Ten years later, in autumn.
"Hurry up! Today is the orc awakening ceremony, and we'll get to see the high priest. If we're slow, we'll miss out on the good spots!"
"Wait for me! I haven't finished my meat pie yet!" The small orc figure rushed forward quickly, clutching a fragrant, crispy-on-the-outside, tender-on-the-inside meat pie in his hand.
A group of orcs dressed in black walked by in the distance, holding longswords and walking with their backs straight.
The two little orcs, who had been chasing each other, stopped in their tracks and looked at the passing black-clad guard with great admiration and envy. "Captain Catgrass is so amazing! I heard that the sword he's carrying was forged by Captain Shen Yi himself."
The orc holding the meat pie, taking advantage of the fact that he hadn't run away yet, quickly took a big bite, his mouth dripping with oil. Chewing on the fragrant meat pie, he said with satisfaction, "My meat pie was also made in an iron pot personally forged by Captain Shen Yi. It's incredibly delicious!"
The other little orc snorted, "All you ever think about is eating! I'm not waiting for you!"
Shen Nong stood on the high platform, looking down at the bustling crowd below. Ten years later, the Mu tribe had grown into a city with countless residents. The platform he stood on was also much higher than before, and most of the original one-story brick houses in the city had been replaced by two- or three-story reinforced concrete buildings thanks to the addition of steel bars.
Over the past decade, Shen Nong has felt her power growing stronger, and at the same time, she has accumulated more and more fragments of memories about her past life.
Shen Nong's current power is more than enough to awaken all the orcs in the entire city. Some orcs who don't have time to come to the platform can simply wait in their homes to begin.
Green fluorescent light drifted throughout the city, creating a breathtaking scene.
The orc awakening ceremony was quick. In previous years, Shen Nong hadn't felt anything despite such a large energy expenditure, but this year, for some reason, she felt dizzy after it ended. Ze, who was standing below the platform, noticed that Shen Nong's condition was not right and strode up onto the platform.
Upon recognizing the person who had arrived, Shen Nong leaned her head against Ze's chest and fainted.
When Shen Nong regained consciousness, he found that the scene before him had completely changed, and he was quite certain that he was no longer in the Mu tribe.
The two-story building had all been converted into thatched huts, surrounded by towering trees that seemed to reach into the clouds, a lush and verdant landscape. Butterflies and bees fluttered their wings around the flowers, some even perching on them.
His body seemed to be out of his control; upon seeing a blue butterfly, he couldn't resist pouncing on it.
The blue butterfly was also very alert; sensing the danger, it quickly flapped its wings and flew away.
"Tsk, didn't catch it again."
Shen Nong didn't speak, but he could hear "himself" sighing in disappointment. However, this voice was clearer and more cheerful, and it wasn't exactly the same as his current voice. It sounded more like he was seventeen or eighteen years old.
Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of a lithe figure out of the corner of his eye, and Shen Nong felt a surge of anticipation and joy in her heart, "Choose!"
Shen Nong heard herself being called that.
Then a handsome young man appeared in his line of sight, but the aura around him was as cold as winter.
"I heard you hunted a tiger all by yourself this time?" Shen Nong looked at Ze, who had a stern face, and couldn't help but raise his hand to poke the other's face. The next second, the man's fierce eyes fell on him.
He had never seen Ze look at him like that before, and for a moment he was stunned, yet inexplicably felt a sense of familiarity. The next second he heard his own teasing voice, "Why are you looking at me like that? I saved your life, can't I even poke your cheek?"
Ze's brows were furrowed, as if he were struggling with some internal conflict. Seeing his expression, as if he were about to face death, Shen Nong felt a little strange. Just as she was about to take pity on him and not tease this blockhead for the day, her wrist was grabbed by him.
Although the two were about the same age, and the other person was even a bit thinner, for some reason the other person was incredibly strong. Shen Nong subconsciously tried to break free but found that his wrist didn't budge at all.
Using his other hand, he pried open Shen Nong's index finger and placed the tip of her finger against his face.
"Here, you, poke." Ze's voice was a little hoarse, and he spoke one word at a time, as if he had just learned to speak.
Shen Nong watched as young Ze, with a determined and earnest expression, held up his hand for him to poke his cheek, and chuckled inwardly. Now, he understood that these were memories from his past life.
The next morning, Shen Nong opened the door of her thatched hut and found a round, long bamboo tube on the ground. The tube was covered with leaves and wrapped with grass. Several holes had been poked in the leaves with small twigs. Shen Nong picked up the tube, shook it gently to her ear, and heard the sound of wings flapping inside.
It doesn't look like a bee. I wonder who put a bamboo tube full of fluttering moths to scare him, thinking he would be afraid?
Shen Nong ripped open the leaves, and nearly twenty blue butterflies instantly flew out of the bamboo tube, drawing a beautiful and mysterious blue line in the air.
Shen Nong seemed to see a familiar figure behind the blue line. Their eyes met amidst the fluttering butterflies, and Shen Nong could hear her heart pounding.
