Chapter 220: Seizing the Salt Well

Chapter 220 -222: Seizing the Salt Well

She thought for a moment and said, “Be careful now that you’re here. Did you come out by yourself just now?”

“Do you see a third person here?” Su Zhao was at a loss for words.

Su Luoluo said coolly, “How would I know if you were with Hong Shuang?”

“Su Luoluo, are you nuts? Going to the Salt Well is a huge deal. Why would I bring Hong Shuang? Besides, Father said this had to be kept secret.”

“Good. Let’s go!” Seeing that Su Zhao hadn’t told Hong Shuang, Su Luoluo didn’t question him further.

The group headed to the Salt Well Cave under the cover of darkness.

The Black Pig Beastmen followed close behind, but because their Beast Ranks were low, a few of them couldn’t keep up and were left in the dust.

“Useless fools! You can’t even keep up over such a short distance. You lot, go back and tell the Leader’s Wife,” Huang Mao said, exasperated.

Hearing this, the Black Pig Beastmen accepted their orders and returned to the Black Pig Tribe under the cover of darkness.

Meanwhile, it wasn’t long before Su Luoluo and her group arrived at the Salt Well Cave.

Seeing that everything inside the cave was just as they had left it, Su Luoluo felt much more at ease.

With a wave of her hand, she drew the brine from the Salt Well. Mo Xuan, Fu Feng, and Xiao Ye continued digging earthen pits, while Luan Ting, Tunan, and the beastmen they had brought with them dug irrigation channels.

Su Zhao was assigned to Sheep Waist Valley with Xi Yi and Bai Meng, where they would boil water and burn plant ash to prepare for the salt purification.

As soon as Su Nuannuan heard that Su Luoluo was transporting salt, she immediately rushed over.

Watching the Wolf Clan members bustling about, she felt a wave of triumph.

‘I finally found the Salt Well! So it’s here, at Desolate Ridge.’

Huang Mao’s eyes went bloodshot as he watched the Wolf Clan members move the salt. “It’s really salt! Leader’s Wife, I’ll go back and tell the leader to bring our people over to seize it.”

“Get back here. Seize what? Do you think we can win against them as we are now?” Su Nuannuan said, her mind clear.

‘The strongest in the Black Pig Tribe is just Hei Feng, who’s only a Fourth Rank. He still hasn’t broken through. How can we compare to their five Fifth-Rank beastmen?’

‘No, wait… why is Bai Meng here too? And he’s already broken past the Fourth Rank. He’s a Fifth Rank now.’

‘Even Bai Meng has broken through, yet there’s still no sign of progress from Hei Feng. He’s completely useless.’

“Then, Leader’s Wife, what do we do now?” Huang Mao asked.

“We’ll wait for now. Once they finish hauling it all away, it’ll be our turn.”

‘I refuse to believe Su Yang can post guards here day and night,’ she thought.

‘Judging by the scale of Su Luoluo’s operation, they should be finished in a single night.’

‘Still, why did Bai Meng come, too?’

Hei Mao didn’t think their Black Pig Tribe was that inferior, but since the Leader’s Wife gave the order, he kept his mouth shut.

“You all stay here and keep watch. I’m going back to tell the leader what’s happening.”

“Yes, Leader’s Wife.”

‘Hei Feng has been in seclusion for a long time. I wonder if he’s broken through yet. If he doesn’t, I might have to find someone new,’ she mused.

‘The neighboring Jackal Beast Clan seems like a good option. Though they’re not as good-looking as the Black Pigs, their clan has four Fifth-Rank beastmen.’

‘I need to be like Su Luoluo and find several more high-ranking beastmen. That’s the only way I won’t be at a disadvantage when I finally settle the score with her.’

Su Nuannuan sat on the back of a Black Pig Beastman, secretly scheming.

The moment she returned to the Wild Boar Tribe, a beaming Hei Feng grabbed her hand. “Nuannuan, where have you been? I was looking all over for you.”

Su Nuannuan discreetly pulled her hand free and said with a smile, “I just stepped out for a bit. Hei Feng, I have some good news for you.”

