Chapter 260: A Shady Entrepreneur

Deep within the shadowy depths of the forest, Vex casually strolled through the dense foliage. He was in a spectacularly good mood. His lips were still curled into a devastating, wicked smirk as he rhythmically tossed the tiny, hard plastic birth-control implant into the air and caught it.

His mission with the little human chef was a complete success, but he had no time to bask in the victory. The Fox Shaman had another very important appointment to keep.

Standing in a small, secluded clearing a few miles away was a female tiger beastman.

Her name was Bia. She was a rogue, surviving the harsh, unforgiving reality of the Beast World by trading her specialized “favors” to lonely or desperate male beastmen in exchange for venom crystals. She was currently wearing what could only generously be described as a suggestion of a dress: a few strategically placed strips of animal hide that left absolutely nothing to the imagination.

Bia didn’t plan on staying in this backwater forest forever. She was an ambitious working girl. She fully intended to save up enough venom crystals to pack her bags and start completely over in the absolute best, most prosperous, and luxurious territory in the world.

When Vex’s fluffy orange ears poked through the bushes, Bia immediately straightened her posture, popping a hip out and batting her eyelashes.

But Vex wasn’t here for small talk or flirting. He immediately cut straight to business.

“I have a proposition for you,” Vex purred, coming to a halt in front of her. “I will give you five thousand venom crystals to mate with my friend.”

Bia’s jaw instantly dropped. Her eyes widened, complete, unfiltered disbelief washing over her face.

’Five thousand?!’ Bia thought she was hearing things. She had mated with and given strong, healthy cubs to dozens of tiger beastmen. It was a job she did frequently, and she was very good at it. But her standard going rate was usually only five hundred crystals! Five thousand was an absolute, life-changing fortune.

It was more than enough to buy her a one-way ticket to the richest beast city and live like a pampered queen!

“Is… is that all?” Bia stammered, frantically trying to hide her desperate greed behind a mask of cool professionalism. “Just mate with him?”

“I also need you to get pregnant,” Vex clarified smoothly, crossing his arms over his chest. “A guaranteed conception.”

Bia usually did the mating, the carrying, the birthing for the five hundred. A guaranteed pregnancy was just part of her premium package. She was shaking with excitement.

But then, Vex let out a soft, amused sigh, tilting his head slightly. “Actually, make it ten thousand venom crystals. My friend is… well, he will be quite a lot to handle.”

Bia grinned so hard her cheeks physically ached. Ten thousand crystals! She didn’t care if his friend was a grumpy, three-legged warthog with rough hands. For ten thousand crystals, she would happily mate with a boulder!

“Deal!” Bia agreed instantly, clapping her hands together. “I’ll help you immediately!”

Vex’s orange eyes glinted dangerously. He smirked. “Follow me.”

He turned and led the scantily clad tigress through the forest to his hidden underground limestone cavern.

Bia looked around in absolute awe. The cavern was breathtaking. Glowing, bioluminescent moss hung from the massive stalactites on the ceiling, casting an eerie, beautiful blue-green light over the smooth limestone walls. In the center of the cavern sat a large, bubbling pool of natural steaming hot spring water.

But as Bia admired the space, her eyes suddenly landed on a figure resting on a pile of soft furs near the edge of the steaming pool.

Bia gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. “Is that… Vara?!”

She questioned it in pure shock, hardly able to believe her own eyes. It was indeed Vara, the narcissistic tigress from the White Tiger Clan. But she looked absolutely horrific.

Vara’s white hair was matted and dull. She looked incredibly sick, her skin pale and slick with a feverish, heavy sweat. But the most terrifying detail was her massively swollen, pregnant belly. Thick, terrifying black veins webbed aggressively across her taut skin.

Vara didn’t even wake up at the sound of their voices; she remained unconscious, her breathing incredibly shallow and labored.

“Ah, yes,” Vex casually waved a hand toward the dying female. “I was the one who bred her. Unfortunately, my superior Fox genes are struggling horribly against her primitive Tiger genes. The biological rejection is quite severe. But don’t worry, she’ll pull through.”

Bia stared at the Fox Shaman as if he had grown a second head.

“You bred her?!” Bia argued, completely horrified. “Vex, hybrids are absolutely taboo! The cubs come out completely wild and hideously disfigured! They are born as mindless feral monsters!”

Vex chuckled, a dark, velvety sound that echoed off the limestone walls. He didn’t look the least bit ashamed.

“I am aware,” Vex smirked, walking over to his stone workstation. “I am going into the mixed breeds business. Mindless, feral, hybrid monsters sell for an absolute fortune in venom crystals to the beast kings in the northern territories.”

Bia’s furry ears perked up. Her thick brows shot to her hairline. She stared at Vara’s horrific, vein-covered belly, a new sense of terrifying respect washing over her. She had absolutely never thought of doing that.

However, her survival instincts immediately kicked in. She had heard horror stories from the elders of her old clan. Giving birth to a hybrid beast was agonizing—the foreign genes literally tore the mother’s body apart from the inside out.

Bia narrowed her eyes suspiciously. She was desperate, but she wasn’t stupid. She was well aware of exactly who Vex was, and just how manipulative, twisted, and evil he was.

“So,” Bia said slowly, taking a cautious step backward from the Fox Shaman. “Where exactly is this ’friend’ of yours?”

Vex’s wicked smirk grew into a full-blown, terrifying grin. He slowly raised his hand and gestured toward a pitch-black, deeply ominous tunnel at the far end of the cavern.

“He is this way.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep