Chapter 58: Chapter 58: The Face Beneath the Birthmark

Yu An had guessed there would be a lot of gold, silver, and jewels, but she never expected this much.

The moment she entered the treasury, she was instantly dazzled by the treasures piled within!

Gold Coins and silver coins were piled together haphazardly, while massive pearls and gemstones were scattered everywhere, more than the eye could take in.

The Dragon Clan all loved shiny things, so Ao Wu was partial to the jewels. But when he saw Yu An ignore the gems and make a beeline for the Gold Coins, he immediately felt a pang of regret.

’If I’d known, I would have made all those Beastmen pay their ransoms in Gold Coins.’

"Ao Wu, stand guard for me. I’m going to cultivate my superpower."

’These Gold Coins and silver coins are enough for my superpower to jump two levels!’

"Okay," Ao Wu nodded. "An’an, your superpower is pretty strange. You have to absorb gold and silver to advance it."

Yu An shrugged. "It is. I also think it’s pretty one-of-a-kind."

’In her past life, while everyone else was busy hoarding supplies, she was the only one picking up the gold and silver nobody wanted. They all thought she was an idiot.’

Yu An focused single-mindedly on her cultivation. Ao Wu stood guard outside, refusing to let even Mo Yan enter.

The two glared at each other outside the door, but neither made a sound, afraid they might disturb Yu An.

After a long, long time, the door finally opened.

Yu An stepped out. Both men looked over at the same time and froze, stunned.

"An’an, your birthmark..."

Yu An touched her cheek. "It’s gone. What do you think? Am I pretty?"

The woman before them had fair skin, eyes that curved into crescent moons, a high nose bridge, and rosy lips. The two were utterly captivated.

"Beautiful!"

Mo Yan stepped forward, his eyes fixed on her. "Is this your true appearance? That birthmark..."

"It was from being poisoned," Yu An didn’t hide it from them. "My bad temper before was also because of the poison."

"Mo Yan, the wild beasts affected by the Beast-Attracting Powder, and the decline in your spiritual power... I suspect the person trying to harm me is behind it all."

"They wanted to use the beasts to kill me, but with you by my side, you wouldn’t abandon me, even if only for the contract’s sake."

’So, they had to get rid of Mo Yan first. Then I’d have no one to protect me and wouldn’t last long in the perilous exiled land.’

But...

Yu An couldn’t understand what kind of enemy the original owner had made. Even after falling to such a state, that person was still hell-bent on taking her life.

She had carefully combed through the original owner’s memories but found nothing. In fact, because the original owner was considered ugly and had a foul temper, everyone avoided her.

The original owner’s twin sister always put her older sister first in everything. And while her Female Mother and Beast Father were cold to her, they never deprived her of material comforts.

Her thoughts were a tangled mess. Yu An decided to put it all aside for now. She would investigate when she returned to the Imperial City one day.

’And then there’s Han Ling City. I have no quarrel with Lord Han, yet he’s acted against me twice. Could that also be related to the Imperial City?’

These were just her speculations. Perhaps she would get some answers once Han Li completed his investigation.

Mo Yan and Ao Wu were even less familiar with the Imperial City than Yu An was, so they couldn’t offer any insights.

"An’an, don’t be afraid," Ao Wu said, cracking his knuckles. "I’m here now. No one will ever hurt you again!"

"Okay," Yu An said with a wide smile. "Then I’ll be counting on you to protect me!"

"However," her tone shifted, "little Ao Wu, how much progress have you made on the task I gave you?"

At the mention of this, Ao Wu faltered. "It’s... it’s almost done, An’an! I promise the prey will fill the whole cave!"

In reality, he had only caught a dozen or so small animals. Glancing at the sky, he knew he couldn’t linger around Yu An any longer. He quickly grabbed the Red Fox and rushed off to hunt.

’Perfect, back to just the two of us.’ Mo Yan was overjoyed as he led Yu An to find a flock of wild sheep.

