After the Hunting Team confirmed it was safe, Cang Shi let them take a brief rest.
The previously orderly formation immediately changed, with everyone resting in place while remaining alert. They gripped their weapons tightly, ready to respond to danger at a moment’s notice.
“Shaman, you should rest a bit. We’ve been travelling for so long, you must be tired… huh…” Cang Shi was fiddling with his recurve bow, hesitating as he spoke, wondering if the Shaman was even tired.
After all, since setting out in the morning until now entering the dense forest, they had been advancing quickly without stopping, with no rest time.
Not only the Totem Warriors, but even the Shaman had to stay focused to avoid mistakes.
Besides the mental strain, there would be physical and psychological fatigue too. This was especially so when the Shaman was not even a Totem Warrior.
Such a long journey, and not on flat ground but jumping up and down – even Totem Warriors would feel tired.
But looking at Su Bai’s appearance, Cang Shi could not even finish his sentence.
His question got stuck in his throat. He found that Su Bai showed no signs of being out of breath. Instead, he seemed completely relaxed. It was as if nothing had happened. He was still as calm and composed as ever.
To use an Earth expression, he was probably thinking ‘Is the Shaman some kind of monster?’
Not only was Su Bai not out of breath, he even had the energy to observe the surrounding environment, particularly a beast on an ancient tree.
It was his first time seeing this kind of beast on a tree. He naturally did not recognize what it was.
“Cang Shi, what’s that?” Su Bai pointed at the beast on the ancient tree and asked.
“That’s called an Ancient Tree Monkey, it’s an unpalatable beast, and it is very cunning.” Cang Shi looked up briefly with disgust.
As if he had suffered from eating this Ferocious Beast before, his expression was full of disdain.
The Ancient Tree Monkey was not much bigger than an adult’s palm. It seemed to be quite small and delicate. It had light brown fur with some grey stripes mixed in, and its fur was somewhat long.
Its round head had large black eyes. When it looked at Su Bai, its gaze seemed especially innocent.
The Ancient Tree Monkey’s ears were on both sides of its head, similar to ordinary monkeys.
“What? Have you had trouble with this kind of beast before?” Su Bai curiously asked.
“They taste absolutely horrendous. The last time I had to eat one, I couldn’t eat anything else for ten days…” Cang Shi’s face was full of disgust.
Generally, warriors were not picky about the taste of food. Even if something did not taste good, they would usually eat it anyway. After all, to them, the main priority was to replenish their energy. They were not asking for much. In fact, most focused on eating meat not because of the taste but because they needed Ferocious Beast Meat to sustain themselves.
To receive such a negative review from someone who was not picky, this money must taste worse than horrendous. Eating them might even be harmful to the body.
“Aren’t these Ancient Tree Monkeys afraid of Humans?” Su Bai curiously asked, as it kept observing him.
Usually small Ferocious Beasts would be very afraid of Humans, but this one seemed different. Its gaze stayed fixed on Su Bai, looking very innocent and cute, as if it had no lethal capabilities at all.
“Many beasts aren’t actually afraid when they first see Humans. They’re mainly curious.”
Cang Shi readied his recurve bow, aiming at the Ancient Tree Monkey, and continued. “But if you show any killing intent, everything’s different.”
*Awoo! Awoo…* The Ancient Tree Monkey that had looked so innocent and harmless suddenly showed its true nature.
Its previously closed mouth opened wide, revealing sharp fangs inside.
Those were not just short single fangs, but long rows of serrated teeth that sent chills down one’s spine.
Cang Shi lowered his recurve bow. He did not intend to shoot at the Ancient Tree Monkey on the tree in the first place.
He lowered his hand and stopped aiming at it, saying. “Such a tiny thing, with barely any meat, with such nightmarish tastes. Even if you make such awful noises, you are not even worth wasting my arrow on!”
Seeing Cang Shi lower his recurve bow, the Ancient Tree Monkey closed its widely gaping mouth and returned to looking adorable.
“I didn’t expect it to have two very different faces. I thought it was as cute as Rolly.” Yan Hua pouted.
After seeing the Ancient Tree Monkey bare its teeth, the cow horned girl had wanted to take out her longbow and finish it off.
“Yes, I didn’t expect it to be so fierce. It seems to be really dangerous.” Sha Lan was also surprised by its ferocious appearance.
She now reflected how beasts truly could not be judged by their initial appearance. One should be more careful. Though, she soon thought of the Tribe’s Rolly. [Is Rolly also ? It looks very gentle and cute but it is actually just as fierce?]
*Rustle rustle…* Su Bai heard a rustling sound suddenly coming from behind him. He could sense it was not an enemy.
Still, he could feel its imposing presence, and at the same time, this feeling seemed very familiar.
He frowned as he looked toward the source of the sound, muttering: “Don’t tell me it followed us here?”
In the blink of an eye, there was a whistling sound as a black shadow leaped through the low tree branches and jumped to a higher spot.
In that same instant, the previously innocent-looking Ancient Tree Monkey in the tree vanished.
Without making any extra sound, it was finished off, just like that.
The Ancient Tree Monkey died in Rolly’s mouth. The one making the rustling sound was none other than Rolly.
Rolly held the Ancient Tree Monkey in its mouth. Its originally black eyes had turned golden yellow, and its round plump shape had changed. It was no longer chubby but slim and elongated.
Rolly’s overall size was twice as large as before. Its ears were more pointed, its eyes no longer round but narrow and feline.
In short, its entire appearance was completely different from before. They were like two different cats, one looking fierce and the other harmless.
“It’s really Rolly!” Su Bai was amazed.
He remembered Rolly had been sleeping when he left. He had specifically asked Yu Ying to take good care of it.
But now, it appeared before him with an Ancient Tree Monkey in its mouth, accomplishing something incredible.
“Is that really Rolly?” Sha Lan asked doubtfully amid her shock.
The cat eared girl did not even know what just happened. She only saw a black shadow very quickly leaping off with clean efficient movements.
[noscript][/noscript]