The wicked female is extremely fierce, but she's pampered by her seven beast husbands.

Chapter 269 Urban Construction Completed
Shi Panxing's question, naturally, remained unanswered.

Ling Xiaoxi also couldn't understand this big-tailed fish. It was quite easy to get along with when it was at home, but when it ran away by itself, it always acted strangely, looking like a gloomy mushroom growing in the rotten soil of tree roots.

However, she still really enjoys playing with Xiao Shi, because he's an amazing fisherman.

Shi Panxing ultimately kept his promise and helped her catch three large fish weighing over ten kilograms each.

As winter approaches, the water level of Qingshi Creek has dropped significantly. The once wide river channel is now in its dry season, and large fish weighing over ten pounds are rarely seen. Even if you spend the whole day in the river, you might not be able to catch a single one.

Ling Xiaoxi threaded a straw rope through the mouths of the three large fish and hung it directly on the back of his wheelchair, asking him to take it home for her. She also asked him to take the pile of pine cones she had collected that day back with her. She then skipped and hopped over to the shelter area with her little basket on her back, intending to find Kong Mingming and invite him to her house for a meal.

When Shi Panxing appeared on the rocky beach in front of the Ling family's house with over a hundred pounds of pine cones and three large fish, Ling Chengen was already counting the supplies that had been delivered. When he noticed the commotion behind him, he turned around and looked at the pile of pine cones at his feet in shock. He asked in confusion, "Did you go and dig up all the squirrel burrows around here today?"

"Do you merfolk like to eat pine nuts?"

Shi Panxing placed his hands on the armrests and said calmly, "I picked them for Ling Xiaoxi."

Ling Chengen raised an eyebrow upon hearing this and asked curiously, "You and she seem to have a pretty good relationship."

"No."

Although Ling Chengen's voice was very soft, he heard it clearly and instinctively denied Ling Chengen's statement.

Ling Chengen glanced at the three large fish still hopping around behind his wheelchair: "Do you want to eat fish? Do you need me to cook it for you?"

"No need, it belongs to Ling Xiaoxi too."

Ling Chengen glanced at the pine cones on the ground and asked, "Do you have any more spatial containers? I can get you a few."

Shi Panxing tilted his head, scrutinized her sharply for a moment, and asked, "You didn't distribute all those spatial containers?"

Ling Chengen: "Am I such a selfless person?"

“We all managed to get by even before we had spatial containers.”

"The space container was earned by Yuheng and me through our own abilities, why should we give it all away?"

Shi Panxing looked down at his knees, grabbed a pine cone and held it in his hand, shaking his head and saying, "I don't need a spatial container, this thing is useless to me."

He previously crafted these containers primarily to hone his supernatural abilities, and also to amass wealth.

In his current state, those material possessions are useless to him.

After thinking for a moment, Ling Chengen went to find more than thirty large-capacity spatial containers and handed them directly to Shi Panxing.

"It's better if you keep these with you. If you manage to mine the Crimson Source Ore, you'll need a place to store them. You can't be watching the mining all day long; you'll need to rest."

Shi Panxing did not accept the offer, but simply said, "If needed, I can refine it again."

Ling Chengen threw the supplies directly into his arms and put all the supplies on the ground into one of the containers: "Here you go. You have no materials and no strength right now. You should wait until you are fully recovered before you start doing anything."

The last spatial container landed on his lap, and Ling Chengen walked directly into the newly built kitchen.

The stove built by the earth-element warrior inside is now usable, and there are several more fire holes.

The kitchen used to be quite basic; the stove was just something we put together to make do.

As the family grew, the old stove and pots were no longer enough. Since everyone was out hunting, Ling Chengen didn't make any changes, planning to adjust them after moving to the Beast City. However, he didn't expect that Yu Heng would blow up the kitchen shed first.

But this is good, because the autumn rains will continue intermittently for the next month, and the rebuilt kitchen will not only be larger but also provide better shelter from the wind and rain.

As the last proper meal before Shi Panxing led the team on their journey, and also the first meal after the new kitchen officially opened, Ling Chengen planned to make a lavish meal as a farewell gift for Shi Panxing.

Yu Shaochen has been very busy lately, as the breeding work is extremely tedious. Therefore, a special plot of land has been allocated for him to focus on seed selection and breeding. As a result, he has been busy until mealtimes lately, and sometimes he even misses mealtimes. Ling Chengen then asks Ling Xiaoxi to bring him food.

However, with Yu Shaochen absent, Yu Heng was definitely not expected to handle the kitchen work, so Ling Chengen assigned Shi Panxing to be in charge of tending the fire.

