Chapter 23: Activating the Beast Blood, a Great Change

Gurgle-gurgle~

The female sat in the wooden tub, her face flushed red from the heat.

The male standing nearby occasionally reached out to steady the female's head as she was about to fall, "A Li, hold on a bit longer; the blood bath will be over soon."

Yun Li felt overheated and drowsy, "Can I sleep in and take the bath tomorrow instead? Bathing at night really makes me sleepy."

If it were just this heat, she would feel fine after getting used to it, but not letting her sleep would be utter torture.

Mu Qing didn't mention that the blood bath would get hotter the longer she soaked; even if she slept plenty, once her beast blood was stimulated awake, she would still feel sleepy, and might even see strange images while drowsy.

He merely coaxed Yun Li, "All right, I didn't think this through; tomorrow, after you've slept enough, we'll do the bath."

Yun Li felt reassured by his promise, relaxed involuntarily, then her head lolled to the side before a large hand lifted it back up.

"I'm thirsty; pour me a cup of water."

Mu Qing feared she'd fall asleep, "No, wait until this passes before you drink."

When the beast blood inside is activated, one only feels heat, not thirst—and Mu Qing knew that.

Especially since Yun Li had soaked for so long without a bead of sweat on her forehead, her complexion better than ever, showing that her thirst was merely an illusion.

In the tribe, some beastfolk families fail at the very first step of cultivation because they dote too much on their young.

Since Mu Qing knew Yun Li wanted to cultivate to protect herself, he certainly couldn't let her fail at this stage.

As dawn approached, Mu Qing carried Yun Li out of the bath and dressed her in lizard‑skin clothes; though she had been half‑asleep, she suddenly felt alert.

Mu Qing seemed to have anticipated this, taking the medicine the Witch Doctor gave him, brewing a bowl, and handing it to Yun Li.

"Drink it while it's hot; you'll be able to sleep afterward, or else you'll get sleepy again if you go back to the beast‑blood bath today."

The female grimaced and gulped down the bowl of medicine in one go; sure enough, after it went down, Yun Li soon leaned into Mu Qing's arms and fell into a deep sleep.

When she woke again, Mu Qing had already prepared fresh beast blood; she walked over, took off her clothes, and stepped into the tub.

For five straight days, Yun Li never left the house.

After the final blood bath, Yun Li was surprised to find her hair had become smoother and more manageable—but what was with this black‑and‑white hair?

She hadn't yet realized she had truly undergone a great change; the freckles from sunburn on her face were fading, becoming invisible unless you looked closely, and her skin turned smooth and delicate—though, having just stepped out of a tub full of beast blood, all she felt was its sticky, oily residue.

Only after washing off with cold water did she belatedly notice that she seemed to have undergone the cultivation trope of washing the tendons and purifying the marrow, her internal impurities expelled, her whole body now pale enough to glow a little.

After taking a cold shower, she only then realized that she seemed to have undergone the washing of tendons and marrow as in a xianxia novel, with all the impurities in her body expelled; at this moment her whole person was so white it was slightly glowing.

If she'd known soaking in beast blood for these days would have this effect, she should have started sooner.

As for the last two times she couldn't bear the heat mid‑bath and wanted to get up and quit, Yun Li had long since forgotten about them.

At this moment her mind was filled with just one thought: She had become beautiful! She had become beautiful!

At this moment her mind was full of, she had become beautiful! She had become beautiful!

The female dashed out of the house barefoot, her joyful expression freezing when she saw two more males in the courtyard, then she darted behind Mu Qing in a flash.

Yun Li adjusted the spider‑silk gauze robe on her body; though it wasn't see‑through, it was so light and thin that wearing it gave her little sense of substance, so she usually only wore it at home for fun.

Who would have thought Leng Xiu and Leng Xiao would show up at the door, leaving her utterly unprepared?

Mu Qing hadn't spoken yet, but ever since she came out, Leng Xiao's gaze had been locked on her—and now he replied to her.

"My brother and I are here to deliver fierce‑beast meat; I heard you just finished your blood bath, and beastfolk usually get ravenous after a blood bath, so they can only eat fierce‑beast meat."

"And since Mu Qing hasn't left the house these days, we figured he still had some fierce‑beast meat lying around—not very fresh—so we brought over two giant‑antlered deer."

I and my older brother came to deliver the ferocious beast meat; I heard you just finished a blood bath, beastfolk after a blood bath are usually very hungry and can only eat ferocious beast meat.

After a beastfolk blood bath, the beast blood in the body is fully activated; for the first few days, obvious beast traits appear involuntarily—like Leng Xiao and Leng Xiu right after their baths: one with gray hair and green pupils, the other with black hair and yellow pupils.

Later, those beastly traits faded; unless you looked closely, you wouldn't notice that Leng Xiao's hair was lighter than Leng Xiu's, and that one of his eyes was dark green while the other was yellow‑brown.

As for Mu Qing now, he has black hair and red pupils, but the redness of his pupils only shows when he's angry.

But Yun Li's hair being black and white made Leng Xiao instantly picture a black‑and‑white she‑wolf—completely different from his and his brother's beast forms, yet somehow more handsome.

Yun Li noticed the brothers' gazes fixed on her hair, and within moments their looks grew hotter.

Leng Xiu, who usually didn't show much emotion, now seemed unable to hide his lust for Yun Li.

Mu Qing's expression turned fierce the instant he saw their looks.

"What's wrong with my hair? Isn't it nice?"

"Although black‑and‑white hair looks quite distinctive, isn't it unattractive?"

Yun Li stared them down, thinking, "If they dare say it's ugly, they're totally finished with me."

Although the black-and-white hair looks quite distinctive, isn't it good-looking?

"In the tribe, Leng Xiao, who gets along with everyone, has seen everything, so he naturally understood what her gaze meant; he therefore spoke rapidly, praising Yun Li: \"I'm just looking at your hair, A Li, and I know your beast form must be very beautiful. \""

Yun Li snorted, "You've never seen my beast form—how could you know whether it's pretty or not?"

She herself had never seen it, but the original owner's memories did show her beast form: scrawny, with dry, brittle fur, and long—nothing like 'beautiful' at all.

Thinking of that, a flicker of discomfort crossed Yun Li's mind.

Now her human form is prettier than before, so her beast form should become prettier too.

Although she identifies as human and won't spontaneously shift back to beast form, she still wonders what her beast form looks like.

"No need to look; your beast form must be the most beautiful of all she‑wolves."

Leng Xiu had barely finished speaking when Yun Li glared at him—"Who's calling me a she‑wolf?!"

"I'm a person—bah! Now I'm a beastfolk!"

Leng Xiu's words had just fallen when Yun Li glared at him—who is the mother wolf!!!

She is a human—pah, now she's a beastman!