Chapter 917: Lanlan’s Troublesome Beastmen

Chapter 917: Chapter 917: Lanlan’s Troublesome Beastmen

Su Qinglan, Rong Ye, and Xuan Long finally settled into the small mud house assigned to them by the three elders.

The house wasn’t far from the City Lord’s residence, but it wasn’t particularly close either. It was located on a quiet street where they wouldn’t be disturbed by too many people.

This arrangement had been Su Qinglan’s idea.

Rong Jinyu had offered to let them stay in the City Lord’s residence, but she had politely refused. After all, she wasn’t familiar with the young City Lord, and she didn’t want to live under the same roof as someone she barely knew.

Even if the house was spacious and comfortable, it wouldn’t be worth sacrificing their privacy.

A small house where her family could stay peacefully was much better.

After looking around the house and making sure everything was in order, Su Qinglan finally sat down. She glanced toward Rong Ye, who was taking out some dried meat to feed Ciao Ciao and Yue Yue.

The little fox cub was playing outside the gate, occasionally poking his head inside to check whether his father had prepared his food.

Su Qinglan suddenly remembered their earlier conversation.

"Rong Ye, what exactly is a wandering beast?"

Rong Ye looked up at her.

He had been busy tearing the dried meat into smaller pieces for Ciao Ciao, but upon hearing her question, he paused before sighing.

"Wandering beasts..." He repeated the words, his expression becoming somewhat serious.

"They’re usually beastmen who have been exiled from their tribes or cities because they’ve committed crimes. Some have violated the rules of their tribes, while others have committed terrible deeds that their tribes could no longer tolerate. In the end, they were expelled and forced to wander outside."

Su Qinglan raised an eyebrow.

"So, in simple terms, they’re criminals who have been exiled?"

"More or less."

She thought about it for a moment before asking another question.

"But how can people tell whether someone is a wandering beastman? They look just like ordinary beastmen, don’t they?"

Rong Ye nodded.

"That’s true. However, before a beastman is exiled, the tribe or city will force them to consume an exile fruit. After consuming it, a special scent will remain on their body. Other beastmen can recognize that scent, so they can tell whether someone has been exiled."

He paused before continuing, "Even their offspring may inherit a trace of that scent, although it will be much fainter than that of someone who was directly exiled."

Su Qinglan clicked her tongue.

"That’s rather sad. Even the children have to suffer because of their parents’ mistakes."

Rong Ye glanced at her helplessly.

"Lanlan, don’t pity them so easily. Wandering beastmen aren’t as innocent as you think."

He placed the prepared dried meat beside the gate, where Ciao Ciao could reach it, before continuing.

"Many wandering beastmen are extremely savage. Even after being exiled, they refuse to change their ways. Instead, they gather together and form groups. They raid tribes, loot their food, kill their beastmen, and even kidnap their females."

His expression turned cold.

"They don’t have a fixed place to live, so they move from one place to another, causing trouble wherever they go. That’s why many cities refuse to let them enter, and even ordinary tribes won’t allow them to stay nearby. Everyone is on guard against them."

Su Qinglan’s eyes widened.

"Really?"

She had never imagined that such things happened in the beast world.

Although she had heard about conflicts between tribes, this was the first time she had learned so much about wandering beastmen.

And they even kidnapped females?

Her expression changed as she suddenly remembered Rong Jinyu.

Earlier, the young City Lord had said that his mother was a wandering beast.

Su Qinglan immediately looked at Rong Ye.

"Then why didn’t you recognize that Rong Jinyu was a wandering beastman? If wandering beastmen have that special scent, shouldn’t you have noticed it?"

Rong Ye pressed his lips together thoughtfully.

"Perhaps his mother wasn’t a directly exiled beastman herself. She might have been the offspring of a wandering beastman, so the scent she carried was already very faint. By the time it was passed to Rong Jinyu, it might have become even weaker."

He paused before adding, "Besides, his nine-tailed fox bloodline is extremely strong. That aura might have concealed the faint scent even further. That’s probably why he was able to enter Fox Beast City without anyone noticing."

Su Qinglan nodded thoughtfully.

So that was how it worked.

However, Rong Ye wasn’t finished explaining.

"Wandering beastmen are similar to feral beastmen in some ways. Neither group lives in a proper tribe or city. The difference is that wandering beastmen usually gather into groups and move around together, while feral beastmen tend to live alone."

He shook his head.

"Of course, both groups are troublesome. You should be careful around them."

The moment those words fell, Rong Ye suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

He froze.

Something was wrong.

Very wrong!

He slowly turned his head toward the entrance.

Xuan Long, who had been outside keeping an eye on the cubs, had somehow entered the courtyard without making a sound.

At this moment, the dark-haired beastman was standing near the gate, staring at Rong Ye with a chilling expression.

His eyes were so cold that Rong Ye almost felt as though someone had poured a bucket of ice water over his head.

Yet, Xuan Long was smiling. But somehow, it was even more terrifying than his cold expression.

"Rong Ye," Xuan Long called pleasantly. "Repeat what you just said."

Rong Ye’s mouth twitched.

Why was this fellow suddenly here?

He hadn’t even heard him enter!

Rong Ye immediately forced a sheepish smile onto his face.

"Xuan Long, I wasn’t talking about you. I was talking about other feral beastmen!"

Xuan Long snickered.

"Oh? Then do I look like a dog to you? You can call yourself a normal beastman, but because I’m a feral beastman, you think I’m bad?"

Rong Ye nearly choked.

"That’s not what I meant!"

"Then what did you mean?"

"I meant that not all feral beastmen are good!" Rong Ye hurriedly defended himself. "You’re good, but that doesn’t mean everyone else is good!"

Xuan Long’s smile grew wider.

Rong Ye suddenly had a very bad feeling.

Sure enough, Xuan Long took one step forward.

"You certainly know a lot about feral beastmen. Have you met many of them? Have you personally investigated their habits?"

Rong Ye fell silent.

Xuan Long crossed his arms. "Then how did you come to the conclusion that they’re all bad?"

Rong Ye clicked his tongue impatiently. "That’s common knowledge! Besides, when it comes to kidnapping females, feral beastmen are even faster than wandering beastmen!"

The moment he said those words, the entire courtyard fell silent.

Su Qinglan slowly turned her head toward him.

Was this fox trying to get himself killed?

Xuan Long’s expression became even more dangerous.

He felt like strangling Rong Ye right then and there.

Has this silly fox ever even met a feral beastman?

How dare he stand there and talk nonsense in front of him! He had barely returned to Fox Beast City, and already he was making enemies with his own mouth.

Xuan Long rolled up his sleeves.

"Rong Ye, it seems you’ve become too comfortable lately. Should I help you remember how to speak properly?"

Rong Ye immediately took a step backward.

"What are you doing? I’m telling the truth!"

"The truth?"

Xuan Long’s smile disappeared. "Then come here and explain it to me properly!"

Rong Ye looked at Su Qinglan, hoping she would save him.

Unfortunately, Su Qinglan merely rubbed her forehead. She had no intention of getting involved in this argument.

After all, Rong Ye had brought this upon himself. If he had simply kept his mouth shut, he wouldn’t have ended up provoking Xuan Long.