Help! I transmigrated to a Beast World-Chapter 63: The Slap Heard Around The Territory

"OH NO YOU DON’T!"

Xin Yi’s hand shot out.

SMACK!

The sound of her palm connecting with Feng Huang’s face echoed across the entire clearing.

The tiger froze mid-lunge, his eyes going HUGE.

Every single warrior’s jaw dropped. Qing Lin’s eyes went wide. Then he started SNICKERING.

[DING! (⊙_⊙)]

[DID HOST JUST—]

[DID SHE JUST SLAP A TIGER ALPHA?!]

[IN THE FACE?!]

[THAT’S THE MOST BADASS THING I’VE EVER SEEN! ☆]

Feng Huang stood there, one hand slowly rising to touch his reddening cheek, staring at Xin Yi like she had suddenly developed a language for speaking to insects.

"You......you HIT me?"

"You had it coming, you STUPID KITTY!" Xin Yi’s hands were on her hips now, her face red with anger. "What did you think you were doing?! Just LUNGING at people?!"

"But he—he STOLE you—"

"I WAS NOT YOURS TO STEAL!" Her voice was shrill. "We shared ONE kiss! ONE! That doesn’t make me YOUR PROPERTY!"

The warriors were all staring now. Some with their mouths literally hanging open.

Kuan Tie whispered, "She slapped the Tiger Alpha."

"I KNOW!" someone whispered back.

"She’s TERRIFYING!"

"I’m in love with her," a female warrior sighed.

Qing Lin was still snickering, trying and failing to hide it behind his hand.

Feng Huang blinked. Once. Twice. His golden eyes locked on Xin Yi’s furious face.

Then he started moving closer with slow steps, and a low purr rumbled from his chest.

"I happen to like it when my female is dominant."

Eh?

[DING! (╯°□°)╯]

[OH NO HE DIDN’T!]

[TIGER KING IS A MASOCHIST?!]

"SHE IS NOT YOUR FEMALE!" Qing Lin hissed, his eyes flashing green, stepping between them.

"That’s RIGHT!" Xin Yi pointed at Feng Huang. "I am NOT your anything! You seductive cat!"

Feng Huang’s grin widened. "Seductive? You think I am seductive?"

"That’s not—I didn’t mean—UGH!" She threw her hands up. "Does Hei Yan even know you’re here?!"

That made him pause.

His grin faltered. "The panther? Why would I tell that brooding furball where I’m going?"

"Because you’re FRIENDS! Or—or tribe allies! Or SOMETHING!"

"We are....not speaking well at this point in time." Feng Huang’s expression went dark for a second. "The panther Alpha has been.....difficult lately."

"I WONDER WHY!" Xin Yi’s voice dripped with sarcasm.

Feng Huang tilted his head, studying Xin Yi. The two marks on her neck. The way she stood protectively close to Qing Lin. The way her eyes kept darting between the two males like she was ready to slap someone else.

"You still like care for the Alpha," he said slowly. "Even after he banished you."

Her throat went tight. "That’s.....that’s none of your business." Of course she was still attached to that big and stupid brooding panther!

He was her....first time!

"Interesting." He looked at Qing Lin. Then back at her. "So the little female has a panther who banished her, a snake who claimed her, and a tiger who—"

"Who is LEAVING!" Xin Yi interrupted. "Right now! Go! Shoo!"

"But I just got here—"

She picked up a ladle, and brandished it like a weapon. "I WILL HIT YOU AGAIN!"

[DING! (≧▽≦)]

[Host is wielding a LADLE!]

[Threat Level: LOW]

[But somehow still terrifying!]

Feng Huang looked at the ladle. At her furious face. At Qing Lin’s murderous expression.

Then he sighed dramatically. "Fine. FINE! I’ll leave! But—" He pointed at Xin Yi. "—I’ll be back. With PROPER courting gifts. And then we’ll see who you choose!"

He shifted back to tiger form, gave one last longing look at Xin Yi, then bounded back into the forest.

Gone.

Just like that.

"WHAT," Xin Yi shouted to no one in particular, "IS WRONG WITH ALL OF YOU?!"

The warriors all looked at each other.

Qing Lin stepped closer, his expression conflicted. "You know, little female, I would love to lock you up somewhere where no other males can see you. Where—"

Her eyebrow shot up. "Excuse me?"

He flinched. "No! No! I didn’t mean—I just meant—"

"You want to LOCK ME UP?!"

"Not lock! More like......protectively store? For your safety?"

"QING LIN!"

"I’M SORRY!" He held up his hands. "I spoke without thinking! It’s just—these males keep showing up and—and you’re MINE and I—"

She poked his chest. Hard. "I am NOT a thing to be locked up. Or stored. Or COLLECTED."

"I know."

"Good." She turned back to her soup. "Now everyone sit down and finish eating before I lose my mind COMPLETELY!"

They all scrambled to obey.

[DING! (◕‿◕)]

[Crisis: Averted!]

[Xin Yi’s Authority: MAXIMUM]

[No one will EVER question her again!]

~

PHASE 3 & 4: THE GREAT BUILDING PROJECT (DAYS 4-9)

DAY FOUR: MATERIAL GATHERING BEGINS

"Okay!" Xin Yi stood in front of the assembled workers. "We have foundations! We have drainage! We have bricks drying! Now we need MORE materials before we can actually BUILD!"

"What do we need, Pink Skin?" Kuan Tie asked.

She pulled out her mental checklist. "Clay! LOTS more clay for bricks! Wood for building frames! Stones for foundations! Plant fibers for rope! And sand for mortar!"

"That’s.....a lot," someone said weakly.

"I KNOW! That’s why we’re splitting into teams AGAIN!" She started assigning groups. "Team Clay—you’re going to the clay deposits by the east marsh! Dig up as much as you can carry!"

"Team Wood—find straight, strong trees! We need logs for support beams!"

"Team Stone—river rocks! Big flat ones for foundations!"

"Team Fiber—gather those reed plants! We’ll process them into rope later!"

"Team Sand—the riverbank! We need LOTS of sand!"

Xiao Long tugged her leg. "What’s MY job, Xin Yi?"

"You, baby, are going to help ME design the buildings!" She pulled out a stick and started drawing in the dirt. "Look! This is what a house looks like!"

His eyes went huge. "It’s like a box! With a pointy top!"

"Exactly! The pointy top is called a ROOF! It keeps rain out!"

"GENIUS!"

By midday, all the teams were out gathering materials.

And Feng Huang showed up.

Again.

"I TOLD YOU TO LEAVE!" Xin Yi shouted when she spotted the tiger lounging by the tree line.

"I DID leave! And now I’m back!" He grinned, showing off his fangs. "With gifts!"

He dumped a pile of......something... at her feet.

Colorful bird feathers. Shiny stones. Some kind of dried fruit. And what looked like a tiger tooth.

"These are courting gifts!" he announced proudly. "The best in Fire Claw territory!"

Xin Yi stared. "You brought me......garbage?"

His face fell. "What? These are VALUABLE! The feathers are rare! The stones are shiny! The fruit is sweet! And the tooth is from MY FIRST HUNT!"

"I don’t WANT your first hunt tooth!"

"But it’s traditional—"

"GO AWAY, FENG HUANG!"

He pouted, like a giant orange cat. "You’re so mean to me."