Ice-cold water splashed across Liang Ye's face, and a small shark was clearly reflected in his glossy black round eyes.
His brain was temporarily in a state of shutdown, his body reflexively dodging on instinct, but the distance was too close and the fish had appeared too abruptly—there was simply nowhere for him to evade.
Out of the wolf's den and straight into the tiger's mouth. Well then, might as well pack it up and start over.
Liang Ye closed his eyes in despair, bracing for the death that was about to descend upon him.
Smack! A gust of wind swept past his ear, followed by a dull, heavy thud.
Liang Ye cautiously lifted one eyelid, and happened to lock eyes with the fish staring back at him with dead, glassy eyes from the grass.
It really was a dead fish now.
How did it die?
Liang Ye whipped his head around—a small mountain loomed ominously half a meter away from him. As the figure drew closer, the brilliant sunlight was blocked out, and his tiny body was completely engulfed in the Giant Wolf's shadow, as insignificant as a speck of dust.
His breath stopped abruptly. His heart pounded like a long spear thundering on a battlefield, in danger of bursting at any second.
Black Wolf's grayish-blue pupils were like ice that had never melted in ten thousand years on a snowy plain—bitingly cold, piercingly frigid.
Caught… he'd been caught.
Liang Ye was paralyzed with terror, unable to muster even a shred of joy at having escaped death. Unlike the mere threat of death from before, Black Wolf's presence imposed a far deeper sense of dread upon him—the instinctive fear a weak creature feels before a stronger one, completely beyond the control of reason.
Tears welled up in his round, almond-shaped eyes, wetting his small black nose. His gray, dusty, dirty little body trembled like dandelion fluff in the wind. His tail, which was always wagging cheerfully, was now clamped tightly between his legs, hidden beneath his rump. His clever, soft little ears drooped flat against his head in airplane ears.
Black Wolf returned to the cave after finishing his hunt to find it completely empty. The meat chunks left over from the cub's meal last night sat there untouched, clearly indicating that not a single bite had been taken. Even though the cave was filled with Black Wolf's powerful, overbearing scent, he could still detect a faint trace of the cub's smell.
However, the scent had already faded—clearly the cub had left some time ago.
There were no other scents in the cave, so the cub must have left on his own.
From the moment he'd picked up the cub, it seemed terrified of him. Even when he shared his food with the cub, it still refused to grow close to him, and now it had taken advantage of his absence during the hunt to run away.
Perhaps it had gone to chase after its own kin.
Black Wolf understood the cub's attachment to its parents and pack, but the cub was so fragile—couldn't even walk steadily. Traveling alone, it would likely either starve to death or fall prey to other beasts.
Black Wolf initially resolved to respect the cub's fate, but then he recalled the cub's clumsy eating, the way it struggled so hard to survive. In the end, he set down the fruits he'd brought back for the cub and vanished swiftly into the forest.
Sure enough, the cub had run into danger—it had nearly had its head bitten off by a Bulu Beast and was still standing there dumbly, not knowing what to do.
Everyone knew that Bulu Beasts had little meat, plenty of bones, and a strange taste—they didn't even make it onto Beastmen's menus. And yet this little cub had almost died in one's jaws. If word of this got out, it would be a laughingstock among the Beastmen—the most pathetic way to die imaginable.
"ROAR—"
Black Wolf let out an irritated growl at the cub, intending to scold it a bit. What was it running around for? Didn't it know how dangerous it was out here?
The little cub's tears came crashing down in streams, soaking the fur on its chest. Its little nose twitched and sniffled as it let out whimpering sobs, as if it had suffered some tremendous injustice. Its pitiful little appearance couldn't have been more heartbreaking.
As a single wolf who had never encountered such a troublesome situation before, he felt like he was facing a formidable enemy. He stood as stiff as a stone, not daring to move an inch.
The cubs in his pack never dared to cause trouble right under his nose. They'd shrink like quails at the sight of him, and even if they were being mischievous and he growled at them, they'd only tuck their necks in and stay silent.
Timid, fragile, and delicate.
Were all the wolves of the White Wolf tribe like this?
