“Go back and rest.”

Long Mo’s voice was cold and indifferent, devoid of any warmth.

Hu Jiao Jiao gave a quiet “oh” in reply and turned back into the house. After a moment, she decided to take out some powdered medicine from her space—a mixture of blood-stopping and wound-healing powders, each carefully wrapped in leaves. She left the packages outside the children’s hut.

She knocked gently on the door and whispered, “Long Mo, are you still awake? I left some medicine outside. Take it if you need it.”

There was no response from inside, so she assumed he was already asleep and walked away.

He’d find it in the morning anyway.

Just as she left, a figure emerged from under a tree at the edge of the yard. Long Mo approached the door, picked up the medicine, and returned to the tree. In one swift motion, he perched himself on a thick branch. He had already shed his damp animal pelt, wearing only a “fur towel” that revealed his lean, well-defined muscles.

His bare skin was marred by numerous cuts and wounds, many from wolf claws and wandering beastmen attacks, some deep enough to expose bone. Soaked from the river water, the wounds had turned pale, and waves of sharp pain radiated from them.

In the faint, silver moonlight, Long Mo’s face appeared ashen. He unwrapped the leaf bundles and dusted the powder onto his wounds. A cooling sensation spread from the cuts, easing his pain.

Unable to see the wounds on his back, he accidentally spilled quite a bit of the powder. His eyes darkened as he stored the rest of the powder carefully.

This medicine must be rare to be so effective.

Yet she had given him such precious medicine in abundance…why? Didn’t she dislike him?

Long Mo lay on the tree branch, his golden beast-like eyes reflecting the full moon behind the leaves. It was almost as if the moon knew how rare it was for his family to be together again.

Though…he was spending the night outside.

---

The Next Morning

When Hu Jiao Jiao woke up, she noticed the medicine from last night was gone and that Long Mo wasn’t around.

The five kids were already out gathering firewood, the yard was spotlessly clean, and the water tank was filled with fresh water. She must have slept deeply, as she hadn’t woken even when the morning sun was high and most of the chores were already done.

Even the prey Long Mo had brought back had been skillfully butchered and hung neatly in the yard, tied with vines and arranged in perfect order.

“No wonder females don’t mind taking on multiple partners. With a strong male around, life is certainly…different,” Hu Jiao Jiao murmured, rubbing her chin.

Wait!

Doesn’t that mean from today onward, she’d officially be “living together” with Long Mo?

The thought of his icy, stern face sent a chill down her spine, but when she considered it, he wasn’t as difficult to deal with as described in the book. As long as he didn’t “go dark,” it seemed manageable to co-exist, raising the kids together.

Cheered by the thought, she arranged the meat on the smoke rack and started a fire. There was enough meat and she wanted to preserve some for the winter. Once the cold season came, hunting would be difficult, and she wouldn’t be able to take out fresh meat from her storage without raising suspicion. She had to prepare now so the children wouldn’t end up eating potatoes all winter.

Because there was too much meat and it would go bad if left for too long, Hu Jiaojiao simply made two new smoking racks and put all the meat on them to smoke it, so that the meat would not go bad before it was finished smoking.

After finishing breakfast, the five cubs returned.

However, despite waiting, there was no sign of Long Mo.

“Ling’er, do you know where your father went?” Hu Jiao Jiao asked Long Ling’er, who shook her head.

“No idea. I didn’t see him this morning.”

“That’s strange…maybe he went hunting early?” She muttered, a bit worried. Could he have gone back into the forest?

Just then, footsteps echoed from outside.

“Long Mo, you’re back…” she said hopefully, but as she turned, she saw it was Hou Xiang.

“Hou Xiang, what brings you here?” she asked with a smile.

Hou Xiang returned her smile, inhaling the delicious aroma from the yard before speaking. “Waiting for Long Mo, are you?”

“How’d you know? He’s been gone since this morning. I was waiting for him to eat.” She sighed.

“He went to the coast with Ying Yuan to trade for salt,” Hou Xiang casually mentioned, dropping a bombshell of news.

Hearing this, Hu Jiao Jiao and her five cubs all turned to her in surprise.

“What did you say? Long Mo went with Ying Yuan to trade for salt?”

Long Yu blinked, stunned. “Dad went to the coast?”

Long Zhong, however, was skeptical. “No way. He’d never do that!”

Father had never joined the other beastmen for any activity; why would he suddenly go to the coast for salt?

“It’s true; they’ve already left. I just returned from that direction, and the Chief asked me to let you know. With Ying Yuan there, you don’t need to worry too much.” Hou Xiang smiled, thinking Hu Jiao Jiao was reluctant to see Long Mo go.

Hu Jiao Jiao: “…”

She wasn’t worried about him leaving; she was worried because he went with Ying Yuan! One was the protagonist, the other was the villain. What could possibly go well with them together?

“This guy just left out of nowhere and didn’t even say anything beforehand. Trading for salt takes a while, doesn’t it?” Hu Jiao Jiao frowned, a bit uneasy.

She remembered that in the book, Ying Yuan had gone alone to the coast. Meanwhile, Long Mo had been living in the forest, and Long Wu’s arrival only worsened the original’s scorn for Long Mo.

Had her actions of bringing Long Mo home shifted the storyline?

“The coast is over a month’s journey from the tribe. It’ll take them about three months to return,” Hou Xiang explained. “But don’t worry—they’ll definitely make it back before winter.”

Hu Jiao Jiao nodded, accepting that he was already gone and there was no way to bring him back.

She could only hope the salt trade would go smoothly as it had in the book…

Yet, she felt like she was missing something.

Scratching her head, she let the thought go. This was a good chance to tan more hides and make Long Mo a new set of clothes. While his battered, old pelt didn’t detract from his looks, it still felt like she was mistreating him.

---

Meanwhile…

Long Mo and Ying Yuan had already begun their journey to the coast.

A group of about a dozen orcs accompanied them, including half of those who’d recently battled the wandering beastmen. They had recovered enough to travel after a night’s rest.

Among them were Long Wu, and the two brothers, Hu Qingshan and Hu Qinglu.