Chapter 73

Chapter 73

[Bonus Chapter for Nutrient Solution]

The manul pawed hesitantly. “Mrr?”

【Aaaaah! So cute!】

【This little puffball head—I just want to virtually scritch it bald, is that allowed?!】

【Sob sob… just imagining the manul hissing angrily while I scritch its fur, it hisses while I scritch, makes me love it even more.】

The livestream device floated right behind Lin Qianyu, so the livestream viewers saw exactly what she was seeing.

As soon as the puffed-up fluff appeared on screen, a flood of exclamation marks burst from the audience.

So small—half rebellion, half fur.

Especially since it had run out of its den specifically to help Lin Qianyu beat up the vulture, yet refused to admit it. Tsundere in words, honest in action—who wouldn't want to scoop it into their arms and smother it with kisses, until it fluffs up and pats your face with its paw? Just the thought could melt your heart.

Perhaps Lin Qianyu had been staring too long—no matter how focused it was, the manul sensed it and suddenly looked up with a swish. But Lin Qianyu had already shifted her gaze back to the baobab fruit in front of her.

Calm and collected, as if her hands weren’t currently holding two fluffy little paws. It was like she couldn’t even feel their weight.

The manul stared for a bit, but when Lin Qianyu didn’t move, it started to withdraw its paws, slowly lowering its head—yet its eyes still darted toward her.

Its gaze followed the downward tilt of its head—then, the very next second, it snapped its head sideways—!

Lin Qianyu remained unbothered.

“……”

The manul squinted, thoughtfully pressing her palm with a paw, then leaned forward, standing on its hind legs, craning its neck as if trying to find a crack in her calm facade.

Are you secretly looking at Lord Manul?

The manul tilted its head.

You are secretly looking at Lord Manul!

Under its intense scrutiny, Lin Qianyu held her composure well—except for… the corners of her lips desperately twitching upward.

The smile she’d held in for so long finally broke. “Haha…” Lin Qianyu couldn’t help it. That expressive little face on the manul, the way it furrowed its brows and raised them—it was just too adorable, no matter how she looked at it.

Its expression was clearly fierce, the kind that with a single eyepatch could pull off a Somali pirate look—yet it still looked irresistibly soft and fluffy, like a puffed-up ball of cotton candy.

Only heaven knew how hard Lin Qianyu had tried to hold back her laughter.

Now, seeing her laugh out loud, the manul raised its head and proudly tilted its chin up.

That expression clearly said: See! I knew it! Caught you!

Lin Qianyu rarely saw such a rich range of expression on an animal’s face. Smiling broadly, she poked its little head. “Alright, I’ve got things to do. I’ll come find you to play again next time.”

The manul’s head bobbed with the poke, and for a moment it looked a bit dazed. It didn’t even get the chance to hiss before her words made it quickly raise its paw to press down on Lin Qianyu’s hand. “Mrao!”

No leaving!

“How about I teach you next time?” Lin Qianyu gently curled her fingers. While the manul was stunned and thinking it over, her fingertip had already tapped its fluffy paw, brushing aside the puffed-up fur—white at the front, the segmented paw pad looked just like a peeled mangosteen.

The manul pawed hesitantly. “Mrr?”Really?

“Really.” Lin Qianyu agreed without hesitation. “Once I’m done, I’ll teach you how to use stones to hit vultures.”

The manul raised its paw and slapped it onto Lin Qianyu’s palm with a “Pa!” — “Mrao!”

Lin Qianyu curled her bent fingers to clasp the fluffy paw in her hand, gently shaking it. “It’s a deal.”

【Aww! I’m seriously going to die from how cute this manul is.】

【Why is this fierce little thing so adorable?! Kiss kiss! Let auntie kiss you—kiss you to death!】

【Wait… what do you mean teach how to use stones to hit vultures? Are you saying the vulture suddenly falling earlier was Sister Lin’s doing?】

【Holy crap! Girls, go watch the playback!】

Even before the barrage of comments, quite a few confused fans had already gone back to check the livestream replay. At the suggestion in the comments, they slowed the speed down to the minimum.

And before the vulture’s fall, they clearly saw a sharp-edged stone fly from Lin Qianyu’s hand, tracing a perfect, smooth diagonal arc and hitting the vulture dead-on.

