"Thank you," Ziqian said softly, meant only for the four fluffballs to hear, before running toward Huo, ignoring the gasps and anxious calls rising around him.
"Ziqian!" Xue called out, but his steps halted.
Every time he drew closer, Huo struggled strongly and grew more violent. Now that Ziqian stood directly in front of Huo, any sudden movement of his might provoke an attack—one that could unconsciously harm Ziqian.
"Ziqian, come back here," Xue called again, his voice low and cold. His blue eyes darkened, calm and without a ripple—like still water concealing an incoming storm.
If he saw even the slightest sign of Huo attacking Ziqian, he did not know what he might do. He might forget about blood ties, rush forward, and kill Huo himself.
Ziqian flinched at the sound of that voice, but he did not turn back.
Huo needed him now.
The four warriors restraining Huo exchanged anxious glances. They wanted to stop the God's messenger, but he had ignored even the young patriarch's command—how could they expect him to listen to theirs?
"It's dangerous," Tul warned, breath strained as he tightened his grip on Huo's arm.
Sweat ran down their foreheads, proof of the effort it took to hold Huo down while trying not to worsen his injuries.
The moment Ziqian stepped in front of Huo, they braced themselves and tightened their grip, but to their surprise, Huo's violent struggling began to ease.
It was not that Huo had calmed completely. His eyes were still red, and a blood-red symbol still burned on his forehead, but his movements grew restrained, almost hesitant, as if, even without his reason, some instinct remained. He was afraid of harming the person standing before him.
Ziqian dropped to his knees in front of Huo. The ground was damp with blood, but he didn't care. His hands trembled as he used a strip of cloth to carefully wipe the blood from the man's face.
"Huo, I'm here," he whispered. "Calm down, okay?"
Ziqian remembered the knowledge the guardians had sent him when he first arrived in this world—sub-beast pheromones could soothe beasts. He just did not know how to use them.
Help me… How do I use my pheromones to soothe him? Ziqian asked the four fluffballs.
Until now, he had never bothered to learn more about pheromones. At first, he had been too busy surviving and adapting to this unfamiliar world. Later, he poured his energy into improving the tribe's food. He had never imagined that it would be necessary so soon.
Now he regrets it.
"Ah-Zi, that method is usually shared between partners. It is a connection, an intangible bond formed between the two of you after getting married during Eulogia," Gae immediately explained.
Ziqian's heart sank.
Then how can I help Huo? Tears once again streamed down his face.
The four warriors, witnessing the beautiful sub-beast suddenly cry, became flustered, and their restraint on Huo faltered for just a second.
But that second was already enough for Huo.
With a guttural roar, Huo surged with sudden strength and threw them off. The warriors were flung aside as if they weighed nothing.
They hit the ground hard several steps away, but these were warriors that were used to fighting large monsters. They rolled and quickly regained their footing.
The four warriors immediately prepared to leap back in to restrain Huo, but Xue lifted a hand, signaling them to stop.
The surroundings also fell into a breathless silence.
Afraid that even the slightest sound might startle Huo and accidentally hurt the god's messenger in front of him.
But for Ziqian, the pain of seeing Huo in such a state was far more overwhelming than any fear of getting hurt. He wrapped his arms around Huo as he followed the guardians' instructions.
"You can still try it, Ah-Zi," Ero suggested. "The bond only makes soothing and strengthening easier between partners. It doesn't mean it's impossible without it. It's just that no one has tried it yet."
"Right, Ah-Zi, try it," Phi chimed in quickly. "Huo is still in a berserk state, but he didn't attack you even when you hugged him. That's a good sign."
Then what should I do?
Gae inhaled slowly. He was clearly worried. "Ah-Zi… just hold him gently and close your eyes."
"Feel the scent gathering in your glands and guide it. Imagine it spreading outward… slowly enveloping Huo within it," Gae continued, carefully. "Do not resist his pheromones. Let yours meet his."
Ziqian tried again and again.
