Crossing to Live in the Wilderness Plains 167
Chapter 167
After a month, Ajiu’s body recovered. Ake took him into his home, where there was still a vacant room that the boy could live in until he reached adulthood.
Aze ladled out the freshly cooked porridge and handed it to Chen Qi. “It snowed again last night. Are you still going to run on the playground today?”
“Yes.” Chen Qi carried the porridge to the table and set it down. “You don’t have guard duty these two days, right? After clearing the snow on the playground, let’s practice archery together.”
Aze brought over the last two bowls of porridge. “Alright.”
“Ajing, Little Wolf, are you two ready? It’s time to eat.” Chen Qi called toward the washing room.
A white head poked out from behind the door, followed by a child dressed in a bright red fur outfit. Chen Qi watched the two little ones come over and skillfully sit in their usual places. Stroking his chin, he said to Aze, “Aze, don’t you think Little Wolf has grown taller again?”
The little wolf cub looked up when it heard Chen Qi call its name.
Aze handed the chopsticks to Chen Qi. “Yeah, he’s almost up to Ajing’s shoulder now.”
“I’m only eight this year. I’m still going to grow taller,” Ajing muttered, poking at his bowl of meat porridge with his chopsticks.
The little wolf cup stuck out its tongue and licked Ajing’s hand that hung down. Before, it couldn’t even reach the stool, and Aze had to make a taller one so it could climb up to eat. Now, although the stool was still custom-made, its height was the same as everyone else’s—only the seat was widened to fit the wolf’s growing body so it could squat comfortably on top.
Chen Qi poured a cup of warmed milk fruit and handed it to Ajing. “Of course, if you drink a cup of milk fruit every day, you’ll grow faster than Little Wolf.”
Ajing scrunched up his small face. Even one-year-old beastmen didn’t drink milk fruit anymore, and he couldn’t understand why Chen Qi was so insistent about him drinking it every day. Could it really make someone taller? He was sure that even Aze had stopped drinking it after turning one, yet he still grew so tall.
Crossing to Live in the Wilderness Plains (CLWP) is translated by Betwixted Translations. The site you’re reading this chapter on stole our translation.
“Awoo.” When the little wolf cub saw that Chen Qi had poured a dish of warm milk fruit for it as well, it gave a soft, milky whine, its childish voice not at all matching its growing body. Chen Qi couldn’t help but reach out and ruffle its beautiful snow-white fur.
Aze quietly picked out some of Chen Qi’s favorite food for him and reminded him that if he didn’t drink the milk fruit soon, it would get cold. Chen Qi reluctantly let go of the little wolf cub.
The little wolf cub, bewildered after being ruffled by Chen Qi and then glared at disapprovingly by Aze, lowered its head and pitifully lapped up its milk fruit.
Watching the little wolf cub happily drinking its milk fruit, Ajing wondered whether its rapid growth was really because of that. After a moment’s hesitation, he tilted his head back and drank his own milk fruit in one gulp.
After breakfast, the three and the wolf brought what they needed for the day and went to the school. To save resources, most beastmen gathered there to study or work together. Over time, several of the newly joined males had found mates. Azhang, the patriarch, was overjoyed and even held a grand wedding feast for them that lasted three whole days, despite the freezing weather.
“Chen Qi, let’s clear the snow off the playground,” Ka Luo said, coming out with tools just as Chen Qi and the others entered the school gate.
Before Chen Qi could speak, the long-unheard warning wolf howl echoed from afar.
“I’ll go check it out. You all wait inside,” Aze said hastily to Chen Qi before running toward the wall, followed by several females who had rushed out of the classroom.
“What’s going on? Are dragons attacking again?” Ka Luo asked, not looking particularly afraid. He had helped build the tribe’s defenses and was confident that the structures and traps could keep any dragons out.
“Not sure. Let’s head inside first and wait until Aze and the others return to see what’s going on.”
Now that there were two walls, the beastmen who couldn’t fight didn’t need to hide in the cellar—they just had to stay in the classrooms. Ali had already started counting heads, making sure every noncombatant was in a safe place in case of danger.
Aze was gone for less than an hour. During that time, Chen Qi hadn’t heard any sounds of fighting or the roars of beasts.
“What’s wrong? Was it dragons attacking?” Chen Qi asked, feeling a bit of relief at the sight of Aze’s slightly complicated expression. He knew his partner well—if Aze looked like this, it meant that even if dragons had come, the situation wasn’t too serious and wouldn’t endanger the tribe. Still, Chen Qi was puzzled about what could make Aze look so conflicted.
“Brother, so it wasn’t dragons?” Ka Luo and Ali exchanged glances and asked doubtfully.
“Yes, it was a dragon,” Aze nodded. “But it was a hydrochoerus dragon.”
Crossing to Live in the Wilderness Plains (CLWP) is translated by Betwixted Translations. The site you’re reading this chapter on stole our translation.
“Hydrochoerus dragon?” Why would a dragon species that had disappeared since last winter appear here?
Only when Chen Qi stood on the ice city wall did he understand what Aze meant.
This time, it was indeed hydrochoerus dragons, and there were not many—only four or five, ranging from adult males and females to young ones. They looked like a family, but they didn’t seem to be attacking; rather, they appeared to have gotten lost and wandered here. Before they even approached the city wall, they had all conveniently fallen into the deep pit traps outside.