Exactly where it struck wasn’t clear—the camera was a bit blurry and the vulture was flying high. The livestream focused mainly on Lin Qianyu, so the vulture only appeared at the edge of the frame.

Still, despite the blur, everyone could clearly see that the moment it was struck, the vulture’s claws obviously loosened.

Right after that, the baobab fruit hit the ground.

The second hit happened the same way—another stone struck its head. This time, the vulture had lowered its flight to find an opening to attack the manul, so the moment it was struck in the head was captured clearly on camera.

Its flapping wings froze instantly.

A lot of viewers went to rewatch the livestream, which caused a brief pause in the barrage of comments in the chat.

After a while, someone finally commented quietly: 【……6】

(Note: Internet slang; “6” sounds like “liù”, a homophone of “溜”, meaning smooth, awesome.)

【My respect for Sister Lin is overflowing. I used to think she was putting on an act when she hit that pheasant, but now I want to go back and slap myself twice.】

【How the hell do a few random rocks from the ground turn into weapons this powerful?!】

【She’s basically the chosen one for wilderness survival. I want a whole show of her walking across the prairie with a handful of stones, smacking anyone she meets.】

【??? What are you, the Grim Reaper filling out the death ledger?】

...

Lin Qianyu rubbed the manul’s ear. “I’m heading out.”

The manul should return to sleep too.

Wild manuls can sleep in rock crevices or dug-out dens. Sometimes, they’ll even steal a marmot’s burrow for themselves.

As the ground temperature begins to rise, the manul needs to stay in a den where it's cooler than the surface, and have a nice nap. It’ll wake when temperatures drop and come out again at dusk.

This one had clearly come out mid-nap to save the day, and now tilted its head slightly but didn’t rush back to sleep.

Lin Qianyu walked some distance away and, seeing it still standing there when she looked back, waved her hand. “Go on, it’s going to get hot soon.”

Caught red-handed peeking at the human from behind, the manul’s leisurely-swaying tail stiffened. It lifted its chin proudly and let out a tsundere-sounding nasal “hmph,” then trotted back to its den with an air of “I don’t know any of you.”

As for the vulture on the ground—life or death unknown—no one paid it any mind.---Lin Qianyu arrived fairly early and figured the white lion was probably still asleep at this time.

After all, most lions hunt at night and rest during the day.

If they hunt during the day, they’d have to sprint under the scorching sun—it’s uncomfortable and consumes a lot of energy. So at this time, the white lion should still be resting or not fully awake.

It’s just that… generally, in a pride, it’s the lionesses who hunt. The male lions just rest, only stepping in when they face troublesome prey—those that are large and strong in combat.

Like giraffes or rhinos.

Usually, male lions are like a stabilizing anchor in the pride—they rarely need to act.

But a solitary white lion without a pride should be like most lone lions, hunting at night.

Last night when Lin Qianyu arrived, the white lion came back afterward. It must have gone out hunting and returned after eating its fill.

But unexpectedly, when Lin Qianyu stepped over the log and went up, she didn’t see the white lion.

“Hmm?” Lin Qianyu paused, walked a few more steps, and stepped into a gap between the logs. “At this time, the white lion should be home.”

She searched the area, even checked the rocks further up, but not even a strand of white lion fur could be found. After thinking for a moment, Lin Qianyu said, “Maybe it has another resting spot?”

After all, the idea of building a wooden shelter must’ve come after it saw her building one.

So before this idea, the white lion must have had another place to rest.

Lin Qianyu put down her backpack and rolled up her sleeves. “Let it rest well then. I’ll go ahead and start working.”

There were lots of dry grass and fallen leaves on the ground—cleaning those up alone would be a lot of work.

This area was surrounded by forest, so wind-blown leaves accumulated without being carried off—quite a large pile had formed.

Lin Qianyu picked a thinner stick and used palm-leaf rope she’d made at home to tie a short stick horizontally at the base, binding it securely to the vertical stick.

After finishing, she lifted it and gave it a little shake. Once she confirmed it was tight, she pushed the short horizontal stick along the ground, sweeping fallen leaves and twigs into a pile.

They were all excellent fire-starting materials.

Not wanting to waste them, Lin Qianyu decided to pile them up for later collection to use as firewood.

She made several passes, pushing back and forth until the center was cleared of weeds. Then she turned the soil, loosening it up to prepare for digging.

Next was laying out where the wooden beams would go.

