Shi Yi frowned: “Good females naturally can’t compare to Sacred Females. Leopard Cang wasn’t wrong.”
Good females couldn’t compare to Sacred Females. It was one thing for others to say it—but even Shi Yi said it.
Bai Wei burst into tears. “I hate you!” she shouted, then ran off crying.
The shaman coldly reminded him: “Shi Yi, once you take a mate, the bond can never be broken. Otherwise, the male will lose his reason and become a fallen beast. You haven’t forgotten that, have you?”
“I… I haven’t…” Shi Yi lowered his head in frustration, his heart filled with regret.
The shaman couldn’t stand the sight of him. Back when Bai Wei wanted to mate with Shi Yi, she had warned her: Shi Yi was selfish, impulsive, and quick-tempered—not suitable to be a first husband. But Bai Wei hadn’t listened. And now, problems had indeed arisen.
“Go after her. She’s your female master. If something happens to her, you’ll suffer too.”
“Yes!” Shi Yi dared to defy the chieftain, but he didn’t dare defy the shaman. She was the shaman—the servant of the Beast God.
Shi Yi unwillingly glanced at Yun Jiao, then had no choice but to chase after Bai Wei.
Yun Jiao silently rolled her eyes. *What a lunatic!*
After watching the drama unfold, the chieftain cheerfully waved his hand: “Alright, Leopard Cang will lead the team. Set out!”
At his words, the males shifted into beast form, and the females mounted them.
Guo Guo climbed onto the fiery-red fox.
Lei Xiao transformed into a massive deep-blue python, startling Yun Jiao.
Seeing her pale face, a flicker of hurt passed through Lei Xiao’s eyes: “Should I go to the chieftain and have him carry you instead?”
He had always known Yun Jiao feared his beast form.
But females had weaker stamina—after walking for a while, they would tire easily, so they always rode on the males. In the past, no one had been willing to carry Yun Jiao, except the chieftain.
Yun Jiao forced a smile: “N-no need, I can manage.” She already had a mate—how could she still let the chieftain carry her? But the giant python before her was far too large, about seventeen or eighteen meters long, its girth as wide as three of her.
Most girls were afraid of snakes, weren’t they? And besides, she had been bitten by a snake when she was little.
“It’s fine, I’ll go ask the chieftain.” Lei Xiao shifted back into human form, but before he could take more than a few steps, Yun Jiao tugged at him.
Her face was still pale, but her eyes were stubborn: “Really, it’s fine. You’re my beast husband—you should carry me.”
“When I was little, I was bitten by a snake. Even though I know you’d never hurt me, I still have a shadow in my heart. But don’t worry—I’ll do my best to overcome it.”
“…” So that was the reason. Which snake had dared to bite her? If he ever found it, he’d have to skin it alive.
“Lei Xiao, change into your beast form.”
Lei Xiao hesitated for a moment, then transformed again. His massive snake head lowered right in front of Yun Jiao, as tall as she was. Blue scales shimmered in the sunlight—beautiful yet dangerous. His golden pupils were gentle, like mirrors, in which Yun Jiao could clearly see her own reflection. It felt just like the shadow of childhood trauma—the disaster of the giant python.
Gritting her teeth, Yun Jiao trembled as she climbed onto his snake head.
Lei Xiao slid forward steadily, keeping pace with the rest of the group.
To distract Yun Jiao, he kept talking to her along the way.
Hearing Lei Xiao’s voice, Yun Jiao gradually relaxed. She was still afraid, but not nearly as much as before.
…
The forest was lush and verdant, with unknown bird calls echoing from its depths. The towering trees spread their crowns wide, blocking out the sky. Large beasts carried females on their backs as they moved swiftly through the woods.
Leopard Cang divided the unmated males of the hunting team into several groups of four. Mated females were usually accompanied by one or two beast husbands, with each group watching over two people. Unmated females had a group assigned to guard each one.
As for Yun Jiao—even though Lei Xiao was by her side, Leopard Cang still assigned an entire group to protect her.
