Crossing to Live in the Wilderness Plains 197
Chapter 197
Axiang, having made his decision, hurriedly arranged for several beastmen from his tribe and returned to the Lion-Wolf Tribe before dawn the next day.
Chen Qi checked the current construction progress and then focused on organizing the records. Ali put down his own work and came to help.
There was no photocopier here; everything had to be done manually. Many of the original design drafts Chen Qi had made were just rough sketches for convenience. Previously, he had only made a single copy for preservation. Now, needing to share them with other tribes, Chen Qi had no choice but to redraw them overnight. Fortunately, Aze’s practical skills were quite good, and many simple parts could be roughly reconstructed by comparison. Chen Qi assigned some of the easier tasks to Aze.
The little wolf cub seemed to sense that a possible kin would arrive soon. After sending Ajing to school each day, it no longer clung to him but followed Aze up to the city wall, its big round eyes fixed on the direction of the Lion-Wolf Tribe, as if waiting for the arrival of its own kind.
Even traveling day and night, the Lion-Wolf Tribe was nearly a week away from Qi Ze City. Chen Qi had mentioned this several times to the little wolf cub, but he wasn’t sure if it understood. Regardless, the next morning, it still went up to the wall to keep watch, only returning home obediently for meals. Seeing its persistence, Chen Qi let it be.
“Chen Qi! Chen Qi! The shell’s broken!” In the hall, a large wooden box lined with soft furs and straw held a snow-white egg, now cracked open. Ka Luo, who had been watching intently, leapt into the yard in a few quick steps, waving at Chen Qi, who was bonding with the foal.
“So fast.” Chen Qi placed a small handful of weeds into the foal’s feeding trough, barely cleaning the wild grass sap from his hands, and hurried after Ka Luo back inside.
The captured snow geese, still alive, were agitated, leaping wildly in their wooden cages. Chen Qi, worried that they might break the eggs, didn’t let them incubate the eggs further. Instead, he maintained the temperature around the eggs. Since the eggs were near hatching, keeping them warm would be sufficient.
To Chen Qi’s surprise, only two days after capture, the first snow gosling was already starting to hatch.
Ali, who had been learning about raising animals at Chen Qi’s house, grabbed his notebook upon hearing Ka Luo’s shout and followed him inside.
To avoid crushing the eggs, there were four or five such boxes. The box closest to the fire hatched first. Ayao leaned over the edge, eyes wide with curiosity, and was about to touch the cracked shell when Chen Qi gently held his little finger.
“Don’t touch. The little snow goose has to come out on its own to survive.”
Crossing to Live in the Wilderness Plains (CLWP) is translated by Betwixted Translations. The site you’re reading this chapter on stole our translation.
Ayao glanced at Chen Qi with a vague understanding and then resumed watching carefully.
The hatching was slow. After several minutes, a fluffy little head appeared, its eyes still closed, letting out a faint cry to announce its presence.
Following this first call, the other eggs in the boxes also began to stir. By afternoon, more than a dozen had hatched.
Chen Qi transferred the first batch of hatchlings to a new box. Earlier, he had raised several fish and shrimp in the moat for this purpose. Now, he had Ka Luo catch a fish, mash it into a bowl, and patiently feed the hatchlings bit by bit with a clean wooden stick.
“Will we be able to keep them alive?” Ka Luo asked cautiously. The newborns were so fragile that he felt one poke could kill them.
“I don’t know. Let’s just try.” Chen Qi set down the empty pottery bowl. Though he had raised a few small animals before, he had never cared for snow geese, and wasn’t confident. He had only seen chicks raised in the countryside as a child and wasn’t sure if the process was similar.
Ali recorded Chen Qi’s feeding amounts meticulously. Since learning numbers, he noted everything before doing it, worried he might forget. “What if one dies?”
Chen Qi pointed to the remaining eggs. “There are plenty more. If one dies, we can replace it. No worries.” After all, that was why he had brought so many eggs back.
“…..” That made so much sense, Ali was speechless.
The next day, another dozen snow geese hatched. Chen Qi kept the new batch separate from the previous ones. Ka Luo took responsibility for the first batch, while Ali continued to record and assist. He would soon accompany Azhang to the Lion-Wolf Tribe and wouldn’t have time to continue learning animal care.
Aside from the first one or two days when the earliest snow goose chicks hatched, the later ones emerged much more slowly. By the time Axiang brought the beastmen of the Lion-Wolf Tribe back into Qi Ze City, one-third of the eggs still showed no signs of movement. Chen Qi knew those eggs were most likely already dead.
The red-fruit trees on both sides of the road had already grown over two meters tall. Their leaves had completely fallen off two days earlier, and now their branches were covered in pink blossoms. The flowers resembled peach blossoms, though smaller, clustered densely along the branches. If these red-fruit trees grew for another year or two and became taller, the scenery would surely be even more beautiful.
Axiang hadn’t paid much attention to these trees on his first visit. But when he stepped through the gate this time, his vision was immediately filled with waves of pink, leaving him momentarily stunned. On his back was a pale young man. The young man’s eyes—usually devoid of emotion—showed a flicker of surprise when they were met with this sea of pink.
Crossing to Live in the Wilderness Plains (CLWP) is translated by Betwixted Translations. The site you’re reading this chapter on stole our translation.
