The Kordo Tribe occasionally held a tribal bonfire party.
All the young men and women of the tribe would attend.
Ostensibly, it was to reward everyone for their years of contribution to the tribe, but in reality, it was just a matchmaking party.
High-spirited young males would vie for the affection of the females they desired, while the females would pick a male who caught their eye and could take him back to their den that very night to hook up and make cubs.
Sang Luo had no interest in this Otherworld's matchmaking party, nor did she want to get into any romantic entanglements in the Beast World. She hadn't planned on coming, but Li Man and the others had been so excited that they insisted on dragging her along.
The females were extremely enthusiastic about picking strong, handsome men for their harems, and Sang Luo didn't want to seem too strange, so she followed them to the tribal square that evening. She had deliberately bundled herself up in several layers of clothing until she was practically a mummy. Li Man was so startled she thought Sang Luo was sick and nearly dragged her off to see the witch doctor.
"I'm fine. I had an allergic reaction a few days ago and broke out in a small rash. I already got some ointment from the witch doctor. It'll clear up in a bit."
Li Man didn't press the issue, because her attention—along with the others'—was quickly captured by several muscular, handsome men with narrow waists and long legs. They had promised to bring Sang Luo to eat barbecue, but less than half an hour after arriving, she was completely alone.
"Sang Luo!"
Before long, however, an uninvited guest arrived.
"How about we make a deal? As long as you agree to leave the Kordo Tribe, I'll give you fifty Red Crystals."
Sang Luo looked up. It was her again.
'Manla still hasn't given up.'
'I'm going to leave the Kordo Tribe eventually, I don't need Manla to tell me to. This tribe can't hold me and Lan Cang anyway. But... fifty Red Crystals? Does she think I'm that cheap? Before Lan Cang left, he gave me a bag of Beast Crystals to spend freely. It has several hundred Red Crystals, plus Yellow, Orange, and even Green Crystals. That's more than enough to go live in a much wealthier tribe.'
"And another thing—I want you to leave Lan Cang. Leave him and stay far, far away. And never come back!"
Sang Luo rose to her feet and stared directly at her, her expression calm but seething with anger.
'If Manla truly liked Lan Cang, I would have stepped aside willingly. But I heard from Li Man and the others that things got ugly that day. After Lan Cang and I left, Manla insulted and mocked him in front of so many Beastmen, saying a good-for-nothing like him only deserved to be with a crippled mute!'
'Manla doesn't actually like Lan Cang at all. She just sees him as her possession.'
'Even if Lan Cang and I have no future together, I'll never hand him over to such a despicable woman!'
Sang Luo turned and walked out of the square.
"You! You'd better not regret this!"
A furious, teeth-gritting voice shouted from behind her.
"Amman, the Clan Leader is looking for you. Get the list for tonight's bonfire party organized and give it to him... Hmm? Who were you just talking to?" From a short distance away, Tu Zhu shrugged two large beast-hide bags of jerky off his shoulders. He strode over, glancing in the direction Sang Luo had gone.
"Hmph, no one worth looking at. Just that little mute Lan Cang brought back a while ago. An outsider female having the nerve to attend our Kordo Tribe's bonfire party... She even had the audacity to be rude to me! So reckless! Heh... Still, not a single male has approached her all evening. She didn't even dare get tested by the Female Stone. I bet there really is something wrong with her body. Probably can't even bear cubs," Manla said with disdain.
'That weak female's face is indeed pretty, with an innocent, radiant charm that not even an injury can hide. But what Beastmen value most is Fertility.'
'A female without Fertility is worthless.'
'No male would be willing to provide for her.'
'Lan Cang was just momentarily captivated by her novelty. Otherwise, why wouldn't he have mated with her by now?'
'She's just a pitiful plaything!'
"Oh, so it was her. I was the one who suggested giving her to that good-for-nothing. I didn't expect the good-for-nothing to actually accept."
Tu Zhu looked away.
'Was I imagining things? I thought I smelled a very sweet scent just now.' He glanced around but couldn't find its source.
...
...
Sang Luo stopped in her tracks. Staring at the unfamiliar mountain path before her, she came to the miserable realization that she was lost.
The Kordo Tribe covered a vast area. Some Beastmen liked to build single-story houses on the mountain slopes, while others preferred to live nestled against the mountainside. The Mouse Beasts even liked to dig burrows. With the residences so scattered and the mountain paths so winding, Sang Luo had trouble seeing the way as darkness fell.
'I can't just wander around. If I accidentally leave the safety of the tribe's territory, I could be swallowed whole by a Star Beast...'
"Where did you come from, little one? What are you doing just standing here all by yourself, looking so dazed?"