Chapter 415: Bound to Have Omissions

Bao Chi finally understood; until now, he had been too tolerant.

If this continues, even if he hides inside Black Feather, these beastmen will come looking for him when humans are absent.

He cannot keep troubling this person over and over.

Bao Chi's drooping hand was still trembling; he didn't dare let his gaze fall on any leopard beastman, yet he lifted his foot.

He strode several steps toward the fire basin, and under the shocked gazes of all the beastmen, he kicked over the basin of blazing flames.

The scattered wood shavings ignited the dry grass on the ground, quickly pulling a line of fire that separated Bao Chi from those leopard beastmen.

Amidst the clamor and questioning, Bao Chi clenched his fists, his voice rising above all the beastmen: "From today on, I, Bao Chi, have nothing more to do with you!"

His voice hoarse with the resolve of breaking the cauldrons and sinking the boats: "Take this fire as the boundary! My bread, my game coins, my everything—from now on, they have nothing to do with you!"

For the first time, Bao Chi's gaze swept over those shocked faces without fear, landing on the ashen faces of Leopard Fang and Leopard Claw, and he said word by word: "Who dares to cross this line to come find me—"

He paused, drew a deep breath, and roared with all his strength: "Even if I have to stake my life, I will bite through his throat!"

The burning fire carved a scorching, clear boundary between Bao Chi and the leopard beastmen; the leaping flames illuminated his resolute profile, as well as the shocked, angry, and even incredulous gazes opposite him.

They had never seen such a Bao Chi.

The Bao Chi who always kept his head down and silently endured was now like a beast driven to desperation, baring his blood-stained fangs.

Leopard Fang and Leopard Claw were cowed by this aura, instinctively stepping back half a step, their lips moving but unable to utter a sound.

That line of fire seemed to carry an invisible force, making them dare not cross it.

Cheng Shuili watched Bao Chi's slightly trembling yet ramrod-straight back, a flicker of admiration flashing in her eyes.

This is the posture a resister ought to have!

She said nothing, merely standing there quietly, silently serving as Bao Chi's firmest backing.

Bao Chi slightly lifted his head, striving to make his gaze look fiercer, so that all the leopard beastmen could see his determination.

Finally, he turned to Cheng Shuili and said, "Let's go, person."

Cheng Shuili nodded, also not correcting his address.

She led Bao Chi back to the bear tribe's station first, where they stayed overnight, and in the meantime she and Bao Chi signed the formal contract for settling in Black Feather.

Although Cheng Shuili had said it wasn't necessary, the detachment of bear tribe guards still escorted them to the gate of the bear tribe's station before bidding her farewell and leaving.

This time Cheng Shuili felt no negative emotions.

She could feel that the captain of the guards' insistence was merely out of courtesy, not due to a stereotype about humans.

That was good.

Meanwhile, the bear beastmen of the station had little reaction to the fact that a leopard beastman had come under the lord's jurisdiction.

To them, leopards were as weak as rabbits; they would fight fellow bear tribe beastmen, but they would not lay a hand on obviously weak creatures.

This amounts to a nearly arrogant gentleman's code of the bear tribe.

As long as one does not provoke them or infringe on their interests, they can't even be bothered to spare much attention on weak existences.

Especially after learning from the talkative bear tribe guards about this poor leopard's background.

Thus, Bao Chi's moving in did not cause much of a stir in the bear tribe's station; only a few cubs curiously glanced a few times before being snatched away by adult bear tribe members.

The contract was signed in Xiong Ji's office; from the moment he entered that office, Bao Chi was like he could not hold himself together, and tears streamed down.

Cheng Shuili sat opposite him, patiently waiting for a while.

If someone unaware of the circumstances saw this scene, they would surely think Cheng Shuili, this human, was bullying Bao Chi.

Cheng Shuili propped her chin, and after waiting until she grew really impatient, she finally spoke to urge him on.

Bao Chi wiped his tears and finally turned his thoughts to the matter at hand.

This was not the first contract he had signed with Cheng Shuili.

But precisely because the profit split of the first contract was really odd, Bao Chi examined this new contract especially carefully.

He read it word by word, fearing to miss any clause that might be disadvantageous to him.

Whereas the terms of this formal contract for settling in Black Feather were clear, with rights and responsibilities well defined, and contained nothing contrary to common sense.

Everything was fair and transparent, yet it overturned his imagination of how every safety zone operates.

He blinked a few times, his eyes still holding tears, and asked in a voice hoarse from crying: "Can I just sleep directly inside the shop at night?"

