Favorite of the Beast-world: I Got Rich Through Farming-Chapter 225 - 166: I Like Your Cloth and He Has a Mate
"Who is the City Lord of your city?"
Ze Sheng’s gaze, like that of an elder, fell gently on Ling Hong and Song Yi. ’These two cubs who just came of age have a lot of potential. They must be the City Lords, right?’
Unaware that they were being described as "cubs" in someone else’s mind, Ling Hong and Song Yi shook their heads.
"The Old City Lord is dead, and a New City Lord hasn’t been elected yet. The Beastmen of the city would be happy to have her as the New City Lord."
Standing beside Ze Sheng, Chi Li immediately pushed An Jin forward. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎
"...I’m not the City Lord of Beast Gathering City. I’m from Sheng’an City, and I brought my people here to help rebuild this city." ’Using me as a shield is just too shameless.’ An Jin wanted nothing more than to grab Chi Li by the ear.
"Sheng’an City?"
A rare flicker of surprise crossed Ze Sheng’s gentle, calm eyes. He carefully sized up the little female he had just happened to rescue, paused for a moment, and then chuckled. "I know of this city."
"The city sells a very soft and light fabric. The material of the clothes I’m wearing came from there. I like it very much."
’No wonder.’ An Jin had thought that other cities and tribes had also invented cloth and clothing. She never expected that, without her knowledge, the meticulously woven fabrics had spread to other, more distant regions.
The feeling was truly amazing.
A great sense of pride suddenly swelled in An Jin’s heart.
The silver-haired man’s clothes must be woven from both cloth and Shark Sha.
Xi had once said that most of the Shark Sha produced by the Merfolk was for their mates. The rest was sold or exchanged for precious resources.
But the price of Shark Sha was too high for ordinary Beastmen to afford.
’What is this silver-haired man’s identity?’
"Ze Sheng, the Unicorn King, one of the Four Great Born Beast Kings."
For once, Mirror Mirror was being reliable, starting to brief An Jin. "Beast Kings are beings with a near-zero probability of ever being encountered. I thought you’d never meet one in your lifetime, so I never told you about them, dear Master."
"The Beast Kings are the supreme and most powerful beings on this continent. The ranking system for Beastmen is very strict, usually divided into Ranks 1 through 9."
"Most Beastmen can only remain at around the Third Rank for their entire lives. More talented Beastmen might have a chance to reach the Fifth or Sixth Rank if they exhaust their entire lives trying. Someone with exceptional talent like Ling Hong, whom you’ve met before, can break through to become a High-level Beastman at a young age."
"But even for them, the chances of advancing to a King Beast are extremely slim, unless they are born with a powerful bloodline or their bloodline mutates due to some kind of opportunity."
"And this Ze Sheng is the most special among the Beast Kings—a born King Beast."
"There are only four born King Beasts on this continent. From birth, they are Half-Kings, surpassing High-level Beastmen. Upon reaching adulthood, they can break through to the strongest King Beast rank."
"But these legendary born King Beasts, blessed with great power by the Beast God, face the crisis of their bloodlines ending. Compared to ordinary Beastmen with excellent reproductive abilities, they can only raise one King Beast descendant in their entire lifetime..."
Mirror Mirror rattled on and on, but An Jin surprisingly took it all in, nodding while she surveyed her surroundings.
Seeing that Chi Li and Ze Sheng seemed quite familiar with each other, she guessed he was the Beastman Chi Li had summoned before.
"I really like the cloth produced by your city. Since you are its City Lord, this is for you."
Ze Sheng handed her a Golden Purple Conch, almost identical to Chi Li’s.
"You are welcome to come to Unicorn King City to trade for resources."
[Ding—Plot objective achieved: Meeting with a Superior]
[Gained the right to sell goods in Unicorn King City. City influence expanded. Additional sales routes available.]
...
"Aren’t you planning to go back? He doesn’t want you to keep wandering through other cities."
Ze Sheng looked at Chi Li with resignation, like an extremely patient elder comforting a rebellious child who had run away from home.
