Ch 9: My Wolf Husband

Although Lin Shuishi was eager to save the wolf, he had no idea where to start. Not only was he in the wolves’ den, but there wasn’t even a needle and thread in the treehouse! Should he run down to the village? Even if he were lucky enough to find the way, by the time he returned, the wolf would already be long dead.

He bit his lip and looked at the white wolf, whose breathing was growing weaker, deciding to do his best to try.

Fate had given him another chance at life, healthy and whole. So why not this giant wolf, a creature of the mountains?

Finally, Lin Shuishi found a dead sheep among the pile of carcasses the wolves had dragged to the mountain ridge, its belly torn open by a bull’s horn. He tore out the clean parts of its intestines to use as thread for stitching.

He then went to Fuli’s lair and took out a slender, sharp tooth of some unknown animal. Using a stone, he carefully chipped a small notch at the end of the tooth to hold the sheep intestine. With hurried, trembling hands, he knelt beside the blood-soaked injured wolf and began to stitch up its abdomen, where its organs were already exposed.

Fuli dispersed the surrounding wolves, leaving only the wolf king’s mate, who continued to gently lick her partner, keeping her body close to warm the white wolf king, whose body had grown cold from excessive blood loss.

By the time the sky darkened, Lin Shuishi had also splinted the wolf king’s broken leg with branches, hoping it would heal straight.

Despite the biting cold wind, Lin Shuishi was drenched in sweat.

The day’s events were unbelievable to him, a former invalid. The boundless forests and plains, the wild stampede of beasts, and his deep involvement with this fierce wolf pack—none of it seemed real. It felt like a dream, as if he would wake up to find himself back in his small, unchanged room of over ten years, with the old wheelchair under his bed…

Fuli stepped forward, scooped up the unconscious Lin Shuishi, and examined him carefully, relieved to find no injuries—just exhaustion. Hesitating slightly, he placed Lin Shuishi in a warm, dry nest and covered him with animal skins.

He had allowed a weak female, who was not his mate, to stay in his wolf den.

But Lin Shuishi was too fragile; even in the rigid hierarchy of the wolf pack, he couldn’t survive well on his own, even though he was different and had a way of tugging at one’s heartstrings with his “little tricks.”

Stars hung low in the sky, and the moon reached its zenith.

Fuli brought out an elderly female wolf from a tree hollow. Her once white fur was now yellowed, and her blue eyes were clouded, yet they seemed to hold the essence of the heavens and earth, the mountains and rivers. She was the “mother” of both Fuli and the wolf king.

The wolves stood on the mountain ridge, surrounding their injured leader, howling at the moon. They were communicating with nature and the world, following in the footsteps of the wolf god, respecting life, praying for it, and revering it.

Half-asleep in the wolf den, Lin Shuishi felt the howls of the wolves resonate within him, as if his very soul was connecting with them. His body felt warm, and he slept soundly until morning.

Lin Shuishi woke up the next day, driven by hunger. It took him a while to remember where he was. As he cautiously peeked out of the cave, he saw several wolf pups peeking curiously in his direction. Fuli’s den was in the highest part of the area, and no wolves dared to approach.

Only one white wolf cub, looking particularly proud, strutted confidently over to Lin Shuishi, its little legs kicking as it ran. It eagerly licked Lin Shuishi several times, making “slurp slurp” sounds.

Lin Shuishi laughed and picked up the little one, ruffling its fur. “Oh my, the little king is so mighty!”

But then he became puzzled. Looking around, he noticed that there were only a few adult wolves left in the area—mostly pups and a few white wolves guarding the injured wolf king.

In reality, Lin Shuishi had no idea that most of the wolf pack members, even when food was plentiful, still went on group hunts, leaving behind only a few to watch over the pups and guard the den, ready to alert the others in case of danger.

After yesterday’s battle, the wolf pack had returned to calm, allowing the pups to finally come out of their dens. Some were gnawing on bones, others were playing by pouncing on leaves—each one content in its own way.

