Chapter 182: Chapter 182: My Enemy Is Already Dead

Yu An rushed over immediately, arriving just in time to see one of the men Feng Xuan was interrogating cough up black blood, collapse, and die.

She had seen this before. Back in the exiled land on the Beastman Continent and with the Tiger Clan, this was what happened whenever those men in black said something they shouldn’t.

In fact, she still had a few of them locked away in her space.

The others trembled as they watched their companion’s fate. Some even broke down completely. "Don’t ask anymore! Kill us or torture us, do whatever you want! We really can’t say anything!"

It was death whether they talked or not, and they’d rather die with a bit of dignity.

They had been warned when they took the poison. If they spoke of things they shouldn’t, they would vomit black blood and die as their insides rotted away.

The process of death was swift, with only a moment of pain, but their souls would be obliterated.

"An’an, this is as much as they’re able to say."

The Beastmen believe in the Beast God and are convinced that souls exist, which is why they are so terrified of the poison they were forced to take.

Most of them had been captured by the Invincible Alliance. For those with family, their loved ones were also being held hostage by the Alliance.

Yu An glanced around. Their eyes were hollow, their expressions laced with a thread of fear, as if they were simply awaiting the arrival of death.

’If we die here, our families should be treated well... No, just letting our families go would be enough!’

Yu An clenched her fists and said to Mo Yan in a low voice, "Pass out the steamed buns we have in storage. Let them eat first, we’ll figure out the rest later."

Basketfuls of steamed buns were passed out. The Beastmen from the Invincible Alliance, each holding a bun, looked on, bewildered.

"Eat up," Yu An said, her expression serene. "It’s not poisoned. You can eat without worry."

At first, no one dared to eat. After a moment, one of the Beastmen took a huge bite.

"Eat! Even if we die, let’s not die as hungry ghosts!"

It was a type of food they had never had before, and it tasted surprisingly good. At least they could fill their stomachs before they died.

As they ate, someone began to cry. As if it were contagious, the air soon filled with the sound of suppressed sobs.

Yu An sighed. The joy of their victory was completely swept away.

’She wasn’t enemies with these men. The Invincible Alliance and Ao Yin were the real enemies.’

Yu An lost her appetite. The others, also affected by the Beastmen’s despair, lost any desire to celebrate. They ate a simple meal and split into groups to stand guard.

As night deepened, Yu An told Mo Yan and the others she was going for a walk.

The men exchanged glances, then Ao Wu gave Mo Yan a push. "Go check on An’an. Try to talk some sense into her. This isn’t her fault."

The Beast God Continent, unlike the Beastman Continent, wasn’t ruled by an Imperial Family. On the Beastman Continent, a major crisis like this would naturally be the Imperial Family’s responsibility to handle.

Here, each city managed its own affairs, and each clan was governed by its own Clan Leader.

These Beastmen came from various cities and clans; their respective City Lords and Clan Leaders should have been responsible for them.

Mo Yan found Yu An on a small hill, sitting on a rock and lost in thought.

"An’an," Mo Yan said, walking over. "Here."

Yu An snapped out of her reverie. "What’s this...?"

"They’re little buns the Zaizai made," Mo Yan said, sitting down beside her. "They each made one a few days ago. Da Hu and Xiao Yu’s came out pretty good, but the others..."

He couldn’t help but chuckle. "Ao Wu said the others didn’t look like anything, and Fuzai threatened to break off their friendship for a whole day. It terrified him."

The image made Yu An crack a smile as well.

Of her six Zaizai, Da Hu, the eldest brother, had been sharp-witted as a cub, and had grown to become the most level-headed.

Xiao Yu was lively and energetic, but he was only affectionate with his family; strangers couldn’t get anywhere near him.

Xiao Hu was still his old self. If not for the lure of three meals a day, he could easily sleep an entire day away.

Little Serpent was lazy too, but he didn’t sleep. He preferred to take his beast form, coil around someone’s wrist, and just zone out for the entire day.

Little Wolf’s personality hadn’t quite emerged yet, but he was good-natured, letting anyone hold or pet him.

As for the only female Zaizai, Fuzai... according to Chun Nuan, she’d inherited her grandmother Yu Huang’s temper, which was fiery as can be.

She also took after Ao Wu, constantly coming up with one mischievous idea after another.

Her looks, however, came from Yu An herself. Everyone who saw Fuzai said the mother and daughter were carved from the same mold.

Yu An picked one up. It was shaped like a little tiger and had a sweet red bean paste filling.

Her mood improved considerably. Mo Yan didn’t offer any empty platitudes, but instead occasionally shared amusing anecdotes he’d heard.

"An’an, I’m so happy."

He sighed with emotion. "Sometimes, I feel like this is all a dream. I’m afraid I’ll wake up and be all alone again."

After his clan was annihilated, his heart held nothing but revenge. The one who destroyed his family was in a high and mighty position, so he had resigned himself to death, planning to commit suicide immediately after taking his revenge.

But then he met Yu An. Their first encounter wasn’t exactly pleasant, and things were rocky for a while after that.

But then he gained a Female Master, found his surviving aunt, Mo Yan, and now he even has Zaizai... all because he drank that drugged water that night.

"I’m so glad," Mo Yan chuckled. "I’m so glad I was the one who was chosen."

Yu An added, "And two others."

Mo Yan faltered for a moment, then said irritably, "Don’t ruin the mood."

"I’m just stating a fact," Yu An said, grinning as she hugged his arm. "I have great taste. I picked the very best..."

Meeting Mo Yan’s threatening glare, she quickly corrected herself, "...the best little snake!"

Mo Yan harrumphed. "That’s more like it."

"Oh, by the way," she said, "you mentioned before that your enemy was in the Imperial Palace. Who was it?"

Yu An was curious. They hadn’t heard Mo Yan mention it at all since they arrived in the Imperial City.

Mo Yan stiffened for a second before relaxing. A look of regret crossed his face. "He was one of the Beast Emperor’s Beast Husbands. He’s already passed away."

"He died of a sudden, terrible illness. Maybe it was punishment from the Beast God for all the evil he’d done."

Yu An nodded and looked up at the sky. "Mo Yan, do you think the Beast God really exists?"

’She’d used the Beast God as an excuse so many times. If a real Beast God existed, he wouldn’t come after her for it, would he?’

"The Beast God’s existence is something passed down by word of mouth," Mo Yan chuckled, guessing what was on her mind. "But no one has ever actually seen Him."

"Don’t worry. Even if He does exist, He wouldn’t hold it against us. After all, you’re not doing anything wrong."

"All right," Mo Yan said, ruffling her hair. "Come on, let’s go back."

"It’s no big deal for the rest of us, but it’s not fair to Han Li. Didn’t you promise him he could attend to you tonight?"

Mo Yan teased.

Yu An tugged at her earlobe in embarrassment. "Let’s go, let’s go."

With the members of the Invincible Alliance there, they couldn’t enter her space. Instead, they took out tents and set up camp.

Yu An and Han Li went into one of the tents. Seeing this, Feng Xuan quietly went to find Lu Lu and get some all-natural face masks.

’He’d gotten so tan and thin. He’ll wait until he’s looking his best again before competing for her favor!’

Yu An brought Han Li into her space. After he had attended to her and she had washed up, she spread her arms wide. "Come, let Us see if Li Aifei has made any progress." 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Han Li snorted. "Of course I’ve improved. I’m better than them, at least."

"Oh? Is that so?"

Yu An traced a finger down from the man’s Adam’s apple, continuing its path lower... and lower.

"Then... shall I conduct an inspection?"