Cheng Shuili nodded.

Bao Chi then looked down another clause, and after reading it, he inquired in an astonished tone: "No performance requirements? No competitive pressure? To move out, one only needs to submit an application a month in advance? And as long as one isn't complained about for selling counterfeit goods, one can keep doing business in the safety zone?!"

He asked too many questions, and they came in a rapid succession.

Cheng Shuili initially paid attention to these questions, but her focus gradually drifted; thus, after Bao Chi finished speaking, she didn't answer, instead saying: "Bao Chi, you're not stuttering anymore, huh."

Bao Chi was stunned by her words, instinctively touching his throat, and only then realized that since the moment he kicked over the fire basin and severed his kin, that invisible pressure that had been choking his throat, making him shrink and stutter, seemed to have truly dissipated with that great fire.

He felt a bit embarrassed, lowered his head, his ears twitching slightly, his voice soft but no longer intermittent:

"I... I didn't notice."

Cheng Shuili smiled, pushing the feather pen toward him.

"If the contract is fine, just sign it. Black Feather's rule is fair trade, voluntary mutual benefit. We provide safety and a platform; you contribute labor and skill—nothing more."

Bao Chi solemnly took up the pen and, on the beast‑skin contract, wrote his name stroke by stroke.

This time, his claw was steady.

The next morning, Bao Chi moved into the back room of the shop allocated to him in the Black Feather Safety Zone.

The place wasn't large, but it was dry and warm, belonging solely to him.

During the day he busied himself in the shop all day, found Hui Wei to handle the paperwork; although Hui Wei threatened and tried to coax him to stay, he did not choose to remain.

After signing the lease‑termination agreement, Bao Chi took advantage of the daylight to move all his belongings over, set up his tools, and tidied the shopfront as well.

At night he lay on the soft new bedding, listening to the regular footsteps of the safety zone's night patrol outside, feeling an unprecedented peace.

On the third day, as soon as it dawned, Bao Chi got busy.

He carefully swept the street-facing shop, arranging the pre-prepared flour, sugar frosting, and other ingredients in neat order.

After the aroma of the first batch of bread drifted from the oven and filled the early morning street, it immediately drew many curious gazes.

Early risers among the humans, taking advantage of the thin crowd to broaden their horizons, followed their noses to find the shop, and were quite surprised to see that the shopkeeper was a leopard-beastman.

"A leopard making bread?"

Bao Chi's heart tightened, and he instinctively wanted to lower his head again, but remembering yesterday's resolve, he forced himself to raise his head and revealed a slightly stiff smile: "Y-yes, would you like to try some? Today it's honey bread."

That player from another district looked at his nervous yet determined posture, sniffed again at the sweet, tempting scent in the air, and grinned: "Give me two!"

The first transaction was successfully completed.

As the sun climbed higher, more and more humans were drawn by the aroma.

Bao Chi's skill was indeed excellent—the bread was soft and fluffy, baked to just the right degree, and the price was fair.

Without Wu Ya's promotion in the other districts, almost no one knew that such a bakery was hidden inside Shou Ren Xiao Zhen; they all assumed Wu Ya had scouted this talent, and sighed in admiration one after another.

Bao Chi was so busy his feet barely touched the ground, fine beads of sweat seeping from his forehead, yet his eyes grew brighter and brighter.

He no longer had to worry about his hard-earned money being forcibly taken away, no longer had to fear beatings and scoldings that could descend at any moment—he only needed to focus on the dough before him and his customers.

Unlike Bao Chi's gradually stabilizing, peaceful life, Cheng Shuili had been practically unable to stop for even a moment these past few days.

The plague that had swept through Shou Ren Xiao Zhen was rapidly contained after the specific remedy Cheng Shuili provided was promptly distributed.

By the evening of the second day, all races had received the medicine.

Cheng Shuili had originally not wanted to stay here long, but because of her deal with the Rat King, she stayed.

To prevent the plague from flaring up again, Cheng Shuili worked almost without rest or sleep alongside the Bear Clan guard unit, going from station to station conducting inspections and mop-up work.

This was not merely physical exhaustion, but an enormous mental pressure.

She had to face the gazes of beastmen of different races—some grateful, some reverent, some still tinged with suspicion—had to coordinate potential conflicts over resource distribution, and had to remain constantly vigilant for any clue that might herald a resurgence of the epidemic.

It was no exaggeration to say that these few days were the most exhausting days Cheng Shuili had experienced since entering this world.

