A few hours later, the Main Nest had transformed completely.
The arguing voices, the tense stares, the awkward silence from earlier were all gone, replaced by laughter, loud chewing, clanking cups, and the unmistakable atmosphere of a feast in full swing.
Lin Mu sat cross-legged on a wide stone platform that served as a table, surrounded by food in quantities that would have horrified most human sect kitchens.
There were massive slabs of grilled meat laid directly on heated stone plates, their surfaces crackling softly as fat dripped and sizzled. Some were clearly from beasts Lin Mu recognized from the rainforest, while others had no recognizable origin at all.
Thick ribs larger than tree trunks. Skewered haunches pierced by sharpened bones instead of metal rods. Entire carcasses roasted slowly over low flames, turned by beastkin cooks who treated the process with reverent seriousness.
