Chapter 78: Chapter 78: Chang Xia’s Beast Form

“They’re born. They’re born.”

Chang Xia and the others exchanged glances, murmuring to themselves.

Their legs went weak, and they sat down on the ground, grinning foolishly in the direction of Nuan Chun’s cave. At this moment, none of them were in a hurry to go inside and see the cubs.

They needed to rest—their hearts were pounding too fast.

“They’re born, they’re born!” Shan Kun staggered to his feet and tiptoed to the ironwood door of the cave, peeking inside.

The shaman cleaned up the birthing tools, and Elder Yami wiped the sweat from Nuan Chun’s body. Mu Qin and He Yun helped wash the newborn cubs, drying them off with soft green cloths and wrapping them up before placing them beside Nuan Chun.

The newborn cubs were about the size of a human palm, in their beast forms.

Chubby, pink, and adorable.

They were irresistibly cute.

“Shan Kun, go on in!”

After a moment, the shaman and Elder Yami came out and opened the door for Shan Kun. Among the beast tribe, there weren’t many restrictions after a female gave birth—good food, good rest, and after a few days, she could get out of bed and move around.

Shan Kun went inside, while Mu Qin and He Yun tidied up the cave.

“I can still hold on,” Nuan Chun said.

“Chang Xia, what are you—” Mu Qin looked at Chang Xia and Fen Huhu in confusion. If she remembered correctly, Chang Xia had already eaten breakfast. So, what were Chang Xia and Fen Huhu planning to do now?

Chang Xia gestured toward Nuan Chun and explained, “The shaman asked me to prepare some food for Nuan Chun, but I haven’t started yet… Nuan Chun says she’s hungry again.”

“I’m just craving something, not really hungry,” Nuan Chun said, embarrassed, her voice low.

“Shaman, let me do it,” Mu Qin stepped forward and took over supporting Nuan Chun, helping her walk slowly in the courtyard. He Yun assisted Chang Xia and Fen Huhu. Since Nuan Chun’s house didn’t have a bone pot, they had to use a clay pot to steam the rice noodles. Chang Xia was worried they’d stick, so she brushed a layer of oil in the pot before pouring in the rice batter.

Fortunately, they only needed to make enough noodle soup for Nuan Chun.

Otherwise, just steaming the noodles would have made Chang Xia’s hands ache from exhaustion.

There was nothing they could do about the lack of proper kitchen tools.

During this time, Nuan Chun’s pain worsened, and she couldn’t keep walking. Mu Qin helped her back into the cave dwelling.

Chang Xia brought in the finished noodle soup and fed Nuan Chun a big bowl.

Once she was full again, Nuan Chun lay down, planning to rest for a bit.

Suddenly, she cried out in pain, looking up at the shaman and Elder Yami.

She saw both of them nodding at the same time. Nearby, Mu Qin pushed Chang Xia out of the cave, and together with He Yun, they helped the shaman and Elder Yami get busy.

“Chang Xia, why is Nuan Chun screaming so miserably?” Nan Feng came rushing over, out of breath. Before she could catch her breath, she was startled by Nuan Chun’s sharp cries.

Chang Xia said, “She’s about to give birth.”

“Give—give birth?” Nan Feng’s mouth dropped open in shock.

“Not yet, but it’s starting,” Chang Xia clarified.

“Should we call Shan Kun back? I just ran into him down below—he seemed to be heading toward Ya Dong’s cave,” Nan Feng said. She had just delivered the shaman’s and Bai Qing’s animal skin bedding and daily necessities to Chang Xia’s cave.

On her way to Nuan Chun’s house, she happened to run into Shan Kun.

It looked like Shan Kun was giving the tribe instructions on digging caves.

“Yes, hurry!” Chang Xia nodded, urging her.

Nan Feng sighed inwardly. She really couldn’t catch a break.

She turned and ran straight toward Ya Dong’s house, shouting Shan Kun’s name as she went.

Her shout startled the entire Bai Lake tribe.

“Shan Kun—”

Hearing his name, Shan Kun looked up toward his own cave.

What did Nan Feng want?

“Shan Kun, go home! Hurry!”

Nearby, some tribespeople quickly realized what was happening and called out to remind Shan Kun to go home.

Shan Kun froze, suddenly remembering something.

Without another word, he dropped the wooden tool he was using to dig the cave and sprinted madly toward his own home.

“Ah!”

“Shaman, Elder Yami, it hurts! It hurts so much!”

Inside the cave, Nuan Chun was screaming in agony. Beads of sweat rolled down her forehead, soaking the animal skin bedding beneath her, and even the dry straw on the kang bed was starting to get damp.

