Chapter 254

What happened atop Heishan had not affected the beastmen of the five tribes at the foot of the mountain in the slightest.

Today was already the final day of the Mating Festival, and the plaza and main streets were still bustling with people—enjoying a celebration that would have been unthinkable during winters in the past.

“Wuuu—wuuu—”

At noon, a deep and ancient horn suddenly echoed above the plaza.

All beastmen paused what they were doing, raised their heads with wide eyes, and looked around to locate the source of the sound.

Among the crowd, a young beastman was the first to notice the change outside the plaza.

“The seal around the sacrificial platform has been lifted! The priests are summoning us over!”

Hearing the youth's words, a commotion instantly broke out around him, and many people revealed expressions of sudden realization.

“The priests are going to bless us!”

“That’s right, let’s go quickly!”
“I want to stand at the very front of the platform!”

As everyone rushed toward the sacrificial platform, the two people standing in a standoff outside the water-drawing house looked particularly out of place.

Tun Quan faced the sub-beastman before him, who had his head lowered. Tun Quan’s breathing had become a bit rushed.

But the more anxious he got, the more his mind went blank. He wanted to slap himself for being so tongue-tied. If only he could talk as smoothly as Ma Ling or Hu Qiao.

The horn outside had already sounded several times. There was no one else around now except for the two of them. If they delayed any longer, they’d miss the gathering time.

Tun Quan scratched his head in frustration. “You don’t like any of these? What do you want? Just tell me—I will find it for you.”

Slung over Tun Quan’s shoulder was a large rattan basket, nearly half his height, packed full.

Ever since his injuries had healed, every time he went out, Tun Quan would bring back things he thought Ma Mu might like. In just half a year, he’d already collected a full basket of keepsakes.

At the start of the Mating Festival, Tun Quan would pick out what he thought were the best from these to offer to Ma Mu.

But after being rejected for two days in a row, Tun Quan started to panic. He began to doubt his own taste, and in the end, just dumped out everything he’d prepared for Ma Mu over these past months.

Ma Mu shook his head silently. These gifts were good.

With just one glance, he could tell that many of these items weren’t native to Heishan. He could clearly feel the effort Tun Quan had put in.

Seeing that Ma Mu still kept his head down but hadn’t left, Tun Quan refused to give up.

“I never planned to find a mate before. I used all my work points for meat. But ever since we came back from the Xushan Trade Fair, I haven’t touched my points. Now I’ve got nearly 500. They’re all yours—use them to trade with Priest Yang Luo for anything you want.”

Seeing the big stones and clay bricks around them, he quickly added: “I heard that in the city, we can build our own houses. What kind of house do you want? I can go learn from Xiong Feng and Huan Ping. I will build you a beautiful one.”

He wasn’t good with sweet words. He lived rough when alone. Besides the keepsakes, food and a home were the best things he could think to offer.

Ma Mu had more points than Tun Quan and wasn’t tempted by any of this. “You want to be my mate just because I took care of you when you were injured. If Bao Bai had assigned someone else to watch over you, would you have chosen them instead?”

During the Xushan Trade Fair, Tun Quan had been seriously wounded in the abdomen. During his recovery, Ma Mu had been his exclusive caretaker. It was this meticulous care that finally made the reckless young horned beastman come to his senses.

Tun Quan took the question seriously, but his answer was absurdly straightforward: “But Bao Bai didn’t assign anyone else, did he?”

Ma Mu was momentarily speechless.

Then suddenly, Tun Quan seemed to have a breakthrough: “Anyway, since then, I’ve thought about you every day. I want to be your mate. I want to have cubs with you.”

Tun Quan looked carefully at Ma Mu: “You… don’t want to have cubs with me, do you?”

A faint blush bloomed on Ma Mu’s face. He honestly had never thought about it that way. There was a lot of work in the Heishan Tribe, and everyone stayed busy. Primitive desires rarely took center stage.

Perhaps for this reason, even though the Mating Festival had been delayed so long, no one in the tribe had secretly bonded.

But Tun Quan being so clingy these past few days had stirred something in him—almost reminded him of his last heat cycle.

Ma Mu took a deep breath, then finally voiced the worry that had been weighing on him: “Do you know about Ma Liang?”

Tun Quan nodded. Ma Liang’s betrayal hadn’t spread widely through the tribe, but as a patrol team leader, Tun Quan had heard about it.

He didn’t understand though—weren’t they talking about becoming mates? Why bring up Ma Liang?

Ma Mu’s eyes turned a little red. “I came from the Xishui Tribe, just like him. I don’t know if I’ll be allowed into the city. You should stay away from me… don’t let me drag you down.”

Ma Mu lived right next to Ma Liang and Ma Chong, and he’d already guessed something was wrong after Ma Liang hadn’t left his house in days.

It wasn’t that Ma Mu didn’t have feelings for Tun Quan—on the contrary, it was precisely because he did care that he didn’t want to be a burden.

He didn’t want to end up like Ma Liang, trapped at home, relying on his mate to feed both him and a child.

Tun Quan stared blankly at Ma Mu.

Ma Mu’s heart sank. But then, he saw a look of pure delight gradually bloom across the horned beastman’s face.

