TL: Hua

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Chapter 37

The room’s furnishings were simple: two bunk beds with iron frames separated by an aisle so narrow that two people passing each other would feel crowded. At the end of the aisle was a small desk. Dust danced in the glow of the sunset, and a faint damp scent lingered in the air.

Ji Xuan casually chose a bed on one side and leisurely began placing his items into the corresponding wardrobe. Because he couldn’t bear the intense hunger brought on by an afternoon of data grinding, Pei Yingye had already run off to the cafeteria to get food.

The weather at North Star Fortress was unlike that of the capital planet. Not long after he left, a rainstorm arrived out of nowhere.

When the first rumble of thunder exploded overhead, Ji Xuan flinched instinctively. Charred earth, lightning-shattered branches, and chaotic purple bolts flashed uncontrollably before his eyes. The thunder roared in his ears, and his body felt heavily pinned to the ground, as heavy as lead.

His right hand tightly gripped the Que Yue sword, which had developed visible cracks. The blood seeping from his palm meandered down the hilt over the dull, clouded blade. He tried tentatively to prop up his knees, but he was still pinned firmly to the ground.

A brief dizziness washed over him, leaving only a distant, sharp ringing in his ears.

Ji Xuan propped himself up against the iron bar of the bed to stand steady. The purple-white lightning flashing outside the window dazed his eyes once more.

The days before coming to this world felt like a lifetime ago. He thought he had mostly forgotten, but it turned out those memories would still haunt him at unexpected moments.

Ji Xuan gave a bitter laugh.

The next second, the dormitory door was pushed open with a “clang,” and a gust of cold, wet wind filled with water vapor rushed inside.

“Damn, this rain…”

Pei Yingye stood soaking wet at the door, his black hair plastered against his temples and forehead, with water droplets continuously streaming down from the ends. The two meal boxes he held were wrapped in waterproof cloth and shielded so well that they hadn’t suffered a single drop of rain. However, his clothes were a disaster; the drenched fabric clung tightly to his body, outlining his fluid muscle lines; a puddle quickly formed at his feet.

He strode toward the table and set down the two meal boxes. Perhaps finding the clothes sticking to him unbearable, he ripped off his top in a few swift motions and tossed it haphazardly onto a nearby chair.

Instantly, the young Alpha’s fit upper body was exposed to the dormitory’s somewhat dim light. Water droplets slid down his well-defined abs, disappearing into the waistband of his trousers. His muscles, sculpted by long-term high-intensity training, were full of vigorous power and vitality; his skin was slightly flushed from the stimulation of the cold rain and his brief sprint, giving off faint wisps of steam.

“It’s freezing. I’m going to take a shower first; if you’re hungry, go ahead and eat,” he grumbled, walking toward the tiny bathroom, his soaked combat boots leaving a trail of wet prints on the floor.

But likely because he hadn’t received a response, he instinctively paused as he passed by Ji Xuan. Sensing something was off, he leaned over and asked, “What’s wrong with you?”

Ji Xuan’s hand gripping the bedrail slid down unobtrusively. When he looked up, his thin lips were an unusual, pale white, and a faint tooth mark seemed to be etched into his lower lip.

The lightning flashed again outside the window, illuminating his face. His peach blossom eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly, and a few indescribable emotions flickered in his brightened eyes. But he parted his lips, his tongue tracing over his dry, stinging lips, and when he spoke, his tone was as calm as usual. “It’s nothing. I probably just stood up too fast and got a bit dizzy.”

Pei Yingye stared at him suspiciously for a few seconds.

Ji Xuan, however, had already stabilized himself with the support of the iron rail. He leaned half against it, his gaze drifting lazily over Pei Yingye’s bare waist and abdomen, his voice slow: “How is it that some people, who were acting all bashful and unwilling to live together an hour ago, are suddenly being so open now?”

Knowing full well this was a deliberate tactic to change the subject, Pei Yingye’s attention was still involuntarily derailed for a moment. He looked down at his own bare chest, then looked up to meet Ji Xuan’s feigned nonchalance, and the tips of his ears inexplicably heated up.

Yet, his face showed none of the embarrassment of being teased; instead, he crossed his arms and leaned back against the iron rail behind him. “Didn’t you say it yourself? You can’t eat me.”

Ji Xuan chuckled, offering no response to that, and instead said, “Alright, didn’t you say you were going to shower?”

Guessing that Ji Xuan didn’t want to tell him, Pei Yingye finally pushed himself off the bedrail and, without another word, headed straight for the bathroom. The frosted glass door closed behind him, cutting off whoever’s gaze, and soon, the sound of splashing water echoed from within.

Ji Xuan brushed back his hair, which was slightly damp with sweat, his eyes lingering on the soaked clothes on the chair back before falling to the meal boxes on the table. After a while, he walked over, unwrapped the waterproof packaging, took out the food, and arranged it neatly on the table.

The steam from the food mixed with the lingering damp chill in the air. Vaguely, there seemed to be a very faint scent of Pei Yingye’s pheromones. Ji Xuan raised the setting on his neck collar—due to fortress regulations, he was forced to keep this annoying thing buckled around his neck, but now, he had to rely on it to block the physiological impact of Alpha pheromones on his terrible, low-grade character setting.

By the time Pei Yingye emerged from the bathroom, Ji Xuan had completely recovered from his earlier lapse and was sitting at the table slowly enjoying a portion of the dinner. Pei Yingye didn’t push him further; instead, he rolled up his sleeves, pulled over a chair, and sat down next to Ji Xuan.

The table was tiny, so the two of them were forced to sit very close. Leaning down slightly to eat meant their arms would brush, and their thighs bumped into each other from time to time.

Pei Yingye ate while gazing at the rain outside. The thunder had stopped, but the rain continued to pitter-patter down.

