Werebeast Gongs CH 074 Mingya's Secret Part 1
Mingya was an obedient child. Although he didn’t understand why Lei Jin wanted that stone, since Lei Jin had asked, he dutifully followed through. So, the next morning, when Mu He asked again if they needed anything else, Mingya didn’t hesitate to ask for the black stone hanging around Mu He’s neck.
Before Mu He could respond, Yu Qi’s face darkened. He wondered how this little leopard werebeast knew what his mate wore around his neck, even describing the color so accurately. But since Mingya was just a child, there was no point in making a fuss. Yu Qi could only swallow his displeasure.
Mu He, on the other hand, looked hesitant.
“Can’t you give it to me?” Mingya blinked his big, innocent blue eyes.
“It’s not that,” Mu He glanced at Yu Qi, then took off the stone and handed it to Mingya. “Why do you like this so much? It was a gift from Yu Qi to me.” But it wasn’t the only gift, so giving it away shouldn’t be a big deal, right?
“Thank you, Brother Mu He.” With the stone successfully in hand, Mingya wagged his tail at Lei Jin, signaling his success, and politely thanked Mu He with a smile.
Lei Jin, seeing Mingya’s little gesture, maintained a calm expression but was laughing inside. It seemed the little guy wasn’t as clueless as he appeared.
Berg continued to act like an invisible wall flower, which struck Lei Jin as odd given his usually arrogant personality. But since it didn’t concern him, Lei Jin didn’t bother asking.
“Oh, I almost forgot something important,” Yu Qi said as he handed the bag of peanuts and corn to Xiya. “If you’re heading back to the Leopard Tribe, you’ll need to cross a vast wasteland to the east. Recently, a large pack of saber-toothed beasts has been spotted there. Many of our Wolf Tribe’s warriors have been injured, and some haven’t returned. I suggest you take the southern route, cross the snowy mountains, and then head east.”
Saber-toothed beasts? Lei Jin and Mingya had no idea what those were, but Xiya and Moya had seen them before. They were massive, ferocious creatures with sharp front teeth. Once they bit their prey, escape was nearly impossible. They also hunted in packs, and even werebeasts avoided them.
The sky began to drizzle again, nearing the end of the rainy season. The towering snow-capped mountains to the south of the Wolf Tribe looked even more desolate in the misty rain.
Xiya and Moya could easily fly over the snowy mountains with three people. Mingya was fine, but Lei Jin and Berg had no cold-weather gear and would surely suffer frostbite, especially Lei Jin. As a female, his constitution was naturally weaker than that of werebeasts, and he was already injured.
They thanked Yu Qi for his advice but decided to stick to their original plan of heading east through the wasteland to return to the grasslands. Yu Qi, seeing their determination, could only provide them with the approximate locations where the saber-toothed beasts had been spotted, hoping they could avoid them.
Xiya carried Mingya, while Moya carried Lei Jin and grabbed a hold of Berg. After two days of flying, the vast wasteland finally came into view. The landscape was barren, with few trees and jagged rocks. Weeds sprouted from the cracks in the stones, and the only sound was the howling wind across the desolate plain.
They tried to avoid stopping, but the wasteland was too vast for Xiya and Moya to cross without rest. Following Yu Qi’s advice, they avoided the areas where the saber-toothed beasts were known to roam. They didn’t light fires, surviving on cold, hard jerky and water.
It was the fifth day in the wasteland, and luckily, they hadn’t encountered any saber-toothed beasts. But they knew their luck wouldn’t last forever, so they remained cautious.
That evening, they stopped near a small spring, about the size of a bowl, but with a steady flow of water that ran over twenty meters before disappearing into a rocky layer.
Xiya found a deep, damp cave, its entrance hidden by dense shrubs and vines. Moya stayed behind to watch over the others and clear the cave of rotten grass and debris while Xiya went out to gather dry grass and firewood.
“It’s too dirty inside. You three wait outside for now,” Moya said, using a branch to gather the rubbish.
Mingya licked Lei Jin’s hand and asked, “Lei Jin, are you tired?”
Lei Jin, feeling drowsy, leaned against the sun-warmed rock wall and replied, “I’m fine.” His body was in bad shape, and he had little energy left.
