Chapter 386: The Green Grass's Big Butt

The Snow Tiger Tribe had regained a peaceful life, but a few days later, at the place where the Chiyan Pingyuan met the Polar Forest, the Rock Salt Tribe's shamaness finally came to her senses under the beastfolk's care.

To the beastfolk, the battle with the Snow Tiger Tribe that day had long passed.

But for the Rock Salt Tribe's shamaness, who had just regained consciousness, it had only just happened.

The neck that had almost been strangled by the beastfolk was no longer swollen as before, but she seemed to have injured her throat, and when she spoke she could only utter a few meaningless 'ah' sounds.

This was hard for the shamaness, who was always highly respected in the Rock Salt Tribe, to accept.

She kept opening her mouth, trying to say something, but only a few simple 'ah' syllables would occasionally pop out.

How could this be?

What about her voice?

Why can't she speak?

She struggled to rise from the dry grass nest, but the next moment, the leg that was clearly still part of her body seemed to have slipped from her control.

Stand up! Stand up!

She kept telling herself this in her heart, but the legs right before her eyes simply would not move, not even the toes, as if they were dead.

The beastfolk said she had been unconscious all along and had only just woken up; perhaps she was weak from hunger.

Her long-unkept hair hung loose and disheveled over her shoulders, her eye sockets were somehow filled with a web of red bloodstreaks, her complexion was pale, yet the corner of her mouth held a faint smile as gentle as before.

She strained to prop up her sore, weak arm against the cave wall, lifting it as if it were weighed down by a heavy stone.

"Ah ah."

While saying something, she turned her gaze to the fresh meat the beastfolk had just prepared in their hands.

Seeing her eager gaze and the motion of swallowing saliva, the beastfolk quickly placed the cleaned meat on a large leaf, tore it into strips thinner than a little finger, and then carefully handed it over.

The shamaness actually gave him a rare smile, then slowly opened her mouth.

The acts of sitting up and raising her arm had drained the last of her strength; now she could only force herself to accept the beastfolk's feeding.

She swallowed the pieces of meat, the shamaness moistened her slightly dry lips, and said, "Ah ah."

She opened her mouth again and shouted twice, but still could only produce simple syllables.

This instantly shattered her inner peace, as if someone had lit a fire in her heart; the restless flame had no outlet, nothing to burn, and could only ignite her body and emotions.

After taking a few deep breaths, she urged herself on like an impatient A Mu coaxing a cub eager to rush out hunting.

She had merely been injured by Yuan Lang; she needed rest before she could speak, so there was no need to rush.

She opened her eyes, pointed to her mouth, and the beastfolk took another piece of meat: "Would you like more food?"

The shamaness shook her head: "Ah."

Just then, the beastman warrior who had been carrying the shamaness came over holding a large leaf: "Would you like some water?"

The leaf was filled with clear water; the shamaness's eyes lit up, and her gaze toward the beastfolk brightened instantly.

The beastfolk watching her noticed this series of changes, quickly stepped forward to support her carefully, and saw her drink the water from the leaf bit by bit.

Feeling the relief after the pain as the water slid past her throat, the shamaness involuntarily let out a deep sigh.

Immediately afterward, she looked at the beastman warrior beside her, let out an "ah," and pointed to the grass nest below.

The beastfolk nodded and dragged her body until she lay down slowly in the grass nest.

"Rest first; when you leave, I will come carry you."

The shamaness gave him a smile, then slowly closed her eyes.

In the cave, aside from the beastfolk's faint voices, there was no other sound at all.

But even such faint speech began to be amplified by the night, reaching the shamaness's ears with crystal clarity.

Why can they speak but I cannot?

She tried again to move her leg, but it still felt as if that part of her body did not exist, with no movement at all.

Was she to become a shaman who could neither speak nor walk?

From now on, she would have to be carried to walk; with no one around, she could only sit in the dark cave, unable to go anywhere.

Unable to speak, she could only gesture with her hands, yet not everyone could understand what she meant to convey.

So, if she became such a person, what meaning would there be in her living?

Yuan Lang…

Snow Tiger Tribe…

Beneath her tightly shut eyelids, the red in her pupils deepened once more…

The Rock Salt Tribe's beastman warriors did not know what the shamaness, who appeared to be asleep behind them, was experiencing in her heart at that moment.