“So beautiful.” The young man’s voice was very soft, but Axiang, who had been attentive to his every movement, still heard it.
“When we go back, I’ll plant a whole grove of these trees for you, alright?”
The young man buried his face against Axiang’s shoulder, smiled, and replied, “Alright.”
Knowing that the people of the Lion-Wolf Tribe had arrived, Azhang and Achu went out of the gate to welcome them. Axiang exchanged a few quiet words with Azhang, then instructed Ayan to follow Azhang’s arrangements with the others, while he carried the young man toward Chen Qi’s home.
When Axiang arrived, Chen Qi was feeding a large flock of snow goose chicks. Fresh fish, minced together with mashed wild greens, was placed in bowls. The earliest hatchlings could already eat on their own, while the later ones still needed to be hand-fed.
A few heavy knocks sounded at the door. Chen Qi stepped out and saw Axiang standing outside the yard with a thin young man on his back. The young man offered Chen Qi a faint, slightly weak smile. But before Chen Qi could respond, a white figure shot out from behind him. Through the fence gate, the little wolf cub stared straight at the young man.
The little wolf cub had grown almost as tall as the fence by now, but since the young man was on Axiang’s back, he still had to tilt his head up slightly to meet its eyes.
Upon seeing the little wolf cub, the young man’s body trembled uncontrollably. He clutched tightly at the fabric on Axiang’s shoulder, his eyes reddening. Only after his emotions had steadied did he signal Axiang to set him down.
Axiang pushed open the gate and introduced them. “This is my mate, Lang Yan.”
Chen Qi gave Lang Yan a warm smile. “Hello, my name is Chen Qi.” Then he pointed at the little wolf cub. “And this is our Little Wolf.”
“Hello.” Lang Yan greeted the little wolf cub first before politely nodding back at Chen Qi, then again motioned for Axiang to put him down.
“Can you stand?” Axiang asked anxiously.
“I’m fine.”
Crossing to Live in the Wilderness Plains (CLWP) is translated by Betwixted Translations. The site you’re reading this chapter on stole our translation.
Seeing his mate insist, Axiang could only carefully lower him to the ground.
Lang Yan was dressed in the camouflage trousers that Axiang had exchanged from Qi Ze City, and wore a pair of cloth shoes slightly too small for him. He looked extremely thin. If Axiang hadn’t mentioned earlier that his legs still retained their beast form, nothing in his appearance would reveal he wasn’t a beastman.
The little wolf cub had stood quietly at the side from the moment it appeared, its golden eyes glimmering faintly as it stared intently at Lang Yan.
Perhaps because he hadn’t stood for so long, Lang Yan staggered the moment his feet touched the ground. Fortunately, Axiang steadied him before he fell. Once stable, Lang Yan gently pushed Axiang’s supporting hand away and patted the back of his hand comfortingly, before slowly walking toward the little wolf cub.
Chen Qi exchanged a glance with Axiang—he already suspected this Lang Yan might be of the same clan as the little wolf cub—and did not speak, afraid of disturbing them.
It was only a few steps, yet Lang Yan took several minutes to reach the little wolf cub. Sweat dotted his pale forehead, making Axiang’s heart tighten with worry.
Lang Yan bent down slightly. He was not tall to begin with, making it easy for him to lower his face toward the little wolf cub’s neck. He sniffed gently, then smiled. Straightening up, he stepped back a few paces and, under everyone’s surprised gazes, slowly crouched down into a submissive posture. Softly, he called out, “King.”
The two people beside him jumped in shock at Lang Yan’s sudden movement. Axiang hurried forward, scooped Lang Yan into his arms, and said to Chen Qi, “Let’s talk inside.” Then he carried Lang Yan inside the house.
Chen Qi nodded, bent down to rub the little wolf cub’s head—which had barely reacted this whole time—and whispered, “Little Wolf, let’s go in too.”
The little wolf cub lifted its head. The strange gleam in its eyes had vanished, replaced by the familiar clarity Chen Qi knew well. It licked Chen Qi’s palm with its soft pink tongue, then followed him inside.
Far away, at the place known as the end of the plains, an elderly man with white hair and brows leaned on a wooden staff. Standing high upon a stone step, he looked down at the giant wolf-god below.
“You are no longer the king of the Sanchen River. Why come here?”
The giant wolf-god lifted his head, a faint smile at the corner of his lips. “If I were still king, do you think I would be standing before you now?”
The old man sighed softly, his tone gentler. “Speak. Why have you come?”
“I want you to help me drive away the hyena-drakes.”
“The forest is no longer our responsibility.”
“The giant wolf-gods of the plains died out centuries ago, and the Sanchen River clan no longer exists. On this entire continent, your group is the last still alive. Do you want the beastmen to follow our path to extinction?”
The old man fell silent, staring at him quietly. After a long time, he let out a faint sigh.
Around them, several half-beast people watched the giant wolf-god with unfriendly eyes. Ever since they came to this place, they were no longer giant wolf-gods. And now—he wanted them to interfere in the affairs of the plains and the forest?
Words from the Translation Crew
Miiya: 1 of 3 for the week.
Translator: Miiya
Editor: MushroomKnight73
Proofreader: Yume
Editor stepping into the realm of MTL translating, starting with CLWP. Support this translation with a Ko-fi. Three Ko-fis will add an extra chapter from the stockpile to the next weekly release.