Hei Feng’s face lit up. “What a coincidence! I have good news for you, too.”

Su Nuannuan started. “You broke through to the next Beast Rank?”

Hei Feng nodded, his face full of pride. “That’s right. I’m a Fifth-stage Beastman now.”

“That’s wonderful, Hei Feng! You’re amazing!”

“So, Nuannuan, what’s your good news?”

Su Nuannuan’s eyes curved into crescents as she smiled. “I found the Salt Well Cave.”

“Really? Then we won’t have to worry about salt anymore! I’ll gather everyone in the tribe right now to go extract it.”

Su Nuannuan quickly grabbed his hand. “There’s no hurry. It’s too late now. Let’s deal with it tomorrow.”

“Whatever you say.”

After he spoke, Hei Feng looked at Su Nuannuan with adoration and stroked her stomach. “Nuannuan, you promised me. I’m a Fifth-stage Beastman now. Isn’t it about time you gave me a little cub?”

Without another word, Hei Feng threw Su Nuannuan over his shoulder and carried her into their wooden house.

Before Su Nuannuan could even react, Hei Feng was on top of her.

“Mmph… Mmph, what’s that strong smell?”

“Me? I just came out of seclusion and haven’t had a chance to bathe yet.”

“Go take a bath first, then we can talk.”

“Let me get some first. Nuannuan, I haven’t seen you in seven days. I miss you so much.”

“Hei Feng!”

“Making a cub is more important, Nuannuan.”

Su Nuannuan held her breath through the entire ordeal. She wanted to push Hei Feng off, but remembering the promise she had made him, she could only endure it in silence.

But the stench became so unbearable that she eventually fainted halfway through.

…

Remembering that the Ring-tailed Lemurs also had no salt, Su Luoluo extracted much more brine than usual this time.

Her Water Ability had already reached Level 7, so drawing out a massive quantity of water was no problem for her. The only issue was that those responsible for collecting the brine needed to work faster.

It was crucial they finish everything before dawn to avoid being discovered.

Fortunately, the newcomers, Xi Yi and Bai Meng, were a great help. This was especially true for Xi Yi. Su Luoluo had never seen him do this kind of work before, but now she realized his hands moved with incredible speed. ‘Am I seeing things?’ she wondered. She felt he was much faster than the other Fifth-stage Beastmen.

Considering Su Zhao would be in charge of salt purification in the future, Su Luoluo made sure to teach him meticulously this time, having him memorize every step of the process.

Fortunately, while Su Zhao could be a bit dense at times, he was a quick study. After a few demonstrations, he got the hang of it.

After spending all night refining salt in Sheep Waist Valley, they finally finished purifying the entire batch.

Once that was done, they left a Werewolf to guard the Salt Well Cave, and the group transported the salt back under the cover of the fading night.

At dawn, Hei Mao saw Su Luoluo’s party leave and immediately rushed back to tell Su Nuannuan.

Upon learning that Su Luoluo was gone, Su Nuannuan had Hei Feng gather everyone from the Black Pig Tribe.

After running for some time, the group finally arrived at the Salt Well Cave.

The commotion alerted the Wolf Beastman on guard duty inside.

He was surprised to see Su Nuannuan, but before he could speak, Hei Feng struck him dead with a Tornado Palm.

Seeing the dead guard, Hei Mao voiced his concern. “Now that someone’s been killed, won’t the Wolf Clan find out we were here very quickly?”

Su Nuannuan raised an eyebrow. “What’s there to be afraid of? He was the only one here, and no one saw us. Who’s to say who killed him?”

“The Leader’s Wife is truly brilliant,” Huang Mao chimed in.

“Nuannuan, this Salt Well Cave is massive. No wonder those people tried to harm you over it,” Hei Feng remarked, surveying the cavern before them.

Su Nuannuan walked to the edge of the well, her gaze sweeping over the soaked earthen pits on the ground. “Let’s not dwell on the past. Our priority right now is to get this salt.”

Su Nuannuan gazed at the seven or eight salt wells before her, her eyes filled with ambition.

‘With this Salt Well Cave,’ she thought, ‘I can finally build up my own power base.’