Chapter 44: Chapter 43: My Life Is Yours

Xu Chi’s identity as a Deer couldn’t be hidden forever. If his wings were revealed one day, his long-concealed identity as a Horned Deer would also be exposed.

The appearance of a Horned Deer was bound to cause a scramble among the various tribes!

Si Shuo chuckled and raised an eyebrow. “Don’t worry. Because, well, I’m even more heaven-defying than you are.”

’Whose cubs are born with nine lives? Isn’t that even more insane than a Horned Deer having one extra life?’

However, this heaven-defying trait diminished with each generation, just like an ancient royal lineage. By the ninth generation of her descendants, they would be no different from anyone else.

Otherwise, the entire Beast World would be thrown into chaos by her.

Xu Chi leaned close to her ear and whispered, “Si Shuo, you don’t need to be heaven-defying. My life is yours!”

Si Shuo didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. She remembered that this boy still thought she could eat him, constantly prepared to be a sacrifice for her stomach.

The more clueless and innocent he was, the more she wanted to tease him. She felt a playful urge welling up.

Many Beastmen came to Nanye City during this season. They hadn’t arrived too late, so there were still many types of accommodations to choose from.

Nanye City was built on high cliffs, with the turbulent sea churning below. The damp sea breeze carrying a faint fishy smell, the roar of waves crashing against the rocks, and the cries of Sea Bird Beastmen circling overhead set the main tone of the place.

Some houses were built into the cliff faces, inhabited by Flying Beasts and their families.

Some houses were stone dwellings built by Stone Ability Beastmen, spreading out in neat circles from the central sacrificial altar plaza.

Other houses were self-built wooden cabins or treehouses, constructed after paying a certain amount of Crystal Stones. Of course, there were also Beastmen who couldn’t afford the rent and built shacks on the outskirts.

Ji Liang was quite familiar with Nanye City. After giving Si Shuo a brief introduction, he said, “Let’s choose a stone house in the middle section. It’s close to the altar plaza and the workshops, but it’s not noisy. Plus, the stone houses are large, come with a small courtyard, and are quite comfortable to live in.”

Si Shuo was easygoing, so she agreed. Zhi Le and Xu Chi naturally had no objections either.

Ji Liang then went to the Steward in charge of house sales and rentals and rented a small courtyard, paying one month’s rent upfront: one Fifth level Crystal Stone.

Si Shuo had little concept of the value of Crystal Stones. After all, the Crystal Stones the males had given her in three beast bags were all Sixth level and above.

Knowing they would be renting a place first, the leaders of the few Beastman groups who had traveled with them had sent people to wait for them.

The hide, meat, bones, and Crystal Stones (also called Crystal Cores) from the large-tailed gray Wolf Beast were considered average, with nothing particularly special. The five hundred and sixty Crystal Stones, ranging from First Level to Level 5, were collected in a Beast Skin Bag and held by Si Shuo.

They kept some Beast Skins to furnish the newly rented stone house and set aside some of the more tender meat. Ji Liang sold everything else to the officially established purchasing point, exchanging it for five Sixth level Crystal Stones.

Only then did Si Shuo realize just how precious Sixth level Crystal Stones were.

After finishing these tasks, Si Shuo sat atop the Snow Leopard, Ji Liang transformed into a black snake, and Xu Chi remained in his human form. The group then headed to their new home with their belongings.

The streets of Nanye City were wide, and the houses were tall. Many Beastmen preferred to run around in their Beast Forms, yet it still didn’t feel crowded.

Si Shuo found everything novel and exciting, a far cry from her drowsy state during the recent journey.

They had just arrived at their new house when the neighbors from both sides gathered to greet them.

Ji Liang stayed by Si Shuo’s side, talking with the neighbors while subtly sizing them up.

Meanwhile, Zhi Le and Xu Chi cleaned and arranged the stone house.

