Chapter 410: Losing Leopard Face

The gazes of all the beastmen converged on the three boxes containing only straw, and Bao Wen's face instantly turned deathly pale.

Energy stones were different from other goods; the boxes used for transport were standardized across all tribes.

And to make them look presentable, the excess space was filled with straw—so which box had more and which had less, just by looking at the straw, wasn't it immediately obvious?

Xiong Ji was startled at first, then suddenly understood.

The look he directed at Cheng Shuili instantly filled with reverence. If before he had only seen her potential, now he completely acknowledged her ability!

At this moment, Xiong Ji was immensely grateful for his own decisiveness.

Such a person would sooner or later achieve even greater things! And when that time came, the Bear Tribe—as the first to rally behind her—would see their status naturally rise with the tide, even if they couldn't claim to have done the heavy lifting.

He smiled from the bottom of his heart, and the look he gave Bao Wen even carried a rare hint of smugness. Though he said nothing, the meaning was all there in his eyes.

The other Bear Tribe beastmen all straightened their backs, simply bursting with pride.

The Lion and Tiger Tribes likewise had a sudden realization.

The logic was simple to explain, even obvious at a glance, but to discover and seize upon this loophole in such a short time and counterattack Bao Wen—the ability demonstrated in this...

Regardless of which tribe the beastmen belonged to, as long as they were present, they would probably all regard this little human in a higher light.

The situation was already clear, yet Bao Wen still stubbornly refused to admit it: "What proof do you have that these are our Leopard Tribe's boxes?"

The moment those words came out, before Cheng Shuili even needed to speak, the Lion and Tiger Tribe beastmen flared up first.

"What do you mean? If they're not your Leopard Tribe's, could they be our Lion Tribe's?"

A Tiger Tribe beastman added: "That's right, could they be our Tiger Tribe's?"

"Our Lion Tribe isn't the kind of faithless scoundrels you are! We agreed on one thousand, so it's one thousand, not a single stone less!"

A Tiger Tribe beastman added: "That's right, we won't be short a single stone either."

"If you can't produce them, just admit it honestly! Making a scene like this, isn't that even more embarrassing?"

A Tiger Tribe beastman added: "That's right, even our Tiger Tribe feels embarrassed for you!"

As the words fell, the Lion Tribe beastman truly couldn't help frowning and looking over. The Tiger Tribe beastman seemed to realize something was amiss too, but after carefully recalling for a moment, felt there was no problem at all.

But facing the Lion Tribe beastman's questioning gaze head-on was impossible—they were sworn rivals! So they could only turn their heads and look the other way, pretending not to notice the Lion Tribe beastman's gaze.

Cheng Shuili and Xiong Ji: "..."

What kind of sworn rivals were these? Wasn't this remarkably harmonious?

The atmosphere became extremely congenial for a moment—except for the Leopard Tribe beastmen, who had lost all face.

The Lion Tribe beastman glanced at Bao Wen, and seeing that he still intended to keep being stubborn, immediately pointed at the boxes and said: "Our Lion Tribe's boxes have markings on them. You can't wriggle out of this one."

"What a coincidence, ours do too. And moreover..." A Tiger Tribe beastman raised an eyebrow, glanced at Cheng Shuili, and said righteously: "Lord Bear King has already verified that our two tribes' energy stones are fine. If you want to drag us into this, I'm afraid you've miscalculated."

Now it was the Lion Tribe beastman's turn to say "that's right."

Seeing that without Cheng Shuili even needing to speak, the Lion Tribe and Tiger Tribe, plus the obvious evidence, were about to nail the Leopard Tribe thoroughly to the pillar of shame for hypocrisy, Bao Wen hurriedly spoke up to do damage control, his face green: "I truly am not very clear about the matter of the energy stone quantities,"

Bao Wen forced himself to stay calm, yet fine beads of sweat seeped from his temples, "Perhaps it was an error made by the people below..."

"Heh, an error that happens to come up short by half," the Lion Tribe beastman sneered.

"Still refusing to admit it, and even trying to drag other tribes down with you," the Tiger Tribe beastman mocked.

Bao Wen's face alternated between green and white, his lips trembling but unable to speak. He looked around and saw that the gazes of every tribe's beastmen directed at him were full of contempt and disdain.

The truth was already out in the open, and it was time to settle this matter quickly.

Cheng Shuili finally spoke: "Then now, the Leopard Tribe chief acknowledges that the energy stones brought are insufficient, correct?"

Without waiting for Bao Wen to answer, she pulled the question directly back to the original options: "Given the Leopard Tribe chief's attitude, the first option that Dean Xiong previously offered is officially void. You now can only accept the second option."

