Cang Yuan felt as if he were enduring the same torment he had suffered countless times before.
The bone-chilling cold in his legs made this bout far more agonizing than any previous one.
Through his blurred vision, he caught a glimpse of that female, Su Cha.
Before he could kick her out, he was plunged into a new round of torture.
It felt as though millions of needles were piercing every bone and limb in his body, the pain blurring his consciousness.
He had thought he would have to endure another excruciating night on his own.
In his daze, he felt someone feeding him something—and even shamelessly taking liberties with him.
Unfortunately, the pain was so severe that lifting a single finger took all his strength.
His erupting anger was quickly drowned out by the endless agony.
He despised this feeling of being utterly at someone else’s mercy.
Miraculously, his body began to recover a shred of strength, and the pain started to recede.
When he was forcefully fed medicine again, he sensed the scent of that female, Su Cha.
He resisted instinctively, but to no avail.
When Cang Yuan woke up again, the usual feeling of exhaustion was gone.
Instead of suffering through a sleepless night of torment, he had actually managed to get a rare, peaceful night’s sleep.
The familiar scent of the female drifted to his nose.
Su Cha was also awakened by his movements.
They stared at each other.
He was half-leaning against the bed, while she was crouching beside it.
Cang Yuan’s eyes were as cold and dark as ever, whereas Su Cha looked exhausted and lethargic.
“Let go first,” Su Cha spoke up, raising a wrist that had turned slightly red from his grip.
Cang Yuan snapped back to reality and released his awkward grip.
Su Cha shook out her sore hand, casting a somewhat resentful glare at the man on the bed.
Cang Yuan had a rough idea of what had happened last night.
He simply stared blankly at the person on the ground, at a loss for words.
Su Cha climbed up from the floor, yawned, and rubbed her dizzy head.
“I’ve already examined your injuries and the poison,” she said lazily.
“Don’t even think about silencing me permanently.
I helped you, after all, and you probably need me.
I’m going back to sleep.
You’re making lunch.”
Then, she walked out of the room without looking back, thinking, “This original owner’s body is truly delicate.”
Cang Yuan was left alone, staring blankly at Su Cha’s retreating back.
He wondered about this female’s origins.
Many Witch Doctors couldn’t even detect the poison in his body, yet she had actually managed to ease his pain.
Did that mean she might have a way to free him from this nightmare that had plagued him for over twenty years?
Was that what she meant when she said he needed her?
And what exactly was this female’s ultimate goal?
Holding out his hand, he gazed at the blue combat aura gathering in his palm.
His emerald-green eyes darkened to a deep, inky hue.
Su Cha slept deeply, only waking up around noon.
Cang Yuan had already prepared a simple meal of roasted meat.
Too lazy to be picky, she ate a small portion.
It wasn’t until she returned from the back mountain and saw Cang Yuan waiting for her under a tree that she remembered what she had forgotten.
Su Cha washed the wood ear and mushrooms she had foraged, spreading them out on a stone slab to dry in the sun.
The sunlight cast Cang Yuan’s shadow right in front of her.
“Su Cha.” It was the first time Cang Yuan had called her name so earnestly.
Su Cha hummed a soft response, waiting for him to continue.
“My injuries?” Cang Yuan asked, a hint of uncertainty in his tone.
Looking at Su Cha’s jade-white face bathed in the sunlight, he realized just as he spoke that the female before him was only eighteen.
Witch Doctors were exceedingly rare, and it usually took a very long time of study to truly become one.
But he quickly dismissed his own doubts.
She wasn’t the original Su Cha, and what had happened last night had certainly not been a dream.
Meeting his conflicted gaze, Su Cha turned back and said seriously, “The poison can be cured, but it will take time and enough medicinal herbs.
Your legs can be treated too, but you will have to endure a tremendous amount of pain.
I can also temporarily relieve your suffering.
Whether you believe me or not is up to you.”
Su Cha didn’t expect the deeply paranoid villain to drop his guard against someone who had once bullied him.
If he wanted treatment, she would cure him in exchange for a favor; if not, she would simply find another way.
“Would you mind talking about your background?” Cang Yuan didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he asked the question that had been gnawing at him.
Although he knew this topic was sensitive and perhaps impolite, he still voiced it.
