The clay cooking pot had just been used by the priest to prepare medicine. Lin Qiu carried it outside to wash it, then filled it with water and brought it back to the priest’s cave.

There were embers in the hearth inside the cave; all he needed was some dry grass to get the fire going.

Lin Qiu went to the stream, found a flat pebble, washed it clean, and used a stone knife to cut the meat into small pieces before tossing them into the clay cooking pot. After the water had boiled several times, the aroma of the meat broth wafted out of the pot and filled the cave.

Once the meat was fully cooked, Lin Qiu couldn’t wait for it to simmer until tender, so he added the fresh grass right away. After a short while, it would be ready to serve. The old priest noticed Lin Qiu looking his way.

“What do you want now?”

Lin Qiu: “Salt.”

The two stared at each other for a long time. Finally, the old priest tossed a small packet of salt over, hitting Lin Qiu. The old priest said, “Get lost.”

Lin Qiu: “Thank you, Priest.”

Lin Qiu didn’t leave. He pinched a bit of salt into the soup, took a small taste, and found it actually quite delicious compared to before.

Lin Qiu waited for the soup in the clay cooking pot to cool down. Spotting the clay bowl the priest had used to eat meat, he washed it clean and gave him half. 

Priest: “You’ve forgotten the rules.”

“I told you not to touch anything on the shelf.”

Lin Qiu immediately admitted his mistake and placed the bowl beside him. The old priest glanced at it. “I’m not eating.” 

Lin Qiu: “You’ll starve if you don’t. Look, your hands are shaking.”

The old priest looked at Lin Qiu’s face, which was much fairer than that of the other sub-beastmen. Which beastman in the tribe looked like him? Regardless of what the old priest thought, Lin Qiu had eaten his fill. He washed the clay pot and returned it, then went to attend to other tasks.

He had to set up his grass nest for the night.

Lin Qiu went into the large cave, carefully examined the materials the beastmen had used to build their straw nests, and then began gathering them. To sleep warmly, he needed a thick layer of dry straw to lie on.

He couldn’t sleep directly on the ground either, as the cave was still somewhat damp.

Taking advantage of the sunlight, Lin Qiu went to the streamside to gather a number of stones to dry, and also cut some withered reeds.

He stripped the reeds of their leaves, keeping only the stems, cut them to uniform lengths, and twisted the dry grass into twine to weave a reed mat. By the time he had everything ready, the beastmen who had gone out had returned.

Following the usual routine for dividing the meat, Lin Qiu received his share. He set aside the materials he was holding for the moment and roasted some meat to fill his stomach.

Lang Yan hid in a shadowed spot beyond the fire’s reach, watching him quietly for a moment. Then, taking the portion of meat the beastman handed him—the old priest’s share—he made his way toward the priest’s cave.

Inside the cave, the light flickered, casting a dim glow.

The old priest’s voice was hoarse and raspy: “Something’s wrong with him.” 

Lang Yan: “I know.”

That’s why he let him go.

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

The beastmen lay or crouched on the ground, clutching their pieces of meat, savoring this hard-won meal.

The aroma of Lin Qiu’s roasted meat wafted past every beastman’s nose, and pairs of wolf eyes glowed with a faint, eerie light. If he hadn’t known they were all beastmen, Lin Qiu felt he would have become their next meal.

“Gulp—” Beside Lang Mo, a companion swallowed audibly.

Lang Mo slurped once as well, silently gnawing on his own piece of meat.

He thought to himself, after smelling the meat Lang Qiu had grilled, his own meal tasted completely bland.

“How does he make his meat smell so good?” The companion shifted to the side, pressing his head against Lang Mo’s back.

The piece of meat Lang Mo had just swallowed nearly came back up. He pushed the wolf away with his paw and hid his nose under his paw, looking rather dejected.

“How should I know?”

The more the beastmen sniffed, the louder their stomachs growled.

Because of the terrible things Lin Qiu had done, the beastmen were torn with longing, yet not a single one dared to approach.