When Ling Chengen pushed him to the stove, Shi Panxing still looked bewildered, pointing to his own nose: "You want me to cook?"

"I have to cook and tend the fire all by myself, I can't manage it all."

Ling Chengen turned around to prepare the dishes, and casually asked, "You should know how to make fire, right? You can't be a fish in beast form and be afraid of fire, can you?"

"I'm not afraid of fire."

Shi Panxing retorted, but seeing that Ling Chengen ignored him, he sat in his wheelchair and sulked for a while before obediently picking up some dry firewood and starting a fire.

After Ling Chengen finished chopping the vegetables, he took the meat that had been cleaned earlier from the shelf and, while chopping it, said to Shi Panxing, "Don't take what Yuheng said to you during the day to heart."

Shi Panxing stared at the back of her head and asked, "What did you hear?"

"What do you think?"

Shi Panxing frowned, a violent emotion instantly surging into his heart. His heart, filled with malice, felt tight and suffocating, and he had an urge to crush everything in front of him.

As his emotions fluctuated, the dry firewood he stuffed into the stove instantly turned to dust.

A loud sound suddenly erupted from the stove, which was not lit.

Startled, Ling Chengen turned around and looked at his gloomy expression, raising an eyebrow and saying, "Do you care about these things?"

Shi Panxing: "I thought you at least knew what respect was. Do you think I don't deserve it?"

Ling Chengen: "Do you think I'm stupid? From the first moment I saw you, I could basically tell what you've been through. I didn't ask or pry into your past. I felt that I gave you the same respect as everyone else."

Shi Panxing's eyes were deep. Ling Chengen cracked his knuckles and said, "In my view, there is no such thing as victim guilt, so you don't need to be so sensitive."

Shi Panxing: "Don't you think it's disgusting?"

Ling Chengen: "What's disgusting? Your injuries do look a bit ugly, but they'll heal in a few months."

Shi Panxing: "That's not what I meant."

Ling Chengen sighed softly: "Just think of it as being bitten a few times by an animal? You can't just give up on life because you were bitten, can you? Find some time later to take care of them and get revenge."

"There's no need to be so hard on yourself in this lifetime!"

Shi Panxing withdrew his gaze, and it was unclear whether he had listened to her words or not. However, the uncontrollable violent emotions he had felt earlier had disappeared.

"If you don't mind these things, would you choose me as your partner?"

Ling Chengen wedged the knife on the cutting board, turned around and said silently, "I don't know how."

“I don’t mind, and whether or not I’ll make you a beast’s husband are two completely different things.”

“These few beastmen are already giving me a headache. If a few more as troublesome as you and Yuheng come along… I don’t even want to go home.”

Shi Panxing was amused by the expression on her face: "If you don't like it, why not end the partnership?"

Ling Chengen paused for a moment, then turned around and said, "I have indeed considered it."

"But to be honest, I have a lot of things to do and I need help."

“If we end our partnership now, it will only create more problems.” Shi Panxing was shocked by her cold-heartedness for a few seconds. He had thought that she liked the several beastly husbands in her family.

"Moreover, I spent a long time with them and we supported each other. Even if we have to part ways in the future, I must handle this relationship properly and not make a decision on my own based solely on my own feelings."

Shi Panxing lowered his eyes and said, "I originally thought you were different from those females."

"You really overestimate me."

“Everyone has their flaws, and human nature is inherently complex,” Ling Chengen said frankly. “Selfishness, greed, lust, and favoritism are all normal. On the contrary, selflessness, composure, indifference to fame, fortune, and power, and a single-minded pursuit of fairness and justice are qualities that can only be cultivated through continuous education.”

"Like most people, I am neither purely good nor thoroughly bad."

"Those scum from Nanyuan are actually a small group of outcasts."

Shi Panxing looked up at her quietly, seemingly digesting her words, or perhaps not thinking at all, just lost in thought.

He thought she was quite special.

At least most people wouldn't analyze themselves like that.

Instead, people are more willing to glorify their despicable side.

"Besides, you haven't lost your virginity, have you?" Ling Chengen continued chopping meat, casually saying, "I remember Shi Ruoan said that your reproductive cavity was damaged long ago, which must have been done by yourself."

"Yuheng has already treated you, so there shouldn't be any lasting effects. It won't delay your search for a partner."

Shi Panxing sneered, "You make it sound so easy."

"Of course, I'm not as unlucky as you."

