Chapter 165: Ge Rui Si

Time passed quickly; in the blink of an eye, Zhang Fan had already led a Beast God month's worth of troops. In these fifty days, Zhang Fan discovered many talents like Ge Rui Si and Li Si.

Everyone has some shortcomings, but they each have their own strengths—for example, Ge Rui Si's archery skill is excellent, Li Si's endurance is strong, Nuoya's speed is fast. Er, of course, Fei Er's talkative ability is indeed profound! (Er… it seems something strange has run in…)

Now the cold season has officially begun; the weather has turned cool, and even though every day is scorching sun, the biting cold wind still makes one feel a piercing chill.

And the edible plants in the wild had already been gnawed clean by starving animals and Beastmen; those small creatures that could not endure the cold also retreated to their dens to hibernate.

At this time, Zhang Fan had also put on the heavy leather garment hand-sewn by Ba Ke Er. Since it was hand-sewn by Ba Ke Er, it had absolutely no aesthetic appeal, yet even so, Zhang Fan was willing to wear it.

That day, Zhang Fan was leading his troops in practicing dynamic shooting on the grassland at the edge of the Tribe. Things were going well when suddenly—an alarm signaling an attack on the Tribe came from above the Tribe.

Upon hearing the alarm, the members of the Female Guard Team's first reaction was no longer to look for a place to hide as before; instead, they all tightly gripped their bows and arrows, ready to fire!

After a month of training, everyone had firmly memorized the phrase 'obey orders, follow commands.' Now they all looked expectantly at Zhang Fan, awaiting his next order.

Zhang Fan, upon hearing the alarm, merely furrowed his brow, said nothing, and gestured with his hand for everyone to continue training!

Thus, the female members who had been poised to strike suddenly slumped. But they quickly regained their spirits, resumed the previous training, and started again.

The training that followed didn't last long before it was halted by two male Beastmen guard team members who descended from the sky.

The reason is simple: the Female Guard Team's training ground is too close to the Tribe's outskirts, so the males feared the females would be hurt and thus sent people over to have Zhang Fan lead the females to relocate.

Although the male Beastmen meant well, the females did not see it that way; most thought the males were looking down on them, which is why they ordered the retreat.

Thus, despite the males' full-force dissuasion, the females resolutely chose to stay put, refusing to accept the relocation.

Zhang Fan originally watched the ongoing argument between the male Beastmen and the females without uttering a sound—neither supporting the females nor indicating they should relocate—just silently observing.

However, something unexpected happened: the somewhat impulsive Ge Rui Si formally challenged one of the male Beastmen who had come to report!

Moreover, this is the kind of challenge that can only be carried out between males—namely, close-quarters combat!

Ge Rui Si's sudden move startled not only those two male Beastmen but even more so frightened the females!

「Good heavens, what's wrong with Ge Rui Si? How could Zhang Fan be fighting the males? 」 Female a

「Who says otherwise? Oh, look—he's actually challenging the tribe warrior Ma Sai Li, famed for his sturdy build! 」 Female b

「I think Ge Rui Si has gone mad! Otherwise why would he do this? Good heavens! Totally crazy! 」 Female c

……

The females couldn't help but gossip among themselves in their small circles.

Zhang Fan, upon hearing them say that, merely twitched the corner of his mouth slightly, with no intention of stopping them.

However, Fei Er, the chatterbox, had initially been gossiping carelessly with the surrounding females, but gradually began to worry about Ge Rui Si, fearing his challenge would be accepted by Ma Sai Li.

If he lost, Ge Rui Si would surely be injured; if he won, likely no male would want him afterward. Both outcomes seemed especially terrifying to Fei Er.

After thinking it over, Fei Er still decided to risk Zhang Fan's punishment and go find him, hoping he could persuade the impulsive Ge Rui Si. Seeing the situation, Fei Er forgot to file a report first and directly acted on his own, running to Zhang Fan's side.

「Fan Fan, look at the situation! If Ma Sai Li accepts the challenge, it'll be disastrous! With Ge Rui Si's small frame, how could he possibly beat him? Go persuade Ge Rui Si quickly—have him withdraw his challenge! 」

Fei Er said anxiously.

Zhang Fan listened as Fei Er spoke into his ear, slowly shifting his gaze from Ge Rui Si to Fei Er. He gave Fei Er a faint glance, then turned his head back and said slowly:

「Don't worry—even if he accepts the challenge, Ge Rui Si won't lose! Moreover, Ma Sai Li would never accept Ge Rui Si's challenge in the first place! Just relax! 」

Hearing Zhang Fan's slow, steady tone, which firmly expressed confidence that Ge Rui Si would win.

