Chapter 55: Chapter 55: Touching a Dragon’s Horn Is a Mating Proposal

The horns on his head hadn’t disappeared, just shrunk proportionally.

Yu An saw a faint blush creep up his cheeks and seemed to understand something.

She deliberately moved closer to Ao Wu, gently grasping his jade-like dragon horns. "What if... I insist on touching them?"

Ao Wu’s breathing grew more rapid. He had taken medicine, but he felt even hotter now than when he had the fever.

Dragon Scales appeared at the corners of his eyes, spreading all the way to his horns. If Yu An knew anything about Dragon Beastmen, she would recognize this as a sign of a male’s arousal.

Though she didn’t know the specifics, seeing the look on Ao Wu’s face, she got the gist.

The gentle caress on his horns suddenly stopped. Ao Wu frowned in dissatisfaction. "An’an, why did you stop...?"

Yu An got off him. "Playtime’s over. Let’s go home."

’If this keeps up,’ she thought, ’I might not make it home at all.’

Ao Wu looked reluctant, but a sideways glance at Yu An’s still-flat stomach made him resign himself to getting up.

’Wicked female,’ he thought. ’All tease and no follow-through.’

’Oh well. He was also afraid he might lose control and hurt the Zaizai.’

No matter how fiercely Beast Husbands fought for favor, they would never harm each other’s young. They would cherish any cub as their own, regardless of who the father was.

"Touching a Dragon Beastman’s horns is a sign of courtship. I’ll let it slide this time, but if there’s a next time..."

Ao Wu gave her neck a light bite. "If there’s a next time, I won’t let you off so easily!"

A faint stinging sensation. Yu An touched the spot, but there were no teeth marks.

She took out a small mirror to look. A pattern in the shape of a Dragon Scale had appeared where Ao Wu had bitten her.

"What is this?"

"It’s similar to a contract. If you get injured, the damage will transfer to me."

Ao Wu explained, "The contracts established in the Endless Sea can’t transfer injuries, so we’ll use this as a substitute for now."

Yu An was taken aback for a moment. "Ao Wu, you really don’t have to do this."

’Ao Wu isn’t even one of my official Beast Husbands yet. What if there’s an accident? What if I change my mind? Wouldn’t he be taking on this risk for nothing?’

She felt at ease letting Mo Yan and the other two take on her injuries because the Zaizai created an unbreakable bond between them.

But with Ao Wu... Hmm, they had known each other for less than five days. It wasn’t that they were strangers, but they certainly hadn’t reached the point of entrusting their lives to one another.

"I want to," Ao Wu snorted. "Besides, this puts me on equal footing with those three. From now on, you can’t deny me anything they get."

"As for your worries... An’an, I’ve chosen you, and that won’t change."

Besides, his very existence in this world was because of Yu An.

His only reason for living was to protect her.

"If you want to thank me, how about you let me try some of your cooking? I haven’t had any yet."

Yu An was speechless. "That time at the manor, you ate more of the food I brought out than anyone else!"

Ao Wu pretended not to hear and pulled her in the direction of home.

Back in the cave, two factions had temporarily formed. One consisted of Feng Xuan and Lan Yin. Feng Xuan told himself he was only staying for the Zaizai and that he should just treat Yu An like a casual acquaintance.

Lan Yin, in addition to feeling guilty toward Yu An, thought more or less the same as Feng Xuan.

The other faction consisted of Mo Yan alone. He peered out from the cave entrance for the ninth time, but there was still no sign of Yu An.

’I knew it,’ he thought. ’This Ao Wu is definitely my strongest rival!’

’Seducing the Female Master into not coming home... what a move!’

But he was only half right. In truth, it wasn’t Ao Wu who had lured Yu An away from home, but the mushrooms covering the mountainside.

With a single glance, Yu An spotted several common types of fungi.

All thoughts of going home were thrown to the wind. She and Ao Wu each grabbed a basket and began their mushroom-picking journey.

