“What’s wrong with your nose?” he asked. 

Bai Han and the others noticed the commotion and looked over. 

Zhong Chu didn’t expect anyone else to be there. He covered his nose, lowered his gaze in embarrassment, and mumbled, “Maybe I should come back later…” 

Zhuo Mu frowned in disapproval. “If you’re hurt, you shouldn’t wait.” 

Zhong Chu: “…” 

“Or are you here to see Wen Ze?” 

“No, I’m looking for you.” As he spoke, he seemed to have moved his nose slightly and winced in pain. His big bear-like eyes turned red. 

“Come with me. Let me take a look.” 

Wen Ze and the others were standing at the cave entrance, so Zhuo Mu led Zhong Chu over to the straw shelter, facing away from Bai Han and the others. 

Of course, given Zhong Chu’s massive size as a brown bear, there was no way Zhuo Mu could actually block him. 

But Bai Han and the others understood Zhuo Mu’s intentions and respectfully shifted their gaze elsewhere.

Picking up the conversation from earlier, “Wen Ze, the soap is nice, but for our tribe, most of the dirt we get is from leaves, dust, and mud. Washing with water is usually enough to clean it off. And as for the animal hides we wear, we don’t wash them often.”

Wen Ze knew that hides shouldn’t be washed too frequently. 

He just felt it was a shame that the Snow Sea Tribe didn’t need soap. Such a big opportunity with the nuts was going to waste! Sigh.

“Alright.” He smiled, “Then I’ll calculate the supplies for the exchange.” 

Bai Han responded with a simple “Mm” and glanced at the sky, subtly urging him to hurry up. 

While Wen Ze was calculating, Zhong Chu had already sat down outside the straw shelter and lowered his fluffy paws. 

Zhuo Mu immediately saw the large, swollen nose. 

The bump was huge, with an abnormal red tint, and the tip was even reflecting light. 

If he weren’t in his beast form, his eyes would probably be blocked by the swelling. 

“Did a bee sting you?” Zhuo Mu asked knowingly. 

Zhong Chu lowered his voice in embarrassment. “Yes, I went to cut a beehive…” 

He got nervous and explained several times, “We have tough skin and thick flesh, so as long as we’re careful, even if we get stung a few times, it won’t cause much trouble. But this time, the bees kept targeting my face. No matter how I waved my paws, it didn’t help, and they stung my nose several times… Hiss, it hurts so much I don’t even dare to change back into my human form.” 

Zhuo Mu said, “Not changing back into human form was the right choice. With how badly you were stung, if you had changed, your nose would probably be all swollen.” 

The honey produced by those bees was incredibly fragrant and sweet—an irresistible temptation for the bears in the tribe. 

To put it bluntly, they might not always know where the big prey are, but when it comes to the location of beehives, they never forget. 

Zhuo Mu wasn’t as fond of sweets, and since he didn’t want to compete with the bears, he never touched the beehives. 

Zhong Chu asked, “Do you have any medicine I can use?”

“I know a few kinds. I’ll go gather some now. You go to the river and wash the swelling on your nose. You can do that, right?” 

Zhong Chu nodded. “I can do that.” 

Wen Ze overheard their conversation, thought for a bit, and stopped Zhong Chu, who was walking toward the river. “Wait a second!” 

The big brown bear turned its head, its swollen nose looking both pitiful and ridiculous. 

Wen Ze knew that the “bee insects” they mentioned were the same as the bees he had seen in his past life. 

But everything in this beast world was bigger than normal, and these bees packed a serious sting. 

If it had been a half-beastman instead of Zhong Chu, they might have fainted from the stings. 

“Rinsing with plain water won’t work as well as soapy water. Your paws probably aren’t great for scrubbing with soap, but I’ll be done soon. Just wait, and I’ll help you out.” 

Zhong Chu gave him a grateful look, sat back down on the ground, and muttered, “Thank you, Wen Ze.” 

“No problem.” 

Wen Ze was still thinking about Zhong Chu’s injury, so he didn’t talk much with Bai Han and the others. He just handed them the supplies and said, “Just leave a small amount of nuts in the basket.” 

After speaking, he quickly grabbed the soapy water and hurried over to Zhong Chu. 

Even sitting down, Zhong Chu still towered over him. 

Wen Ze motioned for him to lower his head, and Zhong Chu obediently did as he was told. 

The big brown bear bent down as much as he could, and with Wen Ze standing, he could just reach his nose. 

