Chapter 510: Much Smarter Than Father Beast
In the end, Sunxiao still took the Wing Clan’s patrol team out of the tribe, using the tracker to find Sangze.
After Sunxiao left, Feili said, "Xixi, stay inside the inner compound and don’t wander off. I’m going to have the patrol teams increase their patrols around the tribe’s perimeter."
Qiao Xixi nodded. "Feili Father Beast, you be careful as well."
Feili grunted in acknowledgment, signaling for her not to worry, and then left.
The night outside was still deep and dark. Qiao Xixi sat in the living room without the slightest hint of sleepiness.
"Xiao Yao, are you able to detect the monster’s aura right now?"
"Host, my scans show that the monster aura closest to the tribe is in the same location as Sangze. There are two signatures of dark energy."
Qiao Xixi’s eyes lit up. "You’re saying that besides the dark energy signature on Sangze, there’s another one?"
"Yes, Host."
’That means a monster might have really appeared, and Sangze went off to hunt it down!’
This news allowed Qiao Xixi to let out a huge sigh of relief.
She stood up, and just as she was about to head back to her room, Xiao Yao’s urgent alarm suddenly blared in her mind.
"BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! Host, danger is approaching! Be careful!"
Qiao Xixi’s pupils shrank. In the blink of an eye, she saw a mass of black and red mist lunging straight at her.
The mass of black and red mist was incredibly fast, so fast she had almost no way to dodge. She could only grit her teeth and form a hand seal. But before she could even finish the incantation, the mist suddenly shot toward the sky and vanished in the blink of an eye.
Qiao Xixi glanced up at the sky but didn’t give chase. Instead, she quickly turned and ran upstairs to the floor with the cubs’ rooms.
Just then, Feiyan, who had been sleeping in his room, was jolted awake. Alarmed by the sound of Qiao Xixi’s hurried footsteps, he shot up in bed.
"Xixi?"
Hearing Feiyan’s voice, Qiao Xixi called back, "Feiyan, I’m over here with the cubs."
By now, the cubs had all returned to their own rooms to sleep, which were not on the same floor as hers and Feiyan’s.
Feiyan walked over when he heard her reply. The moment he saw Qiao Xixi, even he, for all his denseness, could tell something was very wrong.
He strode forward, pulled her into his arms, and asked with a frown, "What’s wrong? You look so pale."
Qiao Xixi pressed her lips together. As she felt the searing warmth of Feiyan’s body, her frantic heartbeat gradually began to settle.
"I saw a monster downstairs just now."
"A monster?"
"Yes. It had the same aura as those monsters we encountered in Beast King City. It tried to attack me, but for some reason, it suddenly left right as it was about to reach me."
Feiyan’s expression turned grim. Qiao Xixi had just been nearly harmed.
"Don’t be afraid, I’m here."
Feiyan took her by the hand, pushed open the door to Qiao Qiao’s room, and had her go inside to sleep with her and the others.
"I’ll keep watch tonight. You get some rest with Qiaoqiao and the others."
There was no way Qiao Xixi could sleep, but not wanting Feiyan to worry, she complied and lay down beside Qiao Qiao and the others.
"Have more people stand guard, both inside and out. And you be careful, too."
Feiyan grunted his assent. With Sunxiao and his men gone, he had to protect Qiao Xixi and the cubs.
"I’ll see to it now."
After Feiyan left, Qiao Xixi sat up in bed. She locked the door, then went to stand by the window. Outside, the world was bathed in boundless moonlight.
"Xiao Yao, why do you think that monster would leave right at the moment its ambush was about to succeed?"
"Host, I cannot probe a monster’s thoughts. However, based on its actions, it shouldn’t have left so easily. What’s very strange is that when I just scanned for it, I couldn’t detect its aura at all."
"You can’t detect its aura anymore?"
"Yeah, it’s very strange. I’ll keep trying to track it. Maybe the monster concealed its aura."
Hearing this, Qiao Xixi’s pupils shrank.
’Could it be...?’
Qiao Xixi barely slept a wink that night. It wasn’t until the sky began to lighten at dawn that she finally lay back down on the bed.
She thought she wouldn’t be able to sleep, but after she lay down, Qiao Qiao sensed her presence and rolled over into her arms.
Breathing in the unique, sweet scent of her cub, Qiao Xixi’s taut nerves finally slackened enough for her to slowly close her eyes and drift off to sleep.
When Qiao Xixi woke again, the cubs who had been beside her were gone.
She quickly got up and went out, only to hear the cubs’ voices coming from downstairs.
"I’m making breakfast today! I guarantee it’ll be so good it’ll make you swoon."
"Big Brother is as clumsy as Father Beast! I don’t want you to do it! I’ll do it, I can do it!"
"Silly Qiaoqiao, I’m way smarter than Father Beast!"
Listening to the sound of her cubs bickering, Qiao Xixi let out a soft breath.
She turned and headed downstairs. "What are you all talking about?"
"Mother, you’re awake! We were just deciding who gets to make breakfast."
"So, have you reached a decision? Whoever’s the chef, Mother will be their assistant."
"Me, me, me!" Qiao Qiao eagerly tugged on Qiao Xixi.
"Mother, I can do it! Let me try!"
"Mother, I can too!" Qiao Ang ran over, not to be outdone.
Qiao Xixi pinched his little cheek. "Alright, then you two can be the head chefs today, and Mother will be your assistant, how about that?"
Seeing Qiao Lie and the others also looking at her expectantly, Qiao Xixi assigned them tasks as well.
The cubs all trotted off contentedly to do their jobs.
"Sangqi."
"Mother, what is it?" Sangqi paused and looked at Qiao Xixi in confusion.
"How are you feeling? Is anything bothering you?"
Sangqi tilted his head, thought for a moment, then shook it. "No, Mother. I don’t feel uncomfortable at all."
Seeing that his complexion was normal and he really didn’t seem to have any issues, she let him go about his business.
Even though she was letting the cubs cook, she still took out the leftover beast meat from yesterday and helped them slice it.
While doing so, she opened her map to check the tracker and saw that Sunxiao was approaching Sangze’s location.
But something about Sangze’s movements was strange. He seemed to be going around in circles in the same spot.
’Is he trapped by something?’
"Clan Leader."
Qiao Xixi was pulled from her thoughts and looked toward the guard.
"What is it?"
"Clan Leader, a male from Wing Beast City has arrived outside the tribe. He says his name is Kunlin and is asking to see you."
Qiao Xixi was surprised. Why would Kunlin come to their tribe at a time like this?
’Could Huang Yue have sent him to deliver a message?’
After a moment’s thought, Qiao Xixi told the guard to bring Kunlin into the tribe first, saying she would be over in a moment.
"Yes."
The guard acknowledged the order and left. He had barely gone when Feiyan walked over.
"Xixi, you’re going to see Kunlin?"
Feiyan didn’t have a very good impression of Kunlin. Even though Kunlin had helped them before, Feiyan’s male instincts told him that Kunlin was still a threat. This was especially true after hearing from Jin Ling about what had happened in the Thunder-swallowing Forest, which made him even more uncomfortable with the idea of Qiao Xixi getting close to the man.
"Yes, I need to see if it’s about something important."
"I’ll go with you. I’m going to have someone call my father back."
"Okay."
Feiyan turned to leave, but paused after taking just one step. "Xixi, that monster that possessed Kunlin’s body before... has it truly been purged from him?"