Lin Qianyu glanced around, memorizing the surrounding environment as she mentally planned the layout and shape of the wooden cabin.

She didn’t even notice when the white lion came back.

When she looked back and saw the white lion lying on a rock, she paused slightly and curved her lips. “You’re back.”

The white lion was lying on its side, its tail draped along the curve of the rock’s edge, and the tuft at the end swayed slightly.

Lin Qianyu held the dismantled support rods the white lion had once stood up, and said, “How about I build you one with a yard? That way we won’t need to move these rocks, and you can come sunbathe whenever you want.”

The white lion nodded slightly, clearly approving of Lin Qianyu’s plan.

Looking into the white lion’s blue eyes—in daylight, they were clearer than under the dim night light—the patterns within its pupils looked like the textures of a finely cut gemstone, more beautiful than ever.

“Roar…”Seeing Lin Qianyu spacing out, the white lion tapped its paw on the edge of the rock.

“Hm? What?” Lin Qianyu stood below, not understanding what the white lion meant for a moment. She used her arms to push herself up onto the higher level. As she was brushing the dirt off her hands, she spotted a water buffalo lying quietly next to the rock the white lion was resting on.

Judging by the battle marks on its body and the fatal wound on its neck, the buffalo was already dead.

【What the—?! That buffalo is almost as big as the white lion.】

【Based on my many years of experience as a vet, I can confirm the buffalo was alive before it died.】

【No wonder the white lion wasn’t home resting during the day. So it went hunting instead? Was it because Linlin said she’d be coming, and it specially went out to prepare?】

【Tsk tsk tsk, who was it again that stayed silent when Linlin asked if she could come over?】

…

Water buffalo are quite dangerous prey for lions. Their horns can pierce a lion’s abdomen. A failed hunt—even if it doesn’t kill—can cause severe injury. Sooner or later, the lion would be abandoned by the pride. Sometimes they don’t even make it that far and die of illness or injury first.

Hunting water buffalo carries such high risk that lion prides usually choose safer herbivores to target.

Even when a pride hunts water buffalo, they approach with caution—let alone a lone white lion, who hunted solo and carried the buffalo back from who-knows-how-far.

It must’ve come a long way. After all, Lin Qianyu had never seen any buffalo around here.

Compared to the large chunk of meat, Lin Qianyu was more concerned about the white lion’s condition. She quickly stepped forward and asked, “You’re not hurt, are you?”

Faced with this sudden concern and Lin Qianyu’s worried eyes, the white lion’s grooming motion paused. Its slightly curled paw stayed near its mouth. After a moment, just as Lin Qianyu was beginning to examine it closely, the white lion let out a low “woo.”

“Are you really okay?” Lin Qianyu leaned over from behind it. “You seem a bit sluggish? Or were you too busy hunting to eat? Then go ahead and eat the buffalo first—I’ll go back to working on the cabin.”

The white lion didn’t jump down from the rock, nor did it show any interest in eating the buffalo. Instead, it let out a yawn.

Thinking it had probably hunted all the way till now, Lin Qianyu said, “Then have a good rest first.”

As for the water buffalo… she left it there. If the white lion got hungry when it woke up, it could just lower its head and take a bite.

Lin Qianyu picked up the wooden logs she had placed by the edge earlier.

If she were building the original palm-leaf shelter, this thickness of wood would be more than enough. But to support a wooden house, they clearly wouldn’t do.

She planned to use these to lay the roof.

All the wood was sorted by thickness and length to make it easier to find the right pieces when needed.

Still had to start with the basics.

Building a wooden house for a white lion meant the foundation needed to be extra secure. The white lion’s destructive power was no joke.

One sleepy paw swipe could easily knock the roof down.

So while ensuring strength and durability, she also needed to expand the dimensions appropriately. At the very least, it should be big enough for the lion to stretch inside without hitting the walls.

Even at that size, the wood on site was still more than enough.

Lin Qianyu couldn’t remember what day she started building the cabin, but judging by the situation, the white lion must have noticed her efforts from day one.

Otherwise, it’d be impossible to gather so much wood in such a short time.

