TL: Hua

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Chapter 24

“Don’t… don’t shout. I’m fine, I can still control it.”

Pei Yingye’s voice was hoarse as he raised a hand to roughly wipe the sweat from his eyes. He was preparing to reconnect to the mecha when he suddenly heard a sharp crack.

A glass test tube had slid out from Lance, who had been tossed around until he was disoriented, and shattered into fragments on the floor of the cockpit.

A strange, sickly-sweet scent exploded—like overripe fruit soaked in honey, with an underlying, unsettling metallic tang of blood.

The scent swept through the entire cockpit like a violent storm. Pei Yingye reacted quickly, covering his nose and mouth, but it was already too late.

The smell lunged into his lungs. A surge of burning heat rose in his chest, and his blood began to boil as if set ablaze. The gland at the back of his neck throbbed violently and uncontrollably, feeling as though it were being branded by a hot iron; his skin was scorching, every inch of him restless and pulsing.

“What is that thing?!”

“I—I don’t know.” Lance had clearly smelled the strange, high-impact scent as well. His face was deathly pale. “I saw the label said ‘Sample.’ I took it because it could add points!”

The veins on Pei Yingye’s temples bulged. He glared at the mess lying in the middle of the amber liquid on the floor.

Sample, my ass. This was clearly the gland of an S-grade female Zerg!

In an instant, the vibrations that had previously weakened suddenly intensified. It was as if the Zerg that had been shaken off had received a new summons; they began swarming toward their location.

The mecha, now saturated with the scent of a female Zerg’s gland, could no longer be used. Pei Yingye made the split-second decision to throw open the hatch.

The Zerg in the corridor crawled out through the large hole created by the mecha’s breach. Drawn by the scent of the gland, they swarmed like bees to occupy the abandoned mecha.

Fortunately, there were several old aircraft on the street. Lai Zhou tinkered with one for a few moments until it was barely functional.

“Over here!”

The engine gave a muffled roar. Just as the others were about to leap into the vehicle—

“Screech!”

A B-grade Zerg, the size of a wolfhound with a pitch-black carapace, pounced from a nearby water pipe, aiming straight for the back of Pei Yingye’s neck!

The Alpha, hovering on the edge of chaos, exploded with staggering combat instinct. He didn’t even turn around; relying solely on the sound of the wind and the intent to kill, he swung back with a heavy strike!

The butt of his gun brutally smashed into the Zerg’s fragile compound eyes. With a “splat!”, slime splattered.

The Zerg let out a piercing screech and was sent flying.

However, this strike had exhausted nearly the last of Pei Yingye’s strength and sanity. His body swayed, and he stumbled, crashing against the door of the aircraft.

“Are you alright?” Ji Xuan grabbed his burning arm. The Alpha pheromones hitting him were so intense they made his heart skip a beat. He shot a glance at Lance, who was staying silent out of guilt, and without a second thought, shoved Pei Yingye into the back seat.

Lance scrambled into the passenger seat. His left arm was stained with the slime of some unknown Zerg; the foul stench made even Lai Zhou wrinkle his nose instinctively.

Bang! Before the door was even fully shut, Lai Zhou floored the thrusters. The aircraft shot out like an arrow from a bow, speeding away at maximum velocity.

In just a few minutes, the city streets, rooftops, and even ruined billboards were filled with shadows of the Zerg. Hearing the roar of the engine, some of the creatures began to turn, screeching as they gave chase.

One Zerg after another leaped at the vehicle from signs and pipes. Their hard bodies slammed against the doors and windows with heart-stopping thuds. The aging glass was overtaxed, and before long, spiderweb-like cracks began to appear.

Bang! Bang!

Two gunshots rang out. Ji Xuan calmly reloaded, aiming at a fuel tank a hundred meters behind them.

Bang!

A fierce fire erupted. The surrounding Zerg were instantly blown to pieces, fragments of their limbs flying against the rear window with the blast wave.

Ji Xuan felt a weight on his waist as Pei Yingye pulled him back into the vehicle.

“Mph—!?”

His back slammed heavily against the seat. Before he could react to the spinning world around him, the Alpha’s pheromones overwhelmed him like a collapsing sky. Explosive, scalding, and filled with primal desire, they were like a trapped beast lunging about in the cramped space, desperate to escape, desperate to vent, and completely drowning out the stench of the Zerg slime.

Though Lai Zhou was a Beta with dull pheromone perception, even he could feel an uncomfortable pressure radiating from the back seat. The air inside the vehicle became heavy and viscous; the palms of his hands gripping the steering wheel began to sweat.