Lang Yan stepped out, glanced at the restless beastmen, then looked at Lin Qiu’s profile, illuminated by the firelight at the edge of the circle—frail and harmless. Lang Yan said nothing, picked up his own portion of meat from the campfire, and walked away.

The beastmen ate and then went to sleep; one by one, they lay down in the great cavern. Lin Qiu ate more slowly; after tending to the fire, he hurried inside, clutching the pile of nesting materials he had prepared.

The beastmen watched him, immediately going on the defensive as if guarding their territory, keeping a wary eye on Lin Qiu.

As a bit of grass fell to the ground, Lin Qiu stopped to pick it up, only to hear the wolf-beastman beside him say, “Don’t come near my nest.” Lin Qiu straightened up, still clutching the dry grass, let his gaze sweep over the wolf’s head, and continued walking inward.

The beastmen inside scattered to make way, or straightened their bodies, while the wolf’s tail extended from its nest to claim the empty space—a clear sign that Lin Qiu was not welcome. Lin Qiu’s gaze settled on the Wolf King’s area.

Lang Yan’s den was large and meticulously crafted. A circle of empty space surrounded it; no other beastmen were near him. Lin Qiu approached slowly and tentatively placed the dry grass beside him.

The black wolf lay with his eyes closed in the grass nest, not sparing him a single glance. Lin Qiu watched as the wolf’s large tail flicked gently, then withdrew his gaze and settled on a spot. He made several trips back and forth, carrying all the materials for the grass nest into the cave.

He chose a spot at the inner corner between Lang Yan’s nest and the cave.

They laid stones at the bottom, stacked neat rows of wood on top, spread out reed mats, and finally covered everything with a thick layer of dry grass.

Layer by layer, the nest grew taller.

Lin Qiu leaned in and pressed his palms against the inside. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Lang Yan’s massive frame blocked the outside like a mountain, keeping even the wind at bay. Lin Qiu was fairly satisfied.

The gap between the two hay nests was partially obscured by the protruding stalks of grass; at first glance, they appeared almost touching. Lin Qiu crawled inside and lay down, his entire body sinking almost completely into the soft hay.

He had been out in the sun; the only scent around him was that of dry grass. The nest was spacious; he felt like a little bird nestled in a nest, completely enveloped. Lying there gave him a profound sense of security.

Lin Qiu closed his eyes and fell asleep with his back to Lang Yan. He remained in the same position all night.

Lang Yan opened his eyes, his chin resting on the edge of the hay nest. In his beast form, he was towering, and he could see the sub-beastman lying deep within the nest at a glance. The sub-beastman was curled up on his side, frowning slightly with unease, looking like a cub.

He hadn’t had much contact with the sub-beastman, so he didn’t know what the sub-beastman’s recent transformation was all about. As long as he behaved himself, the tribe would still take him in, but if anything else happened that harmed the tribe, he would take it upon himself to expel the sub-beastman—or… execute him.

Lang Yan reined in his aura; he wasn’t quite used to having another living creature nearby.

His hearing was too keen; even with his eyes closed, he could hear the sub-beastman’s shallow breathing. Lang Yan slept fitfully that night, rising as soon as the first light appeared outside the cave the next morning.

By the time Lin Qiu awoke, most of the beastmen had already left the cave.

Just around the corner, several beastmen of similar build stood guard. They formed a barrier, separating the outside from the whimpering cubs inside. Seeing the beastmen on high alert, Lin Qiu didn’t linger; he endured the aching numbness in one side of his body and slowly stretched out.

It was his first time sleeping so close to a wolf-beastman, and he wasn’t exactly carefree about it.

As the Wolf King, Lang Yan’s attitude toward him wasn’t as overt as that of the other beastmen, which was why Lin Qiu had dared to push his luck. He rubbed his shoulders, rested for a moment, then got up and went outside.

He’d woken up relatively late that day and hadn’t eaten yet, so he headed straight to the priest’s quarters to work. Since he was still in the probationary period, he needed to show some initiative. After all, he was still in the Wolf Tribe, and no one liked having people roll their eyes at them every day.