Once the foundation was reinforced, Lin Qianyu moved on to installing the wooden walls step by step.【As expected, beautiful people make everything they do pleasing to the eye.】

【Can I buy a plot of land and hire Sister Lin to build a house for me? Watching it go up piece by piece would make me feel so reassured living in it.】

【As you're typing that message, dozens of fluffy ones are staring at you.】

【Forget the house for now, Sister Lin, look at the white lion first! Isn’t it making trouble?】

Lin Qianyu had built half of the wooden wall. When she stood outside the pit and pressed the wood inward, she noticed a comment in the barrage. Looking up, the white lion that had just been lying on the rock sunbathing was now, at some unknown time, standing not far from her. It had straightened up and was pressing down on a piece of wood with its paw.

Working surprisingly hard.

It even stepped on the wood with its front paw and gave a leap. Obviously, the cut surface of the wood was so small that not even one of the white lion’s paws could fully fit, let alone support its whole body.

Whether it could bear the white lion’s weight was one issue—more importantly, there wasn’t even a proper foothold.

So the white lion simply jumped on it once to press it down, then landed, turned around and jumped again. Repeating this over and over, it actually managed to get a few wooden poles upright.

In the middle of its enthusiastic hopping, the white lion slipped and accidentally knocked over a pole.

It looked at its own work, then at what Lin Qianyu had built, then circled around the few secured poles with clear dissatisfaction.

“You help me fix these,” Lin Qianyu pointed to some other newly stood-up wooden poles for the wall. “And these too. Once they’re stable, we can cap it off.”

“Roar!”

The task of pressing the wood was handed over to the white lion.

Lin Qianyu only needed to hold things steady from the back. But this pressing wasn’t quite the same as when she built the bamboo hut. Even though she felt the white lion had a sense of control, standing behind the poles and peeking through the gaps to watch it, she teased, “You’re not going to pounce off center and crush me, right?”

The white lion tilted its head. Its leaping motion paused, then it shifted course and jumped upward, landing precisely on the pole, gave it a stomp, and jumped down again—steady as could be.

It spun around on the ground, poked its head behind the wood to look for Lin Qianyu, and let out a “woo!”

“Haha.”

Lin Qianyu laughed. The white lion’s ears folded back slightly. It lay down on the spot and slapped the ground with an annoyed paw.

Seeing the white lion look so aggrieved, she quickly grabbed another piece of wood and reassured it repeatedly, “Okay, okay, perfect, perfect.”

Verbal praise alone wasn’t enough—Lin Qianyu even patted the lion’s head. “You’re the most amazing, smartest, and best white lion I’ve ever seen. No exceptions.”

【Wow! That’s such high praise! I think the white lion is smart too.】

【Wake up, sis. How many white lions do you think Sister Lin has met?】

【One and only one…?】

After working together with the white lion to install the rear support poles, Lin Qianyu added another layer of reinforcement. Before capping the top, she sealed the gaps with soil—three sides tightly packed and airtight.

Using local materials, she stuffed in whatever leaves she had, decorating it into a wilderness-style garden cabin.

Cabin wasn’t quite accurate—given its size, it was more like a full open-plan home.

The wooden walls were fine, but the flooring was a bit of a headache. If she laid planks too, then the wood she had wouldn’t be enough.

Once the exterior wall was finished, Lin Qianyu moved inside. She had left several poles in the center taller than the walls. These served as the main beams, meant to keep the roof from caving in.

The more prepared she was, the sturdier the structure. Another benefit was that even if a lion kicked one pole flying, the remaining ones could still hold things up.This was just for safety—three layers of reinforcement were added, and after some parts were buried in the ground, another layer was added. With such cautious construction, there’s no way it could be knocked over again.

“All right, these walls will do for now.” Lin Qianyu picked up the wood for the roof and began cutting notches. There was no need to fix them in place first—as long as the notches on the two pieces of wood could interlock, it would work.

The upper parts of the inner wooden frame were also notched. Standing on a tall rock, Lin Qianyu installed the roof and then sealed the gaps with mud. Finally, she lined the inside with palm leaves.

The roof’s gaps were stuffed full of mud, and leaves were layered on the outermost surface. Multiple waterproof layers were added. With mud holding everything together, it was fairly solid.

After finishing, Lin Qianyu went to the river to wash her hands. “Now we just need to wait for the mud to dry. Since there's no rain these next few days, a bit of sun should be enough.”

Thankfully, the weather wasn’t extreme right now.

The white lion seemed to really like this wooden house. There wasn’t even a door yet, and inside it was completely empty except for a few columns, but that didn’t diminish the white lion’s joy—it kept wandering around inside.

