Unlike the serious and reserved Zhuo Mu, Wen Ze rarely showed a cold expression. 

He always had a smile on his face. 

So, in addition to his intelligence, everyone’s impression of this outstanding half-beastman was that he was gentle, kind, softhearted, and easy to talk to. 

But when someone with a good temper finally put on a stern face, the pressure was overwhelming. 

At this moment, not only were the troublemaking cubs nervous, but even the adults felt uneasy. They stole glances at Wen Ze’s expression, not daring to speak rashly. 

The leaders from the other tribes exchanged looks with each other. In the end, Chi Yu had no choice but to step up. 

“Wen Ze, since the cubs have been found, we won’t stay any longer,” he said. 

Wen Ze looked at him, his expression softening slightly. “Thank you all for today. I still have some matters to handle, so I won’t see you off.” 

Everyone nodded in understanding. 

Chi Yu added, “I know you’ve been busy lately with the smoked meat, sausages, and other goods for our tribe. But you don’t need to rush, we can wait until you have time.” 

Bai Han nodded. “Same for our tribe.” 

Luan Xun chimed in, “And the weaving frames—we’ve learned how to make them now. The next batch will be for us and the Rainbow Sun Tribe, so you don’t have to worry about it.” 

Mo Xing and Kuang Xin also expressed their gratitude on behalf of their tribes. “Thank you for teaching us how to use the weaving frames and spinning wheel, and for showing us how to weave fabric. You’re always welcome to visit our tribes and get some seeds anytime.” 

Chi Yu said, “Alright, we’ll be heading out now.” 

After bidding farewell to Wen Ze, they gathered their people and left. 

With the others gone, the area outside the cave instantly felt less crowded. 

The South Mountain Tribe members remained, curious to see how Wen Ze would deal with the troublemakers. 

The cubs were thick-skinned and tough—getting smacked a few times wouldn’t really hurt them. So, no one intended to plead for mercy. 

Li Shui whispered to his partner, Qin Shan, “Qin Shu is such a troublemaker. Even if he gets beaten, he won’t learn his lesson. I’m afraid he won’t take Wen Ze’s words seriously.” 

Qin Shan’s sharp and handsome face seemed to be covered with a layer of ice as he said coldly, “If he doesn’t learn, it just means he hasn’t been beaten hard enough. I’ll make sure he listens.” 

Li Shui opened his mouth but didn’t say anything. 

Qin Shu was growing up, and one day, he would become a strong beastman. 

They could punish him now, but could they keep doing it forever? 

Still, aside from Qin Shan’s straightforward and rough approach, Li Shui couldn’t think of any other way. 

After all, this was just how kids were raised in the Beast World. Maybe once Qin Shu got older, he’d finally understand. 

For now, all he could do was hope that Wen Ze wasn’t too angry. 

For a fellow half-beastman, his serious face was truly intimidating… 

Once all the outsiders had left, Wen Ze spoke calmly, “Bring me a stone stool.” 

A beastman immediately brought over a stone stool and placed it behind him. 

Wen Ze sat down, spreading his legs slightly, placing his hands on his knees, and keeping his dark eyes locked on the troublemaking cubs. 

“All beastmen, turned into human form,” he said coldly. 

Everyone’s heart skipped a beat. Here it comes! 

Yin He and the others exchanged glances before reluctantly turning into their teenage human forms. 

“Yin He,” Wen Ze called his name. 

Yin He shuddered in fear. 

“B-Brother…” 

“Come here.” 

Yin He wore a troubled expression as he stepped forward slightly. 

“Closer,” Wen Ze’s voice was like a death sentence. 

With a pale face, Yin He forced himself to stand right in front of him. 

He thought Wen Ze would start hitting him right away, but instead, the young man asked, 

“Tell me, what exactly happened today?” 

Yin He was stunned for a moment and quickly defended himself, “I saw that the Yangyang grass in the field was already old, and you were so busy, so I thought I’d go catch some river clams. I really just wanted to help.” 

Wen Ze lifted his gaze and stared at him. He didn’t say whether it was a good idea or not and simply asked, “What about the others? How did you convince them to go with you?” 

Yin He muttered, “I didn’t really convince them… As soon as they heard I was going to dig for river clams, they all wanted to come. I knew it was far from the tribe, so I made sure not to bring Jia Yi and the little ones.” 

