When Miao Xiaocui heard the news, she quickly said to Yin Xiao, "Brother Yin Xiao, it's time for us to mate too."
Yin Xiao was naturally happy, but, "Cui, have you finished my phantom beast clothes?"
Miao Xiaocui looked bewildered, "Phantom beast clothes? What phantom beast clothes?"
"..."
Yin Xiao helplessly reminded her, "The beast hides that Da Sen brought that day, they are for making phantom beast clothes, to wear during our mating ceremony."
"..." Miao Xiaocui thought carefully, her face instantly turned red. The intimacy that day was too intense, and she was sick for a few days afterward, completely forgetting about it!
She said with embarrassment, "Go tell the tribal chief. I'm fast at sewing clothes, and I'll finish them today!"
"Can you really do it in one day?" It wasn't that Yin Xiao didn't believe her, but the females in the tribe were very slow at making clothes, taking several days to finish one.
Miao Xiaocui said confidently, "Yes, I'm best at making clothes!" She had learned to sew since she was little, and it was simple for her.
"Then it's settled. I'll go tell the chief, and we'll mate on the same day as Went."
As he was about to leave, he suddenly turned back and said, "Oh, and Da Sen too. You have to make him one as well. The beast hide I have is enough to make two beast hide skirts."
"Got it, you go quickly!" Two beast hide skirts were nothing, it would be done quickly.
...
The beastmen of the tribe were very busy these past two days. Two couples were holding mating ceremonies. They had to decorate the square and hunt enough food for the day to feed the entire tribe, which was no small task.
They also had to prepare gifts for them. For those with not-so-close relationships, a piece of beast hide would suffice.
For those with slightly closer relationships, they were troubled about what gifts to give. For example, Guoguo and Yaya felt that whatever they gave wouldn't be impressive enough, which worried them greatly.
Shu Yue was also busy, focusing on the beastmen's phantom beast clothes, but she forgot to make one for herself to wear that day. Although female clothing wasn't that important, it was still a wedding, so she should at least look beautiful!
She called Aisha and Emma to help. They were still sewing a skirt, but with added decorations.
Fortunately, she had done some crafting in school and remembered how to cut paper flowers. Although she didn't have scissors, a sharp knife could cut just as well.
Aisha provided a small piece of red fur, about the size of two palms. She didn't know if it was fox fur, but the color was quite nice.
She split this piece of fur in the middle and cut out two small flowers. The flowers she cut were similar to those on the kindergarten wall, but they had fur. The red fur stood up fluffily, like a small flame.
She sewed them onto the shoulder straps, and they looked very good.
She didn't decorate the chest area because she wasn't confident in her sewing skills there.
She also asked Guoguo and Yaya to pick many beautiful and fragrant flowers, both red and yellow, and weave them into one large and two small flower crowns. She would wear one on her head and one on each wrist.
For her feet, she still had flip-flops. The beast hide strap that separated her big toe had small red flowers strung onto it, matching the skirt.
In the tribe, females all wore beast tooth necklaces, threading a beast's tooth onto a blade of grass and hanging it around their necks. Honestly, it wasn't very aesthetically pleasing, so when Guoguo suggested she wear a beast tooth necklace, she politely declined.
After two days of busy work, the clothes were finally done. The mating ceremony was to be held tonight. Went had been hunting for the past two days.
He had been well-fed outside for a long time. Shu Yue was a bit nervous and apprehensive. The last time he was well-fed was when he was doing this, about seven days ago...
Thinking about the duration, she wanted to back out. It was too scary!
...
The sky gradually darkened.
The tribespeople had arrived at the square early. Several large stone pots were placed on the square, emitting a tempting aroma. The bone soup had been simmering since noon and had now turned milky white. All that was needed was to add salt blocks and sour fruit before it could be drunk.
The young beastmen and young females kept swallowing their saliva as they looked at the stone pots, eager for the meal to begin.
Large chunks of raw meat were placed on the grill, and it would take at least an hour to eat.
A few mischievous beastmen were gathered together, sneakily grilling a special meal for the three males who were about to mate. Of course, the special meal had to be hunted by the grooms themselves.
Black Wolf, Azure Wolf, and Bear Seven also participated, grilling with great effort.
Yin Xiao, Da Sen, and Went, wearing their phantom beast clothes, had already arrived and were waiting on the sacrificial platform for the shaman.
Yin Xiao and Da Sen's phantom beast clothes were ordinary, with at most tight stitches and good craftsmanship.
Went's outfit, however, was novel. The tribespeople looked at it strangely, and thinking of Shu Yue's many ideas, they weren't surprised that the phantom beast clothes could be made like this.
Shu Yue and Cui had not arrived yet. As soon-to-be brides, they couldn't arrive too early; they needed to come out just before the ceremony began, also to create a sense of mystery for their male partners.
They didn't know what the females would wear tonight. Yin Xiao regretted the haste, as he had forgotten to tell Cui that she also had to wear new beast hide clothes today. He didn't care about the newness of the beast hide clothes himself, but he was afraid Cui would regret it later when she remembered.
Went hadn't remembered yet, but he didn't care. Yue Yue would always be the most beautiful in his eyes, no matter what she looked like.
"The shaman is here!" someone shouted.
The shaman was carried to the sacrificial platform by her partner. After resting for these days, the shaman's body was just barely able to perform the ceremony. Even as a shaman, she couldn't constantly communicate with the Great Beast God; this was a side effect.
The shaman arranged the ritual tools on the platform. Time was almost up when Shu Yue, dressed and ready, finally arrived with Aisha and Emma.
Normally, the bride would be accompanied by her parents, but she had none, so she had to ask Aisha and Emma to act as proxies.
They met Miao Xiaocui on the way. Miao Xiaocui was accompanied by Green Leaf, as she also had no parents.
When the two met, Miao Xiaocui was stunned. She had also rushed to make a skirt herself, but due to the lack of time and the unavailability of the required beast hide, the skirt was made too simply.
Her feet were no longer wrapped in beast hide, but she had woven a pair of straw sandals. Her hair was tied up with a branch as a hairpin, making her look more demure than usual. She wanted to be the most special female at the mating ceremony.
She had been full of confidence, but when she saw Shu Yue's attire, her heart sank.
Shu Yue today looked like a flower fairy...
Green Leaf felt the same way and was too amazed to speak. She thought Cui looked beautiful enough today, especially with her hair styled so well, but she didn't expect Shu Yue to be even more beautiful!
She was dazzled by the flowers on Shu Yue's person. Shu Yue was so beautiful, like... like she didn't know what. Perhaps only a daughter of the Beast God would be so beautiful!
"Shu Yue, you look so beautiful today!" Green Leaf couldn't help but speak her mind.
Shu Yue smiled upon hearing this, "Thank you, Grandma. Let's hurry, the ceremony is about to begin."