With hope filling her heart, the next morning arrived; the shamaness, who had forced herself to rest, woke up amid a jolt.

Upon opening her eyes, she saw the forest continually receding.

Had they already set out again on the road back to the tribe?

"Ah…"

Just as she was about to say something, the "ah ah" sound that escaped her lips ignited the suppressed fire in her heart with a "boom".

No good, she still couldn't speak!

No, she could not possibly become someone who cannot speak; it must be that her injury here is severe, requiring a longer rest.

Perhaps her leg was the same; she told herself that even a strong beastman warrior needs a long rest after injury.

Having convinced herself, she tried to kick her leg…

It was useless; she still felt nothing…

But recalling the reason she had just convinced herself with, she once again pressed down the fire in her heart that was about to erupt.

Only then did she realize, for the first time overturning her own thought, that although a poison shaman's combat ability is stronger, when injured they cannot heal themselves.

Even nurturing her own body was impossible, for the shamanic power within her could only cause the parasites to grow.

「Shaman Lady, after we return to the tribe we'll go to the shaman's place; you must have been injured by that hateful Beastfolk, which is why you can't speak.

「If we treat it with shamanic power, it will surely get better. 」

The Beastfolk has been carrying the shaman lady these past few days, so he can somewhat sense her mood; although the Shaman Lady didn't show it, thinking back to how the Shaman Lady used to be, and now seeing her injured...

He has already rolled around in the grass hut with the Shaman Lady; although it's impossible for him to become her first partner, he still hopes she gets better.

What the Beastfolk doesn't know is that his words instantly saved the Shaman Lady, who was on the verge of falling into madness.

Yeah, with shamanic power treatment, she needs to hurry back and ask the shaman to use shamanic power to heal her; then she'll be able to speak and stand up...

She turned her head toward the direction she came from; Yuan Lang, Snow Tiger Tribe—I will make you only able to lie prostrate at my feet.

「Ah ah. 」

She opened her mouth again, emitting two short sounds; the palm resting on the Beastfolk's shoulder patted the solid muscle beneath it, and then the fingers, which had largely recovered, lifted and pointed forward.

「Shaman Lady, do you want to return to the tribe quickly? 」

The Beastfolk was surprised by the shaman lady's response; his voice trembled somewhat and even unconsciously rose a lot.

The surrounding Beastman Warriors instantly turned their heads toward his voice.

Yet, seeing the Shaman Lady who had previously lain silent on the Beastfolk's shoulder, she now patted his shoulder and let out a heavy 'ah'.

「Tribespeople, the Shaman Lady wants to return to the tribe early; let's speed up. 」

The shaman lady's injury had kept the Salt Rock Tribe's team in low spirits these past days, but today her response instantly ignited the Beastman Warriors' passion, as they howled and sprinted wildly toward the tribe.

Even the Beastfolk beneath her started running quickly, but he remained in beastfolk form; the beastly shape was too bumpy, and the Shaman Lady with her injured leg couldn't sit steadily.

Meanwhile, in the Snow Tiger Tribe that was being thought of...

Today, Changye gazed at the not‑far‑off brick kiln emitting intense heat, his hands clenched tightly, fine beads of sweat continually seeping out.

After a few of the finished clay blanks had air‑dried, he and the tribespeople carried them to the brick kiln.

Because of Wu Yue's earlier orders, the Beastman Warriors all helped carry them in for firing.

The roaring flames inside the kiln seemed to burn in Changye's heart; he feared that the clay blanks he made would not meet the Shaman Lady's requirements and would crack.

These past few days, aside from squatting in the grass thickets, he never stepped away from the clay blanks even while eating; at night, when he slept, he laid out a grass nest in the cave and slept beside the blanks, afraid that someone coming in to turn the tile blanks would bump into these three clay blanks while they were drying and crack them.

Carefully, up until today, he finally is about to enter the kiln to fire.

「Changye, a vessel this large probably isn't easy to fire, right? A few days ago a tribesperson made a clay basin the size of a head to fire, but after firing it came out broken into several pieces. 」

The Beastfolk firing the bricks wiped the sweat continually dripping from his cheeks while casually sharing with Changye what had happened the past few days.

