"Help, help me!"
A female’s panicked, unmistakable voice called out. It was so delicate and soft that it seemed to make one’s bones melt, instantly capturing their attention. The group of men all turned their heads in unison.
The female was wrapped in just a single piece of animal hide, her exposed skin smooth, fair, and practically glowing.
Although her face was covered in bloodstains, giving her a wretched appearance, her curvaceous figure couldn’t help but stir their imaginations.
The leader swallowed hard, doing his best to soften his tone. "What happened? Why are you the only female here?"
"Th-there’s a dead black snake up ahead. I’m scared~"
"Don’t be afraid. I’ll protect you. You..."
The leader was about to call someone over when he suddenly processed what she had said. He asked uncertainly, "What did you just say?"
"I just said that there’s a dead black snake up ahead," Chu Liangyu said, glancing at him timidly as her voice grew softer.
"N-no, that’s impossible!"
’Wasn’t Second Brother having his fun with that female?’
’How could he be dead? It doesn’t make any sense.’
’But... looking at this female, it doesn’t seem like she’s lying.’
"What’s wrong?"
His mouth covered in fresh blood, the third brother involuntarily stopped what he was doing when he overheard the conversation.
"Second Brother might be dead," he explained, his expression darkening.
"Impossible. You, take some men and go check it out."
The leader nodded and led the five men in the direction Second Brother had gone.
Chu Liangyu glanced toward Xiong Xianhui. A large chunk of flesh had already been torn from his arm, and blood was gushing out.
His shoulders and chest were also covered in bite marks of all sizes. He was a ghastly sight.
’Buddha have mercy...’
’If I’d been any later, there would’ve been nothing left for me but a skeleton.’
"You’re not scared?"
Suddenly, a cold, sinister gaze fell upon her.
Chu Liangyu shuddered. Realizing her reaction was out of character, she immediately let her eyes redden and swayed alluringly toward him. "Who says I’m not scared? Here, listen. My heart is beating so fast~"
The soft touch on his arm actually stirred something within him. He sized up the female before him with great interest.
Chu Liangyu gently placed her hands on his cheeks, wiping away the bloodstains for him.
Slowly, she leaned against his shoulder and blew a teasing breath near his ear.
’The short knife was in her hand. All it would take was one quick thrust...’
"You little temptress, where did you learn all these seductive tricks, hm?"
"Did those Beast Husbands of yours teach you?"
An arm wrapped around Chu Liangyu’s waist. With a gentle pull, she was forced away from him, and he swept her up into a princess carry.
The sudden change of events made Chu Liangyu’s hand tremble uncontrollably, and she almost flung the short knife away.
Luckily, she reacted quickly and gripped the short knife tightly.
"I was just so captivated by your handsome face, I couldn’t help myself..."
Chu Liangyu’s expression stiffened for a moment before quickly returning to normal. Flattering words flowed effortlessly from her lips.
What she said wasn’t entirely a lie. Although the man was a pervert, he was indeed quite handsome.
He especially had a "refined scoundrel" air about him that drew one’s gaze.
"You have good taste."
"But of course~"
Chu Liangyu’s patience was wearing thin. Not wanting to waste any more time with him, she pretended to move in for a kiss, slowly drawing closer.
But the third brother suddenly held her still and reached out to wipe the blood from her face. "Let me see if you’re worthy of being my female."
Half of Chu Liangyu’s fair, flawless face was revealed. The third brother’s hand froze in mid-air, and he stared at her face, stunned for a moment.
Chu Liangyu’s lip twitched. ’This guy thinks he’s so high and mighty, he’s actually getting picky about females.’
Chu Liangyu wasn’t in the habit of indulging others by letting him finish admiring her face.
Taking advantage of his daze, she plunged the short knife in her hand directly into his back.
Hearing his pained grunt, Chu Liangyu rejoiced inwardly. She wanted to finish him off with a few more stabs, just like she had with the second brother.