Wen Ze grabbed an old piece of cloth, rubbed it a bit to soften it, then dipped it into the soapy water and carefully cleaned the swollen bump on Zhong Chu’s nose. 

Even though he was already being as gentle as possible, Wen Ze still said, “If it hurts, just grunt or something.” 

Zhong Chu held back and stayed quiet. With them being this close, even if he breathed a little harder, he might blow the skinny, tall half-beastman away, so he made sure to breathe lightly. 

Wen Ze focused on treating the swollen area with patience and care. 

Though he had been close to beastmen before, it had always been while riding on their backs. This was the first time he was facing one directly. 

He knew Zhong Chu was trying his best to hold back, but a beast’s breath was still different from a human’s. 

The air blowing toward him triggered his instincts, and even under his rough hemp clothing, a layer of goosebumps appeared on his arms. 

After a while, Zhong Chu suddenly said in surprise, “Oh… my nose doesn’t hurt as much anymore. Is it going numb?” 

Wen Ze glanced at his nose. “I don’t think so… But the swelling has gone down a lot, and the color isn’t as bad.” 

Zhong Chu’s eyes widened. “Seriously?” 

“Yes, really,” a voice answered from behind Wen Ze. 

Wen Ze turned around and met Bai Han’s golden ones. He blinked in surprise and asked, “Wait, you haven’t left yet?” 

Bai Han paused for a second. “Hmm…” 

Wen Ze quickly realized how that sounded and rushed to explain, “I didn’t mean to chase you off or anything…” 

Bai Han smiled a little. With his sharp features, even a small smile was striking. 

“We know. We’re just curious, so we stayed a bit longer.” 

Curious? 

Wen Ze followed Bai Han’s gaze and looked at the soapy cloth in his hand. 

“You mean this?” 

“Yes.” Bai Han glanced at Zhong Chu’s nose again, this time his genuinely surprised. “Wen Ze, how come you didn’t mention that your soap could also be used as medicine?” 

“Uh…” Wen Ze wasn’t sure how to answer. “I mean, I wouldn’t exactly call it medicine…” 

He wasn’t really sure of the specific principles behind it. 

“Leader.” The people from the Snow Sea Tribe called out urgently to Bai Han. 

Wen Ze thought they were in a hurry to leave and nodded in understanding. “The Rainbow Sun Tribe is south of here. I’ve still got things to do, so I won’t see you off.” 

Bai Han’s smile grew a little warmer as he explained, “You misunderstood. We actually want to buy a batch of your soap.” 

By now, Zhong Chu’s nose was mostly cleaned. Wen Ze saw that Zhuo Mu was heading back, so he set the hemp cloth down and asked, “Can I ask why?” 

Bai Han replied, “The forests in our territory are even deeper and denser than those in your tribe. The insects there are also more venomous, especially there’s a kind of bee that only stings and doesn’t produce honey. Without counting the stinger, they can grow this big.” He gestured with his hands, indicating the size. 

As he spoke, he raised his thumb. 

Wen Ze’s pupils shrank, and he couldn’t help but take a sharp breath. 

Beast God! A bee that’s as big as a thumb? That thing could probably sting someone to death in one go! 

The people behind Bai Han expressed the same sentiment, speaking one after another: “We call that bee a black bee because it’s all shiny and black, with bristles on its head and poison on its stinger!” 

“When we go into the mountains to gather nuts, beastmen and half-beastmen always go together. Half-beastmen can’t handle those black bees.” 

“Even beastmen suffer if they get stung a few times.” 

“If we don’t treat it, the swelling won’t go away for over twenty days. Even with medicine, it still takes more than ten days. The pain and itch are unbearable; we can’t sleep at night, and it’s really tough.” 

After hearing this, Wen Ze sighed. “You all really have it tough.” 

Bai Han nodded. “Yes, we just grit our teeth and get through it. But now, to find out that your soap can relieve the pain of bee stings! We have to buy some to take back and share with our people!” 

The rest of the Snow Sea Tribe nodded in agreement. 

“Exactly! With this, getting stung won’t be as unbearable anymore!” 

“Wen Ze, you have to exchange the soap with us, please!” 

Zhuo Mu stepped forward, and Wen Ze made way for him so he could apply medicine to Zhong Chu. 

The Snow Sea Tribe members were surprised, but Wen Ze was just as shocked. 

Who would’ve thought Zhong Chu’s arrival would turn everything around like this? 