When he turned to reprimand Lance, his tone was uncharacteristically harsh: “This is terrifying! What the hell did you take? Why didn’t you say a word to us?!”

I earned it through my own abilities; why should I tell you?

Lance wanted to retort with this but could only manage a dry “uh…”

The closer the grades between an Alpha and Omega, the higher the degree of pheromone attraction. Although he had injected a suppressant before leaving the mecha, the Alpha’s pheromones were still relentlessly tearing at his nerves.

The way an Alpha releases pheromones is comparable to a canine marking its territory. Ji Xuan was soaked in this scent from head to toe, and the heat was making him feel a bit swept away as well. But after only a brief moment of contact, Pei Yingye withdrew the arm clamped around his waist. His burning muscles tensed rigidly; the nearly trembling force as he brushed past Ji Xuan’s waist carried a sense of childish stubbornness.

Pei Yingye’s eyelids lowered slowly, locking onto Ji Xuan’s hand resting on the black seat.

An annoying, inexplicable tattoo. Rough fingertips pressed down over it overbearingly. His fingers pushed under the cuff, slithering upward like a snake. Unprepared for the sudden movement, Ji Xuan’s wrist trembled.

Perhaps mistaking the tremor for an attempt to flee, Pei Yingye tightened his grip around Ji Xuan’s forearm.

Cool skin pressed against Pei Yingye’s fingertips, yet it did nothing to alleviate his inner heat. Primal Alpha instincts clamored savagely. He stared at Ji Xuan’s fragile, pale skin, his canine teeth aching slightly.

But his physical actions stopped there—at holding Ji Xuan’s hand. His fingers rubbed over the soft skin again and again, as if trying to soothe his own unease and restlessness.

Ji Xuan felt a slight itch from the rough texture of his fingertips and the chafing of the gloves: “Is it uncomfortable?”

Slender fingers reached across his face, the tips coming to rest on his burning earlobe.

“The gland of an S-grade female Zerg induces an Alpha’s rut…” Pei Yingye instinctively tilted his head, wanting more of the touch. Heavy breaths leaked through his clenched teeth. “…it also attracts nearby males…”

“So, are we looking for Alpha suppressants now?” Lai Zhou asked. “For that kind of thing… we’d need to go to a pharmacy or a hospital, right?”

Pei Yingye’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He felt Ji Xuan’s fingers press against the side of his neck and remained silent, suppressing himself.

“I am a 3S-grade Omega.” Lance finally regained his composure and turned to look at the back seat. “My pheromones are most effective at soothing a rut. Once we reach a safe place, I can give—”

But before he could finish, he met Ji Xuan’s icy gaze.

The upper half of the young man’s face was hidden in the shadows of the back seat; only the area below his nose was illuminated by the dim streetlights outside. His pale lips were pressed into a casual curve. His eyes, dipped in shadow, were crinkled as if he were smiling, but his pupils were a deep, abyssal black.

In that instant, it felt as if several venomous snakes had crawled up Lance’s spine; his very soul shuddered. Lance’s lips trembled as he opened his mouth repeatedly. After a few seconds, he still stubbornly gritted his teeth and said, “If we can’t find a suppressant, he simply won’t…”

“I actually really want to kill you right now.”

Ji Xuan said coldly, “So please shut up. Don’t let that thought cross my mind again.”

–

Before today, Lance Vaughn would never have believed Ji Xuan’s words. But after seeing him ruthlessly slit an Alpha’s throat with nothing but a dagger, he truly understood that the other man had the capability to kill him on the spot.

And neither Pei Yingye nor Lai Zhou would stop him.

Though Lance trembled with rage at the threat, he could only lean back into the passenger seat dejectedly, his face flushed a dark, angry red as he stopped speaking.

Half an hour later, the aircraft finally burst into the backyard of an abandoned church.

Pei Yingye pushed open the side door and stormed inside, slamming the door to the prayer room shut.

Ji Xuan scouted the surroundings to ensure there were no signs of Zerg or other teams. He then had Lai Zhou hand-assemble a few alarm devices and simple traps in the yard before entering the chapel with him.

“I think we still need to find a suppressant,” Lai Zhou said to Ji Xuan, looking toward the closed wooden door of the prayer room. “An Alpha’s rut isn’t that easy to get through. If he’s still like this tomorrow morning, we’ll fall behind schedule. Besides, having Brother Pei fight while he’s compromised isn’t ideal.”

Ji Xuan raised his eyelids and looked at him calmly, signaling for him to continue.

“I checked, and there should be a small town nearby. Surely some ‘people’ would keep suppressants at home? I’ll head out and look. What if I find some?”

“The Zerg are still active at night. If you run into them, can you handle it?” Ji Xuan asked. “I can’t split my attention to look after both sides.”

