TFBAT – Chapter 38

At this moment, the surroundings suddenly fell into an incredible silence.

Having been startled repeatedly, Chi Yuyang didn’t know how to speak.

The newly arrived Snow Tiger clan beastman hadn’t said much ever since confirming Hu Jin’s identity.

Hu Jin lowered his gaze, silent, seemingly deep in thought.

It was Yuan Wu who broke the awkwardness with his voice once again.

“Come to think of it, you should call me ‘brother.’”

Hearing this, Hu Jin kept his head down, saying nothing.

Chi Yuyang tilted her head, catching a glimpse of his expression partially hidden under his loose strands of hair, making it hard to read.

“Your willpower is really unbreakable,” Yuan Wu said, his brows slightly furrowed, his voice faint, like mist blown apart by the wind.

There was heavy sarcasm in his words.

Worried, Chi Yuyang pressed her palm against the warmth she still felt—Hu Jin’s body temperature had always been slightly high, making it impossible for her to gauge his mood.

She didn’t actually believe that Yuan Wu was Hu Jin’s brother.

His words were a mix of truth and lies, impossible to discern, and he himself was extremely unpleasant.

Although Chi Yuyang didn’t think Hu Jin would be easily manipulated, his motionless stance made her anxious.

However, the moment she moved, Hu Jin reacted.

“Where are your tiger ears and tail?” he asked Yuan Wu, staring at him.

That was also what Chi Yuyang wanted to ask.

The clan leader had explained in his lessons that if the partners were from different species, the offspring would resemble the stronger one.

If both were on the same level, the children would inherit half of each parent’s genes.

Decades ago, the clan leader had witnessed Hu Jin’s father reaching the fifth stage of tribulation.

Even if Yuan Wu’s mother was also a fifth-stage beastman, he should still have at least half tiger genes.

“My mother is from the ape clan,” Yuan Wu answered matter-of-factly.

“You don’t have any tiger traits at all,” Hu Jin reexamined Yuan Wu, who stood like a rival before him. “You’re just an ape.”

Chi Yuyang somehow read… disdain from Hu Jin’s tone.

So she also sized up Yuan Wu.

Due to the change in lighting, Chi Yuyang couldn’t clearly see Yuan Wu’s facial features, only vaguely noticing a tall and slim figure standing there.

No tiger ears or tail, skinny as a stick, and even his strength was negligible.

“Your wife doesn’t have tiger ears or a tail either,” Yuan Wu suddenly changed the subject.

Chi Yuyang then realized that the points she had just considered to describe herself fit seamlessly.

She wasn’t an ape clan beastman, but perhaps her ancestors were similar to the ape clan.

Still, Chi Yuyang considered this only a possibility.

This was another world, not the one she had lived in before.

Although she and Yuan Wu’s ancestors were not the same, if Yuan Wu wasn’t lying, he and Hu Jin likely shared the same lineage.

After all, they had the same father.

As Chi Yuyang continued pondering the origins of species in her mind, she was suddenly pulled into Hu Jin’s embrace.

“No! My wife says she’s not from the ape clan!”

The implication was clear: Yuan Wu had no chance of meddling.

“See, even if Chi had ape clan traits, she still doesn’t belong to the ape clan. So even if my father is a Snow Tiger, I wouldn’t necessarily have tiger traits,” Yuan Wu said slowly.

…What a twisted argument.

Chi Yuyang couldn’t help but silently mock Yuan Wu’s sneaky logic.

At this moment, the Snow Tiger clan beastman observing the scene stepped between Hu Jin and Yuan Wu.

Although he didn’t understand why two siblings were arguing, he could sense an undercurrent stirring between them.

So he decided to act as a peacemaker.

“Since you’re both Snow Ye’s children, come with me back to the tribe to see Xue Ye.”

Xue Ye?

Chi Yuyang was surprised.

Why did Hu Jin’s father’s name sound so strange?

But tonight’s strange events were far from over.

Sitting on Hu Jin’s back, Chi Yuyang listened to the whistling wind at her ear and let out a faint sigh.

The Snow Tiger clan beastman they encountered was named Xue Yin.

He was currently carrying Yuan Wu, leading the way ahead of Hu Jin.

Xue Yin ran at a moderate pace, so Hu Jin, following behind, didn’t need to quicken his steps.

This allowed Chi Yuyang to observe the surroundings.

Yet, as she looked around, it was pitch dark; she could only faintly hear the calls of birds.

Gradually, even the sparse bird sounds disappeared.

Only an increasingly intense cold remained.

Hu Jin noticed the change and immediately stopped.

“Hu Jin, I can still handle this temperature,” Chi Yuyang said, wrapping herself tighter in her furs.

She was speaking the truth.

But Hu Jin was unconvinced; he coiled his tail around her waist to gauge her body temperature.

Chi Yuyang gently stroked the tail wrapped around her waist.

Soon, the tail withdrew.

After confirming Chi Yuyang was fine, Hu Jin resumed moving forward.

His brief pause didn’t affect his pace in catching up with Xue Yin.

“Awwooo—”

A tiger’s roar.

Xue Yin responded from ahead with a matching “awwooo.”

Chi Yuyang couldn’t distinguish this from the roars of the forest tigers.

But when she looked up, she saw the starlight flickering.

Even in the darkness, Chi Yuyang could feel the Snow Tiger clan’s territory was close at hand.

Because those specks of light were the tigers’ vertical pupils.

…

After a short while, Xue Yin led them to his territory.

“You can stay in my house for a while. I’ll go find Lord Xue.”

