"Zhi Li?" a Beastman couldn’t help but call out.

Zhi Li followed the voice and looked over, smiling and nodding. "Ah, Fang Ming, you’ve grown a beard? Is this your grandson? Wow, he looks exactly like your own cub did back in the day..."

This... this... Stunned, everyone crowded around him, and someone even turned and ran to get more people.

Back in the day, Zhi Li had been known throughout the tribe as a powerful and warm-hearted individual. If his parents hadn’t arranged his match with Ping Mei when he was young, he might have left the Luoni Tribe long ago to follow a Female Saint elsewhere. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Like Zhi Le, he was righteous and well-liked. Everyone curiously pulled at him, pinching and prodding, feeling his warmth and the softness of his body.

"Is it really Zhi Li? That voice, his looks, and the scent he gives off—it’s all Zhi Li!"

"You’re not dead? You left in the middle of the night back then and never returned. We all thought you were dead, eaten by Wild Beasts... But it’s been ten or twenty years, how have you not changed at all?"

"Yeah, if we didn’t recognize you, we’d think you were Zhi Le’s brother..." At this, the crowd fell silent for a moment.

Zhi Li had returned, but without his protection, only one of the three Snow Leopard cubs, the half-crippled Zhi Le, remained. However, Zhi Le’s luck had been good. No one knew what kind of opportunity he’d encountered, but not only had his cultivation recovered to its previous Level 6, he had even advanced to Level 8 within a single year.

Zhi Li exchanged pleasantries all the way. To him, these were the neighbors and brothers he had just seen a couple of days ago. They were overly enthusiastic, their eyes welling with tears. They hugged him and even hoisted him into the air together. Their excitement was so intense that it made Zhi Li a little awkward, and he had to force himself to play along.

But for these Beastmen, Zhi Li had returned from the dead. After so many years and all that everyone had been through, they cherished their old friendship even more. Each of them was more festive and happier than if they were welcoming back a hunting party.

Just as they were nearing his home, Ping Mei was standing at the crossroads, tears in her eyes, waiting. The crowd instantly fell silent, their gazes shifting from one to the other.

One of the Beastmen on good terms with Zhi Li stepped forward and whispered in his ear, his expression indignant. "Zhi Li, you’ve already died once. Don’t be blind to right and wrong anymore. At the very least, you can’t let Ping Mei control you again.

Otherwise, the suffering you endured and the deaths of your two cubs will all be for nothing... and you’ll break Zhi Le’s heart..."

"That’s right. Zhi Le was able to grow up and find a young female and have cubs of his own because we all secretly worked together to protect him. Don’t let all our hard work go to waste..."

"Zhi Li, if you have any backbone as a male, you have to break your bond with her, even if it’s difficult. Don’t just swallow this injustice... Worst case, we can all start over. Your Zhi Le has made something of himself; don’t you dare drag him down..."

"Yeah, Zhi Li, I heard Golden Lion City is going to develop and improve. We won’t just be hunting all the time. You can work hard and still provide for yourself... There are plenty of widowed females here. Partnering up with one of them would be better than staying with that vicious female Ping Mei..."

"Yi Wan was even willing to give up being the High Priest to break his bond with her..."

Seeing everyone chattering and speaking ill of her, Ping Mei couldn’t be bothered to fake her tears any longer. She rushed forward and said urgently, "Zhi Li, I knew you weren’t dead! I’ve been waiting for you..."

As she spoke, she tried to throw herself at Zhi Li. In the past, she hadn’t appreciated how good Zhi Li was to her. After so many years, she truly did miss him, especially now that the young and handsome Zhi Li before her made her whole body go weak.

Zhi Li sidestepped, letting Ping Mei fall flat on her face. Everyone burst out laughing. It was so satisfying!

Someone started the commotion, clapping and cheering. Si Shuo was perched on Ji Liang’s head, watching the spectacle. Out in the suburbs or in open areas, she would sit on Yin Jiang to get a panoramic view of the action. But inside the city, she preferred looking down from atop Ji Liang’s head for the excellent line of sight. She glanced over; who else but her own rhythm-setting fox could be starting this?

"Zhi Li," Ping Mei said, her body trembling with anger. Among all her Beast Husbands, only Zhi Li had been completely obedient to her. All she had to do was throw a crying fit, and he was guaranteed to give in.

But now, he had dodged her, making her fall and lose face in front of everyone. Hearing their laughter, she felt her sanity start to crumble.

"What is wrong with you? Don’t you recognize me?"

Zhi Li crossed his arms and chuckled. "I really don’t recognize you. Who are you, ma’am?"

That single word, "ma’am," left everyone stunned. Suddenly, Xiao Cheng burst out laughing, the sound like a string of firecrackers Si Shuo knew so well, popping off one after another.

They never knew Zhi Li had such a mean streak. He and Ping Mei were about the same age; in fact, Zhi Li was even a year or two older.

But twenty years had passed. Zhi Li still looked exactly as he had when he left, while Ping Mei was now old enough to be a grandmother. Although she took good care of herself on a daily basis and still had her charm, looking like she was in her thirties, the forty-year-old Ping Mei was firmly in the auntie and grandma generation. He wasn’t wrong.

Ping Mei’s face turned green with rage. "I’m Ping Mei, your female!"

Zhi Li tilted his head and asked with a smile, "Tsk. Ma’am, you need proof to back that up. You say you’re my female, so do you have my Beast Mark?"

Ping Mei froze. She blinked, her face turning pale. "No, that’s not right. How can you be Zhi Li? Zhi Li is dead. The moment you died, your Beast Mark vanished from my body."

Zhi Li smiled and nodded. "That’s right. I’m a man who’s died once. The Beast God felt my death was too unjust. And since my brother Yi Wan became the High Priest, the Beast God wanted him to do his job well, so He let him make a wish.

Xia Ming and I were both sent back by the Beast God. Ping Mei, your good days are over. I’m here to avenge my two cubs!"

Ping Mei stared blankly at Zhi Li, her mind struggling to process everything. The shock was overwhelming. How could a person come back from the dead, especially one who had been dead for twenty years?

An icy chill shot up from the soles of her feet, and Ping Mei couldn’t help but shudder.

Zhi Li paid her no more mind and called for the cubs to head home.

By the time Yi Wan and Xia Ming arrived, Zhi Le was just introducing his family members to Zhi Li one by one.

Zhi Li looked with envy at the Beast Patterns on the necks of the younger generation of males, chattering nonstop to Zhi Le and the cubs, "If your father—your grandpa—hadn’t lost twenty years of his life, I’d definitely be a Level 10 Beastman like Yi Wan by now, maybe even Level Eleven or Twelve!"

Everyone laughed and nodded, agreeing enthusiastically.

Yi Wan walked in with an amused smile and clapped him on the shoulder. ’This brother of mine is as confident as ever,’ he thought. ’It’s good to see. It’s as if all those years were just yesterday.’

His best friend and beloved female were both here, and he now had the power to protect them. This kind of life was something he hadn’t dared to even imagine for the past twenty years. ’This must be what it feels like for the bitter to finally turn sweet,’ he mused.

"Yi Wan, you’re done with your work?" Zhi Li’s smile froze on his face. ’Oops,’ he thought, ’I forgot I’m the elder here. I need to act like one...’