Hearing this, Lai Zhou rubbed his nose awkwardly.

“I’ll go check on him.” Ji Xuan reached out and touched his shoulder reassuringly. “Don’t worry about this. Go get some rest.”

Lai Zhou opened his mouth as if to say more, but seeing Ji Xuan turn and walk away, he swallowed his words.

The church’s ground floor had only one prayer room; Lance had gone up to the choir room on the second floor.

When Lai Zhou went upstairs, he hesitated at the top of the staircase for a moment. He seemed to want to discuss the feasibility of going out to find suppressants again. Before he could speak, he saw Ji Xuan walk up to the prayer room and knock.

Ji Xuan had washed his hands in the washroom but hadn’t dried them; a few water droplets were left on the door panel. After a few seconds, the door was pulled open by a crack. The person inside seemed to say something, and then Ji Xuan was yanked inside.

The wooden door slammed shut. The booming sound startled Lai Zhou. He hesitated for a few seconds and dashed downstairs to check on the situation but was deterred by another muffled thud against the door panel.

With Ji Xuan’s combat prowess… he should be fine, right? He thought secretly. He even beat Pei Yingye in the combat assessment, didn’t he? Although an Alpha in rut might have a massive spike in strength due to mating instincts, Ji Xuan wasn’t a pushover.

Lai Zhou spent half a minute persuading himself, but after thinking for a moment, he decided to stay on the pew for the whole night.

He was sacrificing too much for this family.jpg

–

Inside the prayer room, the air was stiflingly hot.

Thud—!

The heavy sound exploded in the room, making the wooden door panels vibrate.

Ji Xuan’s back went numb from the impact. He knit his brows but didn’t make a sound.

Pei Yingye’s hands were braced on either side of his shoulders, his arm muscles bulging in a near-restrictive posture. He had already stripped off his combat jacket, leaving only a tank top underneath. Sweat drenched his neck and chest, soaking the collar into a darker shade. His out-of-control pheromones had turned into a tidal wave, surging over Ji Xuan.

“Why did you knock? Why did you come to me?” Pei Yingye pressed against his neck like a lost hound, his messy hair rubbing against Ji Xuan’s exposed skin. Heavy breaths were suppressed within his low, hoarse voice. “…Do you know what it means to deliver yourself to an Alpha during his rut?”

Of course he knew.

The saturated pheromones in the air seemed to seep into Ji Xuan’s flesh and blood bit by bit.

This was an experience entirely unlike the pheromone resistance tests.

The Alliance’s physiology textbooks said that a low-grade Omega could easily have their desires stirred by any Alpha, yet could not be easily marked by them. But since Ji Xuan arrived in this world, he hadn’t felt any discomfort because of this sudden attribute.

What was generally true didn’t necessarily apply to him.

Only today was the first time that, under the influence of Pei Yingye’s pheromones, he experienced a slight, dizzying heat.

However, he truly did like this scent.

It was like an expansive, unbridled wilderness, fitting Pei Yingye’s name perfectly[1].

Ji Xuan raised his hand, his fingertips brushing against Pei Yingye’s neck. Just as he had done in the vehicle earlier, his cool skin pressed gently against the restless pulse—partly as a comfort, partly as a provocation. His fingertips traced around the side of Pei Yingye’s neck and lightly touched the gland; the Alpha let out an involuntary, muffled groan.

“Ji Xuan…” Pei Yingye squeezed out through gritted teeth, “…stop touching it, it’s unbearable.”

“My pheromones have no scent, and my ability to soothe an Alpha is lackluster at best,” Ji Xuan said indifferently, his palm resting against the gland. “This is all I can give you.”

“If you want it, I can stay and help you,” he said. “If not—”

Before he could finish, the Alpha’s rough palm suddenly seized his waist. A cold wind leaked in through the cracks of the stained-glass window, and Ji Xuan shivered involuntarily.

“…Hm?”

In the darkness, he could only see the Alpha’s eyes, as excited as a falcon’s. His feet left the ground; he didn’t know where he was being carried by the waist until he was placed on what seemed to be a wooden platform. Ji Xuan’s fingertips felt around and bumped into several cross-shaped objects, which made a clinking sound.

The Alpha’s burning gaze swept over his eyes, over his lips, and finally settled on his slender neck. He said, word by word, “What makes you think I wouldn’t want it?”

His voice became slurred and husky. His hot, damp breath puffed against Ji Xuan’s neck again and again, his scorching gaze almost tangible as it swept back and forth between Adam’s apple and gland. Pei Yingye buried his head, his lips brushing against the pulsing blood vessels. Just as his canines were about to sink into the skin, Ji Xuan suddenly reached out and gripped the back of his neck.

