Chapter 7: Not a Trace of Animality

“What are you looking at, you stu— mmph!”

Before Qiao Ang could finish his sentence, Qiao Xixi pinched his small face.

“Didn't I tell you? What are you supposed to call me?”

Qiao Ang’s face was pinched so hard it turned red, yet he still glared stubbornly.

“It’s... it’s you! You didn't let us call you Mother before, and now you want us to!”

Qiao Xixi’s expression paused.

In the past, the original owner had indeed been worried that letting the cubs call her Mother would distract her from finding a male, so she had forbidden it.

She released him helplessly.

“Qiao Lie, Qiao Ang, Qiao Qiao, Mother has something to say to you.”

Three pairs of eyes looked at her with varying expressions.

“The ice plains are no longer suitable for our survival. We need to go somewhere where we can live, but right now, Mother doesn't know where that place is. Therefore, on the journey ahead, our family must be of one heart. Just like that water from earlier, I will make sure every one of you gets to drink it, so there is no need to fight over anything here with Mother.”

The youngest of the three looked bewildered, unsure if he could even understand.

In their consciousness, as wandering beasts, if they didn't fight and grab, they would starve to death.

But Qiao Xixi only wanted to tell them the importance of family unity.

She divided her portion of deer meat into three parts and handed them to the cubs.

“Mother isn't eating; you three eat this.”

This time, none of the three little ones immediately reached for the meat; they simply stared at Qiao Xixi in surprise.

Qiao Xixi didn't look at them again. She only wanted to get a good sleep, and she closed her eyes and collapsed onto the beast skin.

The cubs looked at each other.

Finally, the three small heads huddled together, whispering to one another about something unknown.

...

When Qiao Xixi woke up, it felt as if the sky were falling.

Because her cubs were gone!

She sniffed around the cave and didn't smell the scent of a fierce beast, so it likely wasn't a predator that had come in and snatched them away. This realization made her expression soften slightly, but her tightly furrowed brows did not relax.

She hurried out of the cave to search for them.

What Qiao Xixi didn't know was that just as she left the cave, the cubs had come huffing and puffing back into the cave, carrying something.

After putting the beastman into the cave, the cubs nodded with great satisfaction.

Qiao Ang said, “This should satisfy the stupid female now.”

Qiao Lie remained expressionless. “There is still food in the Snow Forest. Let's go get it quickly.”

“Okay.”

The three little ones left the cave once more, heading toward the Snow Forest.

Qiao Xixi searched in circles following the cubs' scent but found no trace of them, her eyes turning red with anxiety.

Those cubs were the greediest of all. When she woke up this morning, she noticed the deer leg was still there; perhaps they had gone back to eat it when they got hungry.

Thinking of this, Qiao Xixi turned back.

When she returned to the cave and stepped inside, she froze.

Inside the cave, a handsome male beastman with short golden hair, bone studs in his ears, a high nose, deep brows, and long legs stretching down from below his neck was lying completely naked on her beast skin!

He had two golden lines trailing from the corners of his eyes toward his temples, adding an air of noble mystery to him.

The cave was dim, with only a faint, thin light hitting the side of the male beastman's face, making his features appear even more three-dimensional.

Her gaze followed the male beastman's eight-pack abs all the way down...

Below the perfect Adonis line lay a forbidden behemoth.

Qiao Xixi’s heart raced as she covered her eyes with her hands.

But she couldn't help but part her fingers to step forward and grab a piece of beast skin to cover his most shocking part.

Once the forbidden area was covered, Qiao Xixi finally felt comfortable enough to examine him. She discovered his body was covered in scars; the most severe were on his legs, where the flesh was torn and the wounds looked particularly gruesome.

Why was he in the cave? Did the disappearance of her cubs have something to do with him?

Before Qiao Xixi could figure it out, the sound of footsteps came from behind her.

Qiao Xixi turned around and saw the little cubs huffing and puffing as they carried deer meat into the cave.

Seeing Qiao Xixi's shocked expression, Qiao Ang raised his small chin arrogantly, even making the silver tips of his hair curl up.

“How is it, stupid female? Are you satisfied?”

Qiao Xixi:??

Qiao Qiao pointed at the male tiger beastman on the ground with a grin.

“This is the male we found for Mother. Do you like him? He is very powerful! We found him in the Snow Forest killing a very large black-furred long-toothed beast. After Mother mates with him, he can protect Mother and us.”

Qiao Ang nodded in agreement, looking quite precocious. “That's right. You should mate with him quickly. It'll be hard to manage once he wakes up.”

Qiao Xixi:???

Qiao Xixi suddenly felt that her education over the past two days had failed.

She hadn't even corrected their food-grabbing habits, and now they had brought back a beast husband for her?

While Qiao Xixi was talking to the cubs, she didn't notice that the male beastman on the beast skin had already woken up.

Listening to the conversation of the mother and the four children, Jin Lin watched Qiao Xixi's back, his golden eyes narrowing coldly.

This wandering female beast had captured him while he was heavily injured, and she even wanted him to be her beast husband?

How ridiculous.

Any movement caused Jin Lin's wounds to pull, making him let out a muffled groan of pain.

The slight movement immediately caught Qiao Lie's attention.

His dark red snake-like pupils quickly darted toward Jin Lin.

Qiao Xixi also turned to look at the handsome male before her.

Jin Lin stared coldly at Qiao Xixi, his golden eyes filled with pressure.

“Who are you?”

Even though Jin Lin was heavily injured, his aura was too strong; Qiao Qiao was so scared she hid behind Qiao Xixi.

Qiao Ang was also very afraid, completely losing his previous arrogant bravado.

But he was a man of standing; how could he hide behind a female?

He mustered his courage to stand in front, huffing, “Great male, you are the stupid female's partner from now on.”

Jin Lin's handsome face revealed a chilling coldness. “I will not be your Mother's beast husband.”

Qiao Xixi hadn't planned on mating with him either, but hearing such blatant disdain made her feel displeased.

“I don't need you to be my beast husband either! It was my cubs who found you in the Snow Forest and brought you here to save you from being eaten by other fierce beasts. You should be thanking my cubs instead of being disdainful of us!”

Jin Lin was stunned. He was very surprised that even though he was intentionally releasing a powerful aura, this female—who looked quite thin and small and wasn't very clean—actually dared to face him directly.

She certainly had more courage than the females in the tribes.

Jin Lin's gaze shifted, landing on the partially eaten deer leg in the corner. That deer leg... was the one that had been stolen from him!

The look in Jin Lin's eyes toward Qiao Xixi turned cold again.

As expected of wandering beastmen; they had no beastly nature at all.

“To thank them for bringing me to the cave, that deer leg can be considered a gift of thanks.”

Qiao Xixi followed Jin Lin's gaze. After confirming that Jin Lin was referring to the deer leg from yesterday, her expression changed.

(End of Chapter)