Marrying the Soft-hearted Villain

Seeing the slightly white-tipped eyebrows of Grandpa Panda filled with a fierce aura, Ruan Qiuqiu was quite surprised.

She hadn't expected Grandpa Panda, who was usually amiable and gentle towards the cubs, to have such a violent side.

Mr. Big Bad Wolf, on the other hand, didn't seem particularly surprised. His gaze fell on Grandpa Clan Leader's face, and after a few seconds, he retracted his gaze and gently hooked Ruan Qiuqiu's hand with his own.

Yuan Jue looked down at her, his eyes filled with fragmented light, carrying a questioning look.

Ruan Qiuqiu quickly understood that Mr. Big Bad Wolf intended to agree to Grandpa Clan Leader's proposal. She curved her lips and nodded at Yuan Jue.

It's just looking after the bear cubs for three days; it won't delay their plans. It just so happens that she still needs a lot of bear cubs to help with fluffing cotton and weaving cloth; it's killing two birds with one stone.

This was also a request from Grandpa Clan Leader, who had accepted her and Mr. Big Bad Wolf; she had no reason to refuse.

Having received his wife's consent, Yuan Jue, a certain wolf, once again looked at Grandpa Panda and softly said, "Okay."

Xiong Jiankang was stunned for two seconds before a smile appeared on his face. "Good, good, good. It's great to have you help look after this bunch of bear cubs. Then let's not waste any time. I'll enter the forbidden area this afternoon to repair the barrier."

Ruan Qiuqiu worriedly said, "This afternoon? Isn't that a bit rushed?"

The wrinkles at the corners of Grandpa Clan Leader's eyes crinkled with a smile. "Not at all. The Demonic Beast Market opens in three days. It will take some time to travel there from our tribe. I need to go early and return early."

After Xiong Jiankang finished speaking, he paused and explained the number of bear demons in the Winter Bear Tribe and some other details to the person and wolf.

For example, there were only eighteen healthy bear demons who could be of use, the tribe's food supply would only last another seven days at most, and the elderly and weak were still in dire need of medicinal herbs, and so on.

After introducing the extremely dire situation, Grandpa Clan Leader looked at Ruan Qiuqiu, who had fallen into deep thought, and felt a little embarrassed.

Over the past ten years, the Winter Bear Tribe had indeed become increasingly worse off, and he, as the Clan Leader, bore an undeniable responsibility.

But since he had already said everything, he didn't hide anything. After explaining all the current resources and the situation of the Winter Bear Tribe, he solemnly handed the small red wooden plaque to Ruan Qiuqiu.

"This is the token to enter that special cave," Grandpa Clan Leader said. "Qiu Wa, please keep it for Grandpa for now."

Ruan Qiuqiu was stunned for a moment before realizing that the 'special cave' Grandpa Panda was referring to was this small wooden shed.

She hesitated, unsure whether she should accept it.

Seeing this, Grandpa Panda smiled and asked her, "Qiu Wa, did you hear any sounds when you came here before?"

Hearing Grandpa Clan Leader mention this, Ruan Qiuqiu's eyes lit up. "Yes."

"Then what the old Clan Leader said is correct." Xiong Jiankang's eyes also held a hint of joy. "It is said that this special cave was left behind by a human couple who were friends with the Star Moon Wolf Tribe. All humans with cultivation talent can receive human inheritance here."

Ruan Qiuqiu's eyes widened in surprise, and a thought suddenly flashed through her mind, so fast that she couldn't grasp it before it dissipated.

"But humans with cultivation talent are mostly in the Underground Human Tribe, and our tribe doesn't have any. This inheritance is useless to demons, so this place has never been used." Xiong Jiankang said, "Qiu Wa, come and touch this token."

Ruan Qiuqiu gently placed her finger on the red wooden token. Soon, a familiar, profound sound came from the redwood in her hand, lingering and drilling into her ears.

Her consciousness once again fell into a familiar drift, and Ruan Qiuqiu's eyes gradually became hazy, but her spirit recovered bit by bit, becoming complete.

"Da…"

As the last note fell, the red wooden token in her hand was pushed away and landed on the stone table.

Ruan Qiuqiu abruptly opened her eyes and met the smiling Grandpa Clan Leader.

"How is it?" Xiong Jiankang asked.