Ji Xuan’s eyelids were half-lowered. His fingertips slid upward slowly through the sweat-dampened hair and suddenly yanked the hair at the back of the Alpha’s head.

“—Ssh.”

Pei Yingye let out a muffled grunt, his back snapping rigid. The breath wandering over Ji Xuan’s neck halted. His Adam’s apple rolled with difficulty as his eyes gazed at Ji Xuan with a mix of confusion and longing.

“Want to bite?”

Ji Xuan’s pheromones drifted out—a crisp, cold, snow-like scent that was quickly swallowed by the surging Alpha pheromones. Pei Yingye’s fingertips curled from the effort of suppression, firmly gripping Ji Xuan’s waist, yet he did not dare take a step further.

Ji Xuan pinched his jaw, forcing him to look up.

Their breaths mingled. The desire in the Alpha’s eyes was like a dark tide churning beneath the sea—damp, deep, and greedy.

“It’s hard, I know.” Ji Xuan’s fingertips lightly brushed over his burning ear, his voice soft. “I’ve already given you the pheromones, so—”

“Be good and stay still. You aren’t allowed to bite me.”

Pei Yingye’s chest heaved violently, and his grip on Ji Xuan’s waist tightened. After a long silence, a blurred, muffled “Okay” escaped his throat. Then, he closed his eyes tightly, forcing himself to shift his attention away from that snowy-white patch of neck.

His forehead rested against Ji Xuan’s shoulder. His breathing was scorching and erratic, his entire being teetering on the edge between restraint and losing control.

Ji Xuan patted his head, then moved his hand to his back, giving him a couple of light, airy pats.

“It’s okay. Tomorrow, or the day after, I’ll help you get revenge.”

…

Pei Yingye’s agitation gradually subsided.

Ji Xuan’s feet finally touched the ground. He rubbed his fingertips; they were practically marinated in the scent of Pei Yingye’s pheromones—

A mixture of bergamot freshness with a slight bitterness and a hint of warm spice. It was like a burning wilderness: vast, rugged, with the scent of sun and fire leaving a smoky trail on the rocks.

He raised his hand to sniff it and couldn’t help but cough; it was a bit pungent.

After straightening his disheveled clothes, Ji Xuan inconspicuously rubbed his fingertips together before reopening the door to the prayer room. In the chapel, Lai Zhou was curled up on a pew, sleeping soundly. Seemingly hearing the sound of the door, he sat up with a start. His eyes were bleary with sleep, and he couldn’t even fully open his eyelids as he looked toward Ji Xuan in a daze.

“Why are you sleeping here?” Ji Xuan asked as he stood still.

Lai Zhou let out a muddy yawn and rubbed his eyes. His lips moved, but he couldn’t very well say it was because he was worried something might happen between the two of them.

His vision, cleared by the rubbing, swept over Ji Xuan’s neck and instantly locked onto the bright red patch of skin beside his Adam’s apple. Lai Zhou’s breath hitched, and he was suddenly wide awake. Yet Ji Xuan seemed entirely oblivious, merely smoothing his collar in a leisurely manner, with no intention of covering it up.

Consequently, Lai Zhou could only ask dryly, “…You, uh, is Pei Yingye okay?”

“Sleeping,” Ji Xuan replied. “Should be fine now.”

A cough came from upstairs. Lance had likely been startled awake by the wind, or perhaps he hadn’t slept at all.

Ji Xuan was silent for a moment before suddenly speaking: “Let’s take turns resting. Come relieve me in a while.”

Having said that, he walked toward the stained-glass window.

The church appeared somewhat lonely in the night. The whistling sound of the wind drifted in faintly through the colored glass.

The wind swept over the low walls of the courtyard, passed through the Zerg tide still migrating in the South District, and blew into the night at the other end of the map. Firelight flickered within ruined buildings like eyes quietly snapping open.

Ji Yan and his group had also just survived a narrow escape from a Zerg tide. The slime and blood that splattered when the Zerg died covered everyone, smelling foul and stinky. Fortunately, there was some water in this residential building, so the four of them briefly cleaned themselves up.

Shaikh sat in a corner, half his face hidden in darkness, gently wiping the gun in his hand. By the fire, Shen Que stared intently at the map, seemingly studying the route for tomorrow.

A mecha crouched quietly behind them, covered in various types of damage; it could no longer be started due to the brutal battle during the day.

Their drop point was another military zone. The team had obtained abundant supplies and equipment, and as a result, their points were far ahead of everyone else.

