I Transmigrated as a Villainess to Raise Babies, and My Beast Husbands Are Fighting Madly Over Me!

Chapter 401: Chapter 401: A Bit Interesting

Qiao Xixi’s group wasn’t moving very fast, it was true. But what Huang Yue and the others didn’t know was that when the white fog had risen, Xixi’s party had already changed course. The direction Huang Yue’s group was now searching was completely opposite to the one they had taken.

Qiao Xixi looked up at the sky, but there was no sign of Huang Yue or his people.

’They were right there in the sky just a while ago, close enough for us to see. But I’ve been looking for ages and they’re gone.’

"Jin Ling, City Lord Huang Yue and his men are gone."

Jin Ling paused and looked up at the sky. Sure enough, they were gone.

"Do you think they ran into trouble?"

Feiyan looked up and asked, "Should we wait for them?"

Qiao Xixi thought for a moment before nodding. "We agreed to stick together, so let’s wait. If they don’t show up soon, we’ll keep going."

Sunxiao, ever watchful of their movements, slowed his pace at Qiao Xixi’s words. He found a small clearing ahead and brought them to a halt.

Qiao Xixi slid off Jin Ling’s back and took out some Spiritual Spring water and jerky from her storage space for everyone to replenish their energy.

As Qiao Xixi gnawed on the jerky, she realized the forest around them was unnervingly quiet. The only sound seemed to be their own chewing. So many beastmen had entered the forest, but after everyone split up, they hadn’t run into a single soul.

’Is the Thunder-swallowing Forest really this big?’

Just as Qiao Xixi finished her jerky, she saw a troop of beastmen walking toward them.

"What is with this forest? We keep going around in circles and end up back in this godforsaken place. Hey, there’s someone up ahead."

The troop of beastmen quickly approached Qiao Xixi’s group, but just as they drew near, Sunxiao’s long tail swept out to block their path.

The beastmen stopped in their tracks and looked at Sunxiao.

"We’re also here to rescue the Saintly Priest. We’re beastmen from the Xishi Tribe. Don’t worry, we mean you no harm. We just got turned around in this forest after we entered and couldn’t find our way out. It’s a relief to run into you."

Their leader was a male black panther. He had a simple, honest face and scratched his head in frustration as he spoke.

Qiao Xixi stood up to get a better look. She recognized the black panther male at a glance. She had seen him with a female snow ferret before; he was likely her mate.

Sunxiao didn’t retract his long tail. He simply gestured with a finger behind him and said coldly, "We just came from over there."

The black panther male nodded. "Where are you heading, then? Whatever you do, don’t take the path we came from. Once you go in, you can’t get out."

"Mm."

Sunxiao just grunted coldly and said nothing more.

The black panther male seemed to realize he wouldn’t get much more out of them and didn’t press the matter.

"We’ll head that way, too."

At the black panther male’s command, the beastmen behind him followed him off in a new direction.

Qiao Xixi put away her waterskin. Just as she was about to check if Huang Yue’s group had appeared, she heard the black panther male’s bloodcurdling scream from the woods.

"AHH!! Help! Help me!"

It was followed by the low growl of a wild beast, the sound of tearing flesh, and a struggle.

The instant the screams rang out, Jin Ling and the others immediately took defensive stances, shielding Qiao Xixi.

Sangze stepped forward. "I’ll go take a look."

"Sangze, be careful."

Sangze smiled wickedly. "Don’t you worry, little female. I’m not that easy to kill."

As he finished speaking, he dissolved into a cloud of black mist and shot off into the trees.

When he arrived, he found the black panther male and his troop lying on the ground, completely lifeless.

Sangze walked up to the black panther male, nudged him with his foot, and rolled the body over. The beastman’s eyes were wide open, as if he couldn’t rest in peace.

But strangely, there wasn’t a single wound on his body.

Sangze scoffed, sensing the ambient auras. Oddly, he couldn’t detect anything out of the ordinary.

’In other words, whatever monster killed these beastmen did it in an instant and then vanished.’

"It ran off? How interesting."

Sangze turned and went back to Qiao Xixi’s group, explaining what he had found in the woods.

"They all had beast souls of five stars or higher, yet they died just like that." Qiao Xixi was horrified. ’The monsters in this forest are terrifying.’

’And of all the luck, we have to go in that same direction.’

"Xixi, don’t be afraid." Jin Ling, in his large tiger form, nuzzled his head against her, soothing her anxiety.

Qiao Xixi climbed onto his back. "Since we can’t wait for Huang Yue and his men, let’s get moving."

"Mm."

Sunxiao took the lead, arriving first at the spot where the beastmen had been killed.

His crimson, serpentine eyes swept coldly over the area. Only when he confirmed there were no abnormal fluctuations in the surrounding aura did he look back at Qiao Xixi and the others.

Jin Ling carried Qiao Xixi forward. Just as they were passing the corpses, the black panther male suddenly twitched.

"Help... help me... Save me... I... I don’t want to die..."

The black panther male’s eyes suddenly darted around, and he began to crawl painstakingly toward Qiao Xixi.

Jin Ling and the others exchanged a look. Feiyan immediately stepped forward to intercept the black panther male.

"He’s breathing." Feiyan could feel the black panther male’s breath as soon as he got close.

Sangze’s dark eyes narrowed. ’When I came to check just now, these beastmen were all completely dead. How could there possibly be a survivor?’

"Save... save me..." The black panther male suddenly reached out and grabbed Feiyan’s leg.

Feiyan felt a sinister, cold energy shoot up from his ankle.

Feiyan’s expression changed instantly. He lifted his foot and stomped down on the black panther male’s head.

"ARGH!"

The black panther male let out a wretched howl as blood sprayed everywhere.

But even then, the hand gripping Feiyan’s leg showed no sign of letting go.

Feiyan’s hand morphed into a claw, and he sliced off the panther’s hand at the wrist. But the severed hand, as if with a mind of its own, remained clamped tightly onto Feiyan’s leg.

Feiyan flung a ball of fire at the hand, burning it to a crisp before its grip finally loosened.

"I told you to save me! Why didn’t you save me?!"

A shrill voice shrieked as the black panther male, half his head crushed, suddenly climbed to his feet.

"Why didn’t you save me? WHY DIDN’T YOU SAVE ME?!"

The other beastmen, who had been lying dead on the ground, also began to slowly get to their feet. They opened their dark red eyes and stared menacingly at the group.

"If you won’t save us... then you can die with us!"

Feiyan snorted. "We’ll see who’s dying today!"

Sangze and Feiyan moved to flank the reanimated beastmen, boxing them in.

The battle began anew.

"Little Demon, did those monsters take control of their bodies after they died?"

"That’s right, Host! Those monsters have all sorts of tricks. You all must be extremely careful!"

Qiao Xixi now understood what the Beast Guard had meant when he said the monsters were very smart.

"AHH!"

"No, don’t kill me! I’m not a monster!"

Qiao Xixi turned to see several more beastmen running toward them in a panic.