"Hnng… move," Ziqian pleaded impatiently, his voice tight with need.
Xue first slowly and cautiously thrust his index finger in and out, testing how far Ziqian would let him go, but the soft, warm hole was like a hungry mouth sucking his finger to go in deeper.
Stimulated by this, his movements then become rougher and faster. "Like this?" Xue asked, his voice low, drawing a sharp breath.
"Yes—" Ziqian gasped, body trembling.
Xue, hearing the sub-beast's answer, inserted another finger as he started speeding up—rubbing and thrusting deep inside the tight hole.
"Hnng…"
"Ugh! Mnn..."
Muffled moans and groans echoed in the dark interior of the tent, combined with the sound of water squelching as the lustful liquid traveled along Xue's fingers.
This was the first time Xue had ever been intimate with someone, and even as desire blurred his reason, his instincts urged him to slow down and take his time—he needed to prepare the sub-beast carefully if he didn't want to hurt him.
But for Ziqian, it felt like a sweet torture.
And when Xue got deeper and unintentionally pressed his prostate, the already wet and tight hole squirmed, producing more juices—dampening the grass bed.
"Ahh!" A wave of overwhelming pleasure swept across Ziqian's body, making his scalp feel numb.
Xue's breathing grew heavy as he asked in a low, earnest voice, "Am I making you feel good?" with his two fingers relentlessly pounding and repeatedly pressing against that sweet spot.
"F-feels good," Ziqian breathlessly answered. It felt so good that it almost drove him to climax.
Tears streamed down Ziqian's eyes as he spoke. The corners of his eyes were red. His red lips were slightly open, revealing a hint of white teeth and the pink tip of his tongue as he panted softly.
Xue could clearly see Ziqian, and the sight of him—flushed and drowned in the pleasure he was giving—only aroused the beastly desire inside of him.
Xue's gaze darkened as he captured Ziqian's lips once more. His movements became more agile, each one sending waves of pleasure to Ziqian—relentless and overwhelming.
Ziqian didn't neglect Xue either. He matched Xue's movements, holding their hard members together and stroking in the same rhythm, making sure the man felt just as overwhelmed as he did.
"Aaah,"
Ziqian's penis was red and oozing precum, while his tight and wet hole was eagerly sucking the fingers thrusting inside. The pleasure surged too fiercely, stealing Ziqian's breath and leaving him on the verge of crying.
Suppressed sounds filled the tent for a long while, uneven breaths and broken gasps echoing in the darkness until Ziqian's vision blurred and his body shuddered as the world dissolved into nothing but sensation.
"Xue—Cumming... Ahh"
"Mmm,"
Their moans overlapped as they came at the same time, the thick warm semen splattering on Xue's chest and wetting Ziqian's hands.
Xue pulled his fingers with a soft pop, and Ziqian's tight hole spasmed, spraying lewd warmth uncontrollably.
Then the man immediately hugged Ziqian close, arms locking around him with unmistakable possessiveness as if afraid to let go. He buried his face against the sub-beast's neck, breathing in deeply the familiar sweetness of his pheromones as the storm slowly subsided.
Xue was not looking for comfort but assurance.
For a long while, neither of them spoke.
Ziqian lay limp, allowing the man to press small kisses along his neck while his breathing gradually steadied. It hadn't been the best he ever had, but it felt perfect all the same, deeply satisfying despite it being Xue's first time.
He didn't know whether it was the pheromones, his body's new functions, or simply because it had been long since he last experienced this kind of desire. Whatever the reason, a profound sense of happiness and contentment filled him.
After a while, Xue whispered something inaudible. "Marry me, Ziqian."
Ziqian, still immersed in the aftermath of his climax, doesn't hear it at first. "Huh?"
"Marry me, Ziqian," Xue repeated much louder.
Ziqian wanted Xue, but he wanted Huo as well. As a person who came from Earth and was taught that having one partner was a social norm, this situation left a bitter taste in his mouth.
How fickle and selfish I was.
He had been struggling all this time, caught between them and unable to choose. But just as the guardians had said, a polyamorous relationship was normal here. In the end, it all depended on whether everyone involved was willing to accept it.
