Chapter 39

“Tai Lie!”

The mild-mannered and calm Chef Lu, at this moment, like a tender middle school boy, running eagerly to the tall man’s front. Tilting his head up, the smile on his lips couldn’t be suppressed. “How did you find me?!!”

Tai Lie glanced at him with an inscrutable expression. “We’ll talk about it later.”

Lu Yu suddenly remembered that he was still facing off against someone…

For some reason, as soon as he saw Tai Lie, all his previous nervousness and fear vanished, as if, as long as Tai Lie was there, these people were nothing to be afraid of…

Well, in fact, that was true.

Tai Lie’s appearance startled the people of the Blackwater Tribe.

Especially his domineering manner of entry, it was simply awe-inspiring.

The captain of the Blackwater Tribe steadied himself, straightened out his disheveled animal skin skirt, and squeezed out a smile. “Haha, you guys are indeed nearby. I was just saying to this brother here that if no one came to pick him up, we’d give him a ride.”

Lu Yu almost couldn’t help but roll his eyes. This guy’s talent for lying with his eyes open was amazing. Did he think Lu Yu couldn’t see the malice in his eyes just now?

But some people actually believed him.

The two men who were urinating in the woods just now foolishly echoed, “Yeah, thanks to this guy for telling us about the beast tide nearby and showing us the nearest way to the Beast Plains.”

Lu Yu didn’t know if they were pretending to be stupid or really didn’t see through it. If they were genuinely foolish, they were just naive, but if they were pretending, with this acting skill, they were much scarier than that captain.

In this dog-eat-dog society, Lu Yu’s mentality had also changed a lot, becoming more cautious.

Tai Lie took a step forward, blocking Lu Yu in front of him.

His momentum was overwhelming.

Although there were about twenty people from the Blackwater Tribe, they were all forced back by him alone.

Some of them had experienced the proactive attack, while others had experienced being attacked. In any case, they had all seen Tai Lie’s fighting style, which was comparable to the fiercest large beasts, even scarier than beasts!

“What…what are you…doing…” someone asked tremblingly.

The captain of the Blackwater Tribe tried hard to squeeze himself behind the others.

Lu Yu tugged at Tai Lie’s arm and whispered, “It’s okay with others, but that captain…”

Tai Lie turned his head slightly and gave a faint “Hmm” in response. “As you wish.”

How…how could he just listen to him like that?

Lu Yu’s face flushed.

At this moment, he seemed to be whispering in the emperor’s ear like a treacherous concubine…

After Tai Lie finished speaking, he lifted his head and locked eyes with the captain of the Blackwater Tribe.

The previously scheming captain of the Blackwater Tribe shivered, feeling a cold sweat breaking out all over his body.

He realized that the wild-looking man in front of him had set his sights on him. He couldn’t escape anymore. He dared not hide anymore.

With gritted teeth, he threw himself at the feet of the two, kneeling and begging for mercy. “Please spare me. I really haven’t done anything.”

Lu Yu said with a frown as he took a step back, “We know what you were planning just now. There’s no need to say anymore.”

Hearing this, the captain of the Blackwater Tribe was so scared that tears and snot were streaming down his face.

Lu Yu sighed and took a step back.

But one thing must be said. Regardless of whether he was soft-hearted or not, he couldn’t just kill someone because they had evil intentions. Even though this was a primitive society where human life was cheap.

Lu Yu thought for a moment, then took out a dark pill from his ring and placed it in front of the man at his feet, saying with a stern face, “You know my identity. This is a pill I made. You eat it. If you speak ill of me or do anything harmful to me, you will be poisoned to death.”

He was really lucky that the primitive people here were very easy to fool…

The captain of the Blackwater Tribe looked terrified. He knew about Lu Yu’s abilities. If he could make healing pills, he could definitely make pills to poison people.

Lu Yu extended his hand forward menacingly and said, “Quickly, eat it, or I’ll feed it to you!”

Lu Yu tried to put on a fierce expression, but his gentle appearance couldn’t be intimidating at all. Even with his eyebrows raised, he still looked cute.

A hint of amusement flashed in Tai Lie’s eyes.

The captain of the Blackwater Tribe sobbed pitifully, tremblingly picked up the pill, and swallowed it.

“Cough, cough, cough.” The captain of the Blackwater Tribe coughed hoarsely, clutching his throat.

The Blackwater Tribe members who had gathered around were frightened by his appearance and cautiously backed away, watching Lu Yu with trepidation.

Lu Yu looked mysterious and unpredictable. “It won’t have any adverse effects on your body.”

It was just a pill made from various spices and ground powders.

He turned to Tai Lie and said, “Let’s go.”

Tai Lie nodded.

Lu Yu lifted his foot to leave when he suddenly remembered something. “Tai Lie, is that lion still alive?”

Tai Lie replied, “When I threw it out, it was still alive.”

So, does that mean it’s still alive now? It couldn’t die from just being thrown, right?

Lu Yu’s eyes lit up. “Let’s take it with us!”

Without a word, Tai Lie walked over and hoisted up the lion.

The members of the Blackwater Tribe looked up in amazement once again.

One person could actually carry a lion…

With the lion in tow, Lu Yu didn’t bother with the people of the Blackwater Tribe anymore and walked towards the Matai village with Tai Lie.

On the way back, Lu Yu spoke first, “Um, Tai Lie, how did you find me?”

Tai Lie replied indifferently, “The lion.”

Lu Yu asked, “Huh?”

Tai Lie briefly explained. After finding the lion and the spear in the cave, he initially thought that Lu Yu had knocked out the lion and fled.

