269: Chapter 269 Awake?

Chapter 269: Awake?

Yan Lie, who was currently taking care of The Cubs, suddenly heard a noise coming from inside the house.

"Wan Wan?"

He turned his head and called out, but received no reply. Feeling uneasy, he turned and entered the house.

"Wan Wan..."

After calling out a second time, there was still no response.

A very bad feeling rose in his heart.

He almost ran straight to Shi Hua's home.

The scene before him instantly froze his blood.

Shi Hua was lying motionless on the ground, and Wan Wan was nowhere in sight beside her.

He quickly rushed to Shi Hua's side, confirmed she was only unconscious, and immediately got up to search for any trace of Wan Wan.

"Wan Wan?"

After quickly searching the entire house, he saw Shi Hua's open front door and immediately rushed out.

It was the Harvest Festival, and their houses were right next to the Central Plaza, so many Beastmen were coming and going.

Yan Lie anxiously scanned the area, preparing to chase in the direction outside the Tribe.

Just then, Mu Feng returned carrying prey. Seeing him, Yan Lie urgently said, "Shi Hua and Wan Wan are in trouble. Shi Hua is likely affected by the Bewitching Fruit. Take a look inside the house for me, and please help me look after The Cubs."

Without giving Mu Feng time to speak, Yan Lie quickly transformed into a leopard and chased in the direction outside the Tribe.

He didn't know who took Wan Wan, or if they had taken her outside the Tribe.

But what he had to stop right now was any Beastman taking Wan Wan out.

If she was still within the Tribe, they had time to search slowly, but if she was taken outside the Tribe, where would they even begin to look?

Yan Lie shot out like an arrow released from a bow toward the outside of the Tribe's main gate.

The scorching heat gradually receded, and the sunlight turned a warm golden color.

The Snow Leopard mobilized the Innate Ability throughout his body, searching back and forth along the few paths outside the Tribe.

But after searching the few paths several times, he found no trace of Wan Wan.

Frustration and worry caused a surge of churning blood in his chest.

Just then, Xin Feng walked from ahead carrying prey.

"Yan Lie? What are you doing here?"

Yan Lie looked at him, self-reproach and sorrow almost spilling from his eyes.

Xin Feng immediately sensed something was wrong. His gentle expression vanished, replaced by gravity and seriousness. "Did something happen to Wan Wan?"

"Wan Wan is gone."

Blood vessels crisscrossed Yan Lie's amber eyes. He truly wanted to kill himself with one swipe of his paw—how could he let Wan Wan disappear under his watch again and again.

Xin Feng took a deep breath, telling himself to remain calm.

He also needed to soothe Yan Lie, whose emotions were almost out of control. "You have to look after The Cubs, so you can't watch Wan Wan every second. If no one was targeting Wan Wan, she wouldn't be in trouble even if we weren't watching. If a High-Ranked Male wanted to do something, they would always find an opportunity. What's important now is to find Wan Wan first."

"Mm!"

Xin Feng dropped the prey onto the ground. "I just came down from this mountain and didn't sense anything unusual. You search over there, and I'll search over here..."

After speaking, the two Males immediately separated, heading toward the two Mountain Peaks respectively.

The sky grew darker and darker, and Xin Feng searched in the Dense Forest for a long time.

So long that even he, who usually maintained a calm expression, was frowning deeply, his face full of anxiety.

Suddenly, he saw trees collapsing around him, and the area in the middle had turned to ashes.

He noticeably softened his landing when his four limbs touched the ground.

Coincidentally, movement came from ahead.

Abruptly, a giant King Cobra shot up from the forest and smashed down onto the nearby woodland.

Wherever it struck, trees snapped, branches broke, and vegetation flew everywhere.

His entire body was completely enveloped in black mist.

Not good...

Xin Feng recognized at a glance that Zhu Xiu was suffering a backlash from the dark curse again.

He had spoken with Zhu Xiu before; although energy stones could help him resist the dark curse, every time he suffered a backlash, the risk of being eroded by the dark curse and turning into a Beastman without consciousness increased.

As Xin Feng hesitated about how to help Zhu Xiu, Zhu Xiu had already noticed the Silver Wolf not far away.

The King Cobra seemed to instantly lock onto its prey. As its massive tongue flickered, its head rapidly approached Xin Feng.

The Silver Wolf leaped up from the spot, narrowly dodging Zhu Xiu's strike, then pushed off a tree trunk with its four limbs and jumped in another direction.

Zhu Xiu did not stop just because the first strike missed; he continued to pursue Xin Feng, trying to swallow the Silver Wolf whole.

"Zhu Xiu! Clear your head! I am Xin Feng!"

Xin Feng's roar caused the King Cobra's body to pause for a moment, but only for an instant, before it lunged to swallow Xin Feng again.

"Zhu Xiu, you must control the backlash! You need to wake up! Wan Wan is missing. Yan Lie and I desperately need you to come search for Wan Wan with us."

Xin Feng knew that under the current circumstances, nothing else would wake Zhu Xiu; he could only try telling him the truth.

Upon hearing Bai Wanwan's name, Zhu Xiu's body finally stopped moving, his enormous head hovering in mid-air.

Xin Feng watched as crimson and deep black constantly alternated in his eyes.

Unable to help him, he dug deep claw marks into a tree branch.

Finally, the thick black fog in Zhu Xiu's eyes receded, and his vertical pupils flashed crimson.

"Xin Feng... was what you just said true?"

His voice was somewhat hoarse; he sounded very unwell.

"Yes, it's true. You need to pull yourself together. Let's go find Wan Wan together."

Zhu Xiu said hoarsely, "Okay, let's go now."

The Silver Wolf leaped down from the tree branch, landing steadily, and immediately began searching outside for Wan Wan's scent.

"How did Wan Wan go missing? Was it Roger?"

Zhu Xiu hated himself intensely for being constrained by the dark curse, losing consciousness at the critical moment and letting Roger and those few Males escape.

"It may not have been him..."

Xin Feng's eyes darkened slightly. Worried that Zhu Xiu would direct his anger toward Yan Lie, he held back the rest of what he wanted to say.

The air inside the Cave was damp and cold. Water droplets condensing on the stone walls dripped onto Bai Wanwan's face. The icy touch made her recall everything from before she lost consciousness.

She looked across at Zhuo Ling, who was also bound by rough vines and unable to move.

Zhuo Ling noticed she was awake and immediately hissed urgently, "Bai Wanwan?"

Bai Wanwan was somewhat surprised to see her but didn't say anything.

"Do you have any way to escape?" Zhuo Ling tried to lean closer to her, her voice trembling. "I know you are very smart. If you have a way to escape, I will try my best to cooperate with you."

"Cooperate with me? Then tell me why I am here?"

Zhuo Ling's eyes flickered. "I... I don't know."

The two had only exchanged a few words when footsteps echoed from inside the Cave.

Bai Wanwan and Zhuo Ling both turned to look.

Three burly Bear Clan Beastmen walked in. They were covered in thick fur, and even in their human forms, their beastly characteristics were evident.

"Awake?" The leading Bear Clan Beastman grinned, revealing a malicious smile.

His gaze swept back and forth between the two Females, finally settling on Bai Wanwan's face. "I heard you are the Female liked by Jin Yi, the Young Clan Leader of the Golden Master Tribe?"