The house was built larger than usual, but for the sizable white lion, the interior just barely allowed it to roll around freely.

When Lin Qianyu came back, the white lion was lying sideways inside the house, its body wedged perfectly between the support poles in the center.

Its fur was slightly squished and pushed back, but it hadn’t pressed into the flesh. The dimensions were just right.

“Do you have any animal hides? Like fur and skins,” Lin Qianyu asked, pointing to the ground where she had cleared out the weeds. “We can lay wooden planks there and cover them with animal hides—it’ll be more comfortable to lie on that way.”

“Awrr…” The white lion flipped over, belly up, stretching out a paw in a lazy stretch.

Lin Qianyu took a sip of water—leftover from what she had boiled in the morning, now completely cold.

Lately, meals had been paired with wild fruits, and she’d usually throw some into the water when boiling it. Lin Qianyu drank more than half a cup, chewing on the bits of fruit that had fallen in while eyeing the half-finished house the white lion had started building earlier—just a few pieces of wood stuck in the ground.

The white lion sat up, shook its fur, and walked out of the house it had been so obsessed with. Noticing what Lin Qianyu was looking at, it walked over and raised a paw as if to push something.

Lin Qianyu stopped it just in time and explained, “There’s still some wood left. How about we use this house to store your food?”

As she spoke, she pointed upward, suggesting that the white lion could even use this house to store the water buffalo.

The white lion’s eyes lit up. More than a food storage place, what it liked more was the idea of having an extra house.

Seeing no objection, Lin Qianyu continued working on this structure.

Unlike the first house, which had been custom-built to suit the white lion’s size, this one was built according to the amount of leftover wood. But it couldn’t be too small—otherwise, whole prey wouldn’t fit.

Something around the size of a woodshed would do.

For a house like this, the white lion could barely squeeze in entirely. If there was a water buffalo or zebra inside, it wouldn’t be able to enter at all.

But as a food storage place, being able to grab the prey right at the door was quite convenient.

Lions don’t usually hoard food. They hunt, eat their fill on the spot, and then leave. If vultures don’t find them and there’s still a lot of meat left, they might drag the leftovers back and hide it for the next meal.

This house existed purely to make use of those initial wooden stakes the white lion had put up.

Once the house was built, the white lion ran over and dragged the water buffalo down from above. The buffalo left a deep trail in the dirt, along with some blood.

The white lion didn’t care at all. As a top predator on the food chain, it didn’t have to worry about other animals being drawn by the smell of blood.

Lin Qianyu had been standing at the entrance. Seeing this, she stepped aside to make room for the white lion to place the prey inside.

However, the white lion just brought the prey over and dropped it in front of Lin Qianyu. It didn’t seem to have any intention of storing the water buffalo.

Lin Qianyu guessed, “For me to eat?”The white lion let out a sound, its tone slightly raised: “Awrr…”

“Just in time, I’m hungry too.” Lin Qianyu picked up the kitchen knife, still bearing marks from cutting bark. She stood up and went to the river to wash the blade, shook off the water, and measured where to make the first cut on the water buffalo.

Compared to yellow cattle meat, water buffalo meat has coarser fibers and looser texture.

Grilling it would make the meat more tender.

Lin Qianyu first cut off a leg and handed it to the white lion.

When she tossed it over, the white lion instinctively raised a paw to press down the chunk of prey that landed in front of it. But when faced with a fresh, still-bleeding buffalo leg, it showed no interest—it didn’t even open its mouth.

“Not hungry?” Lin Qianyu couldn’t help being curious. Water buffalo is on a lion’s menu. Since it went hunting buffalo, there’s no way it doesn’t like eating it.

“Wuu!”

Cut it.

Lin Qianyu paused for a moment, then realized what the white lion meant and chuckled. “Okay, I’ll cut it.”

She stepped over the buffalo and crouched in front of its leg, skillfully slicing with the kitchen knife. Small chunks weren’t satisfying. For a big cat that liked to eat in big bites, the pieces had to be just the right size to fit in its mouth.

Once the meat was cut, Lin Qianyu noticed the white lion still hadn’t moved. She suddenly remembered something, quickly broke off two banana leaves, and placed them under the meat chunks.

Only then did the white lion lower its head to take a bite.