A colossal black snake slithered through the forest, a petite female resting on its back, her palm pressed against the serpent’s head.

Mo Yan said reluctantly, "An’an, I think the *other* method helps me recover faster. Why don’t we..."

"Don’t even think about it," Yu An shut him down cold. "Right now, my mind is set on gathering ingredients and making delicious food. Handsome men will have to wait."

Mo Yan sighed. "Oh."

When they reached the wild sheep flock, Mo Yan placed Yu An in a safe spot before going to catch them.

As a male with Heavenly Level Spiritual Power, Mo Yan moved through the flock as if it were an empty field. Yu An observed them for a moment and saw that the wild sheep were mountain goats.

The adult goats were large and formidable, with black, gleaming horns that looked sturdy and sharp—as if they could gut a person with a single charge!

The lambs, however, looked much more docile. Yu An directed her vines to bind a few of the small lambs, then stored them in her space.

As Yu An had instructed, Mo Yan also caught several ewes that could be milked for various dairy products.

When Mo Yan returned from the hunt, Yu An glanced at the sky and decided it was time to head home and prepare dinner.

When they got back, the others hadn’t returned yet. Yu An directed Mo Yan to slaughter and bleed one of the goats.

Mo Yan deftly tied up the goat and held down its legs. With a sharp knife, he pierced its throat directly, letting the blood drain out.

His knife skills were excellent. He sliced the mutton paper-thin without it falling apart, the intermingled fat and lean meat creating a beautiful marble-like pattern.

After watching for a moment, Yu An went to stir-fry the hot pot base. She had a pre-made base in her space, to which she added scallions, ginger, garlic, and dried chili peppers. A pungent, spicy aroma instantly billowed out of the cave.

Mo Yan, who was just bringing in the sliced mutton, was hit by the smell and immediately started coughing.

"COUGH! COUGH! COUGH! An’an, what are you making?"

"Spicy hot pot. I’ll make a clear broth version for Zaizai to eat. Oh, right, you can’t handle spicy food very well either."

Yu An remembered the first time she had made spicy dry-pot shrimp and grilled fish. Mo Yan’s face had turned bright red from the heat, and he’d ended up eating less than Da Hu and Xiao Yu.

She prepared a few other side dishes as well. Just as everything was ready, the others began to return.

Ao Wu had managed to hunt a large pile of game in his rush, some of it alive, some dead. After Yu An inspected it, she stored it all in her space, along with the wild fruits and vegetables Feng Xuan had brought back. The Cloud Beasts would help sort and categorize everything.

They even automatically took over the planting and animal husbandry tasks. Yu An only had to briefly describe what to do, and they would understand.

’It’s like having a team of little assistants. It saves me so much trouble.’

"Yu An, take a look at this."

Feng Xuan took out a few dirt-caked tubers. "I found these while digging for potatoes. Da Hu said they weren’t potatoes, so I thought I’d bring them back for you to look at."

Yu An took one and looked at it, her face lighting up with pleasant surprise. "These are sweet potatoes!"

’I was just thinking about looking for sweet potatoes yesterday, and Feng Xuan already found some!’

Yu An said hurriedly, "This is a type of food. It’s delicious whether it’s steamed, fried, roasted, or stewed. Please dig up a lot more tomorrow."

’I’ll go out for another look tomorrow. If I don’t find anything new, I’ll just stay home and make sweet potato starch.’

Yu An washed and sliced the few sweet potatoes Feng Xuan had brought back, planning to add them to the hot pot. However, Lan Yin still hadn’t returned, which made her feel a growing sense of unease.

’He promised to be back before sunset, but the sky is already dark. Why is there still no sign of Lan Yin?’

Yu An mulled it over and decided to send someone to look for Lan Yin. But before she could decide who should go, a plump figure came running toward them.

Zhu Qingqing had lost half her weight but was still a bit plump. She leaned against the cave entrance, gasping for breath.

"Boss... Boss Yu, it’s terrible! Your Beast Husband is in trouble!"