Hu Cong left with great reluctance, but Wu Chen wasn’t afraid he would go to the tribe and complain to the chieftain.
After all, he hadn’t held much confidence in forming a mate-bond with this little female beast from the start. He simply didn’t want to let the ever-disagreeable Hu Cong have his way!
Moreover, he had genuinely liked this female beast at first sight. He needed to give himself some time and create some opportunities!
Wu Chen stood outside the cave, watching until the red-furred fox’s figure completely disappeared from view. Only then did he shake the rainwater from his body and return inside.
In the cave, the little female beast was still unconscious. He shifted back to human form, tied on his animal hide skirt, and approached to feel her forehead. The fever had subsided considerably.
Just then, the unconscious little female beast suddenly stirred. Her delicate brows furrowed tightly, followed by several violent gasps. After a pause, a fit of intense coughing erupted!
“Cough! Cough! Cough! Cough!!”
Wu Chen quickly raised his hand to gently pat her back!
When his palm touched her smooth, delicate skin, his movement halted abruptly.
The first thing Lin Xi saw upon opening her eyes was a vigorously burning fire directly in her line of sight.
“You’re awake?”
A cool male voice sounded above her head. Lin Xi turned to look and saw the beastman she had encountered before losing consciousness, now sitting beside her.
She quickly scanned her surroundings and realized they were in a mountain cave.
The cave was tall but shallow, with occasional raindrops drifting in from outside. Even with the fire, it still felt somewhat cold!
Lin Xi instinctively curled her body, only then realizing she wasn’t wearing any clothes!
No—to be precise, including her underwear, all her clothes were gone!
Now, the only things covering her were two not-very-large animal skin blankets—one draped over her and one beneath her.
She hurriedly looked around and finally spotted her clothes and backpack drying on a protruding rock at the back of the cave, letting out a sigh of relief.
If this really was another world, these clothes and the items in her backpack represented all her worldly possessions!
As for who had removed her clothes, she could easily guess with just a thought.
“Thank you.”
Lin Xi sat up straight, wrapped the animal hide around herself, and tied it securely, expressing her sincere gratitude.
Her head ached, and her body felt very uncomfortable—early signs of a cold. If this beastman hadn’t brought her here, she might have died directly in the heavy rain outside today.
However, since she was still fine now, she probably wasn’t on opposing terms with this beastman anymore, right?
At least she wasn’t food!
This thought comforted her greatly.
“My name is Wu Chen.”
Wu Chen stood up and walked over to the little female beast he had been watching for so long. He half-knelt down, his gray-green eyes fixed intently on her.
Although his expression remained neutral, only he knew how wildly his heart was pounding—faster than the fish in the Mo Gan River, and harder to calm!
He found it strange too—why had he suddenly fallen for this female beast? She was quite thin and small, not as beautiful as the female beasts from the bird or rabbit tribes.
“Little female beast, why did you come into the forest alone? Where are your tribesmen?”
He had been secretly following her all day and was absolutely certain she was a lone female beast.
Lin Xi looked up and met Wu Chen’s gaze, feeling his sharp eyes filled with subtle scrutiny and caution.
“My name is Lin Xi, I… got lost and don’t know how I ended up here.”
“Lost? Which tribe are you from? And…” Wu Chen said, suddenly leaning closer to Lin Xi with a puzzled look in his eyes. “What kind of beastman are you? Your scent… I’ve never smelled anything like it before.”
This was indeed strange.
Every beastman had their own unique scent, but those of the same clan usually shared many similarities that made them easily identifiable.
Yet he couldn’t determine what clan this female beast belonged to. Could she be from a beastman clan he’d never encountered before?
“My clan is… human. As for my people, they should all be in a very distant place now. I don’t even know if I can find them again.”
Lin Xi deliberately kept her background vague. She couldn’t possibly explain the concept of transmigration to a beastman.
Getting lost in the forest was the best explanation.
However, Wu Chen’s focus wasn’t on her origins. When he heard she couldn’t find her way back, his tail twitched involuntarily.
“I see!”
He lowered his eyes, his expression hidden in the firelight’s shadows.
After several seconds of silence, he suddenly looked back at Lin Xi, the light in his eyes flickering slightly:
“Will you become my mate? If you agree, I can take you out of this forest to the Mountain Fire Tribe where I live!”
“Mountain Fire… Tribe?”
The unfamiliar term made Lin Xi respond slowly.
Wu Chen nodded at her. “Yes, the Mountain Fire Tribe west of the eastern forest, formed by eleven major clans.”
After saying this, Wu Chen fell silent, his intense gaze fixed on Lin Xi’s face as he awaited her response.
She must have already seen his beast ears and tail, which meant she must know he was a crippled beast.
So, would she agree?
A prolonged silence spread through the cave, broken only by the occasional crackle of firewood in the flames.
Under Wu Chen’s expectant gaze, Lin Xi finally spoke slowly: “If… if I don’t agree, will you still take me out of the forest?”
“…”
The little female’s eyes showed no disgust toward him, yet she had still rejected him.
Wu Chen’s tightly closed mouth moved slightly, but ultimately no words came out.
He had genuinely fallen for this unique little female beast at first sight.
Though he was accustomed to being despised, mocked, and rejected, being turned down by the first female beast he’d ever liked still left him unwilling to accept it.
“Yes.”
He gritted his teeth, suddenly unwilling to say more.
Hearing the beastman’s response, Lin Xi remained silent for a long time.
She was wrestling with her final internal struggle.
She knew she should agree! If this was truly the beastmen continent, then following this beastman was her best option.
The price would be her… the rest of her life!
It was a fair exchange!
Thinking this, Lin Xi’s gaze returned to the beastman.
The beastman’s physique perfectly matched those anthropomorphized wild beast images popular on modern internet – tall and powerfully built!
Standing at least 190 centimeters tall with wheat-colored skin, his muscles were lean and taut. Amid his jet-black short hair stood a pair of black semi-oval ears.
And those v-line abs extending beneath his animal hide skirt, descending into mysterious territory that sparked the imagination.
Probably, at least in terms of her partner’s looks and “capabilities,” she wasn’t at a loss either.
“I agree to it.”
Lin Xi suddenly spoke up, her expression slightly uneasy but her gaze firm.
She herself felt surprised.
Yet she had no regrets, only wanting to confirm something as soon as possible.
At that moment, Wu Chen, who had already assumed he was rejected, froze mid-action while adding firewood to the campfire upon hearing Lin Xi’s sudden agreement. He then looked up, disbelief written all over his face!
“You… really? But I’m a crippled beast—my ears and tail, you don’t mind?”
Lin Xi found his question strange. She glanced at those furry, plush-looking black ears and asked in confusion, “Why would I mind?”
Wu Chen was taken aback, never expecting such a response. Before he could say anything more, the little female beast before him suddenly asked another question:
“But can you promise to have only me as your female beast forever, and always protect me from now on?”
“Of course, I swear to the Beast God!”