The three fish were not large, but Momo was still a small puppy and could not carry them all back on his own.
Xue Qiu volunteered by picking up one of the fish in his small mouth. Half of the fish’s body dragged on the ground while the other half was clamped between his teeth.
Watching the little guy stumble along to help him, Momo felt as if a pair of fluffy paws had gently brushed against his heart, leaving a ticklish, warm sensation.
The two little ones scrambled and bumped their way back to the cave.
“Pah, pah!”
Back in the warmth of the cave and returned to his teenage form, Momo could not help but frown. “So fishy, so fishy!”
Xue Qiu carefully placed the third fish at Momo’s feet and tilted his head, seemingly puzzled. Why did Momo not like this smell?
After a moment, the kitten mimicked him, letting out two small “pah, pah” sounds toward the ground.
Momo, who had just finished putting on his beast-hide clothes, saw this and laughed, picking him up. “You are a kitten! How can you be disgusted by the smell of fish?”
“Meow?” Xue Qiu’s round golden eyes blinked as he let out a soft cry, choosing to play dumb. He simply wanted to do everything Momo did.
Without resting, Momo picked up a small stone that had been ground very sharp from overuse these past two days and squatted down to process the three fish.
The fish on the Beastman Planet looked similar to those on Earth, but they were actually quite different.
As he scraped the scales, he discovered they were much sharper and harder. If he was not careful, they would cut his hands. Furthermore, the tail fins had distinct cartilage tissue, resembling a defensive weapon for survival.
Fortunately, Momo had pounced into the river so quickly that the fish had no chance to retaliate.
Once the scales were cleared, the exposed fish bodies were a pale pinkish-white. He gutted them and removed the gills. Although the three black fish were dead, they still maintained a trace of physiological reflex, their tails twitching a few times.
Xue Qiu was just about to reach out a paw to touch a fish tail when he was startled by the sudden jump, his fur bristling instantly.
A ghost!
A pair of golden kitten eyes looked at Momo with absolute horror.
Momo burst into laughter at the sight.
He skewered the three fish with dead branches and set them aside with the last remaining piece of Four-Horned Beast meat.
After simply wiping his hands with hot water, Momo wrapped a pile of bloody fish innards in a scrap of tree bark and winked at Xue Qiu.
“Let us go change the crow bait, shall we?”
Xue Qiu, of course, chose to follow Momo unconditionally. The person and cat headed down the slope to the large pine tree. Seeing that the surface of the trap set yesterday was perfectly intact, they knew no other animals had fallen for it.
Xue Qiu helped clear away the shrubs on top. Momo smelled that the crow inside had begun to rot, so he wrinkled his nose, carefully lifted it out, and threw it far away in a long arc.
Only after ensuring it landed far from the cave did he breathe a sigh of relief. He carefully placed the bark at the bottom of the trap and scattered the remaining fish innards inside.
Once the bait was set, he piled the shrubs and branches back on top.
This time, Momo was a bit more clever. He secretly smeared some of the fish blood onto the piled branches.
What if some mindless beast smelled the scent and stumbled right in?
Momo was so busy that he could not keep up with the livestream. Although the chat was a bit quieter than before, there were still viewers happy to watch these daily trifles:
【Momo is becoming more and more capable.】
【He did not even hurt his hands while scaling the fish. I have seen veteran beastman streamers inevitably get cut.】
【Xue Qiu is capable too! Praise the little kitten!】
【This is so heartwarming, waaa!】
By the time everything was handled, dusk had begun to settle. The person and cat returned to the cave and happened to run into Luo Fei, who was in a daze.
Luo Fei was staring blankly at the three fish on the stones by the fire, likely wondering where they had come from.
“You are back, Brother Luo Fei!”
Momo felt a surge of joy upon seeing Luo Fei’s red hair.
Luo Fei snapped out of it and turned around. Seeing the proud look of the person and cat, his face showed surprise. “These fish, are they yours?”
“Mm-hmm!”
Momo lifted his chin slightly. “I just finished processing them and used the leftover innards for the pit trap! Let us see if we have any luck tomorrow.”
He could not help but let his tone rise, his voice carrying a hint of a “please praise me” pride.
Luo Fei’s tense nerves relaxed upon hearing they had caught the fish. He reached out and stroked the top of Momo’s head. “That is amazing, Momo. I was thinking of teaching you how to fish yesterday, but it seems you already have your own tricks.”
The warm affirmation coming from the beautiful sub-beastman made Momo feel a tingling sensation where he had been touched. “It was nothing, I still have much to learn from you.”
“Oh! That black bear beastman did not give you any more trouble, did he?”
After a moment of shyness, Momo remembered Luo Fei had gone to see the guest out and looked him over with concern.
Seeing that the fox sub-beastman had no new injuries, he felt at ease.
Luo Fei smiled at the question and pulled him to sit by the fire. “Do not worry, nothing happened.”
“Sit down first. Let us talk slowly.”
“Wait a moment!”
Momo blinked and ran to the cave entrance.
Since Luo Fei was back, they could “close the door.”
He used a great deal of strength to push the large stone over, sealing the entrance while leaving just enough of a gap at the edges for fresh air to circulate.
