The leopard-beastman who betrayed Xia was a beastman, a subject of Xia, no…
After closing the door, Yan Ganguo turned to look at the sheep-beastman inside, his hands hanging at his sides.
A distant, soft sound swept across her waist. Her side was bare, without the weapon she had received after becoming a warrior.
Seeing this, Yuan Bingsheng's expression relaxed even more, and he said as if he were talking to a close friend, "You've come to see me off so late. Are you going on patrol tomorrow and have to come tonight to see me off?"
Hearing this, she nodded at Yuan Bingsheng. She already knew that this seemingly friendly banter was actually a way of secretly gathering information about her patrol patterns. When Ershui (Yuan Bingsheng) asked her about her relationships with her teammates before, it wasn't out of genuine concern for her, but rather to find out who would patrol with her.
At first, when she met Ershui (Yuan Bingsheng), she was completely unaware of this. Not very bright, she spent more than a season with what she thought was a new friend, until recently she realized that Ershui was different.
Yan Ganguo pursed her lips and lowered her head, concealing the emotions in her eyes. She said with a sad tone, "I applied to Captain Yan Duoyu to escort you out, but Captain Yan Duoyu did not agree to let me go."
"You're sulking with your captain, aren't you? Even the company commander and your mother aren't saying anything. Sigh, but it makes sense. Your captain is too strict. You've worked so hard to meet the training standards, why won't she allow you to go on missions?" Yuan Bingsheng genuinely felt sorry for her. If Yan Ganguo were in the team, and the two of them survived together, it would clear her name even more.
What she didn't know was that Yan Gangguo felt nauseous listening to her feigned concern, and since she couldn't speak, she could only pretend to be depressed.
With Lan and 022's analysis, Yan Ganguo understood that Yuan Bingsheng wanted to win her over.
She took the opportunity to express her dissatisfaction, saying something that sounded like jealousy: "Why are the orcs who receive the power of nature different orcs? If I had it, I could definitely carry out missions outside."
Yuan Bingsheng didn't doubt the straightforward and easily deceived Yan Ganguo, and quickly chimed in, subtly sowing discord between her and Lan. On one hand, she felt sorry for Yan Ganguo's efforts to pass the elf test, and on the other hand, she said that it would be great if Lan could ask the elves to distribute the power of nature to their close orcs first.
Her talents in all areas have never been as great as those of other orcs, and she always has to put in a thousand times more effort to achieve the same success as them. This is even more evident in her pursuit of power.
Her envy and jealousy of other beastmen was a perfectly natural outcome in Yuan Bingsheng's eyes. In order to stir up her jealousy, Yuan Bingsheng did a lot of things to sow discord between her and the Xia beastmen.
However, Yan Ganguo didn't understand the hidden meaning in those words at all. She thought Yuan Bingsheng was praising her teammates, and she was more willing to spend time with her.
"Lan wouldn't possibly ask the elves to give some orc the power of nature!" Yan Ganguo's mouth reacted faster than her brain, and she blurted out subconsciously.
Elves have their own will; they only grant power to those they approve of. Lan told us that all intelligent life is equal, and we should not command any intelligent life, nor impose our will on elves or other orcs. If you want something, achieve it with your own hands, strive for it through your own efforts.
Other orcs can gain the elves' approval, and I can also gain their approval through hard work. Just as these words were about to slip out, her feverish mind reminded her that the sheep-orc before her was not her friend, but her enemy.
Remembering the purpose of her visit, Yan Ganguo resolutely shut her mouth but accidentally bit her tongue, causing her expression to twist.
“Lan isn’t a biased orc,” she squeezed out the words painfully, then hesitated for a second before adding, “She won’t favor me.”
She didn't explain Lan's intentions as she had done before.
Seeing her unusual behavior and overly genuine pain, Yuan Bingsheng raised an eyebrow, realizing that her previous efforts had worked; she was clearly beginning to drift away from Xia.
Listening to her say that Ershui was still the best to her, and that those orcs who rejected Ershui must have something wrong with themselves, Yuan Bingsheng almost couldn't suppress his smile.
