Chapter 261: Chapter 251: Baby Bear

"You... How did you know?"

Tang Mo was so certain that the man began to believe she really knew something.

It made sense. A woman wouldn’t just barge into a stranger’s home and ask to stay the night unless she knew something.

"I’m only saying it because I saw it, of course."

This was a complete fabrication on Tang Mo’s part. ’But I saw it with my spiritual power, so saying I saw it myself isn’t really a lie, is it?’

"Fine. What do you want?"

The man lowered his head, looking as if he had resigned himself to his fate.

Although this man was burly and always put on a fierce act, he wasn’t actually a bad person. Tang Mo could tell that much.

’Kids who are filial and good to their families are never truly bad.’

"Bring it over."

Since the woman before him knew everything, the man had nothing left to hide.

He walked out, went to his own room, and returned a moment later carrying something wrapped in a piece of clothing. He closed the room’s door securely.

He unwrapped the cloth. Inside was a bear cub, looking like it had just been born.

’It really is a bear,’ Tang Mo thought. ’I can’t believe this guy is bold enough to raise a bear cub in his own tent!’

"His name is Baby Bear. I found him. His mother died on the grasslands, and he couldn’t get back to the forest on his own, so I brought him back with me."

Duoyang’s story of finding Baby Bear was quite a coincidence. He happened to be on the grasslands gathering sheep grass when he saw Baby Bear’s mother being surrounded and killed by people from the base.

After everyone had left, he found Baby Bear in a nearby spot concealed by branches.

It seemed the mother bear had come to the grasslands to forage, unexpectedly given birth to Baby Bear, and then hidden her cub when the attackers came.

The newborn cub obviously couldn’t return to the forest alone. If Duoyang hadn’t brought it back then, it would have died on the grasslands. With that in mind, Duoyang had secretly brought Baby Bear back and had been raising it ever since.

"What will you do later? When he gets bigger, you won’t be able to hide him forever."

Tang Mo reached out to play with the little bear, who wasn’t shy with strangers at all.

Perhaps because it had seen Duoyang right after being born, it was quite friendly toward humans. It stretched out a small paw to interact with Tang Mo.

"I don’t know. I’ll take it one step at a time. I can’t think that far ahead right now. Are you going to tell anyone?"

Duoyang looked nervous. If Qiangba found out he was secretly raising a little bear in his tent, it would all be over.

"If you let me keep staying here, then I don’t see any reason to tell. It’s not like it would do me any good, right?"

Tang Mo had entered this tent purely out of curiosity. Besides, at the time, she really had nowhere else to go.

Because they now shared a secret, Duoyang’s attitude toward Tang Mo became much more natural, and their relationship suddenly grew closer.

As a newcomer, Tang Mo didn’t know how long she would be staying, so she asked Duoyang many questions about Hulan Base.

Through Duoyang’s explanations, Tang Mo gradually gained a more comprehensive understanding of the base.

The current leader of Hulan Base was Qiangba. After the apocalypse, Qiangba had become a superpower user who had acquired a high Strength Attribute. He used his absolute Strength to defeat the old leader and seize the position of Lord.

After Qiangba came to power, he established a series of rules.

One of them was that any newcomer had to challenge someone in the base. Only by winning the challenge could they enter.

As for the original residents who were challenged and lost, they had to leave.

Hulan Base only welcomes the strong. This was the rule Qiangba set for the base.

However, this rule wasn’t absolute. There were three types of people who could stay in the base indefinitely without being challenged.

The first type was children under sixteen who had been at Hulan Base since birth. The second was original residents of the base who were over fifty years old.

The last type was women who were willing to sell their bodies to serve everyone.

Tang Mo nodded. ’If that’s the case, then the rule isn’t completely inhumane.’

After all, forcing elderly people like Duoyang’s grandmother to face challenges at any time would be no different from sending them to their deaths.

As the two were talking, Baby Bear and Jingjing were already on the floor, wrestling playfully with each other.

The two little creatures, despite being different species, were getting along surprisingly well.

"What do you all usually eat?"

Since coming to the grasslands, Tang Mo had seen very few mutant beasts.

Apparently, due to hunting from both the Bear Clan and humans, the number of mutant beasts in the nearby area was rapidly declining.

"Mutant beasts are one source, but our main food supply comes from farming.

We raise the mutated sheep and let them breed. It’s not that different from before the apocalypse, really.

The only difference is that these sheep are still aggressive, so we can’t let them graze on the grasslands themselves. We have to gather grass and bring it back for them to eat."

Raising mutant beasts in large numbers within the base—only a place like Hulan Base, where everyone was a top-tier fighter, could pull something like that off.

’No wonder their base has no defensive fortifications. They’re already raising mutant beasts inside; why would they be afraid of the ones outside?’

"This is also why those bears come to the grasslands. Hunting beasts is one reason, but these sheep are a huge attraction for them too. I imagine there isn’t much food in the forest either."

"Are bears part of your food supply too?"

Tang Mo had seen how excited the people of Hulan Base were after hunting down a bear.

"Not really. The sheep are more than enough to eat. They hunt bears just to satisfy their disgusting desire to prove they’re the overlords of the grasslands.

If it weren’t for humanity’s intense hostility, the bears were actually quite friendly to people in the beginning. They didn’t kill indiscriminately."

Duoyang’s expression soured. He seemed to have a strong aversion to the practice of hunting bears.

"So what do you usually do at the base?"

"I’m mainly responsible for gathering grass, feeding the sheep, and cleaning the bear pen’s manure."

"A bear pen? Are you guys crazy? You’re not raising bears too, are you?"

A bear’s size and strength were not something a single person could handle. Raising a group of bears inside the base would be like planting a time bomb that could go off at any moment.

"Not adult bears. They’re cubs that wandered out to play or whose mothers died. They take pleasure in torturing these bears."

Duoyang hugged Baby Bear to his chest. This was why he had to keep him hidden so well.

He didn’t have the power to save the other cubs, but he had to protect Baby Bear. He would wait for the right opportunity to release him back into the forest one day.

’It seems this man is even kinder than I thought.’

Tang Mo saw the love for Baby Bear in Duoyang’s eyes.

Judging by his build and strength, he didn’t seem like someone who would neglect his own power, yet he was only doing menial chores on the side because he didn’t want to harm those bears.

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