With the entrance sealed, an inexplicable sense of security increased.
He sat back down close to Luo Fei, his silver puppy eyes shining. “Tell me quickly, did you do something to that black bear beastman today? I saw your eyes light up! It was just like the first day you entered my cave!”
He was full of doubts.
Luo Fei smiled at his curious expression. He took the three skewered black fish and placed them over the fire, answering while they roasted, “When you first saw me, did you feel a bit dazed, as if your head was only full of the thought that I was beautiful?”
Momo nodded like a chicken pecking at grain.
“But you seem to have a very firm willpower. You were not affected by me very much.”
Saying this, Luo Fei gave Momo’s little head a meaningful look.
“My second father was once the priest of the Luoxiu Tribe before passing away from illness. The priests of every tribe possess mysterious powers that cannot be explained by technology. The priests of the Luoxiu Tribe inherit a charm-like ability. For a short period, they can make beastmen or sub-beastmen with weak spiritual strength or willpower only listen to my words, losing their ability to think independently.”
Luo Fei explained as slowly and carefully as possible.
After listening, Momo blinked. “That is so cool! Does that not mean you can control many people out of thin air?”
Luo Fei gave a bitter smile and shook his head. “My second father passed away too early, and my father was not a fox beastman from the Luoxiu Tribe. Therefore, I did not inherit much of this ability. To some extent, I am a mixed-blood sub-beastman.”
The implication was that he only knew the most basic elements. “Otherwise, I would not have ended up in this state.”
He raised his scarred, terrible hands with some helplessness.
Momo pursed his lips, feeling a bit embarrassed for poking at a bad memory. “I am sorry for bringing up your sad past.”
“There is no need to apologize. It is nothing,” Luo Fei said dismissively. “That black bear beastman today was clearly dim-witted; otherwise, it would not have been this easy.”
Momo hugged Xue Qiu a little tighter. “I feel like you are insulting him.”
Luo Fei let out a light laugh. “He acted as our free labor; is that not dim-witted enough?”
The two of them burst into laughter together.
Halfway through the conversation, Momo suddenly realized the livestream was still on. He turned around in a panic and saw countless “Hahahahahas” on the hovering screen:
【You are doomed, Momo! You and the fox beauty are badmouthing that black bear beastman like this; are you not afraid he will come looking for revenge?】
【Dying laughing. A beastman seeking revenge on two weak sub-beastmen? Does he have no shame?】
【Ahhh, I did not expect Fox-fox to have priest abilities! Is the Luoxiu Tribe crazy? Even a sub-beastman like this was kicked out!】
【Waaa, this is so heartwarming!】
Momo stuck out his tongue sheepishly. He felt they would be sharing many more private words, and it was no longer appropriate to keep the livestream running. As he prepared to press the close button, he said goodbye to the viewers:
“I am going to end the stream now!”
“Thank you, brothers and sisters, for your support today. We will see you tomorrow!”
With that, ignoring the screen full of protests, he quickly closed the livestream.
Luo Fei watched his frantic behavior with a smile. “You must be a new streamer. Have you signed up for the Newcomer PK? That event has a lot of traffic; you must seize the opportunity.”
Reminded by this, Momo remembered the event and felt a bit dejected. “I signed up, but they said I need to show a talent. I do not know what to prepare.”
Luo Fei tilted an eyebrow. “It does not necessarily have to be a talent. You are so good-looking; even if you turn into your beast form and wag your tail at the audience, plenty of people will watch.”
His tone sounded like that of an experienced veteran.
Momo blinked, his face touched with curiosity. “Speaking of which, Brother Luo Fei, why have I never seen a livestream around you?”
Since arriving on the Beastman Planet, he had noticed a hovering livestream window accompanying him. However, he had never found any physical object on his person that could control it. He only knew it followed him as a hovering screen and that he could adjust its size and position.
Hearing this question, Luo Fei’s movements stiffened slightly. After a moment, he spoke with a hint of a bitter smile, “You might not know this yet. Every tribe embeds a chip behind the neck of a newborn cub. This chip can access the livestream at any time and can also be used for online shopping. The Yueshan Tribe was merciful enough not to dig out your chip when you were kicked out.”
Momo’s eyes widened at the explanation, and he could not help but look behind Luo Fei’s neck.
Sure enough, hidden under his semi-long red hair, a brown scar was faintly visible.
Momo clenched his fists. “The people of your tribe are so detestable!”
It was truly loathsome; taking away Luo Fei’s chip meant he could not even stream!
“There is no need to be angry with them. I have remembered everything they did to me. One day, sooner or later, I will retaliate.”
Luo Fei turned to comfort Momo, but the latter half of his sentence was spoken through gritted teeth.
“I will help you!” Momo’s handsome little face was full of righteous indignation. “It does not matter if you do not have a chip. I have a livestream; you can earn money with me!”
Luo Fei flipped the roasting fish to the other side. Looking at the little guy’s innocent and kind heart, warmth flowed through his own. “Let us not talk about these unhappy things. For now, do you know anything about the entire Beastman Planet and the other six major star systems?”
The topic was suddenly shifted, and Momo was stunned. “What six major star systems?”
He only knew that the Earth was round.