"Are you sure he really wants me to go back?" Chi Li retorted.
This time, Ze Sheng didn’t reply.
Chi Li’s expression was blank. Suppressing the turbulent emotions in his heart, his voice became even colder and more distant. "If he really wanted me to stay in the Royal City, he wouldn’t have banished me back then. And now, I have a place to call home."
"...This little female’s city?"
Ze Sheng cast an understanding glance at An Jin, who was standing to the side like a background prop, a gentle light in his eyes.
He raised his hand and gently rubbed Chi Li’s fox ears. "Alright, you’re not that little cub from back then anymore. You’ve made your own decisions. I won’t force you to go back. I just hope you’ll be happy living elsewhere..."
Before Chi Li could slap his hand away, he reached over and ruffled An Jin’s hair, his gentle voice tinged with a smile. "Pretty little female, remember to take good care of this ill-tempered little fox. If you need any help, you can have him tell me."
Chi Li’s face instantly darkened. "Ze Sheng!" he gritted out.
’That old geezer. Why hasn’t he gotten rid of that awful habit of always touching people’s heads?’
Ling Hong jealously pulled An Jin to his side. Sensing her mate’s displeasure, she squeezed his large hand reassuringly.
After giving his instructions, Ze Sheng said that Demon Beasts had also appeared in other places. He declined everyone’s attempts to make him stay, left behind a Blood Crystal, and departed.
An Jin stared deeply at his departing figure as it gradually shrank into a white dot. She unconsciously clutched her chest.
’My chest feels so tight...’
’Damn, this is so weird. What the hell is going on?’
"You haven’t fallen for that old geezer, have you?"
Chi Li asked her menacingly, his tone unfriendly. "That guy has a mate, although..."
His words stopped abruptly.
"You can like any male you want, but you absolutely cannot like him. He has a mate."
An Jin shook her head, her eyes lowered in thought. "How could I fall for someone I’ve only met once? It’s just that whenever I see him, my heart inexplicably starts to beat very fast."
She said honestly.
Chi Li, however, was not surprised. "Legend has it that the power of the Unicorn clan contains a legacy from the Beast God, which causes Beastmen to feel a natural affinity for them. It’s perfectly normal. Both males and females find it difficult to resist this attraction."
An Jin nodded. ’So that’s why.’ But she still felt it wasn’t that simple.
She had an indescribable feeling of familiarity with Ze Sheng, but from the looks of it, he didn’t seem to know her either.
’Forget it. It’s probably just my imagination.’
...
Meanwhile, Ze Sheng, now flying high in the sky, gazed from afar at the land shrouded by clouds. He pressed his lips together, a trace of confusion flickering in his purple eyes.
His hand rested on his chest. That feeling of heart palpitations... he hadn’t experienced it for a very long time.
He arrived at the jungle in the Dark Mountains. After the torrential rain had stopped, the ground was still a vast expanse of mud and puddles. Rainwater dripped from the tattered leaves onto the ground, sending ripples across the puddles.
Ze Sheng hovered low in the air, his eyes scanning the surroundings. His voice was gentle. "Beast hiding in the shadows, why don’t you dare to show yourself?"
A large black shadow shot out from the jungle, attacking him.
Ze Sheng dispatched it effortlessly and looked at the black-haired youth who had appeared not far away. His smile faded slightly. "...The Black Qilin cub abandoned in the Dark Forest?"
"You’re the one who released these Demon Beasts?"
"Is that so incredible? I know something even more unbelievable."
The black-haired youth looked at the hypocritically friendly silver-haired man, his own smile just as gentle and mocking. "The ever-gentle and kind King Beast Ze Sheng hid it from everyone, but he killed his own female mate with his own hands. You’ve hidden this matter very deeply indeed."
The gentle smile on Ze Sheng’s face vanished completely. His thin lips pressed into a tight line, and dark clouds swirled in the depths of his eyes. "...Where did you hear that?"
It was as if a raw, bleeding wound buried deep in his heart had been touched. A twisted, foul aura surged from his body.
