to cultivate the fields in the valley, the group became more skilled. Coordinating day and night, they could sow thirty acres in a single day.
During their breaks, Yin Jiang would use wooden planks purchased from a Wood Element Ability Beastman to fly up to the branches and build a house. This tree was exceptionally thick and incredibly straight. With so many Beastmen in the family, one bamboo house was definitely not enough, especially with more cubs on the way. They would need at least three or four stories. He couldn’t possibly manage all that work by himself. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞
Xu Chi would also fly up to help, or Wei Ce would transform into his Beast Form and climb up.
Si Shuo just watched the big, black-and-white, chubby bear climb the tree, pulling itself up with adorable yet mighty twists and turns, and the joy in her heart spread to the corners of her lips. She could crane her neck and watch him endlessly without ever getting tired of it!
The males got the hint about the young female’s hobby. Whenever they weren’t working, all of them except Gong You would transform into their Beast Forms. For a time, the valley became a zoo...
Si Shuo kept herself busy pulling the fox’s tail, petting the leopard’s fur, or having Xu Chi or Yin Jiang fly her around the valley a couple of times. Other times, she would be feeding fruit to the big Tuanzi and playing with the cubs!
Of course, she also had to soothe Gong You’s frustration about not being able to transform. Her days were exceptionally joyful and busy!
「Two or three days passed.」
Using his Stepping Point Superpower, Ji Liang successfully located the Rogue Beasts’ lair, while Kouba gathered information about the North Head Tribe nearby.
Though called a tribe, it was actually a group of sinister and brutal Rogue Beasts that had organized to lie in wait and plunder passing Beastmen and traders. There wasn’t a single Rogue Beast among them whose hands weren’t stained with the blood of eighty to a hundred Beastmen.
Moreover, they were one of the main suppliers of Male Slaves to the Beast Fighting Arenas in the various Beast Cities! Anyone who fell into their hands, whether male or female, had absolutely no chance of escape.
Upon receiving this information, Ji Liang narrowed his eyes and hissed. He had Kouba continue gathering information while he infiltrated the North Head Tribe’s lair, waiting for an opportunity to strike.
That night was the day the second-in-command of the North Head Tribe was to marry a Female Saint, a Female Saint they had also kidnapped from a nearby Beast City.
Perhaps because things had been going smoothly for them lately and their profits were high, the whole group was singing and dancing around several large bonfires, eating and drinking heartily, and carousing late into the night.
When most of the Beastmen had fallen into a deep sleep, Ji Liang summoned a Sharp Spike Wood Spirit. As the Wood Spirit released dozens of spikes coated in a potent Intoxicating Juice, he froze them with a thin layer of ice, causing them to fall into his palm.
Pinching two of the spikes between his fingertips, he began to scout quietly through the North Head Tribe’s lair. The ground was littered with the white bones of Beastmen and Fierce Beasts, and a faint smell of blood hung in the air.
The Traveling Merchant Team was being held captive on the back mountain. He first circled the perimeter. The patrolling Rogue Beasts weren’t very vigilant and were easily anesthetized with his spikes, after which he fed them Red Mushrooms.
Rogue Beastmen had thick, tough skin, but Ji Liang’s aim was cunning and he struck hidden spots, not even leaving behind a single red dot. They looked as if they had simply fallen asleep while leaning against the tree trunks.
After silently taking care of the patrolling Rogue Beasts, he smeared his face with red, black, and yellow mud, just like a Rogue Beast from the North Head Tribe. He then concealed his own aura and rubbed himself with the scent of a tall, thin, golden-eyed Green Snake like himself.
Many Rogue Beasts had cold-blooded Beast Forms and didn’t have very good eyesight; they relied on their tongues to capture scents. Even as Beastmen, they were still limited by the fatal flaws of their Beast Forms. By doing this, he could completely pass for one of them!
