After assigning tasks, Si Shuo and company went to check on the Eldest Prince and Second Prince’s group, who had their heads down, mining.
Si Shuo called them over one by one, questioning them about what they had embezzled over the years and which lackeys had carried out their orders.
They answered a few questions evasively, thinking they could bluff their way through, but little did they know, Little Hong had already acquired all the useful information.
Using this information as their opening, Si Shuo and her group used Invisibility that night to visit the estates of the Eldest and Second Princes. They cleaned out all the ill-gotten money and stolen goods, and even emptied the granaries in the outskirts!
With these granaries, the Beastmen in the mines no longer had to worry about food.
Zhi Le and his men were also pushing through reforms in a flurry of activity, and for a while, a sense of panic gripped the entire Guiping Beast Country.
The Beastmen from the Royal Family, the nobility, the great families, and the tribes were accustomed to using their power to oppress others. They looked down on common Beastmen and were merciless toward their rivals.
They were the greatest obstacle to the reforms. But if it came down to a contest of guards, Si Shuo’s side had the most elite Royal Guards, not to mention the masses of common Beastmen who yearned to be their own masters and blindly supported them.
And in a battle of pure strength, Zhi Le and his companions could each take on ten enemies at once...
That night, a number of Beastmen gathered at the estate of High Priest Song Tan.
"High Priest, the Beast King has been completely bewitched by Si Shuo Divine Servant and Bai Xiao Witch Doctor! He’s not giving us any way to live!"
"The lands and wealth we worked so hard to accumulate are being confiscated—more than half of it! This... this is going to be the death of me..."
"High Priest, in my opinion, the Beast King has gotten far too arrogant. He acts like he alone can decide all matters for the Guiping Beast Country, and he shows you no respect at all..."
They poured out their grievances to the High Priest. Though he usually kept a low profile, he was considered the only one in the entire Guiping Beast Country who could stand on equal footing with the Beast King.
The High Priest lowered his gaze, his heart filled with vexation. ’Those two females actually have some real skill,’ he thought. ’They even managed to break the Gu-curse I placed on the Beast King.’
’Without the influence of the Gu-insect, the Beast King naturally no longer has any reason to fear me! I never expected Bai Xiao Witch Doctor to be this formidable.’
As he listened to the crowd’s resentful complaints, he maintained an air of detachment, as if it were no concern of his.
"High Priest, we’re all grasshoppers on the same rope now; we have to band together. Otherwise, the Beast King is going to skin us all alive..."
"We can’t just sit back and wait to be slaughtered! There are so many of us—if we unite, it will be more than enough to make the Beast King wary..."
After a long while, the clamor died down only when the High Priest raised a hand. Everyone immediately shut their mouths.
He let out a soft sigh. "The Beast King is desperate to bypass us right now. He wants to curry favor with the common Beastmen and act like a proper king.
He’s even willing to sacrifice everything we have and distribute it among the commoners.
But he is the Beast King, and what we can do is limited. Regardless, let’s wait until after the Five Countries exchange is over."
At the mention of this, everyone’s eyes lit up. That’s right! This year, it was their Guiping Beast Country’s turn to host. The other four Beast Countries would be sending delegations to learn, exchange ideas, and compete.
They controlled considerable resources, which they had used to cultivate a large number of high-Level Warriors with immense Combat Power.
"Hah, everyone knows the Beast King values his pride above all else. When the distinguished guests arrive for the competitions, we’ll just see who he can call on to fight."
"I certainly won’t dare to, lest I make certain people unhappy..."
"And we’re the host country this year; we can’t afford to be utterly humiliated. Let the Beast King deal with that headache himself. He can’t expect us to help him after trying to cast us aside!"
All their previous anxiety, tension, and worry vanished. Now, they held their heads high, resuming their former arrogant swagger.
"Unless the Beast King begs me and guarantees he won’t interfere in my affairs, then I *might* consider it."
Everyone nodded in agreement, sneering, "The Beast King’s been so bewitched by those pretty females his brain has stopped working. He’ll do whatever they tell him..."
"Those two are a menace. We have to make the Beast King hand them over to us to be dealt with as we see fit. Otherwise, with those two females whispering in his ear, the Beast King will still make a move against us."
"Oh, but those two females are beauties, each more alluring than the last. Why should the Beast King get to enjoy them all by himself? We’ve contributed no small amount of men and effort over the years. Everyone should get a taste..."
Seeing the topic had strayed, the High Priest chuckled along, feeling a bit tempted himself.
However, his expression immediately turned solemn. "The males accompanying those two females are quite powerful. We must cripple them first."
"That’s easy enough. When the exchange begins, we’ll all recommend that they participate. Our Guiping Beast Country’s strength is lacking, so our fighters are humiliated in the arena every year. Minor outcomes include having your cultivation crippled; major ones involve losing your life.
Let’s grant this great ’honor’ to those males!"
The more they discussed it, the more feasible the plan seemed. As long as those male eyesores were gone, wouldn’t the two females be theirs for the taking?
And without those two females whispering in his ear, the Beast King would go back to being his old self...
After the meeting broke up, Xu Chi teleported to Si Shuo’s side without ever showing his face. He handed her a notebook, which was then passed around for everyone to read.
"They want to use outsiders to wear down our strength," Wei Ce sneered. "Just because they’re incompetent, they assume we’re also pushovers anyone can bully? Such frogs in a well."
Si Shuo’s lips curled. "They don’t have the slightest intention of defending their own country. They’d even use an occasion like this to kill with a borrowed knife.
Such selfish, greedy Beastmen have no idea when to stop. They don’t understand that even a cornered rabbit will bite!
It would be boring if only we participated in the exchange. Let’s count them in, too. Time for these Beastmen to stretch their limbs a little..."
Soon, the delegations from the other four countries arrived one after another and were settled into the palace’s guest wings.
As was tradition, the Guangping Beast King, as the host, was to hold a welcoming banquet for the delegations that evening.
In the large plaza before the Audience Hall, five large bonfires had been lit. Each country’s delegation gathered around one, close enough to hear one another by simply raising their voices.
"Guangping Beast King, this reception of yours is a bit lacking! Why is everyone sitting so properly around their bonfires? Let’s get up and dance! Aren’t there any pretty young females?"
"I like fox-females, snake-females, and cat-females. Each one is more seductive than the last..."
"That’s right, that’s right! Guangping Beast King, it seems you’re not sincere at all! Who are you looking down on?"
"Our Beast King even had us bring a number of beautiful females as one of his gifts to the Guangping Beast King. You should return the courtesy, shouldn’t you?"
Some of the envoys said discontentedly, their eyes fixed on the two females beside Beast Xiao Chengwang.
Beast Xiao Chengwang pulled his lips into a smile and said, "My apologies, everyone. This King has mended his ways. I have dismissed the ladies of my back palace and now serve only one female—the Divine Servant Si Shuo!"