Chapter 160: The Guilty Older Brother

Watching the Xuan Beast carry the pair off into the distance, Xi Zhen screamed in despair from below. She never imagined that after so many years... Chi Heng would have a female by his side.

Perched demurely on the Xuan Beast, Wen Qian kept glancing back, trying to read Chi Heng’s expression, but all she could see was his sharp jawline.

The Xuan Beast seemed to sense Wen Qian’s fidgeting. It shifted its body slightly and let out a low murmur. Wen Qian quickly grabbed hold of the beast’s mane to steady herself.

She stole another glance behind her and saw Chi Heng sitting ramrod straight, like a statue. When he saw her looking, he immediately leaned forward. "What’s wrong?"

"Er..." Wen Qian felt her face flush. She turned away and stared straight ahead again. After a moment, she asked in a low voice, "Are we going home?"

Chi Heng didn’t answer right away. A moment later, he lowered his gaze. As he dipped his head, his warm breath brushed against her earlobe.

His voice was low and deep. "Does Qianqian want to look around some more?"

It was only natural, after all. She had never been to the Beast World, so it was perfectly normal for her to want to.

Wen Qian shook her head. Then, as if mustering her courage, she leaned back... Chi Heng naturally reached out and wrapped an arm around her, letting her settle into his embrace.

Feeling the warmth of his chest, Wen Qian contentedly narrowed her eyes, then lazily gazed up at the azure sky...

The wind hummed in her ears, and the light on the horizon flickered through the shifting shadows of the trees. The Xuan Beast’s wings beat with steady power, each downstroke kicking up a fierce gust.

Thankfully, with Chi Heng sitting behind her, Wen Qian could maintain her balance.

As the Xuan Beast flew through a waterfall, Chi Heng shielded Wen Qian completely with his body. During the rapid descent, she glimpsed ancient, mysterious symbols carved into the valley cliffs on either side, along with several enormous bats...

Just as she thought the red-eyed bats would charge at them, they suddenly recoiled, turning and scrambling deeper into their caves.

Once through the waterfall, Wen Qian saw a flock of strange, avian beasts. They were enormous, with pale yellow bodies, and looked like something out of a fantasy.

She couldn’t help but stare, but in the next second, the Xuan Beast dove straight down...

As the Xuan Beast flew onward, the surrounding trees grew ever more lush. The leaves, rustled by the beast’s wings, fluttered down like a magical rain.

After some time, a magnificent ancient castle came into view. Even though she had seen it before, Wen Qian was still struck with awe.

With one hand steadying her waist, the man’s voice suddenly rang out. "We’ve arrived."

The two of them landed steadily on the ground. Chi Heng gave a person nearby a look, and someone immediately came forward respectfully.

Chi Heng had someone escort Wen Qian back to the castle while he remained outside, quietly, as if waiting for someone.

Before long, a familiar figure came into view.

Xi Zhen’s Xuan Beast was unable to fly this far, so she had come on foot, much more slowly than Chi Heng and Wen Qian.

When the woman arrived, she saw the imposing man standing there quietly, and a look of surprise immediately flashed in her eyes.

She ran to him with a wronged expression, but her heart sank the moment she met his cold eyes. It gave her a premonition that his waiting for her was not a good thing.

With Wen Qian gone, any trace of warmth vanished from the man’s face. Even the Wolf King’s son, Chi Li, felt an urge to turn and flee the moment he saw him.

"Wait," Chi Heng said, his cold voice directed at him.

Chi Li’s body trembled. A memory of being dragged out to practice martial arts by this man flashed through his mind, and he subconsciously swallowed hard.

"F-Fifth Brother... what is it?" He shot a quick glance at Xi Zhen, then took a large step toward Chi Heng, as if to clearly draw a line between himself and her.

Chi Heng said nothing. His eyes swept coolly over the token in the woman’s hand before his gaze settled firmly on Chi Li again. Chi Li froze for a second, then pursed his lips and nodded vigorously, adopting an air that said, ’Leave it to me, you can rest assured.’

He zipped in front of Xi Zhen, snatched the token from her hand, and then fawningly presented it to Chi Heng with both hands.

When it came to Chi Heng, he had a guilty conscience...

Since he was a boy, Chi Heng had been a skilled artist, dreaming of becoming the Wolf Clan’s official painter.

But as fate would have it, his four older brothers all had their own "aspirations" and no desire to succeed the Wolf King. Each was more cunning than the last... and in secret, the four of them conspired and set their sights on their youngest brother.

They hired the best martial master in the Beast World for Chi Heng. While other children were playing in the mud, Chi Heng was learning to wield swords and spears.

While others sang and painted, Chi Heng studied military maps.

While others napped, Chi Heng was in the training grounds, pondering how to make the Wolf Clan stronger...

His four older brothers always told him they had been far more accomplished than him at his age. So, not wanting to hold everyone back and determined to ensure the Wolf Clan’s prosperity, Chi Heng pushed himself even harder...

But gradually, he realized something was wrong.

While he was training, his older brothers were either drinking or playing cards. One of them even spent his days flying around on a Xuan Beast, claiming he was going to meet every beautiful woman from every clan in the Beast World.

By the time Chi Heng realized what was happening, it was too late. His excellence was already etched in the minds of the entire Wolf Clan... The Old Wolf King, believing him to be exceptionally gifted, placed immense hopes on him.

Little did they know that this so-called "gift" was built entirely on sweat and toil.

As if recalling something, Chi Heng raised an eyebrow.

"No, you can’t do this..." Xi Zhen subconsciously reached out to grab it back, but Chi Li deftly blocked her. He shot a look at the guards, and the Wolf Beastmen nearby immediately rushed forward to restrain Xi Zhen.

The Token Xi Zhen held had been given to her by their fourth brother, allowing her to come and go from the camp freely.

Their fourth brother, thinking Xi Zhen was beautiful and utterly infatuated with Chi Heng, had tried to secretly set them up. It was only after he’d given her the Token that he realized his mistake.

It wasn’t that Chi Heng was clueless about romance; he simply had no interest in Xi Zhen whatsoever. Under these circumstances, Xi Zhen’s relentless pursuit... was just becoming a nuisance.

"Your father has served the Wolf Clan well, so I won’t do anything to him. But you... I don’t want to see you again."

Though his words were for Xi Zhen, his eyes were fixed intently on Chi Li.

Chi Li’s body trembled. He then nodded frantically. "Yes, yes, yes... You heard him! Get her out of here now!"

After Chi Heng left, Chi Li wiped the sweat from his brow and let out a long sigh. He was clearly terrified of his own younger brother.

Just then, his third brother, Chi Shang, appeared out of nowhere, clutching his chest with a look of lingering fear.

"Damn, where were you hiding?" Chi Li jumped, startled by his appearance. "Do you have any idea how scared I was? I almost died!"

"Better you than me." Chi Shang shot him a fierce glare, then carefully straightened his shirt.