Warden of the Beast World: Everyone is a Hakimi

When Ye Tang pushed the food cart into the observation area corridor, the patrons were clearly still reeling from the lingering effects of the nutritional supplements they had received at noon.

Jingyao lay on the stone platform. When he saw her come in, his tail swept heavily across the ground, and his amber tiger eyes were filled with the relief of "You've finally come."

Although Hanzhou was still huddled in the corner, she took the initiative to walk to the observation wall when she pushed the food tray forward. Her light golden leopard eyes looked through the glass at today's dishes—sweet and sour pork, honey-glazed roasted chicken legs, and a plate of bright green stir-fried vegetables, all sweet and sour dishes that children would like.

He glanced up at Ye Tang, his gaze less cold than usual. Ye Tang silently gave herself a credit: she had successfully appeased her second sugar daddy.

Cangming leaned against the poolside, her deep blue eyes fixed on the plate in Cangming's hand ever since she entered. Today there were garlic-roasted oysters, salt-roasted prawns, and a pot of seafood porridge that had been simmering for an afternoon. When the lid was lifted, the steaming aroma filled the entire observation area.

He didn't say a word when he took the plate, but the splashes of water from the fish's tail as it swung in the water were noticeably more lively than usual.

Ling Shou's plate contained roasted lamb chops, black pepper steak, a large piece of chocolate cake, and a cup of bubble tea—a few more items than usual.

As Ye Tang pushed the tray into the conveyor, she thought to herself that this free-range chicken hadn't eaten lunch and hadn't received any nutrients; it was probably really starving, so she needed to give it some nourishment.

But when she opened the door, she saw Ling Shou standing on the perch, its wings slightly spread, its eagle eyes looking like it had been waiting all afternoon for her to arrive.

"Little Sprout! That firebird burned down your kitchen!" Ling Shou's voice was sharp and bright, filled with the righteous indignation unique to accusing someone.

"What's it to you, free-range chicken?" Ye Tang put the plate on the stone table without looking up.

"It's none of my business if he made me go hungry at noon!" Ling Shou jumped down from the perch, transformed into human form, and stood in front of the glass wall, his silver-gray eyes glaring at her. It was true that he had missed lunch—his proud and stubborn nature had kicked in, and he had refused to eat the nutritional supplements, starving himself since noon.

"Oh, and then what? You won't die from missing a meal." Ye Tang patted the pepper powder off her hands.

"Little Sprout! It's one thing to favor the Hunter, but you're also biased towards that stupid bird that caused all the trouble?! Aren't you angry that the kitchen burned down?!"

"I'm not angry, they paid me back." Ye Tang said matter-of-factly.

Ling Shou laughed in exasperation. He had truly underestimated Ye Tang's greedy nature.

"Little bean sprout! This young master can pay too!"

"Where's the money? You've been so stingy with your food expenses for almost half a month." Ye Tang tilted her head and looked at him, a smile on her lips that seemed to have seen through everything.

Ling Shou felt a lump in his throat, almost choking. He hadn't deliberately delayed—at first, it was because he was too proud to back down; later, it was because Ye Tang had rejected his idea of ​​paying later; then, he got so engrossed in their daily arguments that he forgot about transferring the money; and then, he discovered that casually mentioning "This young master has plenty of money" during his daily arguments with Ye Tang seemed more interesting than actually transferring the money. Now, it had become a handle against him.

"Free-range chickens".

"Hmph! This young master won't bother with you!" Ling Shou grabbed the bubble tea, shoved the straw in with a gesture full of venting his anger, and took a big gulp.

The sweetness of the brown sugar pearls and milk tea melted on his tongue, and the expression on his face slowly changed from anger to satisfaction. Oh well, anyway, his cake was bigger than usual, and the milk tea had more pearls than usual. He said he wouldn't hold it against him, but his body betrayed him and he started eating.

Cangming stared at the release notice sent by Lu Yu on his personal terminal, his gaze lingering on the number—68. His mental breakdown value had irreversibly dropped from 95 to 68. This was unprecedented in the three-thousand-year history of the Haiyuan royal family, and was absolutely forbidden in the theoretical framework of the Imperial Research Institute. He leaned against the pool, his deep blue eyes peering through the water towards the door at the end of the corridor. The little female hadn't arrived yet.

When Ye Tang pushed the food cart in, she noticed that Cang Ming wasn't facing away from her as usual. He was leaning against the edge of the pool, his upper body above the water, pale blue scales extending from his collarbone to his waist, his long, seaweed-like hair draped wetly over his shoulders, and his deep blue eyes quietly watching her walk in.