“Nuan Chun, breathe with me,” Su Ye said gently.

She placed a hand on Nuan Chun’s belly, gently massaging to help with the delivery. At the same time, an invisible force flowed from Su Ye’s hand into Nuan Chun’s body, easing her pain.

Listening to Su Ye’s soothing voice, Nuan Chun’s cries gradually softened.

Elder Yami carefully wiped the sweat from Nuan Chun’s face with a green cloth.

Mu Qin and He Yun sterilized the items Su Ye had brought with boiling water and placed them within easy reach.

Chang Xia bit her finger, pacing anxiously in the courtyard.

Nuan Chun’s screams made her heart race with worry.

Luckily, before long, Shan Kun and Nan Feng returned. Soon, the three of them were pacing back and forth in the courtyard, silent and tense.

Time ticked by.

Inside the cave, Nuan Chun’s screams faded in and out. Shan Kun’s legs felt weak, and he collapsed to the ground several times.

Finally, Chang Xia and Nan Feng couldn’t stand it anymore.

They dragged Shan Kun to a chair and forced him to sit down.

At noon, suddenly, two tender roars broke the silence, drowning out Nuan Chun’s cries.

In that instant, the entire Bai Lake tribe froze.

Awooo—

The soft, milky roars—the first cries of newborn leopard cubs—announced the arrival of the beast babies.

Shan Kun sprang to his feet and let out a triumphant beast roar, “Roar—roar—”

The high and low roars echoed under the sky above Chang Xia and the others. Soon, the same roars could be heard from the tribe.

One after another.

The tribespeople were celebrating the birth of the new beast cubs, welcoming them into the world.

Chapter 78: Chang Xia’s Beast Form

“They’re born… They’re really born.”

Chang Xia and the others exchanged glances, murmuring to themselves.

Their legs gave out and they plopped to the ground, grinning foolishly in the direction of Nuan Chun’s cave. For now, none of them were in a hurry to go inside and see the cubs.

They needed a moment to catch their breath—their hearts were pounding too fast.

“They’re born, they’re born!” Shan Kun staggered to his feet, tiptoed to the ironwood door of the cave, and peered inside.

The shaman cleaned up the birthing tools, while Elder Yami wiped the sweat from Nuan Chun’s body. Mu Qin and He Yun helped wash the newborn cubs, carefully drying them with soft green cloths before wrapping them up and placing them beside Nuan Chun.

The newborns were about the size of a human palm, in beast form.

Round-headed, chubby, and pink.

They looked absolutely adorable.

“Shan Kun, go on in!”

After a moment, the shaman and Elder Yami came out and opened the door for Shan Kun to enter. Among the beast tribe, there weren’t many taboos after a female gave birth—just good food, good rest, and after a few days, she’d be up and about as usual.

Shan Kun went inside, while Mu Qin and He Yun tidied up the cave.

Afterwards, they left the cave dwelling to the family of four.

“Changxia, aren’t you going to see the babies?” Muqin asked.

She poured out the dirty water from the wooden basin and rinsed it several times with hot water. Since Nuanchun shouldn’t be moved for now, the soiled animal-skin bedding on the kang would have to wait until she regained her strength—then Shankun could change and wash it. That wasn’t something for Muqin and the others to handle.

Changxia glanced nervously in the direction of the cave. “I… I’ll wait a bit longer.”

The newborns were so soft and fragile, utterly powerless.

Changxia had a bit of a psychological shadow about this.

And the person responsible for that shadow was, ironically, herself.

Everyone thought Changxia didn’t remember being found by Wu, but in truth, she did. She just didn’t dare recall it, deliberately forcing herself to forget.

She really didn’t want to remember those memories of weakness and helplessness.

Pain—endless, boundless pain.

So much so that she couldn’t even manage to bite her tongue and end it all.

Changxia hated the person she was back then.

Meanwhile, Nan Feng darted into the cave, studying Nuanchun’s newborn twins with great interest. Moments later, she was chased out by Shankun, who wore a cold expression.

“Shankun, why are you pushing me? I’m not wrong—your babies are really ugly, like little mice. Tiny and ugly. I remember Changxia was so cute back then…”

Nan Feng grumbled, unhappy at being shoved out of the cave.

Not far away, everyone could hear Nan Feng’s muttering.

Everyone was speechless—what kind of thing was that to say?

No wonder Shankun kicked her out.

“Nan Feng, what nonsense are you spouting? The babies are so cute, how can you call them little mice?” Muqin glared at her adopted daughter, exasperated. She was getting more and more careless with her words.