Before, when she was busy with Black Feather's affairs, she was indeed busy, but that was her own faction—busy as she was, she felt comfortable in her heart.

But now…

Cheng Shuili couldn't help but sigh.

The sound immediately drew the attention of Xiong Ji nearby. "King, would you like to rest a while? You've been running around all morning."

Cheng Shuili rubbed the space between her brows, withdrew her gaze from afar, and shook her head: "No need. There's only one last station left. We'll talk after the inspection."

Her voice carried obvious exhaustion, but her eyes remained sharp.

Xiong Ji looked at the dark circles under her eyes and didn't try to persuade her further, only silently signaling the team to quicken their pace a little.

This last one was the Lizard Clan station located at the edge of the town.

Compared to the other stations, this place appeared even more damp and disorderly.

The moment Cheng Shuili stepped inside, her brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

A faint, elusive fishy, rotting scent permeated the air; several of the accompanying Bear Clan beastmen also frowned, raising their hands to fan the air before their noses, trying to reduce the smell they inhaled.

Cheng Shuili raised her hand to signal the guard unit to wait at the entrance, while she herself went deeper inside with Xiong Ji and two accompanying Bear Clan medics who knew basic medical principles.

The Lizard Clan beastmen appeared both panicked and numb at their arrival.

The clan chief was an old lizard with dull, lusterless scales; he led them tremblingly to examine the clansmen whose conditions had improved after taking the medicine.

The high fever of most of the Lizard Clan beastmen had indeed broken, and their coughing had lessened considerably; on the surface, there seemed to be no problem here.

But Cheng Shuili's gaze fell on the corner of the station, on those few figures huddled in the shadows, nearly blending into the darkness.

They looked even weaker than the other Lizard Clan members, their breathing faint, and their exposed skin was covered with an abnormal layer of viscous fluid.

Looking at their condition, they were clearly patients.

Cheng Shuili frowned, pointed at those few people, and asked directly: "What was their reaction after taking the medicine?"

The old lizard clan chief's eyes flickered, and he stammered: "They… they were more severely ill, so they're recovering more slowly, but they are getting better…"

Cheng Shuili said nothing, only strode toward those figures.

As the distance closed, that fishy, rotting smell grew stronger.

She crouched down, disregarding the unpleasant odor, and carefully examined the condition of one of them.

Between the gaps of the scales on his neck, she could faintly see some fine, white insect eggs slowly wriggling!

Cheng Shuili's pupils contracted, and she instantly stood upright.

She immediately realized that these beastmen had never taken the medicine at all!

She had delivered the medicine, even arranged for Bear Clan beastmen to oversee its distribution, but there were still beastmen who hadn't gotten the medicine!

Cheng Shuili suddenly recalled the line written in her contract with the Rat King: "If Party B fails to fulfill the obligation of treatment, Party B shall become a slave of the beastmen! Never to betray for all eternity."

She finally understood why the Rat King had added such an abrupt clause to the contract—as long as there were a few slip-throughs like this in Shou Ren Xiao Zhen, she would be considered to have failed to fulfill her obligation of treatment!

She also finally understood why the Rat King had agreed so readily; he had indeed made a deal with her, and had given those things.

But the Rat King had given them—did Cheng Shuili have the life to take them?

These clan chiefs naturally would not stand by and watch their own clansmen die, and the clansmen even less likely would willingly die for no reason.

Just how many deals had been struck here, and how many beastmen's lives had been traded…

Cheng Shuili clenched her fists, her thoughts churning, but the sheer shock of the moment left her speechless.

The Rat King… and she had actually thought this opponent was at least open and honorable.

At this moment, Cheng Shuili was immensely grateful for the Bear Clan's surrender.

Without the Bear Clan, relying only on the Wolf Clan, she truly would not have had enough confidence to keep all of Shou Ren Xiao Zhen under control.

And now, since the Rat King had relinquished power, he shouldn't be making trouble right under her nose.

Doing such a thing was truly stupid.

However, Cheng Shuili being clear about it in her heart was one thing; what needed to be interrogated still had to be interrogated.

She spun around sharply, her gaze shooting toward the old lizard clan chief like a blade, her voice cold as ice: "I need an explanation. Why haven't these beastmen taken their medicine? The medicine I distributed was rationed strictly according to the numbers reported by each clan—there absolutely cannot be a shortage!"

She lowered her voice, her gaze fixed on the old lizard clan chief, her tone full of menace:

"You should understand clearly—I'm human. I don't abide by your beastmen's ways."