Even though he was happy, Wen Ze still stayed cautious. “You all know that our bees aren’t as venomous as yours. The effect of the soapy water might not be as strong.” 

Bai Han didn’t mind. “That’s fine. Any relief is better than none. Worst case, even if it doesn’t work on the black bees, it should still help with other bug bites, right?” 

Wen Ze was confident about that. “It will.” 

Bai Han clapped his hands. “Then let’s exchange!” 

Seeing a good business deal, Wen Ze’s black eyes curved. “Alright, don’t worry. I’ve already exchanged some soap with the Rainbow Sun Tribe and set some aside for our own people. I’ll count what’s left.” 

Hearing that, Bai Han muttered regretfully, “So the Rainbow Sun Tribe already got some…” 

Even such a powerful tribe saw the value in this soap, yet they had underestimated it at first. What a mistake! 

Thankfully, a beastman happened to get stung. Otherwise, they would’ve missed out on this! 

Soap is an important item, so Wen Ze stored it in his space, and it didn’t take long to count. 

Bai Han and the others, who had been a bit distant before, were now all eagerly waiting with polite smiles. 

In the end, Wen Ze counted out 25 regular bars of soap and 8 sulfur soaps. 

“Let’s just round it up to 30 bars. I’ll give you the remaining three as a gift. According to what we agreed earlier, you just need to leave me three big baskets of nuts.” 

Just a single fluffy beast’s fat could make dozens of bars of soap, so this deal was very profitable for Wen Ze. 

But the Snow Sea Tribe members were just as pleased. 

Soap was so useful that if they used it sparingly, one bar could last a long time. 

As for gathering nuts, it wasn’t that difficult anyway—the forests were full of them. 

Both sides were afraid the other would change their mind, so they sealed the deal as quickly as possible. 

After the exchange, Bai Han even went to ask Zhuo Mu for the recipe to treat black bee stings. 

Zhuo Mu responded calmly, “If you want the recipe, you’ll have to exchange for it.” 

Medical treatment was always expensive. Bai Han thought for a moment, then said, “Forget it. The herbs in your tribe might not even exist in ours.” 

The Snow Sea Tribe was now one of Wen Ze’s biggest customers, and when they left, he kindly sent them off. 

“Wen Ze, this is far enough,” Bai Han said, then took a few more steps forward before changing into his beast form. 

To Wen Ze’s surprise, it was a majestic tiger with white fur and black stripes, golden vertical pupils, and an imposing presence! 

On its forehead was the distinct “王” (king) symbol, and its ears were round. Its imposing figure stood tall, with its paws firmly on the ground and its head slightly raised, standing nearly ten meters high. 

Its fur was also thick, glossy, and incredibly smooth. 

Beneath the fur, its muscles were well-defined. Even without exerting force, it’s clear that he’s really powerful. 

As he spoke, the tiger’s thick, long tail swayed gently. 

Wen Ze’s eyes unconsciously followed the movement—left, right, left, right. 

The other beastmen also changed into their beast forms—except for one leopard; the rest were large tigers. 

However, Bai Han was the only white tiger. The others had brownish-yellow fur, with broad heads and sturdy frames—just like the Siberian tigers Wen Ze had seen at the zoo before. 

“We’re leaving,” Bai Han said in a low, powerful voice after changing into his beast form. 

Snapping out of his daze, Wen Ze waved and called out, “Goodbye!” 

Bai Han let out a low, friendly growl, then signaled to his companions before turning and sprinting toward the Rainbow Sun Tribe. 

The massive, powerful tigers ran at incredible speed, and in no time, their figures disappeared completely. 

Wen Ze turned around and happily walked back. 

At the cave entrance, three large baskets plus another half-full one of nuts were left behind by the Snow Sea Tribe. 

Grinning, Wen Ze grabbed a handful of walnuts, rubbed them between his palms, and listened to the crisp rustling sound. He then picked up a big hazelnut, tossed it into his mouth, and with a satisfying “crack,” bit it open, happily chewing the nut inside. Finally, he also grabbed a pine nut, cracked it open with his front teeth… Mmm! The rich oil and pine fragrance lingered, leaving a delightful aftertaste!

Even though they were raw, they tasted amazing! 

“Good thing my teeth are still in great shape, haha,” he muttered with a grin. 

“These nuts should last us a while,” Zhuo Mu remarked. 