Today there was steamed grouper, steamed sea urchin with egg, and seafood porridge—all his favorite dishes, but Cangming didn't check the plates immediately as he usually does.

"Little Warden, I'm leaving."

Ye Tang placed the plate by the pool, straightened up, and smiled at him: "Congratulations, you can go now." She spoke sincerely, without any reluctance or attempt to keep him; she was simply happy for him.

Cangming was silent for a moment. He had thought she would at least show a little reluctance—after all, he had been eating her seafood feasts for almost a month, after all, his breakdown value had dropped from 95 to 68, and after all, he was the only SS-level among the five sugar daddies.

But she only offered congratulations, as if he were just an ordinary prisoner, released from prison, saying goodbye and never to be seen again. This made him somewhat inexplicably irritated. But he didn't show it, simply crossing his arms on the edge of the pool, resting his chin on his arms, his tail slowly swaying in the water.

"Next time we meet, don't try to catch me with a fishing net again."

Ye Tang almost burst out laughing. This mermaid was still upset about her using a net to catch him almost a month ago. She was only doing it to complete the task Lu Yu had given her.

She made him surface for air, and besides using a net, she couldn't think of any other way to get a mermaid over two meters long out of the water. As a result, this member of the Sea Abyss royal family held a grudge until he was released from prison.

"I... I'll try my best," Ye Tang replied uncertainly. If he was still underwater and refused to come out next time they met, she would most likely still go to her space and retrieve that extended landing net. After all, her landing net had even caught SS-level mermaids, so she had plenty of practical experience.

Cangming seemed to see through her thoughts from her expression, a faint hint of helplessness flashing in his deep blue eyes. Then he did something that Ye Tang had never expected—he lifted the huge fish tail out of the pool and held it out in front of Ye Tang.

The deep blue scales refracted a jewel-like luster under the crystal lights, gradually transitioning from deep blue at the base of the tail to silvery white at the tail fin. Each scale was like a work of art meticulously crafted by the sea. Water droplets slid down the patterns on the scales, sparkling under the lights.

Before Ye Tang could even process what was happening, her hand was already outstretched. Ever since she first stood outside the glass wall of Observation Zone No. 5, she had been wondering what it would feel like to touch this fish tail. Now that the tail was being offered to her, how could she not touch it?

The moment her fingertips touched the scales, a slippery, cool sensation spread from her fingertips. It was smoother than any silk she had ever touched on Earth, but it wasn't the fragile kind of slipperiness. The scales themselves were tough and elastic, and if you pressed down slightly, you could feel the slight undulation of the muscles underneath.

"Little warden, do you know that touching a fish's tail means you've agreed to a mate's proposal?" Cangming's voice drifted over.

Ye Tang's hand froze on the fish tail, her mind reeling as if a hundred gongs were ringing simultaneously. She looked down at her hand, then up at Cang Ming. The mermaid was lying on the edge of the pool, her chin resting on her crossed arms, her deep blue eyes curved into two shallow crescents, her expression clearly saying—you've already touched it, it's too late to regret it now.

"Damn it! Why didn't you say so earlier!" Ye Tang swiftly pulled her hand back, sprang up and took three steps back, her expression instantly shifting from intoxication to panic. The fish's tail swayed gently in the air before gracefully gliding back into the water, leaving a trail of tiny splashes.

"You didn't ask." Cangming's tone remained as calm and indifferent as ever.

Without a word, Ye Tang turned and ran. The emergency exit opened and closed behind her, the sound of her running footsteps and a loud roar echoing in the corridor: "Die! I'll teach you to grope me!" She slowed down after running quite a distance, her mind a complete mess.

Last time, she didn't know that collecting Chiheng's tail feathers was a courtship ritual, and this time, touching Cangming's fish tail was also a courtship ritual—just how many strange courtship methods do male beasts in this world have? She decided that when she got back, she would definitely make a thorough research plan, studying all the customs of the various races in the beast world, so as not to fall into the same trap again. No, there can't be a next time. If this continues, she won't be raising five pets, but five fiancés.

Meanwhile, Cangming remained by the pool, its tail gently swaying in the water, water droplets rolling down the curves of its scales, creating tiny ripples on the surface.

He glanced down at the release notice on his personal terminal, then looked in the direction Ye Tang had run off in, the smile still lingering on his lips. After all, she had touched his fishtail and collected his scales; both were tokens of love in the tradition of the Sea Abyss royal family.

He wasn't in a hurry. The trouble in the sea required his return to oversee things, but he would return once he had dealt with the clan's affairs. At that time, he would follow the ancient rites of the Sea Abyss royal family, bringing his dowry, and swim openly and honestly to her.