Chapter 287

This was a simple yet spacious stone house—but simple did not mean crude.

Thick animal hides covered the floor, and similar light gray hides were hung on the walls. These hides closely resembled the stone used to build the house, making the decorations less noticeable.

In the middle of the room stood a wooden table and stools, made from whole logs. These, too, were covered in animal hides. On the tabletop sat a stone plate, with some dried meat laid upon it.

Qi Bai glanced casually at it and noticed decorative patterns carved into the plate—patterns he had also seen at the entrance. They were likely the unique totem of this Wuzi.

This meant that, at least within Wangu, a symbol to represent personal identity had already emerged.

"Sit," Zhao Wuzi said with a gentle smile.

Fire basins burned in the four corners of the room, making it not particularly cold inside.

The seat cushions made of animal hide were soft, and the carpet underfoot was also warm and plush. Qi Bai had only been inside for a short while, yet already felt a tingling warmth return to his hands and feet after several days of cold.

Qi Bai folded his hands together, thinking that his adaptability was truly something—just a few days of hardship and he was already too spoiled to enjoy comfort.

As soon as the four of them sat down, a few slaves entered from the inner door of the house. They carried clay pots and cups, pouring hot soup for each of them before quietly withdrawing.

This was the second time Qi Bai had seen pottery outside of Heishan.

The first time had been when Lang Ze and his group captured spoils from the Sanghuo Tribe—those pots had been only slightly sturdier than crude mud containers.

But the pottery here in Wangu City was of much higher quality, and the styles and sizes were also very uniform.

Qi Bai hadn’t seen any pottery workshops in Wangu City, so it was likely these items had come from Shangcheng or the Beast God Temple.

From this, it was clear that this Wuzi had not treated their reception lightly.

Zhao Wuzi said, “Drink some meat broth to warm yourselves.”

The Gushu Beastman was not shy at all. Since the Wuzi had offered water, he directly picked up the cup and gulped it down in large swallows.

After he finished, Zhao stood up and personally refilled his cup, then turned to Qi Bai and Lang Ze with a smile. “Aren’t you two going to drink?”

Of course, Qi Bai wouldn’t drink water from Wangu City, especially not something provided by one of its Wuzi.

He looked at the face before him—so beautiful that it was hard to tell male from female—and asked, “Wuzi daren, you know who we are?”

Seeing that Qi Bai merely held the cup without drinking, Zhao didn’t insist. Instead, he smiled and said, “You’ve caused enough trouble for the hunting teams in the forest. How could I not know? I’ve been wanting to meet you for a long time. It's just that you rarely visit the city, so I haven’t had the chance until now.”

Zhao Wuzi clearly mistook them for members of the Yinyue Tribe in the forest. Strictly speaking, that wasn’t wrong.

It seemed he had long known about the wolf tribe living in the forest. But between Wangu and Yinyue territory lay the Shengling Battlefield and the Misty Forest—his influence hadn’t reached that far.

“Especially you,” Zhao said, turning to the Gushu Beastman, “You’re so interested in Gu Jin that you're quite famous at the Shijin Camp. Do you know what they call you?”

The Gushu Beastman, now free from the daze he was in upon first seeing Zhao, frowned. “What do they call me?”

“You’ve killed so many Shijin Beastmen, they secretly call you the ‘Gold Hunter.’”

Zhao raised a finger and waved it in the air. “Catching you is worth a whole wild ox.”

“That much food could feed five beastmen through an entire winter. So tell me—if the beastmen outside learned that the famous Gold Hunter was in the city, what do you think they’d do?”

Zhao’s smile was radiant, but Qi Bai found it unsettling—there was something sickly about it that made his skin crawl.

The Gushu Beastman wasn’t intimidated. “I belong to Zhao Wuzi now. If this news really got out, it wouldn’t do you any favors either.”

First calling them friends, then using their outsider status to threaten them—this man’s attitude was hard to read. Lang Ze didn’t want to play games. He asked directly, “Why did you bring us here? What do you want?”

“That’s what I should be asking you.” Zhao Wuzi stared at the three of them. “Why have you come to Wangu City? Is it for Gu Jin, food, or revenge? What is it you want?”

It seemed Zhao Wuzi knew that Wangu City had many enemies and that many beastmen sought revenge.

Lang Ze said, “What if I want all of that?”

“Wangu City is far stronger than you think. A few remnants of minor tribes can’t possibly achieve that goal.”

“But,” Zhao tapped the tabletop with his finger. The hide on the table muffled the sound, “I can give you everything you just mentioned.”

Lang Ze said coldly, “So you really do want to cooperate with us.”

Qi Bai’s eyes widened slightly. Cooperate?

They were talking about toppling Wangu City, and this man was one of the city’s rulers. Yet now Lang Ze was telling him the other party wanted to work with them? It sounded absurd.

But then Zhao actually admitted it straightforwardly: “That’s right. I want to cooperate with you.”

Qi Bai asked, “What do you want?”

“I want you to kill the Da Wu.”

Zhao’s words silenced all three of them.

“If he dies, I can become the next Da Wu. Then your little requests would be nothing. Even letting you join Wangu City would be as simple as me saying the word.”

The Gushu Beastman asked, “Why us?”

“When Wangu was first built, the city had many First-Level Warriors. But over the past ten years, not only have their numbers not increased, their strength has even declined.”