Fei Er couldn't well say anything more; although he still felt a bit unwilling, he silently clenched his teeth and swallowed the words on his tongue. After thinking, he decided to wait and see, preparing to turn back to his own position.

However, at that moment, Zhang Fan, who had been monitoring the situation with Ge Rui Si and Ma Sai Li, suddenly said to Fei Er: "Fei Er, you acted without filing a report! Tell me, how should I punish you?"

Thus, Fei Er, who had been worrying about Ge Rui Si, was suddenly reminded by Zhang Fan, and all his worries vanished instantly, leaving only fear of the unknown punishment.

Now, whenever Fei Er thinks of the word 'punishment,' his face falls and he begins to wail uncontrollably!

「Fan Fan, please, forgive me! Look, my unsanctioned action wasn't just because I was worried about Ge Rui Si, was it? 」

Zhang Fan looked at Fei Er like that, smiled, walked over and patted his shoulder, and said softly: "All right! I wasn't teasing you, was I? Do you feel better now? Don't worry!"

Although Zhang Fan said it with a smile, Fei Er did not relax as Zhang Fan suggested; instead, he grew even more worried! Previously he worried about Ge Rui Si, but now he worries about himself!

Because, based on his understanding of Zhang Fan, the more Zhang Fan laughs on the training field, the heavier the punishment will be! Just now he had close contact with Zhang Fan and personally saw Zhang Fan's mouth corners turn up!

This is not uncommon! But Fei Er had already fallen for this trick before, so now he worries even more about himself. Returning to his seat with a heavy heart, Fei Er's mood remained unsettled for a long time.

Now the focus returns to the daring female who challenged the male Beastmen—Ge Rui Si—and the other main character of the incident—Ma Sai Li.

One sees that after Ge Rui Si issued the challenge to Ma Sai Li, Ma Sai Li did not outright refuse, nor did he accept. He merely lowered his head, glanced at Ge Rui Si whose height reached his chest, furrowed his brows slightly, and sank into thought.

Seeing Ma Sai Li give no response to his challenge, Ge Rui Si grew even more anxious! He couldn't help wondering whether Ma Sai Li looked down on him, but feared that an outright refusal would hurt him, so he held back.

Thinking thus, Ge Rui Si also slowly furrowed his brow.

At this moment, Ge Rui Si did not realize that his guesses were not far off from what Ma Sai Li was thinking.

Ma Sai Li continued to lower his head in thought, silent, making no move to refuse, merely dragging things out, hoping Ge Rui Si would voluntarily withdraw his challenge.

But what he didn't expect was that Ge Rui Si is no longer the hotheaded youth who would readily give up; the present Ge Rui Si is completely different from before!

His demand to challenge Ma Sai Li is not only driven by impulse but also includes rationality! He clearly knows that his challenge today carries a strong chance of victory!

Because he knows his close-quarters combat ability is actually a bit stronger than Ma Sai Li's.

After all, male Beastmen usually fight in beast form, so their human‑body close‑quarters combat is somewhat lacking compared to females who can only train in human form.

Although Ma Sai Li is sturdy, his flexibility is far inferior to Ge Rui Si's. All things considered, that's why Ge Rui Si chose to challenge Ma Sai Li.

After a while, just as Ge Rui Si was about to use provocation to goad Ma Sai Li, the latter, who had been lowering his head in thought, suddenly lifted his head and, looking blankly at Ge Rui Si, softly asked:

「What's your name? 」

Ge Rui Si, who had expected to hear Ma Sai Li refuse, nearly lost his balance upon hearing that question! Following Zhang Fan's example, he cleared his throat a few times before answering.

「I am Ge Rui Si! 」

However, something even more dramatic happened: Ma Sai Li's expression shifted from bewildered to a completely clueless stare, and he replied vacantly:

「Oh! Now your Female Guard Team can relocate! Hurry up and go! 」

One sees that before Ma Sai Li's words even finished, he had already grabbed his comrades and vanished without a trace. All that remained was a dazed Ge Rui Si and a crowd of bewildered onlookers.

Zhang Fan watched the spectacle, gave a faint smile, then took out his short flute and summoned all the members to gather.

Once all the team members had gathered, Zhang Fan ordered everyone to leave the meadow and set off toward the new destination: the Tribal Office.

What Zhang Fan needed to do next went without saying; even Fei Er, whose thoughts were comparatively simple, could easily guess the meaning of his action.

On the other hand, Masaili brought his teammates back to the male guard unit, but his mind was already full, entirely of the resolute expression on Ge Rui Si's beautiful face.