“The weather at the fortress is just like this. It’s really annoying.”

Ji Xuan gave a soft “Mm” in response.

“But being sent to logistics means we can’t get our hands on the sophisticated combat gear at the front. Do you regret being tricked into coming here by me?” Pei Yingye asked with a grin.

Ji Xuan said, “I’m the one who made the decision; what does it have to do with you? Besides, the only one who should be regretting it is you.”

Pei Yingye didn’t care at all and used Ji Xuan’s own logic to counter him: “Well, the decision to follow you was also my own, so there’s nothing to regret.”

“Besides, the training period is quite long. Worst case scenario, we’ll fight our way up from the Material Allocation Office and show those chauvinistic Alphas what we’re made of.”

Ji Xuan looked at the face so close to his own, clearly seeing his reflection in those unyielding blue eyes and feeling the warmth of the other’s breath.

He laughed softly. “Quite the lofty ambition.”

Then he tapped on the table. “Hurry up and eat, future Star of the Fortress. The food is getting cold.”

After dinner and a short rest, Ji Xuan went to wash up as well. He sat in a chair drying his hair, draped in an oversized white shirt that fluttered with the hot air of the hair dryer. The top buttons were left undone, exposing the black collar on his neck to the air.

Pei Yingye was halfway through tidying up the bed when he was distracted by a fleeting glimpse of a scene, and his throat went dry.

As a result, his bed-making became even more frantic, causing the already fragile bed slats to bang loudly under his handling.

It wasn’t until Ji Xuan had dried his hair and lay down in bed that he noticed Pei Yingye, having finished making his bed, was actually researching the operation manual Chen Shuo had sent on his terminal.

An Alpha trained for the valiant front lines had never attempted the tedious, trivial work of logistics, yet after being worn down for an entire afternoon, he still had the heart for extra training. Ji Xuan let out a mischievous laugh and turned over to face away from him.

Only the sound of steady breathing remained in the dorm. Pei Yingye involuntarily lowered the rhythm of his own breath, feeling the peace granted by the damn system.

As the night deepened, the brief silence following the rain was broken once more by a new round of thunderstorms. The thunder at night came even more ferociously, as if trying to hammer the entire fortress apart.

Following a blinding flash of lightning, a clap of thunder exploded by their ears like a giant cannon, making the windows rattle.

Pei Yingye turned his head, originally intending to look at the situation outside, but he keenly sensed Ji Xuan’s body hidden in the darkness trembling very slightly.

It was a truly tiny movement; if not for a 3S-grade Alpha’s night vision, he wouldn’t have discovered the anomaly at all.

Another bolt of lightning tore through the night sky, momentarily illuminating the room.

Almost instinctively, Pei Yingye threw off his blanket and rustled out of bed.

By the time he realized it, he was already clutching his blanket and dragging his pillow, striding a few steps to Ji Xuan’s bedside. The sudden proximity caused Ji Xuan’s back to instantly go taut. Realizing that Pei Yingye hadn’t just passed by by accident and had no intention of leaving, Ji Xuan turned his head after a few seconds, using the light from the lightning to make out Pei Yingye’s silhouette in the dark.

Before Ji Xuan could speak, Pei Yingye lied through his teeth without blushing: “I’m afraid of thunder.”

Ji Xuan: “…”

“You are a 3S-grade Alpha.”

Pei Yingye began to talk nonsense with a straight face: “A 3S-grade Alpha’s hearing is more sensitive, that’s why I’m afraid.”

“I need someone to stay with me.”

The words had barely left his mouth when, without waiting for Ji Xuan to speak again, he squeezed onto the bed with total entitlement and naturally lay down beside him.

The iron frame let out a sharp screech of protest.

But no one paid it any mind.

Pei Yingye’s hands were initially a bit at a loss. Separated only by thin blankets and clothing, they could feel each other’s body heat and presence without reservation. However, as the next loud clap of thunder struck down like a hammer, Pei Yingye’s arm seemed to gain a mind of its own, wrapping around Ji Xuan’s waist and pulling him backward.

A dry scent enveloped him, like a wilderness baked by the blazing sun.

“Tell me,” Pei Yingye’s voice came from right against the back of Ji Xuan’s neck, his breath brushing the skin at the edge of the collar, “how can such a big person be afraid of thunder?”

The sentence had no specific subject, but Ji Xuan knew exactly what Pei Yingye was thinking. Thus, he didn’t take offense at the transgression; after murmuring something under his breath, he pressed the upper half of his body a little closer to him.

The exposed fair neck, the gentle yet bitter cool fragrance of his hair—Pei Yingye should have been incredibly familiar with everything about Ji Xuan, but at this moment, he couldn’t help but feel a bit restless.

Thump-thump, thump-thump… His heart beat in a chaotic rhythm, more irritating than the pitter-patter of the rain outside the window.

Ji Xuan, however, seemed not to notice at all, allowing his consciousness to fall back down into this reassuring scent.

Because of the thunder, the scenes in Ji Xuan’s sleep became surreal and kaleidoscopic again, as if he had returned to the Sea of Blood from decades ago. A youth’s blurred face emerged in the dream; those eyes were the same as they were later, only back then, that young face seemed even more flamboyant and unrestrained, the eyes always sparkling with a brilliant light.

Pei Yingye watched his slightly parting lips, feeling his own heartbeat still pounding like a drum.

Upon hearing that indistinct murmur, his already tense muscles tightened even more, like a fully drawn bow. A few seconds later, he almost squeezed out a sarcastic remark through clenched teeth: “What kind of sweet dream are you having? Why isn’t there even a little room for me in your dreams?”

But despite his words, his hands were very gentle as he wrapped them around Ji Xuan’s waist, pulling the man even deeper into his embrace.