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

Chapter 274 City Seizure Crisis
With the hunting team's return imminent, Ling Chengen breathed a slight sigh of relief upon receiving news that they had already returned.

But she quickly cheered up; she and Yuheng had taken the time to check on the situation at the Snow Wolf Tribe.

There is indeed a saltpeter mine with very rich reserves within the territory of the Snow Wolf Tribe. To the north of the Snow Wolf Tribe's territory, there is also a sulfur mine, but this mine is much smaller and its location is very hidden. It was only after Yuheng mentioned that there were several hot springs in that area that Ling Chengen decided to take a look.

Speaking of hot springs, there seem to be several hot springs in the valley next to the back mountain of Hanshan Tribe. However, because there are a lot of poisonous plants and insects growing around it, she hadn't studied the geological conditions of that place properly before.

There should be sulfur mines below that valley, but the reserves should be relatively small.

Ling Chengen is already considering taking over the Snow Wolf tribe, but he will have to wait until the hunting team returns, because there is a very uncertain factor between the territories of the Stone Forest and the Snow Wolf tribes.

The wandering orcs of the Lolu Mountains.

Ling Chengen sat on a bamboo chair in front of the courtyard, letting the warm sun shine on him. He frowned and asked, "When you took me to the Snow Wolf before, you deliberately avoided the Luolu Mountains. Did you discover something?"

Yu Heng was fiddling with the flowerpots on the table. Hearing this, he stopped what he was doing, lowered his eyes and thought for a moment before carefully saying, "I left a branch of Jiao Jiao in the Lolu Mountains. According to the information it has provided recently, the situation of the wandering orc organization in the Lolu Mountains is very complicated."

Ling Chengen recalled the news he had heard when he encountered a rattlesnake in the Luolu Mountains during his autumn hunt in the north.

The orcs within Rattlesnake formed a secret clique and then betrayed Lin Ying in a very organized and planned way, causing heavy losses to the entire Rattlesnake wandering orc gang, leaving only seven or eight people.

The disintegration of Rattlesnake was related to the two largest and most powerful organizations in the eastern part of Lolu Mountain.

At the time, she thought it was just a simple conflict between groups of wandering orcs, so she didn't pay much attention to it.

Yuheng knew she had brought the Rattlesnakes' wandering orcs under her command, and some things were already done. He no longer wanted to argue with her about it, but instead used the information he had to analyze it with her: "The small wandering orc gangs in the Luolu Mountains have been wiped out one after another recently..."

"Or, it would be more accurate to describe it as an annexation."

"Moreover, there have been constant disputes in the mountains recently. The two largest tribes have not only started to annex other tribes, but there have also been many battles between them, although the scale is still small and has not reached the point of full-scale war. But if the conflict continues to intensify, it is estimated that a full-scale war is only a matter of time."

"The tribes surrounding the Lolu Mountains no longer dare to enter the mountains."

"I reckon there must be an ambitious person in those wandering orc organizations who wants to claim Mount Luolu as his own territory, lead all the wandering orcs in Mount Luolu, and establish a tribe."

Ling Chengen placed his feet on the chair, narrowed his eyes slightly, and asked, "How many wandering beastmen are there in Mount Luolu?"

"Who knows?" Yu Heng couldn't explain the problem clearly. "But based on the information I have, there are at least eight hundred to a thousand wandering orcs in the East and West districts combined."

"But the infighting among their various groups will likely reduce their numbers by 30% to 40%."

"However, if the wandering orcs of the Lolu Mountains really become one side, it will definitely be a big problem for the surrounding tribes."

Ling Chengen nodded in agreement and said, "Indeed."

“At least 95% of these wandering orcs are warriors who have awakened superpowers, and many of them are mid-level warriors of the fifth rank or above, and there are even many high-rank warriors who have a bad reputation in the Southern Plains and the Northern Plains.”

"They have been active in the Lolu Mountains for many years and have never ventured out to hunt or stockpile winter supplies. If they have completed their integration before the heavy snow closes the mountains, they will probably seize the opportunity to plunder the resources of the surrounding tribes."

Yuheng focused his ability on the soil in the flowerpot, and a tender sprout slowly emerged: "The wandering orcs in Mount Lolu have been robbing and stealing resources from surrounding small tribes in previous years, and this year it will probably only get worse. If they have a bigger appetite, they might even set their sights on the Stone Forest."

Ling Chengen: "We will move into the Beast City before the winter season."