The wolves in Black Wolf's pack came in all colors, but none were white. The White Wolf tribe lived in the far north—few in number and mysterious. The only scraps of information about white wolves came from a passing mention by an elder Beastman in the pack.
Pure white all over, able to blend seamlessly with the snow.
That was all anyone knew.
A rare look of fluster appeared on the calm, composed, handsome wolf face. Black Wolf glanced around, then abruptly picked up the fish he'd killed with a single swat and shoved it directly into the cub's mouth—the one that was sobbing "whine whine whine" and giving him a headache.
Nothing matters more than eating. Black Wolf was certain that food would shut the cub up.
The Bulu Beast didn't taste good, but its meat was tender—the kind of meat a cub could actually bite through. At least it was easier to eat than the meat from last night.
The cub really did stop crying. Black Wolf breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Raising kids was way too hard. Good thing he didn't have any.
It was currently mating season. Temperatures were rising, all things were reviving, and the pack's young Beastmen and Demi-Beastmen were pairing off in couples, working hard to procreate and multiply.
Black Wolf had gone out precisely to escape the commotion. Seeing that the rainy season was approaching, he'd been preparing to head back when he unexpectedly stumbled upon a white wolf cub.
He told himself to endure a little longer—once they returned to the tribe, the cub could be handed over to the care of the Great Cave.
Liang Ye stood there dumbfounded. Black Wolf hadn't swallowed him in one bite to vent his anger—instead, he'd stuffed a fish in his mouth?
Wasn't this… a bit off?
He sneaked a furtive glance at Black Wolf, but unfortunately, he couldn't glean a single useful piece of information from that stern wolf face.
Could it be that Black Wolf didn't intend to eat him?
No, no, no—there's no way anyone would pass up food that's already in their mouth. At least Liang Ye wouldn't.
Liang Ye's mind was a tangled mess, thoughts racing in every direction. Thank goodness he was a Samoyed now—no more worrying about going bald!
For now, let's just eat first.
This was Liang Ye's first time seeing this kind of small shark. He couldn't tell if it was poisonous, but since Black Wolf had already shoved it into his own mouth, it was probably safe. After all, if it poisoned him to death, Black Wolf wouldn't get to eat his meat.
The untreated fishy smell was overwhelming, and his sense of smell was far sharper now than when he was human.
His hollow stomach began rumbling again like an empty city. Between the intense exercise and the string of shocks, Liang Ye was exhausted in both body and mind. He desperately needed food to replenish his energy. Gritting his teeth, he took a bite.
"Bleh—"
Liang Ye gagged.
Compared to this, last night's raw meat was practically a delicacy fit for a king.
No, he had to eat. He needed to recover his strength. If anything happened, at least he could put up some resistance.
And so Black Wolf watched as the little cub took a bite of the Bulu Beast, gagged wretchedly, then continued biting the Bulu Beast, then gagged again—an endless cycle.
Irritably flicking his tail, Black Wolf turned and disappeared into the dense forest.
Fully focused on his battle with the raw fish, Liang Ye didn't notice Black Wolf's departure.
Even the legendary surströmming couldn't be worse than this.
Tears welling in his eyes, Liang Ye chewed laboriously for ages, only managing to get a few ounces of meat down.
He'd eaten sushi and sashimi in his past life. Even if it wasn't premium ingredients, the fish was always smooth and delicious—not a hint of fishiness, just a subtle sweetness.
But this fish in his mouth had thick, tough skin and was full of bones. Sure, the flesh was tender and melted on the tongue, but it absolutely reeked!
Maybe his coworker who loved both stinky tofu and river snail rice noodles could handle it—that person could even eat black garlic without batting an eye.
Liang Ye, on the other hand, resisted with every fiber of his being. Gritting his teeth and ignoring the taste, he swallowed it down whole to fill his stomach.
"Plop."
Several milky-white fruits of suspicious shape rolled to a stop by Liang Ye's paws.
One look and Liang Ye was dumbfounded, his little ears twitching.
Th-this… this thing looks like this—does it even pass censorship?
Nothing else to say about it—the thing was a plump oval shape, with one end resembling a pacifier nipple.
