223: Chapter 223 "Mine...mine is bigger than yours."

"Hu Che!"

Hearing Tang Ruan's voice, Hu Che turned his face.

"Mistress!" A smile immediately lit up his face, and he ran up to her in a few strides.

"I was just about to look for you, but that beastman kept pulling me aside and asking, 'Where did you buy this belt?' I told him it was a gift from my Mistress, but he didn't believe me."

Hu Che's voice was neither too high nor too low; it was just right for Tang Ruan to hear, while the beastmen nearby could not.

Tang Ruan: ...

If she hadn't heard it with her own ears just now, she would have believed him.

Perhaps fearing that he would be exposed, Hu Che hurriedly grabbed Tang Ruan and walked toward the Beast King Palace.

The beastman in the corridor had just told him that the Beast King and the Wolf City Lord had headed toward the Beast King Palace.

Hu Che roughly guessed why Lang Lie was looking for Yan Qing.

When the two arrived at the Beast King Palace, Yan Qing and Lang Lie had almost finished their discussion.

Seeing them enter, Yan Qing briefly stated the result.

"I went out to sea last night, but I didn't see any Jiao Clan members. I deliberately lured out some sea beasts, and their numbers were indeed much lower than before."

"Is it a problem with water pollution?" Tang Ruan asked.

Lang Lie had already shared Tang Ruan's idea with Yan Qing.

Yan Qing shook his head slightly.

"Unlikely. I only saw the corpses of sea beasts, but I didn't see any fish."

After a pause, Yan Qing continued, "But I can feel that the beastman beneath the sea surface is of a high level."

The feeling Yan Qing spoke of was a kind of intuition that came from a High-level Beastman, not as precise as a Witch Doctor who possessed a Supernatural Ability for perception.

It was like a powerful person who could see through the opponent's strength at a glance.

However, they all trusted Yan Qing implicitly.

Since Yan Qing said there was one, then there must be one under the sea.

"Are those sea beast corpses the work of that beastman? Is he really relying on the Energy of sea beasts to improve himself?" Hu Che asked.

"We think so," Lang Lie said. "Yan Qing has been sending people to secretly observe the movements of the Jiao Clan. Some time ago, due to the chaos within the Jiao Clan, many Jiao Clan members ran to live on land. But lately—it's been too quiet."

Tang Ruan looked at Yan Qing.

Yan Qing always did things thoroughly.

They had thought that he was completely unaware of the Jiao Clan's situation, so they had rushed over in a panic to tell him about the discovery of the sea beasts.

As it turned out, he had been monitoring the Jiao Clan's movements all along.

"Ruan Ruan, you must not leave Central City recently," Yan Qing looked at Tang Ruan. "If that beastman's level is similar to Princess Jiao Yi's, she probably wouldn't dare to come and challenge me directly."

Tang Ruan nodded earnestly.

Yan Qing looked at Hu Che again.

"Hu Che, in a few days, I will have a Female Beastman who looks like Ruan Ruan travel with you."

Tang Ruan: ?

Tang Ruan hadn't yet realized what Yan Qing meant.

Hu Che realized it first.

"You want me to lure out the Jiao Clan?"

Yan Qing nodded slightly. "If that beastman wants revenge, they should come looking for you."

Tang Ruan finally understood.

Princess Jiao Yi had the highest Supernatural Ability level in the Jiao Clan. Logically, if there was truly someone with a higher level than her, it was impossible that no one would have known about it all these years.

Because in a tribe, possessing high-level beastmen is a display of external strength.

The Jiao Clan had no reason to hide it.

They assumed that the beastman who hadn't appeared was at the same level as Princess Jiao Yi.

Princess Jiao Yi wouldn't dare to challenge Yan Qing one-on-one, and land was not the Jiao Clan's home turf.

But she would definitely dare to challenge Hu Che, who was a Mid-level Beastman. Furthermore, the fact that Tang Ruan had upgraded to a Level 5 Beastman was unknown to everyone except the few of them.

Therefore, if that beastman wanted to take revenge for the Jiao Clan and Princess Jiao Yi.

They would definitely strike when Tang Ruan and Hu Che were together.