Hiding behind Li Shui, Jia Yi let out a dissatisfied hum. “I can do work just fine too!” 

Yin He eagerly reported his achievements, “I even gave Qin Shu and the others some nut milk candy as payment for their help. All the river clams we caught are ours!” 

Wen Ze: “…” 

Great, he even knew how to “buy out” their labor. 

“If you knew it was far and dangerous, why didn’t you tell an adult before leaving?” Wen Ze asked coldly. 

Yin He felt extremely guilty, practically burying his head into his chest as he stammered, “Because… because…” 

Wen Ze finished for him, “Because you knew we wouldn’t let you go if we found out.” 

Yin He fell silent. 

Wen Ze continued, “Let me guess, you wanted to bring back a big haul and prove that you’re capable too, right?” 

“But do you realize that the reason you didn’t run into any beasts along the way or in the lake was because Zhuo Mu and the others cleared out the dangerous ones? It wasn’t because you’re strong or just lucky.” 

“If we had been any later, and it got dark, what would you have done when the Black Armor Beasts returned to the lake?” 

Hearing this, Yin He hurriedly explained, “We would’ve run, of course! Brother, we didn’t mean to stay that long. The mountain was already kind of dim, and we didn’t notice the sun had set.” 

From the back, Qin Shu quietly added, “There were just too many river clams in the lake… we couldn’t stop catching them.” 

These kids were all over two meters tall in their beast forms and weren’t afraid of water. As long as they didn’t get caught up in fighting, they could indeed escape if needed. 

Knowing that they at least had some sense of danger, Wen Ze felt a little relieved. 

Still, his expression remained stern. He pressed his lips into a firm line and gave a neutral “hmm.” 

“Now that I understand the situation… let’s talk about how to deal with all of you.” 

The more timid half-beastmen turned pale, their eyes filled with fear. 

Yin He gritted his teeth, clenched his fists, and lifted his head. 

“Brother, if you want to punish someone, punish me. I was the one who took them there—it had nothing to do with them.” 

Qin Shu couldn’t help but speak up in protest. “Brother Wen Ze, we’re almost adults now. We’re not clueless kids anymore. Nothing bad even happened, and we actually got a bunch of river clams… If you’re going to punish someone, then punish all of us.” 

As soon as he said that, the other kids nodded in agreement, standing firmly by their friend. 

Seeing this, Qin Shan’s handsome face turned red with anger. 

“Qin Shu, you must be asking for a beating! Wen Ze, hand him over to me. I guarantee he’ll never dare to leave the tribe without permission again!” 

Qin Shu refused to back down and snapped back, “Brother, how can you be like this?” 

Just as Qin Shan was about to charge forward, Wen Ze gave Li Shui a look, and Li Shui quickly held Qin Shan back. 

He patted Qin Shan on the back and whispered, “Wait and see what Wen Ze does first.” 

Realistically, with the strength difference between half-beastmen and Beastmen, Qin Shan could easily break free if he wanted to. But he didn’t want to hurt his partner, so he stayed put, though he still shot a fierce glare at Qin Shu. 

Qin Shu turned his head away, pretending not to see. 

A tense atmosphere filled the space between the kids and the adults, like an invisible wall separating them. 

To everyone’s surprise, Wen Ze didn’t pick up any kind of “disciplinary tool.” Instead, he turned to the half-beastmen present and asked, 

“Has anyone gathered flower petals recently?” 

Word had already spread through the tribe that Wen Ze was planning to dye fabric, and everyone was looking forward to it—especially the half-beastmen, who had been eagerly collecting petals. 

One of them quickly raised a hand. “Wen Ze, I have some!” 

“Do you have small red flowers?” Wen Ze asked. 

“Yes! Would a red fine-petaled flower do?” 

“Yes. I need thirty-three of them.” 

The half-beastman immediately took out thirty-three small red flowers from his space and handed them over. 

Wen Ze turned to the kids and said, “Line up and come collect a flower from me.” 

Everyone looked confused. Weren’t they supposed to be getting punished? Why were they being given flowers instead? 

There were eleven kids who had sneaked out to collect river clams. They lined up, and each received three small red flowers from Wen Ze. 

