Future Beast World: Becoming A Pampered Beauty-Chapter 134 - 78: Waist Side Tattoo

"I’m sorry, Luoluo. I thought you’d never come back for me, so I figured since it was just a dream, I might as well indulge myself this one time..."

Lan Cang gazed at the dark bruises on her body and leaned in to kiss them with a pang of pity, yet his heart was brimming with satisfaction.

Sang Luo asked, "Why would you ever think that? Do I seem like the kind of trashy female who would just use you and then abandon you?"

He huffed softly, lowering his head to gently rub his nose against hers. His voice was dry and hoarse, tinged with grievance. "But you returned the entire dowry!"

In the Beast World, a female unilaterally returning a dowry meant one thing—she didn’t approve of the Male Beast and thought he was too weak. How could she possibly come back for him?

"No, that’s not it at all." Sang Luo quickly denied it, explaining, "I thought you already had a new partner, so how could I possibly accept the dowry? Besides, you have a younger brother to support through school, and the tuition for Yalan Academy is very high. I couldn’t help you with other things, but I at least didn’t want to be a burden in that respect. I figured returning the money would help ease the financial pressure on you and Lan Ruo."

"You wicked Luoluo! How could I ever have another partner?" Lan Cang, frustrated, gave her lip a light bite.

Back when he’d heard she died, he had almost given up on life to join her. It was only because he still had a younger brother to support through school that he forced himself to live on like a walking corpse. He had even planned to finish one last big job, pay his brother’s tuition, and then go "find" her.

"Don’t you dare pin the blame for this on me!" Sang Luo glared, indignant. "I asked you about it, and you never denied it."

"I never admitted it, either," he murmured.

"..." ’Fine, fine, fine. So he was just setting a trap for me to fall into!’

’He was so difficult, refusing to just say what he meant. He just had to make me guess what was on his mind. Anyone would have misunderstood, all right!’

’These broody types are such a headache!’

’But she liked it, regardless.’

Sang Luo cuddled with him sweetly for a while longer, her hands roaming over Lan Cang’s lean, toned waist. Suddenly, her fingers brushed against something intriguing. Her eyes lit up, and she ducked her head under the covers.

Lan Cang’s body went rigid. He quickly fished her out from under the blanket, the tips of his ears beet red. He stammered, "W-we just finished... If you want to go again, just let me..."

Sang Luo said, "What are you thinking about? You have something carved on the side of your waist. Let me see."

Blushing, Lan Cang pulled the blanket down slightly, just enough to reveal the area just above his hip.

Sang Luo saw the tattoo carved into the side of his waist.

It was her name.

Sang Luo’s eyes welled with tears. She reached out to gently stroke the inked skin. "When did you do this?"

"The night I left the Western Continent. I carved it myself with a knife." His voice was muffled, as if he were sulking. When he was with her, the man still couldn’t help but reveal a touch of his youthful, naive side.

"Did it hurt?"

"It didn’t hurt."

"You missed me a lot?"

"Mhm. Every day. I thought of you during the day, and I thought of you at night. I missed you so much I couldn’t bear it."

She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. "You’ve already reached King Rank. Why didn’t you come looking for me?"

Lan Cang pulled her down beneath him on the bed, burying his face in the crook of her neck. His low voice was laced with bleak dejection. "...I heard that you had entered the Royal Palace... and become the new Beast King’s female."

’He wanted to stand by her side.’

’Not because she kept him out of pity or guilt.’

’But as someone who was truly qualified to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with her.’

Lan Cang knew he couldn’t possibly be the only Male Beast in Sang Luo’s life. He never dared to hope for too much; he would be satisfied just to be able to stay by her side, openly and with dignity.

The moment he broke through to King Rank, he was ecstatic and wanted to go back to find Sang Luo. But then he heard the news that she had gone to the Beast King Palace.

And what an existence the Beast King was.

The most talented, highest-ranking, and most powerful Male Beast in the entire Empire.

He was no match for him.

Lan Cang had never been interested in power and status, but now he was desperate to grow stronger, to gain power. That was why he had become the City Lord of Ice-breaking City and worked to expand his influence.

"Chasing after power too aggressively isn’t a good thing. It’s easy to lose sight of who you really are." Sang Luo thought of Duotu and sighed.

She didn’t believe the bright, gentle young man she’d met all those years ago had been a complete fabrication. Perhaps Duotu wasn’t inherently bad; he had simply chosen the wrong path.

But there was no longer a future for them together.

"Mhm, I know." Lan Cang reached out with a calloused thumb and gently brushed it across her lips. "Are you going back to the Yalan Empire?" he asked, his voice low.

’Looks like the news of my "death" hasn’t reached the North Continent yet.’ Sang Luo saw the hopeful anxiety in his eyes and knew what he really wanted to ask was, ’Will you stay?’

Sang Luo wouldn’t be staying on the North Continent forever, but she was willing to be with him for a time, to give him a reason to wait for her and to make up for the past.

"I’m not going back to the Western Continent. What about you? Will you continue to stay on the North Continent as a City Lord?"

"The conditions on the North Continent are harsh, but the Cultivation Resources are abundant. I became a King Beast within a year here, so I want to stay. There might be more opportunities for me in the future." As Lan Cang spoke, he looked a little ashamed. "You’re already at King Rank. If I don’t push myself harder, I might truly be unworthy of standing before you."

"You’re already incredible. And if it comes to it, I’ll protect you. I’d like to see anyone try and bully you."

"Luoluo... you’re really not like other females. They never like Male Beasts who are weaker than them. To them, it’s a burden they can’t wait to cast aside. Only you would say something like that." Lan Cang smiled, unsure if he should be sad that he could barely keep up with her cultivation level, or happy. What had he ever done to deserve such singular affection from the female he adored?

"I’m telling the truth, Cangcang. You’re the only Male Beast whose Talent Power I don’t care about."

Lan Cang possessed great leadership skills and was fiercely loyal. Even at his lowest point in the Kordo Tribe, a group of brothers had followed him devotedly. The effort and tactics it took for him to rise from commoner to City Lord were no less than what Duotu and the others had employed. If his innate talent hadn’t held him back, his achievements would have been even greater.

Lan Cang’s eyes suddenly welled with tears. "I’m sorry, Luoluo. If my talent were just a little better, I could be of more help to you."

Before he could finish, Sang Luo sealed his lips with a kiss. "I think you’re perfect just the way you are."

Lan Cang’s heartbeat was deafening, his heart almost leaping out of his chest.

No longer able to control his fervent emotions, he lowered his head and bit the side of her waist.

"Ah!" Sang Luo cried out in pain. She looked down to see Lan Cang half-kneeling beside her thigh, licking away the beads of blood that had welled up on her waist.

The wound quickly closed, and in the exact same spot as the tattoo on his own hip, a wolf-shaped Soul Mark appeared on her skin.

"Luoluo, I will always belong to you, until I give up my life..."

Sang Luo covered his mouth. "Don’t raise any death flags. In stories, the people who say things like that are usually the first to die."

"Huh? What does that mean?"

"It’s nothing." Sang Luo rubbed her stomach and gave him a peck on the lips. "It’s all your fault. All that activity made me hungry. Speaking of which, I’ve been dying for your cooking this past year. I was just waiting for you to cook for me~"

When Lan Cang heard this, he quickly got dressed and got out of bed. "I’ll go make you something to eat!"