Chapter 465: You Can Treat Me as Your Cub
Qiao Xixi thought Yun Ji would let her finish, but he refused.
"Whatever you have to say can wait until I come find you."
Qiao Xixi’s gaze remained fixed on his wounds. "What I meant was, could you come with me to treat your injuries first?"
Yun Ji lowered his gaze to the bloodstains on his feather robe. He wanted to say it was nothing serious, but when he met Qiao Xixi’s azure eyes, he nodded.
"Alright."
Yun Ji had the beast soldiers watch over the Beast King, then went downstairs to a stone house with Qiao Xixi.
Qiao Xixi took a tube of Strong Healing Glue from her spatial inventory, intending to treat Qiao Yi first. But as she approached, Jin Ling took it from her. "I’ll do it."
Qiao Xixi nodded. "Then I’ll treat you."
Jin Ling gave a gentle smile and gestured toward Feiyan and Sangze, who were covered in blood.
"Theirs are worse."
Qiao Xixi had already noticed that the back of Sangze’s animal-hide tunic was soaked red with blood. Humming in agreement, she turned and walked over to him.
"Sangze, let me look at your wounds first."
Sangze was leaning back in a chair. At her words, his tightly shut eyes cracked open into slits, and he spoke with exhaustion.
"Xixi, I’m fine. I can do it myself..." As he spoke, he reached for the medicine in Qiao Xixi’s hand.
Qiao Xixi knew they had all fought to the point of exhaustion. ’There’s no way I can let him do it himself.’
"Don’t move. You can’t see the wounds on your back."
Sangze was exhausted, so he obediently let Qiao Xixi do as she would.
Qiao Xixi carefully removed his animal-hide tunic and immediately saw the wound on his back: a gash running from his left shoulder all the way down to his right waist.
’The beast soldiers’ beast souls are certainly powerful, but Sangze and Feiyan are a cut above the rest. How did he get hurt this badly?’
Feiyan, who was leaning against a wall on the other side, noticed Qiao Xixi’s expression and said in a low voice, "It was to save me."
Feiyan had been surrounded by beast soldiers. When one launched a sneak attack from behind, Sangze had rushed over to help and was clawed by a beast soldier of the Wing Clan.
Sangze wanted to speak and reassure Qiao Xixi, but his eyelids felt as heavy as lead, and he couldn’t even get a word out.
Just as Qiao Xixi finished bandaging his wound, she saw his arms fall limp as he drifted into a deep sleep.
"Sangze?"
Qiao Xixi called his name softly, but Sangze didn’t respond.
After Xijing finished treating Feiyan’s injuries, he saw the worried look on Qiao Xixi’s face and said reassuringly, "He’s probably just exhausted. He’ll be fine after some sleep."
Qiao Xixi nodded.
She stood up and looked toward Yun Ji. He hadn’t said a single word since they’d entered the house.
She walked over to Yun Ji, medicine in hand. "Let me treat your wounds."
Hearing this, Jin Ling glanced up at Yun Ji before quickly looking away.
Xijing tightened his grip on the tube of Recovery Glue in his hand, but ultimately didn’t step forward.
Feiyan wanted to intervene, but his own injuries were not light. The moment he tried to move, a sharp pain shot through his arm, and he didn’t dare try again.
Yun Ji’s expression remained cool and detached. His reaction struck Qiao Xixi as both foreign and familiar.
She couldn’t quite put a name to the feeling in her heart.
After Yun Ji sat on the stool, he removed his feather robe with elegant, deliberate movements, revealing a shoulder covered in scratches. Fortunately, the wounds weren’t deep. As soon as she applied the Strong Healing Glue, the bleeding stopped and the wounds began to scab over.
"Once that dark power is purified, is your beast soul automatically released?"
Yun Ji nodded. "Yes. As the dark power weakens, my beast soul naturally returns to my body."
"So, your beast soul hasn’t completely returned yet?"
Yun Ji could see the worry in her eyes. "Only a little remains. Its influence is very weak now."
’In other words, it can’t cause Yun Ji any more real harm.’ That was a relief.
"Is it possible for that little bit of stolen dark energy to grow strong again?"
"Yes."
Qiao Xixi was taken aback. "In other words, the only way to prevent future trouble is to destroy it completely."
"Correct. For the next few days, all of you should rest and recover in the Feather Palace. I will handle what’s left."
"Alright. If you need any help, just let me know."
Yun Ji reached for his feather robe to put it on, but he accidentally pulled at a wound and hissed in a sharp breath of pain.
Seeing this, Qiao Xixi quickly brought his feather robe over and helped him put it on herself.
"Are your wounds still hurting? Should I put some more medicine on them?"
Yun Ji took her hand and shook his head. "There’s no need. It doesn’t hurt. It’s just a little uncomfortable when I lift my arm. It’ll be fine soon."
Despite his words, he still allowed Qiao Xixi to help him put on the robe.
Once it was on, Yun Ji turned and left the stone house.
As soon as Yun Ji left, Qiao Yi also stood up. "I’m going to go take a look. You all head back to the Feather Palace first and wait there."
"Father, where are you going?"
Qiao Yi didn’t say specifically, only that he would be back soon.
Qiao Xixi then turned to Jin Ling, had him sit down, and treated his wounds. Afterward, Xijing hoisted the still-sleeping Sangze onto his shoulders, Jin Ling supported Feiyan, and the group returned to the Feather Palace.
When they returned to the Feather Palace, Qiao Xixi discovered that the beast soldiers who had been monitoring them were gone. She didn’t know if they had been pulled away during the chaos at the palace, or if it had been decided that surveillance was no longer necessary.
Jin Ling and the others were all injured—even Xijing had a long gash on his arm—so Qiao Xixi forbade any of them from moving around.
"All of you get some rest. I’ll go make dinner."
After saying that, Qiao Xixi closed the doors to their stone rooms. Just as she was about to head to the back courtyard, she saw Yaoxi push open the main hall door and enter.
"Xixi."
"Aunt Yaoxi, you’re here! Come in, quick."
Yaoxi glanced toward the closed stone doors, as if she were looking for someone.
Qiao Xixi said considerately, "My father said he would be back later."
Embarrassed at being seen through, Yaoxi flushed. Fearing she would feel awkward, Qiao Xixi changed the subject and pulled her by the hand toward the back courtyard.
"My mates are all injured, so I’m in charge of dinner tonight. Aunt Yaoxi, will you stay and eat with us?"
Yaoxi’s first instinct was to refuse, but a longing voice deep in her heart urged her to stay.
"If you don’t say anything, I’ll take that as a yes."
Yaoxi smiled. "Alright. I’ll help."
"Then thank you, Aunt Yaoxi."
There was still some meat left in the back courtyard’s cookhouse. While Yaoxi was outside, Qiao Xixi took the opportunity to pull some fruits and prepared sauces out of her spatial inventory.
Just as she finished, Yaoxi came in carrying some washed meat.
"Xixi, have you had cubs yet?"
Qiao Xixi nodded. "I have. Six of them! I have a cub with each of my mates."
Hearing this, Yaoxi seemed to drift off. "That’s wonderful," she said wistfully. "If I had a cub, they’d probably be your age by now."
Qiao Xixi looked at Yaoxi, and seeing the older woman staring at her in a daze, her heart softened.
For all these years, the Beast King had suppressed Yaoxi, not even allowing her to find a mate. In the world of beasts, this was a particularly vicious form of torture for a female.
"Aunt Yaoxi, if you like me, you can think of me as your own cub."
"What?"