Rebirth with the Beast_3

Chapter 31… continued…

Su Yi’s hand was pressed to a certain part of Xinuo’s body, and this time he nearly lost his breath in one go. His fingers trembled—was this… that?

With that soft gasp, Xinuo’s eyes instantly beastified, and a layer of crystalline white scales spread over his cheeks. In Su Yi’s eyes was that handsome, desire-flushed face; Su Yi himself was reacting too, and he muttered, muffled, “Go ahead.”

Seeing Su Yi’s embarrassed look, Xinuo only felt an urge to shift on the spot and swallow Su Yi down in one bite.

Two rookies setting out, they fumbled around for ages. Su Yi truly didn’t understand this stuff, and although Xinuo had “done it” before, he might as well have been a clueless beginner. Relying on the little common sense they had, they explored step by step. When Xinuo finally entered, Su Yi felt like half his life had flown away. They kept fretting over each other—Su Yi, distressed that Xinuo had held back so long, took the initiative to hook his legs around Xinuo’s waist to urge him on; Xinuo, distressed that Su Yi might hurt, didn’t dare move rashly. After that stalemate dragged on, it was Su Yi’s single sentence that spurred Xinuo to go fully, almost ferally, all in.

Author’s note:

Edited beyond recognition—it’s readable now!!

Chapter 32

As for how long they went at it—Su Yi had no idea anymore. At first, pitying Xinuo, he cooperated very obediently, letting him do whatever he wanted. But later, when Su Yi really couldn’t take it, he tried to plead with reason and sentiment to get Xinuo to show mercy. Yet his voice, shaking with arousal, not only failed to stop the already out-of-control Xinuo, it only drove him wilder. After that Su Yi’s head was spinning, his limbs went weak and sore, and with his mouth stopped he couldn’t say a word; inside, he was cursing up a storm. And then… then he disgracefully passed out.

When Su Yi woke again, it was already noon the next day.

Seeing him awake, Mino hurried over, grinning foolishly, with a bowl of meat broth. Su Yi wanted to raise a hand to swat him, but the moment he tried, his arm felt heavy and useless. Resigned, he took a sip of soup, then shooed Mino away like a fly. He was in a foul mood; seeing Mino itching to tease him but not daring to only made him more irritable.

After Mino left, Little Eli huffed and puffed his way onto the bed, crawling up to Su Yi.

His eyes looked a little red. In a sulky tone he asked, “Mother-father, what happened with you and beast-father? When you came back yesterday, Eli saw lots of wounds on you—did… did beast-father hit you?” As he spoke, fat tears began to splash down.

Su Yi couldn’t help laughing and said with a touch of pride, “Even if he had the guts, he wouldn’t dare hit me.”

Eli instantly stopped crying. “Then what happened to mother-father’s body? Those teeth marks are a snake’s—mother-father must’ve hurt so bad.”

Su Yi cocked his head and glanced at his own wrist—and remembered how, while doing bad things yesterday, Xinuo had also left bite marks on his arm. Heat washed over him. Right, the hot season wasn’t over yet—so very hot.

“That’s your beast-father’s way of showing he loves me. It’s a bit over the top, but he doesn’t mean any harm,” Su Yi said softly, ruffling Eli’s hair. Eli had stopped crying. He lowered his head and bit Su Yi’s wrist in one chomp—right on top of Xinuo’s bite. The big bite mark now had a pair of small ones inside it. And then Su Yi suddenly felt dizzy.

Eli seemed to be saying something, but Su Yi couldn’t hear it clearly. Darkness swept over his vision.

The courtyard wall of Xinuo’s home wasn’t finished yet, and since Su Yi kept slipping into a faint, Xinuo didn’t want to stray far; he stayed in the yard working on the wall. Suddenly he heard Eli’s panicked cries. He dropped what he was doing and rushed back to the bedroom to find Su Yi still unconscious. He looked at Eli, puzzled. Through sobs, Eli hiccuped, “Mother-father said when beast-father bites him it means he loves him. S-so Eli… Eli just…”

Before the child could finish, Xinuo saw Su Yi’s extended wrist—already black-and-blue. He grabbed it, bared his two sharp fangs, and pierced the skin, quickly sucking out the poisoned blood. Realizing he’d done something wrong, Eli backed into a corner, crying silently.

After clearing the toxin, Xinuo bit into his own wrist and fed Su Yi his blood.

Su Yi only slowly woke after drinking Xinuo’s blood. Xinuo explained. Among serpents, he was one of the rare highly venomous kind: when attacking, they could load their two fangs with toxin and inject it through a bite. During lovemaking with Su Yi, he hadn’t charged his fangs, so Su Yi hadn’t been poisoned. But Eli was too young to control the toxin in his body, so when he bit Su Yi with his fangs, the poison went straight in. Fortunately, Su Yi spent so much time with these two venomous father and son that his body had begun to build a tolerance; plus Eli was still small—his venom wasn’t enough to be fatal.

