Chapter 37: The Beast Tide Arrives

If it's really as Leng Xiu said, then the Original Owner's tragic life is definitely inseparable from Meng.

"Just doubts? It's still not certain whether it's related to the fact that he caused my A Mu's difficult birth, right?"

If possible, Yun Li truly doesn't want Meng to be linked to the Original Owner's A Mu's difficult delivery.

After all, she isn't the Original Owner; Yun Li can revenge against those green‑grass females who previously bullied the Original Owner without any hesitation because, through the Original Owner's memories, she knows the Original Owner had little affection for those females, but as for Meng……

Even the mere blood‑relation makes Yun Li feel it's tricky, let alone the Original Owner truly revered this "uncle" and regarded him as the only family.

If someday Yun Li kills Meng because of the Original Owner's A Mu's difficult delivery, would the Original Owner's spirit in heaven be pleased, she wonders?

Alright, actually, the most important thing is that Yun Li herself is selfish, not wanting the Original Owner's affairs to cause her family excessive worry and effort.

"He has great doubts."

Although Yun Li's reaction to this matter wasn't as big as he imagined, since it concerns a female of his own, as soon as any trace is sensed, Leng Xiu is unwilling to let it go easily.

"A Li never noticed when Meng came to find us, and never dared to look straight at your face?"

"…I didn't pay attention to those."

Hearing that, Yun Li was silent for a moment, then said, "I think he came to find you, assuming there are important matters to discuss."

Because she isn't the Original Owner, even if at first she's influenced by the Original Owner's memories, she can recognize Meng at a glance.

But the other side never wants to interact with her, and Yun Li isn't lacking affection, so how could she be like the Original Owner, still yearning for Meng's attention even when Meng is indifferent, keeping every move he makes after his arrival in mind.

Leng Xiu's gaze flickered with a hint of pity as he pulled the female into his arms, his voice a bit low as he told her, "Meng has long known who you are."

In his embrace, Yun Li let out a muffled "hm," "I guessed it. It's because of me that he keeps coming to you repeatedly, right?"

A smile flashed in Leng Xiu's eyes, "So A Li thinks his coming has caused us a lot of trouble?"

Leng Xiu wouldn't self‑fabricate like Leng Xiao; he thinks A Li feels sorry for their hardships, but he also wonders whether Yun Li's impatience with Meng is because his arrival disturbed their interactions.

"He comes every day yet never says anything useful; I just don't know whether he's just trying to get close to you or genuinely caring about how I'm doing?"

Speaking that way, Yun Li seemed to recall something and suddenly asked an important question, "Is the Tribe's current situation not so good?"

She had just thought of it: over four hundred Beastmen, even though there were casualties from the earlier earth tremor, the daily food requirement is still massive.

Now the Hunting Squad, constrained by the outside situation, can't roam freely; they can only hunt opportunistically near the Tribe together with the Patrol Team's Beastmen, and the daily catch certainly can't meet the food consumption.

So behind Meng's several visits to Leng Xiu, is there support from the Chief and the Witch Doctor?

Seeing that she could think of this, a flash of surprise first crossed Leng Xiu's eyes, then a broad smile rose.

"Exactly as you thought."

He patted the head of his female, saying, "But it's fine, A Xiao and I will handle these."

With them around, Yun Li can freely enjoy life just as she used to.

Instead of making her compromise with the Tribe for them and then feeling aggrieved.

That night, the Chief tossed and turned, unable to sleep; beside him, Gong, fearing he would wake He, hurriedly got up, pulling him outward while lowering his voice:

"Leng Xiu and the others still disagree?"

The Chief nodded, sighed, and said, "Do you think He should go over there?"

"Mao, Leng Xiu and the others are already willing to endure that hardship; why must you heed Meng and his group, insisting that their females move into the cave?"

Gong truly didn't understand why the Chief was pressuring Leng Xiu and the others; as long as they're willing to follow his arrangements and serve the Tribe, where their females live has nothing to do with him.

The Chief looked at Gong, then gave a wry smile, "You think I truly want to make things hard for Leng Xiu and his group, but it's just that their brothers are so strong and refuse to place the females in the cave.

If one day the beasts outside become unstoppable, given Leng Xiu's strength, tell me, should I worry that they'll just take their own females and leave?"

"That would be two young Qing Rank Beastmen and a young female; wherever they go, there will be a Tribe willing to accept them."

Gong, listening to this, showed a hint of hesitation on his face, "Leng Xiu and the others did grow up in the Tribe from childhood, after all."

The Chief turned his head to look at him, "But the current situation is that the Tribe needs them, not the other way around."

The Chief knows some of his actions are indeed detestable, but for the sake of the whole Tribe, he can only act this way.

Gong no longer tries to persuade the Chief; in fact, if the Chief hadn't explained it so clearly, he wouldn't have thought in that direction at all.

His belief is that Beastmen must attach to a Tribe to live well; otherwise, like Leng Xiu's Qing Rank Beastmen wandering outside, they might not fare well.

Living on wind‑blown meals and exposed nights, while also guarding against beasts stealing homes, one might endure a few months, but if it continues year after year, it will eventually become twisted.

Otherwise, how could wandering Beastmen seize Tribe females? Apart from venting desire, another reason is that wandering Beastmen feel lonely and need females to alleviate solitude.

But he forgot that the two young Qing Rank Beastmen of Leng Xiu can go anywhere; why must they clash with their Tribe, when Yun Li, a young female, has even more Tribes she could go to.

Only, while Gong internally agreed with the Chief's approach and was willing to help the Chief persuade He to look for Yun Li, a commotion suddenly arose from below the mountain.

Like the onset of an earth tremor, the Chief and Gong's expressions instantly tightened.

"The Beast Tide is coming!"

Yun Li, who slept in Leng Xiu's arms that night, also felt the ground's violent tremor; moreover, when she woke, she heard faint roars, and Leng Xiao's exclamation "It's the Beast Tide" startled her awake, sending all her drowsiness fleeing.

She was carried up the mountain by Leng Xiu; Leng Xiao returned to announce, watching Yun Li being protected by his brother as they ascended, then immediately shifted into a wolf form and turned to aid the Patrol Team guarding below the mountain.

"Roar~"

"Aaa~"

The beasts' snarls at first came in intermittent bursts, but as the Patrol Team's Beastmen below rushed up one by one, Yun Li, standing high, saw a black silhouette flash across her view as it passed through the former site of the Tribe below.

Immediately behind it came one, then two, then a massive shadow hanging behind, indistinguishable whether it was a dozen or dozens of beasts; in the blink of an eye, the ruins the Tribe could still glimpse were completely engulfed by the surging black shadows.