Gao Yue's expression instantly changed, her tone growing sharper as she snorted coldly:
"Is there something wrong with your ears? Didn't you hear what I just said? And what's with this 'seduced' nonsense, slapping a black hat on him? Are you the one involved, or am I? Stop making wild guesses."
Perhaps because her words were too harsh, Shoupan finally glared at her.
Since Gao Yue was too short for him, this glare was still directed downward.
He didn't want to pick a fight with a female cub, so he turned his fire back on Moya:
"I came to tell you to stop all your little tricks—whether it's hiding in the Holy Lake, or injuring Shihua's companion." He pointed at Gao Yue. "Or dragging up some fat female cub from who knows where."
"The matter of Lin Xi and I becoming companions is already settled and won't change."
"Everything you're doing—isn't it just so Lin Xi will come find you on her own? Let me tell you, that's never going to happen. Give up the fantasy."
He thought of Shihua's three companions lying in bed, unable to get up, and sneered softly. "Beating Shihua's companions that badly—you must be harboring resentment toward Lin Xi in your heart."
"A proud Tier 5 powerhouse. Ha."
He let out an exaggerated mocking laugh.
"No matter how strong you are, you're still a loser."
Moya's expression grew increasingly impatient. "Are you finished?" he said coldly.
Shoupan sensed this was a sign he was about to make a move, and leaned in with a raised brow, smiling. "Want to hit me?"
He enunciated slowly: "Lin Xi is watching from right behind you."
When Gao Yue heard this, she immediately looked behind him. Sure enough, standing more than ten meters away was a graceful figure.
That person was tall and slender, with a perfectly proportioned figure, wearing a pale green tube top paired with a long skirt. It wasn't clear what material it was made from—it didn't look like animal skin at all, but was exceptionally light and flowing, the hem swaying gently in the wind. Just from her figure, she was clearly a great beauty.
Because she was blocked by the shadow of the trees, her face couldn't be seen clearly.
Moya didn't even look over, his gaze remaining indifferent, fixed on Shoupan.
"Finished?"
There was no discernible emotion in his voice, yet it made Shoupan's pupils suddenly contract.
It was a warning born from combat instinct, telling him of danger. Every muscle in his body tensed within a fraction of a second, ready to spring into action.
But it was still too slow.
The very instant his pupils contracted, Moya's left hand had already moved as fast as lightning, his five fingers like iron pincers, clamping down with perfect precision on the arm Shoupan tried to use to block.
The strength was unbelievable—Shoupan felt as if the bone in his arm was about to be crushed, and his entire defensive stance crumbled apart under that single grip. Right after, Moya's right fist slammed viciously into Shoupan's abdomen.
"Ugh!"
A muffled grunt of pain forced its way out of Shoupan's throat, uncontrollably.
The force of that punch tore through his tough flesh and struck his internal organs, leaving him instantly breathless with agony.
Right after, Moya's left hand, still gripping his arm, suddenly exerted force and yanked downward, and a vicious knee strike followed, slamming into Shoupan's chest.
Shoupan was not like one of Shihua's beast husbands—he was a Tier-4 Beastman. In an instant, a fierce glint flashed through his eyes as he raised his left arm to block the knee.
He managed to block the knee strike, but that didn't stop Moya from quickly switching to his other leg, kicking him straight in the chest.
Shoupan flew backward like a falling meteor.
With a thunderous "boom," his back slammed hard into the ground, the massive impact tearing up the turf around him.
A clear human-shaped crater appeared in the earth.
Shoupan lay in the churned-up dirt, his vision going black, every bone in his body feeling as though it had come apart, his internal organs shifted out of place. A mouthful of sickly-sweet blood surged up his throat, which he forced himself to swallow back down, glaring fiercely at Moya.
Moya walked up to him, standing over him, and pressed his foot down hard on the wound on his chest, grinding it with an indifferent expression, making even more blood spill from the corner of Shoupan's mouth.
"Next time, don't come to my cave to spout this nonsense again."
After he said this, he caught sight of Gao Yue off to the side out of the corner of his eye, swallowing nervously, a forced, cowering look in her eyes as she watched them.