He gripped the bamboo tube tightly, his face flushed, and turned to enter the thatched hut.
"Look! Blue butterflies! So many blue butterflies!"
"Which orc is this? Why is he catching so many blue butterflies to attract mates? Catching one blue butterfly means spending a mating season together. Catching so many at once, are they planning to make them partners?"
Hearing the orcs' discussion from not far away, Ze froze on the spot. He asked with some difficulty, "Blue, butterfly, is, seeking, a mate?"
The orc who was surprised to see so many blue butterflies replied, "It's normal that you don't know since you're new to our tribe. Every autumn, our tribe has a custom of catching blue butterflies to mate with. Each butterfly is given to the orc you admire, and it represents spending a winter and a spring together in a thatched hut and having children together."
After hearing this, Ze forgot to react and stood blankly in front of Shen Nong's door.
Shen Nong paced back and forth in his thatched hut, telling himself that he hadn't done it on purpose; he was new to the tribe and didn't know the tribe's rules.
As the heat on her face gradually subsided, Shen Nong lay on her wooden bed, thinking back to when she found Ze on the mountain in the summer. At that time, Ze was covered in wounds and curled up behind a large rock. It had rained heavily the night before, and he had been soaked and then dried off in the sun, so his whole body was still hot.
Shen Nong was the only one among the tribe's priest candidates to awaken his special ability. He was the tribe's next priest, but he didn't control his ability very well. He intended to use his healing ability to treat the dying boy, but he ended up binding and tying him up before he could use his ability correctly.
After being rescued, the people learned that the boy's tribe had been wiped out, and he was the only survivor. He had no parents from birth and was raised in a large cave by an elder of the tribe, who died after three winters. The boy had no name; no beastmen in the tribe had spoken to him, and no one knew how to name him.
Shen Nong looked into the boy's beautiful eyes, which held a fierce glint that warned others to stay away, and smiled, "The priest said the other day that he sensed a few more characters, one of which I thought sounded particularly nice, called Ze. You'll be called Ze from now on!"
The menacing glint in the boy's eyes vanished almost instantly, and he muttered repeatedly, "Choose, choose, choose..."
…
Except for winter when it snows, the Mu tribe where Shen Nong lives is green for the other three seasons.
Winter was cold, and most of the beastmen spent the winter huddled together in their thatched huts in pairs. Shen Nong, tucked into his animal skin, would occasionally have images of blue butterflies fluttering out of his mind.
Sitting in his thatched hut, Ze felt burning hot all over, a feeling he had never experienced before. For some reason, Shen Nong's image filled his mind. He longed to see her, and this thought intensified his agitation.
Shen Nong was fast asleep when he heard the urgent knocking. He got out of bed, covered himself with an animal skin, and opened the door. He wondered who was coming to his house in the dead of winter instead of staying in their thatched hut.
The moment the door opened, Shen Nong felt a weight on her. The wind and snow outside rushed in, and Shen Nong shivered. Ignoring the person clinging to her, she reached for the door, and with a "thud," Ze took a step back. Shen Nong moved forward, pressing her body against the door, her own posture making it look as if she were lying in his arms.
Shen Nong's mind went blank for a moment, then she immediately stood up, but unexpectedly, Ze grabbed her waist and pulled her forward, causing her to fall heavily into the other person's arms again.
"You, you let go!" Shen Nong's voice trembled slightly. He struggled to get up, messed up the animal skin on Ze's body, and touched his burning skin, only then realizing that something was wrong with Ze.
Shen Nong looked up and saw that Ze's face was flushed, his eyes were unfocused, and he was staring at her without blinking. Shen Nong knew very well what was wrong with Ze. The beastmen, who were originally weak, had irregular heat cycles in the first two years after awakening.
When they first met Ze, he was thinner than a rabbit. He had no parents in his original tribe and was constantly bullied. Even after coming to their tribe, he managed to hunt successfully every time, but that didn't change the fact that Ze was an orc who had awakened his powers while physically weak.
Shen Nong was actually afraid when facing the beastman in heat; he didn't know what the beastman might do when he lost his mind. A warm, wet touch came from his cheek. Ze had started mimicking animalistic expressions of affection, rubbing his face against Shen Nong and occasionally licking his face slightly.
Shen Nong was no match for the orcs in strength, and his special abilities were still weak, preventing him from manipulating trees in winter. He could only let himself be carried. Shen Nong couldn't describe his emotions, but he was certain he didn't resent the choice.
When Ze accidentally touched Shen Nong's soft lips, he subconsciously pressed his own lips against them. Shen Nong froze on the spot, blinking his eyes. His long eyelashes tickled Ze. Ze then turned to kiss Shen Nong's eyes. Shen Nong reflexively closed his eyes, feeling the warm touch on his eyelids.
Shen Nong lay on the ground, the animal skin he had been wearing draped over him now pressed beneath him, pinning him down and rendering him immobile. His cheeks and neck were covered in kisses.
