Chapter 41: Mommy~
"It didn’t work?"
Nan Zishi asked in confusion, "How could it not have worked? I clearly saw the Six Beast Patterns... even though afterward... the Beast Patterns vanished one by one..."
Hu Bai shook his head and explained, "Aqi’s bloodline was forcibly awakened by the Array, but an Ancient Bloodline isn’t so easily roused. What you saw before was merely a momentary illusion created within the Array."
If the Ancient Bloodline were so easy to awaken, Hu Bai wouldn’t be the only Beastman in his lineage to have successfully done so.
"But..." Nan Zishi was still confused.
Hu Bai explained, "I have journals left by my forefathers. They also had Beastmen who tried to use this kind of Array to awaken their bloodlines. An illusion of a bloodline awakening appears within the Array, but once they leave it, they are still unawakened."
"Aqi is still young. His body and abilities haven’t yet reached the level required to awaken his bloodline. There’s no need to rush it now."
Nan Zishi understood. "Then does the forced awakening Array have any effect on Fox Qi?"
"A forced awakening is very painful." Hu Bai gently stroked Fox Qi’s cheek. "But other than that, the effects aren’t significant. With proper care, he’ll recover."
Nan Zishi’s heart ached as she caressed Little Fox Qi. "Aqi, I’ll give you lots of good food and drinks to help you get your strength back."
Fox Qi beamed at Hu Bai and Nan Zishi. "Okay! Thank you, Mommy."
Hearing him call her "Mommy" in such a relaxed moment, Nan Zishi suddenly felt a sweet warmth spread through her heart.
It still felt a little unfamiliar, but it was a surprisingly wonderful feeling.
’He’s the cub I gave birth to.’
’So cute!’
She smiled at Fox Qi, her eyes crinkling at the corners.
Then she pointed to the wooden board. "Hu Bai, look at the description on this board. With this Array, will your bloodline problem be solved?"
Hu Bai shook his head and smiled gently. "This is a stabilizing Array. It is indeed useful for me, but it only works to stabilize me after I use my bloodline’s power. It can’t solve the fundamental problem."
His body was too weak to bear the power of his bloodline. Using his abilities again would still likely cause his physical body to collapse.
But with this Array, his life at least had another layer of protection.
Nan Zishi felt a little disappointed.
Hu Bai smiled tenderly. "Aqi and I are both alive, and our family is reunited. I think this is already the best possible outcome."
Nan Zishi smiled and nodded. "Yes, you’re right!"
After saying that, Hu Bai asked her with concern, "female master, what about you? Were you also forcibly awakened?"
Nan Zishi smiled. "Yes. But there’s no rush to talk about me. I’ll tell you everything later."
Nan Zishi checked Fox Xin’s body one more time to make sure she hadn’t missed anything, then said, "Let’s clean up the scene first, then leave this place."
Although Fox Xin had tried to kill them and they had killed her in return, it was self-defense. They weren’t in the wrong, morally speaking.
But Fox Xin was the chief of Stone Village, after all, and Nan Zishi didn’t want to expose the matter of Hu Bai and his son’s Ancient Bloodline. So, she had no intention of letting Stone Village find out what happened here.
In other words, everything here had to be buried.
Fox Xin had originally chosen this remote cave precisely so no one would discover her crime, and she had planned to use the heavy rain to cover up her monstrous deeds.
This conveniently provided Nan Zishi with the perfect conditions to cover up what had happened.
Hu Bai and Fox Qi supported each other as Nan Zishi took out a large quantity of Spring Thunder from her space.
A large amount of Spring Thunder piled together formed a sizable explosive charge.
Nan Zishi set the inside of the cave on fire, then lit the fuse of the Spring Thunder and ran far away, dropping to the ground with the father and son.
The explosives detonated, and the cave collapsed, completely burying the deceased families of Fox Xin and Fox Zi inside.
*
The rain poured down.
Not far from the cave entrance, the Wolf King and his underlings waited excitedly.
Nan Zishi stroked the Wolf King’s head and took out ten bags of dog food from her space, handing them to him.
"Thank you all so much for today. If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t have been able to find Aqi." Nan Zishi patted the Wolf King’s head, praising, "Good dog!"
"AWOO!" The Wolf King howled, and the other wolves joined in.
The Wolf King had his underlings take the dog food back, while he himself remained by Nan Zishi’s side.