But this man was clearly stronger than the last one. Instead of being stunned by the sudden pain, he reacted.
He recovered quickly, violently throwing Chu Liangyu off him and transforming into his beast form in that instant.
His beast form was a golden eagle. When its wings spread, they seemed vast enough to blot out the sun.
In the sunlight, it gave off a sense of holiness. ’A pervert like him, holy?’ Chu Liangyu shook her head, casting the thought aside.
She had to admit, though, his beast form was truly magnificent. Chu Liangyu felt a pang of envy.
She had transmigrated here, and there were no members of her clan around at the time.
Furthermore, females who came of age at eighteen could no longer transform back into their beast forms, so she didn’t even know what race of Beastman she was.
"I can’t believe it, another cunning female!" the third brother’s voice was filled with grinding rage, his eyes glaring at Chu Liangyu.
Chu Liangyu rolled her eyes. She hadn’t expected him to be such a windbag. "That’s because you’re too stupid. You can’t blame anyone else."
The giant eagle flapped its wings, sending a gust of wind rushing toward Chu Liangyu.
Chu Liangyu was immediately thrown off balance by the blast. She quickly hugged a tree to steady herself.
"You’re quite a looker. It’d be a shame to kill you."
He looked down on Chu Liangyu from above, his words a mix of truth and lies.
Chu Liangyu treated his words like a fart—there one moment, gone the next.
While staying vigilant of the giant eagle’s movements, Chu Liangyu pondered how to fight this guy.
She didn’t know how much power she had after absorbing two High Level Crystal Cores, or if it was enough to face this guy head-on.
The trees here were towering, so the giant eagle wouldn’t be able to fly very high.
But as long as it was airborne, even at that low altitude, Chu Liangyu would have no way to deal with it.
’Damn it!’
’What kind of messed-up world is this? The Beast God must have been out of his mind to make females so weak.’
’Losing the ability to transform back into their beast form after adulthood? That’s just serving them up on a silver platter, letting anyone do as they please!’
RUMBLE...
Almost as soon as she finished complaining in her head, a low peal of thunder rolled across the sky, as if warning her.
Chu Liangyu...
’Fine, I can’t afford to provoke him.’
After her complaints, she didn’t feel any better. Instead, she felt a little strange.
She couldn’t put her finger on it, but something felt extremely awkward.
Forcibly clearing her mind of distracting thoughts, Chu Liangyu focused all her attention on dealing with the giant eagle.
’Since I’m not sure, I might as well test the power of these Crystal Cores.’
’If I can’t win, I’ll run. It’s, it’s not embarrassing.’
Gripping the bronze short knife tighter, Chu Liangyu felt her nerves calm considerably.
She pushed against another gust of wind from its wings, moving toward her target step by step.
Chu Liangyu came to a stop before its enormous talons. She gripped the short knife with both hands and stabbed down viciously.
A clang of metal on something hard rang out. The short knife had been met by the giant eagle’s sharp beak.
The force of the impact on the hard beak sent a numbing shock through Chu Liangyu’s palms, even making them tremble slightly.
The massive eagle’s head was lowered before her, its eyes watching her quietly.
’Is that all you’ve got? Go on, show me what else you can do.’
A wicked smile played on Chu Liangyu’s lips. She clenched her right hand into a fist that cut through the air as it shot straight for his eye.
"You!"
Before he could get a full word out, his eyeball was shattered.
Pain flooded his entire body, and he finally let out a piercing, tragic scream.
It wasn’t a human voice, however, but the cry of an eagle.
"There’s a price to pay for underestimating people."
Chu Liangyu’s expression suddenly changed. Her tone became icy, and her movements were decisive.
She somersaulted onto the eagle’s back, and her power-filled fists rained down like hailstones.
And this was only the beginning. Her next attacks would only be stronger.
Meanwhile, Xiong Xianhui’s consciousness returned for a brief moment. Through the haze, he saw a figure.
It felt somewhat familiar, and a question couldn’t help but form in his mind. ’Who... is that?’