Moya: "..."
His brutal movements paused for a moment.
In truth, Gao Yue had been frightened ever since the two of them started fighting. Not curling up and covering her head already counted as her being brave—back on Earth, when had she ever seen such a vicious brawl, beating someone until their bones cracked and they coughed up blood? In the past, if she'd seen something like this, she would have run as far away as possible.
It had been the same earlier when Moya beat up Shihua's companions—even though her anger had carried her through it at the time, deep down she had trembled a little. It was just too violent.
Seeing Gao Yue like this, Moya's foot loosened without him even realizing it.
He clicked his tongue.
What a timid little thing.
Just as he lifted his foot, Lin Xi came rushing over.
At this point, Gao Yue finally got a clear look at her face.
Both females she'd seen since arriving here had rather masculine features, and this Lin Xi was no exception—but hers was the kind of androgynous, heroic handsomeness. Her face was small and extremely beautiful.
Gao Yue was struck by her beauty for a moment, but then, remembering this was the person who had abandoned Moya, that sense of admiration faded.
Lin Xi checked Shoupan's injuries, then lifted her small face, holding back her anger, her beautiful eyes turning to Moya. "Because I made Shoupan my First Beast Husband, are you taking your anger out on him now? Moya, you disappoint me so much. And to think you're still his own younger brother."
Moya sneered. "You think I beat him up because of you?"
He said, "No. It's because he dared to trespass into my territory."
"In the past, it didn't matter. But now there's a female cub in my territory, and if any of you dare trespass again, you'd better be prepared to lose half your life."
Lin Xi shook her head, saying flatly, "Fine, let's just say that's the reason then."
As she spoke, she moved to help the injured Shoupan up.
Shoupan clutched his injured chest and rose with Lin Xi's support. As he stood, the corner of his mouth curled into a victor's smile, and he mouthed silently to Moya:
"Mother doesn't like you, Father doesn't like you, and Lin Xi doesn't like you either. So what if you're Tier 5? You're a complete and utter loser."
Moya stared at him coldly, killing intent gathering like a brewing storm in his eyes.
Gao Yue completely failed to sense Moya's killing intent—she was left dumbstruck by the exchange between the two men.
These two were unbelievable. Moya had already said it wasn't over some romantic entanglement, so why did they both still act so convinced otherwise?
Also, this man seemed way too concerned about Tier 5, mentioning it twice already. It seemed pretty clear this guy definitely wasn't Tier 5.
Gao Yue thought to herself.
Moya was such a good guardian—she was going to be relying on him for food from now on, so she absolutely had to win back some face for him.
So she took a breath and shouted angrily, "You two need to stop talking to yourselves and flattering yourselves!"
Both of them turned to look at her.
Gao Yue glared at Shoupan. "He already said it's because you trespassed into his territory—can't you understand plain speech? If you hadn't come here, do you think he'd have gone looking for you? He wouldn't even glance at you!"
Then she turned her fire onto Lin Xi. "And you!"
"Moya never even liked you that much to begin with—otherwise, would he have given up so easily? Stop flattering yourself so much!"
Lin Xi's expression stiffened.
Gao Yue kept going. "And that Shihua from yesterday—she got beaten because she messed with my things without permission. She stole my treasure and refused to give it back. Isn't getting beaten for that only fair?"
"How does that turn into 'beating them because he's unhappy with you and wants your attention'?"
She snorted coldly and concluded, "I've never seen two people with more nerve than you two."
Something flickered in Moya's eyes, the cold killing intent that had been building inside him slowly dissipating, replaced by a faint warmth.
He looked at her, watching her—so short, yet standing her ground fearlessly against the two of them—and felt something stir in his chest.
Before this, he had never imagined that a chubby little female cub would ever stand in front of him and speak up on his behalf.
Gao Yue gave him a confident look: you're welcome, guardian—just consider it payment for taking me in.
These two really were infuriating—one trying to steal someone's partner, the other moving in without missing a beat, and now both of them showing up to throw their weight around.
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