By the faint moonlight, Chi Yuyang finally made out that behind Xue Yin stood a house built entirely of snow.

The structure bore a resemblance to an Eskimo igloo, with its exterior shaped like a large pot turned upside down on the snow.

The only difference was that this snow house was enormous, with an opening for entry and exit, rather than a conventional door.

Stepping inside, Chi Yuyang realized it could easily accommodate at least ten tigers.

After Yuan Wu took a spot and settled in, Chi Yuyang chose a place far from him to sit.

Hu Jin scanned the room, and finding no firewood to light a fire, he remained in his beast form and pulled Chi Yuyang into his embrace.

She leaned against him, burying her hands in the soft fur on his belly.

Her coat kept her warm, but her hands were still exposed to the wind, leaving her desperate to warm them.

There were two softest parts on his body—one was the fur on his chest, the other his belly.

His belly was warmer, so naturally, Chi Yuyang pressed her hands there.

As she did, she couldn’t help moving her hands a bit across Hu Jin’s belly.

Chi Yuyang always thought Hu Jin’s beast form fur was longer than an adult tiger’s.

Not only was it smooth to the touch, but the more one touched it, the harder it was to stop.

For example, right now, she didn’t want to move at all.

“Chi.”

Previously, Chi Yuyang hadn’t paid much attention to Yuan Wu, and now, completely absorbed in Hu Jin’s fur, she ignored him even more.

“If I were a tiger, would you like me?” Yuan Wu’s voice sounded gentler than ever.

“…” Chi Yuyang was too lazy to reply.

“Awwooo!”

Dream on!

Enjoying his ‘wife massage service,’ Hu Jin roared on her behalf.

“If you had met me first…” Yuan Wu’s voice carried a trace of regret and remorse.

“I still wouldn’t like you,” Chi Yuyang rolled her eyes in the dark, unconcerned whether Yuan Wu could see, “If Hu Jin really were your younger brother, what he did wrong doesn’t justify treating him like this.”

Thinking of the things Yuan Wu had done, directly or indirectly, to Hu Jin, Chi Yuyang couldn’t help recalling her first encounter with him.

Such a powerful beastman—what kind of injuries would it take for him to revert to his juvenile form?

If she hadn’t met him, would he have already…

Chi Yuyang didn’t dare continue the thought.

Sensing her growing agitation, the white tiger beside her suddenly stood, licking her neck.

“Hu Jin…” Chi Yuyang laughed at the tickle, but calmed herself, “I understand.”

She hugged the tiger’s large head and kissed his forehead.

The tail behind the white tiger immediately swished up.

“What did he do wrong? Then what did I do wrong…” Yuan Wu’s voice became rapid and uncontrolled. Before finishing, he started coughing violently.

His coughs were so continuous, they even drowned out Xue Yin’s footsteps entering.

“Lord Xue didn’t return to the territory today…”

“Cough cough cough cough.” Yuan Wu kept coughing.

“Are you okay?” Hearing the sudden coughs, Xue Yin hurried over, patting him, “If you are a descendant of the Snow Tigers, your health shouldn’t be this poor.”

But the baby tooth he had showed the unmistakable scent of a Snow Tiger.

“I’m fine.” Yuan Wu subtly shifted to the side, avoiding Xue Yin, “What did you just say?”

“Oh… I said Lord Xue hasn’t returned today, so you can stay in my house for a day.”

Xue Yin didn’t notice Yuan Wu’s strange behavior.

Seeing him stop talking, Xue Yin turned to look at the human and the tiger in the room.

“If you need anything, just tell me.”

Chi Yuyang looked at the beastman before her and finally asked the question that had been on her mind.

“How did you determine that Hu Jin is Lord Xue’s child?”

Hearing this, Xue Yin turned his gaze to the white tiger beside her, his eyes clear and pure like glass.

“Heterochromia is extremely rare in the Snow Tiger clan, and that baby tooth carries Lord Xue’s aura.”

Even so, Chi Yuyang still found it hard to believe Yuan Wu could be Hu Jin’s biological brother.

That tooth might have come from somewhere else entirely.

Mentioning Lord Xue made Xue Yin blush slightly and smile.

“I’ve only met Lord Xue a few times, but he is the pride of our Snow Tiger clan. To see his offspring is an honor for me.”

When speaking of their revered tiger, Xue Yin’s words became more animated.

“He is the youngest fifth-rank beastman in our clan.”

When Hu Jin heard the words “fifth-rank,” his eyes lit up briefly.

“Now, he can defeat anyone in the clan, so we all call him ‘Lord.’”

It seemed that in the Snow Tiger clan, strength was respected above all.

Chi Yuyang decided to echo Xue Yin’s praise a little, so he wouldn’t feel embarrassed.

“Lord Xue is incredible.”

Seeing Chi Yuyang praise his idol, Xue Yin became even more animated.

However, Hu Jin only showed a brief interest when Xue Yin mentioned the fifth rank.

Yuan Wu, on the other hand, remained entirely expressionless, making Chi Yuyang even more suspicious.

Xue Yin continued talking about Lord Xue.

His endless chatter left Chi Yuyang feeling slightly helpless, so she just nodded and smiled quietly.

“The most amazing thing is…”

Xue Yin’s voice finally lowered.

Chi Yuyang thought he was about to end his “speech.”

She nodded quickly.

“Lord Xue doesn’t just have overwhelming strength.”

As she nodded, she paused.

Xue Yin said, “He can even control the minds of other beastmen!”