Zhao looked at the Gushu Beastman and said, “I know you're at least a Second-Level Warrior. If you’re willing to act, and with my help, we can definitely kill the Da Wu.”

Second-Level Warrior.

Qi Bai had already learned how Wangu City, Shangcheng, and the Beast God Temple classified horned beastmen by rank.

The method was simple and crude: it was based on the number of ring-shaped markings on a beastman’s horn in beast form.

One ring meant First Level, two rings meant Second Level.

Qi Bai subtly looked at the Gushu Beastman. He had never seen his beast form, and didn’t expect this seemingly unkempt beastman to be as powerful as Lang Ze.

Recalling the earlier fight in the arena preparation room, Qi Bai realized he hadn’t imagined it—the Gushu Beastman had genuinely dodged Lang Ze’s attack with skill.

Zhao’s talk of cooperation wasn’t empty; he quickly laid out his bargaining chip: “Do you know why the Da Wu summoned the entire guard team today?”

Qi Bai said, “To welcome the envoy coming in ten days to treat Piao Sishi.”

They had already heard about this outside the Da Wu Temple. But Piao Sishi was dead—this envoy’s trip would be in vain.

Zhao sneered. “It’s not just an envoy.”

“There were originally three Sishi in Wangu City. One went on a mission to Dongyi. Now another is dead, leaving only one—Ke Sishi—under Du Shen Shi.”

“This time, it’s not just one envoy coming, but an entire delegation, led by a Healing Divine Envoy. They’ll bring four Sishi, two of whom will stay to assist Du Shen Shi.”

“In addition, there will be one person from the Lower City and three from major tribes—forces aligned with Shangcheng. They’ll also visit Wangu to conduct trades.”

Listening to Zhao detail the delegation, Qi Bai couldn’t help but guess, “Such important guests—Da Wu and the City Lord will definitely greet them personally.”

Zhao smiled, clearly satisfied with Qi Bai’s cleverness. “Exactly.”

Qi Bai asked, “How do we know you're telling the truth? And how do we get into this banquet?”

“If I wanted to capture you, I could’ve done it already. Why wait ten days? I have no reason to lie. As for getting into the banquet…” Zhao tilted his head, “That’s up to you. If you can’t even manage that, there’s no point in cooperating.”

The three didn’t stay long in Zhao’s home. As dusk approached, Qi Bai, Lang Ze, and the Gushu Beastman left the stone house and quietly exited the city center.

Watching their retreating figures, Sun still looked worried. “Can we really trust them?”

Zhao lowered his eyel

ids, long lashes casting shadows beneath his eyes. “It’s just one more insurance policy. It can’t make things worse.”

Meanwhile, the three were also evaluating the feasibility of cooperating with Zhao.

Though they seemed to have reached an agreement, they all knew nothing had been fully revealed—this was mutual testing based on shared interests.

For example, Zhao promised revenge. But how? Before Wangu City was founded, the Egu Tribe had survived solely through plunder. Tribes like Lie Shi, Jian Hu, and Hao Xiong were technically also enemies of the victims.

If Zhao truly wanted revenge, he’d have to hand over most of Wangu’s elite beastmen—that was an impossible promise.

And how was Zhao so sure he’d become the next Da Wu? Wangu had six Wuzi. If Zhao wasn’t the Da Wu’s chosen successor, how could the others possibly let him take the throne?

But just as Zhao didn’t care about their motives, Qi Bai and Lang Ze didn’t care whether Zhao could become Da Wu.

Because after Zhao told them the identities of the envoy group, Qi Bai and Lang Ze’s goal was no longer just the Da Wu.

The Gushu Beastman asked, “You want to target the delegation?”

Lang Ze didn’t deny it. “The delegation is special—especially the Healing Divine Envoy. Even in Shangcheng, such a person would have high status. If something happens to them in Wangu, their backers won’t let Egu and Lie Shi off the hook. This place will become a chaotic mess.”

Lang Ze added, “I don’t trust Zhao Wuzi. Don’t forget—he’s also from the Lie Shi Tribe.”

No, he’s different from them.

The thought suddenly popped into the Gushu Beastman’s mind. He took a deep breath and suppressed it.

Qi Bai said, “To get into the banquet, our current identities aren’t enough. We’ll need another plan.”

“I can handle that,” said the Gushu Beastman.

Qi Bai looked up at him—volunteering meant he truly wanted to participate.

In fact, his presence at the arena today already hinted at his intention. Just days ago, he’d been passive and unwilling.

Lang Ze said bluntly, “You’ve decided? I won’t fight beside someone who’s ready to back out at any moment.”

The Gushu Beastman was silent for a moment. “I won’t run anymore.”

Lang Ze weighed the weight of his words.

The Gushu Beastman chuckled bitterly. “Of course, maybe you don’t need my help anymore.”

Lang Ze’s expression softened. “Fine. You handle getting us into the banquet. We’ll head back to the Misty Forest.”

“Nine days from now, we meet again at the arena.”

After agreeing to meet again, Qi Bai and Lang Ze turned to leave—but just then, the beastman behind them spoke.

“Ji.”

Qi Bai turned back, puzzled. “What?”

“Ji,” the Gushu Beastman repeated. “That’s my name.”

Qi Bai couldn’t see his face beneath the thick beard, but he could hear the steadiness and resolve in his voice. He smiled and nodded.

Lang Ze took Qi Bai’s hand and said without looking back, “Got it.”