Over the past few days, they had gathered a great deal of information within Pingjing City, particularly concerning the foremost Beastman of Guanping Country: the Beast King.
He was originally a very ordinary male of the White Fox Clan, but his luck was almost uncanny. He slowly began to make a name for himself, which led the clan to pour its resources into him.
After that, he broke through to Level 15 and surged all the way to the peak of the sixteenth level. He even gained the Beast God’s acknowledgment and became the Beast King.
Everyone said he was a child of fortune, a Beast King born of destiny. But in reality, he was not. The Beast King truly acknowledged by the Beast God was Yanyi.
Therefore, most of Ling Wei’s good fortune was a result of his own machinations. For instance, he used the body of a Horned Deer to prolong his life, which greatly improved his natural talent and instantly raised his cultivation by an entire level.
He then passed off the Horned Deer Beastman’s wings as proof that he had awakened a Divine Beast bloodline—one of the symbols of a Beast King.
To conceal the fact that he had fused with a Horned Deer’s body and to secure his position as the Beast King, he needed an heir. This was what led to the incident of using a surrogate.
’He planned so much, so how could he not have considered the possibility of being killed in a single blow by a powerful enemy?’
’After all, the variety of superpowers among Beastmen is vast, their inherited secret techniques are innumerable, and there are high-level Beastmen from other Beast Countries to worry about.’
’Surrounded by so many dangers, he must have had some sort of contingency plan!’
Xu Chi frowned. "But when we killed the Beast King, his body had definitely fused with a Bone Token."
No one could resist the benefits of possessing the body of a Horned Deer Beastman. Forget about the next life—they wanted to live in the present, willing to commit any evil for the sake of their ambition.
At the very least, based on the information Si Shuo and the others had gathered about the Beast King, it was a foregone conclusion that he would not miss the operation to hunt down members of the Horned Deer Clan.
Ji Liang narrowed his eyes slightly. "Sss... So, you’re saying the Beast King we killed both was and wasn’t the real one. He had indeed fused with the body of a Horned Deer Clan member, but that doesn’t necessarily mean he was the true Beast King."
"To be precise, he was a decoy. But... the head wife also fused with a Horned Deer’s body. Why was she able to give birth to a cub?"
Xu Chi let out a cold laugh. "It’s simple. Not all the Horned Deer Clan members were killed in that operation. Some were taken away as captives, to be kept on hand at all times."
That was the cruelest part of all—it was just like being livestock, waiting to be slaughtered at a moment’s notice!
Si Shuo gently took his clenched fist. "Xu Chi, everyone knows that Horned Deer Beastmen can prolong life, enhance talent, and awaken superpowers. But what if word got out that every Beastman who successfully did this lived out the rest of their days in misery? Would anyone still search for traces of the Horned Deer Beastmen then?"
"Not everyone is willing to drink poison to quench their thirst! And our family has Shi Si, who can track Bone Tokens. We will not let a single one of these villains who traded a life for a life get away."
Although every Horned Deer Beastman has a different scent, there are still commonalities within the scent of the same clan, enough for Shi Si to perceive.
Having been mentioned, Shi Si bounced over, wagging a tuft of black tail and nodding enthusiastically. "Uncle Xu Chi, Shi Si will make sure no one covets the Horned Deer Beastmen anymore."
"Anyone who uses a Horned Deer Beastman to prolong their life can just wait for death to come for them early!"
Xu Chi froze for a moment. Looking at his family, he began to pull himself out of his grief. He smiled, ruffled Shi Si’s head, and pulled Si Shuo into a tight embrace.
’If not for his great talent and his obedience to his Father’s warning to have almost no contact with other Beastmen, he probably would never have survived long enough to meet Si Shuo.’
’His body might be carrying someone else’s head right now!’
’Now, his entire family was by his side, helping him get justice for the Horned Deer Beast Clan. He shouldn’t be dejected or mired in grief. He needed to be more proactive and make sure those villains received their punishment.’