Wen Ze looked up and saw that Zhuo Mu had already ground up some herbs and applied them to Zhong Chu’s nose, which was now covered in a greenish layer. 

The big brown bear’s swollen nose had gone down a bit, but the strong herbal smell made him sneeze a few times in a row. 

“Yes!” Wen Ze responded cheerfully before asking, “Is Zhong Chu’s nose okay now?” 

Zhuo Mu nodded. “Yes. After you washed it with soapy water, the swelling went down a lot. It should heal in about three or four days.” 

Wen Ze felt like three or four days was a bit long. 

After all, the beastmen had tough bodies, and ordinary insects couldn’t even break their skin. 

Zhong Chu felt very happy and satisfied. With sparkling eyes, he said, “Wen Ze, thanks to your soap, I thought I’d be miserable for at least ten more days! Also, Zhuo Mu, thank you too!” 

Wen Ze shook his head. “No need to thank me. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have sold so much soap.” 

Fortunately, he had stopped by when the soap was being exchanged. 

Zhong Chu immediately felt like he was getting a bargain and said seriously to Wen Ze, “Right now, people just don’t know how good soap is. In the future, there definitely won’t be any trouble exchanging it. Anyway, when you make more, make sure to save two pieces for me.” 

Wen Ze was happy for the extra business, so he agreed and smiled. 

“Sure.” 

At that moment, Wen Ze hadn’t imagined that people from nearby tribes would start trampling the grass in front of his cave just to get his soap. 

After Zhong Chu left, Wen Ze saw the time was right. He and Zhuo Mu took the sausages that had been drying in the shade since noon. 

After a few hours, the surface of the sausages had dried out, and the seasoning had soaked in. 

Not to mention the black-armored beast, even the half-long-haired tusked beasts had produced a lot of sausages. 

The pot couldn’t hold them all, so Wen Ze took a basket, lined it with clean leaves, and placed the sausages inside. 

Zhuo Mu asked, “What’s next?” 

Wen Ze replied, “Let’s boil them. We need to cook the sausages.” 

“Boiling them will make them spoil quickly. Should we air-dry some of them?” 

“No, that won’t work,” Wen Ze shook his head. “I didn’t add much salt to these sausages. It’ll be fine. Once we boil them, we’ll send some to Sang Hui and the others, and we’ll eat some ourselves. That should take care of it.” 

He had already planned ahead. If they tasted good, next time when it got colder, he would make more sausages and ham. 

He’d add more salt, and after drying, they’d last much longer. 

Zhuo Mu nodded. “Okay.” 

Yin He had gone to the tribe to play, so boiling the sausages was left to Wen Ze and Zhuo Mu. 

Zhuo Mu was mainly in charge of the fire, while Wen Ze kept an eye on the sausages in the pot. If the sausage casing started to swell, he’d poke it with pine needles to keep it from bursting. 

With multiple pots boiling at the same time, they were busy until evening before all the sausages were ready. 

Once they cooled down a bit, Wen Ze had Zhuo Mu change into his beast form and carry him to deliver the sausages to the tribe. 

The beastmen who had helped during the day broke into bright smiles when they received their sausages. 

“Wen Ze, thank you! I’ll take them!” 

“My partner caught some fish today; take some with you!” 

“This fruit is really delicious! I’ll pack a bundle for you!” 

Everyone was so enthusiastic that by the time Wen Ze finished delivering the sausages, his basket was even fuller than before. 

Finally, he stopped outside Li Shui’s cave, where Li Shui was preparing dinner, and explained why he was there. 

Li Shui was pleasantly surprised. “Thank you for delivering them.” 

“No problem,” Wen Ze said, noticing that he was heating the stone slab. “Do you want me to show you how to grill the sausages?” 

Li Shui eagerly nodded. “Yes, yes, thank you!” 

It wasn’t difficult at all. Just brush a little oil on the stone slab, then lay the sausages one by one on top. 

The fire couldn’t be too strong; just slowly turn the sausages as the skin tightens and the fat slowly seeps out. 

Li Shui sniffed the aroma of the grilled sausages and praised, “The boiled sausages already smell so good, but grilling them makes them even better!” 

He turned to his partner, Qin Shan, and said, “Go find the cubs and bring them back. We have something delicious to eat!” 

Qin Shan nodded and was about to step outside when a round little black-and-white ball came spinning toward them, yelling in a high-pitched voice: 

“Meat! I smell meat!” 

“I—want—meat—!” 