What the Beastfolk didn't see was that, as he spoke of the shapelessly shattered vessel, Changye's body instantly tensed.

「Shattered? 」

Even the head‑sized clay basin shattered; will the vessel he made, which is juvenile‑sized, shatter even worse?

Although he is now just a tiny slave, Beastman Sir, could you please grant your protection so that these vessels fire successfully?

Changye gazed longingly at the brick kiln ahead, where hot air kept rising, even distorting the surrounding air.

「It must not shatter... 」

The next morning, Wu Yue was tidying the medicinal herbs she had gathered and brought back in the courtyard, but the courtyard's door was suddenly knocked on; this treatment left her somewhat dazed.

Usually only Yuan Lang and Teng Qian, the two brothers, or Qingcao and Aya, or at most the gathering team's grandmothers come to her little courtyard, but they announce their arrival by shouting from outside the courtyard.

Suddenly receiving such courteous treatment actually made her feel a little overwhelmed with surprise.

「Please come in. 」

With a careful little creak, the wooden gate of the small courtyard was pushed open.

The one who entered was a somewhat sturdy‑built female Beastfolk, and the beast‑god power on her was still very strong.

「Who are you? 」

As for the female Beastfolk of the tribe, Wu Yue is actually somewhat unfamiliar with them; back when she was just an ordinary shaman disciple, due to her status, the proud female Beastfolk of the tribe didn't have much contact with her.

She also only knew a few grandmothers.

However, this female Beastfolk appears not to be very old.

Seeing Wu Yue look at her, the female Beastfolk let out a light breath, clenched the bead chain at her chest, tried to curl the corner of her mouth, but her stiff expression made her smile somewhat strained.

Wu Yue's little face twitched slightly; this female Beastfolk looks rather strange.

「Shaman Lady, hello, I am the tribe's female Beastfolk; you may call me Bai Long! 」

「White Dragon? 」

Wu Yue's eye twitched; you, a Snow Tiger Beastfolk, give yourself such a badass name—are you serious?

「Have you even asked the dragon's opinion? 」

But she suddenly realized that this world doesn't even know whether dragons exist.

「Come in, what do you need from me? 」

Seeing that Wu Yue was not as stern and unapproachable as the shaman, Bai Long's heart, which had been lifted high, instantly fell halfway.

Sitting on the stone stool indicated by Wu Yue, looking at the medicinal herbs placed on it, she felt that each seemed familiar, yet she didn't recognize any of them.

Wu Yue took some fruits from the house and put them in a basket: 「Have some fruit. 」

Bai Long nodded, picked up a fruit and held it in her hand, occasionally lifting her head to look at Wu Yue.

This female Beastfolk before her seems to have something difficult to say, but what intrigues Wu Yue is that, among the female Beastfolk who run and hunt in the forest just like the Beastfolk, there actually exists such a shy one.

「I asked Grandma Flower Tree; she said Yuan Lang likes you a lot and wants you to be his partner. 」

After secretly glancing at Wu Yue countless times, the female Beastfolk finally spoke with her cheeks flushed red.

Hearing her words, Wu Yue felt that the great mountain named Yuan Lang seemed even heavier.

So saying a man being too handsome really has no good points; he always attracts all kinds of flirtatious trouble, which is really annoying.

Should we make a mask or something for Yuan Lang to wear, to cover that face that draws bees and butterflies?

「If you like Yuan Lang, you can go and tell him; female Beastfolk are always popular, aren't they? 」

Bailong heard Wu Yue's words, startled, then hastily waved his hand: "I don't like Yuan Lang, because... because..."

Wu Yue's little foot under the stone table twitched, damn it!

You, a burly female Beastfolk, are here twisting and turning, humming and hawing; if I weren't considering that I couldn't withstand your punch, I really want to kick you with my foot and knock you flat.

The thought of seizing the opposing female Beastfolk's leg to dump her innards was abandoned after considering her formidable combat power.

"Why, since you don't like Yuan Lang, what do you want from me?"

As Wu Yue's words fell, the female Beastfolk's wheat-colored cheeks flushed with a faint red.

She shyly glanced at Wu Yue: "I want to ask, how did you make Yuan Lang like you? Could you help me? I like Teng Qian and want him to be my partner."