As soon as Lin Shuishi stepped out of the wolf den, the adult wolves on guard became watchful, monitoring his every move. This made him feel uneasy, as though there were thorns on his back. Despite his hunger, he didn’t dare touch any of the prey, fearing he might provoke an attack.

So, he cautiously made his way to the edge of the hot spring. He cupped some of the spring water in his hands, finding it pleasantly warm. He sniffed it, and detecting no strange odors, he took a tentative sip—freshwater. At last, he had found a drinkable water source!

Judging by the appearance of the spring, it seemed to be mineral water, rather than the more common sulfuric spring.

Suddenly, Lin Shuishi couldn’t help but smile to himself. If this were a sulfur spring, wouldn’t the entire wolf den smell like rotten eggs? And wouldn’t that imposing figure, Fuli, reek of rotten eggs too? Haha!

As he thought about this, Lin Shuishi felt a strange warmth in his chest. That man-beast only carried the scent of sunlight, mixed with the intense musk of a powerful male. Thinking back to yesterday, when those strong arms had held him, he might have detected a faint scent of…dog?

His face suddenly flushed. When had he ever paid so much attention to someone’s scent? But still, Fuli was different from anyone he had ever met—unique in every way, even down to his scent.

He quickly lowered his head, trying to cover his embarrassment, and drank another gulp of the warm spring water. To his surprise, it tasted sweet!

This vast, steaming hot spring was sweeter than any snow he had ever eaten in the village below!

Meanwhile, the few adult wolves watching from a distance saw the human, who was soaked in their second leader’s scent, guzzling the sacred spring water with shining eyes, looking rather silly.

So, they turned their attention elsewhere, deciding to focus on more meaningful things, like the wolf king’s condition.

Whether it was Lin Shuishi’s stitching, Fuli’s potent green herbal paste, or their midnight prayers to the wolf god, something had worked. By morning, the wolf king had opened his eyes and started eating. For a wild animal, the ability to eat was a sign of survival.

But now, Lin Shuishi himself needed to eat! He had only drunk water and didn’t dare touch the wolves’ food. He started thinking about how he could return to the treehouse. Though this place was warm and had sweet water, he felt uneasy being surrounded by wolves whose paws were thicker than his arms.

He hesitated for a while but finally decided to try and make his way back alone, heading toward the sloped forest where the green wolves had originally brought him down. But he had barely taken a few steps when the little white wolf ran up and tugged at his pants leg with its baby teeth.

Lin Shuishi picked up the pup by the scruff of its neck and held it in front of his face. “I ran all this way, and it’s all your fault! You’d better stay in the den and behave. Aren’t you the little king around here?”

The white wolf cub didn’t seem to care what Lin Shuishi said. It just followed him, step by step, refusing to stay behind. It had already been entrusted to the pack’s strongest “wolf” by its parents, and Fuli had tossed it into Lin Shuishi’s arms.

Ever since it had eaten the chestnuts peeled by Lin Shuishi and drunk the meat soup he had made, the little white wolf had decided that it would be Lin Shuishi’s wolf from now on!

As man and wolf stood stubbornly at the edge of the forest, a chorus of howls echoed from the mountainside. Fuli was leading the pack back from the hunt. The pups in the den were excited, rushing to the mountainside, while a few adult wolves, worried they might fall, picked them up one by one and carried them back.

Lin Shuishi looked up and saw a large group of white wolves surrounding Fuli. Their muzzles were all stained with blood, and they panted, exhaling clouds of white breath.

The white wolves dragged three strong water buffalo up to the ridge, gutted them, and offered the innards to their injured leader. Only after Fuli had torn off a leg did the rest of the wolves begin to eat.

Fuli glanced at the two figures in the forest but didn’t intervene. He went to check on the wolf king, and to his surprise, the wolf king was recovering and could eat. It seemed that the weak creature’s methods had worked; indeed, it was essential to sew up a gaping wound. Fuli lowered his head, and the two brothers touched noses in a brief moment of connection.

Lin Shuishi observed his surroundings and noticed that only white wolves remained—perhaps a few with mixed fur, but the green and gray wolves were nowhere to be seen.

