Chapter 33: Chapter 33: The Mouth Is the Toughest Part of the Body

Mo Yan sneered. "Hah, as if you’re the only one."

He took off his shirt too, leaving Yu An caught between two men. She was practically drooling but didn’t dare lay a hand on either of them, afraid they’d start a fight if she didn’t treat them exactly the same.

’If I can’t make them both happy, then they can both be unhappy.’

She threw up her hands in exasperation. "Go away, go away! I’m not interested in either of you..."

"Then what about me?" Feng Xuan’s voice suddenly rang out from the cave entrance. "Yu An, you actually have indecent thoughts about me!"

His tone was filled with horror and mortification, but also a barely perceptible trace of... smug delight and pride?

Yu An was speechless. "I’m not interested in you either, so stop letting your imagination run wild... Uh, did you just escape a disaster, or did you get into a fight?"

He was covered in dirt, his body splattered with blood, looking even more wretched than a refugee.

"I wasn’t in a fight," Feng Xuan said nonchalantly. "I just killed a few wild beasts."

"Then where are the beasts?"

"I tossed them."

Yu An was shocked. "Tossed them? Then why did you kill them?"

’What a waste!’

’That was a lot of meat!’

Feng Xuan said dismissively, "It’s not like they’re worth much. By the way, I brought something back for you."

Yu An looked at his empty hands. "What?"

"They’re outside the cave. A bit dirty, so I didn’t bring them in."

Curious, Yu An went outside with him to take a look—

"Oh my god!"

What was she seeing?!

A thousand year old ginseng, a Heavenly Snow Lotus, and an enormous Lingzhi several times larger than her face... Yu An felt a little dizzy.

—Overwhelmed by the medicinal fragrance.

"You went out just to get these?"

"Yeah," Feng Xuan said, his expression a little unnatural. "Don’t get the wrong idea. This is just to thank you for giving me my Zaizai. It doesn’t mean anything else."

Yu An gave a couple of perfunctory "uh-huhs," her eyes and heart completely captivated by the rare medicinal ingredients.

Seeing that Yu An wasn’t developing any feelings for him, Feng Xuan felt a wave of relief, but at the same time, he was also a little displeased.

’What? How could an outstanding male like him be less attractive to her than a few stupid herbs and flowers?’

Han Li glanced over and said in surprise, "These herbs are all guarded by wild beasts. It’s incredibly difficult to pick even one. How did you manage to get them?"

Feng Xuan scoffed. "Was it supposed to be hard? I barely had to lift a finger and those beasts fled in terror."

His arrogance and dominance were on full display.

Han Li’s lip twitched, and he went back to minding his own business.

Feng Xuan was still busy playing the part of a Long Aotian when Da Hu came pattering over, stuck out a chubby little finger, and poked him gently.

"HISS—"

The color instantly drained from Feng Xuan’s face. Yep, from the pain.

"PFFT," Yu An couldn’t help but laugh out loud. "You talk a big game, but you’re actually seriously injured, aren’t you?"

Feng Xuan’s face darkened, but he was helpless against his own Zaizai, so he could only say stubbornly, "It’s just a minor injury. Nothing I can’t handle..."

"Uncle Feng, you’re bleeding!"

Da Hu cried out, puncturing Feng Xuan’s lie on the spot.

Feng Xuan wanted to cry.

His wounds hurt, but his heart hurt more. Da Hu still refused to call him Beast Father.

Yu An stored the medicinal ingredients in her space and patted Da Hu’s little head. "What’s this ’Uncle Feng’? You should call him Beast Father. Da Hu, go get your Beast Father a cup of water."

Da Hu obediently called out, "Beast Father," and pattered away again.

Hearing that milky, childish-sounding "Beast Father," Feng Xuan’s gaze softened, but his words remained as stubborn as ever. "Yu An, I’ll say it again: I am only Da Hu’s Beast Father. I will not acknowledge you as my Female Master."

Yu An threw up her hands. "Who’s asking you to? Now, hurry up and come inside for treatment. I’d rather our Zaizai didn’t lose their birth father."

Feng Xuan muttered under his breath, "Don’t jinx me. I’m hard to kill."

"I don’t think you’re hard to kill, you’re just hard-headed. Of your entire body, your mouth is definitely the hardest part!"

Yu An didn’t want to waste any more breath on him, half-supporting and half-forcing him into the cave.

Unlike the fearsome birthmark on her face, the rest of Yu An’s skin was fair and delicate. Feng Xuan shifted uncomfortably and tried to pull his arm away... but failed.

As he was pushed onto the bed to be treated, Feng Xuan realized that while the little female before him looked thin and frail, she was surprisingly strong.

Even though he was injured, he was still a male with Heavenly Level Spiritual Power. Yet, with Yu An’s hands on him, he found himself completely unable to move.