It was just a bit of a pity. The Alpha paired with Shaikh was one Ji Yan had found on short notice. Although his mental power level and combat assessment scores were decent, he was still a step behind Pei Yingye.

If they had managed to recruit Pei Yingye back then…

Perhaps winning first place in this full-domain simulation would have been even easier.

Ji Yan glanced at Shen Que. His gaze landed on Shen Que’s arm, where a bit of blood was seeping from the edge of his rolled-up sleeve. It was unclear when he had been injured.

“Brother Que,” Ji Yan leaned forward with an anxious expression and grabbed his injured hand. “Let me treat that for you. It’ll get infected easily like this.”

Shen Que looked down and said, “It’s just a scratch. No need.”

“What if? There are still two days left. What if it gets inflamed? Besides, we have plenty of medicine. I’ll just disinfect it for you.” Ji Yan looked at him expectantly. “I was supposed to be your medic anyway, and I didn’t get to do much today. Just let me help.”

Hearing the commotion, Shaikh raised his eyelids and glanced dismissively between the two of them. Curling his lips, he chimed in, “That’s right, Young Master Shen. Since he wants to help you so much, don’t let his kindness go to waste.”

Shen Que turned and glared at Shaikh.

The latter shrugged, looking at him with an innocent yet sly expression.

“Childhood sweethearts are so nice—” He rubbed the body of his gun and sighed with a smile. “When will I get to drink at your engagement party?”

“Shaikh, don’t talk nonsense,” Shen Que warned him.

“Ah, my apologies.” A look of sudden realization slowly appeared on Shaikh’s face. “I forgot. The one you have an engagement with is the other one. Why is it that I can never remember? It’s quite pitiful for childhood sweethearts to be torn apart… When do you plan to break off the engagement with Ji Xuan?”

Ji Yan silently finished disinfecting Shen Que’s wound, his movements so meticulous they were almost cautious. Hardly any emotion could be seen on his face, as if the protagonist being discussed in Shaikh’s words had nothing to do with him.

While applying the sterile dressing, his fingertips lightly brushed Shen Que’s skin, only to pull back instantly as if he had been burned.

Shen Que said nothing; he only moved his arm away imperceptibly.

“That is my business. It has nothing to do with you.”

Shaikh’s hand paused, the smile in his eyes spreading: “A low-grade Omega can release negligible pheromones; he can’t help you anyway. I’m just looking out for you. After all, a rut is truly hard to endure without an Omega’s help.”

Shen Que gave a cold snort and didn’t speak.

Having reached his quota for being annoying, Shaikh hummed a few short melodies and stopped paying attention to Shen Que.

However, his gaze soon landed on a corner of the map projected on the wall. He murmured, “I wonder where my brothers have reached. I really want to meet them.”

–

Pei Yingye had a sleep that was neither particularly good nor bad.

Ji Xuan had left him directly on the altar last night. The sprawling posture made his whole body ache, but fortunately, all those reactions from the rut had subsided.

He thought of last night, of Ji Xuan’s body temperature and that faint, cold fragrance. He had buried himself in the other’s neck, sniffing greedily, yet his hunger was insatiable; nothing felt like enough.

So he placed his hand on the back of Ji Xuan’s neck and touched the hair that Ji Xuan had shortened for the assessment. It was tied in a very short little bun at the back of his head, and it felt fluffy and soft to the touch, but it also made one feel a sense of regret.

However, not long after that feeling of regret arose, Pei Yingye’s hand was smacked by Ji Xuan.

He said: Don’t touch.

Pei Yingye was indignant.

Not allowed to bite, not allowed to touch. Obviously Ji Xuan was the one who knocked on the door.

One couldn’t be too fastidious during an assessment. Pei Yingye went to the washroom, used some water to clean himself up, and when he came out, he only saw Lai Zhou and Lance sitting far apart at opposite ends of a pew.

Lai Zhou: “You okay now, Brother Pei?”

Pei Yingye nodded.

On the other end, Lance looked over at him. Seeing that Pei Yingye didn’t even intend to look at him, his lips moved a few times before he finally spoke: “I’m sorry about yesterday. But I really didn’t do it on purpose. I didn’t know that was a female Zerg’s gland…”

Pei Yingye still didn’t look at him, only asking, “Where’s Ji Xuan?”

“This morning, he said he was going to check out the nearby houses and would be back soon,” Lai Zhou replied.

Pei Yingye frowned. “You just let him go alone?”

Lai Zhou looked bewildered. “Huh? Is it even up to me to disagree?”

“I’m a defenseless Beta. If I followed him, I’d be the one in danger.”

