Chapter 401 196: Snake-man Wanderers (2)

Mumu and Tas Tuling hurriedly waved their hands at Li Ziyu's words. "No, no, thank you for the kind offer, Lord City Lord, but it's really not necessary."

The corners of Li Ziyu's mouth curled up into a slight smile. "Don't worry about it. Let's get down to business."

Only then did the two Minotaurs remember the reason for their visit. Mumu glanced at Tas Tuling, gesturing for him to speak. Tas Tuling nodded and said to Li Ziyu, "Lord City Lord, while we were gathering resources, we discovered some wanderers. We didn't dare make a decision on our own, so we came to ask you how to handle them."

Li Ziyu rubbed his temples and stretched his stiff neck. As he did so, he casually fired off three questions: "Where are these wanderers from? How many are there? What Race are they?"

Tas Tuling answered without a moment's hesitation. "Reporting, Lord City Lord, they're of the Snake-man Race. There are several hundred of them, including many old and young. As for where they came from… that's hard to say. I asked, but I'm not sure I can trust their word."

This was easy enough to understand. Wanderers were a common sight in the Wasteland. Anyone without a home was considered a wanderer. Some spent their entire lives as such, while others were forced to roam after their Tribes were destroyed for one reason or another. The causes were many, and for this very reason, all the Races of the Wasteland knew one thing for certain: you should never trust the word of a wanderer.

Wanderers had been through too much; they trusted almost no one. They might kill and rob for a mouthful of food, to say nothing of the reliability of any information they offered.

"Snake-men? What kind of Snake-men?" Li Ziyu sat up a little straighter, looking to the two Minotaurs before him for confirmation.

'If we're talking about Snake-men, then I'm suddenly not tired anymore.'

'The Beastman Races I most want to meet are the Fox Race, the Catman Race, the Snake-man Race, and the Rabbit Race—Races renowned for their beautiful women. After all, who could dislike Rabbit-eared, Fox-eared, and Cat-eared Ladies?'

'I've already met the Catman Race—I even have two Cat Girls by my side. I've met the Fox Race, too; a Fox Maiden, no less, a top-tier Fox Person, though she's only a Ghost. But I haven't seen any of the other Beastman Races yet.'

'Snake-men… Just the thought of it is a little exciting.'

'But I wonder what kind of Snake-men they are. Please don't let them be the Beast-headed People kind; that would be a huge letdown. No matter how great the body, a beast's head on top would kill any interest. I have proper Human Race aesthetics, you know. I can accept Beastmen, but not Beast-headed People.'

"They're just Snake-men," Mumu replied blankly, scratching his head.

Tas Tuling, however, mulled over Li Ziyu's question. Recalling the Cat Girl Sisters, Mengmeng and Meng Ni, he suddenly understood what the Lord City Lord was getting at. He cuffed Mumu, signaling him to keep quiet, before speaking up. "They're Half-Beastmen of the Viper Race. The kind with Human Race blood."

Li Ziyu's eyebrows shot up. 'Ooh, the mixed-blood kind. I get it. The exact kind I was hoping to see.'

'The novels from my past life all said it: the Fox Race is alluring, the Cat Race is spirited, the Rabbit Race is gentle, and the Snake Race is bewitching. If that's the case, I'll have to see for myself just how "bewitching" they are. Maybe I'll even have to play the part of Master Fahai… Hehehe…'

"Half-Beastmen are great! Just great! The Viper Race, you say? Let's go. Let's go meet them." With a smile that any man would understand, Li Ziyu stood up, completely invigorated, and spoke to the two Minotaurs.

Seeing the smile on Li Ziyu's face and recalling Tas Tuling's odd answer, it finally dawned on Mumu. 'So that's what the Lord City Lord meant! I was too dense. It was definitely the right choice to bring Tas Tuling. If I'd come alone, I probably still wouldn't have figured out what he was asking.'

Li Ziyu and the two Minotaurs left the main tower, summoned fifty Elite Heavy Hammer Skeleton Warriors, fifty Skeleton Longbowmen, and two thousand Skeleton Undead, then departed from the Fortress in a vast procession.

There were several hundred of them. Li Ziyu wasn't foolish enough to go meet the Snake-men without an escort. What if they had malicious intent? What would he do then? Rely on the Minotaurs?

It was better to bring his Undead. That way, even if the other party turned hostile, he could respond. And if he couldn't win, he would at least have time to summon more Undead for support.

After a journey of about an hour and a half, Li Ziyu spotted the Snake-men Tas Tuling had described in the distance. There were indeed several hundred of them, clustered together in a dense crowd. Standing guard in front of them were a dozen adult Minotaurs holding Totem Poles, their eyes wary. When the Snake-man Wanderers were first discovered, Mumu had called his companions over to watch them while he and Tas Tuling went to deliver the report.

The two groups were coexisting peacefully. The Snake-men hadn't used their superior numbers to attack the Minotaurs; they were simply gathered together, seemingly without any ill intent.

The distant sight of a large group of Undead approaching instantly caused a panic among the Snake-men. The males quickly formed a protective perimeter, shielding the women, children, and elderly within their circle as if facing a formidable foe.

They had been waiting for the Minotaurs to return, but what they saw instead was an army of Undead!

"Undead!" The lead male Snake-man pointed at the steadily approaching Undead army. He swallowed hard and called out a warning to the Minotaurs.

He didn't know what was going on, but if things took a bad turn, he would have to protect his people and flee. Those were Undead! The Cancerous Tumor Alliance Army had been annihilated by them. Who knew if these Undead would be hostile toward them as well?

A few Minotaurs glanced back and saw that it was, in fact, the Undead. They shrugged at the Snake-men as if it were the most normal thing in the world. "Yep, they're Undead. I'm warnin' ya, don't make any sudden moves. If ya do, we won't go easy on you."