They worked in pairs, one fishing while the other removed the heads, perfectly in sync.

The members of the Snow Tiger Tribe, who had been about to say something, fell silent when they learned that Wu Yue wanted all the Sharp-toothed Fish. They stopped their lecturing and could only wonder with secret anticipation, ’Could it be that these Sharp-toothed Fish are also edible?’

"Yue! Yue, are you in there?"

Wu Yue was in the cave grinding the spices she would need for the fish when Qingcao came running in from outside, hollering. The shout, amplified by the cave’s acoustics, made Wu Yue feel like she was sitting in an IMAX theater—the kind with the volume turned all the way up.

She couldn’t help but dig a finger in her ear. ’I wonder if a sound that loud could shake any earwax loose?’

But to avoid being subjected to the girl’s torment again, Wu Yue shouted back at the top of her lungs, "I’m right in front of you..."

Hearing her voice, Qingcao giggled and ran over, only to find Wu Yue sitting in her nest of grass, using the end of a wooden stick to smash something in a stone bowl until it was unrecognizable.

She squatted down curiously. "Whatcha doin’?"

’I won’t even comment on that audacious wide-legged squat of yours,’ Wu Yue thought. ’But could we maybe cover up a little? Going commando and flashing your butt all the time... have you ever considered the feelings of us shy ladies?’

System: ’A tree without bark will surely die; a person without shame is invincible. Was that phrase custom-made for the Host?’

But when faced with her little friend, Wu Yue felt she still had to extend the small hand of friendship and try to save her.

She beckoned with her hand. "Why are you squatting over there? Come sit in the grass nest."

Qingcao waved her hand dismissively. "No, no. If I sit over there, I won’t be able to see what you’re doing."

Then, as if she’d thought of something, she glanced down at her own bareness beneath her skirt and giggled. "Yue, are you jealous?"

With that, she stood up and proudly shook her plump bottom.

Wu Yue’s face stiffened. "..."

’Hah. What exactly would I be jealous of? Your big butt? Or the two zits on it?’

’Flashing your rear at the drop of a hat... where’s your sense of shame?’

Qingcao knew Wu Yue didn’t like to expose her chest or bottom. She even wore a colorful, pretty little something under her grass skirt, though Qingcao had no idea what it was made of.

Even when she squatted, she wasn’t like the other females in the tribe, with the view under her skirt on full display.

’But showing your chest and butt... doesn’t everyone do that?’

Of all the females in the tribe, only Yue kept herself completely covered up all day long.

’But... hehe...’

Qingcao snickered to herself, smugly shaking her plump bottom and full chest again. ’Petite, skinny Yue must be so jealous of us.’

Wu Yue shot a disgusted look at the young female beside her, who was now giving her a pitying stare. She could guess what the girl was thinking with her eyes closed.

’Seriously, what right does a female who flashes her butt all the time have to laugh at me!’

’Sigh. This shameless society.’

As Wu Yue continued to pound the chili peppers in the stone bowl, they began to release waves of a spicy, pungent aroma. Smelling the familiar scent, Qingcao instantly pinched her nose and retreated to the mouth of the cave.

"Yue, what are you making that for? The smell is awful!"

Wu Yue shot her a glare. "If you think it smells so bad, then you don’t have to eat the food I make with it later."

Qingcao’s eyes lit up at her words, and she sidled back over, still pinching her nose. "How could that be? Yue, the food you make is the most delicious!"

With that, she seemed to recall the delicious food she’d eaten before, and let out a little SLURP as she swallowed her saliva.

Wu Yue pushed the girl aside in disgust. "Hey, be careful! Don’t get your drool in my chili peppers."

To ensure she got a taste of the promised delicacy, Qingcao spent the entire morning hovering around Wu Yue, helping with this and doing that. ’If she were a temp worker,’ Wu Yue mused, ’I couldn’t pay her more than fifty a day, tops.’

The beastmen of the Scorpion Tribe had been fishing for so long their tail muscles were practically stiff. After finally finishing the processing of a mountain of fish nearly as large as the pool in the center of the cave, they stopped, utterly exhausted.

The Angry Beast lay on the cave floor, his eyes rolled back in his head. He felt like he never wanted to see another Sharp-toothed Fish for the rest of his life.

"Hm? What’s the point of catching so many Sharp-toothed Fish?"

A beastman’s deep voice rang out from outside the cave. The Angry Beast heard it and instantly leaped up from the ground, striking what he considered to be his most dashing, beastly pose. "The little female ordered it. Who are you?"

Yuan Lang glanced at the beastman, who looked like a wild pheasant in the middle of a mating dance. "Oh."

Then, he led a group of beastmen carrying their hunt on their shoulders into the cave.