Chapter 303: Axiang

That night Yun Li and Anzhi spent their time in conversation; the next day, Yun Li, as usual, got up early and went out.

Anzhi saw her about to leave again, and his brows involuntarily knit a little; but recalling the deal they had struck last night, he ultimately said nothing.

And whenever the tide season arrived, Yun Li was this eager to rise early and go out, not truly to hunt early as others said, but because she was searching for a deep forest that matched the conditions of Heiyan Shanmai.

But, as Anzhi and the Witch Doctor had said, no matter how many times she roamed nearby, within dozens of miles there was no deep forest like the one she imagined; farther away she did see endless high mountains, yet that place was clearly not reachable in a few days or nights.

If that place is Heiyan Shanmai, then how did she survive?

Yun Li stood still, gazing far at the mountain silhouettes on the horizon, and for a moment felt torn; should she gamble and sprint to that distant deep forest to verify whether it was the Heiyan Shanmai she thought, or should she turn back and wait for the nomadic Tribe to arrive?

After a long inner struggle, she gritted her teeth, transformed into a beast form, and dashed toward the horizon.

She gambled on this single chance; if she was wrong, so be it—she needed to see with her own eyes what lay there to truly give up.

……

Two days and two nights passed, and no one knew where Yun Li had gone during her sudden disappearance.

Until the third day, when she appeared before the Tribe, she brought a ferocious beast that none of the tribe's beastmen had ever seen and tossed it before everyone.

Only Anzhi, upon first seeing the beast, immediately changed color; disregarding the strange looks of the other beastmen, he rushed forward, grabbed Yun Li, and asked:

"Are you okay? Any injuries?"

"I'm fine."

Yun Li found his sudden tension oddly bewildering; seeing Anzhi stare at the beast with a heavy expression, she frowned and explained, "I picked up this beast; it fought another beast and both were wounded, and I happened to pass by and took advantage of the situation.

You, know this kind of beast?"

Finally, she asked a question that seemed of little use based on her feeling.

But when Anzhi heard this, he looked at Yun Li with a strange mix of jealousy and disappointment, and said, "You're lucky; this beast is called a Gale Bird. It usually likes to snatch frail beastmen or cubs into the sky, then drop them down."

Normally, a beastman caught by a Gale Bird doesn't survive its claws, but Yun Li was fortunate; she encountered a Gale Bird without injury and even retrieved its corpse.

"So this is a Gale Bird?! A man‑eating bird that even meets its day!"

"Damn bird, someone! Someone help me slay this beast!"

In fact, without that beastman shouting, many beastmen in the Tribe, upon hearing the words 'Gale Bird', turned to look with hateful eyes.

If Anzhi hadn't been standing beside the beast, some beastmen would have already dragged the bird to be torn apart.

Watching Anzhi's lonely, desolate back, Yun Li began to suspect something about his recent oddity.

And Axiang, who had been standing beside her for some time, couldn't help but add, "A Li, what do you think of our Tribe chief?"

Yun Li looked at Axiang with surprise; Axiang slipped an arm around her, whispered in her ear, "I know you have your own Beast Husband, but females can have multiple males. I think you won't find your way home for a while; would you consider being with our Tribe chief..."

Before she could finish, a disapproving voice instantly cut her off, "Axiang."

The two females turned together and saw a tall, stern‑faced male frowning at them.

Sensing the male's displeasure, Yun Li's brows barely furrowed.

But Axiang was oblivious; seeing her male approach, she happily turned to introduce Yun Li, "A Li, this is my First Beast Husband, A Gu. A Gu, this is Yun Li I mentioned before; just call her A Li."

A Gu gave Yun Li a cool glance, did not respond to the female's remark, and instead, in a lecturing tone, said to Axiang, "The cold season just ended; don't keep wandering outside. If you catch a chill, you'll be bedridden for a long time, and everyone will worry about you."

Logically, as Axiang's Beast Husband, he was caring for her, but Yun Li felt uncomfortable just hearing it; perhaps she had been spoiled by her own male, and this male simply behaved that way with his female.

Looking at Axiang, she clearly didn't share Yun Li's feeling, and smiled brightly as she replied to her male:

"Got it, got it, I won't catch a cold that easily."

The male's brows tightened further, but he said nothing else, gave Yun Li a cold glance, and walked away.

After he left, Axiang finally apologized on behalf of her Beast Husband to Yun Li, "A Li, don't misunderstand him; A Gu is just like that, but he's actually a good person."

"Hmm."

What could Yun Li say? She wasn't the female who would spend a lifetime with that male, and as long as Axiang didn't feel uncomfortable with his words, that was fine.

The two walked toward the area where the Tribe's females gathered, and as they walked, Axiang asked Yun Li, "About what I just said, will you consider it?"

"Our chief is really good; his strength in our Tribe may not be the strongest, but he's a Yellow Rank beastman... hmm, maybe a bit weaker than you, but for a female, having a male nearby is always better..."

Yun Li listened patiently until she finished, then gently declined her kindness, "No need. My Beast Husbands are all stronger than me; if they found out I secretly took a Beast Husband weaker than me, they wouldn't be happy."

When Axiang blinked, a surprised expression on her face, Yun Li continued, "Besides, my Beast Husbands—aside from the First and Second Beast Husbands, whose temperaments are a bit better—the other two are petty."

If that happens, your chief might end up in a terrible situation.

Axiang focused on that previous sentence, "Your Beast Husbands are all stronger than you? Then aren't they all Green-rank beastmen?"

Yun Li's lips curled into a faint smile, neither confirming nor denying.

Green-rank beastmen are already the strongest among them; rather than reveal Axuan's true strength and provoke jealousy and fear among the Tribe's males, it's better to keep it vague.

She hoped those males would be smarter and not force her into a blood‑letting spree.