Then, Wen Ze said calmly, “These three flowers are your reward.” 

Qin Shu blinked in shock. “A reward?” 

Wen Ze nodded. “Yes. Didn’t you all help the adults with work? And you did a good job. Today, you can use these red flowers to exchange for stir-fried clams with Yangyang grass from me. One flower can be exchanged for one portion.” 

The kids, who had been bracing for scolding or punishment, stared at the flowers in disbelief. Wen Ze was… rewarding them? 

Yin He has said several times lately that stir-fried clam meat with Yangyang grass is super tasty! They all want to give it a try. 

This was amazing! 

Their initial shock turned into excitement. 

Some of the adults, however, didn’t quite agree with Wen Ze’s approach, but no one interrupted him. 

After observing for a moment, Wen Ze shifted the tone. “But you also made a mistake today. Can anyone tell me what it was?” 

The little red flowers had given them encouragement and confidence. A half-beastman raised his head and said, “We shouldn’t have run so far without informing the adults.” 

Wen Ze nodded. “You understand that you could have been in danger?” 

The kids lowered their heads guiltily. “Yes… We’re sorry.”

“Now, do you think you should be punished?” 

They all nodded—even Qin Shu, who weakly admitted, “Yeah, we should.” 

Wen Ze extended his calloused hand. “Alright. Each of you, hand over one flower as punishment.” 

This time, no one resisted. They reluctantly parted with one of their flowers. 

Wen Ze continued, “And when we reached the mountain, you all tried to run. Was that the right thing to do?” 

The kids looked even more remorseful and shook their heads. “No.” 

“Why not? Yin He, you answer.” 

Yin He said shamefully, “If we ran, we could’ve encountered a beast, gotten lost in the mountains, or made the adults worry.” 

Wen Ze nodded. “Good. Now, everyone, hand over another flower.” 

By now, they were getting used to the process, though they still handed over their flowers reluctantly. 

Now, each of them had just one flower left. 

They really wanted their reward. They really wanted to eat stir-fried clams with Yangyang grass. 

They gazed at Wen Ze with hopeful, pitiful eyes, afraid he’d take away their last flower too. 

Only a handful of the adults realized that the tense atmosphere had changed. 

The kids were now completely focused on Wen Ze, genuinely listening to him. 

Wen Ze was now the one in control of everything. 

A few seconds later, the boys’ anxiousness reached its peak. 

Thankfully, Wen Ze said, “The rewards and punishments for everyone else are over—except for Yin He.” 

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief but immediately turned to look at Yin He in confusion. 

After thinking for a moment, Yin He pulled a long face and asked, “Brother, is it because I was the one who led them out?” 

Wen Ze raised an eyebrow. “So you do get it. That’s right—if you hadn’t taken the lead today, they wouldn’t have caused this trouble. So, I’m docking another little red flower from you. Any objections?” 

“No objections. It was my mistake, and I won’t sneak everyone out again. Brother, I’m sorry… and sorry to everyone too.” 

Since Wen Ze had already gone over everything, the other boys figured, “My punishment is over,” so no one stepped in to plead for Yin He. 

Besides, each of them only had one little red flower left—they weren’t about to give it up. 

Seeing Yin He obediently step forward and hand over his last flower, everyone reflected on their own mistakes. 

Without a red flower, he wouldn’t be able to exchange it for stir-fried clam meat with Yangyang grass. They knew how heartbroken Yin He was at this moment. 

As Wen Ze took the flower, Yin He’s eyes turned red with disappointment and grievance. 

The other kids felt for him and clutched their own little red flowers even tighter. 

Wen Ze observed the situation and confirmed that for a long time to come, today’s feeling of “gaining and then losing” would be deeply imprinted in their hearts. 

Before acting in the future, they would think more carefully about today’s mistakes and lessons. 

The other adults watching were stunned to see how obedient the children had become. Their minds were filled with disbelief: “This actually works? How?” 

Wen Ze’s way of disciplining was completely different from theirs! No scolding, no beating—just a few little red flowers that were given and then taken back, and he had the kids completely under control? 

Beast God, they didn’t understand it, but they were absolutely shocked! 

Some Beastmen started to realize what was happening. Zhuo Mu, for instance, gazed at Wen Ze, a strange glint flashing in the depths of his eyes. 