【Hahaha, even the white lion wants pet-level treatment!】

【Everyone else gets their food cut up—of course the big lion should too.】

【Such a beautiful big white cat, what’s wrong with eating delicately? Getting your fur dirty by gnawing directly is the worst.】

【I seriously suspect this white lion has OCD—it stares at its mane even while eating.】

The white lion really was eating very carefully. It tilted its head back to let the meat fall into its mouth, cautiously avoiding the thick mane around its neck.

Its thick, clean, and well-kept fur wasn’t just due to its strong constitution preventing it from going hungry and dulling its coat—it clearly maintained itself regularly.

Lin Qianyu rummaged through her bag. She didn’t have any extra clothes, but there was a piece of woven cloth she’d made earlier. Since she didn’t have enough cotton thread, she hadn’t continued the project.

There was no telling when she’d have enough for a full garment.

Lin Qianyu held the pure cotton fabric up to the white lion’s neck to measure.

The lion still had meat in its mouth and kept its head tilted up while eating, which made it easier for her to tie something around it.

There happened to be a pair of strings on either side—she’d originally planned to make more thread and continue stitching along those lines. But now, they came in handy.

Lin Qianyu pulled the makeshift scarf snug to cover the white lion’s mane. “There, now you can eat properly.”

Holding your head up while eating wasn’t exactly comfortable. It was definitely better to eat with your head down, bite by bite.

The white lion licked the blood at the corner of its mouth. By the time it noticed something was around its neck, Lin Qianyu had already tied the scarf on.

The cotton thread Lin Qianyu made was slightly yellowish. She hadn’t bleached it with chemicals, and the processing was rough.

But the craftsmanship was decent. The lion could still distinguish it from its own fur by color, and it worked quite well.

The white lion sat up and lowered its head to eat.Lin Qianyu sat back down in front of the water buffalo, preparing to start the fire.

A single buffalo leg definitely wouldn’t be enough for the white lion, so Lin Qianyu cut off a lot more meat for it, especially the organs.

A pile of food was already stacked up in front of the white lion.

With one hand propping up her chin and the other poking the fire with a wooden stick, Lin Qianyu smiled at the white lion and said, “You and Da Ju would probably get along really well.”

Both were big cats that loved eating buffalo.

【Buffalo: I’d prefer if you didn’t talk to each other, thanks.】

【Is it really that delicious? I’m getting hungry just watching. I’m heading downstairs to ask the meat vendor auntie at the market for a piece.】

Lin Qianyu flipped the beef on the fire and said seriously, “Actually, water buffalo meat isn’t as tasty as yellow cattle beef. If you want to eat beef, just go for yellow cattle.”

She was only eating water buffalo because there wasn’t any yellow cattle here, and since the big cats preferred water buffalo, she just followed along and roasted a piece.

Can’t really say it tastes great, but it’s rich in protein—an excellent energy source in the wild.

It’s just… the way to obtain it is like hell-level difficulty.

There are easier high-protein foods, like certain insects, which have ten times the protein of beef.

But Lin Qianyu didn’t feel like she needed that much nourishment.

The marbled meat sizzled over the flames, releasing oil. Lin Qianyu unhurriedly sprinkled salt evenly over the beef. The fine salt instantly melted into the oil as it touched the meat.

One final flip, and it was ready to eat.

“Big lion…?” Lin Qianyu lifted the skewer of grilled beef, turned her head to ask if the white lion wanted some—only to see that the entire pile of meat in front of it was already gone.

Faced with cooked food, the white lion didn’t seem interested. Apparently full and thirsty, it walked toward the river.

Lin Qianyu took a bite of the grilled meat and looked away. “Do you think there’s wild cumin or chili powder on the savanna?”

Barbecue without those two essential seasonings just wasn’t the same. She didn’t have either.

It still tasted good, but something felt missing.

Lin Qianyu called out, “Big lion, have you ever smelled any sharp or spicy scents around here?”

If anyone knew the local environment best, it was the territory’s master.

Any other animals that got close would be driven off by that master, so the best way to look for spices now—was to ask the white lion.

“Wuu…” the white lion replied from close by. It walked over and handed her the rope with the ostrich egg cup hanging from its mouth.

“There’s none, huh? Alright then.” Lin Qianyu took the rope from its mouth and noticed the weight felt off. She had nearly finished the water earlier, but now it felt like the cup was full again.

She looked down. The water poured slowly, and a slight shake would spill it.

