Sam backed away quickly. After what had just happened, several of the roving beastmen had their eyes fixed on him now.
Mu was already struggling to hold them off—Sam couldn't afford to distract him any further.
With their leader's promise ringing in their ears, the roving beastmen attacked with renewed ferocity. The defensive circle shrank tighter and tighter, the sub-beastmen huddled in the middle pressed together like sardines.
Thinking about what would happen if they were captured, some of them started to sob quietly.
Just as despair settled over the group—
*Screeeech!*
A deafening eagle's cry sliced through the air from above.
Seconds later, a thunderous roar echoed from not far away.
Then another. And another. Roars upon roars, growing louder and closer by the second.
Every sub-beastman's head snapped around as hope flared in their chests.
That voice! Sam's heart jolted violently. He spun toward the sound, his eyes widening—he'd recognize that roar anywhere!
It was Xuan!
A massive black panther came barreling through the trees, a horde of giant beast forms thundering in his wake.
Fei was the fastest. He dove down from the sky like a missile, his talons extended straight for the roving beastmen swarming Lie.
Sharp, curved claws raked across the back of one beastman, tearing through fur and flesh to leave two deep, bone-exposed gashes. The rover let out a howl of agony, staggering so badly he nearly collapsed.
He reared up to retaliate—but Fei was already soaring back into the sky, out of reach.
Fei circled overhead, right above Lie. The second Lie looked to be in danger, he'd dive back down, striking with enough force to deliver a crippling blow.
The rescue party from the tribe arrived in a flash.
Some split off to shield the sub-beastmen and their exhausted comrades, forming a new, impenetrable barrier.
The rest charged straight at the roving beastmen, crashing into the fray and turning the tide of the fight in an instant.
Now the numbers were *theirs*.
The rover leader's eyes flashed with bitter rage—but he knew when he was beat. If they stayed any longer, *they'd* be the ones dying here.
He let out a series of sharp, urgent barks.
At the signal, every roving beastman began fighting a retreat, inching backward while keeping their opponents at bay.
Sam scrambled onto Mu's shoulders, scanning the chaos frantically, his eyes locked on the retreating rovers.
*Qiuye! Qiuye! Where are you?! Which one of these bastards has him?!*
Suddenly, one of the roving beastmen at the very back of the group reared up on his hind legs, lifting a paw to snarl a warning.
Beneath that paw, a small, dark figure lay on the ground, waving a long, slender object weakly.
It was Qiuye!
Sam's fingers tightened into white-knuckled fists in Mu's neck fur. He cupped his hands around his mouth and screamed at the top of his lungs,
"XUAN!!! DON'T LET THAT HYENA BEASTMAN AT THE BACK GET AWAY!!! HE'S GOT QIUYE!!!"
He beat his fists against Mu's shoulder, his voice cracking with desperation. The roar of battle was deafening—he wasn't sure if Xuan could hear him.
Mu caught on instantly. He tilted his head back and let out a booming roar, repeating Sam's warning loud enough to cut through the din of snarls and snatches.
At the sound of Mu's cry, Xuan slammed into the rover in front of him, sending the beastman flying. Then he pivoted, his massive panther form streaking toward the back of the retreating pack like a black bolt of lightning.
The second other tribe beastmen took over protecting the sub-beastmen, Li was free to move. He threw off the rovers in front of him with two powerful swipes of his paws, then raced after Xuan, hot on his heels.
Once Fei was sure Lie was safely surrounded by allies, he darted straight for the hyena beastman, cutting off his escape route.
The tribe's beastmen were unstoppable. Xuan was already closing in on the hyena, his claws extended, eyes blazing with a fury so intense it made the air crackle.
The other roving beastmen were too busy fighting for their own lives to help. They scattered, scrambling to outrun the tribe's pursuit.
No one was coming for him. He was trapped.
He'd never stood a chance against the tribe's beastmen to begin with—let alone with two of their strongest bearing down on him.
And to make matters worse, there was a flying beastman harrying him from above, diving in to snap at his ears or slash at his hind legs every time he tried to make a break for it.
If the flyer hadn't been holding back to avoid hurting the sub-beastman he had hostage, that first dive would've left him gravely injured.
Flying beastmen weren't built for head-on brawls—but their attacks were *deadly*.