The shouting was so loud that Wen Ze could hear the echo of “Meat—meat—” ringing through the mountain. 

He met Li Shui’s helpless gaze and couldn’t help but laugh out loud. 

The usually gentle and refined Li Shui also broke into a smile and scolded his son a little, “Jia Yi! You just followed the smell, didn’t you?” 

The chubby panda rolled on the ground, got up, and laughed, “Father, it’s not just me! Yin He and Qin Shu are here too!” 

Not far away, the two boys who had just changed back into human form blushed and shouted, “Jia Yi, shut up!” 

“I was about to head back anyway!” 

“Troublesome bear!” 

They exchanged a look that clearly said, “Next time, we’re leaving this little cub behind.” 

Of course, getting rid of Jia Yi was impossible—absolutely impossible. 

Jia Yi was like a bear that wasn’t afraid of boiling water. After being scolded too much, he could easily just let it go, without caring at all. 

At this moment, his only focus was on the sausages grilling on the stone slab. 

He clasped his two bear paws together, shaking them up and down like bowing. 

“Father, when will the meat be ready?” 

Li Shui chuckled and poked his forehead with a finger. “Wait! It should be ready soon!” 

Then he looked over at Wen Ze, as if asking for confirmation. 

Wen Ze nodded. “That’s right, they’re already cooked. Just need to grill them a little longer, and they’ll be ready. Make sure to turn them over.” 

“Okay.” Li Shui used chopsticks to turn the sausages one by one, from left to right. 

Not long after, the heat from the stone slab and the animal fat caused the sausages to sizzle, with little bubbles popping up on the surface. 

Under the light of the fire, the sausages glistened with a tempting sheen. 

They had been generous with the meat, stuffing it so full that the sausages were plump and round. Now, with both ends slightly curled up, they looked even more adorable. 

Wen Ze noticed that while Li Shui was managing the sausages, he was also keeping an eye on Jia Yi, and seemed a bit overwhelmed. 

So Wen Ze stepped aside to wash his hands, then took a clean, sharp piece of wood, rinsed it with water, and walked back to the stone slab. 

Afterward, he walked over to the stone slab and used the wood to gently cut the sausages, making three small slashes on each one. 

The wood easily pierced through the casing, and the meat inside began to spill out, only to be held back by the remaining sausage skin. 

Once grilled, the slashed parts became slightly harder, their color deepened, and the rich, smoky aroma intensified, making the little cubs howl with hunger. 

Even Wen Ze couldn’t resist taking a deep breath. 

Yes, this was the smell! 

Finally, the first batch of sausages was ready. 

Wen Ze handed over some small sticks to Zhuo Mu, who washed them and then skewered the sausages one by one. He first handed them to the younger ones. 

“Alright, try them! Be careful, they’re hot. Remember to blow on them, don’t eat too quickly!” 

Yin He and the others responded at the same time, “Got it! Thanks, brother!” 

They quickly blew on the sausages a few times and took a bite. 

The crispy sausage casing cracked with a “crunch,” and the rich juices burst open in their mouths. 

The ingredients were solid, the flavor was fresh and salty, and it was extremely delicious! 

With each bite, they felt like they were in heaven! 

“Wow! So good!” The two older kids’ eyes lit up, unable to hold back their excitement. 

Jia Yi, still unable to fully change into human form, pressed the skewer with his paws and bit into the sausage. 

Soon, the whole sausage was gone, and he was chewing happily, savoring every bite. 

With his mouth stuffed and too excited to speak clearly, he just kept making “mhm, mhm” sounds. 

After swallowing with a couple of gulps, he quickly turned to Li Shui and said, “Father, I want more!” 

Qin Shu and Yin He hadn’t had enough to eat, and now that someone was competing with them, they felt even more that the sausages were the most delicious thing in the world. 

“Brother, I want one too!” 

“Give me another one, please!” 

Li Shui laughed and said, “Alright, everyone gets one, no need to rush.” 

Not only did he give the three young ones their share, but he also called over to the adults, “Wen Ze, Zhuo Mu, you two should eat too. Qin Shan, here’s yours.” 

Wen Ze took two sausages, one for himself and one for the man beside him. 

Li Shui encouraged him to take more, but Wen Ze replied, “No need, we have plenty back home. I just wanted to taste it for now.” 

“Wen Ze, we finally found you,” a familiar voice suddenly called from behind. “Oh, what are you all making? It smells so good.”

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