The corners of her mouth lifted slightly. “You fetched water for me? Thank you.”

It was perfect for boiling next to the fire while eating the grilled meat.

As she ate, Lin Qianyu said, “Have any of you seen the little wolf in other guests’ livestreams?”

Why was it taking the little wolf so long? She’d even finished building the house by now.【Report—! It appeared in Hang Sisi’s livestream. Sisi originally went to catch rabbits, then ran into a hunting steppe wolf, turned around, and bolted.】

【Yin Youlin also went there—got scared off by the little wolf +1】

【Gong Xinming recognized the little wolf and tried to chat, but was warned off and fled.】

That area was close to the coast.

Previously, in search of the thylacine, some guests had moved their shelters directly to the seaside. The grassland where the steppe wolf hunted was the closest to the guests and the easiest place to obtain food.

With a bit of luck, using fire to smoke out rabbit holes and blocking one or two, they could always catch a few rabbits.

But as soon as a steppe wolf appeared—no greetings, no attempts to engage—once the little wolf turned its head and noticed them, the guests would already be turning around and power-walking away. They didn’t even dare to run from the animal with their backs turned—just practiced competitive walking.

Their movements were as small as possible, and the soles of their shoes scraped the grass as fast as possible.

Lin Qianyu: “……”

Totally unexpected.

Lin Qianyu flipped the grilled meat, finished the skewer in her hand, and got up. “I’m going to look for the little wolf.”

She got along very well with the white lion. Although the white lion had a rather sullen personality and was mostly quiet—occasionally huffing, which probably served as a warning—it didn’t really intimidate Lin Qianyu. Maybe it was deliberately suppressing its aura; even the huffs felt much gentler.

However—before she even took a step—

The steppe wolf arrived on its own, carrying a basket in its mouth, filled with rabbits—its hunting spoils for the day.

Normally, the steppe wolf wouldn’t barge into another animal’s unfamiliar territory. But it had caught Lin Qianyu’s scent in this place, so it had no choice but to come in.

The white lion noticed the steppe wolf entering the territory right away. But Lin Qianyu was covered in the steppe wolf’s scent, and knowing it was from her group, the lion didn’t issue a warning or treat it like other intruders—chasing them out of its domain.

At this moment, the white lion calmly watched the steppe wolf not far away, while the little wolf also silently sized up the white lion.

Seeing the little wolf, Lin Qianyu waved, “Want a piece of grilled beef? It’s delicious.”

The steppe wolf furrowed its brow and came forward—but not for the beef. Instead, it squeezed itself into the narrow space between Lin Qianyu and the white lion, inserting itself in between.

“Eh?” Sensing things were off, Lin Qianyu gave up on offering the meat and quickly scooped up the little wolf, hugging it and kissing its fuzzy head.

She cradled the little wolf, gently soothing and stroking its fur. “Alright, alright, don’t fight. Everyone should live in peace, okay? I’m fine, no need to worry. I just came to build a house for the white lion today—you know the white lion, right? Yesterday you smelled its scent on me… didn’t you?”

By the end, she sounded unsure.

Whether the little wolf had actually smelled anything, Lin Qianyu couldn’t say. She and the white lion hadn’t really had direct contact yesterday. The only indirect contact was when she touched the tree branch the white lion had carried—checking the teeth marks.

It was hard to say if that left any scent behind.

The steppe wolf didn’t seem angry but stubbornly stood guard in front of Lin Qianyu.

The white lion also stood up and walked over.

“No no! Don’t fight!” Lin Qianyu quickly set the little wolf down beside her, placing herself between the two beasts.

This method of separation was a little dumb—but very effective.

The two fluffy beasts just stared at each other now, with no physical conflict.

They were likely afraid of accidentally injuring the human sitting between them with a swipe of their claws.Lin Qianyu also let out a barely noticeable sigh of relief—good, no fight.

Although they weren’t showing any signs of fighting for now, Lin Qianyu still didn’t dare relax. She stayed in the same spot without even shifting position, conveniently tearing off a piece of buffalo meat to feed the little wolf.

“Here, ah—try this grilled buffalo. I cooked it for a long time; all the fat’s been roasted out. It’s dry and a little crispy, really fragrant.”

The steppe wolf chewed the grilled buffalo meat, but its eyes didn’t blink once as it stared at the white lion.