The females from both sides had average fertility. One was named Shan Man, a long-eared pink rabbit female, who brought a basket of little pink and white bunny cubs for Si Shuo to play with. The other was named Hezhu, a Vermilion Bird female, who was followed by three little black wolf cubs. Si Shuo had absolutely no resistance to fluffy little creatures. Her eyes sparkled, and she wished these cubs were her own.

She couldn’t stop her mind from picturing her own little cubs: a little Snow Leopard, a little snakelet, a winged Horned Deer Cub…

Si Shuo took out some warm corn and shared it with them.

The corn was sweet and delicious. Everyone happily gnawed on it and made plans to go to the workshops together the next day.

Beastmen were simple-minded. As long as there were no conflicts of interest and their personalities matched, they could get along well.

Besides, every female was doted on by several Beast Husbands, so most of them had simple, cheerful, and kind personalities. Females like Chu Man, Yu Jiao, or Ma Hui, who couldn’t stand seeing others do better than them, were the exception.

After seeing the neighbors off, Si Shuo finally had time to look over the home where she would be living for a while.

The entrance opened into a courtyard of about a hundred square meters, paved with smooth, cut stone. Facing the gate were five stone rooms, each about thirty square meters—large enough to accommodate the Beast Forms of most Beastmen.

One stone room was used as a kitchen and bathroom, another as a dining and living room, and the remaining three were temporarily assigned one to each of the males. The room furnishings were also very simple, consisting of a stone bed and a set of a stone table and chairs.

Zhi Le and Xu Chi took out daily necessities from their respective spatial storage, and soon, the stone house began to feel a bit more like a home.

“Kitty, what do you want to eat tonight?” Zhi Le asked, looking at Si Shuo with a smile.

Si Shuo glanced at Xu Chi. He snapped his fingers, and a Protective Shield enveloped their courtyard.

“I want to eat braised pork over rice!” She wanted to eat rice; she hadn’t had any rice or noodle dishes since leaving the Luoni Tribe.

As she spoke, she took out a bag of rice. She then bought carrots, shiitake mushrooms, corn kernels, potatoes, pork belly, and sauces from her “supermarket” and handed them over with a large clay pot.

Zhi Le started a bonfire, ladled rice into the clay pot, washed it twice, and then added water until it was about a finger-segment high above the rice.

Following Si Shuo’s instructions, Xu Chi prepared the side ingredients, arranged them on top of the rice, and covered the pot to let it simmer.

The males had large appetites, so in addition to the braised pork over rice, they also roasted the meat of a gray wolf and a Curled Horned Sheep.

However, Si Shuo bought a grill pan and had Xu Chi slice some meat for her to cook on it.

She rested her chin in her hands, looking at her three handsome and capable males one by one, filled with a sense of bliss. The deep-seated anxiety she’d felt before was gone, replaced by the joy of her family’s reunion, which continued to spread in her heart.

The braised pork over rice could be mixed with different sauces for a variety of flavors, so each of the males could find a taste they liked. They ate it with roasted meat and corn paste.

Eating was no longer just about filling their stomachs; it had become an enjoyment, a ritual of life!

After cleaning up, Si Shuo took out kraft paper notebooks, pencils, and erasers, handing a set to each male. She then took out a blackboard, chalk, and a chalk eraser, put on a pair of rimless glasses, and began to solemnly teach them Pinyin.

“The Beast World Continent has its own writing system, but it’s so squiggly and complicated it makes your head spin. We’re going to learn a simpler writing method based on pronunciation, which is called Pinyin…”

“Pinyin is divided into initials and finals. The finals are further divided into… Today, we’ll start by learning the five simple finals… When you pronounce a simple final, your lip shape doesn’t change…”

The three males listened in a daze. It didn’t matter if they didn’t understand; they just had to memorize it by rote!

After the lesson, Si Shuo assigned them homework: write four lines for each of the simple finals, complete with their tones.

Watching them bent over their desks writing, she got a real kick out of playing teacher. It was awesome.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep