Chapter 186: Could She Be the Beast God?
The moment the courtyard gate opened, Qiao Xixi was stunned.
She suspected the entire path in front of her gate was blocked by beastmen who had come looking for her.
Feiyan and Sunxiao, worried Qiao Xixi would get jostled, kept her shielded behind them, while Sangze organized the beastmen into a line outside the gate.
"Everyone, please don’t panic. Tell us your problems one at a time."
"We’re here to beg the female Qiao Xixi to treat our cubs for rotten gut disease."
"That’s right! We heard she can cure it. Please, ask her to help us."
Seeing that Qiao Xixi’s voice was quickly drowned out by the other beastmen, Sunxiao simply lifted her up and placed her on his shoulders.
"I do have a medicine that can cure rotten gut disease, but it can only be used after confirming a patient actually has the illness. So please, don’t rush. I will diagnose each case individually before giving out any medication."
Hearing Qiao Xixi’s words, the anxious crowd of beastmen quieted down.
Since space at home was limited, Sangze found a relatively spacious, open area and moved a table, chairs, and stools over.
Passing beastmen saw the large crowd gathered in the open space and were incredibly curious.
"What’s going on? Why are there so many people over there?"
"You haven’t heard? A foreign beast female named Qiao Xixi has come to the tribe. She can actually cure rotten gut disease! After hearing the news, a lot of beastmen have taken their cubs to see her."
The beastmen who asked were shocked. In their experience, rotten gut disease was a terminal illness. Even if someone recovered, it was only through the Beast God’s blessing. Now, someone was telling them this disease could be cured.
’Could this female named Qiao Xixi be the Beast God herself?’
More and more beastmen gathered in the open space. Qiao Xixi had no choice but to give the dried Pulan Grass to Feiyan and the others, telling them to go back, brew it, and bring it over.
For milder cases of rotten gut disease, a single bowl of Pulan Grass juice was enough for a full recovery. More severe cases required drinking it for three days.
Meanwhile, in a remote courtyard behind the tribe’s inner city, several clan elders stared miserably at the ashen-faced Sanggu lying on the bed.
"Clan Leader, tell us what to do about this. Are we really going to let a foreigner become the Clan Leader of our Divine Leopard Tribe?"
"Yes, Clan Leader! Sangze is protecting her, and so are her powerful beastmen mates. You have no idea—they even killed Cang Ming! Clan Leader, you have to think of something, quickly!"
"If... if even you have no solution, Clan Leader, then we’ll have no choice but to let her become the new Clan Leader!"
A flicker finally appeared in Sanggu’s lifeless eyes. He turned his head and glared at them in fury.
’That night, if these old fools had stepped forward to help, my beast bones wouldn’t have been broken. Now that the position of Clan Leader is about to be snatched away, they finally feel the urgency.’
"So what if she really becomes the Clan Leader? Do you think she can truly secure that position?"
"Clan Leader, what do you mean by that?"
Sanggu sneered. "The Divine Leopard Tribe is a large tribe with tens of thousands of beastmen. It won’t be so easy for her to win their loyalty."
The elders looked up, stunned. "You mean, Clan Leader..."
"At the succession ceremony, as long as the beastmen all oppose her, she’ll be no threat." Sanggu’s gaze swept over them. "When that day comes, all you have to do is..."
The elders listened intently. When Sanggu finished, he said in a low voice, "Just do as I say. Everything will be done according to the rules. I refuse to believe they can kill every single beastman in the tribe."
"Yes, yes."
After the elders left, Qingli pushed the door open and walked in.
Seeing Qingli, Sanggu turned his face away, his expression pained. He couldn’t face his beloved female master with his broken body.
Qingli walked to the bedside and sat down, sighing helplessly.
"I told you back then that Sangze’s talent was immense, that he was already capable enough to lead the Divine Leopard Tribe to greater strength. But you were unwilling to accept it. You insisted on turning him into this... monster. And now you’re crippled, and Sangkun is crippled too..."
Sanggu slowly turned his head, his gaze heavy as he looked at Qingli. "Female Master, do you think I was the only one doing this?"
Qingli looked up at him, stunned. "What do you mean?"
"Did you think I was the only one secretly using those forbidden drugs? Do you know who gave me the formula?"
Qingli shook her head. "Wasn’t it the shaman?"
Sanggu let out a cold laugh. "It was the shaman from Tiger Beast City who gave it to *her*. The City Lord of Tiger Beast City, in his quest to create a monster like Sangze, sacrificed several of his own male cubs, yet he still failed. If I hadn’t locked Sangze in the Hopeless Abyss all these years, do you think the City Lord of Tiger Beast City wouldn’t have come to capture him once he found out about his existence?"
Sanggu’s eyes grew even darker. "Those other Beast Cities have been dissatisfied with Beast King City for years. If they held a weapon capable of overthrowing Beast King City, what do you think they would do?"
Qingli’s face turned completely pale. "Are you saying Sangze will be in danger?"
Sanggu closed his eyes wearily. "I don’t know. Things have developed to a point beyond my control. If he insists on revealing his power in front of everyone, then what happens next will depend on his own abilities."
Back then, he had indeed been deluded, hoping to turn his own cub into an invincible killing machine. That way, the Divine Leopard Tribe could grow even stronger.
But he had underestimated the power of the forbidden drug. Sangze had become terrifyingly strong, but also terrifyingly mad.
He felt regret. But he didn’t regret turning Sangze into what he was now. Rather, he regretted using the forbidden drug so rashly without confirming its effects, which had turned him into a crippled beastman, no longer able to control the future of the Divine Leopard Tribe.
"My only hope now is that the Divine Leopard Tribe does not die at his hands."
...
For several days straight, Qiao Xixi was busy treating the beastmen for rotten gut disease.
During that time, there were also many other patients with different ailments. Qiao Xixi had Qiao Qiao help treat the ones she could, and for those Qiao Qiao couldn’t handle, Qiao Xixi directly exchanged points for medicine in the system’s store.
After a few days, her points had been depleted, leaving her with only 1,000.
Seeing Qiao Xixi was so tired her little face had gotten thinner, Sunxiao forbade her from going anymore. He had Feiyan take the medicinal juice to the open space and distribute it to the beastmen who needed treatment for rotten gut disease.
Qiao Xixi lay sprawled on the bed while the cubs thoughtfully gave her a full-body massage.
Qiao Qiao was on Qiao Xixi’s back, occasionally leaning her little head close to Qiao Xixi’s and asking in a childish voice, "Mother, does this feel good?"
Qiao Xixi exhaled with her eyes closed. "It feels amazing."
"Hee hee, I’ll massage you some more then, Mother."
She could have used her special ability to heal her mother’s body, but her mother said she wanted a massage from their little hands, so the cubs were more than happy to oblige.
Jin Ling walked in with a plate of sliced fruit. "Everyone, take a break. This is Golden Fruit, the sweetest fruit of the season."
Qiao Xixi opened her mouth and ate the piece of fruit Jin Ling held out for her in one bite.
"Ah, this is the life. I could get used to this forever and ever!"
"You might have to be busy for one more day. Tomorrow is your succession ceremony."