Beauty and the Beasts

They didn’t really feel it when they first arrived, and it was only when they went out did they realize how tight the security in the tiger village was—guards would keep watch at designated points on a higher altitude, making it very difficult for one to slip into the village unnoticed.

No wonder they were discovered yesterday upon arrival.

Even Parker was very satisfied with this. He said to Bai Qingqing, “Not bad. You should be very safe here.”

“With you guys around, how can I not be safe?” Bai Qingqing asked in turn. She pointed ahead and asked, “Look, what’s that over there? Seems like fruits.”

Parker jogged over and saw that it was a short tree resembling a mushroom, with plenty of red fruits the size of eggs on it.

Bai Qingqing smacked her lips as she reached out to pick one and placed it under her nose for a sniff.

It was a very intense and sweet fragrance, to the point of cloying when sniffed up-close.

“Don’t eat that!” Parker suddenly exclaimed sternly.

Bai Qingqing’s hand trembled, and the fruit nearly slipped from her grasp.

“What’s wrong?”

Parker retreated several steps and gazed at the black and rich soil around the tree, then checked out the surrounding area.

“The soil around this tree is abnormally rich. There are even animal carcasses around. With so many fruits and no one eating them, they must be poisonous. The dead animals then turned into fertilizer for it,” said Parker. This was general knowledge that every male must know.

Bai Qingqing gulped her saliva. “Surely not?”

Bai Qingqing neither ate it nor tossed it away. Instead, she wrapped the fruit using a tree leaf, then placed it inside the animal skin bag.

“I’ll bring it back to show them. It smells so sweet, what a waste that it can’t be eaten.”

Parker turned around and said with a smile as he walked elsewhere, “Just make sure you don’t eat it.”

The chestnut forest was situated not far away. Compared to the thick trees surrounding them, these trees were so short that they resembled a patch of weeds. However, the tiger beastmen protected these trees very well, and Parker only noted it because he felt it was strange.

Although there didn’t seem anything spectacular about the tree at first glance, upon a closer look, Bai Qingqing suddenly spotted a lot of green prickly balls on it. She shouted delightedly, “So many!”

Parker set her down and removed the animal skin bag from his waist. “I’ll go and pick the prickly balls. Follow closely behind me. We’re no longer in an area guarded by the tiger beastmen.”

“Mmmm.” Bai Qingqing nodded in understanding. She held onto Parker’s tail and followed closely behind him, gazing around as they moved forward.

Parker climbed up a tree to pick the prickly fruits, while Bai Qingqing kept a lookout for him below. Suddenly, she saw the figure of a beast under a tree not far away. She quickly alerted Parker to it. “There’s something over there.”

Parker instantly jumped down the tree and went over to check it out.

A tiger darted out from under the tree and transformed into a human on the spot. He wrapped an animal skin skirt around his waist and strode over.

“Bai Qingqing?” That tiger beastman ran over. There were no animal stripes on his chestnut-colored face, and his eyes were filled with delight as he gazed at her.

He seemed to have just come of age, the age when one’s interest in the opposite sex was first awakened. There wasn’t a bachelor tiger beastman male who wasn’t moved by Bai Qingqing’s beauty. Naturally, this one was no exception.

However, none of the bachelor young beastmen were as powerful as Parker, and males who had the same number of animal stripes tended to be advanced in age and already had spouses. This was why Bai Qingqing had yet to be confessed to since her arrival.

But since he bumped into her, it wouldn’t be in line with the beastmen’s forthright temperament if he didn’t show his face.

“My name is Bark. I’ve just come of age this season.” Bark was so nervous that he didn’t quite know where to place his hands. He scratched his head with a prickly ball, turning his hair into a mess.

Bai Qingqing, who instantly realized that this was one of her admirers, felt regretful.

If she had known earlier, she wouldn’t have made a sound. It must have been her voice that had attracted Bark here.

“Hello.” Bai Qingqing greeted him with a faint smile out of politeness. She felt strange seeing the prickly fruit in his hands.

Carnivorous males usually didn’t eat fruits, and females only ate some sweet fruits, but not vegetables.