Wen Ze had given the kids hope, made them happy, and then taken that hope away. 

The reflection that came from gain and loss would leave a far deeper impact than any punishment. 

He truly was different. 

Wen Ze carefully put away the little red flowers, got up from the stone stool, and patted the dust off his clothes. 

Then, he looked at the kids seriously and said, “Don’t be discouraged. As long as you behave well in the future, the adults will reward you with little red flowers again. If you collect ten, you can exchange them with me for food.” 

The little ones’ eyes lit up instantly, and their enthusiasm was completely sparked. 

“Really? What counts as good behavior?” 

“Can we exchange for any food? Can we get honey too?” 

“I want yogurt!” The kids chattered excitedly. 

Wen Ze finally showed a faint smile. “Listening to adults, helping out, and staying out of trouble all count as good behavior. As for food, as long as I have it, you can exchange for it.” 

The younger cubs refused to be left behind. 

Jia Yi ran over and shouted, “Brother Wen Ze, what about us? We want little red flowers too! We want to exchange for food!” 

Wen Ze chuckled and ruffled his fluffy head. “All the kids in the tribe can join.” 

Jia Yi was so happy he rolled around on the ground. “Wow, this is awesome! I’m definitely going to be the first to collect ten little red flowers!” 

The other kids refused to back down. 

“I’ll save up faster than you! I’m exchanging mine for sausages!” 

“Hmph, let’s see who wins then!” 

Wen Ze listened with amusement and didn’t stop them. Instead, he leisurely added, “On the other hand, if you make a mistake, you’ll lose the little red flowers.”

“What?!” 

Some kids hadn’t even earned a single flower yet, but they were already nervous. 

“I won’t mess up!” 

“Me neither!” 

Wen Ze withdrew his gaze and walked into the crowd, solemnly apologizing to the parents of the children and thanking those who had helped in the search. 

Everyone was understanding, saying as long as the kids learned from their mistakes, it was fine. 

Li Shui looked at Wen Ze with admiration. “Only you would come up with something like this. I bet the kids will be eager to earn their little red flowers now and won’t cause trouble anymore.” 

The others nodded in agreement, thinking they had learned something valuable. 

Wen Ze just smiled without saying anything, thinking to himself that this was only the beginning. 

If he introduced things like group accountability and a reporting system, the kids would go wild. 

He waved it off humbly. “I just learned this from someone else.” 

Li Shui paused for a moment. Wen Ze had said that before—who exactly had taught him all this? 

Before he could ask, Wen Ze spoke first. “Li Shui, can you help me clean the river clam meat? They were just caught today and haven’t expelled their sand yet. Cleaning them is a bit tedious.” 

Li Shui immediately nodded. “I don’t mind! Just tell me what to do. How many do we need to clean?” 

Wen Ze: “Two baskets.” 

Li Shui: “Mm, that’s not much. Our families can finish it quickly.” 

With that, the little commotion of the day came to an end, and everyone returned home. 

The kids who had gone clam digging with Yin He, except for Qin Shu, were taken back by their parents. 

Before leaving, Sang Hui and the others made arrangements with Wen Ze for making bricks the next day. 

Outside Zhuo Mu’s cave, the area finally cleared out, leaving only a mess of footprints on the ground. 

It was already getting late. Wen Ze taught Li Shui how to use a shell knife to pry open the clams and left him to extract the meat while he took his black-silver knife and headed to the fields to harvest Yangyang grass. 

Zhuo Mu had seen Wen Ze clean clams before, so he and Qin Shan collected wood ash to use later. 

Yin He and Qin Shu assisted with miscellaneous tasks. 

Before long, Wen Ze returned and handed over the vegetable washing and chopping to the two adult beastmen, then joined Li Shui in processing the clams. 

Yin He and the others had brought back a total of eleven baskets of river clams, all of them large, with full, glossy black shells patterned with curved ridges. 

The two half-beastmen soaked the clams in water, then swiftly pried them open and scooped out the meat while the clams were still unaware. 

The task was simple yet oddly satisfying. After a while, Wen Ze felt like all his fatigue from the day had disappeared. 

Li Shui laughed. “We used to pour boiling water over the clams to get the meat out. This way is actually quite enjoyable.” 