If Black Wolf could speak human language, Liang Ye would definitely ask him what it was. But wolves can't talk. It looked like he'd thrown it over for him to eat, probably startled by the commotion of his fish-eating.
How considerate.
Liang Ye immediately spun himself into a little whirlwind of joy. How could a piglet thank the pig farmer!
It's just a sugar-coated bullet!
Liang Ye pondered for a moment but couldn't find a good place to bite. Black Wolf seemed already accustomed to his foolishness—he pierced the nipple-like end with a sharp claw and shoved it straight into the pup's mouth.
"Mmph!"
The pup's glossy black eyes suddenly burst with brilliance as he smacked his lips and sucked hard at the juice inside the fruit.
Sugar-coated bullets are delicious!
His little belly visibly swelled, gradually turning into a squishy pink jelly—poke it and it dented, then quickly bounced back.
Black Wolf couldn't bear to watch. So the little cub didn't have trouble eating—he was just plain picky.
The fruit he'd given the cub was called a Milk Fruit. When Demi-Beastman mothers had no milk after giving birth, they'd pick Milk Fruits to feed their young. In the second month, they'd switch to minced meat, and by three months, the cubs could eat just about anything. Of course, the parents would always pick the freshest, most tender, easiest-to-chew meat for their young.
Like that piece of meat from last night—Black Wolf had hunted it and specifically saved the tenderest part for the cub. But he hadn't expected the little thing to struggle even with that.
What was the difference between that and a cub that hadn't been weaned?
Or maybe white wolf cubs just grew more slowly?
"Burp—"
Liang Ye let out a satisfied milky burp and patted the milky-white fruit appreciatively. Truly a good thing, consistent inside and out.
Milk without needing a cow. Amazing nature.
The well-fed pup started getting tipsy from the milk within moments. His hazy eyes drifted toward Black Wolf, head tilting to the side, tongue lolling out in a goofy grin.
Big doggy!
Liang Ye staggered toward Black Wolf.
Let the pup have a billion sniffs!
Black Wolf had no idea what was going on, cautiously observing what the little one was up to.
The cub who'd kept him at arm's length was now smiling at him like an idiot, tail wagging nonstop, padding over with unsteady steps before flopping down onto his paw, rubbing his head back and forth.
Was he… acting cute?
Black Wolf was astonished. A strange feeling rose from the depths of his heart. His massive, mountain-like body seemed frozen by a spell—limbs stiff, not moving an inch.
The pup didn't just rub against him—he sniffed hard, taking the scent deep into his lungs.
Dry and comfortable, like a campfire, like the rising sun, like all the warmth in the world.
"Rustle—"
The dampness in the air and the sound of flowing water disturbed the milky-white ball of fluff's sweet dreams. He slowly lifted his eyelids, his glossy black eyes veiled with mist.
Liang Ye unconsciously kicked his four little stubby legs, making a cycling motion in midair. Animals would expose their bellies when they felt safe, but Liang Ye, new to being a dog, still retained human habits—sleeping flat on his back.
He didn't know that every time Black Wolf saw his sleeping posture, he'd shake his head. Too careless!
Where's the wolf?
Liang Ye didn't spot Black Wolf anywhere, and the desire to escape reignited from the ashes.
He had already startled the prey once before, and to guard against Black Wolf's trap, he deliberately searched the surrounding area.
"Splash—"
The sound of water flowing from above drew near. Liang Ye pushed through the bushes, his fluffy little body squeezing through the tall wild grass.
Stars scattered across the sky, bright moonlight shining down, the lake's surface shimmering with brilliance. In the center of the water stood a tall, composed figure, dark hair draped like splashed ink, his face hidden in the faint light.
The man cupped a handful of water and raised his head high, his sharp, smooth jawline clear and distinct. The clear water gently caressed every inch of his features, outlining his wild, untamed brows and eyes, dampening his calm gray-blue pupils.
Moonlight and lake water intermingled, shrouding the scene in thick mist.
The man's appearance was like a breathtaking, startling dream.
Liang Ye held his breath, and in the wild grass of his heart, it was as if a single spark had fallen, igniting a prairie fire.
A human! A human! And a handsome one at that!