Chapter 195: Chapter 195: Entering Wei Mountain

Meanwhile, breakfast was being prepared at the camp.

Yun Dong and Ge Lei returned to camp one after another.

Now, the only one who hadn't come back from hunting was Elder Pukang.

No one found this surprising. Elder Pukang had always done things his own way. As long as he didn’t cause any major trouble, the tribe wouldn’t interfere.

"Good thing... we didn't wait for Elder Pukang's catch for breakfast!"Changxia said with relief. There were no herds of wild cattle near the camp, so if Elder Pukang wanted to hunt a black-horned bull, he’d have to track the herd much farther away.

If they waited for him, forget about breakfast—

They probably wouldn’t even get lunch. Better to look forward to dinner!

Gen rubbed his forehead and said, "We need to discuss entering Wei Mountain. Elder Pukang isn’t here—how should we proceed?"No matter what, they couldn’t avoid involving Elder Pukang in entering Wei Mountain, since they needed him to lead the team.

Elder Senda had gone to the Moonwatch Mountains, and Elder Yami was overseeing the tribe.

The other elders were busy with their own duties, so only Elder Pukang had come to the grasslands this time. Entering Wei Mountain required his order—Gen couldn’t make the decision alone.

The Heluo tribe had sealed off Wei Mountain for many years.

Reopening it meant opportunity, but also possible danger.

This decision was important—there was no room for carelessness.

At these words, everyone fell silent. Since it concerned Elder Pukang, no one dared to speak out of turn—no one wanted to get scolded.

"It’s a pity the little snake cub is still too young,"Changxia sighed.

If the snake cub were older and could talk, they could ask it some questions. Then they wouldn’t be so passive, feeling tied down and frustrated with everything they did!

"Ge Lei, Yun Dong, did you find anything?"Gen asked quietly as he sipped his meat broth.

Ge Lei shook his head—he hadn’t found anything.

"I found a severed arm upstream,"Yun Dong said in a low voice. "It looked like it had been gnawed by some river beast."As he spoke, he glanced at the snake cub on Changxia’s arm. That little snake sure was lucky!

The owner of that arm was almost certainly a wanderer who had entered the Moonwatch Mountains. He died in the Wei River, and even his corpse had been devoured by fierce river beasts—only a bloodless, mangled arm remained.

"Did you confirm it?"Gen asked seriously.

"I did,"Yun Dong replied. "It was an unfamiliar scent."As beastfolk from the Misty Forest, their scents would be somewhat familiar to each other. But Yun Dong hadn’t sensed anything familiar from the severed arm, so its owner was definitely an outsider.

"It seems we have no choice but to enter Wei Mountain,"Gen said gravely.

The tribe had been hesitating about whether to go in or not.

Going in would be troublesome.

Not going in would also be troublesome.

Now, there was no choice—they had to go, which at least saved them from further indecision.

"Yun Dong, blow the horn and signal Elder Pukang to return to camp as soon as possible. Next, we’ll head to Wei Mountain while it’s still early."After thinking it over, Gen decided to set out for Wei Mountain immediately.

Sooner or later, they’d have to go, so they might as well go early. The sooner they figured out what was happening in Wei Mountain, the sooner the tribe could rest easy.

Yun Dong took the ox horn from his waist and blew it.

Wheee-oooo—

Just as the horn sounded, Elder Pukang’s familiar laughter came from the distance, growing closer.

Hearing this, Yun Dong stopped blowing the horn, and everyone looked ahead. They saw Elder Pukang striding toward them, carrying a black-horned bull weighing several thousand pounds as if it were nothing.

"Gen, why did you blow the horn?"Pukang asked, tossing the bull aside and wiping away nonexistent sweat.

"Yun Dong found a severed arm upstream, gnawed by a river beast. The scent wasn’t from any Misty Forest beastfolk. I want to go straight into Wei Mountain to investigate,"Gen said solemnly.

Elder Pukang frowned and hesitated. "Aren’t you going to wait for news from the shamans?"We can’t wait any longer,"Gen replied. "I’m worried that the changes in Wei Mountain will attract other beastfolk from the Misty Forest. Last time, rumors about ice crystal grass made Wei Mountain a hotspot for years. If word gets out about the glowing stone ore this time..."Gen didn’t finish his sentence, but everyone understood.

The Heluo tribe wasn’t afraid of trouble, but they didn’t like too much of it.

Wei Mountain was, after all, their territory—they couldn’t allow outsiders to keep coming in to investigate.

"Alright, as long as you’re prepared,"Pukang nodded. "Changxia, help me process this bull. Then we’ll head into Wei Mountain—"I want to go too!"Changxia said excitedly.

"No."Absolutely not."Changxia, you’re not allowed to go."Several voices refused her at once.

Wei Mountain was dangerous. Even the tribe’s totem warriors had to be extremely cautious there. Someone like Changxia, who was only half-trained, would be in real danger.

Everyone couldn’t imagine what they’d do if something happened to her.

"Chief, I’ve always been lucky. If I go to Wei Mountain, maybe I’ll discover something unexpected,"Changxia said earnestly. She didn’t want to take risks—she genuinely wanted to help if she could.

Her words really did move Gen.

The tribe had investigated Wei Mountain countless times but could never find a way into its core. The mists and poison rings were dangerous, but the tribe had ways to deal with them. The real problem was that they couldn’t find a way into the mountain’s depths, so they couldn’t figure out why it was glowing.

Chen Rong looked at Changxia’s determined expression.

"Chief, let Changxia come with us. I’ll watch over her, and with Elder Pukang and the totem warriors, I think we’ll be able to handle any danger Wei Mountain throws at us,"Chen Rong said.

He was confident he could protect Changxia and keep her from harm.

At the same time, he was also aware of Changxia’s luck.

The tribe had sent people to patrol the grasslands for ages, yet it was Changxia who, on her very first trip to fetch water, stumbled upon a snake cub. If that’s not luck, what else could it be? No one could explain it otherwise.

In terms of strength, aside from the snake cub, who here wasn’t stronger than Changxia?

But luck is such an intangible thing—sometimes it’s there, sometimes it’s not. It’s mysterious like that.

Gen fell silent, turning his gaze to Elder Pukang. Pukang was picking his nose, thought for a moment, then nodded and said, “Gen, have Chenrong take Changxia and pack up the camp. We’ll head straight for Weishan.”

Yun, Dongge, and Lei immediately got to work, butchering the black-horned cattle.

However, the black-horned cow with a calf could only be released. When they returned from Weishan, if the cow was still around, they’d bring her back to the tribe. If not, they’d just have to wait for another chance to hunt.

For now, getting to Weishan was more important.

A short while later,

Elder Pukang was munching on roasted meat as the group set off toward Weishan.

This time, no one transformed into their beast forms; they traveled in human form. Chenrong carried Changxia on his back, racing across the grasslands with the others at great speed.

Changxia lay on Chenrong’s back, eyes half-closed, enjoying the pleasant feeling of the wind brushing past her face. Nearby, Nan Feng looked on, full of envy.

As they picked up speed, Weishan gradually came into view.

At the same time, the clear waters of the little river began to look as if they’d been tainted with filth.

Changxia realized they must have reached the foot of Weishan.

The little river ahead was no longer the same—it was now the Wei River.

Its gray-black surface shimmered strangely in the sunlight, giving off an eerie, unsettling feeling. No wonder so few beastfolk dared approach the Wei River; just looking at it was enough to make your skin crawl. Who would dare go near it unless they had a death wish?

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