"The effect is very good." Ruan Qiuqiu found that the mental exhaustion she had felt from condensing the healing water droplets had completely disappeared. That profound sound was more like a peculiar mental power cultivation method, guiding her cultivation breakthrough.

Ruan Qiuqiu felt as if something formed from mental power had appeared in her mind. She wasn't sure what it was yet, but she should be able to figure it out after receiving the inheritance a few more times.

"As long as it's effective." Grandpa Clan Leader smiled and picked up the red wooden token from the stone table. "Then Qiu Wa, keep this token. It is said that you can only receive the inheritance once a day. If you are outside this special cave, you might still be able to receive the inheritance, but the effect might not be as good as inside."

Ruan Qiuqiu didn't refuse and tentatively placed her palm on the redwood again. This time, she didn't hear the profound sound.

"Thank you, Grandpa Clan Leader." She took the redwood from Xiong Jiankang's hand. To be safe, Ruan Qiuqiu stuffed the redwood into Mr. Big Bad Wolf's palm.

But this time, the moment her fingertips touched Mr. Big Bad Wolf's, a tingling sensation shot up her back, causing her to bend down involuntarily and quickly separate from the wolf, keeping a distance from him.

Ruan Qiuqiu was quite embarrassed to find that her skin seemed to have become sensitive again.

She didn't know what was going on with her constitution. It was fine when she cultivated quietly by herself, but whenever she was with Mr. Big Bad Wolf, or near him, after each cultivation session, she would become particularly sensitive for a period of time.

It was fine when she touched other things, and touching Grandpa Clan Leader wouldn't cause any problems, but touching Mr. Big Bad Wolf made her very uncomfortable.

A certain wolf, Yuan, looked at her suddenly reddened ear tips, and a guess that made the wolf happy and embarrassed flashed through his mind.

Could it be that Madam, because she likes me so much, is like a wolf, and can't help but feel shy with even the slightest touch?

Fortunately, Ruan Qiuqiu didn't know his thoughts, otherwise, she would definitely be angered to the point of becoming a salted fish, after all, she was truly physically sensitive.

But the wolf was a considerate good wolf. In front of Grandpa Clan Leader, he took good care of his little wife and didn't do anything excessive.

"I've said everything I need to say. I'll leave the next few days to you." Grandpa Clan Leader said, as if he had unloaded a warm yet heavy burden, and left the small wooden shed with the person and wolf.

Over the next half of the day, the aftereffects of Ruan Qiuqiu's sensitivity from cultivation gradually disappeared.

Grandpa Clan Leader called Xiong Yuan and the few remaining bear demons in the tribe whose strength was above Tier 2, telling them to listen to Ruan Qiuqiu and Yuan Jue's arrangements for the next few days.

After arranging which bear demons would take care of the cubs, which would take care of the sick demons, and which would patrol, Grandpa Clan Leader gave some more instructions and then transformed into his demon form.

The tall black and white giant panda tucked the Soul Wood into his thick fur, carrying the dried rations and spare healing water droplets that Ruan Qiuqiu had specially prepared for him, and set off just like that.

"Where do you think the Clan Leader is going? Three days…the Clan Leader hasn't left the tribe for such a long time." A panda demon, whose strength had just reached Tier 2 and was younger than Xiong Duoduo, asked Xiong Yuan beside him weakly.

Xiong Yuan patted his back hard. "Xiao Yue, don't worry. The Clan Leader must be confident."

"You're not Grandpa Clan Leader, how would you know? I'm a big bear now, don't call me by my nickname." Xiong Xiaoyue's voice was weak as he snapped at Xiong Yuan.

Hearing this, Ruan Qiuqiu found it quite amusing and couldn't help but look up at the young panda demon. She thought his chubby, round, and silly face was quite cute, like a little brother. Unexpectedly, she happened to meet his gaze and nodded at him with a friendly smile.

Unexpectedly, Xiong Xiaoyue's face visibly reddened, and his voice became even weaker, with a hint of shyness. "Are, are you laughing at me? I, I'm already eighteen years old. I only like female demons. You're a human, don't smile at me."

Ruan Qiuqiu "…"

Ruan Qiuqiu "???"

She was stunned by this bear brother, her eyes filled with surprise. Before she could speak, she felt the air pressure around her drop significantly.

Oh no.

She quickly averted her surprised gaze from Xiong Xiaoyue's face and turned her head, catching a glimpse of Mr. Big Bad Wolf's seemingly expressionless handsome face.