“My blood can neutralize it. Rest a bit and you should be fine.”

Su Yi nodded. Seeing Xinuo glance toward Eli, he quickly caught his hand. “He’s just a kid—he didn’t know. And I’m the one who said bites were how you show love.” He chalked the whole fiasco up to a misunderstanding and forgot it quickly.

That afternoon Xinuo installed several doors. Because they’d left hidden slots during construction, hanging them wasn’t difficult. Then, at Su Yi’s request, he made a few wooden bars to serve as door latches.

By dusk, Su Yi had finally recovered a bit of energy. At loose ends, he took out the stock of vine-grass from his space and kept studying how to weave straw sandals. They wouldn’t be hugely useful, but he still wanted to make a pair for each of the kids and for Xinuo. When Mino brought food and saw the sandals, his curiosity about the new thing drew him over. Su Yi eyed Mino’s nimble hands and said, “I’ll teach you. If you learn it, help me make a pair for each kid as payment for the lesson. Deal?”

Delighted, Mino nodded at once. He’d noticed Su Yi’s sandals before but everyone had been too busy, and he hadn’t wanted to take up Su Yi’s time. Now that Su Yi offered, he was eager. True to his native roots, with Su Yi’s guidance he learned fast. After practicing a few times, he even improved on details Su Yi hadn’t handled well. Once Mino produced a few finished pairs, Su Yi shamelessly “exploited” his labor. Even when Su Yi asked him to make more, Mino didn’t mind; in his heart, without Su Yi’s rescue he might have died in the forest. Even if Su Yi taught him nothing and asked him to do anything, he would have felt it only right.

“Want me to make a pair for Xinuo too?” Mino asked.

Su Yi hurriedly waved it off. “He’s not that pampered.” But in his heart: My man’s shoes, I’m making those myself.

Mino slipped on a pair to test them. The vine-grass Su Yi chose was both soft and strong; they felt supple on the feet, but for people used to going barefoot year-round, they also felt a little constricting.

“Straw sandals are great, but in the rainy season they’re no good—they get sticky on the feet.”

Author’s note:

o()o sigh

Even without smut, it still got locked.

If you missed it, wait till I revise—this chapter counts as today’s make-up.

Chapter 33

After pacing a couple of circles, Mino shared his thoughts. Su Yi nodded—he’d already considered that. He planned to make some wooden clogs for the rainy season—perfect for moving around the valley. For hunting or foraging outside, they’d need leather boots. Compared to other styles, boots would be easier to manage. In Su Yi’s space, there was a piece of very coarse, thick hide—perfect for boot soles.

Su Yi stood and stretched lazily. “I’ve got something to show you. See if you can copy it.”

He pretended to rummage through a pile of hides, then casually took a pair of cloth boots from his space. Mino’s eyes lit up at once. He turned them over curiously, and Su Yi pulled out that thick hide as well.

“We can use this to make the soles,” Su Yi said, pointing at the boot bottoms and gesturing at the sturdy hide. Boots would be far more comfortable than grass sandals, but wearing them in the hot season would be stifling.

Mino felt the hide and began studying. Su Yi contributed his dagger and found a softer piece of hide for the uppers.

“Looking closely, doing something this complicated would be a pain, but we can simplify it. What’s giving me a headache is we don’t have thread this fine,” Su Yi said, pointing at the tiny stitches.

Mino frowned, thought for a moment, and said, “I didn’t notice until you mentioned it. But I think I’ve seen something similar somewhere.”

Hearing there might be a thread substitute, Su Yi perked up. “What is it?”

Mino bit his lower lip and tapped his head. “Once, when I went out herb-gathering with the witch doctor, we passed a kind of tree—with a fine, threadlike stuff on it.”

Just then, Xinuo came in from outside and found the two “females” staring at a pile of hides like they were stuck.

He walked over and scooped Su Yi—who was practically buried in animal skins—out. “What’s up?”

Mino still felt shy and wary around Xinuo, but he hunched his shoulders and asked anyway: “You beastmen are out hunting all the time—have you seen some kind of thread-like silk? I remember it was on a tree, spit out by a very big bug.”

Su Yi hadn’t caught on earlier, but now, with Mino’s description, a hunch struck him—was he talking about silkworms?

“Do you mean gulu beasts?” Xinuo ventured.

“Where are gulu beasts?” Su Yi grabbed Xinuo, too excited to care about the odd name. Seeing his urgency, Xinuo simply tucked him into his arms and headed outside.

