CHAPTER 73: CHAPTER 66 ARE WE SURNAMED SI?_1

The air was dry, but snakes have a lower body temperature.

The three baby snakes intuitively transformed into their serpentine forms and clung to Si Yan, cooling her down.

She had to admit, it wasn’t bad at all to sleep with her snake babies in the heat.

She caressed each of the babies’ small heads in turn and closed her eyes, drifting off to sleep.

In her dream, she found herself in an unfamiliar place, entwined tightly by a cold, purple snake.

She could hardly breathe.

She was terrified yet unable to control her own actions; she was suddenly pulled into the deepest part of the snake’s belly.

The pain throughout her body nearly made her faint.

She felt like someone drowning.

"ALERT!!!"

The urgent voice startled Si Yan awake.

She sat up abruptly, drenched in cold sweat, and wiped her forehead.

Could it be because I was sleeping with the babies? How could I dream about... *that*... with a snake? I’ve never been into such hardcore stuff!

By the Dark Sun Lake, the ground was littered with brutally slaughtered insects.

Insect Crystals, green and red, lay scattered everywhere.

Hu Hui was cleaning up the insect corpses and Insect Crystals.

Lord She Wang is too volatile. None of these insects were left whole. It’s terrifying.

He glanced over at Lord She Wang, who had fallen asleep.

That single glance, however, made him jump up in surprise.

"Lord She Wang?!!"

She Wang clutched his forehead, soaked in cold sweat.

He’d had a dream he shouldn’t have—a dream in which he was doing the filthiest thing imaginable.

He lowered his hand and looked at it.

I’ve never done such a thing. No, never. But why did I dream of her? Why did I see that skinny female’s face in my dream? Ridiculous. I, She Wang, will not accept any female. I will not be any female’s Beast Husband—no exceptions.

After her abrupt awakening, Si Yan finally calmed down. She unexpectedly discovered that her space had increased by 0.5 square meters, and her Wood-based Ability seemed to have improved slightly.

Si Yan was momentarily speechless. What was that all about? Could having a hardcore dream increase my Special Ability? If it can increase my Special Ability, having more dreams like this wouldn’t be so bad. After all, it’s just a dream; I haven’t lost anything.

At that moment, Si Yan was merely pondering, not expecting her casual thought to come true.

Outside, the Tiger Beastmen were in chaos. The males of Black Tiger City had all come out to face the enemy.

Before long, rustling sounds emerged from the trees, and a group of Long-eared Beasts leaped out.

The Tiger Beastmen wouldn’t normally take a few Long-eared Beasts seriously, but these Long-eared Beasts all appeared terrified.

The Tiger Beastmen grew more vigilant.

Suddenly, a few cries rang out from above, and several strong, hefty white hawks flew out.

Each of these white hawks had a Beast Crystal on its head.

Hawk Clan?

"White Hawk Beastmen!"

SWOOSH!!!

Dongchi and Xi Qing, who were nearby, and Bei Ji, who was on Si Yan, all had their scales bristle.

The Snake Tribe and Hawk Clan were enemies.

"We’re getting close to White Eagle City," Ming Yan said.

"White Eagle City?"

The mention of White Hawk Beastmen reminded Si Yan of an old acquaintance. When she first came to the Beast World, she encountered a show-off—Mu Xiao. She remembered Mu Xiao was a Beastman from White Eagle City.

Si Yan watched as the white hawks in the sky swiftly killed the Long-eared Beasts before flapping their wings and flying away.

Their target didn’t seem to be the Tiger Beastmen.

Ming Yan waved his hand. "Stop resting! Let’s move!"

The Tiger Beastmen quickly readied themselves and soon set off again.

Hu Qiao led the way at the front, while Ming Yan went to the periphery.

With no familiar faces around her anymore, Si Yan sat on the back of a White Tiger. Agitated by the hawks, her three cubs had all taken on their snake forms and were extremely vigilant.

Si Yan soothed her three agitated cubs.

Before she knew it, Jie Ling had circled back to her side.

"Brother Si Yan..." The little girl’s voice was bright and sweet, giving Si Yan goosebumps.

"Brother Si Yan, Hawk Beastmen are different from Tiger Beastmen; they are quite petty-minded," Jie Ling said in her clear voice. "Moreover, they have even more difficulty breeding than Tiger Beastmen, and their offspring are becoming fewer and fewer."