He just glanced sideways at Xiong Xiaoyue, then his gaze, as usual, fixed on Ruan Qiuqiu's face, his lips pursed slightly, saying nothing.

His little wife clearly hadn't realized how outstanding her appearance was.

Ruan Qiuqiu keenly sensed that her wolf cub was being petty and jealous.

She was a little speechless, and also found it a bit funny.

She first stood on tiptoe and pecked Mr. Big Bad Wolf on the corner of his lips, then looked at Xiong Xiaoyue and responded childishly, "I was just greeting you. I don't like bear demons."

Xiong Xiaoyue "…"

Ruan Qiuqiu amusedly watched Xiong Xiaoyue's face redden even more, then glanced at Mr. Big Bad Wolf, who had clearly thawed. She assumed the jealous wolf was fine again.

So she didn't dwell on this issue any further. She took Mr. Big Bad Wolf's arm and discussed some food distribution issues with Xiong Yuan.

Excluding her and Mr. Big Bad Wolf, and Tian Xiu and Grandpa Mo's family, there were a total of fifty-five members in the Winter Bear Tribe.

Among them were ten humans, forty-five demons and half-demons.

Among the demons, cubs accounted for seventeen. The rest were all bear demons, but only eighteen were healthy; the others were either seriously injured or old and weak.

Excluding the bears who had to stay behind to care for the tribe and patrol, there were only ten bears who could go out hunting.

These ten bears weren't strong. Only two were Tier 2, and most were Tier 1, and most of them were young, perhaps not even as strong as Ruan Qiuqiu.

These ten bears had to be divided into two teams to hunt in the snowy and dangerous winter forest, responsible for providing enough food and herbs for the entire tribe every day. It was truly difficult.

The old and weak bear demons in the Winter Bear Tribe, in order to save food, had weighed their remaining fat and automatically gone into hibernation.

But even so, once the winter beast tide erupted, they still had to crawl out of their caves, hungry, and be responsible for defending the tribe.

The lives of the bears in the Winter Bear Tribe could be said to be as miserable as it could get.

Ruan Qiuqiu felt a little helpless. She and Mr. Big Bad Wolf checked the food reserves Grandpa Clan Leader had mentioned, only to find that the so-called reserves were just a fattened horned bull that Grandpa Clan Leader had been lucky enough to hunt down many days ago.

Everyone ate very sparingly, so there was still some left, but the meat was no longer fresh.

"Distribute this meat to everyone," Ruan Qiuqiu said to Xiong Yuan behind her.

Xiong Yuan hesitated for a moment and swallowed. "…But this is a seven-day supply of food."

In fact, as a Tier 2 demon, he could completely rely on his strength to eat his fill, but in order to take care of the tribe, he hadn't eaten his fill for a long time.

Ruan Qiuqiu sighed. "I still have some reserves here, enough for everyone to eat for a while. Don't worry."

The old Black Python Demon had stored a lot of food, much more than this half-eaten horned bull, completely enough to cover seven days' worth of food.

The reason she asked him to do this was because this horned bull had no rank, the meat had no spiritual energy, its preservation time was very short, it had been dragged on for a long time, and it was no longer fresh. Moreover, many bears in the Winter Bear Tribe were pitifully thin, so there was no need to drag it out any longer.

Since she said so, Xiong Yuan and Xiong Xiaoyue, who were already starving, didn't refuse again.

As they carried the food away, Xiong Xiaoyue couldn't help but blush, turned his head, and took a deep look at Ruan Qiuqiu. He said, "You are truly a kind person."

Ruan Qiuqiu "…"

She only felt Mr. Big Bad Wolf's muscles tense abruptly, then quickly return to normal, as if the wolf's muscles hadn't tensed at all.

Ruan Qiuqiu had a bad feeling, but she also found it a bit funny. This was the first time she had met a demon like Xiong Xiaoyue, and the first time she had been friend-zoned. She felt it was rather novel.

"Shall we go home then?" At this moment, Ruan Qiuqiu didn't realize what terrible consequences the fact that a certain wolf had eaten far more lemons than he could handle would bring. She gently tugged at a certain wolf's sleeve and asked him softly.

Mr. Big Bad Wolf, who was still jealous, lowered his dark eyelashes and made a noncommittal "Hmm" sound, seemingly without any abnormality.

