“An’an, the roast meat’s ready.” Xie Ji ran up to Yan Yu’an holding the skewers of cooked meat. “What are you doing?”
He looked at Yan Yu’an in some confusion, then handed him the skewers. “Eat a little first.”
Yan Yu’an waved the wild vegetables he’d gathered and smiled proudly. “I’m going to make stir-fried greens in a bit.”
“Grass can be eaten too? Your white fox clan eats grass too?” Xie Ji was a little puzzled.
Yan Yu’an squinted and smiled at him, then after washing the wild vegetables clean, used antelope fat to stir-fry them.
“What’s this?”
Ning Bingque asked, his eyes fixed unblinkingly on Yan Yu’an.
How could there be a beastman this white? When it snowed heavily in winter, they’d definitely have to keep him on a leash—otherwise he’d get lost.
Shen Yuanzhou’s hand paused. He looked thoughtfully at Ning Bingque.
The reason they hadn’t gone all out when beating Ning Bingque before was that they knew he had no other intentions toward Yan Yu’an.
But now…
“The grass isn’t tasty.” Xie Ji looked curiously at this plate of bright green stir-fried greens and was the first to take a bite—then he said this with a bitter face.
Yan Yu’an was a little helpless. “Being picky isn’t good.” As he spoke, he shifted his gaze onto Ning Bingque and Shen Yuanzhou. “How about you two try some?”
Shen Yuanzhou silently took a bite of the greens. His expressionless face twisted for a moment, then he said blandly: “Tasty. But we’re carnivores—we rarely eat grass.”
Ning Bingque didn’t even think about it and refused outright.
“Alright then…” Yan Yu’an was a little helpless.
And to think he’d found so many wild vegetables under that tree. It seemed he’d be the only one eating them.
…
Gradually the sky darkened. Tonight the fog was thick, and no moon could be seen in the sky. Yan Yu’an refused Shen Yuanzhou’s company and came to the lakeside alone.
He wasn’t worried in the least—not far from him were the three strongest mutants in this forest. From the moment they’d arrived here, no animal had dared come near.
He took off the animal hide covering his lower half and slowly walked into the lake—but he didn’t dare go into the deep water, and the icy lake water just barely covered his knees.
Yan Yu’an couldn’t help letting out a sigh of pleasure.
By late May, the forest already carried a faint summer heat, but at night this lake water was unbelievably cold.
He scooped water over himself. He didn’t notice that not far away, a tall figure was staring fixedly at him.
The scarlet eye on Ning Bingque’s forehead was watching Yan Yu’an in the lake without blinking.
“Very pretty.”
“You’d better not get any ideas about him.” Ning Bingque warned. A rare trace of killing intent flashed through his golden eyes.
The scarlet eye seemed a little puzzled, and after a moment it laughed again. “You’re interested in him too?”
But Ning Bingque said nothing more. Xie Ji was sleeping at the moment, and Shen Yuanzhou had gone off to who knew where. He withdrew his gaze, not knowing what he was thinking.
Having washed clean, Yan Yu’an was very satisfied. He walked out of the lake, found the dried bear hide by the fire, and casually draped it over himself.
The enormous bear hide wrapped his whole body. Yan Yu’an glanced at Xie Ji, who was sound asleep, and couldn’t help secretly laughing.
But soon he noticed that Shen Yuanzhou and Ning Bingque were gone.
At this moment, Shen Yuanzhou had shifted back into snake form. He swam toward the depths of the lake, then bit down in one go on an enormous creature.
His sharp fangs pierced the crocodile’s tough skin. The crocodile opened its mouth wide in a silent scream, then unexpectedly sank swiftly into the water.
Having dealt with everything, Shen Yuanzhou quickly returned to the shore. He shifted back into human form and shook off the water.
As soon as they’d arrived here, the three of them had sensed that something was watching them. Shen Yuanzhou and the others—he naturally didn’t dare provoke them—so who its target was went without saying.
Ning Bingque couldn’t swim, and Xie Ji’s wounds still hadn’t healed, so the task of getting rid of this little thing could only fall to Shen Yuanzhou.
Shen Yuanzhou patted the mud off his hands and unhurriedly returned to Yan Yu’an’s side.
“Where did you and Ning Bingque go? Were you fighting again?”
Shen Yuanzhou shook his head. He glanced at Xie Ji, who was sleeping like a dead pig, and forcefully suppressed the urge to bite him to death in one go.
Just then, the fog gradually dispersed, and the bright white moonlight spilled down. Yan Yu’an looked up and saw the stars dotting the night sky.
“Do you think we can find God-Slaying Grass?” Yan Yu’an was actually a little uneasy. He didn’t know Ning Bingque’s purpose in seeking God-Slaying Grass.
But three people looking for one stalk of God-Slaying Grass—what would happen, he didn’t dare imagine.
“Don’t worry.” Shen Yuanzhou seemed to see through his thoughts and lowered his voice to comfort him. “Whether it’s you or them, at most you can only take away the leaves of God-Slaying Grass. Its roots and stem have to stay there to propagate.”
Yan Yu’an lowered his eyes, and only after a long while did he nod.
He hoped that after finding God-Slaying Grass, they could still bicker and play around like now.
“Shen Yuanzhou.” Yan Yu’an, wrapped in the dark brown bear hide, looked even whiter and smaller in the face. A trace of confusion flashed across his face. “Why do you all hate each other?”
“Why?” Shen Yuanzhou pondered this question in his mind.
Actually, he didn’t know either. They’d known of each other’s existence since childhood, and he too had wondered why he hated the other two.
“What are you two talking about?” Ning Bingque had returned. He looked the same as usual, but Yan Yu’an noticed the dark circles under his eyes.
He sat down on Yan Yu’an’s other side, glanced smugly at Shen Yuanzhou, then handed a handful of small red berries to Yan Yu’an.
“Eat these. They’re really tasty.” He’d picked a lot, but had no intention of sharing any with Shen Yuanzhou.
Shen Yuanzhou gave a cold laugh—and right in front of him, actually ate a berry from Yan Yu’an’s hand.
The red juice slowly trickled down Yan Yu’an’s fair, slender fingers, and Ning Bingque couldn’t help his eyes going wide.
Yan Yu’an hadn’t expected him to be so bold either. He could even feel Shen Yuanzhou’s tongue sliding against his fingertips.
He couldn’t help sucking in a breath of cold air.
Ning Bingque was stunned. He looked at Shen Yuanzhou and for a long while couldn’t say a single word.
“This is the reason.”
After a moment, Shen Yuanzhou released Yan Yu’an’s fingers. He licked his lips and said meaningfully.
“This really is the reason.”
What Yan Yu’an hadn’t expected was that Xie Ji had actually woken up. He glanced at Yan Yu’an, then squeezed Ning Bingque aside, casually taking a few of the small berries too. “These berries really do taste good. Try some.”
As he spoke, he stuffed the berries Ning Bingque had brought into Yan Yu’an’s mouth.
A sweet, delicious flavor burst open in his mouth, and Yan Yu’an finally understood why they hated each other so much.
“You!” Ning Bingque was extremely displeased at having his spot taken. He glanced at the few berries left and shoved them all into Yan Yu’an’s hands.
“When did you wake up?” Yan Yu’an asked in some confusion.
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