Sautéed mushrooms, grilled mushrooms, chicken and mushroom stew... A series of recipes floated through Yu An’s mind.

Beastmen found it difficult to distinguish poisonous plants, so many of them, including mushrooms, were not part of their diet.

But Yu An knew which were safe. She decided to cook a mushroom feast, considering it an advance payment for the work they’d be doing in the coming days.

Since they were moving to Han Ling City, they needed to prepare plenty of food. The city had places that sold meat, but vegetables were rare.

The Red Fox and other wild animals had always lived near Yu An’s cave. When Yu An cooked, she would make extra to share with them. But there were too many animals with huge appetites, and the Red Fox, being one of the weaker ones, hadn’t tasted Yu An’s delicious cooking in a long time.

It was listlessly chewing on a chicken bone when Yu An’s figure came into view.

The Red Fox’s eyes lit up. It was about to dash over to Yu An for some affection, but after two steps, it suddenly stopped. It then turned around, snatched a plump wild pheasant, and brought it along.

Hearing a sound, Yu An looked up to see the Red Fox place the wild pheasant in front of her, tilting its head as it looked at her.

"It’s you? Long time no see, little fox."

The Red Fox let out a couple of soft whimpers, then flopped down in front of Yu An, exposing its soft belly. Its four paws were in the air, and it even beckoned her with a front paw, generously inviting her to pet and stroke its fur.

Yu An understood its meaning. She crouched down and rubbed her hands together. "Well then, don’t mind if I do!"

’Incredibly soft! The texture is Level 1!’

She casually fed a few rice balls to the Red Fox. The fox squinted its eyes, sighing internally. ’Now this is the life!’

"An’an, what’s with this fox? Are we having mushroom and fox stew tonight?"

Ao Wu’s sinister voice came from behind them. The Red Fox sensed imminent danger and its fur instantly stood on end.

While comforting the Red Fox, Yu An shot a glare at the bad guy who was scaring the fluffy creature. "How about mushroom and dragon stew instead?"

"That works," Ao Wu said with a grin. "But only An’an gets to eat it."

He casually handed Yu An a bouquet of flowers he had just picked, then moved her hand from the Red Fox to his own chest. "Pet me. I’m much better to touch than this fox."

To this, Yu An could only offer a dry laugh.

Taking the Red Fox and the wild pheasant it had brought, the two of them hurried home before dark.

Mo Yan had practically turned to stone waiting for her. When Yu An finally arrived, he saw her holding hands with Ao Wu, a bouquet of fresh flowers in her other hand. It didn’t take a genius to figure out who gave them to her.

"Well, well, finally decided to grace us with your presence?"

The snake was radiating jealousy. Yu An let go of Ao Wu’s hand, took a couple of quick steps, and threw herself into Mo Yan’s arms with a giggle. "Mo Yan, are you jealous? Don’t be, don’t be, I was thinking of you."

"Here, clean this chicken and chop it into pieces. I’ll make you chicken and mushroom stew tonight."

With a soft, warm, fragrant armful, Mo Yan suppressed a grin and pulled her into the cave.

Without batting an eye, Ao Wu took Yu An’s other hand. Mo Yan glared at him, but Ao Wu pretended not to notice.

The Red Fox’s eyes darted around. It went to find Da Hu and the others to play. In any case, it was planting itself here and not leaving.

On the way back, it had heard Yu An say they were moving to Han Ling City, and it was already scheming how to land a secure position.

’First, I’ve got to suck up to the little master of the house!’

"An’an, I’ll be your assistant."

Mo Yan picked up a knife and curled his lip. "Let Ao Wu wait on the side. We don’t want him getting in the way and messing up your cooking."

"An’an, I’ll help you too."

Not to be outdone, Ao Wu said, "I’m smart. I can learn just by watching. I’ll definitely be able to help."

"Mo Yan, on the other hand, has had it rough. He should go rest."

Neither of the two would back down, and the air was thick with tension.