Chapter 196: Chapter 196: The Wei River

“Wei River—”

The group stopped, all eyes fixed on the obstacle ahead.

“To cross the Wei River is to reach Weishan on the other side. Strictly speaking, this stretch isn’t really called the Wei River; the name refers mainly to the section that flows through the Wangyue mountain range and Weishan.”

“In the Misty Forest, the Wei River is infamous.”

“The beasts in this river are far more dangerous than those in any other waters of the Misty Forest.”

Changxia stared in shock at the gray-black water. “This river looks so strange—is it really safe?”

“At most, there are carnivorous fish in the river. You won’t find crocodiles or giant pythons here. After all, Weishan is tribal territory, and there are no river beasts in the waters within our lands,” Gen said confidently.

The Heluo tribe is right next to the sacred mountain of the Kanashaman Hall.

This is the place closest to the shamans’ way of life.

The rivers here are absolutely safe and harmless.

“This water only looks scary. It’s really no different from the little river,” Nan Feng agreed.

The real danger is the Wei River!

Just mentioning it makes beastfolk turn pale. There’s no need to go near it—almost no beastfolk are willing to approach, let alone enter it. That would be suicide.

“Hiss—”

Suddenly, the snake cub coiled around Changxia’s arm let out an urgent hiss.

Its tiny tail stood straight up, slapping Changxia’s arm repeatedly.

“What’s wrong, little one?” Changxia asked softly, lowering her head.

Gen glanced at the snake cub on Changxia’s arm and said, “Changxia, he’s warning you there’s danger ahead. This cub’s alertness must come from an extraordinary bloodline.”

“I smell a trace of Sheguo’er,” Pukang said offhandedly, his gaze scrutinizing the snake cub.

Sheguo’er—a legendary figure in the Misty Forest decades ago.

Now, like Elder Pukang and the others, she’d retired from the spotlight, no longer stirring up trouble. But any beastfolk living in the Misty Forest would know her name.

“Chief, who is Sheguo’er?” Changxia asked curiously.

Gen sucked in a breath, pressing a hand to his stomach to hide his discomfort. Just hearing the name Sheguo’er made his stomach hurt.

Back then, he’d almost been dragged off to the Sheyue tribe to marry her.

Her fierceness and madness were unmatched.

Fortunately, Elder Pukang and Elder Yami had intervened and rescued him. Not many in the tribe knew about this—after all, it wasn’t exactly a glorious story.

“Sheguo’er was the previous chief of the Sheyue tribe, a truly terrifying female. If this snake cub is from her line, then those wanderers who sneaked into the Wangyue mountains won’t leave the Misty Forest alive,” Gen said coldly.

In terms of combat, Sheguo’er might not match Elder Pukang.

But in ruthlessness, no one could compare.

The wanderers entered the Wangyue mountains to hunt giant pythons and kidnap snake cubs.

Either act alone would have enraged the Sheyue tribe.

Surviving would be next to impossible.

No wonder the wanderers dared to enter the Wei River—if they didn’t, they’d die anyway.

Dead sooner or later, so why not take a chance?

“Changxia, the Sheyue tribe is one of the few in the Misty Forest where the females are stronger than the males. The tribe is usually led by a female chief,” Nan Feng explained.

As she finished, she cast a furtive glance at Gen.

Gen looked at Nan Feng and said leisurely, “Don’t even think about it, Nan Feng. You’re too weak. Wanting to be chief is just wishful thinking. Among the totem warriors of your age, who could you beat?”

When it came to serious matters, Gen didn’t spare Nan Feng’s feelings.

The chief’s position belongs to the strong.

Nan Feng was too weak, not strong enough. She couldn’t take on the role of chief.

Besides strength, she didn’t stand out in any other way either.

So, she was even less qualified to take the position from Gen.

“Southwind, you can do it!” Yundong smiled encouragingly.

Immediately, Gorei and the others also began to cheer Southwind on.

Southwind pouted, grumbling, “Are you all doing this on purpose?” She wanted to be the clan chief mainly to have an excuse to slack off. Unfortunately, Gen quickly shattered her little fantasy.

Among Southwind’s generation in the tribe, Maple Leaf’s strength ranked in the top five, on par with the other totem warriors. However, none of them were particularly outstanding.

The tribe’s elders had high hopes for Luyou. If Maple Leaf and the others were unwilling to take on the role of chief, the tribe would probably choose to cultivate Luyou for the position. Of course, this wasn’t something openly discussed in the tribe.

Gen was still young, and he could easily remain chief for several more decades. In that time, not just Luyou, but even younger tribe members would have grown up.

“Southwind, I never knew you had such lofty ambitions!” Changxia exclaimed in surprise.

Southwind rolled her eyes and retorted, “What ambitions? That’s nonsense.”

After some teasing, the group arrived at the bank of the Wei River. Looking at the river, which was over ten meters wide, they began to discuss how to cross to the other side.

This side of the river was next to Mount Wei, with no signs of animal activity. The area was surrounded by dense trees and flowers, so quiet it felt almost eerie.

“Let’s cut down some trees and use them to cross,” Gen suggested.

Yundong and Gorei led the group into action, using brute strength to ride the felled trees across the river—a method probably only beastfolk would think of.

Chenrong shielded Changxia in front of him, nimbly landing atop a large tree.

Yundong and Gorei chopped down three trees, stripped off the branches, and left only the trunks. Seven people stood on each trunk, pushing the logs across the river with sheer force.

The young snake beast cubs were too small, so they weren’t counted in.

Splash, splash—

The trees hit the water with a series of loud splashes.

Changxia kept her head down, staring intently at the river’s surface, hoping to see what was beneath. Unfortunately, no matter how hard she looked, she couldn’t see anything.

“Don’t move around,” Chenrong said, holding Changxia tight to keep her from swaying and risking a fall into the river. He was just as curious about the Wei River as she was, but much steadier.

Now wasn’t the time to be curious about the river’s mysteries.

“The blackfish in the Wei River are especially delicious. If you’re curious, Changxia, once we reach the other side and find a place to settle, Chenrong can take you fishing. Don’t be fooled by how strange the Wei River is—the fish here taste better than those from any other river,” Pukang joked.

Beastfolk didn’t like eating fish—too many bones, easy to hurt their mouths. But besides its reputation for danger, the Wei River was also famous for its fish. Normally, beastfolk avoided the river, but occasionally, some would brave it to catch blackfish and other species for a treat.

Of course, no one dared venture into Mount Wei itself. In the eyes of the beastfolk, Mount Wei was even more dangerous than the river.

“Really?” Changxia asked in surprise.

Gen smiled and nodded, agreeing, “Elder Pukang isn’t lying. You were in poor health when you were younger, so the elders would go to the Wei River in the Moonwatch Mountains to catch blackfish for you. You liked it a lot. They just told you it was bird meat.”

Fishy smell, too many bones—that’s why beastfolk disliked fish. But the fish from the Wei River weren’t fishy at all, even eaten raw, which was quite miraculous.

Unfortunately, there were too many dangerous river beasts in the Wei River. Otherwise, the beastfolk wouldn’t mind eating fish—at least, fish from this river.