Chapter 169: A Pretty Realistic Performance
They had succeeded, but Baili and Songyan’s faces were grim. Dozens of beastmen had gone with them, yet fewer than ten returned. Even they had suffered injuries so severe they wouldn’t be recovering anytime soon.
In truth, they wouldn’t have been able to capture Sangze if they hadn’t stubbornly held on, dragging the fight out until dawn.
"Young Clan Leader, has Jin Hui returned?"
Sangkun was still reveling in the joy of having crippled Sangze; he couldn’t be bothered with anything else.
"No, I haven’t seen him. Didn’t he go with you all? He didn’t come back with you?"
Baili and Songyan exchanged a look.
Jin Hui had been flying overhead, searching for Sangze. Then he had suddenly accelerated and vanished, and they hadn’t seen him since.
A sense of foreboding rose in their hearts, but they couldn’t imagine what in the Hopeless Abyss could have possibly harmed Jin Hui.
After leaving Sangkun, Baili immediately sought out beastmen from the Eagle Clan and ordered them to find a way to contact Jin Hui at once.
"Young Clan Leader, what should we do with Sangze?"
Sangkun glanced contemptuously at Sangze on the ground. "Take him away and lock him in the great dungeon. No one is to go near him without my command."
"Yes."
Sangkun toyed smugly with the beast bone in his hand. ’I only promised my father I wouldn’t kill him,’ he thought, ’but I never said I’d let him live comfortably!’
"Go, bring me the Priest."
"Yes."
The Priest of the Divine Leopard Tribe was an elderly female White Phoenix Beast. The moment she entered, her eyes fell upon the beast bone in Sangkun’s hand.
A look of astonishment flashed in her murky eyes, but she quickly composed herself.
"You were looking for me, Young Clan Leader?"
"Priest, you once said that you know of the Bone Fusion Skill."
The Priest’s expression remained unchanged. "Young Clan Leader, I only know *of* it; I have never performed it. The Bone Fusion Skill is one of the four great divine arts. Failure carries the risk of death. It would be best if you did not attempt it lightly."
"I have faith in your abilities, Priest. I hear your cub is quite taken with the White Fox Saintess. If you can help me successfully perform the Bone Fusion, I will make your cub the White Fox Saintess’s first beast-husband."
The Priest was tempted.
"The Bone Fusion Skill is not a simple matter. I will also need to concoct a potion to allow the beast bone to fuse with you, Young Clan Leader. This will require some time."
"How long?"
"Fifteen days."
"Fine. I’ll give you fifteen days." Sangkun moved behind the Priest, his voice dropping to a low whisper. "I trust you won’t disappoint me."
...
Within the Divine Leopard Tribe, a market was held once every ten days. On market days, beastmen from all over the tribe with goods to buy or sell would gather, making the area exceptionally lively.
Qiao Xixi led the way, holding Qiao Qiao’s hand. In her other, she held up a conspicuous banner made of black beast hide.
By now, the market was already bustling with beastmen, though the vendors were almost exclusively male.
This was Qiao Qiao’s first time at a market like this, and she couldn’t help but gawk curiously at everything. When she spotted some pretty little trinkets, she was rooted to the spot.
"Do you like them?"
Qiao Qiao nodded. "I do! They’re so pretty."
Qiao Xixi led her over to the trinket stall. "How much for these?"
The male vendor looked up and froze when he got a clear look at Qiao Xixi. ’What a beautiful female,’ he thought.
"These are one colorless Crystal Stone each."
One colorless Crystal Stone wasn’t expensive, so Qiao Xixi let Qiao Qiao choose for herself.
The little one looked and looked before finally picking a small, red flower.
"Mother, I want this one."
"Alright, we’ll take one."
Qiao Xixi took out a colorless Crystal Stone and handed it to the male vendor.
The male vendor, however, just stared intently at Qiao Xixi. When he saw her take Qiao Qiao’s hand to leave, he hurriedly took a step to follow.
But the moment he moved, two small figures blocked his path.
The male looked down and saw a snake cub and a snow fox cub. Two pairs of slightly childish eyes were staring at him calmly.
’They might be young,’ he thought, ’but that glare is pretty intimidating.’
The male beastman awkwardly drew his foot back.
Seeing that he had backed down, Qiao Lie and Qiao Ang turned and hurried to catch up with Qiao Xixi.
The male beastman watched them go, rubbing his nose in annoyance. "Where did those brats come from? So fierce."
Qiao Xixi led Qiao Qiao to a more crowded area, where she found an empty spot and set up.
Qiao Qiao tucked her little flower away, took out a stone bell, and started ringing it with all her might.
"Come get your cures! Come get your cures! All ailments treated, no matter how difficult!"
The little cub’s clear, childlike voice rang out, causing many beastmen to turn and look their way.
"Healing? A Wandering Beast who can heal other beastmen? That’s hilarious."
"That female Wandering Beast seems to be a Priest. I wonder which tribe she came from."
The beastmen watched curiously, but none of them approached.
Just then, a small, limping figure pushed through the crowd.
"Help me! Please, help me! I think my leg is broken!"
The small figure stumbled and collapsed the moment he reached Qiao Xixi. His large, crimson eyes were filled with a helpless, pained endurance that stirred a pang of pity in the hearts of the onlookers.
"What happened to that snake cub? Did he run into a predator?"
"How tragic. A broken leg... his life is basically over."
The tips of Qiao Lie’s ears turned red, and he couldn’t help but lower his little face to hide his embarrassment.
’Why did Mother make me pretend to be a cripple!’
Qiao Xixi’s expression changed instantly. She rushed forward to pick Qiao Lie up, her concerned gaze perfectly in character.
"Little one, what’s wrong?"
Qiao Lie: ...
"My... my leg is broken. Can you heal me?"
"How could a female Wandering Beast possibly know how to heal injuries? Snake cub, you’d better go find a shaman."
Qiao Lie kept his head down, his voice sounding a bit stiff. "But... the pain is unbearable."
"Don’t worry, we can heal you."
Qiao Lie looked up, his expression of excitement perfectly convincing. "Really? Please, heal me!"
Qiao Xixi nodded solemnly and beckoned Qiao Qiao over. Mother and daughter placed their hands on Qiao Lie’s "injured" leg. A pale blue halo flashed, and Qiao Lie’s pained expression disappeared completely.
"There. Try standing up. Is it healed?"
Qiao Lie stood up, looking doubtful, then gave a little hop. "It’s healed! It’s healed! My leg is all better! You’re amazing! You’re even more amazing than the tribe’s shamans!"
The onlooking beastmen were dumbfounded!
’Healed just like that?’
’That female Wandering Beast and her little cub are that powerful?’
Before Qiao Lie’s laughter could fade, the crowd heard a wail of agony. Qiao Ang, covered in blood, burst through and collapsed at Qiao Xixi’s feet.
"Help... help me!"
Beyond the crowd, Sunxiao watched Qiao Xixi and her children, his face devoid of expression.
Feiyan, however, nudged Sunxiao with an amused look.
"Your cub’s acting is pretty convincing."
Sunxiao glanced at Qiao Ang, who was now twitching on the ground, and replied coolly, "Your cub was more expressive."