After finishing his morning chores, Lin Qiu didn’t even have the energy to make a simple vegetable and meat soup; he just hastily grilled some meat and wolfed it down. Lying on the grass, he watched the clouds drift across the sky, feeling a bit dazed.

The sky was unusually clear—something rarely seen in the past.

This can’t go on. He can’t keep relying on the beastmen to give him food.

Besides, he was only getting a small piece of meat a day. He didn’t know if it was because he’d moved to a new location, but the amount of meat he used to eat in a few days didn’t fill him up at all now. He had to figure something out and find other food.

After lying there for a while, Lin Qiu got up.

The sunlight was just right, making it quite pleasant to walk beneath. He walked around the beastman lying on the grass, his gaze scanning the area.

From east to west, there was nothing edible near Wolf Mountain. As he brushed through the grass, a sudden, sharp pain shot through his foot. Lin Qiu took two steps back, standing on tiptoe, and looked down at the cut on the sole of his foot caused by a pebble; bright red blood dripped onto the green grass. Lin Qiu didn’t even furrow his brow; he crouched down to examine the wound.

Fortunately, the calluses on the sole of his foot had protected him, and only a small patch of skin was broken.

He looked around; the landscape stretching out from Wolf Mountain was vast. If he could travel far enough, he should be able to find some food. But for now, he might need a pair of shoes.

The night was still, broken only by the occasional soft chirp of birds.

Inside a large cave on Wolf Mountain, a fire burned. Lin Qiu sat in his grass nest, clutching the dry grass he had cut that day, trying to weave straw shoes. Though his movements were gentle, the intertwining of the grass blades inevitably produced a faint rustling sound.

During the day, he wanted to save enough time to search for food, so he had to squeeze the work of making the straw shoes into the evening.

The fire nearby was nearly burned out. Lin Qiu covered his mouth and yawned softly; tears welled up in his eyes, and his gaze seemed to soften slightly. The straw shoes were a bit rough, and he kept adjusting them as he held them up to his feet. By the time he finished the pair, it was already late at night.

Beside him, Lang Yan lay in his den, shielding him from the wind.

Warming himself by the fire, Lin Qiu felt quite warm.

He got up, crawled out of the grass nest, and put on the straw shoes to try them out. Several pairs of wolf eyes gleamed as they watched him silently. Lin Qiu moved even more quietly and crawled back into the grass nest.

He thought he heard a few rumblings of hunger; out of the corner of his eye, he saw the beastmen avert their gaze and lie listlessly in the nest with their eyes closed. Lin Qiu paused briefly, then crawled into the nest to sleep.

Outside, the wind howled, and the fire sputtered out.

Lin Qiu curled up, tensing his body, and once again marveled at how well he’d chosen his spot.

He spent the morning working for the priest as usual. He saved the last bit of meat from last night to eat at noon, then set out to search for ingredients. There were no fish in the nearby stream, and the wild vegetables had already been picked, so Lin Qiu decided to venture further afield.

He followed the great river to the south, walking slowly in that direction. The area in front of Wolf Mountain was wide open, so even the wolf-beastmen stationed along the riverbank could see him, and thus no one stopped him.

It must have been just after winter, in early spring.

After half a day of sunshine, the dew had dried from the ground. Lin Qiu picked up a stick and walked along, looking down as he went.

At this time of year, plants were just beginning to sprout tender shoots.

Lin Qiu had no intention of climbing trees; he kept his eyes on the ground, walking and stopping intermittently, until he finally spotted a clump of wild garlic. The wild garlic grew in clumps, with slender leaves and a pungent aroma.

Perhaps because the beastmen disliked this pungent scent, Lin Qiu was able to find several large clumps. He pulled up a handful and continued his search.

Early spring was damp, and since this area was near the river, the ground was crisscrossed with small streams. A patch of slightly darker green stood out strikingly against the lush green grass.

Lin Qiu went to investigate and found that it was an earth ear mushroom, also known as ground-skin mushrooms.

A type of fungus that grows on the ground, resembling a wood ear mushroom.