And now that Xue had finally opened the topic, there was no room left to hide. No matter how ugly it sounded, it was time for Ziqian to admit his feelings and face the consequences of wanting them both.
But before Ziqian could speak, an angry roar thundered from the entrance of the tent.
"XUE!"
Both Xue and Ziqian turned toward the entrance, where a lone silhouette of a man could be seen standing.
"Huo?"
~
After Ziqian left, Huo didn't follow. He waited instead.
He didn't go to Ziqian's tent either. Instead, he checked the places where Xue might usually stay. He even searched around for a newly built tent, clinging to the faint hope that he was simply overthinking everything.
But after nearly circling the entire tribe without catching even a glimpse of Xue's shadow, Huo's expression darkened. The doubt he had been holding onto began to crumble.
At last, he turned toward the one place he had been deliberately avoiding all this time. Each step felt heavy as he forced himself forward.
The moment he drew closer, a familiar scent hit him, making his blood boil—it was Xue's pheromone.
And with every step, it grew stronger, heavier, and more oppressive, carrying an unmistakable sense of possessiveness—giving a warning to any beast who might pass by. It was tightly entwined with another scent he knew all too well, a sweet and comforting one he could never forget.
And beneath it all, he could faintly hear sounds from inside—low, broken, intimate.
Huo's expression darkened.
Hou knew exactly what the two of them were doing. He couldn't deceive himself anymore.
His eyes turned completely red as fury surged through him, pushing him to the very edge of losing control. He was on the brink of going berserk, his instincts screaming for blood. And the only thread still holding his sanity was Ziqian.
Whatever Ziqian said—no matter what it was—Huo knew he would believe it. He would accept it.
He only needed to see Ziqian.
He just needed to talk to him.
Not until he heard Xue ask Ziqian for marriage.
Huo felt his vision go black. The world narrowed to a single, consuming thought: to kill Xue—to kill the one who had taken everything from him and now dared to take the sub-beast he loved as well.
A blood-red symbol began to glow on his forehead.
~
Xue immediately stood, covering Ziqian's exposed body before positioning himself in front of the sub-beast, shielding him from the oppressive pheromones emitting from Huo.
"Let's talk outside, Huo," Xue said coldly, his body already set in a defensive stance.
Ziqian couldn't see the face of the person standing at the entrance of the tent, but the killing intent radiating from that person was so sharp it seemed to chill the air and even though it wasn't directed at him, he could still feel the heavy pressure.
Xue had said it was Huo, so it had to be him, but Huo was supposed to still be recuperating in his tent.
Ziqian hurriedly put on his clothes and stood, intending to walk toward Huo. But before he could take a step, Xue caught him and pulled him back, firmly hiding him behind him.
At the same time, the four guardians suddenly appeared in front of Ziqian.
Then Nia, the always silent fluffball, shouted—his voice was filled with worry. "Ah-Zi, stop Huo! He's doing it again!"
"What do you mean?" Ziqian asked anxiously, a sudden chill running through him.
Xue was shielding him, Nia was calling out in alarm, and Huo's presence felt dangerously wrong.
"Huo is going berserk," Phi simply said.
Berserk was a state brought on by extreme emotional or instinctual stimulation. When a beast entered it, reason collapsed entirely, leaving only violent impulse behind. In that condition, they would attack without distinction or restraint—friend and foe alike.
"It's similar to berserk, but not," Nia explained quickly. "Look at the mark on his forehead. He's burning his own life force to push his body beyond its limits."
"He did this before. If I hadn't intervened, he would have died." Nia's voice trembled.
"If you don't stop Huo now, he will die, or Xue will," Nia added urgently. "Last time, Huo killed the monster with a single strike, piercing through its eye and straight into its brain, killing the monster from within. All I could do that time was to stabilize his heart and divert most of the backlash meant for his soul by taking it onto myself while he consumed his life force."
This was the longest Nia had spoken, but he couldn't help himself. If Huo died this time, all the pain and suffering he had endured over the past few days would be in vain.