After a moment of pretense, Yuan Bingsheng slowly brought up the orcs he had talked about with Yan Ganguo before, "You really are a lot like her. That leopard orc was also not favored by his chieftain, and like you, he tried for a long time but still couldn't get what he wanted."
Yan Ganguo was invigorated and curiously asked what the orc's name was. Here it came, the question she wanted to ask had finally arrived.
She wanted to see which leopard beastman had betrayed her!
“Yan Wuyan,” Yuan Bingsheng uttered the name in the language of the Rocky Region, looking at her with wide eyes and a blank expression, and seemingly puzzled as he said what he had already guessed, “Do you know her?”
She felt a chill run through her body. Looking into Yuan Bingsheng's seemingly curious eyes, she nodded blankly: "I know her. She's my... older sister."
It was the wind beast that appeared before the forest, and her elder sister, whose whereabouts were unknown.
No wonder I was the first orc you came into contact with. Yan Ganguo slowly curved the corners of her mouth, suppressing the nausea in her stomach, and said with surprise, "You know my older sister? Is she still alive? She is my favorite older sister, and I am really worried about her."
Tears streamed down Yan Ganguo's face, making her words seem even more real. However, she felt only despair.
Her elder sister, her favorite elder sister, actually helped outsiders to deal with her, and helped Tianqi to deal with Lan, who had saved their people.
"Of course she's still alive. She told me she misses you..."
Yan Ganguo heard himself and Yuan Bingsheng talking for a while before ending their conversation.
"Creak—"
She left the inn and turned to meet Jiang Yunlan and the other orcs who were waiting for her to report the news.
A dwelling in a rocky, rainy area.
A group of orcs sat in the brightly lit living room. They were all holding drinks and snacks, huddled together, chewing away.
The sounds of clicking and clacking echoed intermittently, not loudly. The orcs passing by couldn't hear the noises inside the house and couldn't guess that many orcs were sitting inside, with the curtains drawn.
Yan Ganguo looked around to make sure he wasn't being followed, then stopped in front of the quiet house and quickly pushed the door open to enter the living room.
The group of orcs, who were eating snacks, put down their food and turned to look at her when she returned. The orcs who had gone out with her did not bring Ershui over, which meant that the task of extracting information had gone smoothly and they had not revealed that they had discovered Ershui was an undercover agent.
“I asked her who the leopard beastman she mentioned was,” Yan Gangguo recounted her conversation with Yuan Bingsheng.
Three days ago, she realized something was wrong with Yuan Bingsheng, but was still undecided, so she had a conversation with Yan Duoyu. It was then that she finally learned that the Apocalypse Tribe had infiltrated their habitat, and that a beastman had betrayed them.
They didn't arrest Yuan Bingsheng immediately because Lan said that Yuan Bingsheng was the undercover agents' superior and could be used to lure in bigger fish.
After hearing everything, Yan Duoyu was stunned, even doubting his own ears. "What did you say? Yan Wuyan is still alive and has joined the Apocalypse Tribe?"
Seeing Yan Ganguo nod, she fell silent, her hand unconsciously tracing the longsword lying beside her. If Yan Wuyan were in front of her, she would definitely kill him for joining the Tianqi tribe.
Yan Wuyan, who chose to stand opposite her, was no longer her teammate, but her enemy. An enemy even more hateful than those of her own kind who fled when faced with the Wind Beast.
"Lan, should we take down those orcs?" Yan Duoyu asked eagerly.
The spies and traitors within the habitat have all been identified. She and her team are just waiting for Lan's order to send them to prison.
Maple Syrup, Black Soil, and the other orcs looked at Jiang Yunlan, who was deep in thought, and awaited orders.
“Don’t touch them tonight,” Jiang Yunlan said, coming back to her senses. She circled a few names and handed them to Yan Duoyu. “Find a legitimate reason to lock these people up after tomorrow. That sheep-beastman Ershui seems to know a lot of things and should have some status in Tianqi. Let her run wild for a while longer.”
"Rock licorice".
The leopard beastman whose name was called by Lan straightened up and assumed a military posture.
"Are you willing to continue contacting Ershui (Yuan Bingsheng)? You are the least likely to be suspected among us as an undercover agent. But don't feel pressured, you can refuse this mission at all," Jiang Yunlan took a deep breath and said seriously, "Maybe she will take you to the Tianqi tribe later. We don't know anything about Tianqi, and we don't know what you will encounter when you go there."
