Chapter 38

It was still one night before the hunters would arrive.

That night, the moon was still full, indicating that the weather would be good the next day. Clearly, the drought outside would continue, and with autumn already deep into the year, it was easy to imagine that the farmers would have almost no harvest.

Lin Bei looked up at the moon and sighed, then twisted his body and crawled out.

Lin Bei couldn't see too far, so he could only focus on what was in front of him, and the most immediate matter was that the she-wolf was about to give birth.

Just a couple of days ago, Lin Bei noticed that the she-wolf was very anxious. After returning to the tree hole, she would scratch the tree trunk with her paws, making a rustling sound, and her movements were more sluggish. Lin Bei guessed it was due to pre-labor symptoms. Since he had already helped, he decided to see it through and wanted the she-wolf to give birth safely. As for the future, Lin Bei didn't plan to interfere.

Crawling to the she-wolf's tree hole, Lin Bei was already very close, but the she-wolf showed no intention of coming out. Her alertness was now almost non-existent. Suddenly, Lin Bei heard heavy panting.

He froze, his snake tongue flicking rapidly, gathering all the information around him. Then he smelled a faint血腥味 (bloody smell) and saw the she-wolf's condition inside the tree hole. The she-wolf was giving birth, and she had already delivered one pup.

"So fast?" Lin Bei was greatly surprised. Fortunately, he had come today, or he would have missed it.

The newly born pup had no fur, was completely naked, and was drenched in amniotic fluid from the she-wolf's body. The she-wolf was licking her pup with her tongue, needing to dry the amniotic fluid to ensure the pup's breathing was unobstructed.

This was usually a simple task, but it was difficult now because another pup's head was emerging.

With great effort, the she-wolf delivered the second pup. Her mouth was wide open, and her breathing was very rapid. However, the two pups were just the beginning; the she-wolf's belly was still large, and this litter would have at least six or seven pups.

Lin Bei quietly circled around the tree hole, scaring away some small wild animals to prevent them from startling the she-wolf during her labor. Then he lay down and watched quietly, as there was nothing else he could do at this moment.

The third pup's first part to emerge was a small leg, which was moving slightly. It was clear that the she-wolf was already struggling. Although she had been well-fed for a while, she had definitely been weakened before meeting Lin Bei. The she-wolf was having a hard time, and her strength seemed insufficient.

Ten minutes, twenty minutes, Lin Bei watched as the pup was only halfway out. Lin Bei was getting anxious, and the pup's legs had stopped moving, and its skin was turning blue.

"Come on, big sister," Lin Bei shouted anxiously in his heart, cheering for the she-wolf. At this moment, Lin Bei had forgotten his disgust for the she-wolf and only hoped she could deliver the pups safely.

Thirty minutes, forty minutes, the she-wolf's belly contracted, and she finally delivered the third pup. However, when Lin Bei saw this pup, his heart sank. It was entirely purple and blue, with no chest movement, and it was limp. It had already died, suffocated in the womb.

Lin Bei sighed, watching the she-wolf lick the amniotic fluid off the dead pup. After a few licks, the she-wolf seemed to realize the pup's condition and whimpered sadly.

"Her belly is still big; what about the other pups?" Lin Bei's heart was pounding with worry, but clearly, there was nothing he could do. If he dared to move, the she-wolf might be scared to death.

The she-wolf looked at the first two pups, who, despite being newborns, instinctively clung to her body, curling into a pink, tender ball. She then looked at the third pup, whose body was gradually stiffening. The she-wolf whimpered and suddenly bit the pup, chewing it.

Seeing this, Lin Bei almost jumped up. The she-wolf had actually eaten her own pup!

"Eating her own child?" Lin Bei was greatly shocked, almost thinking he had seen wrong. However, his eyes were good, and the she-wolf had indeed eaten the pup, bones and all, with blood still on her mouth. Lin Bei had seen the she-wolf eat meat before, but this was particularly terrifying. Even tigers don't eat their own cubs, yet the she-wolf had eaten her own.

"Beasts are beasts!" Lin Bei's anger simmered in his heart, but he didn't move, fearing he might lose control and kill the she-wolf.

The fourth pup's head slowly emerged, and this time it was smoother. The she-wolf seemed to have regained some strength, and it took less than twenty minutes for the fourth pup to be born.

"Looks like eating her own child really is a great supplement," Lin Bei said sarcastically, then suddenly paused.

"I was wrong, I was wrong. The she-wolf didn't have to eat her own child; it was because she lacked strength, so she had to use blood food to replenish her strength. The dead pup was the perfect blood food. By eating the dead pup, she could replenish her strength, otherwise, the other pups wouldn't be born."

Thinking about this, Lin Bei's heart became complex. From a human perspective, this behavior was monstrous, as one should never use a corpse, whether the child was dead or alive. However, from a beast's perspective, using a dead pup to ensure the survival of the others was beneficial for the species' continuation. This might be a natural instinct, where the dead, whether their own or another's, served only one purpose: food to sustain life.

Although he understood, Lin Bei still felt a bit melancholic, but he was no longer as hateful towards the she-wolf. He believed that if there were a few rabbits or wild chickens around the she-wolf, or if she had enough strength to deliver the remaining pups, she wouldn't have eaten her own child. This was the greatness of maternal love, a trait that any creature should possess. The she-wolf had simply chosen the most suitable method for the moment.

The fifth, sixth, and seventh pups were born, and after the last one, Lin Bei noticed that the she-wolf's fur was drenched in sweat, and she was panting heavily but still insisted on licking the pups clean.

There were seven pups in total, but one had died, leaving six. The sixth pup had a red birthmark on its left cheek, which might make it a target for its siblings' teasing. Lin Bei hoped they would love each other.

Lin Bei watched intently as the six pups fell asleep. They had just arrived in this world and were unaware of its dangers. The she-wolf's belly finally deflated, and she would quickly regain her strength, unlike humans who need to rest after childbirth. She needed plenty of food to maintain her strength and produce milk to nurture her young.

After one last look, Lin Bei began to retreat slowly, making no noise. He circled around to ensure there was no danger, then left lightly.

Although there were some small setbacks, Lin Bei was satisfied with the outcome. Six pups were born safely, and his efforts had not been in vain.

By the time he returned to Longtan, it was almost four in the morning. Lin Bei climbed up to the wooden house, checked on Doudou and Qiqi's nest, and found everything fine. Just as he was about to rest, he heard a faint cracking sound from an egg beside him. Lin Bei was startled and saw a tiny snake pushing open the eggshell, hatching out.

After the she-wolf's delivery, the snakes Lin Bei had brought back began to hatch. Autumn was indeed a season of harvest.

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