Pei Yingye rubbed his brow helplessly. Just as he was about to walk to the window to take a look, he heard Lance suddenly speak:

“You have Ji Xuan’s pheromones on you.”

Pei Yingye turned around impatiently, looking like a loitering rogue with a “So what?” attitude.

First being threatened, then being ignored. Lance had been a young master surrounded by people since childhood; when had he ever suffered such indignity?

“Yesterday I said I could help you, and he threatened me…” Lance paused, and as if getting angrier as he spoke, he actually laughed. All the emotions suppressed throughout the previous day erupted now as he glared at Pei Yingye. “In the end, it was actually because he wanted to take advantage of the situation himself… Ha, Pei Yingye, surely you’re aware that he still has an engagement with Shen Que? He’s not satisfied with having one 3S; he has to seduce another. Truly quite the talent. Why didn’t I know he was so calculating before?”

Pei Yingye’s expression darkened.

Lai Zhou tried to stop Lance from continuing, only to be told to “get lost.”

“I truly have the worst luck to be assigned to the same group as you people…”

“That’s what I should be saying.” Pei Yingye looked at him coldly. “Do you know how I usually deal with it when I’m matched with a teammate like you?”

Lance had seen all the simulated training videos of the Combat Department from this year; how could he not know?

“If it weren’t for the rule that points are halved for eliminating a teammate, I would have taken care of you in the mecha without even waiting for Ji Xuan to make a move—” Pei Yingye’s lips curled into a sudden smile. This smile was different from his usual ones; his brow lowered, the smile didn’t reach his eyes, and there was a chilling light in his blue eyes. The slight twitch of his facial muscles gave off a weird, sinister vibe. “No, even earlier, back at the military zone.”

“I advise you to stay in line,” Pei Yingye said. “At the very least, I can guarantee you’ll reach first place in the Full-domain Simulation while lying down. But if you cause any more trouble…”

The Alpha’s mental power spread out. A sensation of a scorching sun wrapped in a biting frost-laden atmosphere instantly descended. Pei Yingye had retracted the intent to suppress, and the blatant, sharp aggressiveness in his mental power could be clearly felt.

Click—

The side door of the church was pushed open.

Pei Yingye turned around, and the moment his eyes landed on the newcomer, his mental power instantly retracted.

Ji Xuan closed the door and walked straight toward the pews. Sensing the unusual atmosphere, he quirked an eyebrow and tossed the food he’d scavenged onto the wooden table.

“What are you standing there for?” Ji Xuan’s gaze drifted lightly over Pei Yingye’s face as he crooked a finger at him. “Come here.”

Pei Yingye paused, his aura of hostility folding away as he walked toward him at an unhurried pace.

Ji Xuan glanced at Lance, who looked sickly; the latter’s jaw tightened instantly as he turned his head away with a dark expression to avoid the gaze.

Turning back to Pei Yingye, Ji Xuan asked, “Feeling better?”

He reached out and rested his hand on the side of Pei Yingye’s neck. He felt the Alpha’s throat roll with difficulty, the Adam’s apple grazing the skin of his palm. The temperature was indeed much lower than last night.

“Better than ever,” Pei Yingye responded, staring straight at him with lowered eyes.

The morning outdoor temperature was quite low, and the cold wind had left Ji Xuan’s face somewhat pale. The sunlight streaming through the window wasn’t warm, making his skin look almost translucent. His long, thick lashes cast a shadow under his eyes. It was unclear if it was a reflection or something else, but there was a faint shimmer of gold above his upper lip, making one want to lean down and get a taste.

“Good.” Ji Xuan’s thumb brushed imperceptibly over Pei Yingye’s mole before he withdrew his hand. “Go right from here; there’s a new aircraft in the third building. After breakfast, we’re going to hijack a mecha.”

—

There were four military zones on the map with a total of twelve mechas. However, whether by system design or sheer luck, every mecha they encountered on the road was either scrapped or abandoned due to various malfunctions.

The only one they managed to seize broke down shortly after hitting the road, forcing them to return and drive the aircraft again.

“I bet the examiners are playing with us. ‘Limited-edition military mechas’ are just a trick to make everyone fight in the early stages. If anyone actually kept a mecha until the last two days, they’d just be on a mindless killing spree,” Lai Zhou muttered while driving, guessing the logic of the higher-ups.

On the other hand, if everyone’s mechas couldn’t survive past the second day, losing that abandoned one yesterday didn’t seem so tragic.

Two hours later.

The aircraft shook off the C-grade Zerg corpse hanging from the rearview mirror and sped up a low slope. The desolate and vast architectural layout of the East District spread out before them.