But in that case, wouldn't Hu Che be in great danger?

Just as Tang Ruan was about to voice her concerns, Yan Qing added, "Currently, throughout the entire Beast Kingdom, there are five Level 4 beastmen with combat capabilities, one Level 5 Beastman, and one Level 6 Beastman. I will send them all over to ensure your safety."

Hu Che's eyes widened in slight surprise. This was equivalent to giving him all the strongest beastmen in the entire Beast World, excluding the few of them.

Moreover, as far as he knew, that Level 5 Beastman and Level 6 Beastman had never submitted to Yan Qing.

Although they hadn't caused trouble for the Beast Kingdom, they came to challenge him one-on-one almost every year.

They also didn't obey his management and lived a carefree life.

How were they suddenly listening to him?

"That Level 5 Beastman and Level 6 Beastman... how did they agree?" Hu Che asked curiously.

Yan Qing slightly curled one corner of his lip. "I just told them that the new King of the Jiao Clan is Level 7."

"Pfft!" Tang Ruan couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Was this because they couldn't beat the Level 10 Yan Qing, so they wanted to find a Level 7 one to practice with first?

Hu Che coughed lightly and gave Yan Qing a thumbs-up.

"But I think it's still too many. Princess Jiao Yi is only Level 5. You should keep a few by your side; they can also help protect Ruan Ruan."

"No need," Yan Qing turned his gaze back to Tang Ruan, a smile appearing on his face. "I'll just protect Ruan Ruan myself. Having other low-level beastmen around would only be a burden. Besides, only if you bring many people can it prove that the Ruan Ruan by your side is the real one."

Hu Che thought about it and felt that what Yan Qing said made sense.

"Lang Lie," Yan Qing said.

"Yes!" Lang Lie responded immediately and wanted to stand up, but was stopped by Yan Qing raising his hand.

"Go find Fen Tian. If his situation allows, bring him to Central City. Don't mention the Jiao Clan matter; just say that Ruan Ruan misses him."

Lang Lie: "Alright."

Tang Ruan understood why Yan Qing asked Lang Lie to say that.

If he said, "I suspect the Jiao Clan is collecting Energy to take revenge."

Fen Tian might just drop Xiao Yi and rush over.

But Yan Qing had sent Lang Lie to find Fen Tian.

Did that mean the situation was indeed quite serious...

Were they hiding something from her?

Just as Tang Ruan was thinking.

Suddenly, Hu Che stood up.

The shiny tassel belt around his waist was dazzling when hit by the sunlight.

It completely drew Tang Ruan's attention.

"Yan Qing, look, my Mistress gave this to me!"

Tang Ruan: ...

She knew it...

Fortunately, she had already given the bracelet to Yan Qing yesterday.

Yan Qing chuckled softly but didn't speak.

Instead, he rested his hand on the Beast King's throne, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest, making a soft "tap-tap" sound.

Hu Che's gaze was drawn over.

The lifelike little snake on his wrist was equally eye-catching in the sunlight; if one looked closely, it even resembled his Beast Form a little.

Tang Ruan breathed a sigh of relief.

Hu Che pouted, not expecting Tang Ruan to have given the gift to him so quickly.

He turned to show off to Lang Lie again, but before he could speak—

He saw Lang Lie suddenly raise his hand and stroke his hair.

On his thumb was a silver ring, one side of which had sharp triangular patterns.

During a fight, when punching, the angle of the bent knuckle would just allow this side of the ring to scratch the opponent.

It was not only good-looking but also practical.

Hu Che said unconvinced, "I... mine is bigger than yours."

Yan Qing suddenly raised his head and looked up at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle.

Several people followed his action and looked up at the sky.

Tang Ruan: What's on the ceiling?

Suddenly, from the corner of her eye, she saw a silver light flash in Yan Qing's direction.

Was it an earring?

Had she given it to him?

She was groggy yesterday and didn't remember.

But didn't Yan Qing not have pierced ears?

Tang Ruan stood up and walked over to Yan Qing.

Suddenly, she thought of something.

Her eyes widened slightly in shock.

She reached out and touched behind his ear.