Riding atop the massive snake head, Yun Jiao looked down at the three males running alongside Lei Xiao: A tiger, a wolf, and Mu Bai, the lynx.
The three giant beasts moved like bodyguards, constantly scanning the surroundings with vigilance.
Above her, a pigeon circled, its wings blotting out the sky, its sharp eyes surveying everything in a flawless 360-degree sweep.
Yun Jiao: “…” *Isn’t this a bit much?*
What had she done to deserve the treatment of being guarded by an entire squad of bodyguards?
Yun Jiao felt a black line slide down her forehead and glanced back unintentionally. Her brows twitched violently at what she saw.
Hua Duo was desperately chasing after the group. No male was carrying her—she was relying entirely on her own two feet. Her soles were worn raw, leaving bloody footprints with every step.
Yun Jiao turned her gaze back and asked Lei Xiao: “Would you mind carrying another female? Hua Duo is behind us, and her feet are already torn.”
Lei Xiao frowned, clearly reluctant. But since Yun Jiao had spoken, he slowed down. When Hua Duo caught up, his snake tail flicked, scooping her up and tossing her onto his head—not gently at all.
Hua Duo hadn’t expected anyone to help her—and that person was Yun Jiao. They had never interacted before, and she had even joined other females in mocking Yun Jiao for being a “useless female.”
“Thank you…” Hua Duo’s face flushed, unsure if it was from shame or gratitude.
“It’s fine.” Yun Jiao frowned at her feet. “I remember you have a father, don’t you? He doted on you so much—how could he let you come out to gather?”
If Yun Jiao hadn’t asked, it would have been fine. But once she did, Hua Duo couldn’t hold back her tears: “That was before the coming-of-age ceremony. After I participated, everyone learned I was an inferior female, and they stopped caring about me. Even my father changed—he stopped feeding me, and even drove me out of the cave. I found an abandoned cave to live in. I’ve already gone a day without food. If I don’t join the gathering, I’ll starve to death.”
Yun Jiao was incredulous: “Just because you’re an inferior female, your father treats you like that? Didn’t you tell the chieftain?”
The chieftain Zhu Dahai was a good man—he valued the females of the tribe.
Even when Yun Jiao had been considered a useless female, the chieftain had never discriminated against her. Seeing that no male was willing to carry her during the gathering, he would transform into a great white boar and carry her himself.
If the chieftain knew how Hua Duo’s father was treating her, he would never ignore it.
Hua Duo wiped away her tears and shook her head: “If the chieftain found out, he would punish my father. I don’t want him to be hurt.”
Yun Jiao: “…” *So that’s it—the chieftain doesn’t know!*
Looking at the softly sobbing Hua Duo, Yun Jiao suddenly remembered when she was eight years old—she had failed her language exam, and her father had locked her outside all night. Her father had been very strict. Though he was uneducated himself, he wanted her to be educated. It wasn’t wrong to want one’s child to succeed, but Yun Jiao could never understand such extreme methods.
Seeing Hua Duo now was like seeing her eight-year-old self, shut out in the dark. Helpless, lost, afraid, crying…
Yun Jiao opened her beast-skin pouch, took out a few fruits, and handed them to Hua Duo: “Eat these to fill your stomach first. Stay with me today. Later, I’ll make you some meat soup.”
“Thank you.” Hua Duo took the fruits, eating while tears silently streamed down her face.
Yun Jiao spoke gently: “Don’t worry. There are no parents who don’t love their cubs. Your father is just angry. Once his anger passes, he’ll be fine.”
Hua Duo nodded heavily, tears falling even harder: “Yun Jiao, I’m sorry. I used to laugh at you.”
“Did you? I don’t remember.”
“I’m sorry… sob…”
“Don’t cry anymore. If you keep crying, you won’t look pretty. Being an inferior female doesn’t mean being useless—you still have a chance to bear cubs.”
In truth, Yun Jiao wanted to say that a female’s worth wasn’t only in bearing cubs. But Hua Duo was a native-born female beastman—she wouldn’t be able to understand that.