ABFA Chapter 16

Many students at the military academy came from wealthy families. Even though perfume synthesized from the eggs of the blue-eyed millipede was expensive, plenty of Alphas still recklessly sprayed it on themselves in hopes of enhancing their spiritual strength.

Jiang Yue didn’t pay much attention. Just as she was about to leave the public restroom, she instinctively turned back for a glance.

On the back of that Alpha’s neck, there was a pale yellow blister about the size of a pinky fingertip. Inside the faint yellow liquid, a tiny blue dot swayed faintly.

It lasted no more than a second, Jiang Yue watched with her own eyes as a slender, pale blue leg pierced through the blister. Yellow pus trickled down the Alpha’s neck.

The Alpha finally sensed something was wrong. He reached back and scratched the back of his neck. His fingers brushed against that thin, insect-like leg and gave it a tug.

Immediately after, the Alpha leapt three feet into the air, letting out an impossibly high-pitched scream.

He saw Jiang Yue standing at the doorway, clutched his neck, and ran toward her in a panic, his voice trembling with tears. “Help me! Cut out the infection node, please, help me!”

Jiang Yue had developed a psychological trauma from the blue-eyed millipedes, so she always carried a thermal short blade when going to the hospital. Without even thinking, she swiftly drew the knife from her pocket and sliced open the back of the Alpha’s neck.

The flesh there had turned an unnatural yellow. A tangle of slender blue legs writhed in the yellow pus, burrowing along the blood vessels deeper into the tissue.

Jiang Yue didn’t have time to be gentle. She immediately switched on the heat setting of the thermal blade and used the searing tip to dig the blue-eyed millipede larva out from his flesh.

“Hold still, I’m going to clear out the infection node!”

The Alpha bit down on his sleeve, a low, beast-like groan rumbling from his throat.

By the time Jiang Yue had finished clearing out the infection node, the Alpha’s skin was torn and bloody.

She incinerated the blue-eyed millipede larva with the thermal blade, charring it into a blackened lump. The unfortunate Alpha clutched his neck, weakly thanking her. “Thank you… really, thank you. I’ll head to the infirmary now.”

Jiang Yue wiped the sweat from her forehead and let out a heavy sigh of relief.

Back in the dorm, Jiang Yue took a sip of hot water from her thermos and told her roommates what had just happened.

Xiang Sui frowned in confusion. “That shouldn’t be Song Yang’s roommate, right? I remember their whole dorm underwent inspection and pest control.”

Jiang Sen said, “Blue-eyed millipede eggs are expensive, but it’s not impossible that some student took the risk anyway. Still, something’s off, didn’t the school do a full review of the surveillance footage? They didn’t find anyone else stealing Zerg eggs. So how did he get infected?”

Bai Wang poked her head out from under the covers, eyes half-closed and drowsy, and muttered, “We should contact the advisor. If a fully developed blue-eyed millipede really shows up in the dorms, we’re screwed. Those things can grow over fifty meters long, with legs over twenty meters each. They’re just as deadly as a thermal blade.”

Jiang Yue pictured it in her mind and immediately felt too nauseated to speak.

“Then… what do we do if we actually run into a fifty-meter-long blue-eyed millipede?” she asked, forcing the question out despite her disgust.

Bai Wang replied, “Either pilot a mech and slice it into pieces, or find someone powerful enough to manifest their spiritual energy, have them directly destroy the blue-eyed millipede’s brain domain.”

Uh-oh, more unfamiliar terms again.

Jiang Yue sat down at her desk, quietly opened her terminal, and secretly searched for spiritual energy manifestation and brain domain.

Spiritual energy manifestation refers to the ability to condense spiritual power into a physical form. It’s considered an extremely powerful form of attack, and only a very small number of geniuses possess this ability.

Brain domain, on the other hand, is a term specifically created to describe the Zerg. It refers to the region of the brain that receives commands from the Zerg Brain.

In simpler terms, the Zerg Brain acts like a remote control that issues commands, while the rest of the Zerg function as combat machines that follow those commands. Within the Zerg hierarchy, the Zerg Brain’s orders are absolute, and all other Zerg obey without question.

Humans with powerful spiritual strength can destroy a Zerg’s brain domain, severing the link between the Zerg and the Zerg Brain. Once its brain domain is destroyed, the Zerg becomes a vegetative Zerg—losing all combat capabilities.

This kind of spiritual energy in humans is believed to originate from the pineal gland, though the theory is debated. Some believe that human spiritual power actually comes from an unknown dimension, a form of energy that only certain individuals can perceive and harness, turning it into a weapon for combat.

Jiang Yue had never imagined that something as intangible as spiritual power could become physical. She kept searching, but found very little information.

There were simply too few geniuses capable of manifesting spiritual power, and as a first-year student freshly enrolled in the military academy, Jiang Yue had no access to such classified information.

