The two walked side by side toward the command bridge.

“Did you discover something again?” Jing Xi asked.

Mentioning this, the smile on Chi Yao’s lips faded. “You remember that sound wave on Sector 333, right?”

Jing Xi frowned. “There’s one here too?”

Chi Yao: “Very similar, but much weaker.”

Jing Xi stopped and looked at him. “At the Snake King’s location?”

“Maybe not.” Chi Yao naturally took his hand and continued walking forward.

Jing Xi: “Then why did you double back?”

At the time, he had felt that Chi Yao was ready to return.

“I wanted to confirm something else.” Chi Yao’s expression was serious. “That sound wave seems capable of masking the wavelengths emitted by mutant beasts, or perhaps ‘canceling out’ is a more appropriate term?”

To determine if this was the Snake King’s ability, he had risked being scolded by his wife to kill the Snake King.

But the Snake King had shed its skin and escaped at the last moment.

This is a special ability of many reptilian beast kings; when encountering fatal damage, they can urgently molt to protect themselves.

However, this indirectly proved that masking wavelengths was not the Snake King’s ability.

Jing Xi: “What wavelength?”

Chi Yao tried to explain. “It’s like how everyone has a different scent, similar to a marker.”

“The marker is masked.” Jing Xi looked thoughtful. “In other words, it’s very likely that mutant beasts are invisible under scanning instruments?”

Chi Yao nodded. “But right now, it’s just speculation. I’m not entirely sure either.”

“If you say so, it’s basically ninety percent certain.”

Jing Xi’s casual remark surprised Chi Yao.

“You trust me that much?” Chi Yao smiled.

The two arrived outside the command bridge. The guards, seeing their Boss and the Enemy Boss walking side by side, kept their faces taut and looked straight ahead.

Jing Xi swiped his finger over the sensor zone, and the hatch opened.

“After all, you are my wife. If I don’t trust you, who should I trust?”

Chi Yao: “…”

The guards’ eyes widened, their inner selves screaming and dancing wildly.

What did the Boss just say?!

“Holy shit!”

Someone cursed under their breath, then immediately covered their mouth upon realizing it.

The atmosphere in the space instantly solidified.

The hatch opened, and Jing Xi strode in on his long legs, leaving behind a cool, detached sentence: “Just kidding.”

Guards: “……”

Boss, that joke was delivered way too seriously.

Chi Yao: “…”

Even bad dad jokes are funnier than yours.

The situation on the front line was currently stable. After checking the status for a while, Jing Xi turned to see Chi Yao sitting at a small conference table nearby, writing and drawing on a map.

It was rare to see this side of him so serious, and Jing Xi found himself entranced.

The fingers holding the stylus were slender and fair. Chi Yao’s posture was casual, yet his back was straight; every part of him hit Jing Xi’s aesthetic preferences perfectly.

This kid… I can’t look at him too seriously.

The more he looked, the more he wanted to take him away to a place no one knew about and hide him.

“You’re drooling on your chin,” Chi Yao drawled lazily, looking at the screen.

Knowing it was impossible, Jing Xi still subconsciously wiped the corner of his mouth.

“…”

Chi Yao circled a specific spot and wrote a note, then brushed back his bangs, winking and smiling at Jing Xi. “Have you never seen such fresh, sunny, unpretentious handsomeness before?”

Jing Xi: “…”

I only see cheese.

“Recording?”

Seeing that there were no urgent matters at hand, Jing Xi pulled out the chair next to him and sat down. “What do the circles represent?”

Centered on where he had landed earlier, Chi Yao had drawn three circles along both sides of the coast.

“Possible sources of the sound wave.”

He recounted everything he had discovered the previous night in detail.

The sea turtle with an empty stomach containing only syringes, the giant pythons that couldn’t be sensed, and the sound wave that drifted in and out with no traceable source.

Chi Yao didn’t think these things were unrelated.

“I plan to set up a temporary command post in this area tomorrow.”

Jing Xi drew a small circle about a hundred kilometers southwest of Chi Yao’s landing point. “If mutant beasts possess the ability to hide, I can’t command effectively without going to the front line.”

Various monitoring instruments were the commander’s eyes, and the soldiers fighting on the front line were his hands.

If the eyes were blindfolded, the knife in hand couldn’t kill the enemy accurately.

Chi Yao zoomed in to take a look.

The inhabited area of the southern continent only accounted for one-fifth of the land and was quite scattered.

Economic development was backward, leading to lagging infrastructure. It was a place where the government branch of the Beluga Constellation had to allocate funds for relief every year.

The area Jing Xi circled happened to be the northernmost part of this inhabited zone, less than two hundred kilometers from the northern frontline battlefield. It could support the front line at any time based on the situation, or divert manpower to support rear rescue efforts.

