Chapter 508: He Flees, He Chases
"Sangqi!"
Sangqi sat on the bed, his little face hazy with sleep. He stared blankly at Qiao Xixi, not yet fully awake.
"Mother? Huh? When did I get back to my room? I could have sworn I was playing downstairs with my little brother and sisters..."
Sangqi’s memory had completely stopped on the day he fell into a coma.
But a moment later, he snapped back to reality, his gaze fixed on Qiao Xixi in shock and delight.
"Mother! You’re back!" Sangqi scrambled out of bed, but having been in a coma for days, his body was extremely weak. He had just gotten up when he fell right back down.
Qiao Xixi’s heart ached for him. She rushed to the bedside and picked him up.
"It’s alright, don’t rush. Mother’s back."
The moment Qiao Xixi held him, Sangqi grew quiet. He wrapped his arms back around her, a silly grin on his face.
"Mother, when did you get back? I missed you so much."
"Mother missed you, too." Qiao Xixi kissed his cheek. Back in Beast King City, she had rarely mentioned the cubs, but she had kept her longing for them buried deep in her heart, only daring to speak of it when she was about to leave.
"Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere? Are you hungry? Feili Father Beast has already made food. Let’s go down and eat, okay?"
"Okay."
Qiao Xixi got a beast-hide tunic for him to wear, then wrung out a damp cloth to wipe his face clean before carrying him downstairs.
The cubs were all seated at the dining table waiting for Qiao Xixi. When they saw her coming down with Sangqi in her arms, their eyes widened in surprise.
"Brother Sangqi?" Qiao Qiao called out, a little uncertain. It was no wonder she was so cautious; his previous state had frightened them.
"Sister Qiaoqiao."
Hearing Sangqi’s voice, the cubs all breathed a sigh of relief.
"This is great! Brother Sangqi is finally awake."
"As long as he’s awake, that’s what matters. Let’s eat first."
Qiao Xixi had just placed Sangqi on a chair when the little tiger cub crawled toward him. "Gaga, hold~~"
Just as Sangqi was about to reach out, Qiao Xixi picked the little one up first. "An’an, Brother Sangqi doesn’t have the strength to hold you right now. Let’s let him eat first, okay?"
The mention of food immediately diverted the little tiger cub’s attention, and she stared eagerly at the dishes on the table.
Sunxiao placed a piece of meat in her bowl. "Go on, eat."
Seeing the food, the little one scrambled down from Qiao Xixi’s arms and eagerly grabbed the piece of meat in her bowl with both hands, stuffing it into her mouth.
Qiao Xixi ladled a bowl of soup for Sangqi. "Have some soup first to warm your stomach. You just woke up, so you shouldn’t eat too much for this meal."
"I know, Mother."
While Qiao Xixi was eating with the cubs, Sangze arrived at a cave in the back mountains of the clan.
A male from the Wing Clan brought the meat they had carried and offered it to Sangze. "Lord Sangze, please eat something."
Sangze nodded gratefully. "Thank you all."
Seeing him being so polite, the Wing Clan male scratched his head in embarrassment. "You’re too kind, Lord Sangze. You saved me during a hunt before. Please, eat first. If it’s not enough, we’ll go get some more from the clan."
"This is enough, no need to get more. You all should go eat as well."
"Okay."
There were three Wing Clan males who had come with Sangze. After hearing his words, they all flew up into the trees to rest.
Sangze took the meat back into the cave, but he had no appetite at all.
Just as he sat down, his mismatched eyes flickered. He lifted his gaze, and when he looked at the meat again, his expression had become wild and sinister.
He extended his sharp claws and unhurriedly carved the large piece of meat. Then, he grabbed the bloody flesh and began to devour it in huge mouthfuls.
「The night grew deeper.」
The Wing Clan males in the trees watched their surroundings vigilantly. The mountain forest was completely silent; even the chirping of insects had vanished.
Sangze, who had been resting with his eyes closed while leaning against the stone wall, suddenly snapped his eyes open. His gaze shifted toward the cave entrance.
A wisp of black and red mist drifted lazily into the cave, stopping before Sangze.
"The beastmen in the clan made you suffer so terribly, leaving you trapped in the Hopeless Abyss for years. Don’t you hate them?"
A dark red halo began to swirl within Sangze’s mismatched pupils.
"They all deserve to die. Go, kill them... kill them!"
Sangze’s pupils abruptly turned a dark red. He shot to his feet and walked out of the cave.
And the few Wing Clan males who were supposed to be guarding the cave entrance now hung limply from the trees, completely silent and still.
Sangze walked out of the cave, following that wisp of black and red light.
"Where are they?"
"Just ahead. Go, kill them!"
As Sangze walked into the forest, the deep black-red in his eyes suddenly shifted. He clenched his fists, his muscles tensing as if he were suppressing something.
By the time he looked up again, his pupils had already returned to their mismatched colors.
A wild chill in his eyes, he turned and looked back toward the dark shadow hidden in the woods.
"The one who deserves to die... is you!"
The instant Sangze charged forward, he transformed into his beast form.
The shadow hidden in the forest hadn’t expected Sangze to suddenly lunge at it. It let out a savage sneer and turned to flee.
The other party had no intention of confronting Sangze head-on. Instead, it fled and he pursued, the two figures darting rapidly through the mountain forest.
This game of cat and mouse seemed to wear on Sangze’s patience. With a furious roar, his body dissolved into a black mist and shot straight toward his opponent.
But just as he was about to catch it, the dark shadow also turned into a black and red mist and flew toward the riverbank.
Suddenly, a series of anguished cries came from the riverbank. Sangze’s expression darkened. "Where do you think you’re going?!"
When he flew to the riverbank, the black and red mist was nowhere to be seen.
Sangze reverted to his human form and smelled the thick stench of blood. In the moonlight, he saw several bodies lying on the riverbank.
Frowning, he walked over and crouched down to examine them, discovering that all of their throats had been slashed by sharp claws.
The blood was still warm. They must have just died.
The cries of anguish from moments ago had likely come from them.
The colors in Sangze’s mismatched eyes deepened. Just as he was about to stand up and continue the pursuit, the sound of footsteps suddenly echoed from the forest.
"It’s just ahead! I heard a noise up there. Quick, let’s go check it out!"
Sangze turned to see a group of beastmen running over with torches.
The male Long-haired Ape in the lead immediately spotted the bodies lying at Sangze’s feet.
"It’s him! He killed our Clan Leader! Get him!"
These Long-haired Ape males had never seen Sangze before and simply assumed he was the murderer. One by one, their faces contorted with rage as they lunged at him.
Sangze’s expression shifted slightly. He stared in astonishment at the body at his feet. "Did you do this?"
The words had barely left his mouth when his brow furrowed in displeasure. "Why would I kill a few useless weaklings?"
"It’s that monster! He must have done it."
The Long-haired Ape clan paid no mind to Sangze’s muttering and quickly moved forward to surround him.
"You dare kill our clansmen? Die!"