She shut down her terminal, pulled two dumbbells out from under her desk, and started strength training.

There was no other choice, the competition at the military academy was intense. Everyone incorporated training into their daily routine, often strapping gravity rings to their legs. These functioned similarly to sandbags but were much more compact, thin and lightweight in appearance, yet incredibly heavy in practice.

Jiang Yue had also strapped two gravity rings to her legs. Every time she took them off, she felt as light as a feather, like she could leap into the sky the very next second.

Her roommates, all in boxers, began pulling out their equipment and working out.

Only Jiang Yue and Xi Boyu remained fully dressed. Xi Boyu wore a light, dark-blue summer pajama set, the thin fabric revealing large stretches of dazzlingly pale, snow-white skin.

In his beautiful hand, he held a red grip strength trainer, casually leaning against the bed rail as he exercised his grip.

After sleeping top-to-top with him for so long, Jiang Yue had become somewhat familiar with Xi Boyu.

Because he was simply too good-looking, she used to steal glances at him whenever she could. Now that they were better acquainted, she had started admiring him openly and without shame.

Jiang Yue’s gaze lingered along the snowy white line of Xi Boyu’s neck, then drifted down to his long, slender, and equally pale legs.

Xi Boyu had long grown used to being stared at. Someone like him, always the center of attention, was bound to attract admirers. It wasn’t just Betas and Omegas; even a considerable number of Alphas, willing to play the submissive role for love, were infatuated with him.

But the cool, handsome young woman, who seemed aloof on the outside but was actually a bit silly underneath, so he didn’t find the attention unpleasant. The look in this tough yet slightly clueless female Alpha’s eyes held only pure admiration, and he didn’t mind that at all.

All six Alphas in the dorm had sharp senses. The more sensitive their noses, the harder it was to endure the chaotic blend of six different pheromones in one enclosed space.

Jiang Yue was relatively lucky, everyone’s pheromones were fairly pleasant.

Xi Boyu’s scent was that of frozen roses. His pheromones were like a luxury perfume: complex, layered, cold yet intoxicating. Jiang Yue had always thought of him as a walking diffuser.

Jiang Sen’s scent was dewy grass, incredibly fresh, the kind of smell that made you want to run straight into nature’s arms.

Xiang Sui, despite his cool and aloof demeanor, had a sea salt lemon scent that somehow carried an unexpected sweetness.

Bai Wang’s pheromones smelled of creamy vanilla, every time Jiang Yue caught a whiff, she found herself craving ice cream.

And then there was Kuri, with his fiery red hair, whose pheromones smelled like green tea, a surprising contrast that made his presence even more memorable.

As for Jiang Yue, her pheromones were hard to define with a specific scent. All anyone could say was that they felt cold, like a frigid river under a winter moon. Just one breath could make someone shiver.

Though everyone’s pheromones smelled pleasant on their own, mixed together they became overwhelming. Even with the window open, Kuri still went and opened the door to let the air clear.

Fortunately, the hallway had a well-designed ventilation system, and the air circulated quickly.

As soon as the door opened, all six Alphas in the dorm instinctively frowned in unison.

A strong scent drifted into the room, the unmistakable fragrance of blue-eyed millipede eggs.

Jiang Yue was startled. “That’s way too strong. Did someone spill an entire bottle of perfume?”

Xiang Sui muttered, “Even the dissection lab doesn’t smell this intense.”

At that moment, the door to dorm 2703 was suddenly kicked open, and someone came running out, covered in blood.

It was a female Alpha. A deep gash tore across her left arm, where a chunk of flesh had been cleanly sliced away by something razor-sharp. The wound was unnaturally smooth.

Her pants and shirt were soaked in blood, but she remained eerily calm as she reached the doorway of Jiang Yue’s dorm. Clutching her bleeding arm, she said evenly, “My roommate’s been parasitized. Do you have any spare weapons?”

Jiang Yue recognized the female Alpha, it was Zhou Xi, the class monitor from Class Three, known for her stern demeanor and no-nonsense attitude.

The moment they heard someone else had been parasitized, everyone’s expressions changed.

Ku Li immediately pulled a thermal blade from under the desk. Zhou Xi grabbed it and held it in front of her, speaking rapidly: “Out the window. All my roommates are dead. It’s a fully matured blue-eyed millipede.”

Everyone swore in unison.

Xiang Sui snapped, his voice full of frustration. “What the hell were you guys doing, just letting it hatch like that?!”

Zhou Xi replied just as fast, words sharp and breathless: “He had bed curtains. Stayed in bed all day. When I pulled the curtain back to call him for dinner, there was already a two-meter-long blue-eyed millipede lying on the bed.”

Instantly, the image hit everyone’s minds, vivid and horrifying.