Ruan Qiuqiu smiled at him, took his arm, and the person and wolf walked along the snow-covered path towards their cave.

Because it was getting dark, they didn't encounter any active bears along the way and quickly returned to the entrance of their cave.

As they approached, Ruan Qiuqiu noticed that the corners of Mr. Big Bad Wolf's lips had drooped a bit more.

When he saw that it was Xiao Bo He and Xiao Yu who opened the door, he was clearly even more unhappy.

But Yuan, a certain wolf, was very restrained. He didn't say anything in front of the cubs, nor did he let go of Ruan Qiuqiu. He just endured it and stayed by her side.

Ruan Qiuqiu was quite helpless—

At this moment, in their cave, besides Xiao Bo He, Xiao Yu and Mo Mao were also there, taking care of Xiong Duoduo and the others in the small cave.

The cubs who had regained consciousness weren't surprised that Mr. Big Bad Wolf could defeat the old Black Python Demon.

After all, in the cubs' eyes, Yuan Jue was a legendary existence in the forest.

With more people and demons in the house, it became lively.

But clearly, Mr. Big Bad Wolf didn't like this kind of liveliness.

Or rather, he didn't like interacting with so many demons.

Ruan Qiuqiu could actually understand. This cave was her and Mr. Big Bad Wolf's home, their territory.

She also knew that a large part of the reason Mr. Big Bad Wolf wasn't saying anything now was because of her. If it were before, he wouldn't have tolerated them staying in the cave for most of the day.

Moreover, it was very inconvenient for Xiong Duoduo and Tian Xiu to stay here all the time. First of all, bathing at night was a problem.

Secondly, the small cave couldn't accommodate so many demons.

Thinking about this, Ruan Qiuqiu had a plan in mind.

After dinner, Mr. Big Bad Wolf stayed in the "master bedroom," while Ruan Qiuqiu went to the small cave to check on the injured demons.

Xiong Duoduo and Tian Xiu had strong healing abilities and were already fine. Xiong Gungun and She Qin had also regained consciousness. Only the most seriously injured half-snake, half-eagle cub hadn't woken up yet, but was no longer in mortal danger.

Ruan Qiuqiu was hesitating about how to tell everyone that the small cave couldn't accommodate so many demons when Xiong Duoduo spoke first. "Then, Madam Yuan, I'll take Xiong Gungun back to our cave."

Tian Xiu also said, "My condition is rather poor, so I can probably only live by myself and can't take them back."

Ruan Qiuqiu was a little surprised. She didn't expect that no one wanted to stay the night.

Actually, Tian Xiu and the others had considered it, but the thought that staying here might be even more dangerous than going back made them immediately abandon the idea.

Ruan Qiuqiu glanced at She Qin, whose face was pale and terrifying, and the cub who hadn't woken up yet. She hesitated for a moment and was about to say, 'Then Xiao Sheqin will stay here,' when Xiao Bo He spoke.

"Sister Qiuqiu, our home can still accommodate cubs." She said, glancing at her second brother, signaling Xiao Yu to speak.

Xiao Yu belatedly scratched his head and looked at She Qin.

But when he looked at the other party, because he suddenly met his blood-streaked face where the scales had been plucked, his voice couldn't help but tremble. "Right, then why don't She Qin come home with us?"

His trembling wasn't obvious, and he quickly adjusted himself, the fear in his eyes disappearing.

But Xiao Sheqin noticed.

Tears welled up in his eyes, and he subconsciously raised his hand to cover his face. But as he raised his hand, the terrible scars on his hands and arms also appeared, making him look even more unsightly.

Ruan Qiuqiu felt a pang of heartache when she saw the tears welling up in his eyes.

She frowned, looking inward at the spiritual energy within her dantian, wanting to see if there was any way she could heal Xiao Sheqin's scars, at least to make him less pained.

And Mr. Big Bad Wolf wasn't really staying in the bridal chamber.

He leaned against the cold wall outside the small cave, his demonic consciousness spreading into the small cave, clearly seeing Xiao Sheqin's mottled and terrifying face.

His slender fingers lifted, and his rough fingertips traced the scar on his forehead.

Yuan Jue "looked" at She Qin's ugly, disfigured face.

It was as if he saw his own once seriously injured and disfigured self.

ʕ•́ᴥ•̀ʔっ

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