"That is, confiscating the five hundred energy stones you brought, and the Leopard Tribe will receive the medicine for treating the plague last."

As the words fell, all the Leopard Tribe beastmen present turned pale.

The beastmen of the other tribes were quite pleased to see this:

"No objections!" the Lion Tribe was the first to respond.

"The Tiger Tribe agrees!" the Tiger Tribe echoed.

The two beastmen exchanged a glance and suddenly found that their longtime sworn rival looked rather handsome...

Setting aside the inner thoughts of those two beastmen for now, Bao Wen listened to Cheng Shuili's verdict and felt a surge of blood rush straight to the top of his head.

He clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging deep into his palms, yet felt not the slightest pain.

"Cheng Shuili! You're a human—what right do you have to meddle in our beastfolk affairs!" Bao Wen finally couldn't hold back and roared hoarsely, "What are you? A human! A bastard with no bloodline! Why should we listen to you!"

The moment those words came out, even the Lion and Tiger Tribes, who had been watching the spectacle, frowned.

Xiong Ji was even more furious and was about to speak, but was stopped by a single look from Cheng Shuili.

Cheng Shuili smiled instead of growing angry and stepped forward slowly.

Her gaze was as calm as a deep pool, yet it made Bao Wen inexplicably feel a chill.

"Because I can save your lives," her voice was cool and clear. "Because I can stop this plague from taking any more beastmen's lives."

She looked around, her gaze sweeping over every tribe: "In the face of life and death, is my identity really that important? Members of the Lion Tribe, Tiger Tribe, and Bear Tribe—do you think so too?"

The Lion Tribe representative immediately stated their position: "The Lion Tribe believes only in ability."

The Tiger Tribe representative followed: "The Tiger Tribe respects true strength."

Xiong Ji was even more resolute: "You are our king! Our one and only king!" He turned to Bao Wen: "You will certainly pay for your disrespect just now."

Before the words had finished, the Bear Tribe beastmen had already stepped forward in unison, surrounding the Leopard Tribe entirely.

A cold light flickered in Xiong Ji's eyes: "Bao Wen, kneel and apologize to our king, or your actions today will be a declaration of war against our Bear Tribe!"

The Lion Tribe and Tiger Tribe representatives exchanged a glance and tacitly led their people to seal off all the Leopard Tribe's routes of retreat.

The atmosphere in the entire venue was charged with tension, as if even the air had solidified.

Bao Wen's face was as white as paper, and the Leopard Tribe beastmen behind him were trembling all over.

Only at this moment did he truly realize just how terrifying a level of prestige this human had reached among the beastfolk.

"You should know… what declaring war means…"

Xiong Ji added another spark to the scorching atmosphere.

The leopard‑clan beastmen finally realized: they came to secure the right to obtain the medicine in advance! If war were declared, that medicine…

A young leopard‑clan beastman behind Bao Wen suddenly knelt, his voice trembling with tears: "Clan chief! Please! My sister is still running a high fever in the clan lands; she can't hold on for many more days!"

That plea was the last straw that broke the camel's back; one after another, leopard‑clan beastmen fell to their knees, their cries of supplication rising and falling.

Bao Wen closed his eyes; when he opened them again, the arrogance and resentment had vanished, leaving only deep fatigue and remorse. He lowered his head and slowly approached Cheng Shuili.

He dared not lift his head to look the human in the eyes; his knees gave way and he knelt, whispering, "I apologize to you; please… forgive me this time."

Though it was an apology, a thin edge of clenched‑tooth bitterness lingered.

Everyone present knew he wasn't truly remorseful; he realized that without apologizing he would lose the chance to get the medicine, so he was forced to admit fault.

Such an attitude… Cheng Shuili was, of course, dissatisfied.

From the moment he first saw her, Bao Wen launched verbal attacks, then complained about the shortage of energy stones and shifted blame…

Cheng Shuili is no saint, nor is she overly tolerant.

Erasing everything with a single short sentence? On what grounds?

Cheng Shuili did not reply immediately.

She simply stared quietly at the kneeling Bao Wen, watching his clenched fists and slightly trembling shoulders.

The surrounding beastmen held their breath, awaiting her judgment.

A strange tension spread through the air, as if even the wind had ceased to move.

After a long while, Cheng Shuili finally spoke slowly, her voice low yet clear to every beastman's ear: "Your apology, I have received."

Bao Wen's shoulders relaxed, as if a breath of relief had come, and he was about to rise—

Cheng Shuili suddenly shifted tone: "But your apology is not sincere; it is forced by circumstance. You know it, I know it, and everyone present knows it as well."