The rain was heavy and getting heavier. Nan Zishi frowned and said to Hu Bai, "Our home cave is on very low ground. With this much rain, will it flood?"
The two words "our home" made Hu Bai’s eyes crinkle in a smile. He gave a short reply, "It will."
Fox Qi also tugged on Nan Zishi’s hand. "Mommy, our home is at the lowest point in Stone Village. It floods easily whenever it rains. When it floods, Father takes me up the mountain to find a place to hide from the floodwaters."
Nan Zishi ruffled Little Fox Qi’s head. "It must have been so hard for you all these years. It looks like we’ll have to find another cave on the mountain and wait for the rain to stop."
The Wolf King sniffed at the ground, then ran forward. Nan Zishi supported Hu Bai with one arm and held Fox Qi’s hand, while also carrying the little wolf cub and Little Snake Yang in her arms. They all followed the Wolf King.
Not far away, they found a clean, unoccupied cave.
Given the circumstances, no one was picky.
Nan Zishi found some dry wood and started a fire. No longer hiding it from Hu Bai, she took a cotton quilt from her space and spread it on the dry ground inside the cave.
She then brought out an iron pot, filled it with water, and set it on the fire to boil.
Hu Bai’s gaze followed Nan Zishi, never leaving her.
After giving Fox Qi a quick wash, Nan Zishi had him crawl into the quilt. Nan Zishi herself felt extremely uncomfortable, covered in a mixture of blood and rainwater.
She set up a small portable tent inside the cave and took a bath inside it.
Steam rose from Nan Zishi’s clean body as she walked over to Hu Bai, now wearing her coral fleece nightgown.
The female before him had just bathed and was wearing a soft coral fleece nightgown, exuding an aura of gentleness.
Hu Bai felt his heartbeat quicken slightly. A faint blush crept onto the male Fox Beastman’s pale cheeks.
’She’s so beautiful, so gentle.’
’She truly makes me happy.’
’Even just looking at her like this fills my heart with warmth.’
"female master... I’m sorry. I should have been the one to do all this."
Nan Zishi let out a chuckle.
Hu Bai didn’t know why his words had made her laugh.
Nan Zishi smiled and asked him, "Bai, you have a wound on your abdomen. Can you wash yourself? Do you need my help?"
Hu Bai froze. The tips of his ears turned red, and his heart began to race.
He struggled to remain calm, but his words came out in a stutter. "It’s just a small wound... I, I can do it myself, of course."
...
While Hu Bai was bathing, Nan Zishi fed the little wolf cub, and also gave She Yang and Fox Qi some convenient food.
Even before Little Fox Qi knew Nan Zishi was his mother, he already didn’t like the little wolf cub.
Now that he knew Nan Zishi was his own mommy, seeing a wild wolf cub occupying the prime spot in her arms made him even more displeased.
The moment Nan Zishi finished feeding the little wolf cub with a syringe, Little Fox Qi immediately placed the cub on the bedding to the side, transformed into a little White Fox, and curled up in the most comfortable spot in Nan Zishi’s arms.
The little guy’s tiny paws gently pulled at his mommy’s soft nightgown. He lifted his head, nuzzling it softly against Nan Zishi’s chest, and gave his fluffy tail a little flick.
"Mommy~"
’Aww.’
’This little guy is so adorable and cuddly. I’m so lucky!’
Meanwhile, Little Fox Qi buried his entire body in Nan Zishi’s embrace.
’This is my mommy. She’s so soft, completely different from Father.’
’Mommy’s hugs are so comfortable. I love this. I’m so happy!’
’This is great! Little Aqi has a mommy now, and she’s the best mommy in the whole world.’
When Hu Bai came out wrapped in a Beast Skin Skirt, Nan Zishi handed him the instant noodles she had cooked over the fire.
She smiled. "It’s ready to eat."
"Mm."
The others had already eaten, so Nan Zishi rested her chin in her hand and watched her Beast Husband, explaining, "Bai, I have a space where I can store things. That’s why you often see me ’conjure’ things up. I’m actually just taking them out of the space."
"The space isn’t very big, and it’s not inexhaustible. So I mostly keep emergency supplies in there."
Just before, she had given the wolf pack nearly twenty bags of dog food in total, which had already cleared out a large section of the space.
But the dog food had been well worth it, and Nan Zishi didn’t regret it at all.
Hu Bai suddenly looked up at Nan Zishi.
’She’s explaining her secrets to me.’
’Does this mean she trusts me?’