Hu Yan returned from the eastern clearing feeling very proud of himself. His face was covered in deep scratches, and his shoulders were bleeding in several places, but he didn’t feel any pain.
The rain washed away the blood, but it couldn’t wash away the smug grin on his face.
He had been beaten by the Seven-Strip Lion King, but he had successfully sunk his teeth into Shi Feng’s front paw.
That paw had touched his Su Qinglan, so Hu Yan felt it was only right to leave a wound on it.
Even though he was only a Five-Strip tiger, he had managed to make a king bleed. He was so satisfied that he was almost humming a tune as he walked back to the house.
But when he reached the fence, his smile froze.
He found Rong Ye and Han Jue sitting directly on the muddy ground in the middle of the pouring rain. They weren’t talking. They were just using their fingers to draw circles in the mud over and over again.
"What are you doing?" Hu Yan asked, completely speechless. "Why are you sitting on the wet ground like losers?"
Han Jue and Rong Ye looked up at him with the most pitiful expressions he had ever seen.
They didn’t even explain. Rong Ye just went back to drawing his circle. He had told Han Jue that drawing circles was a good way to pass the time so they wouldn’t remember how heartbroken they were.
Hu Yan ignored them, thinking they had just gone crazy from the rain. He walked up to the front door, eager to show Su Qinglan his "battle scars" and get some praise. But when he reached for the handle, he found the door tightly locked with a thick vine.
"Why is the door locked in the middle of the day?" Hu Yan shouted, tugging at the vine. "We need to come in and out! Just lock it at night!"
Suddenly, a long, emerald snake tail slithered out from a gap in the tree house door and slapped Hu Yan’s hand away.
Hu Yan jumped back, his expression darkening. He looked at the tree house door just as it was removed by the snake.
Xuan Long peeked his head out, his emerald eyes sparkling with pure amusement.
He looked at the bruised and bleeding Hu Yan, then at the wolf and the fox sitting in the mud drawing circles. He let out a loud snicker.
"Lan Lan has banned you from entering the house," Xuan Long said, his voice smooth and cold.
"She said she doesn’t need you anymore. You three should stay out here and think about what you’ve done."
Before Hu Yan could roar in protest, Xuan Long covered the door again with hide.
Hu Yan stood there, stunned and speechless. He suddenly remembered Su Qinglan’s threat from earlier. She had told them the door would be locked, but he hadn’t believed her!
He thought his Lan Lan was too soft-hearted to actually leave them out in the cold.

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