“You don’t have to agree right away. You can think about it carefully during the time Ershui is away from her grassland habitat,” she said.
"I'm willing!" Yan Ganguo answered without hesitation, her voice firm. She knew that Lan needed orcs who could obtain information about the Tianqi tribe, and she was willing to be that orc.
The orcs of Apocalypse are disgusting. But for Lan's sake, and for the sake of her comrades to suffer fewer injuries in the battle against Apocalypse, she will suppress that nauseous feeling.
Jiang Yunlan looked at Yan Ganguo, a slow smile spreading across her face. She held Yan Ganguo's hand and offered some encouragement, then handed her a sachet to soothe her nerves and help her sleep, telling her to go back and rest. She could tell that Yan Ganguo didn't look well; she must have been feeling unwell for a long time today.
Yan Ganguo carefully took the sachet that Lan had obviously used, quickly put it in her bosom, and scattered small flowers behind her.
She walked out of the house, her back view showing a rather happy demeanor.
In the living room, Jiang Yunlan and Yan Duoyu finalized the escort list for tomorrow and notified the orcs, including Feng Hong and Mianhua, who had been added to the escort team overnight.
With Yuan Bingsheng in the ranks, Jiang Yunlan felt a little uneasy, thinking she shouldn't send too many combatants in.
Only after comparing the information with what the Azure Wood Crow Squad had said, confirming that the escort team was one that the Apocalypse Beastman Squad, possessing the power of wood, could not defeat, did Jiang Yunlan feel relieved and return to her room to sleep.
She lay in bed with her eyes closed for a long time, unable to fall asleep. With a long sigh, she slowly opened her eyes, groped her way up in the dark, and sat up on the bed.
The Ze Lan egg in the nest shook its body, as if asking why it had suddenly gotten up.
"Are you still thinking about the Leopard Beastman Clan, Lan?" 022 said, nestled next to Freya.
Sveta will be setting off for the mountains tomorrow morning, so he'll be resting at Ilovian's place tonight. The other elves are also staying in their own quarters tonight, leaving only Freya, the resident elf, in Lan's room.
“Yan Wuyan disappeared during the fruit season before the Wind Beasts appeared. I can’t help but wonder if the Wind Beasts’ attack on the Leopard Beastman clan was related to her, or if the Tianqi tribe did something to the Leopard Beastman clan.” Jiang Yunlan said softly, looking tired.
Physical exhaustion made her blink frequently, but her mind was filled with too many things, and she had been able to fall asleep very late these past few days.
She had asked Xiong Guang and the others a few days ago. Before the bear beastman clan was driven out of the grasslands by the wolf beastmen, they had been attacked by a fire beast and a wood beast at different times.
The bear-beastman Chi was killed by the fire beast he encountered for the second time.
“They are guardians, and protecting nature is their mission,” Jiang Yunlan said, her voice blank as she quoted Sveta. “I’m increasingly convinced that the giant beasts are actually our companions. But I have no proof.”
"I've never seen them, and no matter how hard I try to imagine, I can't piece together what these behemoths really look like. What kind of beings are these behemoths?"
“I want to know if my judgment was correct. Will my decision to let my people contact them cost them their lives?” she said, clenching her hands.
She knew very well that Xia needed more comrades-in-arms, and even if it was just a possibility, Xia had to seize that possibility to recruit them, even if it might require sacrificing the lives of orcs.
Why do I still feel just as uneasy as before after making a decision?
She still doesn't seem to be used to it. Even though she has learned to shoulder everything that a tribe needs to bear, including the weight of life itself.
Hearing her doubts, 022 said softly, "It's just because you value the life of every orc, and you're afraid of making the wrong judgment. You know that every orc only has one life, and you hope they can live to the end."
"Lan, don't be confused. This is you. No matter how much time has passed, you are still the person who cherishes life."
It is a being with a tender heart who can see the suffering of others.
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Author's Note: Although there are undercover agents and such, I don't think there will be any real conspiracies or tricks. The undercover agents are just there to fill in the plot holes dug earlier. I love straightforward attacks; I crave exciting battles!
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