And she was always calling Yadong dumb.

Muqin figured Nan Feng wasn’t much better than Yadong herself.

Nan Feng, dissatisfied, went to Su Ye and asked, “Wu, wasn’t Changxia super cute when she was little? All white and soft, so comfy to hold.”

“Changxia’s beast form was indeed very pretty,” Su Ye nodded.

The chinchilla tribe’s beast forms were usually a mix of gray, black, and white. Pure-colored chinchillas were extremely rare.

Changxia was one of those rare, pure-colored chinchillas.

Well, “pure” wasn’t quite accurate.

Her beast form was pure white, but the tips of her ears, the center of her brows, and the tip of her tail each had a streak of gold. In a sense, Changxia was a rare, odd-colored chinchilla.

Wu had been shocked when she found Changxia all those years ago.

There were plenty of chinchillas in the Twilight Forest, living alongside the snake and fox tribes, mostly in the western part of the forest. But Wu had found Changxia at the forest’s edge, a place rarely visited by anyone.

Wu had gone there to gather herbs—if she’d been even a quarter of an hour later, Changxia would have died.

After finding her, Wu sent people to the west to look for her kin.

The investigation found no missing chinchillas, which meant Changxia wasn’t from the west. But if not, then where did she come from?

Changxia rolled her eyes.

She hadn’t forgotten how, when she was little and couldn’t take human form, people would always be picking her up. Everyone who held her loved to pinch and kiss her. She’d always hated being close to people, but every time she was hugged and kissed, she’d feel especially happy.

That feeling was unforgettable, even now.

Sometimes she wondered if she had a split personality.

She’d complain about it, but deep down, she really liked it.

Tsundere? No way.

She definitely wasn’t tsundere.

“Changxia—!”

Suddenly, Shenrong’s voice called out from afar.

Changxia jumped to her feet and replied, “Shenrong, I’m at Nuanchun’s place!”

She turned and quickly said a few words to Wu, then hurried home. Shenrong had been busy for a whole day and night—he must be starving. She needed to go home and make him something to eat.

“Wu, Elder Yami, Shenrong is back from Redleaf Ridge. I’ll head home first and come back later to see the babies.”

Wu waved her hand. “Go ahead! Take Baiqing with you—he’s not much help here anyway.”

Baiqing had been quietly sitting by the stove, tending the fire. There wasn’t much for him to do here; he might as well go back with Changxia.

“Baiqing, come home with your sister,” Changxia called, then dashed off without waiting for him.

Baiqing, face expressionless, followed at a leisurely pace.

Meanwhile, Nan Feng was still arguing with Shankun.

But seeing Nuanchun looking tired, both of them unconsciously lowered their voices.

“Muqin, help look after things here. Heyun and I will head back to the tribe—there’s still work to do boiling down the red maple sap. We’ll go help,” Yami said.

Su Ye nodded seriously. “It’ll rain tomorrow night. The day after, the rainy season officially begins. If the tribe needs to get anything done, better hurry.”

Of course, the rainy season meant more rain, but that didn’t mean it rained every day.

It just meant the rain would be heavier and more frequent. Plus, all sorts of poisonous insects and snakes would start appearing in the forest.

That’s why the beastfolk didn’t like the rainy season much.

After all, hunting and gathering in the rain was a pain.

You’d be soaked and sticky, hot and uncomfortable. On top of that, you had to watch out for poisonous creatures sneaking up on you. All these things made hunting and gathering much harder.

“Changxia’s hotpot feast might be in trouble!” Muqin said with a smile.

Su Ye thought for a moment and said, “We could have the hotpot feast tomorrow night—if the tribe can spare the time, that is.”

When the rainy season arrived, the first rain would last for several days.

After that, it would turn into sudden showers—rain for a bit, then stop, then rain again, and so on. This would go on for over a month before things finally settled down. Once the rainy season was in full swing, everything would go back to normal.

If you compared it to Earth’s seasons, this was the rainy period between spring and summer.

Once summer arrived, things would return to normal.

Actually, the main reason is that the beastfolk don’t have clear distinctions between seasons—they divide them in a simple, rough way based on the weather. If it rains, it’s the rainy season; if it’s warm, it’s the warm season; if it’s cold, it’s the cold season. They don’t have any more detailed breakdowns than that.

After all, the beastfolk live pretty casually and aren’t particular about such things.

Muqin tilted her head, considering Su Ye’s suggestion.

“The red maple sap at Redleaf Ridge has mostly been collected, and the clan’s cave dwellings should all be finished by today. We should have time to hold the hotpot feast tomorrow night.”