He had never consciously tried to control his pheromone before, but he was familiar with it since he could always catch traces of it during intimate moments with Xue.
Sometimes he can smell his pheromones—for him, it is simply fragrant and sweet, like a soft perfume. But when it blended with Xue's, it changed—turning heavy and intoxicating, stirring warmth through his body like an aphrodisiac.
He clung to that memory of sensation and tried to guide it slowly and carefully as Gae had instructed.
It was difficult.
Because even with his eyes closed, he could picture Huo's condition clearly. And the warm blood slicking his fingers as he cupped the man's face made his chest tighten with pain.
"Huo…" he whispered.
Huo groaned, low and almost unrecognizable, as if responding to Ziqian's call. The beast's massive frame trembled under Ziqian's touch.
Huo's breathing was ragged, like that of a caged beast, but surprisingly, he did not struggle in Ziqian's arms.
"Huo, I am here," Ziqian whispered. "I'll stay with you, alright? So please… change back. So we can talk properly."
"I'm sorry for hurting you," Ziqian continued, his tears once again streaming down his cheeks and falling onto Huo's bloodstained skin. "If you want to hate me, then hate me… but please, don't hurt yourself anymore."
In just one night, he shed more tears than he had in his entire previous life.
As the time passed by, Ziqian felt desperate. His sweat soaked his skin as he was having a hard time concentrating. And after several attempts, doubt started to creep in. Perhaps it was really impossible without a bond.
But he didn't stop.
"I like you, Huo. I like you so much… so please," Ziqian murmured softly against Huo's forehead. He continued to follow the guardian's instructions, clinging to even the faintest hope that his confession would reach the man.
"It's working!" Phi and Ero suddenly exclaimed at the same time.
The changes were slow and almost imperceptible. If the two guardians hadn't reacted, Ziqian might have missed it entirely. He then gathered every thread of his focus to grasp that change. And after a while, he finally felt the subtle shift in his pheromones.
It was drifting like a faint wisp, moving slowly and erratically. Controlling and guiding it toward Huo needed great effort, but when that fragile fragrance finally brushed Huo's cheek, the groaning and trembling man stiffened. He becomes completely still and quiet.
Ziqian wanted to open his eyes to check what happened to Huo, but Gae reassured him that everything was fine and urged him to concentrate on guiding that faint wisp—letting it spread and gently envelop Huo.
Ziqian felt as if he was kneeling there for a long time. In truth, only a few minutes had passed.
Lia and Bei immediately rushed when they heard that Huo had gone berserk and attacked Xue.
The two of them worried about what might happen to Huo. He had not yet fully recovered his strength, and going berserk would not only exhaust all the person's physical strength but also damage the person's mentality.
Many who fell into a berserk state needed a long time to recover. Even then, some become hollow-eyed, their minds dulled and slow to respond.
And those who never recovered lost themselves completely—they turned savage before dying after being consumed by endless pain.
There was no known cure for those who had fallen into a berserk state. In the end, survival depended on the person's own fate.
Huo had only just survived one ordeal, and now another had struck.
By the time Lia and Bei arrived, a crowd had already gathered around the area, but they were puzzled by the unnatural silence.
At the center of the crowd was a man in a berserk form, being held tightly in the arms of a fair, beautiful sub-beast. Around them, no one dared to move—the onlookers watched in utter silence, afraid that even a faint sound would snap Huo.
Lia's face paled.
How could they let Ziqian come so close while Huo was in that state?
They immediately looked for Xue. "What happened?" Bei directly asked as soon as they reached him, but Xue didn't answer.
He seemed to have lost all awareness of his surroundings, his gaze fixed intently on Ziqian and Huo with an unreadable expression.
"I think the God Messenger was trying to soothe Huo with his pheromones," Tul reported on Xue's behalf, because ever since Ziqian approached Huo, no one could properly talk to the young patriarch.
Lia observed Xue with concern. His body was mottled with bruises, but he seemed oblivious to the pain as he continued to stand there.
And with every passing moment, Xue's expression grew darker.