He lowered his head and sniffed the air, then saw the snow-white animal hide on the ground.
His massive tiger paw prodded the hide. He guessed whoever it was had left it behind.
The Golden Tiger Beast's pale gold pupils glinted coldly. 'A shabby piece of hide in exchange for one of my deer legs? And they didn't even ask for my permission!'
The Golden Tiger Beast snatched up the hide, intending to toss it away, but after a moment's thought, he threw it onto his back instead.
'I'll keep it. I can use the scent on the hide to find the beastman who stole my prey.'
The Golden Tiger Beast bit down on the Deer Beast, hoisted it onto his back, and headed into the snowy forest.
When Qiao Xixi returned to her cubs, she found they hadn't touched the fish meat in their hands.
"Look what Mother brought back for you."
The young cubs were still wallowing in the sorrow of being abandoned by Qiao Xixi when they were stunned to see her return, hauling a deer leg thicker than her waist.
"You stupid female, you didn't run away," Qiao Ang blurted out.
Qiao Xixi set down the deer leg and gently tapped him on the forehead.
"How rude. After your mother braved all that danger to find you food, this is what you think of me?"
Qiao Ang clutched his forehead. The sullen tightness in his chest had suddenly, inexplicably, lifted.
'It must be because I saw the deer leg.'
"Mother, where did you get this Deer Beast's leg?"
Meeting Qiao Qiao's big, sparkling eyes, Qiao Xixi fell silent for a moment.
"I traded for it with someone. I used an animal hide."
The cubs were simple enough not to ask any more questions. All they knew was that they had food.
"Hurry up and eat the fish meat. Then we'll get back on the road."
With food in hand, her heart was at ease.
As they set off again, Qiao Xixi felt a little lighter. The Deer Beast's leg was huge. If they ate sparingly, it would last them at least three days.
Qiao Xixi thought about the forest where she had found the Deer Beast. 'The fact that there's a snowy forest means there were trees here before the cold tide. If we head that way, we should be able to get out of this ice plain.'
When they reached the snowy forest, Qiao Xixi saw the spot where the Deer Beast had fallen. A trail of blood led from that patch of snow into the forest.
Qiao Xixi's steps faltered. 'That means the giant Golden Tiger Beast from earlier is probably in this forest.'
'If we run into the Golden Tiger Beast and he finds out I took his Deer Beast meat, I don't know if my neck could survive a single bite from him.'
"Wait, let's not go into the forest. It's safer to go around it."
It was the young cubs' first time leaving the ice plain, and they were filled with both curiosity and fear about the outside world, so they all obediently stayed close to Qiao Xixi.
Meanwhile, in the mountain forest, the Golden Tiger Beast was eating the Deer Beast.
Suddenly, he lifted his head and met a pair of eerie green eyes.
It was a Black-haired Long-toothed Beast.
The Black-haired Long-toothed Beast had intended a sneak attack. After being discovered by the Golden Tiger Beast, it let out an angry roar and lunged.
The Golden Tiger Beast moved quickly to meet the challenge.
The Black-haired Long-toothed Beast was slightly smaller than the Golden Tiger Beast and was no match for him at all.
But the Black-haired Long-toothed Beast was fast, and in the blink of an eye, it was behind the Golden Tiger Beast.
The Golden Tiger Beast spun around to attack, but his heart suddenly seized, and the pain froze him in place.
The Black-haired Long-toothed Beast seized the opportunity, its fangs sinking into the Golden Tiger Beast's leg.
"ROAR!"
The tiger's roar echoed through the sky.
The sound made Qiao Xixi and her children turn pale, their terrified gazes fixed on the snowy forest.
The Golden Tiger Beast recovered his senses, knocked over the Black-haired Long-toothed Beast, leaped behind it, and bit down on its neck.
The Golden Tiger Beast clamped down hard. Just as he snapped the Black-haired Long-toothed Beast's neck, another sharp pain shot through his heart.
His vision went black, and he collapsed on top of the Black-haired Long-toothed Beast. His massive tiger form reverted to that of a man with short, golden hair.
Qiao Xixi pulled her gaze away. 'That roar was absolutely terrifying!'
"Quickly, let's go."
The cubs were badly frightened. Life on the ice plain had been hard, but they had never encountered such a terrifying beast before. Otherwise, they wouldn't have survived this long.
That roar had been so powerful that it had likely scared away any other beasts for miles around.
Qiao Xixi looked at the sky.
It was getting dark. They had to find shelter soon, or the nighttime temperatures would freeze them to death.
Qiao Xixi changed into her beast form and sniffed the air. She finally found a small cave at the foot of a mountain behind the snowy forest.
There was no scent of other beasts in the cave. They could take shelter here for the night.
Inside the cave, the cold wind was almost completely blocked out.
Exhausted, Qiao Xixi spread the animal hides on the ground. "All of you, huddle together on the hides. It'll be warmer that way."
The cubs were exhausted too. They huddled on the hides, staring longingly at the deer leg on the ground.
They were so cold and so hungry.
Qiao Xixi was hungry too. She took out her ice knife, cut three pieces of meat from the deer leg, and handed them to the cubs.
"Hurry and eat. After you eat, get a good night's sleep. We'll keep moving tomorrow."
The cubs took the meat and began to eat it in big mouthfuls.
But Qiao Xixi stared at the bloody meat in front of her, unable to bring herself to open her mouth.
'I have a fire starter, but I don't dare go into the snowy forest to gather firewood right now.'
Qiao Xixi steeled herself, cut off a small piece of meat, and put it in her mouth.
The taste of flesh and blood, mixed with the biting cold, filled her entire mouth with an overwhelming metallic tang.
She retched.
Qiao Xixi couldn't stop herself from spitting it out.
Hearing the sound, the cubs looked up in confusion.
"Mother, what's wrong?"
Qiao Qiao looked at Qiao Xixi's pale face and suddenly grew anxious. 'Is the stupid female going to die?'
Qiao Xixi shook her head with difficulty, unable to speak.
'It's too disgusting.'
After a long moment, she finally managed to say, "I'm fine. I'm probably just tired."
Qiao Xixi got up and walked out of the cave.
The three cubs exchanged confused glances.
"Big Brother, do you think Mother's gone crazy?"
Qiao Ang frowned. "She won't even eat meat. She must be crazy."
Qiao Lie just snorted coldly. "Useless, stupid female."
When Qiao Xixi returned, she was holding a few dry leaves cupped in her hands, which she offered to the cubs.
"Quick, drink this water."
This was snow she had melted outside with her fire starter. In this freezing weather, she couldn't bear to make her cubs chew on ice to quench their thirst.
Qiao Qiao obediently took a few sips. When she finished, her big, sky-blue eyes were sparkling.
"Why is this water warm? I want more."
Qiao Qiao wanted to drink more but was pushed aside by Qiao Lie. He grabbed Qiao Xixi's hand and greedily drank the water from the leaves.
Seeing this, Qiao Ang got anxious too. He shoved Qiao Lie aside and drank the rest of the water.
"Stupid female, I want more."
All their lives, they had only ever drunk ice-cold water, which always made them feel even colder. This was the first time they had ever drunk warm water, and it made their bodies feel warm.
After Qiao Ang spoke and got no response from Qiao Xixi, he looked up in confusion, only to meet her slightly downcast gaze.