“It’s dark—where are you two going?” Mino asked.

“To find gulu beasts, of course,” Su Yi huffed, wriggling into a comfy position in Xinuo’s arms.

Left behind, Mino could only keep fiddling with the boots.

According to Xinuo, gulu beasts were common and easy to find. In a secluded corner of the valley, they easily located two. Though there were only two, the silk they yielded was more than enough for the boots.

Only after harvesting did Su Yi realize how good the stuff was: not only very strong, but extremely fine. Even better than thread. Later, he could use it to mend clothes.

They were about to head back when a sound came from not far away. Xinuo signaled Su Yi to keep quiet and moved to check it out. To guard against large beasts entering the valley, the beastmen liked to patrol it whenever they had time.

Feeling the disturbance, Xinuo grew wary. This valley was his home now, full of people who mattered; he wouldn’t allow any mishap.

But before they got close, Xinuo suddenly froze. Su Yi was puzzled—until a familiar voice reached them.

“Ian, no one thinks you’re a burden. Jero won’t let you hunt because he’s worried it’s dangerous for you to go alone.” It was Dilson. He seemed to be talking to Ian, though Su Yi didn’t hear Ian reply.

“We’ve been through so much together. We’re just about to move into proper houses—everyone’s afraid of accidents. When you suddenly disappeared today, you don’t know how worried we were. Jero only spoke harshly because he was too worried,” Dilson said wearily. Still no sound from Ian.

Su Yi couldn’t help recalling Ian’s lowered lashes, that slighter, weaker build unlike other beastmen, and his overly fine features. He didn’t know what had happened, but from Dilson’s words it sounded like Ian wanted to go hunt and had been refused.

Su Yi tugged Xinuo, signaling they should go. He didn’t know Ian well, but he understood: in this world, Ian was counted as a “female.” A man in the original sense, treated as a woman because of congenital limitations—he must have felt awful. If they showed up now, it would only add to his embarrassment.

Once they were farther away, Su Yi sighed. “Ian could totally hunt. I’m weaker than he is, and even I can hunt, right?”

“You’re weak?” Xinuo chuckled, looking at Su Yi’s earnest expression.

Su Yi glared. “I’m being serious—don’t make fun of me.”

Seeing he was about to bristle, Xinuo bent down to nuzzle his cheek. Su Yi could see the laughter in his eyes and thought, He’s definitely laughing at me. But judging by appearances, I do look weaker, okay?

When Xinuo kept smiling, Su Yi opened his mouth and chomped his face. Inwardly he fumed: That’s for biting me earlier—and for laughing at me now!

Biting turned into a full-body tangle, hands and feet everywhere. After a moment of kissing, Xinuo pried Su Yi off and set him on the ground.

“No more. Your body can’t handle it.”

It took Su Yi a beat to parse his meaning. By the time he did, Xinuo had already left him there and walked off. “Xinuo!!!” Su Yi shouted, furious.

He didn’t get far before he spotted Xinuo waiting a little ahead. Su Yi’s anger vanished at once at the sight. He trotted over, grabbed Xinuo, and they headed home.

By the time the two lovebirds returned, night had fully fallen. Su Yi didn’t have a beastman’s night vision; once it got dark, he couldn’t see a thing.

Chapter 34

Back when they lived in a cave, they could still light a bonfire after dark; now that they had a house, a bonfire would be too filthy. Guided by Xinuo, Su Yi finally crawled into bed. Mino had already turned in; only Little Eli—still refusing to sleep alone—was on the bed. Xinuo lifted Eli aside. The little one tried to climb over the mountain that was his beast-father, but got hauled back halfway.

Because Eli had slept so restlessly before, Xinuo was adamant tonight—he wouldn’t let Eli sleep with Su Yi. Eli was a little resentful but didn’t dare defy him, so he grumbled himself to sleep at Xinuo’s side. Su Yi felt a pang of softness, but when Xinuo was disciplining the child, he couldn’t undercut him, so he kept quiet. He also had a tiny selfish wish: to cuddle Xinuo for a while.

“Xinuo, is there anything that glows at night? As soon as evening comes, I can’t see a thing.” What he really wanted to ask was whether there were night-pearls here, but he knew the term would mean nothing to Xinuo.

Listless Eli suddenly popped his head up and, across the father-mountain, called to Su Yi: “Mother-father, I know! There’s a kind of grass that glows at night!”

Su Yi also raised his head and, across the lover-mountain, asked, “Really? Where is it?”

Resigned, Xinuo moved Eli between them.

The moment Eli reached Su Yi, he burrowed into his arms to act cute, as if Xinuo had been mistreating him and he hadn’t seen Su Yi in ages.

