Surviving in the Beast World with a System-Chapter 39: We Stay Behind

"Yuan Lang, when are we setting out?" The middle-aged Beastman walked over to the three of them.

Seeing Teng Qian and Teng Kun, he couldn’t help but roll his eyes. "You two rascals. Usually, you’re the most afraid of Yuan Lang, so why are you sticking so close to him now that you’ve hurt your heads?"

As he spoke, he gave each of them a kick on the backside. "Get over there and help process the kill. What are you slacking off for?"

The two of them shot up, clutching their rears, and ran toward the other tribe members with a cheeky laugh. "Hey, Uncle! We’re adult male Beastmen now. It’s not good for you to keep kicking our butts. What if the young females see?"

The middle-aged Beastman shot them an annoyed glare, then suddenly burst out laughing and sat down next to Yuan Lang. "Look at those two rascals. They haven’t been adults for long, and they’re already thinking about young females." 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

A strange expression flickered across Yuan Lang’s face. "That’s because they don’t know how formidable females can be."

His eyes were indifferent, holding none of the usual male excitement. When he spoke of young females, it was as if he were discussing prey.

The middle-aged Beastman was startled by that thought and quickly shook his head, looking at him. "When are we setting out? The rest of the injured Beastmen are much better now. We can have the others take turns carrying them."

Yuan Lang nodded. "The injured Beastmen will be in the middle. The able-bodied ones will clear the path ahead and guard the rear. We can’t afford to lose any more of our tribe."

Six Beastman Warriors had already lost their lives on this salt trade journey.

Looking at the coarse, yellow salt wrapped in the Beast Skin before him, Yuan Lang pressed his lips together. ’Life here is probably worse than even a farmer’s on the frontier.’

The next day, Yuan Lang, as the captain of the salt-trading party, organized the Beastmen and set out toward their tribe once more.

Teng Qian and Teng Kun stayed close to Yuan Lang, responsible for the security of the group’s rear.

The middle-aged Beastman led a few able-bodied Beastmen at the front to clear the path.

Along the way, to minimize noise, none of the Beastmen transformed into their beast forms, instead running as humanoids. This suited Yuan Lang and the other two quite well.

On the evening of the third day, the middle-aged Beastman, who was leading the way, suddenly stopped. His ears twitched as he seemed to be listening to the sounds of the jungle.

When a faint, foul stench drifted by on the forest wind, the middle-aged Beastman’s expression changed drastically. "Fierce Beasts!"

His low growl spread through the entire party. Yuan Lang sprinted over from the rear of the group. The instincts of his Beastman body made him unconsciously sniff the air.

The familiar foul stench hit his nose, making his dark brows furrow. "It’s a small pack of Saber-toothed Pigs. I’ll take some of our tribe and stay behind to hold them off for a while. Uncle, you take the injured to a safe place and wait for us."

But the middle-aged Beastman shook his head firmly. "Let me be the one to stay behind this time."

Seeing that Yuan Lang was about to refuse, he raised a hand to cut him off. "You are all young Beastmen, the hope of the tribe. Besides, us old-timers are much more experienced than you. We’re better suited to stay behind."

’A pack of Saber-toothed Pigs means there’s an adult Fierce Beast among them. If Yuan Lang and his group stay, they’ll just be throwing their lives away.’

"Yuan Lang, hurry and take the injured tribe members away. Find a safe place to settle them, and then it won’t be too late to come back and help us," said several Beastmen beside the middle-aged one.

They were all prepared to die by staying behind, just as Yuan Lang and his group had been when they insisted on guarding the rear before. The dangerous tasks couldn’t always fall to Yuan Lang.