“Mingya will get you some water,” Mingya said, noticing Lei Jin’s dry, pale lips.
“Alright,” Lei Jin replied indifferently. Although he was thirsty, he felt more exhausted, as if his strength was draining away through a hole in his body. He thought that once it was all gone, he wouldn’t last much longer. Still, he stubbornly refused to burden others. He hadn’t seen the saber-toothed beasts, but from Xiya and Moya’s cautious attitude, he knew they were in serious trouble. If he couldn’t help, the least he could do was not be a liability.
“Wait here. Don’t fall asleep. Mingya will be right back,” Mingya said, licking Lei Jin’s hand again before leaving.
“I’ll go too,” Berg said, following Mingya.
The spring was only a few steps away. Mingya drank a few mouthfuls, then quickly shifted to his human form, cupping water in his hands to bring back to Lei Jin. But after a couple of steps, the water leaked through his fingers. He tried again and again, but not a drop made it back. Mingya was sweating with frustration.
Berg, watching this, couldn’t help but scold, “Idiot, why don’t you just let Lei Jin come over and drink? Do you three brothers have to pamper him so much?”
“Lei Jin’s tired,” Mingya retorted, unwilling to listen to Berg’s criticism.
“Then figure out how to bring the water back,” Berg said, crossing his arms.
Mingya looked for a large leaf, but the plants in the wasteland had small leaves due to the lack of water. Finally, Mingya simply drank a big mouthful of water himself, puffing out his cheeks, and hurried back.
Lei Jin, almost asleep, felt something moist on his lips. Assuming Mingya had brought water, he opened his mouth and drank, soothing his dry throat. But why did it feel warm? Startled, Lei Jin opened his eyes to see Mingya’s face close to his, his cheeks slightly red, staring intently.
“Mingya, what are you doing?” Lei Jin asked, steadying himself.
Mingya took the opportunity to lick Lei Jin’s lips again, his face red. “This is the first time Lei Jin has kissed Mingya.”
Lei Jin was speechless. It seemed all three of them had inherited the family trait of playing innocent after the fact.
“Looks like your life isn’t so easy either, dealing with three of them. Can your body handle it?” Berg, now in a better mood, teased.
But Lei Jin wasn’t in the mood to play along. He raised an eyebrow and smirked, “You should worry about when your ‘lover’ will come to catch you.”
Berg scowled. “He doesn’t know where I am.”
“He doesn’t, but Yu Qi does.” Lei Jin hadn’t asked, but he could tell Berg was avoiding Yu Qi, likely because of that man. Right now he was just testing Berg.
“How do you know they know each other?” Berg snapped, rushing over and grabbing Lei Jin’s shoulders.
“Get away!” Mingya pushed Berg away, standing protectively in front of Lei Jin and saying fiercely, “I won’t allow you to hurt Lei Jin.”
Berg got up, gritting his teeth. “Who cares?” He sat down a short distance away and said to Lei Jin, “If he does come, I’ll just say the baby is Moya’s and tell him to get lost.”
Lei Jin didn’t have the energy to argue. He thought, Berg, keep dreaming. That man isn’t someone you can easily fool. If he were, you wouldn’t be played so badly.
“Just a couple more days, and we’ll be out of this wasteland. Then we can have something hot to eat,” Moya said, holding Lei Jin close to keep him warm. They couldn’t risk lighting a fire that might attract the saber-toothed beasts, so they ate cold meat and drank cold water again.
“En,” Lei Jin murmured in the dark, acknowledging Moya’s words.
“Are you feeling bad anywhere?” Moya asked, checking Lei Jin’s body.
“I’m fine. Let’s sleep,” Lei Jin whispered, assuming the others were already asleep.
Moya wrapped Lei Jin in the gray cloth and tucked him into his arms.
In the middle of the night, Lei Jin’s eyes snapped open. He heard strange sounds approaching.
Moya’s finger pressed against Lei Jin’s lips, and his arm tightened around Lei Jin’s waist, signaling him to stay still.
Lei Jin then noticed Xiya had shifted into his beast form and was silently moving toward the cave entrance, his eyes glowing in the dark.
The sounds grew closer—the crunch of bushes being trampled, the snap of branches breaking. Xiya crouched, ready to pounce, while Moya placed Lei Jin next to Mingya…