Chapter 245 - 247: The Strangeness of Xi Yi

Chapter 245: Chapter 247: The Strangeness of Xi Yi

"I’ve been investigating in secret. This Young Master is highly respected on Shear Mountain. Everyone is extremely deferential whenever his name is mentioned."

"His influence is incredibly strong, even on White Bear Mountain. I tried to have someone ask around if Xi Yi is this Young Master, but all inquiries were shut down instantly."

"However, I suspect that even if this Young Master isn’t Xi Yi, he must be inextricably linked to him."

Si Cheng relayed his findings.

"What if Xi Yi is that Young Master?" Su Luoluo hypothesized. "Then what is he doing in our tribe?"

’He must have an ulterior motive, right?’

’An ulterior motive... The Wolf Clan’s biggest prize would be the Salt Well Cave. But would Xi Yi really form a Contract Totem with me just for a single cave? He can’t be that foolish, can he?’ Su Luoluo quickly dismissed the idea.

After all, I was plain-looking when he wanted to form the Contract Totem with me.

The title "Young Master" implied he was the leader of some power or another.

If he wanted to form a contract with a female, he wouldn’t have to go to such great lengths.

Besides, he was handsome himself. Considering what she used to look like, forming a contract with her was a raw deal for him.

But why, of all people, did he choose her?

Su Luoluo didn’t believe he had actually fallen for her. But then again, he had been the one to shield her when the Fire Bird attacked, which complicated things.

No matter how she racked her brain, Su Luoluo couldn’t figure out Xi Yi’s true motives.

And based on what Si Cheng said, it seemed Xi Yi had even hired someone to impersonate the Black Bear Foster Mother.

’Why would he hire an impersonator for the Black Bear Foster Mother?’

’Was it just to cover for his fake letter?’

It was just one fake letter. If he was truly afraid of being exposed, he could have just come to an agreement with the real Black Bear Foster Mother. Why hire an impersonator?

’Unless... there’s something wrong with Xi Yi himself.’

As this thought occurred to her, Su Luoluo suddenly realized something: Xi Yi didn’t seem to want her to find the Black Bear Foster Mother either.

She herself didn’t want the Black Bear Foster Mother to be found for fear the woman would expose her previous lies and make everyone think she was strange.

But what about Xi Yi?

What was his reason?

As Su Luoluo pondered this, a bold conjecture formed in her mind. ’Could it be that the so-called childhood sweetheart was actually someone else entirely?’

’No, that would be too absurd!’

’But I wasn’t beautiful back then. What could Xi Yi possibly have gained from all this?’

A thousand thoughts raced through Su Luoluo’s mind as several possibilities emerged, but each time she felt close to an answer, it would slip away, seeming just as improbable as the last.

However, while Xi Yi was suspicious and his motives were unclear, he had inadvertently helped her confirm one thing.

The Black Bear Foster Mother was, for now, not going to be found. And this letter gave her the perfect excuse not to look for her.

Since Xi Yi was willing to pretend the letter was real, why not just go along with it?

As for the enigmatic Xi Yi, Su Luoluo figured he would show his true colors sooner or later.

In any case, he hadn’t harmed her or anyone else in the tribe. For now, she could afford to ignore his mysteries.

She thought for a moment before telling Si Cheng, "In that case, hold off on the investigation for now. We don’t want to tip our hand. I’ll accept this letter as genuine, and we’ll deal with the rest later."

Si Cheng nodded. After a moment, he spoke again. "What about the Erosion Face Technique? Should I look into that?"

"It would be difficult to investigate without finding the one who cast the spell."

Then, as if an idea struck her, Su Luoluo smiled. "Why go to all that trouble? We have a perfectly useful tool right here. We can just have Xi Yi do it."

Since Xi Yi’s reasons for staying by her side weren’t pure anyway, Su Luoluo had no qualms about using him.

She still had no idea what he was ultimately after, but since they shared a Contract Totem, she figured he wouldn’t dare harm her. Doing so would mean mutual destruction, and that just wasn’t worth it.

Females held a great deal of power in this world. A female could abandon her beastman, but a beastman would never dare to abandon his female. Because of this, Su Luoluo felt she had nothing to fear.

Besides, she had a feeling Xi Yi wasn’t a bad person at heart, just impossible to read.

After living so long in the post-apocalypse and fighting over resources, Su Luoluo had seen every kind of monster imaginable. Compared to them, Xi Yi and his little secrets were nothing.

Si Cheng was taken aback by her words, not expecting Su Luoluo to have such a perspective.

’Wouldn’t a normal female, upon discovering her beastman was hiding things from her, burst into tears and demand to separate?’

’But the leader doesn’t seem the least bit anxious. In fact, she seems to be in a good mood, perfectly willing to order Xi Yi around?’

She possessed a strange sort of magnanimity.

Si Cheng’s eyes flickered, but he quickly lowered his gaze to conceal his thoughts.

"Understood, leader."

Su Luoluo actually felt a little awkward being called "leader." She had asked him to use her name before, but Si Cheng never made the change, even after several corrections, so she eventually let it go.

The meal Cai Xia had brought was still sitting to the side. Su Luoluo picked up the bowl and handed it to him. "I’ve kept you from your food. Go on, hurry up and eat."

Si Cheng took the bowl and gave her a faint smile. "Alright. I’ll take my leave then, leader."

Lying on the bed, Su Luoluo waved a hand. "Go on. If it’s not enough food, ask Cai Xia to get you some more."

She was exhausted from just having given birth; it was time for a proper rest.

...

Under the bright moonlight, Xi Yi snapped his fingers. Instantly, a figure darted out from the jungle.

The young Black Bear beastman bowed before looking at Xi Yi respectfully. "Young Master, you were looking for me?"

Xi Yi glanced at him and said coolly, "Go find out who cast the Erosion Face Technique on Su Luoluo."

’That witchcraft has been lost for many years,’ he thought. ’How did it suddenly reappear?’

"Yes, sir." The young bear beastman nodded, then leaped into the air and vanished into the jungle.

When Su Luoluo woke up, she felt her body had already mostly recovered.

She was surprised to find that her body was almost back to normal, even before she’d had a chance to use her Wood Element Ability to heal herself.

The females here, accustomed to living in the wild, were much hardier than humans. It reminded her of the nature documentaries she used to watch back in the post-apocalypse, where animals were up and walking right after giving birth to their young.

’Their constitutions are amazing.’

Su Luoluo stretched, got out of bed, and walked over to the mirror to admire her own beautiful face.

She had been so sleepy yesterday, and with so many things to handle, she hadn’t gotten a chance to take a good look at her pretty face.

The silvery mirror reflected a face as white and clear as snow. Her eyes were large and round, shimmering with a watery light that made them look like dewy grapes—bright and luscious.

Her nose was straight with a delicate, upturned tip—far more natural than the one she had sculpted for herself with her Earth Ability. And her small lips were an even deeper shade of crimson than before.

It wasn’t just that her features had become more beautiful; her entire aura had been elevated. She had transformed from a country bumpkin into a goddess.

She was just a little chubby from having recently given birth.

But Su Luoluo was confident she could slim down quickly with a bit of exercise.

There was no denying it: the original owner of this body was a true beauty.

If she’d had this face back then, she probably wouldn’t have done all those ridiculous things.

’Then again,’ she thought, ’even with this face, those guys might not have been impressed.’

They never gave Su Nuannuan the time of day, either. Their attention was probably more focused on food.

At the thought, Su Luoluo pouted. ’Are their standards really that high?’