Yuheng looked up at her with a smile: "This is probably good news for them."

If all the stone forests are relocated, then the existing territory will be vacated.

The territory of a medium-sized tribe covers a considerable area, and is surrounded by mountains and rivers, with relatively abundant resources... It's estimated that as soon as they left, those wandering orc gangs would try to take over this unclaimed land.

Ling Chengen raised an eyebrow and scoffed, "Am I that kind of person?"

"The Stone Forest territory is not ideal for defending against large beast tides, but I really like the resources within it. How could I possibly give it up so easily?"

"Then you will definitely need to send people to guard this place, and the number of people cannot be small."

Yuheng thought she was greedy and shook his head helplessly, saying, "The problem is that the Mulan Plain and the current territory of Shilin are too far apart, so if something happens here, it will be too late to send reinforcements."

"The Mulan Plain is dozens of times larger than the Stone Forest. Now that you've already acquired that land, if you can't hold onto this place, so be it. Besides... giving it up is only temporary. Aren't you still eyeing the saltpeter mines of the Snow Wolf Tribe?"

"If you want to station soldiers here, you'll need at least a thousand combat troops, plus logistical support personnel. That'll bring the minimum to 1,200!"

"Beast City is also a tempting target for other large tribes. Stone Forest's current combat strength and population are no match for large tribes with tens of thousands of people. If we have to send troops to guard it, Beast City will be in danger."

Yu Heng watched as the buds of the light grass sprouted one after another, then immediately stopped and looked up at Ling Chengen's profile: "So, my suggestion is to give up here for now. It's not too late to take this land back after we've annexed the surrounding area."

"Take it easy and proceed steadily, understand?"

Ling Chengen nodded. She had thought about these things too, but Shilin's current territory was earned back by Ling Xiao bit by bit with great effort. To just give it up like this was really a bit...

"Let me think about it again."

Moreover, this matter should be discussed with Ling Xiao, since he is the true patriarch of the Stone Forest tribe.

Ling Xiao adopted a laissez-faire approach to her, typically interfering only in major matters.

The issue of territory is a big deal!
Ling Chengen and Yu Heng have not yet reached a consensus on whether or not to relinquish their territory.

However, the two did not argue heatedly, but patiently waited for the person who could make the decision to return.

After lunch, Ling Chengen prepared to go to Beast City to take a look. She was just about to tell Yu Heng that she wouldn't be back that night when Yu Heng suddenly appeared in front of her, looking serious, and said, "I'm going to Beast City. Someone there wants to seize the city."

As soon as he finished speaking, he vanished from the spot, leaving only a faint scent of grass and trees.

Upon hearing this, Ling Chengen's expression changed drastically. He immediately grabbed the metal whistle hanging around his neck and blew it into the sky.

Soon, a white crane flew over from the direction of Hanshan.

Just as Shu Dan was about to land, Ling Chengen leaped up and jumped onto her back.

"I'm planning to go to Beast City. They're attacking it. Are you scared?"

"If you are afraid, take me to Hanshan to find Baixi."

Shu Dan immediately shook her head and said, "I'll go with you! Bai Er isn't in the tribe right now. He led a patrol out to the north around noon, and he probably won't be back for a while." Ling Chengen decisively said, "Then let's go straight to Beast City."

The white crane cried out in the air and quickly soared into the sky, flying eastward.

……

When Yuheng appeared in the Beast City, the city was already in chaos.

Many short rat-like orcs, carrying wooden spears with metal tips, ran like spinning tops toward the main gate of the beast city to the south.

He could determine the location of the enemy attack by observing the direction the rat warriors moved.

He flashed again and appeared on the tower above the city gate.

Chongzhen had been waiting at the city gate for a long time, looking at the sky with a solemn expression. He sensed the familiar scent of grass and trees beside him, mixed with a slightly bitter herbal smell. He turned around and said, "You've come at the right time. Flying orcs... how do we defend against them?"

Yu Heng looked up at the black ravens and forest crows hovering in mid-air, his expression turning grim: "Didn't you consider this situation when you designed the city?"

"Of course we've considered it; we're preparing crossbows and cannons."

Chongzhen pressed one hand against the city wall and sighed softly: "But right now they are just some raven beastmen, whose ability levels are generally no more than the fourth rank. Do we really need to use cannons for them?"

"Don't we have crossbows?"

"The crossbow's range is insufficient!"

Chongzhen had already estimated that these raven beastmen were flying overhead, at a height of approximately 500 meters or more, and there were a great many of them.

Based on the design drawings provided by Ling Chengen, he developed a crossbow with a range of up to 500 meters.

It's not that he can't make a crossbow that can travel 500 meters, but because he lacks the materials and data, and has only spent a short time researching it, the finished product will take some time to be ready.

Chongzhen reached out and grabbed Yuheng's arm, pulling him back until they were below the pavilion.

Yuheng, puzzled, asked, "What are you doing?"

“They’ll throw shit from above,” Chongzhen said with a dark face.

No sooner had they finished speaking than a loud thud was heard, and a clump of dark green excrement landed on the city wall in front of them.

Immediately afterwards, the sound of bird droppings falling became more frequent.

Chongzhen was disgusted and took a few steps back, gritting his teeth as he said, "These ravens really have no shame at all, defecating right in mid-air."

"These idiots don't bite, but they're so annoying!"

Yu Heng looked up at the flock of ravens circling above them, then glanced into the city: "The ravens have entered the airspace above the city. They're probably scouting the inner city and have confirmed that the defenses are weak, with only rat-beastmen and a small number of herbal warriors. They'll probably launch an attack soon!"

Shigeaki also realized the seriousness of the problem. He was not good at fighting back and did not have a good solution in a short time.

Yuheng touched the tassel hanging from his earring, and the tassel immediately grew to be as tall as a person, twisting its body and standing beside him, asking, "What do you want me to do?"

"Contact Yu Shaochen."

With the influx of supernatural abilities, the leaf blades previously left for Yu Shaochen also came in handy.

After receiving Yu Heng's call, Yu Shaochen was stunned for a few seconds before he reacted. He fumbled around for a while before finally hearing Yu Heng's voice.

"Go to Hanshan immediately and ask the warriors there to come and provide support to Beast City."

"Beast City has been invaded by a large number of crow-clan beastmen, but there has been no fighting yet. However, once they have figured out the situation inside the city, they will definitely launch an attack immediately. You need to figure out how to persuade them to come over as soon as possible."

Upon hearing Yu Heng's series of instructions without any pause, Yu Shaochen was about to speak when the leaf in his hand stopped glowing faintly.

Clearly, the communication was disconnected.

Holding the leaf as if it were a hot potato, Yu Shaochen walked out of the tribe's cultivation room, looked around blankly, and finally closed the door behind him before running back into the tribe.

He's very slow; if he were to run all the way to Hanshan on his short legs, it would be too late.

They found the fastest mountain-climbing leopard warrior in the tribe. Upon hearing the situation, the leopard warrior immediately hoisted him onto his back and sped off towards the Cold Mountain.

When they arrived at Hanshan territory, Baixi had just returned with her people. Halfway up the mountain, they saw the reddish-brown forest panda riding on the leopard. Seeing that they were moving incredibly fast and hadn't even noticed them not far behind, Baixi guessed that Shilin must have run into trouble.

He sped up, broke away from the group, and like a flying arrow, landed with a thud on the rock in front of the two of them. The rock beneath his feet cracked because of the force of his landing.

Bai Xi, maintaining her half-human, half-beast form, folded her large, powerful wings to her sides and asked, "Are you going to Cold Mountain?"

Yu Shaochen immediately jumped off the leopard and said nervously, "Yuheng sent me to find you. There's a large influx of crows into Beast City right now..."

Bai Xi's eyes twitched slightly, and she quickly figured out what had happened.

To say that the Stone Forest and the Rat Clan's orcs couldn't handle the mere Raven Clan would be a joke.

For someone like Yuheng to request help, it's likely that the Crow Clan were just cannon fodder sent to scout ahead.

Moreover, the crows did not actually launch an attack; instead, they harassed the orcs inside the city, waiting for an opportunity to probe their defensive capabilities.

If the crows attack, the situation will not be so urgent.

It is estimated that within half a day at the latest, a large number of orc warriors will launch an attack on the orc city.

Bai Xi nodded: "You can go back now, I understand."

Yu Shaochen watched him get up and fly into the sky, and shouted, "Will you lead people to provide reinforcements?"

Bai Xi circled halfway in mid-air and chuckled, "Do you think I'd let such a good opportunity to take advantage of someone's misfortune pass me by?"

Help Shilin first, and then you'll have leverage to negotiate terms!

The lack of flying orcs is actually good news for him.