A pair of erald-green wolf eyes slowly blinked open. A cold glint of light flashed, and the Silver Wolf jerked fully awake as a stone blade scraped past him.
"AWOO!"
The severely injured and weakened Silver Wolf was forced into a corner, his eyes fixed on the ferocious, blond Beastman before him as he let out a low, hateful growl.
The Clan Leader’s face paled in shock; he hadn’t expected the heavily injured Ling Hong to wake up so quickly.
But it was too late to back down now.
As the Silver Wolf lunged to bite, the Clan Leader’s beast-hide loincloth burst apart as he instantly transford into a powerful golden lion to grapple with him.
Inside the now-cramped stone house, the two beasts tore and battered each other. The trendous commotion woke An Jin in the wooden hut next door.
’What’s happening?’
Her head groggy, she climbed up from her straw bed. With no ti to think, she snatched a nearby animal hide, threw it on, and rushed out into the night air toward Ling Hong’s stone house.
Ling Hong had years of combat experience. Even though he was severely injured, he fought the Clan Leader, who was long past his pri, to a standstill.
The walls of the house were smashed through by the two ferocious beasts, their roars startling the entire clan.
Before long, many of the nearby Beastn had been awakened. They gathered near the stone house with panicked expressions, looking completely bewildered at the scene before them.
"What’s going on? Why are the Clan Leader and Ling Hong fighting?"
"The Clan Leader is always so good to Ling Hong. Ling Hong is so ungrateful! How dare he raise a hand against the Clan Leader?!"
A Wolf Beast retorted angrily, looking like he wanted to bite the speaker’s head off, "Didn’t you see the Clan Leader was in front of Ling Hong’s ho? Why would he co to our leader’s place in the middle of the night?"
The timid ones murmured among themselves, while the stronger ones moved in to break up the fight.
Soon, the Silver Wolf and the lion were pulled apart, with a dozen or so people surrounding each of them.
The lion transford back into his human form. His body was covered in wounds, but this did nothing to diminish his natural majesty and intimidating aura. "Ling Hong! To think I invested so much in you, giving you so many of the clan’s resources. How dare you attack with such malice?!"
The Clan Leader took a deep breath, his voice laced with the fury of bitter disappointnt. "I’ve long said that the position of Clan Leader would one day be yours. I never imagined you’d be so impatient, so treacherous! I am so disappointed in you!"
The Clan Leader had a naturally dignified and righteous-looking face. He was normally gentle and kind, projecting an image of both sternness and benevolence in the eyes of the clan. Almost no Beastman would doubt his word for a second.
In an instant, the crowd erupted. The Beastn looked at the blood-covered Ling Hong in disbelief, their gazes filled with condemnation and disgust.
To think that Ling Hong, a Wolf Beast known for his integrity and loyalty, could do such a thing.
The Silver Wolf also shifted back to his human form. His eyes were scarlet, and his wounds had burst open again, leaving him covered in gashes and drenched in blood.
The man’s constricted pupils were bloodshot with rage. He looked as if he had erged from a bath of blood, with fresh blood seeping from his nose and the corners of his mouth. "I didn’t!"
In the large crowd, only An Jin remained by his side, carefully wiping the blood from his body. "What in the world happened?"
"The Clan Leader tried to murder ! I was just defending myself!"
Ling Hong clenched his jaw, his voice choked with pain. As he coughed, a shocking amount of fresh red blood seeped from between his teeth.
’If An Jin hadn’t fed that round dicine earlier, helping recover so of my strength, I would have died silently tonight!’
An Jin knew Ling Hong’s character better than anyone.
This outwardly benevolent Clan Leader, on the other hand, always struck her as sinister and petty. ’Why would he co to Ling Hong’s house in the dead of night?’
Soone in the crowd shouted, "Ling Hong ca into contact with a pack of Demon Beasts a few days ago, and now he’s beco this vicious! Maybe he’s been corrupted by the Demon Beasts’ Demonic Qi and savagery!"
"For the safety of our clan, let’s banish him!"
The ones stirring up the crowd were several of the Clan Leader’s loyal followers.
Crowds have a common failing: once incited, they follow blindly.
The few who couldn’t tell right from wrong were drowned out by the incited majority, and everyone began demanding Ling Hong’s banishnt.
There were indeed cases of demonization among Beastn. The demonized would lose their minds, beco bloodthirsty and cruel as madn, and even devour other Beastn. They were an even greater danger than Wandering Beasts.
Amidst the clamor of the crowd, An Jin silently took Ling Hong’s hand in hers.
She could feel his large hand tightening its grip, slick with a cold sweat. The man who had always been as tough as iron was now faintly trembling.
’Even soone as strong as Ling Hong could one day show such a vulnerable, wounded expression.’
The matter was already decided. The Clan Leader had longed for this for years; he would never allow the outco to be changed.
Ling Hong’s banishnt was now inevitable.
The Clan Leader looked at An Jin. He was middle-aged but had not yet taken a mate. This female was intelligent and beautiful; he was truly reluctant to let her leave.
"An Jin, Ling Hong may have been infected by Demonic Qi. You should stay away from him. The clan will not treat you poorly."
An Jin looked up at the Clan Leader, her clear black eyes so pure they seed capable of seeing through a person’s soul. "You want to banish Ling Hong, is that right?"
The Clan Leader’s thick, golden eyebrows furrowed deeply. "Everything I do is for the clan."
The young female lowered her head, tightly gripping the man’s clammy hands. Under the silent gaze of the crowd, she finally spoke. "Ling Hong really shouldn’t stay in this clan."
The Clan Leader was overjoyed.
An Jin’s lips curled into a smile. "This clan doesn’t deserve him."
The Clan Leader’s expression imdiately turned ugly. "What do you an by that?"
An Jin lowered her gaze, which fell upon the countless scars on Ling Hong’s back.
’Before, these scars were a testant to his glory in protecting the clan. Now, they were just an eyesore.’
An Jin laughed mockingly. "The blindness and stupidity of so are not worth this noble and loyal Wolf Beast risking life and limb, not worth him dedicating his very life to protect."
The crowd stirred, a mixture of anger and sha at being scolded. Many of the Beastn’s faces flushed bright red.
They had all witnessed Ling Hong’s contributions to the clan. If it weren’t for this powerful Wolf Beast, their clan would never have grown so strong.
But... the Clan Leader’s intentions were clear, and most of them didn’t dare to defy him. They could only play dumb.
"Ling Hong might be possessed by Demonic Qi. For everyone’s safety, it’s better... to ask him to leave for now..."
A weathered Old Beastman finally stepped forward.
Being banished from the clan was the greatest humiliation for any Beastman, a stab to the heart. The Old Beastman spoke with extre tact. "If Ling Hong hasn’t been possessed by Demonic Qi, I’m sure another clan will take him in. Of course... if he wishes to return in the future, we will certainly welco him back..."
"That won’t be necessary. Ling Hong has no need for the support of a clan that abandoned him."
An Jin helped Ling Hong to his feet and looked gently at the confused crowd of Beastn. "Ling Hong will leave, and I will leave with him. We will build an even stronger clan..."
Reviews
All reviews (0)