Chi Yao: “That works too. Saves me from running back and forth between the sky and the ground.”

---

The light of the star climbed over the mountain peaks, and the first wave of the beast tide finally subsided a bit.

Under the light, the cruelty of the battlefield was exposed.

Houses had collapsed and shattered, the forest was blasted into large craters, and fires were still burning in many places. Beneath the pervading smoke, only charred trees and beast remains were left.

The Flying Dragon flagship landed according to plan. The hatch opened before them, offering a view of the general landscape of this inhabited area.

The civilian houses here were mostly wooden structures, dusty and grey, with pitifully narrow roads.

Let alone comparing it to the Capital Star, it was far behind even the “Extreme Shadow” home base.

“Let’s go.”

Jing Xi walked past him, hooked his pinky finger, and walked down the steps.

“Teasing but not holding hands—are you being a hooligan?” Chi Yao followed slowly.

Jing Xi: “…”

In broad daylight, two alphas holding hands? Wouldn’t that be an eyesore?

Jing Xi: “You don’t like it?”

Chi Yao walked up to him and spread his arms: “Come on, tease all you want. It’s free.”

Jing Xi: “…”

This area was originally scheduled to begin personnel transfer around 12:00 noon, but since the temporary command post was settling here, Jing Xi sent the rescue troops to other areas first.

Even if personnel transfer was needed, there was sufficient military strength here.

The local military department was too far away, so Jing Xi found a nearby school to serve as the command post.

Vehicles with military license plates drove in a convoy along the road. Many civilians couldn’t contain their curiosity and crowded both sides of the road to watch.

“Whoa! So many tanks! And warships over there! So impressive!”

“Flying Dragon’s response speed is really fast. I only saw the news online last night, and they’re here early in the morning.”

“So has a beast tide really broken out? I thought it was a rumor.”

“I wonder if I can see Major General Jing. My husbaaaaand!”

Amidst the discussion, someone mentioned Extreme Shadow, and the tone changed.

“Didn’t Extreme Shadow just get a medal? Will they come this time?”

“Hahahaha, a star pirate group coming to the rescue? It feels so unreal.”

“Will they ask me to hand over all my property before saving me? Then I’d have to seriously consider whether I want to be saved.”

“They might say: ‘Your money or your life, I’ll give you three seconds to decide,’ hahahaha—”

“Why am I suddenly looking forward to it?”

“You guys talk big, but if they really came, you’d probably wet your pants in fear.”

This place was still some distance from the front line. Having not seen the beast tide with their own eyes, most of the crowd didn’t take it seriously.

Hearing that a beast tide was coming wasn’t as nerve-wracking as seeing the Flying Dragon army.

“Listen to that.” Chi Yao drove a small transport vehicle behind the main convoy. “Listen to how passionately those people are calling you ‘husband.’ I’m jealous.”

Jing Xi disliked being flashy; the commander’s dedicated vehicle remained parked in the garage, never moved.

“You can call me that too.” Jing Xi leaned back in the passenger seat, withdrawing his gaze from the window. “Only you will get a response from me. Are you happy?”

Saying this seriously in that cool, detached voice had an inexplicably comedic effect.

Chi Yao laughed out loud. “I’m so happy I almost cried.”

Jing Xi’s eyes were also tinged with a slight smile.

They were always on a journey, unable to stop and properly get to know each other.

But this wasn’t bad either.

For safety reasons, the glass of all military vehicles was one-way visibility.

Thus, Jing Xi avoided the crowd’s encirclement and successfully entered the school.

School dormitories were limited. After allocation according to convention, other personnel camped in the playground and nearby areas.

Yan Kai, acting as Jiang Feng’s substitute, almost ran his legs off in the temporary command post.

“Boss, is it okay to arrange Mr. Chi on the same floor as you?”

The large conference room had been quickly converted. Jing Xi was reviewing the report materials sent back by Jin Ze.

Hearing this, Jing Xi didn’t even look up. “No need for the trouble. He’s staying in my room.”

Yan Kai almost choked on his own saliva.

This is a bit too obvious, isn’t it?!

Perhaps finally sensing the strange looks from others, Jing Xi added faintly:

“There are two beds in the room. It’s convenient for me to monitor him closely.”

The officers: “…”

Whatever you say is correct.

---

Taking advantage of the lull on the front line, Chi Yao dragged Jing Xi off to rest.

Prolonged concentration was mentally exhausting, especially since Jing Xi had to control the overall situation and cover every detail.

“I want to go look at those places you marked.”

Jing Xi struggled slightly while being dragged along, unwilling to give up.

“Your dark circles are almost hanging down to the corners of your mouth, where are you going?” Chi Yao pushed open the dorm door and reached out to unbuckle his utility belt. “The interval between beast tide attacks is at least three to five hours. What’s the rush?”

