Chapter 137: Chapter 137: The Little River, River Beasts

“I’m not going to Wei Mountain. But when I go down, I’ll check out the area south of White Lake—”

Chang Xia slurped her noodles and hummed as she spoke. She wasn’t stupid—she knew how dangerous Wei Mountain was, and there was no way she’d go now. Even if she did go, it would only be after she finished her basic training and had some ability to protect herself.

“Then I’ll go to the south of White Lake too.”

“Yeah! I’ll go as well.”

“Let’s all go! And let’s bring the vine baskets and such. If we go through the dense forest, there’s a big stretch of wasteland south of White Lake. It’s perfect for digging up cogon grass roots.”

At that, everyone got excited.

Cogon grass root candy—everyone who’s tasted it says it’s delicious.

Unfortunately, the tribe makes it in big chunks. Every time you want to eat some, you have to break it up first. Next time, they should use smaller ironwood molds.

This time, the tribe was generous and didn’t plan to hoard the finished cogon grass root candy.

Instead, they distributed it directly to the clanspeople. Chang Xia guessed the tribe wanted to encourage everyone to dig up more cogon grass roots for making candy. If every household had their own supply, the tribe wouldn’t have to worry about candy production anymore.

That way, the maple syrup and maple sugar stored in the caves could be saved up and, when the big Normandy market opened next year, they could bring it all to trade. Just thinking about it made everyone happy.

Chang Xia didn’t say much as she listened.

With so many people, it was just like going out to forage with the rest of the tribe.

Every day was so lively around her that if things ever got quiet, Chang Xia figured she’d probably feel a bit out of place. Lunch ended amid the cheerful bustle, and with everyone looking forward to digging up cogon grass roots that afternoon, they quickly cleaned up the tables, chairs, bowls, and chopsticks.

Then, Nan Feng was asked to take the group of fledgling “mountain sparrows” back to the tribe.

Lu You really wanted to go with Chang Xia and the others to dig up cogon grass roots south of White Lake. But that area was far from the tribe and not safe.

He instantly realized he probably wouldn’t be allowed to go.

Sure enough, Nan Feng herded them all back to the tribe.

“Sigh! I wish I could grow up faster,” Lu You muttered.

Shan Que pumped her fists and shouted, “Lu You, why do you want to grow up so badly? Are you planning to steal my position as leader?”

Shan Que considered herself the leader of this group of beast cubs.

Lu You’s words sounded like a challenge to her.

Lu You twitched his lips and looked at Shan Que expressionlessly. If it weren’t for her brute strength and hard fists, he could take on ten of her at once.

Unfortunately—

He wasn’t strong enough, so Lu You could only swallow his frustration.

“Shan Que, you misheard.”

Shan Que tilted her head and looked at Lu You suspiciously.

Lu You calmly met her gaze. After thinking for a long time and not finding a problem, Shan Que saw that Lu You seemed genuinely apologetic, so she let it go and happily ran back toward the tribe.

Nan Feng covered her mouth, trying to hide her twitching lips.

Shan Que was so silly!

At the same time, Nan Feng looked at Lu You with a dangerous glint in her eyes.

So young, yet already so cunning and good at acting—what would he be like when he grew up? No wonder his father and the tribe’s elders always praised him, saying he needed to be nurtured well and that the tribe’s future depended on capable people like him.

Tch!

People like that would probably turn out to be another Chen Rong.

Perhaps sensing Nan Feng’s unfriendly gaze, Lu You looked up at her with a pure, innocent smile and said in a childish voice, “Sister Nan Feng, is something wrong?”

“…” Nan Feng stumbled, nearly falling over.

Sister Nan Feng!!!

What the heck?

As far as she could remember, Lu You had never called her that before.

“Lu You, act normal,” Nan Feng said, exasperated, black lines forming on her forehead.

Lu You shrugged his little shoulders, casually replied “okay,” and walked past Nan Feng into the tribe. Nan Feng watched the group of beast cubs return, standing there for a long time, lost in thought. Just now, she felt like Lu You had mocked her, hadn’t he?