Just as he was thinking this, Feng Xuan suddenly felt a chill.

He looked down and saw that his clothes had been completely cut away.

He sputtered in shame and anger, "Yu An, who told you to take off my clothes!"

’This shameless female! Doesn’t she know there’s a difference between males and females?!’

"Don’t move," Yu An said sternly. "Have you forgotten how badly you’re injured?"

When Feng Xuan ignored her and even struggled to sit up, she slapped him on the head without hesitation.

"Move again and I’ll cave your head in."

Feng Xuan’s body went rigid. He said resentfully, "Yu An, you dare hit me!"

Yu An drawled, "I’ve only heard that you can’t touch a tiger’s butt. I didn’t know you couldn’t hit its head, too."

"You... You perverted female! You want to touch my butt?!"

Feng Xuan’s face flushed red, as if he were about to be defiled by a rogue female.

Yu An: "..."

’I told you not to let your imagination run wild!’

Too lazy to argue with an idiot, she grabbed a blanket to cover him up a little and began her treatment.

Once that area was covered, Feng Xuan breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, he became fascinated by her superpower. He had only heard that Yu An’s superpower could heal; this was his first time experiencing it.

On the other side of the cave, Mo Yan and Han Li wore identical, sulking-husband expressions. If looks could kill, the two of them would have murdered Feng Xuan a thousand times over.

Han Li was extremely vexed. ’A miscalculation! If I’d known An’an liked these things, I would have gathered them for her long ago.’

Mo Yan, meanwhile, was wondering if Feng Xuan would go back on his word and decide to join their family after all.

’He’s leveraging his children to gain favor. With Da Hu and the still-unhatched San Dan, that damn tiger will definitely take up most of the Female Master’s time.’

He snuck a glance at Yu An’s flat abdomen. He had a feeling that soon, he too would be able to gain favor through a child of his own.

Due to his serious injuries, Feng Xuan was ordered to stay home and recuperate.

He looked resentful. "Why don’t you just heal me completely?"

Yu An retorted, "My superpower has its limits. Be grateful I healed you this much. Who told you to get so badly hurt in the first place?"

The last time, when they fell into that cavern, she had healed Mo Yan completely because she was afraid of unknown dangers and his injuries were relatively light.

She wasn’t foolish enough to drain all her superpower; it was always wise to keep something in reserve.

Feng Xuan tried to bargain with her. "Then leave one of the Zaizai with me. I don’t care which one."

Now that Da Hu had started calling him Beast Father, Xiao Yu had followed suit. Feng Xuan suddenly felt that compared to Da Hu, who seemed determined to anger his Beast Father to death, the little Merfolk Zaizai was much cuter.

Da Hu was the first to refuse. "No way! I want to stay with Female Mother."

Feng Xuan wasn’t surprised. He knew this would happen.

Xiao Yu hesitated for a moment before phrasing it more delicately, "The aunties and big sisters in the Qingyan Tribe want pearls, and they’re ten copper coins each. I need to earn money for Female Mother to spend."

It was a tactful but clear refusal.

Finally, Feng Xuan looked at San Dan. Without a sound, San Dan rolled directly over to Han Li’s feet.

Feng Xuan: "..."

He could only watch them leave with tears in his eyes, left to recuperate all by himself.

It was another day of booming business. As usual, Yu An handed a fresh batch of fried chicken to the person on the other side of the counter.

"Thank you, Boss Yu! This is the first time I’ve managed to buy some!"

The female’s voice was lovely, like a chirping oriole, but when Yu An looked up, a rather large figure filled her vision.

Meeting her gaze, Zhu Qingqing gave a shy smile and walked away, clutching the fried chicken.

She was heavyset, but her movements weren’t slow. Yu An only caught a glimpse of black, furry ears flashing atop her head.

Zhu Qingqing didn’t stop running until she was clear of the crowd, where she finally paused, panting heavily. The aroma of the fried chicken was driving her crazy, but she had always held back, afraid to appear in public.

Until today, when she finally couldn’t resist any longer.

The fragrant, crispy fried chicken burst with juices in her mouth, and Zhu Qingqing squinted her eyes in bliss.

But before she could even taste the drumstick, a few slender Beastmen walked over, their faces masks of disgust. "Zhu Qingqing, you’re already that fat and you’re still eating? If I were you, I’d wish I could just carve all that blubber off."

"Not only is she fat, she’s a useless female with no Fertility. No wonder no male in the tribe wants to be her Beast Husband. She’s a disgrace to the tribe."

"It’s fine, though. Even wild beasts would see all her blubber, think she’s disgusting, and refuse to eat her..."

The sharp, piercing taunts came one after another. Zhu Qingqing lowered her head, biting her lip so hard to stop the tears from falling.

’They’re right,’ she thought. ’I’m just fat and useless. A disgrace to the Qingyan Tribe.’