Ling Chengen spoke to himself, completely oblivious to the arrow that had pierced his heart.

Shi Panxing: "..."

"Instead of suffering here, it's better to turn that suffering into motivation."

"I also really dislike the orcs of Nanyuan, and I'd love to visit Nanyuan someday."

"It would be best to take those rich lands for ourselves."

"Therefore, war will break out sooner or later."

"But the Huiyuan between Nanyuan and Beiyuan is not suitable for a large army to cross, so we must take the sea route."

"I wonder if you'd be interested in getting involved?"

Shi Panxing listened quietly and said, "I have nothing right now, and you really believe I can get involved?"

“You are an ambitious man,” Ling Chengen said, turning around. “Although I sometimes misjudge people, I’m usually quite accurate.”

His apparent vulnerability and docility were a disguise, a protective layer; deep within his eyes lay an unyielding darkness and ruthlessness.

In the few days since he came back, he has occasionally helped with small tasks.

His methods of dealing with inferior beasts and prey reveal his bloodthirstiness.

She didn't care at all as long as this brutality and ruthlessness wasn't directed at her and her family.

Shi Panxing: "I will try my best to get you as much Chiyuan Mine as possible, but I have some things to do in Nanyuan, and you can't interfere."

Ling Chengen nodded: "I only have a little!"

"Ore is secondary; the safety of the accompanying personnel is of paramount importance, and you must ensure that."

"Don't drag them into your plans, making them victims or stepping stones in your schemes."

Shi Panxing nodded and said, "Okay."

"I went to Hanshan today and borrowed five Crane Clan warriors from Baixi. The group I'm assigning to you this time consists mostly of Earth-type warriors, who are good at defense but not at offense. Moreover, our warriors are far below the level of the warriors from Nanyuan, so we should avoid direct confrontations and head-on clashes."

Ling Chengen was actually a little worried that he would seek revenge at any cost.

However, since this is their first collaboration, they need to trust each other; otherwise, future collaborations will be difficult to develop.

A seventeenth-tier space-type warrior—there might only be one like him on the entire Beast Plains. We absolutely cannot allow him to become our enemy.

……

Shi Panxing's trip proceeded as planned.

Ling Chengen followed the group eastward, and after arriving at the Mulan Plain, he parted ways with them.

Shi Panxing's departure lasted for more than a month.

The construction of the Beast City is nearing completion.

The main buildings in the inner city have been completed, and the outer city walls were also completed half a month ago.

The construction of the defensive fortifications, under Ling Chengen's supervision, was completed the day before the snowfall.

Ling Chengen planned to test the range and attack power of the cannon. Chongzhen was very interested when he heard this, and even Yuheng came from the tribe. Many orcs who were interested after hearing the news also gathered near a cannon at dawn.

As dawn broke, Ling Chengen gave the order.

After the order was given, more than a dozen gun emplacements were fired simultaneously, and the shells were launched at extremely high speeds, hitting the pile of stones with precision.

A sound as deafening as rolling thunder resounded across most of the plain. At the same time, shattered rocks scattered in all directions, even hitting nearby orcs and sending them flying.

Fortunately, among the orcs watching the spectacle were many wood-type warriors. After a few seconds of stunned silence, they immediately cast healing spells on the unfortunate few, managing to save them from the brink of death.

Yuheng stood on high ground, looking at the commotion in the distance and the growing noise that followed. He turned his head and said, "This power is much greater than what I caused that day."

Ling Chengen rolled his eyes at him: "Luckily you didn't put too much powder on that day, otherwise you might have been seriously injured by the explosion."

Yuheng awkwardly touched the tip of his nose and said, "Just curious. I told you I wouldn't make this kind of blunder again."

Ling Chengen placed one hand on the bricks and looked out of the bunker window: "This is just a basic cannon. Because time is tight, we can only make do with it for now. We still need to find people who are good at this kind of work later. I don't have that much time to study this."

Yuheng: "Are there many of these shells?"

"It's not difficult to make, mainly because we happen to have the raw materials."

Ling Chengen tapped the bricks with his fingertip and tilted his head, saying, "However, I had a high-level earth-type warrior survey the area, and the saltpeter reserves are not large, so we need to find a new one as soon as possible to avoid a shortage of raw materials, which would render these cannons useless at crucial moments."

Yu Heng said, "Is the saltpeter ore the kind of ore that I wanted to take the other day, but you stopped me?"

Ling Chengen nodded.

“Then I know where it is.” Yuheng smiled and tapped his cheek. “Give me a kiss and I’ll tell you the exact location.”