Due to the special settings of the simulation system, the East District was the area with the densest distribution of Zerg nests on the entire map. Even from a distance, one could see the abandoned buildings covered in Zerg secretions; solidified carapaces and blood clung to the reinforced concrete like scabs.

The air was a mix of blood and decay. Crows, startled by gunfire, flapped their wings and flew past, leaving behind a series of hoarse cries.

“That team… looks like Shen Que and the others?” Lai Zhou leaned out the driver’s window, scanning the streets below with binoculars. He had only intended to study the Zerg distribution but didn’t expect to run into acquaintances. “Their equipment is great; it looks like they had a big harvest yesterday.”

Pei Yingye raised a hand to signal Lai Zhou while lazily extending his other hand out the window, tapping his fingers rhythmically against the door. The latter understood instantly and handed over the binoculars. Pei Yingye squinted through them for a while, looking like a leopard evaluating the fatness of its prey.

“Are we going down to screw with them?” Lai Zhou asked.

Ji Xuan glanced at Pei Yingye, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

Through the binoculars, Pei Yingye saw several Zerg corpses piled haphazardly in the shadows of a street corner. Sunlight reflected off the group: Shaikh was leisurely wiping Zerg slime off his gun, Shen Que was calmly studying their direction, and Ji Yan seemed to have just emerged from behind some crates, eyeing the surroundings with caution and fear.

“Why are you always thinking about fighting and killing…” He let out a light laugh, his tone dismissive. “Wait until they’re fattened up before we slaughter them.”

With that, he withdrew his gaze and turned to ask for Ji Xuan’s opinion.

Ji Xuan remained expressionless, toying with a combat knife he’d found in the church last night. Sensing Pei Yingye’s gaze, he gave a faint, “Mm.”

This near-indulgent attitude made Pei Yingye’s smile widen. He leaned back boldly, his tone playful: “I’m saying I’m going to go after my brother, your brother, and that fiancé of yours. You won’t mind, will you?”

Ji Xuan’s movements stopped.

He slowly raised his eyes, looking at Pei Yingye with a gentle gaze, as if he had long since seen through the Alpha’s childish provocations. His face, however, remained rippleless as he tossed out three light words: “As you wish.”

But as the last word fell, his tone went up slightly at the end, like a feather brushing against Pei Yingye’s body.

The nest to the south had already been cleared by Ji Yan’s team; going down there would be futile. After a brief discussion, the three decided to bypass them and enter the East District through the north entrance.

Zerg tracks were sparser in the north than the south. There were no more small C-grade swarms like the ones they saw from the ridge, but every Zerg that appeared was significantly more grotesque and ferocious than its counterparts elsewhere. The aircraft bumped along through the ruins, its exhaust trailing a black streak in the air. Upon reaching a relatively open intersection, their path was suddenly blocked by several B-grade Zerg.

Pei Yingye was the first to jump out. Before he had even fully stabilized himself, the submachine gun in his hand was already roaring.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

He steadied the high-recoil gun with one arm, every bullet landing cleanly on the Zerg’s weak points. The specialized warheads exploded inside the creatures, sending limbs and carapaces encased in slime flying everywhere.

In truth, his body hadn’t fully recovered, yet his movements remained wild. He advanced with large strides while firing, the muzzle flash and the piercing sunlight reflecting in his arrogant eyes.

When ambushed from the side, he didn’t even turn his primary weapon; instead, he drew a handgun from his thigh holster with his other hand. Without looking, relying purely on instinct, he blew the pouncing Zerg apart midair.

Following closely behind, Lai Zhou felt incredibly secure, even thinking that being a “delicate Beta” under such protection for the rest of his life might not be so bad.

However, the next second, he watched Ji Xuan pull a combat knife out of the head of a Zerg that had tried to ambush them from behind an old billboard. Ji Xuan flicked the slime off with a crisp motion, his expression as indifferent as if he were brushing away a fallen leaf. Lai Zhou decided that as a technical specialist, he should probably pull himself together a bit. After all, being protected by a beautiful Omega was a slightly embarrassing thing to brag about as a Beta.

The path became littered with more weapon fragments and damaged equipment, some bearing marks of acid corrosion or tearing, silently testifying to how brutally previous intruders had died.

“Looks like the people who came through the north side before had very bad luck.” Lance kicked a twisted gun barrel stained with dried blood. “We should have just gone south. I hope we don’t follow in their—”

Before he could finish, Pei Yingye blew the head off the last Zerg blocking the way. Dark green fluid splattered against a nearby broken electrical box. He ejected the empty magazine with one hand and shoved it into his backpack without looking; simultaneously, a new magazine clicked into the slot with a crisp clack.