That little rascal dared to mock her?!

Nan Feng clenched her fists. Next time… next time she’d definitely teach him a lesson and let him experience the deep love of a big sister.

Back at the cave, Chang Xia and the others rested for a bit before getting ready to set out.

Nuan Chun wanted to go too, but the area south of White Lake wasn’t like the rocky shoals. That area was connected to a small river, and it wasn’t far from Wei Mountain.

The twin cubs were still too young to leave the tribe.

“Shan Kun—” Nuan Chun called his name with a hint of grievance.

Shan Kun replied helplessly, “Nuan Chun, it’s better if I go. You stay at the cave and look after the cubs. I’ll come home early.”

In the past, when Nuan Chun went south of White Lake, it was always with the tribe’s hunting party or a group of foragers. The small river upstream was the Wei River, which was different from the White River.

The Wei River was home to ferocious river beasts.

There were crocodiles, forest pythons, and also blood leeches, mud eels, and so on.

Usually, when the beast tribe went hunting, they rarely approached the rivers or streams. The reason was simple: those waters often hid deadly dangers. Compared to land, their fighting abilities were weakened in the water, putting them at a disadvantage.

“Sigh!” Nuan Chun sighed softly and replied, “I know.”

She understood Shan Kun was right. The small river was connected to the Wei River, and it was nothing like the White River. That river was dangerous, but strangely, the river beasts in the small river never entered White Lake.

The Heluo tribe had discovered this a long, long time ago.

The tribe had tried to find out why, just as they’d tried to explore the mysteries of Wei Mountain, but never found any answers. In the end, the clanspeople attributed it to the protection of the shaman.

This conclusion is excellent and powerful—utterly flawless.

So, under the watchful gaze of everyone, as Warm Spring cradled the twin babies and looked back with every step, the group headed south of White Lake.

“Changxia, when we reach the southern creek, remember not to go near the water’s edge,” Maple Leaf warned. “The southern creek is different from the White River and White Lake. There are some truly terrifying river beasts living there—some even more dangerous than sea creatures.”

“Maple Leaf is right. The southern creek is very dangerous.”

“There are fearsome crocodiles and forest pythons in that creek. In some stretches, there are also blood leeches and mud eels. If you get bitten by a blood leech, it’s a real hassle, and mud eels are poisonous.”

“Water mosquitoes are scary too!”

Immediately, everyone began sharing stories about the dangers of river beasts.

The southern creek connects to the Wei River. Even though it’s the most inconspicuous tributary, there’s no guarantee that dangerous beasts don’t live there.

As long as it’s connected to the Wei River, you can never be too careful.

After all, a few years ago, someone from the tribe was attacked in the southern creek—by a crocodile over ten meters long.

“There are crocodiles and forest pythons in the southern creek?” Changxia was shocked, her face full of disbelief. She’d been thinking about channeling creek water to the cave dwellings for daily use.

Crocodiles, forest pythons, blood leeches, and mud eels—just hearing those names sounded dangerous.

“There are,” Yadong confirmed. “A few years back, someone from the tribe was ambushed by a crocodile.”

“Then why aren’t there any in the White River or White Lake?” Changxia asked, puzzled. If the water was so dangerous, why had no one ever warned her to stay away from the White River or White Lake?

Maple Leaf and the others spread their hands and explained, “Changxia, you’re mistaken. There are no dangerous river beasts in White Lake, but only the section of the White River within the Heluo tribe’s territory is safe. Outside our territory, the White River is just as dangerous.”

Changxia’s eyes widened—she was really learning something new!

Sure enough, danger lurked everywhere in the Twilight Forest.

“I was thinking of diverting water from the creek to the cave dwellings. But if the southern creek is so dangerous, what should I do?” Changxia glared angrily at Shankun and Kongshan. Why hadn’t they said anything earlier?

If she’d known the southern creek was so dangerous, she never would’ve suggested going south of White Lake.