Azhang also didn’t understand why the vanished hydrochoerus dragons suddenly appeared here, so he didn’t dare to rashly send anyone down to check the situation.
“You don’t think these hydrochoerus dragons are bait driven here by the hyena-drakes, do you?”
“We cannot rule out this possibility.”
“…” Chen Qi paused for a moment, “Do the dragons here evolve?”
“Evolve?”
“Would they become intelligent creatures like beastmen who know how to think?”
Hearing Chen Qi’s question, Azhang froze, bowed his head, and thought for a moment, then shook his head. “I don’t know.”
“I think we can observe the situation first. If there are no signs of hyena-drakes nearby, we can have people bring these hydrochoerus dragons back,” Chen Qi said with a smile. “After all, free food delivered to our door—why not take it?”
Azhang nodded. He had the same thought.
By late afternoon, the beastmen Azhang sent to patrol outside found no traces of other dragons nearby. Only then did he order people to pull the trapped hydrochoerus dragons back to the city, and the traps were re-camouflaged.
The unexpected prey made everyone in the tribe very happy. They had not eaten any meat other than fish for a long time.
That evening, a simple meeting was held at Azhang’s house. Everyone discussed the situation. Although they concluded that there might be some disturbance in the forest, they did not suggest entering it at such a time. After all, according to Ajiu’s information, the number of hyena-drakes active outside had already grown far beyond what the small group of beastmen in Qi Ze City could handle. Entering the forest now would be extremely dangerous. Staying in Qi Ze City and relying on its defenses should still be enough to survive.
However, within a few days, they encountered a swarm of locust dragons.
This swarm was much larger than the one from last year. All the locust dragons’ eyes were bloodshot, and their tempers were violent. Every tall tree outside Qi Ze City that blocked their path was pushed down and uprooted.
Fortunately, this swarm was still a fair distance from Qi Ze City’s ice wall, and they showed no signs of straying from their group. Although they made a great commotion, they did not seem to pose any immediate danger.
“Did all the locust dragons from the forest come out this time?” Ale asked nervously.
Crossing to Live in the Wilderness Plains (CLWP) is translated by Betwixted Translations. The site you’re reading this chapter on stole our translation.
The swarm marched for more than half a day before finally moving completely away from Qi Ze City. The faces of all the beastmen who witnessed it were grim. It was easy to imagine that if such a swarm attacked, the small ice wall would never hold them back.
However, no one could answer Ale’s question. As the locust dragons departed, the beastmen’s heavy hearts did not lighten.
Afterward, the ice wall was thickened by several more meters. More traps were dug outside the city, and a new row of palisades was added, with plenty of tobacco buried beneath it. Though the area around was now more open, and they didn’t know how effective the smoke’s numbing effect would be in such a space, even the slightest effect offered the beastmen a shred of hope for survival.
“It seems several more of your subordinates have awakened intelligence?” The giant wolf-god looked better than before—its fur no longer so withered—and it was able to feed itself again.
“If you mean they can talk, then yes,” the hyena-drake leader said slowly as it walked forward, followed by its mighty pack. It did not care if the beastmen saw it; in any case, they could never escape its claws.
“Do you plan to eat all the beastmen? If you kill them all, where will you find such delicious food again?”
The hyena-drake leader let out a laugh, as though it had heard a fine joke. “Do you think I can kill all of them?”
“Didn’t you almost wipe out the entire giant wolf-god tribe? There’s nothing you can’t do,” it said, knowing that the hyena-drake leader’s pack from the plains was less than a third the size of its own former following.
“This is different.” The hyena-drake’s eyes darkened, and it ignored the giant wolf-god.
The giant wolf-god turned back to the adult male hyena-drake walking behind them and flicked its tail. The male hyena-drake stepped forward, slightly bowed, and lowered its head meekly, waiting for the giant wolf-god to speak.
“I’m tired. I can’t walk anymore.”
The male hyena-drake slowly lay down. The giant wolf-god climbed onto its back. Its body was much larger, its gray-white fur almost covering the smaller beast completely. Yet the male hyena-drake seemed unbothered by the weight and easily stood up, carrying the giant wolf-god.
The giant wolf-god adjusted to a comfortable position and closed its eyes. When it finally stopped moving, the male hyena-drake rose and trotted forward to catch up with its leader, who had already gone some distance ahead. The other hyena-drakes, who had been waiting, fell back into line and marched on in an orderly fashion.
“Come to think of it, I remember there’s a big lake nearby. There should be beastmen living around it.”
“The water in that lake is salty—undrinkable. Who would risk their life living in a place like that?” The giant wolf-god didn’t even lift an eyelid. It seemed to be growing increasingly drowsy lately.
“I’ve never seen a great salt lake before. Consider it a chance to broaden our horizons.”
“Can’t even shapeshift, yet still dream of thinking like a beastman…”
Before the giant wolf-god finished speaking, sharp claws gripped its throat. The hyena-drake leader’s reddened eyes fixed on it for a long moment before loosening. Then it resumed walking casually. “Then let’s go take a look at that salt lake. You haven’t eaten for days—let’s find you something tasty.”
The giant wolf-god said nothing more, lying quietly on the male hyena-drake’s back.
Words from the Translation Crew
Miiya: 1 of 3 for the week. Longer chapter coming up.
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.