Tun Quan jumped twice in place, then waved his arms excitedly. “So it’s not that you don’t like me!”

He slung the basket back over his shoulder, gripped Ma Mu’s shoulders with both hands: “Why should you care about him? He’s him—you’re you. His mistakes have nothing to do with us!”

“Be my mate, okay?”
“Wuuu—wuuu—!”

His plea and the horn’s blare rang out at the same time.

In Tun Quan’s bright eyes, Ma Mu saw his own reflection. His heart thudded uncontrollably. The sound of the horn felt like it was blasting directly into his ears—making him a bit dizzy.

Suddenly, Ma Mu felt like nothing else mattered. The man before him only cared about him, only wanted to be with him. That was already more than enough.

He blinked back the stinging in his eyes and nodded heavily.

“Awoo—!”

Tun Quan, overjoyed, picked Ma Mu up in a spin, then grabbed his hand and laughed as he pulled him toward the sacrificial platform.

As they reached the edge of the crowd, a middle-aged horned beastman in leather armor stopped them.

Even though they were all of the same tribe, due diligence was still needed. The patrol beastman grinned at them: “You two here to receive the blessing and become mates?”

Tun Quan stood tall and answered loudly, “Yes!”

The beastman pointed. “See that line over there? Stand at the back. That’s the line for those waiting to receive the blessing.”

Tun Quan and Ma Mu turned to look—and froze.

Beastmen from all five tribes had already formed concentric circles around the round sacrificial platform.

On the side facing the platform's front, two ropes of grass marked off a special area—mostly filled with young beastmen, though there were some middle-aged pairs as well.

They stood close together, gazing at the platform with hope and nerves—clearly couples awaiting the priests’ blessing.

Neither Tun Quan nor Ma Mu had expected this year’s blessing ceremony to be so different from the last. The long line brought with it a solemnity and formality they’d never seen before.

What shocked them even more was the sheer number of couples. In just that short delay, the line had already stretched nearly a hundred meters.

They didn’t hesitate and immediately took their place at the end of the line.

And the moment they got close to the crowd, Tun Quan and Ma Mu instantly understood everyone’s nervousness.

Because as they looked up at the tall sacrificial platform, their hearts filled with uncontrollable anticipation and tension.

They could already sense that today's ceremony was far more than just a blessing for mates.

As

the last of the stragglers joined the end of the line, all the beastmen of the five tribes had arrived.

The horn-blowers on either side of the platform lowered their instruments and respectfully stepped back.

Only now was the full appearance of the sacrificial platform revealed.

Over six meters tall, the circular platform had five fire basins arranged in a pentagram. The roaring flames seemed to represent the burning blood of the five tribes.

At the center of the platform sat a massive altar table.

Laid out in order were: a beast skull taller than a person, fangs longer than an adult beastman’s arm, luxurious pelts, exquisite pottery, and a complete set of medical tools.

These five offerings had been carefully chosen by the five priests—each representing one of the tribes. Placed together, they symbolized the unity of the five tribes from this moment forward.

Everyone who saw this scene instinctively held their breath.

Bang bang! Bang bang!
A rhythmic knocking, made with wooden blocks, echoed out.

The four tribal priests and Jufeng’s shaman ascended the platform from five directions.

Accompanied by the beat—like a heartbeat—they began to dance in the space between the fire basins.

Each of the five danced differently, even humming completely different melodies.

Yet somehow, in this moment, the dissonant dances and varying pitches combined into a harmony that defied explanation—a single, unified ritual song.

Amid the awe of over ten thousand beastmen, Qi Bai in white and Lang Ze in black slowly stepped onto the platform from opposite sides.

Shu Lin took a deep breath and clutched Xiong Feng’s arm tightly. He didn’t know why, but watching Qi Bai climb the stairs made him want to cry.

Every beastman of the Heishan Tribe felt the same.

Natural disasters, beasts, foreign enemies… every step of their journey had been a trial. But they had survived. All that suffering had forged them into a stronger people.

Facing the gaze of over ten thousand beastmen, and thinking of what was to come, Qi Bai thought he would be nervous.

But as he stepped onto the stone steps, ascending slowly onto the platform, he realized that his heartbeat was astonishingly steady.

Seeing Lang Ze emerge from the opposite side, Qi Bai even gave a faint smile.

Nothing had really changed—only that their home had grown bigger, their family larger, and their shared responsibilities heavier.

Qi Bai and Lang Ze walked to the platform’s center. The drumming stopped.

The five priests raised their palms upward, bowed their heads solemnly toward the center.

The world fell silent. Even the cold wind halted—waiting quietly for the moment to come.

Qi Bai and Lang Ze looked at each other.

Then they turned in unison.

“The five tribes are one. You are all citizens of Heiyao!”

“The five tribes are one. You are all citizens of Heiyao!”

Clear and deep voices rang out, echoing in the ears of every single beastman present.

“The City of Heiyao!”

Passion, joy, weeping, awe… a thousand emotions surged.

Everyone roared out this one name from the depths of their chests:

“The City of Heiyao!”
“The City of Heiyao!”