Jing Xi watched as Chi Yao skillfully stripped off his jacket, only able to raise his arms when told and turn around when told.

“Are my dark circles really that bad?”

In the past, staying up for two or three nights was fine.

Seeing him ask so seriously, Chi Yao was amused.

He stole a kiss on his lips. “Just a shade lighter than a panda.”

Jing Xi: “…”

Five minutes later, Chi Yao tackled him onto the bed.

“So tired—”

Jing Xi hugged the large pillow, burying his face in Chi Yao’s neck, suddenly remembering that this guy was still in his susceptibility period.

“I didn’t shower last night.”

Chi Yao sniffed vigorously at his neck.

“It doesn’t matter, you smell good.”

Jing Xi: “…”

That’s the smell of shampoo, right?

If he released pheromones, how would Chi Yao react?

Their days together were long; surely they had to slowly get used to each other’s pheromones?

As the thought flashed by, Jing Xi quietly released a tiny bit of pheromones.

“Put it back, quickly.” Chi Yao’s voice was muffled.

Jing Xi: “…”

“Sorry, couldn’t control it for a moment.” Jing Xi withdrew it as if nothing happened. “Does it feel terrible?”

Chi Yao had been sniffing happily, but then someone secretly smuggled in contraband. Unprepared, he had inhaled a large mouthful.

“What do you think?”

Unexpectedly, his rejection was so strong. Jing Xi felt a bit guilty and decided to release less next time.

Before he could organize words to coax him, something pressed against his leg.

Jing Xi: “…?”

Chi Yao pressed close to his ear, voice lowered: “Addicted to teasing me? You sincerely don’t want to let me sleep, do you?”

It was a completely different reaction from what he expected.

Jing Xi’s heartbeat accelerated unconsciously, his voice tight. “Then… I take responsibility?”

Chi Yao: “…”

Chi Yao grabbed the paw reaching for his waistband and used eight lifetimes of willpower to pull it away.

“Save it. Pay me back slowly later.”

Jing Xi glanced at him. “Can you sleep like this?”

Chi Yao: “…”

“Actually, I wanted to say this when you came back last night.” Jing Xi held the back of his neck and pulled him closer. “You stink.”

Chi Yao: “……”

Fighting snakes for so long and rolling around on the ground, it was inevitable to pick up the stench of gore.

Chi Yao gritted his teeth and rushed into the bathroom to shower.

“Solve that problem while you’re at it,” Jing Xi pointed below his waist.

Chi Yao: “…”

After taking a cold shower, Chi Yao crawled back under the covers, freezing cold.

“Why aren’t you asleep yet?”

Jing Xi lay on his side facing him, looking at the handsome face right in front of him, and asked in a low voice, “You’re not repulsed by my pheromones?”

Chi Yao: “Repulsed.”

Jing Xi: “But your body didn’t say that.”

Chi Yao: “…”

Facing Jing Xi’s curious gaze, Chi Yao explained, “Repulsion and liking are two different things.”

Pheromone repulsion between same-sex individuals is innate; no one can change that.

But repulsion is nature; whether you like it or not is a subjective feeling.

Jing Xi thought for a moment. “I don’t understand.”

Chi Yao reached out an arm and scooped him up, hugging him for warmth. “To use an inappropriate analogy: some people like getting beaten up. The more they get beaten, the more excited they get. The pain is real pain, but the pleasure is also real pleasure.”

After speaking, Chi Yao felt the atmosphere was a bit off. Looking down, he saw Jing Xi looking at him with a very subtle expression.

“No wonder you always enjoy angering me; so you were looking forward to me beating you.” Jing Xi said flatly. “I realized it too late.”

Chi Yao: “…I said, it was just an analogy.”

---

Sleeping until the alarm rang, Chi Yao inhaled a mouthful of his fragrant wife, crawled out of the covers, and casually threw on a shirt.

“Your hair is sticking up.” Jing Xi reached over to help him fix it. “I’ll go check the situation first, then we go out together.”

Chi Yao wanted to say there was no need to go together, but thinking about it, he didn’t say it.

If nothing else, standing from the position of the Flying Dragon commander, Jing Xi needed to understand any anomaly on the battlefield thoroughly.

Returning to the command post, Yan Kai rushed over immediately upon seeing them.

“The front line is currently normal.”

After reporting, Yan Kai added, “The metal syringe you asked me to check… no data can be found in the general database.”

This situation was within Chi Yao’s expectations.

That organization hid so deeply; the things they used naturally couldn’t be bought casually.

Jing Xi: “Continue checking when you have time. Save similar search information.”

Yan Kai: “Yes, sir!”

After checking the status of various units, the two drove out in a small transport vehicle.

On the road, seeing Chi Yao looking thoughtful, Jing Xi asked, “What’s wrong?”