Even if he let the sub-beastman go now, they'd never let him escape alive.
A cruel, vicious glint flickered in the hyena beastman's eyes. If they wanted this sub-beastman so badly… he'd kill him right in front of them.
He raised his massive front paw, aiming it straight at Qiuye's crumpled form on the ground.
Qiuye lay there, his knee shattered, unable to stand or run. He could only stare up at the descending paw, his eyes wide with terror as he squeezed them shut, waiting for the end.
The blow never landed.
Instead, he heard the hyena beastman let out a startled shriek of pain.
When Qiuye cracked his eyes open, he was soaring through the air—Fei had him clutched gently in his talons, carrying him away from danger.
On the ground, Xuan had tackled the hyena beastman to the dirt, pinning him beneath his massive weight. Li arrived seconds later, positioning himself behind Xuan to fend off the rover leader, who was trying to fight his way back to save the hyena.
As the roving beastmen fled, the tribe's beastmen streamed toward the scene, their roars of triumph shaking the trees.
The rover leader saw there was no hope of saving the hyena. He let out a frustrated snarl, then turned and led the rest of his pack into the forest, disappearing from sight.
The hyena beastman was already unconscious, Xuan's paw planted firmly on his chest to keep him down.
Only then did a wave of cold, sickening fear crash over Xuan.
*So close.*
He'd been so close to watching his papa die right in front of him.
If the hyena beastman hadn't suddenly stumbled, his body going weak and wobbly at the last second—if the drug had taken even a heartbeat longer to kick in—
Xuan would've never made it in time to tackle him.
He would've never saved Qiuye.
Xuan's gaze drifted to the ground, where a silver-white weapon lay discarded—a blade forged from the hardest bone of an Ironbone Beast. The tip of the blade was stained with a dark smudge of blood.
Xuan recognized it instantly. It was the weapon Xia had made for Qiuye just a few days ago. The one coated in blackthorn grass juice.
The drug had kicked in right as the hyena beastman was about to strike.
That was why Xuan had been able to save him.
*Thank the spirits.*
This time, history hadn't repeated itself. This time, they hadn't lost someone they loved—unlike ten years ago, when Uncle Chiye had died.
The roving beastmen vanished into the trees quickly. The tribe's beastmen chased them until they were well beyond the patrol zone, then turned back.
Fei had flown down to grab Qiuye the second Xuan tackled the hyena. Now he landed in the middle of the tribe's protective circle, setting Qiuye down gently.
Lie was there too.
Dan and Dong hovered over him, licking his wounds gently with their rough tongues. He was hurt badly—horribly. His body was covered in gashes and bruises, so severe he could barely stand. Every inch of him was bloodied and broken.
When he saw Fei set Qiuye down, Lie ignored his own agony. He dragged himself over to Qiuye's side, his massive head nuzzling against Qiuye's hand, his eyes glistening with unshed tears.
Qiuye reached out, stroking Lie's head gently. Looking at him—at his broken, battered body—tears spilled down Qiuye's cheeks, falling like rain.
He'd been captured almost immediately. The hyena beastman had dragged him to the back of the pack, pinning him down with one paw so tight he couldn't move.
He'd watched Lie charge out, only to be swarmed and swallowed by the roving beastmen. He'd watched Sam grab his blade and charge at the rovers trying to drag Mu away, slashing one of them and watching the beastman collapse from the drug.
Qiuye had tried to do the same thing the second he'd been captured—but the hyena had him completely trapped.
Then the tribe had arrived. In the chaos of the retreat, the hyena beastman had loosened his grip for a split second. That was when Qiuye had grabbed the weapon Xia had given him and stabbed the beastman with it—just enough to draw blood, just enough for the drug to start working.
And just enough to let his tribe find him.
Just enough to save him.
In the end, the roving beastmen left behind a dozen of their dead before fleeing into the wilderness.
"Does anyone have the herbs?!"
Sam pushed through the crowd surrounding Lie, dropping to his knees beside the injured beastman. His voice was urgent, desperate. "Lie's hurt too bad—we need to stop the bleeding, *now*."
At the sound of Sam's words, Qiuye scrambled to his feet, ignoring the searing pain in his knee. He had to find the herbs. He had to save Lie.
If you enjoy the story, please add it to your library and support with a Power Stone.