Everyone was cursing as they strapped on their glider ropes. Jiang Yue had just fastened her safety lock when she looked up, and saw a two-meter-long blue-eyed millipede crawling up outside the window.

Its belly was pressed tightly against the glass. From the blue rings along its abdomen, countless tiny black tendrils extended outward, suctioning onto the window like a swarm of writhing black worms.

Jiang Yue nearly passed out on the spot.

Xiang Sui exclaimed, “What the hell are we supposed to do now?!”

Xi Boyu shouted, “Run for it!”

Everyone bolted toward the door, only to look up and see three blue-eyed millipedes, each over two meters long, slowly crawling across the ceiling of the corridor.

One of them still had a partially devoured human head clinging to its body.

Jiang Yue recognized the face, it belonged to a student from Class Two.

Everyone’s heart sank.

The dorm building had already descended into chaos, shouts and wails from students echoed nonstop through the halls.

The blue-eyed millipedes on the ceiling, startled by the noise, scurried away at lightning speed. Xi Boyu quickly slammed the dorm door shut.

The seven of them formed a tight circle, thermal blades raised high, eyes scanning the room with heightened vigilance.

No one dared make a sound. Everyone held their breath, their breathing shallow and silent.

Jiang Yue stood pressed close to Xi Boyu, clutching the thermal blade with a death grip.

Her legs were trembling, and her hands shook slightly as she held the weapon.

Cold sweat soaked her palms, so much so that she could barely keep hold of the blade’s handle.

Just as the thermal blade was about to slip from her grasp, two cold fingers suddenly clamped down hard on her trembling wrist.

The grip was so strong, it felt like her bones might crack.

A sharp jolt of pain shot through her, snapping Jiang Yue back to herself. Cold sweat soaked her back, and as she turned her head, she met Xi Boyu’s pale blue eyes.

His gaze was calm; steadily, unwaveringly calm.

Jiang Yue gritted her teeth hard, and the tremble in her body gradually stilled.

Jiang Yue exhaled slowly, straightened her back, and shifted into an attack stance.

The blue-eyed millipede clinging to the window twitched its long legs, but for the moment, it showed no intention of attacking. Then something heavy was knocked over upstairs, a loud crash echoed through the building.

The millipede outside their window immediately scurried upward at lightning speed.

The sound of shattering glass reached their ears, followed by a wave of agonized screams from the dorm room above.

Tears suddenly welled up and streamed down Jiang Yue’s face.

She didn’t dare make a sound, nor could she lower her weapon to wipe them away. All she could do was force herself to hold them back, trying not to let the blur of tears cloud her vision and hinder her in a fight.

Gritting his teeth, Xiang Sui muttered in a low, fierce voice, “Screw it, we’ll go down fighting. They’ve just matured. Live or die, doesn’t matter now. If they want a fight, we’ll give it to them.”

Just as the words left his mouth, an enormous leg suddenly smashed through the dormitory window.

Shards of glass exploded in all directions as a massive blue-eyed millipede swung its terrifying limbs and shoved its gigantic head through the window frame.

Its densely packed cluster of black compound eyes bulged together, larger than the washbasin Jiang Yue used for soaking her feet.

It turned its head slightly, and the sturdy alloy window frame instantly buckled inward.

This blue-eyed millipede was at least fifty meters long.

With razor-sharp limbs that gleamed like blades, it slashed the window frame into pieces.

Everyone’s hearts sank into ice.

The enormous blue-eyed millipede didn’t attack immediately. Instead, its dense cluster of compound eyes suddenly aligned, all those eerie, phosphorescent blue orbs focusing in unison, locking onto a single point.

They were all staring straight at Jiang Yue.

Jiang Yue was certain of it, that thing was looking at her.

She could even feel its confusion, somehow.

This was absurd. Absolutely, utterly, off-the-charts absurd.

Just as she was mentally screaming at how absurd everything was, a sharp, blinding pain suddenly tore through her head. A piercing, high-pitched vibration rang out inside her skull.

[Attack]

The blue-eyed millipede’s compound eyes shifted, and it raised its front limbs.

[Attack]

Jiang Yue screamed in her mind, “No—don’t! Stop the attack!”

At the very instant the creature lunged, something indescribable surged out from within Jiang Yue’s body.

The sensation was impossible to put into words, like a part of her being had been split off and cast outward.

The air distorted. Ripples spread through space like waves on a disturbed pond, warping reality itself.

From those invisible ripples, a massive translucent wing unfolded, so clear that Jiang Yue could see the fine, intricate patterns etched into each feather.

Was this… a dream one had right before death?

A single translucent feather drifted down and landed softly on Jiang Yue’s cheek. In that moment, everything fell silent.

The river of time itself seemed to halt for a brief instant. Light was swallowed by an unknown force, and all things were consumed by darkness and silence.

 

 

 

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