Chapter 252: Rescue

Hoo hoo~

A cold wind whirled sharply and rushed in, then struck the stone slab blocking the cave entrance, causing it to emit a continuous "clack clack clack".

Separated by a not‑too‑thick stone slab, the cave was eerily silent, and almost every beastman could hear their own thump‑thump‑thump heartbeat and heavy breathing.

It wasn't until an innocent child's voice suddenly rang out that this superficial calm was broken.

"Mother, I'm hungry!"

Along with those words, a few low whimpering sounds rose one after another.

"Good boy! Hold on a bit longer; the uncles and elders will be back soon."

There is actually some food in the cave, but it's too hard; if the young eat it, they can't digest it and will get diarrhea.

Now it's the cold season, and these beastmen with little support fear illness most; once sick, they may never wake up again.

But the young can't control themselves like adults; when they're hungry, they just want to eat.

So each one squeezed next to the adult they felt closest to or easiest to talk to, giving a pitiful look, hoping to soften the adult's heart and get food out for a full belly.

But what can the adults do? There's no fresh food, nor enough dry firewood; obtaining dry firewood in the cold season isn't easy, meaning they can't keep a fire in the cave, can't constantly cook meat, and most of the time they must rely on transforming into beast form and huddling together for warmth.

"Good boy, let's get a proper sleep; when we wake up and the uncles and elders return, there will be food."

"Young ones, don't make a fuss; we're all starving together. Once we get through this stretch, it'll be fine."

In fact, it's not only the young who are hungry; the adults are hungry too, but they understand their situation better than the young. Even when hungry, they must tough it out, or else there's truly no future.

However, the young's constitutions are far weaker than they imagined.

By the time the few beastmen who went hunting returned with the hard‑won prey, a young had already fainted from starvation, and another young was inexplicably burning all over.

"What do we do? We have no Witch Doctor. Is Lily about to die?"

A wave of despair gradually enveloped the cave, and the females' cries hammered into every beastman's heart.

During the flight, they've grown accustomed to death, yet they still can't help feeling sorrow.

Especially since the dying young is the only female young among them; losing her would make their already painful lives even harder to bear.

"It won't happen. We'll go to the Silver Eagle Tribe. Right now we'll take Lily to beg the Silver Eagle Tribe's beastmen; no matter what they make us do, we'll secure a chance for Lily to see a Witch Doctor."

After all, some beastmen still have hope in the Silver Eagle Tribe; they've been here for several days already, haven't been expelled, which shows the Silver Eagle Tribe's care for them.

Otherwise, a tribe as powerful as the Silver Eagle Tribe wouldn't allow wandering beastmen to stay on their lands.

"But…"

"There's no 'but'; we can only go beg the Silver Eagle Tribe's beastmen now."

Some beastmen fear that going could worsen their plight, but the mother of the female young and the beastmen who have felt sorry for this little female since childhood can't worry about all that; regardless, they must try the Silver Eagle Tribe, otherwise they'd never know if the tribe refuses to take them in.

……

"Screech!"

It seemed as if a few beastmen carrying two young were sprinting wildly in the bitter cold; an eagle's screech rose from afar, then a gray eagle swooped down fiercely.

"Where are you going? You're still carrying young in this freezing weather?"

Seeing those beastmen who seemed startled by him, the eagle beastman couldn't help but frown.

But as soon as he finished speaking, a female beastman holding a female young knelt before him.

"Please, please save my young; Lily has a fever, please let us see your Witch Doctor! I beg you! As long as we can save Lily…"

"If we can save our young, you can make us do anything."

A male beside them also knelt toward the eagle beastman.

The eagle beastman's brow furrowed deeper; he said nothing, transformed back into beast form, and let out a sharp eagle screech toward the sky.

The beastmen watched him, looking up at the sky with startled uncertainty.

"What are you standing around for? Follow me. I've already summoned nearby Patrol Team beastmen. If you want to save the young, hurry and come with me."

After changing back to human form, the eagle beastman didn't waste words, briefly explained what he had just done, and urged them to hurry and follow.

Because his beast form can carry a person but not two adult beastmen at once, he can't rescue one and leave the other behind.

Besides, they still need to confirm what kind of beastmen these are.

After all, the Tribe doesn't take in wandering beastmen who arrive on its lands at this time unless they keep a close watch; now that they've shown up at the gate, there's a chance to learn their situation, so they need to investigate.

Hearing this, the beastmen's faces lit up with ecstatic joy, and without a second thought they followed the eagle beastman.

The Patrol Team beastmen, hearing the companion's eagle screech, arrived quickly; seeing two young in urgent need, several eagle beastmen capable of carrying people instantly transformed into beast form, letting them climb up.

"Puff puff!"

At the tribe entrance, many beastmen were already waiting.

"Where are the young needing rescue?"

"Here!"

The beastmen hadn't expected such a warm welcome, but upon hearing someone ask about the young, the two beastmen carrying the young quickly stepped forward.

Yun Li reached out, performed a quick check on the young, then nodded at the nearby beastmen, "Take the two to the clinic; the rest of the beastmen examine them and then bring them to the guest house to sit."

"Understood."

When Yun Li gave the order, the few beastmen beside her split into two groups and escorted them to their respective destinations.

After those beastmen left, Yun Li finally spoke to Leng Xiu, who had been standing with her:

"The Patrol Team found far fewer beastmen today than yesterday; it looks like we won't have long before we get a clear picture of those wandering beastmen's situation."

Leng Xiu hummed, reached out and grasped her hand, "Are you still going to stay here today? Perhaps you should go to the clinic; it's too cold here for you to endure."

Yun Li shook her head, declining his kindness, "I'm still a Green-rank beastman, and it's not even the coldest season yet."

When that time comes, even if they don't speak, she still won't come out.