Bei Ji was somewhat annoyed by Jie Ling. He wanted to lash out, but Si Yan wouldn’t allow it. In the end, Bei Ji simply buried his head in Si Yan’s embrace.

Jie Ling was pretty and had a sweet, adorable voice—her appearance was extremely deceptive. If Si Yan didn’t know the contents of the original story, she might have thought this was just a naive and cute little female.

Her interest piqued, she asked, "What else?"

Jie Ling, delighted that Si Yan finally paid attention to her, said cheerfully, "The Hawk Clan is divided into two factions. One has the surname Bai, and the other has the surname Mu."

Si Yan was very surprised. "Surname?"

Hawk Beastmen actually have a culture of surnames?

Jie Ling nodded. "I heard that in the beginning, all the hawks in White Eagle City had the surname Bai. But later, for some unknown reason, one faction split off. Because the Hawk Clan likes trees, that faction took the surname Mu."

Bei Ji raised his head slightly. "What’s a surname?"

Si Yan explained simply, "It shows that they are one family."

Bei Ji blinked at Si Yan and, mindful of others, didn’t call her ’Mother.’ "Then, are we surnamed Si?"

Dongchi and Xi Qing also raised their heads slightly to look at her.

Si Yan smiled.

In her world, children could take their father’s surname or their mother’s. It was no problem for the cubs to be surnamed Si.

"Si Bei Ji," Bei Ji murmured.

"Si Xiqing," Xi Qing said, mulling over the name.

"Si Dongchi," Dongchi repeated.

The three cubs were very pleased.

It sounded pretty good, quite nice even.

Jie Ling interjected, dampening the mood a bit, "Why the surname Si?"

Bei Ji retorted, "Do you have a problem with it?"

Jie Ling sensed Bei Ji’s aversion and looked to Si Yan for support, but Si Yan ignored her gaze, smiling as she asked, "What else do you know about White Eagle City?"

After thinking for a moment, Jie Ling answered, "The Hawk Beastmen with the surname Bai don’t get along with those surnamed Mu. Their relationship isn’t good. White Eagle City is split in two; the southern half is all Hawk Beastmen with the surname Bai, and the northern half is all those with the surname Mu."

Si Yan nodded. "Anything else?"

Jie Ling shook her head. "No, that’s all I know."

Si Yan smiled lightly. "Thank you."

With that, she moved away from Jie Ling, holding her three cubs.

Jie Ling stood there in a daze, watching them go.

Si Yan... after asking her questions, just walked away... I’m usually the most liked. The males of Black Tiger City, old and young, all like me very much, and I know best how to act considerate and win people’s favor. What’s been happening lately? Why do I keep hitting a wall with Si Yan? I thought I had finally managed to close the distance between us a little, but the result is still that same unapproachable demeanor.

"I don’t believe it." Jie Ling’s gaze was determined. "Si Yan, no matter what tribe you’re from, you must be one of my Beast Husbands."

"Si Bei Ji, Mom wants to sleep, don’t bother her!" Xi Qing told Bei Ji.

"Si Xiqing, you’re so talkative," Bei Ji retorted.

"You two, be quiet," Dongchi said.

Bei Ji said, "Big Brother, don’t think we don’t know. You only chimed in because you want us to call you Si Dongchi."

The three cubs were having a great time playing with their surnames, while Si Yan smiled indulgently, letting them romp.

As they continued their playful journey, more and more white hawks circled in the sky. Soon, a city came into view that resembled Black Tiger City but was clearly more impressive.

Si Yan immediately asked the Tiger Beastman leading her White Tiger, "Are we going to enter White Eagle City?"

The Tiger Beastman nodded. "Yes, there’s food and supplies in White Eagle City. We’ll do some trading and then rest for the night."

Si Yan nodded.

Just then, there was a commotion in the sky.

At that moment, they saw a snow-white palanquin speeding into the city in a great hurry.

"Make way, make way! The Young Lady of the Bai family from White Eagle City is entering the city! Move aside!"

The group from Black Tiger City was thrown into disarray.

The guards of White Eagle City quickly cleared the way, and Si Yan saw the snow-white palanquin, pulled by a few Hawk Beastmen, fly into the main city.

The surrounding Tiger Beastmen discussed among themselves, "That’s Bai Hong, the daughter of White Eagle City’s Lord."

"Bai Hong? I think I’ve heard of her. That’s right! I heard she has the Insect Crystal disease. It’s very severe; she’s on the verge of death."