Chapter 183: Chapter 182: Take a Sniff

Gong You clutched the mermaid on top of him, suddenly flipping over to pin her down. In a husky voice, he asked, “And whose little mermaid is this? Did you wander into the wrong room?”

Si Shuo suppressed a smile and wrapped her arms around his neck, whispering, “I belong to the Shrimp Soldiers and Crab Generals next door. So, we have to be quiet, or else they’ll drag me back…”

Gong You’s neighbors were Ji Liang and Yin Jiang. His breathing grew ragged as he set up a Barrier, just in case their intimacy was actually overheard by the two Couple Brothers next door.

With the Barrier in place, Si Shuo couldn’t resist redeeming a music box from her supermarket. The ethereal sound of waves crashing on rocks, the otherworldly gurgle of fish blowing bubbles, and the occasional deep, elegant song of a Blue Whale were especially enchanting in the cool, watery night. The glass globe was painted with an intricate, beautiful ocean scene. As it rotated, the light inside shifted colors, projecting onto the walls until it felt as if they were lying on a dazzling, vibrant seabed.

When it came to occasionally improving their meals or spicing up their life, Si Shuo still relied on the supermarket. ’At least it hasn’t been taken away from me. Its existence is its own justification, and I can still use it as long as I’m careful.’

She was a huge fan of the various cosplay outfits in the supermarket, so she splurged and bought a whole bunch to try on for them one by one…

Gong You was completely stunned. Not a single Fish Beast who lived on land didn’t miss Da Hai. He’d almost forgotten he was a Fish Beast himself!

Meeting such a thoughtful little female was the greatest blessing of his life.

“My sweet cub, thank you,” he murmured, burying his face in her neck. His eyes grew moist as he chuckled. “I love it. Especially you, my little mermaid.” As he spoke, he used his hands and his mouth to show her, bit by bit, exactly what he loved and how he loved it.

The music box played for most of the night. The sound of the waves was unending, projected fish and shrimp swam joyfully across the walls, and the Blue Whale’s low cries of pleasure echoed by Si Shuo’s ear…

After dinner, Si Shuo played with the cubs for a while before returning to the task of writing down the information on the Female Saints from memory.

Ever since arriving in Guangshou City, Ji Liang had been constantly gathering information of all kinds, especially concerning the thirteen major families and eight tribes within the city.

After discussing the matter, they decided to write the information for the Female Saints in batches of twenty per Beast Skin.

Yin Jiang possessed a Fire Ability, and Gong You had a Light Ability. As they traced their fingers across the Beast Skins, they left scorched marks in their wake.

The two males could now recognize a few hundred characters of Beast Text, but their handwriting was, at best, a barely legible scrawl of horizontal and vertical strokes—perfect for the current situation.

They kept their auras completely suppressed as they wrote. Ji Liang had scouted out the East City District beforehand to procure the Beast Skins. When they were done, Yin Jiang even lightly roasted the skins to dry them, eliminating any chance of their personal scents lingering.

The superpower granted to them by the Beast God—the ability to hide their presence—was proving to be incredibly useful.

The finished Beast Skins were rolled up, stuffed into bamboo tubes, and given to Si Shuo for temporary storage. That night, Ji Liang and Xu Chi would deliver them to each of the major families and factions.

Si Shuo hadn’t gotten to sleep until the first light of dawn, so naturally, she woke up late. She’d already had breakfast, but her stomach was growling again. It was the perfect time to go grab a meal with the Iron-eating Beast she’d met yesterday.

She gave a single look, and Ji Liang dragged Yin Jiang out into the courtyard to wait.

Gong You, having just “swum in the sea” all night, naturally understood what had happened. He smiled resignedly and poked her. “Mischievous!”

Si Shuo laughed. “I was just spreading the surprise out so each of you could experience it. It saves you from being like Xiao Cheng, waiting for me to recover while counting down the days until it’s his turn.

A good surprise loses its excitement when you have to wait for it day after day.”

It certainly had been a surprise! Even now, Gong You was still basking in a sated glow. However, there were cubs at home to look after, so he stayed behind with Zhi Le and Zhi Qi.

She changed into a light blue, one-shoulder robe made of fish scales. Gong You had spent years collecting the scales in all sorts of colors, just for his little female.

Si Shuo had made Xiao Cheng sleep with the outfit for a night, so it was thoroughly saturated with his foxy scent. After putting on the ears and tail, she loosely tied back her long, snow-white hair, applied a touch of makeup, and then happily skipped outside.

Ji Liang stood in the courtyard with his arms crossed, looking like a Gate God. Yin Jiang was a little confused but said nothing, instead mulling over how he would test the Combat Power of the Iron-eating Beast, Wei Ce, whom they were about to meet.

’Wei Ce… Why does that name sound so familiar?’

’Beastmen from the major families often share the same surname, and sometimes their given names sound alike.’ He thought it was probably just a coincidence and didn’t dwell on it.

Just then, he looked up and saw the little female, disguised as a young White Fox, running toward him with her eyes curved in a smile.

Yin Jiang froze for a second, then smiled and opened his arms for a hug.

Si Shuo ducked under his arms and stood beside him, chuckling as she held her fair arm up to his nose. “Yin Jiang, you can’t hug me. Go on, smell. Aren’t I covered in Xiao Cheng’s scent right now?”

Yin Jiang’s eyes narrowed, and the corner of his mouth twitched into a smirk. He leaned in and murmured in her ear, “I’d rather cover you completely in my scent.”

’Why is he being so lewd in broad daylight?’ Si Shuo shot him a glare and retorted, “And why shouldn’t it be you getting my scent on you instead?”

Yin Jiang nodded with an amused chuckle. “I wouldn’t be opposed to that.”

Ji Liang grabbed the two of them and used Teleportation, following the points he’d already scouted, to get to the East City District.

When they arrived at the spot where they had parted with Wei Ce the day before, they saw the tall, muscular man squatting in the middle of the road like a tree stump. His head was hung low, and he was pitifully poking the ground with a stick.

’Who knows how long he’s been waiting?’ The ground was already riddled with holes ten centimeters deep…

“Wei Ce!” Si Shuo called out with a smile.

Wei Ce’s head snapped up. He smiled, tossed the stick aside, and ran over. “White Fox Cub, you’re here!”

Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks. His expression grew solemn, the hair on his neck bristling as he stared warily at Yin Jiang. He hadn’t felt this way with Ji Liang, the Level 10 Snake Beast; neither Ji Liang’s Level nor his bloodline had been threatening enough to provoke real hostility.

Yin Jiang, however, was a Level 13 Hunting Falcon, and he hadn’t restrained his piercing aura at all, which carried a clear, probing intent.

“The Iron-eating Beast, Wei Ce? A Level 14 Beastman? I hear you want to become my Couple Brother?” Yin Jiang asked coolly.

Wei Ce turned to look at Si Shuo.

Si Shuo chuckled and whispered, “He has the highest Combat Power among my future Couple Brothers. He wanted to come and see what Level 14 Combat Power looks like.”

Wei Ce’s gaze fell on the White Fox Cub, dressed in the light blue fish-scale robe. ’He seems even more beautiful and delicate than yesterday,’ he thought. ’So cute and innocent. Just being around such an adorable and lively little Couple Brother every day would be enough to make anyone’s mood sunny. Besides, I dreamed last night that I was following the White Fox Cub, living the good life, eating and drinking my fill. The dream was so vivid it made me even hungrier when I woke up this morning.’

He tore his eyes away and met Yin Jiang’s gaze once more.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep