On the way, the other females were all hesitant to speak, the gossip written plainly on their faces.
Li Man was the type who couldn't keep things to herself. She leaned in, sniffed around Sang Luo, and giggled. "That Aphrodisiac Fruit juice I gave you was good, wasn't it? You've finally paired up. That's the way it should be! You have to hold on tight to a promising Male Beast, or you'll regret it forever when another female snatches him away!"
As she spoke, Li Man glanced at Ayia. Ayia's expression wasn't great. "The one she should be watching out for is Manla. Lan Cang doesn't like me, and now that his power is restored, he'd be even less interested. I gave up on him a long time ago."
Li Man grabbed Sang Luo again, trying to pry some private details out of her. "I heard you two were going at it pretty hard last night. Even the Beastmen next door heard you, and for the whole night, too..."
Before she could finish, Sang Luo's face instantly turned bright red. 'Are these Beastmen's ears all that sensitive? They could even hear *that* so clearly?'
Duoji also laughed teasingly. "Your Male Beast is so vigorous. The ones I have are usually done after half an hour. It's not satisfying at all."
"Why don't you have all three of them come at you at once? Wouldn't that be enough?" Li Man retorted.
"I wouldn't dare let them come together. They'd start fighting, and then I'd be the one with the headache!"
"..."
Li Man turned back to her, lowering her voice. "So, what's it like, sleeping with Lan Cang? He's usually so cold to females, with that unapproachable air about him. I bet a lot of them want to have a taste. Ah, I'd love to see what he's like when he's wild with passion in bed~"
"Are you disgusting, fantasizing about another female's Male Beast? Just shut up already." Ayia rolled her eyes. It was clear that Beastman females often discussed such topics. The others just laughed it off and moved on to other things.
'The Beastman World is certainly open-minded.'
'Then again, he really was incredible.'
Sang Luo savored the memory of last night. 'A true feast for the eyes.'
The young females chatted and laughed as they walked together, drawing attention wherever they went. Many unpaired Male Beasts gathered around, trying to show off their physiques and curry favor.
Many of the male Beastmen fixed their burning gazes on Sang Luo.
'The infertile, mute cripple—this identity is actually quite useful for keeping a low profile.'
Sang Luo didn't want to expose her true self before leaving the Kordo Tribe, so she hadn't gone out much during her heat.
The female pheromones her body naturally produced still attracted young Male Beasts. If this were on Earth, she would have been quite shy to be surrounded by so many handsome, muscular guys who were 1.8 or 1.9 meters tall. Now, however, she was as composed as a native female, ignoring them completely as if they were thin air.
The weather was indeed nice today, and nearly half of the young females in the tribe were out and about.
Manla seemed to have forgotten the events of the past few days. She nodded when she saw Sang Luo's group, but when her gaze fell on the red mark on Sang Luo's neck, a sinister glint flashed through her eyes.
The river water was clear, and you could see the rocks and fish at the bottom, as well as many river shrimp that were a good half-palm in size.
The females' mouths started to water, and they asked their partners to catch some fish and shrimp to take back and eat.
It was a rare, clear day after autumn. The temperature in the Beast World fluctuated greatly, and it was a bit scorching during the day. A few females couldn't resist the temptation of the cool river water and were the first to jump in and play. Seeing this, the other females followed suit, getting into the river to have fun.
"Hey, look! That black shadow downstream by the rocks, is that a Silver Bone Fish?"
Someone shouted and swam over.
Sang Luo looked over as well. The silver fish was extremely plump, about two palms long. Its flesh was translucent, and you could clearly see the blood vessels and a single, complete white fish bone inside.
The Silver Bone Fish was a rare freshwater fish unique to the Beast World. Not only was its meat tender and delicious, but its bone could also be sold in the city for a handsome price. Normally, whenever any female or male went out, they would do their best to bring a Silver Bone Fish back if they encountered one.
The females' interest was piqued. Manla was the first to swim out, looking determined to win.
The Male Beasts on the bank all wanted to get in the river to help.
But Manla turned and shouted, "All of you, stay right there! I don't need your help. I can catch this fish all by myself!"
After saying that, she shot a provocative look at the other females, raising her eyebrows, and continued, "How about we have a competition? Let's see who can catch this Silver Bone Fish first."
Beastmen were competitive by nature, both male and female. It was just that the females were usually protected by the tribe and had no chance to show their skills. A small, relatively safe challenge like this naturally ignited their competitive spirit. Li Man and the others also stopped their partners from entering the water and swam over.
Sang Luo had no interest in the Silver Bone Fish and wanted to go back to the bank to rest, but Manla shouted at her, "Hey, weak female! Don't tell me you're scared?"
"Who's scared! Luoluo, we can't let her look down on us. Come on, we have to catch that Silver Bone Fish today and take her down a peg!" Li Man said, grabbing Sang Luo tightly and pulling her forward.
The farther they swam toward the deeper part of the river, the more they felt a faint, swirling pull from below. The once crystal-clear water gradually grew murky. In the distance, the water began to turn blue, then deep blue, and the area in the very center of the river even looked faintly black.
Sang Luo gripped Li Man's hand tightly.
'The central part of the river is very deep, and it's dangerous below. We'd better not go over there.'
Duoji and the others saw it too, but they didn't pay it much mind.
"It's fine! Our partners are watching from the side. Nothing will happen!"
The Silver Bone Fish didn't seem to notice the females closing in on it. It continued to swim calmly back and forth under the rocks as the distance between them shrank.
Twenty meters... fifteen... ten... five...
A massive black shadow suddenly shot up from the riverbed, breaking the surface of the water. It was a Wandering Snake Beast!
"AHH!!"
"A Wandering Beast was lying in ambush! Run!!"
Terrified screams instantly echoed across the area. The females, their faces pale with fright, turned and fled without hesitation.
However, in the midst of the chaos, Manla's body suddenly pitched forward as if shoved by an invisible force.
Not far in front of her were Sang Luo and Li Man. It looked like a simple accident caused by people jostling each other while fleeing in a panic, but Sang Luo was absolutely certain that the push had been deliberate and forceful!
Sang Luo and Li Man fell into the river, and the Wandering Beast charged toward them at incredible speed. At the critical moment, a power erupted from within Sang Luo. The seaweed on the riverbed grew wildly in an instant, wrapping around the Wandering Beast layer by layer like a spiderweb, temporarily halting its advance.
The Male Beasts who had rushed into the river immediately subdued the Wandering Beast and brought the females back to the bank.
But Li Man had disappeared into the river—right in that area of black water!
Sweat beaded on Sang Luo's forehead as she prepared to activate her power again.
Suddenly, a head popped out of the water not far away. Li Man was completely unharmed, not even a single strand of hair out of place. She held the struggling, tail-flapping Silver Bone Fish high with both hands and spat out a couple of mouthfuls of water.
'She can breathe underwater?'
Sang Luo blinked in surprise and lowered her hand. 'Isn't she a Three-colored Cat Beastman?'
"Hehe, don't worry, I'm fine! Don't forget, I have a Mermaid Beastman Husband!"
As she spoke, Li Man's upper body also emerged from the water. A male Beastman with ink-blue hair was holding her, swimming calmly to the shore.
In a Beast World overflowing with handsome men, this Mermaid male was still a breath of fresh air. He had a rare, refined, and ethereal beauty not often seen among Beastmen. His body wasn't overly burly or muscular; he was the slender, wiry type, but he still had a lean, well-defined musculature. He had a great figure. Although he was only a Second Rank Beastman, his beauty definitely ranked in the top three of all the Beastmen Sang Luo had seen recently.
The stronger a Beastman's power, the more stunning their appearance. The Mermaids were a race famous in the Beast World for being "vases"—every single one of them was breathtakingly beautiful.
'I wonder how beautiful a top-tier Mermaid must be.'
"The Mermaid Clan is incredibly rare, almost to the point of extinction. Li Man was lucky to have taken in a Mermaid Beastman Husband back at the Great Soup River. Even though his power isn't strong, she gained the ability to live underwater after pairing with him. Otherwise, she probably wouldn't have made it out of this one alive." Duoji also let out a sigh of relief, her palms sweaty.