"Why isn't Boss Yu here yet? I'm starving."
"You don't think something happened, do you? I heard Boss Yu say she and her Beast Husband just got here. Could they be lost?"
"That's impossible... But Boss Yu only has one Beast Husband. If they ran into a wild beast..."
The people around them were murmuring amongst themselves. Bai Rong shot up from the rock she was sitting on. "Let's go take a look. If something did happen, we can help."
The words had barely left her mouth when an earth-shattering tremor suddenly erupted in the distance, startling the Beastmen.
Bai Rong's eyes widened. "That's the direction of Boss Yu's home! Did something really happen?"
With that, she transformed into her beast form and sprinted in that direction. The other Beastmen, whether out of a desire to watch the commotion or genuine concern for Yu An, all followed suit.
"I wonder if eating an ugly female like you will make me ugly too."
Xiong Li said with disgust, "I have no desire to become as ugly as you. I'll just settle for eating your two little Zaizai."
"In your dreams," Yu An snorted. "You think you can catch me? With just you and these useless Beast Husbands of yours?"
"My Beast Husband is nearby. He's a male with Heavenly Level Spiritual Power. He could crush all of you with a single finger."
As she delivered the threat, she was calculating an escape route. She kept her tone contemptuous, afraid that Xiong Li would see her fear. Only by appearing composed would she make Xiong Li hesitate.
Lu Lu's superpower was exhausted, but hers wasn't. Her remaining power should be enough to help her escape.
"Heavenly Level Spiritual Power?"
Xiong Li froze for a moment, then her expression twisted with greed and jealousy. "You ugly female! How are you worthy of a male with Heavenly Level Spiritual Power? Once you're dead, your Beast Husband will be mine!"
She waved her hand, and Xiong Shuai and the other three immediately pounced. But she failed to notice the twisted expressions that flashed across their faces as she spoke.
The Little Merfolk, hiding in Yu An's arms, was so frightened he squeezed his eyes shut. Yu An, however, gave a slight smile and tossed the small object in her palm into her storage space.
'I got the recording I wanted. As long as I can get away, Xiong Li and her family will pay the price.'
'Besides, I can tell that Xiong Shuai and the others aren't using their full strength.'
'It makes sense. What male would want his Female Master to take on another Beast Husband?'
As the four men lunged at her, Yu An swiftly retreated. In the spot where she had just been standing, thorny brambles grew in a frenzy.
Due to their momentum, Xiong Shuai and the other three couldn't dodge. They could only watch helplessly as they leaped into the thicket of thorns, letting out a series of pained screams as they were impaled.
Yu An seized the chance, clutching her two Zaizai, and fled. As she ran, she screamed for help.
"Help! Help! Xiong Li is torturing cubs! Xiong Li is trying to murder a female!"
Han Li, following behind Yu An, started barking frantically, as if he were being tortured. His yelps echoed through the sky, reaching the ears of Bai Rong's group, as well as Mo Yan and Da Hu.
Da Hu's ears shot up. He said anxiously, "Beast Father, that's Female Mother's voice! Female Mother is in danger!"
Without another word, Mo Yan took off, his long legs carrying him in a desperate sprint toward the sound of her voice.
Yu An was fleeing in the exact direction from which Bai Rong and the others were coming. With Xiong Li's family in hot pursuit, Yu An, carrying her two cubs, was panting heavily as the distance between them slowly closed.
The Little Merfolk's eyes were filled with tears. He stared intently at Xiong Li behind them, frustrated that he was too young to use his Talent Ability repeatedly.
Just as Xiong Li was about to catch them, a flash of black appeared before Yu An's eyes. A furious roar echoed as a gigantic snake tail slammed into Xiong Li's family, sending them flying into a tree.
Then, Yu An found herself in a cool embrace. She looked up and met Mo Yan's worried gaze.
"Are you okay? Are you hurt?"
"I'm fine," Yu An gasped, her voice urgent. "Mo Yan, our second Zaizai is hurt. You kill them. I'll take the Zaizai back to treat his wounds."
Her gaze swept over the group clutching their chests and spitting up blood. Yu An said hatefully, "They're the ones who stole our Zaizai, and they were going to eat our second one! From how skilled they were, they must have done this to other cubs before!"
Mo Yan's expression hardened. "They would do such a thing!"
His gaze grew even colder. "All the more reason they can't be spared."
This time, it was Xiong Li's turn to cry for help. Her luck was surprisingly good. Just as Mo Yan was about to strike, a large crowd of Beastmen came running over.
Xiong Li's eyes lit up, and she immediately feigned terror. "Don't kill me! I'll never compete with you for business again! We'll move right away, far, far away from you!"
After saying this, she pretended to have just noticed the Beastmen and quickly cried out, "Help me! Yu An is having her Beast Husband kill my family...!"
The Beastmen, led by Bai Rong, looked completely bewildered. Bai Rong looked from Yu An to Xiong Li. "What's going on?"
'Just a moment ago, Yu An was screaming that Xiong Li was trying to kill her. How did it get turned around?'
Xiong Li played the victim, turning the truth on its head and painting herself as the wronged party. Her four Beast Husbands backed her up, determined to pin all the blame on Yu An.
"Impossible," Bai Rong sneered before Yu An could even speak. "Boss Yu's business is way better than yours. Why would she be jealous of you?"
A vicious glint flashed in Xiong Li's eyes, but she flinched as she looked up. "It must be because of that incident a few days ago. Just because I got in the way of her buying food, she's held a grudge against me."
"Bai Rong, I know you hate me, but we've known each other for a while. Are you really going to believe two outsiders over me?"
"Besides, you all saw it just now. Yu An's Beast Husband was about to attack us."
Seeing the normally arrogant and domineering Xiong Li playing the victim made Bai Rong's skin crawl. She said decisively, "I don't believe you!"
With that, she moved to stand beside Yu An. "Boss Yu, I believe you."
Yu An smiled at her and whispered, "Thank you, Bai Rong."
Bai Rong didn't believe her, but others did—especially some of the males who were infatuated with Xiong Li.
"I saw that male attack with my own eyes. I believe Xiong Li."
"Yu An's buns might be delicious, but I still think Xiong Li is better. After all, her Beast Husbands work hard to bring back the goods we need from Han Ling City."
"And Yu An does have a motive to attack..."
Someone spoke up for Yu An. "No way. Boss Yu doesn't seem like that kind of person."
"Yeah, that's right! Boss Yu is really nice. She even gives free buns to the cubs. I believe a female who's kind to cubs can't be all that bad."
The Beastmen split into three factions. The neutral party watched the two sides quarrel, their argument escalating to the point of a physical fight, and tried to break it up.
Yu An scanned the crowd, her eyes landing back on Xiong Li. Seeing the triumphant look on her face, Yu An smiled.
"Xiong Li, you don't really think a few words from you can cover up what you've done, do you?"
She raised her voice. "Everyone, it's true that I was going to kill Xiong Li and her family."
Xiong Li was stunned, then overjoyed. "You hear that? She admitted it herself...!"
"But there was a reason," Yu An said, enunciating each word. "It's because Xiong Li stole my cubs and was planning to eat them. According to her, she's eaten many cubs before. Have any of you ever lost a child?"
The moment she said this, the entire crowd fell silent. Then, several bloodthirsty gazes landed on Xiong Li.
Alarm bells went off in Xiong Li's mind. She shouted, "You're lying! What proof do you have?"
"I have my own Zaizai! Why would I hurt someone else's cubs?"