Hearing this, Su Cha’s expression turned cold.
“It’s not convenient.”
She had no interest in explaining her origins and identity to anyone.
After all, even if she did, no one would believe her.
Sensing the sudden rise of defensiveness in the man beside her, Su Cha smiled nonchalantly and added, “I harbor no ill will toward you.
I just want to live a good life here.”
Cang Yuan didn’t quite grasp her meaning, nor was it clear if he believed her words.
“What do you want?” he asked, staring at her with sharp emerald eyes.
Their gazes clashed, but Su Cha remained completely unfazed.
“A promise.
One that pertains to my life, won’t endanger yours, and is within your capabilities.”
“Deal!”
Seeing his decisiveness, Su Cha was equally straightforward.
She wasn’t worried in the slightest that he would go back on his word.
Even though the villain would kill countless Beastmen after his future corruption, he was still a man of strict principles.
At this moment, she had completely forgotten that the beast world also had rules regarding oaths.
“The injuries on your legs need to be dealt with as soon as possible.
The process will be a bit painful unless you can find me a Wine Fruit.
After the treatment, you’ll need to stay in bed for a month.
During this month, I can guarantee that the poison in your body won’t act up again.
“Also, I need a tool.
That scale I saw the other day would be perfect.
If you’re unwilling to part with it, you can polish a piece of animal bone until it matches the thickness of that scale.”
Su Cha arranged everything with professional efficiency.
Cang Yuan listened quietly, somewhat shocked inwardly.
He had thought he would spend the rest of his life mired in the mud, suffering in endless agony without a single ray of hope.
Even if a chance were to present itself, he assumed it would come at a heavy price.
He never expected this opportunity to arrive so easily.
A simple promise that didn’t threaten his life and was within his power—what an unimaginable luxury that was for him now.
Ultimately, Cang Yuan didn’t give her the scale.
Instead, he found a piece of chest bone from a Horned Dragon Beast and fashioned it into a small, curved knife for her.
Just as she was preparing to operate on Cang Yuan, an accident occurred.
Having witnessed the beast marks of the beast world, Su Cha wanted to test her own strength and see what level she had reached, so she sought out Mu Beichen for a sparring session.
Unsurprisingly, Mu Beichen won.
His beast form was simply too massive.
The gap between the Fourth and Fifth Ranks was a massive chasm, and the higher the rank, the harder it was to advance.
This was exactly why anyone who reached the Fifth Rank was honored as a High-level Beastman, while those at the Fourth Rank and below were only categorized by their numerical rank.
Mu Beichen’s agility and speed were also quite formidable.
After being slammed into the ground yet again, Su Cha called for a timeout.
Her arm was fractured…
Fortunately, it was just a dislocated joint and not a shattered arm bone.
Mu Beichen shifted back into his human form.
The disdain that usually clouded his eyes was gone, replaced by genuine admiration for her.
“Not bad, Su Cha.
Even in our tribe, few can last this long against me.
But why don’t you have a beast mark?” Only Mu Beichen knew that his strength had crossed into the Fifth Rank a long time ago.
Thanks to the natural advantages of his beast form, he was a standout even among Fifth-rank Beastmen.
As he spoke, he reached out and grabbed Su Cha’s small, pale hand to inspect it.
“HISS…” The pain flared up sharply.
Su Cha sucked in a breath of cold air.
If looks could kill, Mu Beichen would already be a corpse.
“Let go, my arm is fractured!
Are you a fucking idiot?!
Get lost, don’t touch me!” Su Cha snatched her left hand back, unleashing a torrent of curses right in his face.
“AH?!
Ah!
Sorry, I didn’t know.” Roared at by Su Cha, Mu Beichen stood there entirely at a loss for what to do.
“Do you want me to take you to a Witch Doctor?
I told you earlier you couldn’t beat me, but you wouldn’t listen,” he muttered shortly after.
Su Cha rolled her eyes at him.
She reset the bone herself, found two pieces of wood to act as splints, and tore off two strips of cloth to fashion a sling around her neck.
Watching her handle the injury, Mu Beichen felt a pang of guilt.
He asked cautiously, “Are you sure you don’t need to see a Witch Doctor?
I have beast coins.”