Chapter 167: Chapter 167: Seaweed Candy

As dusk approached,

brilliant clouds of sunset lit up the sky.

Changxia and the others finished chopping chilies, carried their wooden chairs to the porch, leaned against the railing, and quietly gazed at the sunset over White Lake, enjoying the peace of the moment.

“Changxia—”

A voice called from outside the courtyard.

A moment later, Muqin came in, carrying a wicker basket,

her face beaming with a wide smile. Along with her came a special sweet scent.

“Muqin Amu, is the seaweed candy ready?” Changxia asked playfully.

Muqin paused, raised her eyebrows at Changxia, and teased, “You really do have a sharp nose! You guessed it. I made the seaweed candy just like you said, and it turned out even sweeter and more fragrant than maple sugar.”

Seaweed candy didn’t have the grassy aroma of sugar made from thatch roots.

It was just pure sweetness—not grainy, but truly fragrant and sweet. Especially the seaweed syrup—it was incredibly aromatic.

The scent drifted out, and even the young sparrows training in the yard were drawn over,

gathering by the square, waiting to taste the first bite of seaweed candy.

“Coo coo—”

In an instant, everyone resting on the porch stood up,

craning their necks to stare at the basket in Muqin’s hands. Clearly, they’d caught the scent too.

Milu and Jie were the most pitiful—and the most gluttonous.

Recently, Changxia and the others had been eating a lot of sweets: maple sugar, maple syrup, and thatch root sugar. They were greedy, sure, but not to the extent of Milu and Jie.

“So this is seaweed sugar, boiled down from seaweed? It smells even better than honey,” Milu said, swallowing hungrily. The longing in her eyes was almost tangible, like she was silently begging.

Jie didn’t say a word, but this two-meter-tall male was hanging his head, looking like he wanted to bury it in the vine basket in Mukqin’s hands. The sight was comical, no matter how you looked at it.

Mukqin walked up the corridor and handed the vine basket to Suye.

“Witch, you should try it first,” Mukqin said.

Nan Feng, always the quickest, dashed to the kitchen to fetch bowls and chopsticks, then zipped back to the corridor.

“Witch, give us some too!” Nan Feng said sweetly, holding out a wooden bowl.

Suye shot Nan Feng a mock glare and set the basket on the square table beside her. She pulled out a clay jar from the basket, which was filled to the brim with seaweed syrup.

At this point, the seaweed sugar hadn’t solidified yet.

The reddish-brown syrup gave off a rich, sweet aroma.

Since it hadn’t been bleached, the color was quite dark.

Normally, things like beets could be refined into white or soft brown sugar. But the Heluo tribe didn’t have bleaching techniques, and Changxia didn’t really know how to do it either. Besides, for the beastfolk, this kind of sugar was already more than enough to satisfy their cravings.

Bleaching would only make the seaweed sugar seem more refined.

If the bear tribe wanted to improve the taste of their seaweed sugar, it would be up to the Earth tribe to figure out the next steps.

The Heluo tribe wasn’t the Earth tribe—they couldn’t grow seaweed on a large scale. It was just like the Tian Lion tribe: the lions wouldn’t give up growing chili peppers just because seaweed could be turned into sugar. That simply wasn’t realistic.

Suye stirred the syrup with wooden chopsticks and poured a small half-bowl for each person.

Changxia and the others took their bowls and dipped their chopsticks in, tasting the seaweed sugar in small sips.

It was very sweet, with a rich, fragrant flavor.

The taste was different from maple sugar or thatch root sugar.

If Changxia had to pick a favorite, she still preferred thatch root sugar.

Mainly, it was that unique sandy, glutinous texture of thatch root sugar that she couldn’t resist. The only thing that could compare was brown sugar made from sugarcane.

If you bleached and crystallized seaweed sugar, all you’d get would be white or soft brown sugar. But that texture was totally different from the sandy texture of thatch root sugar—they were worlds apart.

“The bear tribe is really in for a treat now!” Milu sighed.

Jie’s eyes sparkled, and suddenly he said, “Milu, what do you think if I found a bear tribe female to be my mate?”

Everyone turned to look at Jie.

This male’s ideas were something else.

Was this lion cub eyeing the bear tribe’s seaweed sugar, or the bear tribe’s seaweed sugar, or… the seaweed sugar? (No matter how you looked at it, it was all about the sugar.)

Using the excuse of finding a mate just to satisfy his sweet tooth—what a scheming male!

“Jie, I really underestimated you!” Nan Feng clicked her tongue. She’d always heard Changxia say that the prettier a female was, the more you had to watch out for her.

But right now, Nan Feng just wanted to say: the more honest a male looks, the more shameless he actually is.

He had such an honest, simple face, but his thoughts ran deep.

Maybe she should remind Chief Xifeng to warn the young males and females of the bear tribe to watch out for greedy outsiders trying to lure them away!

Mukqin’s eyes lit up at Jie’s words.

She lifted her head and gave Jie a serious once-over.

Over two meters tall, strong and sturdy. If he’d been brought to the Heluo tribe by the riverbank, he must be quite capable.

If he liked sweets so much, he didn’t necessarily have to go to the Earth tribe.

The Heluo tribe had plenty of sugar too.

Nan Feng noticed Mukqin’s strange, appraising gaze and couldn’t help shivering.

Was her mother coming up with some terrifying idea again?

“Jie, do you like sweets?” Mukqin asked gently.

In that instant, not only did Nan Feng’s danger radar go off, but even Changxia, Maple Leaf, and the others sensed something was up.

They all gave Jie odd looks.

Height—check.

Looks—handsome, honest, reliable.

Tribe—lion totem warrior.

Well, well—

Jie seemed to fit all of Mukqin’s criteria for a mate for Nan Feng.

Suddenly, the air felt tense.

Jie looked around, bewildered. He’d just made a casual comment—had he said something wrong? Milu was just as confused, not understanding why Changxia and the others had suddenly turned so serious.

“Mom, if you dare say it… I’ll dare to leave the tribe and travel tomorrow,” Nan Feng said coldly.

Mukqin froze at that, then let out a long sigh and swallowed her words.

But the look she gave Nan Feng was anything but friendly.

“Next year, at the Normandy Grand Market—if you’re still single, just wait and see.” Mukqin gave a cold laugh and turned to leave.

Nan Feng covered her mouth. She really shouldn’t have threatened her mom just now.

As soon as Mukqin left, Nan Feng collapsed onto a wooden chair, looking utterly defeated. She wasn’t Changxia, so why was she being pushed to get married?

Even if she didn’t marry, she could still support herself, couldn’t she?

“Changxia, if I ever disappear from the tribe one day, remember to miss me,” Nan Feng said weakly.

At that moment, Milu and Jie finally caught on.

Their impression of the Heluo tribe rose even higher. The black panther tribe really was something else—their words were so deep, if you didn’t pay attention, you might not understand at all.

Suye raised her hand and gave Nan Feng a smack on the back of the head.

“What nonsense are you spouting?” Suye said. “If you make your mother so angry she leaves, watch out—your father will give you a beating.”

Nan Feng’s words had cut Mukqin off before she could even finish.

But she’d probably be back soon.

Sure enough, Mukqin returned, rubbing her forehead and glaring fiercely at Nan Feng.

“Look at me, I almost forgot what I came to say because Nan Feng made me so mad. Milu, Jie, you two come to the tribe later—come to my house for dinner tonight.”

"Wu, you come over with Changxia in a bit."Nanfeng, hurry back and get to work."With that, before anyone could react, Dada left again.

This time, Muqin didn’t come back.

(This chapter ends)