CHAPTER 41: CHAPTER 41: REMOVE THE MARK

Su Qinglan’s lips curved into the sweetest smile. She tilted her head just slightly, her green eyes glittering with fake innocence.

"Mother," she said softly, her tone sugar-coated. "If you really want to remove Father’s mark, then go ahead. At least Father will finally be free of a leech like you. Isn’t that good, Mother?"

The cave went still.

Mu Lihua’s face turned red so quickly it looked like someone had slapped her. She opened her mouth, but not a single word came out.

Su Mingxuan froze, his eyes widened with shock. What was his daughter even talking about? Even he hadn’t expected his daughter to speak like this.

But Su Qinglan wasn’t done. She leaned forward slightly, her voice as tender as a child speaking to her parent.

"Oh, Mother, don’t be shy. If you remove the mark, my father can only regret it. But you, you are female; there will still be more males willing to mate with you. Isn’t it nice? Maybe an earthworm of your kind, and I realize you have no mates of your own kind... Is it not what females like most, to honor their own clan?"

"After all, Mother, you must have missed living in the mud. It would be really uncomfortable to live in a well-built cave. Tell me, Mother, do you miss the mud? I heard earthworms love to dig in, and they hardly get any meat to eat."

Her tone was pure curiosity. But every word stabbed like a knife.

Mu Lihua’s lips trembled. "Y-you—"

"Mother, you’re so lucky though," Su Qinglan continued sweetly, as if she hadn’t heard. "Look at you, eating meat, wearing pretty hides. Ah, but if only your face were... just a little prettier, you’d look truly beautiful! What a pity, Mother. But don’t worry—it’s not your fault. The Beast God decides everything, right? So we must cherish what we have."

The corner of Su Mingxuan’s mouth twitched violently. He looked like he wanted to faint.

Mu Lihua, on the other hand, nearly exploded on the spot. Her whole body shook with rage. Her eyes bulged, and her teeth clenched so hard it was a wonder they didn’t break.

Su Qinglan put her hands on her cheeks and gasped lightly, pretending to be shocked. "Ah, Mother, don’t glare at me like that! You’ll get wrinkles. Then even the nice hides you wear won’t save you."

Mu Lihua nearly spat blood. She raised her hand to slap Su Qinglan across the face, shaking from head to toe.

But before her palm could land, Su Mingxuan’s voice thundered through the cave.

"Mu Lihua!"

His voice cracked like a whip. His face was pale, his whole body trembling with anger and fear.

Su Qinglan didn’t flinch. She stood there with her sweetest smile, eyes shining with fake innocence, as if she truly couldn’t understand why her "mother" looked ready to faint from fury.

But Mu Lihua did not hear anything. Su Qinglan’s words were the only thing resonating in her mind.

"Mother, does the mud taste good?"

"Mother, an earthworm should return to the soil."

Her chest felt tight.

She had worked so hard to forget that life. To bury it so deep no one could drag it out.

But the girl’s words... they ripped it open like a fresh wound.

Her mind unwillingly went back to those days.

The earthworm tribe.

They lived underground, in wet and narrow burrows. The soil was always damp, sticky, and smelled of mold. On rainy days, water would flood the tunnels, and they had to crawl out, shivering and cold, their hides soaked and heavy.

Food was always scarce. They had no hunters strong enough to bring back prey. Most of the time, they ate bitter roots, wild grasses, or plain soil to fill their stomachs. When they were lucky, they found worms or insects hidden in the mud. That was a feast for them.

Meat?

That was only for the leaders, and even they hardly got a bite. A beastman who brought down a rabbit or bird would keep it for himself. The rest were left with scraps, licking bones or chewing on skins.

Clothes were worse. The earthworm tribe had no skill to make fine hides. Most of them wore torn pieces that barely covered the body. In winter, many of them froze. Children especially. It wasn’t strange to see small bodies lying stiff in the mud when the snow melted.

And females...

Females were few, but they weren’t cherished like in other tribes. With no strength and no beauty, they were often ignored. Many lived their whole lives uncared for, always hungry, always tired.

Mu Lihua remembered those days too well. Her belly always empty, her hands always covered in dirt. She had begged for food, fought other children for scraps, and swallowed mud just to stay alive.

It was a life crawling in the dark, a life with no respect.

That was the earthworm tribe. Her earthworm tribe.

No. She refused to go back to that filth. She had left that behind when Su Mingxuan marked her. She had become a beastman’s mate, wearing fine hides, eating meat every day, and walking proudly in the light.

She had clawed her way up from the dirt.

And now that brat dared to remind her of it. To speak those words with a sweet little smile, as if stabbing her again and again.

Her hands shook. Rage bubbled inside her chest, so strong it nearly choked her.

"No," she muttered to herself. "I will never go back. Never."

Mu Lihua’s heart burned with anger.

She had no plan to remove Su Mingxuan’s mark. Never. She only said those words to scare him. Because every time she threatened, he would panic. He would turn away from his daughter and treat her better, giving her more food, more hides, and more attention.

She had worked too hard to get him. Su Mingxuan was the best male she could ever find; he is the leader of the tribe, the strongest, and respected by everyone. With him, she had a life other females could only dream of.

How could she throw that away?

But now, this brat dared to say such things! To tell her to remove the mark as if it were nothing? Was the girl crazy?

Mu Lihua’s face twisted with anger. She turned to Su Mingxuan with an angry voice.

"Su Mingxuan, look! Look what kind of daughter you’ve raised! She doesn’t care about you at all. She only knows how to humiliate me, how to break our family apart!"

Her chest heaved as she glared at him. Then, with a loud snort, she spun around and left the cave in a hurry.

She didn’t dare stay longer. What if Su Mingxuan and his daughter truly forced her to remove the mark?