Wen Ze nodded in agreement. 

As the first basket of river clams was nearly emptied, Wen Ze casually picked one up. With a swift motion, he slid his black-silver knife in, pried it open, and scraped along the shell. 

A thick, tender piece of mussel meat fell coolly into his palm. 

Just as he was about to toss it into the wooden basin beside him, he suddenly felt something different in his hand. 

Under the flickering firelight, he took a closer look—right in the middle of the clam meat, a soft, pearly glow shimmered! 

What is that? 

He quickly pulled the meat apart, revealing a perfectly round, milky-white pearl, about the size of his thumbnail! 

“Heavens, is that a pearl?!” Li Shui’s shocked voice rang out. 

Zhuo Mu and the others immediately turned their attention over. 

The smooth, radiant pearl, rested quietly in Wen Ze’s palm. 

Anyone who saw it would have the same first reaction… 

“It’s so beautiful!” Li Shui’s eyes lit up, and even his breathing softened as he spoke in surprise. “I never thought a river clam could produce a pearl!” 

Yin He and Qin Shu, the two little ones, also rushed over, their round eyes widening as they chattered excitedly: 

“It’s so bright! And huge!” 

“I’ve never seen such a beautiful pearl before!” 

Wen Ze was stunned. “To be honest, I’ve never seen one either… It must take many years to grow this big, right?” 

Li Shui nodded. “Yeah, and the key is that it’s really rare to find one this round.” 

Yin He asked, “Doesn’t that mean it’s worth a lot of supplies?” 

Li Shui chuckled. “Of course! A pearl this beautiful is incredibly rare! Even if you don’t exchange it for supplies, you could make it into jewelry and wear it yourself.” 

Yin He got excited. “Yeah! Let’s make a pearl necklace for my brother!” 

Zhuo Mu, who had been silent the whole time, couldn’t help but imagine Wen Ze wearing a pearl necklace… It would actually look pretty good. 

Finding a pearl was an exciting surprise for Wen Ze as well. 

However, he smiled and said, “I’m such a rough person, and I’m always busy with work. What would I do with a pearl necklace? Besides, Yin He, you were the one who caught these river clams, so the pearl rightfully belongs to you.” 

Yin He gasped. 

He had never owned something this valuable before! 

Li Shui pointed out that since the other kids had accepted Yin He’s nut milk candy, the river clams—and by extension, the pearl—should belong to him alone. Qin Shu had no objections either. 

Still, Wen Ze planned to talk to the other kids’ parents later, just to make sure everything was fair. 

The pearl was truly stunning, and he could see how much Yin He liked it. Even if he had to exchange some supplies, he’d make sure Yin He could keep it. 

After everyone admired the cleaned pearl, Wen Ze carefully put it away. 

With this exciting discovery, they decided to open the rest of the river clams together, hoping to find more pearls. 

Good news—they actually found two more! And they were quite large! 

The not-so-good news? The shapes were irregular, and instead of pure white, they had a gradient of light purple. 

Wen Ze vaguely remembered hearing in his past life that pearls like these had a name… something like “Baroque pearls”? 

Even though these two pearls weren’t perfectly round, once they were cleaned, Wen Ze examined them under the firelight. They shimmered with a soft lavender glow, which was truly mesmerizing. 

Li Shui admired them sincerely. “They’re really beautiful.” 

Qin Shan, noticing how much Li Shui liked them, said, “Next time, let’s go catch some river clams ourselves.” 

Li Shui suddenly thought of something. “Word is going to spread fast in the tribe about us finding pearls from the river clams.” 

“Are you worried that if we go too late, there won’t be any left? I can take you tonight.” 

Li Shui waved his hand. “No, that’s not it. I’m worried that if everyone rushes to catch them, we’ll wipe out all the river clams in the lake. The Beast God wouldn’t allow that.” 

The fate of the Slow Beasts was an example—until now, they still weren’t allowed to hunt it. 

Qin Shan frowned. “Then this isn’t just about whether we can find more pearls… Should we just keep it a secret?” 

Wen Ze immediately said, “No, we can’t. Pearls are valuable, and I need to discuss this with the other kids’ parents. As for your concerns, there’s actually a very simple solution.” 

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