He didn’t realize that this area was exclusively for the white wolf pack. Other wolf groups lived separately in the mountains and forests, not having the privilege to reside with the ruling white wolves. They merely followed orders.

Fuli sat beside the wolf king, tearing into a buffalo leg with his sharp teeth. His black, braided hair, now sticky with blood, made him look especially fierce. Lin Shuishi stood there for a long time before finally mustering the courage to quietly mutter in Fuli’s direction, “Um, I want to go back to the treehouse. Can you show me the way?”

What should have been a simple request came out as a hesitant murmur, leaving Lin Shuishi unsure if Fuli had even heard him. But as he watched the bloody scene of the buffalo being gutted and devoured, he was too scared to breathe.

Fuli’s dark golden eyes flicked over to the distant figure of Lin Shuishi and the little wolf pup. His ear twitched slightly, sensing that the fragile creature was using those “methods” again. With a sharp pull of his teeth, Fuli ripped off a piece of sinew and meat and tossed it to a nearby white wolf with mixed fur. He growled in the wolf’s throat for a moment, issuing a command.

The mixed-fur white wolf took the meat back to its den before turning around and running straight toward Lin Shuishi. However, the wolf wasn’t quite sure how to get the “two-legged” creature onto its back, so it simply lay down on the ground like a small cow.

Lin Shuishi was initially hesitant to get close, as he wasn’t familiar with this particular wolf. But when he saw Fuli gesture at him, he bit his lip and cautiously climbed onto the mixed-fur wolf’s back.

Before he could even settle in, the wolf bolted, racing through the forest. Lin Shuishi let out an involuntary scream, clutching the white fur tightly as they sped off.

The little white wolf pup, seeing this, howled and ran after Lin Shuishi, chasing them into the forest and back toward Fuli’s treehouse territory.

This white wolf was much faster and stronger than the two lazy, sneaky scouts. The wolf pup was soon left far behind as Lin Shuishi clung to the wolf’s back, too afraid to open his eyes for fear of being scratched by the branches whipping past.

After a bumpy ride, the terrain leveled out, and the trees became sparse. Lin Shuishi finally lifted his head and realized they had arrived near the fat squirrel’s home from the other day. He thought about gathering more chestnuts but didn’t have time to speak before the white wolf suddenly braked.

The abrupt stop sent Lin Shuishi flying off the wolf’s back, tumbling onto the snow-covered ground and dry leaves. Though it didn’t hurt much, Lin Shuishi froze in place when he looked up.

Three well-fed leopards were surrounding them, their intent to attack unmistakable. They let out low growls and pounced simultaneously. The white wolf lunged at two of the leopards, locking them in a fierce battle, while the third leopard took advantage of the distraction and leaped straight at Lin Shuishi’s throat.

Terrified, Lin Shuishi rolled to the side, but just then, a shower of chestnuts rained down from the trees, pelting the leopard. It was the fat squirrel hidden in the treetop!

Unfortunately, the chestnuts had little effect, merely annoying the leopard. The squirrel jumped up and down in frustration, but there was nothing more it could do.

Angered, the leopard bared its yellow teeth and swiped its claws, turning to pounce on Lin Shuishi.

In that moment of crisis, Lin Shuishi instinctively shouted, “Golden Eyes!”

As he closed his eyes, trembling and wildly flailing his fists in defense, he suddenly noticed the surroundings go silent. Opening his eyes, he saw a strong, dark figure standing before him, backlit like a mountain.

With broad shoulders and a muscular waist, the figure still had dried blood from a bull on his hair, but his right hand was clenched like a deadly claw around the leopard’s throat. The muscles in his arm tensed, and with a crunch, he snapped the leopard’s neck.

The leopard struggled for a moment before going limp, then was tossed aside.

Lin Shuishi was dumbfounded. The man turned and looked down at him with a calm expression, his dark golden eyes shining. His rugged features were sharp and defined. In a deep, steady voice, he slowly spoke a few words.

“Fuli.”

After a moment of thought, he repeated himself.

“Ashina Fuli.”

…