Yin Jiang’s eyes narrowed. "What about the High Priest? In any territory, the High Priest should be on equal footing with the leader, if not slightly higher in status."
"So how is it that we’ve heard about so many people, but almost no one ever mentions the High Priest?"
He was a Flying Beast, so he often exchanged information with others of his kind. The Beastmen of the Bird Clan were terrible gossips; he could just hang around anywhere and pick up a ton of information.
The other males exchanged glances and shook their heads. "We really haven’t heard anything. At most, he’s just a guy who plays by the book. He keeps a low profile and completes his duties as a Priest according to the rules."
’A High Priest is a crucial figure in any land, as prominent as the sun and moon. How hard would he have to work to be so thoroughly ignored by everyone?’
Furthermore, they hadn’t detected even a hint of anything amiss with the High Priest in the Beast King’s memories.
"It looks like we’ll have to stay hidden for a while longer and thoroughly investigate the High Priest," Zhi Le said, the corner of his mouth curling. "The more inconspicuous someone is, the more likely they’re the most terrifying manipulator!"
Everyone couldn’t help but feel a renewed sense of purpose. They meticulously assigned tasks, figuring out how to quietly place the High Priest under their complete surveillance.
Time waits for no one. Si Shuo’s family was in a constant race against the clock, striving to improve their cultivation. Even though they deliberately restricted their use of the Time Law to when the cubs were doing their own Cultivation, the little ones still grew a full six years faster than they would have otherwise.
In other words, the cubs were now over seven years old. Acting like little adults, their cultivation was generally around the seventh and eighth levels. Equipped with various talismans, especially Spirit Storage Talismans, they were capable of completing missions on their own.
The family had plenty of helping hands, and every Beastman had their own assigned task.
At all times, Si Shuo had three males protecting her, one of whom was Xiao Cheng, the fake Beast King!
After the meeting ended, Si Shuo said with a smile, "Let’s go. I’m going to meet my love rival."
The males were stunned for a moment, their minds unable to keep up with her. ’A love rival? Where would she have a love rival? If anyone had a rival, shouldn’t it be one of them?’
Xiao Cheng used his Split Body Technique, changing into the guise of the Bai Xiao Witch Doctor. He linked his arm with Si Shuo’s. "Sister, you have to take me wherever you go! Let’s go! We’ll meet this love rival together!"
Si Shuo walked out with a smile, while Zhi Zhan and Wei Ce followed behind them.
「In the largest courtyard of the rear palace」
A female Golden Leopard was reclining in a side hall. On the pretext of needing a midday rest, she had dismissed all her Beast Slaves to the courtyard and activated an array to prevent any witless servant from approaching.
Beside her was an exceptionally alluring White Fox male. He had his arm wrapped possessively around her waist, sniffing intimately at her neck.
"The Beast King is planning to dismiss all his wives for the sake of the Si Shuo Divine Servant. How is it that the Great Madam isn’t the least bit worried?"
The Great Madam closed her eyes, enjoying his cloying affections. Her voice trembled slightly as she let out a soft scoff.
"He loves to put on a show. Most likely, he got some kind of confirmation from the Bai Xiao Witch Doctor or the Si Shuo Divine Servant about being able to have cubs, and now those unrealistic ideas are bubbling up in his head again."
"Hah. He doesn’t even stop to think. How could the Beast God possibly allow a Beastman who used a Horned Deer Clan member to prolong his life to have more cubs? Would he father a cub of his own clan, or a Horned Deer Cub?"
"This isn’t a situation that can be fixed with some elixir, yet he refuses to give up, always thinking there’s still hope."
"The moment he actually has a cub of his own, it will be a death sentence for all these Princes and Princesses."
"Anyway, he throws one of these fits every so often. Let him. In the end, he’ll still have to hold his nose and keep pretending these Princes and Princesses are his own flesh and blood..."