He tilted his head and shot a glance at Lance: “Stop talking nonsense and keep up.”

The rest of Lance’s sentence stuck in his throat, his face turning a shade of pale green. He didn’t talk back to Pei Yingye but followed at the rear with obvious reluctance, deliberately stomping his feet to kick the gravel, venting his dissatisfaction in a childish manner.

Yet, no one was in the mood to deal with a young master’s tantrum right now.

As they went deeper, the cityscape began to change. The ruined buildings became sparser, and the field of vision opened up. A massive structure, like a sleeping beast, loomed before them.

The building was completely out of place with its surroundings, presenting a solemn grey-black color. Massive structural damage had torn through its shell, and the exposed steel frame twisted and pointed towards the sky.

Lai Zhou froze, seemingly recognizing the distinct architecture. He blurted out instinctively, “…Is this place the training center of the former North Star Fortress?”

After saying it, he carefully scrutinized the building’s facade. Confirming his suspicion, he said with a mix of disgust and disbelief, “Mars Military Academy charges so much tuition, yet they can’t afford to pay someone to model a new map for the simulation? They actually got lazy and just moved the abandoned fortress in here?!”

Pei Yingye teased, “Maybe it’s just someone who’s getting paid to slack off.”

Ji Xuan asked, “You know this place?”

Lai Zhou said, “I’ve actually been here. You know about the accident at the original North Star Fortress site four years ago, right? Unluckily, I was one of the poor souls trapped in the simulator when the Zerg attacked.”

Ji Xuan didn’t actually know much about the North Star Fortress accident. He was about to signal Pei Yingye for an explanation when he noticed the Alpha was staring at the building, appearing somewhat lost in thought.

However, no one but Ji Xuan noticed his momentary lapse.

“But I was one of the lucky ones; I was rescued after a few days. I heard the worst case was General Ying Xun’s son, who was trapped inside for a month. The general’s spouse nearly tore down both the preparatory school and the fortress headquarters,” Lai Zhou mused, recalling the scene. “The map back then was a wilderness jungle. I don’t even want to remember how I survived, let alone that friend who stayed for a month. I can’t imagine what kind of hellish survival he went through.”

Pei Yingye withdrew his gaze and said nonchalantly, “Maybe he’d like to know too.”

Ji Xuan’s gaze lingered on his profile for a few seconds. Although Pei Yingye’s tone was his usual casual drawl, Ji Xuan keenly captured a flash of complex emotion in his eyes.

But he didn’t press further.

“This area belongs to E-34. Shall we go in?”

“Sure, let’s make it quick.” Pei Yingye shouldered his gun and tilted his chin toward the dark, torn entrance of the building. “But putting such a conspicuous building here… even without a map, anyone can guess there’s a Zerg nest inside.”

The interior of the training center was even larger than it looked from the outside. The main corridor was flanked by countless room doors, most of them damaged, looking like wide-open mouths screaming. In the center of the hall, thousands of white capsule pods were lined up neatly. Sunlight cast pillars of light through the cracks and holes in the roof. These light pillars wove through the capsules, creating a dense web of spider silk, making the pods look like gestating cocoons.

Everything was silent and eerie. Cold, damp air mixed with the whistling wind to chill one to the bone.

“This is a total replica of how the fortress looked after it was invaded…” Lai Zhou’s voice echoed ethereally in the vast space, startling even himself.

Ji Xuan’s footsteps were as light as a cat’s as he silently passed a few mummified A-grade Zerg corpses. When he reached one of the simulation pods, he suddenly stopped.

Whether it was a random spawn or something that was supposed to be in the training center, a test tube lay there quietly. The amber liquid inside shimmered with an eerie light in the dimness.

It looked very much like the thing from yesterday.

Ji Xuan picked it up. He didn’t put it away immediately but rubbed the cool glass wall with his thumb.

[Points +50, Personal Contribution 100%]

Lance, standing further away, immediately noticed the change in points and whipped his head around.

In an instant, his gaze was nailed to Ji Xuan’s hand, and the color drained from his face.

Ji Xuan calmly met his terrified gaze—no evasion, no hiding. Instead, he lightly tossed the test tube in his hand, moving slowly and deliberately, as if he were merely holding an ordinary object.

Or perhaps, he was showing it to him on purpose.

Lance felt a chill rush from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. A hair-raising sense of crisis exploded in his heart.

“I seem to have picked up a female Zerg gland as well.”

The words were meant for the other two, but his gaze remained fixed on Lance’s deathly pale face.

After speaking, Ji Xuan unhurriedly placed the test tube into his combat jacket pocket.

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[1] Ye (野) in Pei Yingye’s name means field, plain, or wilderness.

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