However, when he returned to the cave entrance to investigate, he found no signs of human activity nearby, except for some traces of wild animals. If Lu Yu had fled in a hurry, there should have been some traces left behind.

He opened the lion’s mouth and felt its belly to confirm that it hadn’t eaten recently. So, it was possible that the lion had fought with someone elsewhere, then brought the spear back to the cave and passed out.

After thinking it over, Tai Lie followed the lion’s tracks outside the cave and eventually found the spot where Lu Yu had regained consciousness earlier.

Lu Yu listened somewhat confusedly. What? Does that mean the lion had been to the spot where he woke up again?

Tai Lie noticed his expression as he looked at the lion. “What’s wrong?”

Lu Yu shook his head. “Nothing.”

Tai Lie asked, “But why were you there? Did you really scare off the lion?”

“Um…” Lu Yu touched his nose. “Sort of.”

He had bitten off more than he could chew too.

Tai Lie’s voice remained as calm as a lake. “If you don’t want to say, you don’t have to.”

Lu Yu pursed his lips. He wanted to explain, but he didn’t know what had really happened.

—

The two quickly returned to the village.

Before they even entered, they heard people arguing loudly.

“Let me go!”

“No, the Chief told me to stay here and watch you and the others.”

“I’m not one of your Matai people. You can’t control me! I want to go find Lu Yu!”

“Cha Zhe, it’s not that I won’t let you go. You don’t even know where the witch disappeared. How can you go find him? Just wait here for news. The Chief will definitely find the witch and bring him back!”

“Huh, it’s obviously you guys…”

Lu Yu frowned and didn’t continue listening. He shouted, “We’re back!”

The argument at the village entrance abruptly stopped, and everyone turned to see Lu Yu.

Voices of joy and excitement rang out instantly.

“The witch, you’re back!”

“Lu Yu!” Cha Zhe also saw Lu Yu and rushed to him, reaching out his hand to grab him.

Before he could grab him, a mountain-like figure stepped forward and stood in front of Lu Yu.

Cha Zhe glared angrily. “You!”

Ignoring him, Tai Lie raised his eyelids and called out, “Bu Kang.”

“What’s the matter, Chief?” Bu Kang, the Matai who had just spoken to Cha Zhe, stepped forward.

Tai Lie said, “Go light the signal fire and summon the others back.”

“Got it.” Bu Kang turned and ran towards the tower.

—

“Witch, when I heard you were missing, Xiao Shui was really worried.” The little girl tightly held Lu Yu’s hand.

Since his other hand was held by another little girl, Lu Yu couldn’t pat his head reassuringly. He could only smile gently and say, “Witch is back safely now. Witch is amazing, so don’t worry.”

Shi Tou patted his chest. “Witch, next time I’ll go hunting with you! I’m strong, I can protect you!”

Lu Yu felt warm inside. He was about to speak when suddenly he felt a pain in his waist. “Ah—”

Lu Yu took a deep breath and lowered his head.

Xiao Shui withdrew her finger and innocently looked at him. “Witch, why do you have leaves tied around your waist?”

Lu Yu paused for a moment. “Because…”

Tai Lie frowned sternly. “Are you injured?”

Lu Yu felt like a primary school student caught breaking the rules by the headmaster, too scared to lift his head to look at anyone. He stammered, “Just a little.”

Tai Lie asked, “Medicine?”

For some reason, Lu Yu didn’t want them to know that he had taken medicine but still hadn’t fully recovered. “It’s just a small cut, no need to waste medicine.”

Tai Lie remained expressionless. “Shi Tou, help with lighting the signal fire and starting the fire.”

Shi Tou and the others actually wanted to talk to Lu Yu, but they had to obey the Chief’s orders, so they obediently complied.

Tai Lie looked at Cha Zhe. “And you.”

Cha Zhe gritted his teeth, looking at Lu Yu.

Lu Yu waved his hand. “Go on, go on.”

Tai Lie didn’t pay any more attention to Cha Zhe and went straight inside. “Follow me.”

It was obvious who he was talking to. After Lu Yu thought about Tai Lie’s expression following his comment about not wanting to waste the medicine, he felt a little uneasy but still followed.

Tai Lie found a clearing, set down the lion, and entered the stone house. Lu Yu glanced at the lion, which seemed to be paralyzed and barely breathing, then followed into the stone house.

The wooden door of the stone house creaked shut.

When Tai Lie found Lu Yu, it was almost dusk. Now, there was only a hint of twilight in the sky, so even though the window was open, the room was still dim.

“Take it off,” Tai Lie said coldly.

!!! Lu Yu stood at the doorway, his heart pounding. He stuttered, “T-take off… what?”

Tai Lie pursed his lips. “The leaves wrapped around your waist.”

Oh, it’s the leaves… Oh no, it’s the leaves! Lu Yu quickly waved his hand. “N-no, it’s not good, I just wrapped it up so carefully…”

Tai Lie clearly didn’t believe this excuse. “You said it was just a small wound, so why wrap it up? Why can’t it be seen?”

Lu Yu: …

Forget it, just let him see. He didn’t want to take the red medicine anyway, and this person couldn’t force it into his mouth.

“Fine, I’ll let you see.” Lu Yu lowered his head and unwrapped the leaves, one layer at a time.

There were still a few bleeding bite marks on his waist, which had apparently been bitten by tiger teeth before. Now, they had shrunk into scars resembling cigarette burns, but they still looked somewhat frightening.

Tai Lie’s voice turned abruptly cold. “Take the medicine.”

Lu Yu hesitated. Even if he took it, it wouldn’t help. He didn’t know why things were like this. Was the injury too severe this time?

Tai Lie took a step forward, his eyes darkening.

“Lu Yu, don’t force me to take action.”