Chapter 2: Breaking the Contract with the Villains and Returning to Father is the Right Choice

You Lie and Jin Ye had gone to find Lanxi, leaving Chi Yu and Si Qi to wait in the cave.

Li Yue felt awkward and turned her back on them, examining the cave.

The living conditions of this primitive society weren't ideal. The entrance had been reinforced with thick tree trunks and vines, blocking most of the cold wind.

The cave walls had been smoothed relatively flat, and the floor was covered with a thick layer of dry grass, upon which were piled seven or eight different types of animal hides.

All of this was her Father's doing.

Although the Purple-rank Wandering Beast often roamed far and wide, he had cared for his only female cub with meticulous devotion.

On one side of the cave wall lay over twenty prepared hides, and the stone shelf was laden with food: dried meat hung from half the wall, and bamboo baskets overflowed with dew-kissed wild fruits.

Li Yue approached the water jar, filled to the brim with clear water, and gazed at her reflection. She couldn't help but sigh.

The woman in the reflection had long, slightly wavy purple hair and delicate, beautiful features. Her black eyes sparkled as if filled with starlight.

Li Yue had never expected this body to be so beautiful, a stark contrast to her cruel and sadistic personality.

She had already made up her mind. These beast husbands were all ruthless villains from the book, and she didn't know when they might kill her. So she resolved to find her Father.

Only her Father was unconditionally kind to her, and his rank was already Purple Rank. If she could find him before he encountered danger and then break her contracts with her beast husbands, she might be able to save her own life.

But this was the Beast World, a harsh environment teeming with ferocious beasts. Without the protection of powerful males or the combat ability of females in their beast forms, survival was impossible.

In this world, males far outnumbered females, with a ratio of roughly 1:100. A single female typically had many beast husbands. Only the combined strength of several powerful beast husbands could protect a fragile female.

"Plotting some new game?" Chi Yu's voice suddenly rang out, his melodious tone laced with mockery.

Li Yue turned to see him tracing the scar on his face, his pale green eyes glinting coldly in the firelight.

Beside him, Si Qi still kept his eyes lowered, his silver-white hair obscuring most of his face. Only his tightly clenched, pale knuckles betrayed his emotions. Clearly, they both assumed she was scheming how to torment them again.

A hint of helplessness crept into Li Yue's voice. "You'll know soon enough."

Just then, heavy footsteps echoed from the cave entrance.

You Lie and Jin Ye returned, each carrying a half-height wooden barrel filled with fresh water from the stream. Lanxi was submerged inside.

Li Yue's breath hitched.

The merman beast in the barrel had slightly wavy, light-blue hair clinging to his cheeks and neck. His face was as pale as translucent jade.

His amethyst eyes were half-open, long lashes beaded with water, and his gaze was terrifyingly vacant.

Most shocking was his tail. Where fine scales should have been, it was now covered in bloody, mangled wounds. Blood slowly spread through the clear water, like a shattered painting.

Despite such torture, his features remained stunningly exquisite—a high-bridged nose, full lips, and a beautifully sculpted jawline, combining to create a sight even more striking than that of any woman.

Yet this beauty was now shrouded in the deathly stillness of pain and despair.

Li Yue's heart felt as if a blunt weapon had struck it.

She finally understood why the five males had been willing to risk death from the backlash of the ritual to erase their partner beast marks.

The original owner's relentless torture had not only destroyed their bodies but also crushed their pride.

You Lie set the wooden bucket down, his voice devoid of warmth. "Satisfied? Does seeing him like this seem more entertaining than you burning me with that stick yesterday?"

Jin Ye stood nearby, his ice-blue eyes seething with fury, yet the binding of their contract prevented him from acting.

His fists clenched until his knuckles cracked, and the old wounds on his arms split open under the strain, oozing fresh beads of blood.

Si Qi's eyelashes trembled. Beneath his silver-white hair, his amber eyes revealed a clear, unmistakable pain for the first time. He and Lanxi had been the closest, both having been singled out for the original owner's "special attention."

Seeing Lanxi, the mockery on Chi Yu's face froze. His fingertips unconsciously traced the scar on his cheek as his gaze complexly shifted to the bucket.

Li Yue took a deep breath, swallowing the bitterness in her throat. "I know you hate me. Forcing this contract on me wasn't my idea either. I'll sever it."

You Lie scoffed, his dark red eyes locking onto her. "Do you think we'd ever trust you again?"

"However," Li Yue continued, "I have a condition for severing the contract. I need to find my Father before the Rainy Season. You will protect me on the journey. The one who performs best will receive a drop of my blood."

Li Yue's words struck the cave like thunder, freezing the five males in place, their pupils contracting sharply.

"You mean... a blood contract?" You Lie's voice trembled with disbelief, his dark crimson eyes locked onto Li Yue's face.

He instinctively pressed a hand to the Scorpion Beast Mark on his chest—the mark of Li Yue's partner beast.

In the Beast World, the extreme imbalance between males and females conferred absolute status on females. Forming a partnership with a female required two steps:

First was the blood contract. The female would drip her blood onto the male's forehead, causing her beast mark to appear on his body. Though the female herself had no beast form, the displayed mark was the one associated with her genes.

Li Yue's Father was a Scorpion Beastman, and her beast mark was also that of a scorpion.

The second step was physical union. Only then would the male's partner beast mark appear on the female's body, signifying a true partnership.

The original owner of Li Yue's body hadn't liked the beast husbands her Father had brought her, so she had only completed the first step of the contract.

To dissolve a contract, the female would need to drip her blood onto the male's partner beast mark ten times. After ten drops, the mark would disappear.

However, females feared the pain of cutting their fingers to draw blood, and dissolving a contract required complete voluntary consent. Once a partnership was formed, few females would endure the pain of cutting their skin ten times to sever the bond.

Moreover, once a bond is formed, regardless of the stage, if a female's partner beast mark appears on a male, he cannot harm her. Otherwise, the Beast Mark will make him suffer a fate worse than death.

Some males, unable to endure the female's torment, have gouged out their Beast Marks, but their survival rate is extremely low.

Even so, males must find female partners. Once a male reaches maturity, he experiences several estrus cycles each year. If he doesn't have a female to soothe him during these times, the Rage Factor within his body will drive him mad. Without relief, this rage will cause his body to explode.