His body had already shown unusual reactions, and he couldn't find the right approach, so his kissing became somewhat more forceful. As a candidate for priest, Shen Nong had always been under the priest's tutelage and instruction. The priest had shown him the patterns drawn on the wooden tablets, so he roughly knew what to do next.
His face was flushed, his lips glistening with moisture, and he slowly bent his knees to touch her. But he was inexperienced, and he used too much force. The pain brought Ze a brief moment of clarity.
When Ze saw the face of the person he was pressing down on, he froze on the spot like a wooden statue. He even forgot the pain, his brows were furrowed tightly, and his face was even a little pale.
Shen Nong knew that Ze had regained his senses, and he felt somewhat embarrassed and annoyed when he thought about what he had just impulsively wanted to do. But he was still pinned down and unable to move, so he could only turn his head away, bite his lower lip, and remain silent.
A few bright red marks were scattered across Shen Nong's fair and delicate neck; Ze knew without a doubt that he was the one who had done it. It was the dead of winter, and the animal hide covering Shen Nong's body had been torn to shreds. Ze silently got up, wrapped her tightly in a large animal hide from the ground, and carried her horizontally to the wooden bed.
He glanced at the wooden bed again, seemingly still uneasy, and began to tear off most of the animal skin from his body, completely removing it. Shen Nong, hearing the sounds of him removing the skin, couldn't help but feel alarmed. Was Ze awake or not?
Suddenly, a weight pressed down on her. Ze covered Shen Nong with his animal skin, stuffing it back and forth until she was wrapped up like a silkworm.
Shen Nong turned her head and saw Ze's back, which, though somewhat thin, was full of muscles and still exuded a strong sense of power.
The door opened and then closed again. Shen Nong lay on the wooden bed, staring at the ceiling.
For them, the orcs have always believed that if they like someone, they should pursue them bravely; if it works, it works; if it doesn't, it doesn't.
Shen Nong had never known what it felt like to like someone before, let alone imagined that he would like Ze. He just felt that Ze was different from the other beastmen in the tribe. Ze was very handsome, but he was always fierce. He was fierce to everyone, as if he wanted others to be afraid of him and not dare to bully him easily.
He was fierce to him, but in a different way. Even though Ze would look at him with a fierce gaze, Ze would be very obedient to whatever he wanted to do.
Shen Nong always thought Ze was very funny and wanted to see him every day and tease him.
He hadn't realized before today that this feeling was love.
Meanwhile, Ze, on the other side, also fell into deep thought.
He stood shirtless in front of Shen Nong's door for a long time, watching the movements inside.
He knew he liked Shen Nong, liked her very much. Shen Nong saved him, gave him a name, and always talked to him and played with him.
This was something he had never experienced before.
Every time he sees Shen Nong, all his unhappiness disappears. He wants to stay by Shen Nong's side forever, to protect her and keep her from getting hurt.
However, he hurt Shen Nong today.
The red mark on Shen Nong's neck was glaringly obvious, as if imprinted in Ze's mind. He had injured Shen Nong's neck and left her to freeze in the winter.
He shouldn't have done that...
Shen Nong didn't know what Ze was thinking. He only knew that most of winter had passed and he hadn't seen Ze since. However, there were always some newly caught rabbits appearing in front of the door from time to time, proving that Ze had been watching him from the shadows.
Ze didn't originally intend to hide, but after that incident, that strange feeling kept recurring. Every time it appeared, he missed Shen Nong terribly, and fearing he might hurt her again like last time, Ze hid in the mountains.
After the strange feeling disappeared, he searched the whole mountain for hibernating prey, and brought the prey down the mountain to Shen Nong.
Shen Nong knew that Ze was deliberately avoiding him, and he felt incredibly frustrated. He didn't like this empty feeling inside and had to corner Ze and ask him clearly whether he liked him or not; he absolutely had to get an answer.
Tianze had several eggs tucked in his arms, which he had obtained after searching the chicken coop for a long time. These eggs were delicious when boiled in water; although he had never eaten them before, all the beastmen who had said they were very tasty.
He wanted Shen Nong to try it.
The winter nights are colder than the days. Ze's footsteps crunched through the snow as he walked familiarly to Shen Nong's thatched hut. He bent down to place the eggs in the snow when he heard the door open.
Shen Nong shivered from the cold wind and quickly stepped forward to block out the wind and snow. "It's cold, let's go back."
Shen Nong disagreed, staring at Ze with her dark eyes, and said bluntly, "You gave me so many blue butterflies, so, do you want to live with me from now on?"
Her usually clear and melodious voice trembled slightly. After asking the question, Shen Nong's gaze began to wander, and she dared not look directly at Ze. Her heart was in turmoil, both expecting and fearing to answer.
Ze understood Shen Nong's meaning and was stunned. He never dared to imagine that someone as bright and cheerful as Shen Nong would be willing to be with him.
"want."
He spoke this one word with unusual firmness and solemnity.
Chapter 125 Extra 2
Previous Life II
[An anomaly has been detected in the world progress.]
[Anomaly Display: The World's Chosen One has violated regulations; the creation of writing is too rapid, and surnames have appeared too early.]