“Back when beast-father kept moving us, Eli went out to play at night and saw it.”

“That grass isn’t nearby,” Xinuo said. “It’s called glowgrass. If we go farther some time, we should find it. But once you pick it, it won’t glow after dark.”

Seeing Su Yi’s faint disappointment, he stroked his cheek and added, “But I know something else that can light the house.”

Su Yi perked up, grabbing his hand. “What is it? Round beads?”

“No. A kind of stone that burns. When I was little, I used it for warmth. It burns a long time and isn’t toxic. I once thought of using it instead of wood, but it’s as heavy as rock and hard to carry.”

So—something like coal, then. There went his shortcut of magical night-pearls; he’d have to make proper lamps.

“Is it easy to find?”

“It shouldn’t be hard. I’ll keep an eye out when we go hunting.”

They chatted like that for a while. Eli fell asleep without noticing. Xinuo carried him to his own room. Su Yi thought Xinuo had moved Eli so they could do that sort of thing and nervously rubbed his still-aching waist. But when Xinuo returned, he simply lay down, pulled Su Yi into his arms, and went to sleep. Su Yi let out a breath of relief. Xinuo chuckled, his low, husky voice especially alluring in the quiet night.

“What are you laughing at? I wasn’t scared,” Su Yi said, swatting him in the dark.

“Mm-hmm. You’re not scared—I’m the one who’s scared.” Hearing Su Yi’s fluster rising, Xinuo soothed him gently.

“What’s there for you to be scared of? It’s not like I’m the one on top of you,” Su Yi muttered under his breath. He kept his voice low, but Xinuo heard him clearly.

Xinuo kissed Su Yi’s hand, still using that voice that could melt bones. “I’m afraid I won’t be able to hold back and hurt you.”

Su Yi immediately recalled Xinuo’s frenzy before and didn’t dare tease him anymore. He curled up obediently in Xinuo’s arms. At first light, still half-asleep, he climbed onto Xinuo’s back. Without waking anyone, they flew out of the valley. When Xinuo landed somewhere, Su Yi rubbed his eyes. “Where are we?”

“This is where I said those burning stones are.” From a pile of rocks, Xinuo picked out a smooth, dark-red stone—something like coal. Su Yi took it and sniffed; no smell. At a glance it did look like coal, though heavier. Xinuo had said the stones were heavy and inconvenient to carry. Su Yi weighed the fist-sized stone—about as heavy as ordinary rock. If they used it as fuel, they’d need a lot. But they were different; they had the space, so weight wasn’t a problem.

Su Yi pulled two hide sacks from his space and had Xinuo gather stones while he took a look around for edible plants and fruit. To reassure Xinuo, he promised to stay nearby and took the crossbow.

Wandering, he picked some nameless fruit and climbed a tree to steal two bird eggs—Eli and Dino both loved fried eggs. As he walked, a certain tree caught his eye: huge leaves and strange, big fruit hanging down. Su Yi picked up a rock and hurled it at a fruit. Clang! The stone bounced off the hard shell, the fruit just wobbling in place. Resigned, he climbed the tree. By the time he reached a branch to sit on, he was drenched in sweat. He drew his dagger and began slicing at the stem bit by bit. The outer shell looked like a coconut, but much, much larger. Out of the corner of his eye, something in the distance drew his gaze. Distracted, he slipped— the big fruit suddenly broke free and crashed down. Startled, Su Yi looked down to see it shattered into pieces, pale-brown powder spilling everywhere. He sighed in regret, then, bracing himself against the trunk, peered off into the distance. From this height, with the ground spread out below, the far-off view was clear.

He scuttled down and went to the broken fruit. Pinching some powder, he sniffed—no odd smell. Could this be edible? Something like starch?

With that thought, Su Yi ran back at full tilt. Hearing footsteps, Xinuo looked up to see him trotting over, beaming.

“What is it?” Xinuo asked.

Chapter 35

Su Yi wiped sweat from his brow and stowed the stones Xinuo had gathered into his space. “Come on—help me pick something.”

With his reinforcement in tow, he pointed up at the tree. “Quick, get those down.”

Xinuo glanced at the fruit. “Someone’s eaten these before. They don’t taste good.”

“Just get me a few first, then we’ll head to a spot up ahead. When I was up that tree I think I saw something familiar.” Urged on, Xinuo deftly climbed up and picked four or five.

Su Yi packed the fruit away and tugged Xinuo onward. From the tree the orchard had looked close; on foot, it took a long time. Along the way they ran into a fanged boar out foraging. Without a word, Su Yi charged in, eager. This one was much bigger than the one he’d killed before. Using the surrounding trees, he boxed it in. But…