Bao Wen's body stiffened; he looked up at Cheng Shuili, a flash of panic in his eyes.

"I accept your apology, as a chance for you and for the entire leopard clan."

Cheng Shuili's gaze swept over the leopard‑clan beastmen kneeling on the ground, their eyes filled with concern for their kin's lives. "In the face of plague, life is paramount. I will not let the entire leopard clan pay for your mistake simply because of your rudeness."

Upon hearing this, many leopard‑clan beastmen felt hope ignite in their eyes.

"However," Cheng Shuili emphasized again, her eyes returning to Bao Wen, "rules are rules. The leopard clan's delivered energy‑stone count is insufficient, and the clan chief publicly insulted the decision‑maker; both offenses merit punishment."

She paused briefly, watching Bao Wen's face turn instantly ashen, and continued: "The five hundred energy stones already paid will be confiscated; that is unchanged. The leopard clan's medicine distribution order will be placed after every race that has completed donation registration, whether great or small."

That means the leopard clan not only loses the five hundred energy stones, but must also wait until all races—including those that donated only a few dozen or a few hundred stones—have received the medicine before theirs comes.

For the proud leopard clan, this is undeniably a heavy blow and a great humiliation.

Bao Wen snapped his head up, disbelief and shame flooding his eyes. He opened his mouth as if to argue, but under Cheng Shuili's calm, unruffled gaze and the bear‑clan beastmen's hungry stares, he finally bowed his head in defeat.

He knew this was already the best outcome.

At least the leopard clan could still obtain the medicine.

"As for you, Clan chief Bao Wen," Cheng Shuili's voice cooled, "insulting the Bear King…"

Her voice brightened: "That's me. If I let this slide so lightly, how can our bear clan hold its head high as beasts in the future?"

At the end, her trailing tone rose playfully yet retained authority; hearing it, confidence surged within.

Xiong Ji kept his ears on the king's words; as soon as they fell, he stepped forward and said, "Leopard clan chief, you don't want this to become an ugly scene, do you?"

In an instant, every beastman's gaze fixed on Bao Wen.

His complexion flickered between pale and ashen, cold sweat streaming down his forehead; he raised his trembling hand to wipe it, then found his voice: "I… I'll go with you."

At first Cheng Shuili didn't grasp it, but a sidelong glance caught a bear‑clan beastman pulling a sack, and she understood.

It turned out the meaning was: find a place where no one is.

Still caring about face.

That request could of course be met; several towering bear‑clan beastmen surrounded Bao Wen, escorting him toward the back of the hospital like a prisoner. After a short while, the line of beastmen's stiff march vanished.

Although no one could see them, everyone knew they were there, and since the bear‑clan beastmen didn't seal Bao Wen's mouth, the pain inevitably made him cry out.

For a moment, the on‑looking beastmen were utterly focused, ears perked to catch any sound.

At first came a muffled thud, then another muffled thud, followed by Bao Wen's suppressed groan, clearly showing the bear‑clan beastmen were sparing no mercy.

"Ah! You… take it easy!" Bao Wen's voice was choppy, laced with obvious pain.

A bear‑clan beastman barked roughly, "Leopard chief, this is on you! To dare insult our king, this punishment is already light!"

The surrounding beastmen exchanged meaningful glances.

The lion‑clan representative shook his head slightly, murmuring, "Bao Wen, truly bringing disgrace upon himself."

The tiger‑clan representative snorted coldly, "Serves him right. He's disgraced the faces of all five great beast races."

At that moment, a mournful, harrowing scream from Bao Wen echoed from behind the hospital, followed by the thud of a heavy object hitting the ground.

All beastmen held their breath.

After a brief silence, Bao Wen's tear‑tinged voice shouted, "Pain! Pain! You… you… you wait…"

The bear‑clan beastmen who were striking glanced at each other, still daring to speak harshly; realizing their blows weren't harsh enough, they increased their force a notch, and Bao Wen kept emitting muffled groans, unable to utter a single word.

The onlookers were getting bored of the spectacle; aside from a few remarks about the leopard clan's disgrace, there was little else to say, when suddenly…

The leopard‑clan beastman who had been kneeling moments ago suddenly cried out, "King! King! It's all our fault… we're the ones who dragged you into this!"

That mournful, harrowing wail re‑energized every beastman present, and even the muffled groans from behind the hospital ceased abruptly.

Bao Wen was mortified. At first his cries of pain carried little psychological burden, but now he realized that the leopard‑clan beastmen could hear his voice—that even the on‑looking beastmen could hear him—making him feel an unbearable shame.