Lin Qianyu turned her head, fully blocking the steppe wolf’s line of sight. She lowered her head and rubbed against its head. “Good boy.”

Just as this tense moment hung in the air, the rhythmic sound of hooves approached, and a zebra slowly entered Lin Qianyu’s field of view—Chasing Wind had arrived.

Its side pouches were stuffed full, with some green leaves even poking out from the edges. It also had a basket in its mouth, filled with more items.

“Neigh—!”

Chasing Wind galloped up to Lin Qianyu and set the basket down. Then it tried to shake the contents out of the side pouches, but the pouch flaps were still closed, and even after shaking, the covers didn’t budge.

Lin Qianyu stepped forward to help lift the cloth flaps and took the basket from the zebra’s mouth.

The basket was filled with small decorations. These were meant to be added after the structure was complete. She had too many things to carry herself, so she’d asked Chasing Wind to deliver some items ahead of time.

Chasing Wind arrived just about when she expected; the leafy plants were still fresh.

These greens were meant to decorate the yard, but since the exact layout of the yard wasn’t set, she wasn’t in a rush to use them and instead started unloading the contents of the basket.

There wasn’t anything particularly special inside—just some small trinkets. One of the newly made shell wind chimes was also brought.

It was perfect to hang on the door as decoration, various shells strung together in a scattered fashion.

To hang the wind chime, Lin Qianyu had even left a specific latch—she just needed to hook it on. The rope would catch in the latch and not be easily blown away by the wind.

The white lion walked over and glanced at the wind chime. The shells, threaded together, swayed in the wind, clinking crisply when they bumped into each other.

The soft tinkling sound was pleasant, and every time it sounded slightly different. It had a nice rhythm and was rather charming.

“Let’s take it down after dinner.” Lin Qianyu removed her neck scarf and casually straightened the white lion’s mane, which had gotten ruffled.

It was only after she reached out that she realized—this wasn’t one of her own familiar, fluffy companions. This was a white lion she had just met not long ago—violent, fierce, and notorious.

She looked at her hand already buried in the lion’s thick mane. Her fingers were completely hidden by the white fur—she couldn’t even see her own hand from the outside.

But… the white lion didn’t seem angry. Instead, when their eyes met again, its blue eyes carried a hint of puzzlement, as if asking, “Why did you stop?”

Seeing that, Lin Qianyu continued petting. This time, she smoothed the entire mane without any reaction from the lion, as if the one being petted wasn’t even it. Even around its neck—a typically sensitive and dangerous area—it didn’t resist her touch.

“Such a good boy.” Lin Qianyu couldn’t help but rub it a couple more times. The fluffy, thick fur—if she didn’t have anything else to do, she could just lie at home and pet big cats all day for fun.

After tying up the wind chime, Lin Qianyu turned around to grab other decorations for the house.

As for the wooden door, she felt there was no need to make one if the white lion was going to live here. Once the wooden sticks formed the walls, leaving a gap for entry and exit would be more convenient.

The temperature drop at night wasn’t an issue for the white lion at all. Their thick skin and fur allowed them to thrive even in cold night winds.

Plus, she hadn’t found a suitable hinge alternative to make a swinging door open smoothly. Since no substitute was available in the short term, she wasn’t in a rush to install a door.

While Lin Qianyu enthusiastically decorated the interior, she didn’t notice that outside, the white lion was looking down at the now-empty basket on the ground, seemingly deep in thought.

The next moment, the white lion slowly raised a paw. Perhaps it was the first time it had seen such a thing, and it seemed a bit reserved when it reached out. Then it placed both front paws into the basket.Crack—with a crisp sound, the fragile basket instantly collapsed under the weight, breaking into pieces.

Lin Qianyu: “...?”

Turning around, she met a pair of deep blue, innocent eyes. The white lion seemed genuinely saddened by the broken basket, the emotion in its expressive eyes visibly scattered and distressed.

Looking at the white lion trying so hard to squeeze itself into the basket, Lin Qianyu solemnly said, “It must be that the basket’s quality wasn’t very good this time. I’ll find you a few better ones next time.”

Bullet comments: 【???】

【Basket: Yes, it’s all my fault. Totally my problem. Nothing to do with the white lion at all.】

【Hahaha, Basket: What did you just say?! Is no one going to do something about this?!】

Author’s note: I’m here, I’m here~