Chi Yao rested his hand on the steering wheel, looking at the narrow, old road surface. “I’m wondering if that syringe can be found in the database of the Central Biological Research Institute.”

Jing Xi’s brow twitched.

Any biological research institution registered in the Empire was under the jurisdiction of the Central Biological Research Institute. As long as one had enough clearance, the origin of even small medical devices could be traced.

But if this syringe could actually be found in the Central Biological Research Institute’s database, the problem would be even bigger.

“Ask Qiu Tianlin.” Chi Yao scoffed. “Currently, he seems to be the only one with slightly higher credibility.”

Jing Xi switched to Qiu Tianlin’s contact number. He hesitated for a moment when sending the photo, then closed it.

“I’ll find a time to video call when we get back.”

It would be troublesome if chat records like this were intercepted.

Arriving at the nearest circle, Chi Yao rolled down the window.

This place backed onto a small mountain range, with paddy fields in front and sparse households—even older and more dilapidated than the wooden houses seen earlier.

Chi Yao parked the car at the foot of the mountain.

“Here?”

Jing Xi got out of the car, a gust of wind messing up his bangs. “I don’t feel anything.”

Chi Yao sensed for a moment, then led him toward the village.

Last night, he definitely felt the sound wave intensity was higher in this direction.

Was it because they were too far away?

Before they even walked out of the small woods, a slight noise suddenly sounded in their ears.

Chi Yao and Jing Xi dodged to the side simultaneously.

Thwip!

A bullet grazed their clothes and embedded itself into the tree trunk ahead, leaving a deep, narrow bullet hole.

Chi Yao drew his sidearm and turned, only catching a glimpse of swaying leaves on a tree a hundred meters away.

He raised his gun and aimed at that spot, but fired at empty air.

“Watch out!”

Jing Xi’s anxious voice rang in his ear.

Chi Yao dodged behind a tree in a few steps. The sound of impacts was continuous.

He listened carefully to distinguish the source, then aimed in one direction and fired.

“Ugh—!”

With a muffled groan, a person fell from a tree.

Why would there be assassins here?

Several more gunshots rang out. Chi Yao looked over, his face instantly darkening.

The bullets on Jing Xi’s side were much denser than on his side.

They’re coming for Jing Xi?

With a thought, Chi Yao woke Xiao Hei.

“Scan.”

A virtual screen popped up above the Xiao Hei bean, showing a scan of the area within a hundred meters.

[Thermal reaction detected.]

Only thermal reaction, meaning only the assassins’ weapons were scanned.

Chi Yao frowned.

Unless using video surveillance, these people could also be invisible under scanning instruments.

Jing Xi’s marksmanship was no worse than Chi Yao’s. Within a few minutes, he had already taken out more than ten, but the gunshots didn’t cease at all.

Noticing they were coming for him, Jing Xi intentionally put distance between himself and Chi Yao, waking Xiao Lan to transform into a thermal scope.

“Xiao Hong, you go protect Yao-Yao.”

Xiao Hong popped out.

[Received.]

Chi Yao kept an eye on Jing Xi via his peripheral vision. Seeing him dodging further and further away, anger surged up.

This guy knows these people are after him, yet he hides so far away. Does he plan to handle it alone?

Soon, the Xiao Hong bean floated in front of Chi Yao and transformed directly into invisible armor on his body.

Chi Yao raged: “Jing Xi, take it away!”

Jing Xi dodged back and forth between the trees; every time he pulled the trigger, an assassin fell.

“I won’t.”

Chi Yao: “Itching for a beating?!”

Catching a glimpse of his sour face, Jing Xi leaned behind a tree trunk, mimicking Chi Yao’s earlier manner, winking and smiling at him.

“I like the way you look when you’re angry too.”

Chi Yao: “……”

Is this fucking—immediate karma?

With the positions reversed, Chi Yao felt that not being beaten to death by his wife last night was purely Jing Xi’s mercy.

Amidst the gunfire, Chi Yao fired while moving toward him.

“Stop messing around.”

“I’m not messing around.” Jing Xi fired his gun, voice cool and tone calm. “But—anyway, no matter what I do, you find it cute, right?”

Chi Yao: “……”

Since he couldn’t beat his wife, he could only vent his anger on the assassins.

Chi Yao, with a cold face, ejected the magazine, swapped in high-precision bullets, raised his hand, and fired.

An assassin was hit in the center of the brow—a headshot.

Chi Yao looked in another direction, drawling slowly, “Didn’t even shatter the skull. This gun is really hard to use.”

His voice wasn’t quiet; Jing Xi over there heard it too.

“If it were Xuanfeng, it could be done.” Jing Xi hid behind another tree and hit another assassin.

Chi Yao smiled. “Pity I didn’t bring it out, otherwise I could have let you appreciate the art of brains splattering.”

The assassins, hearing them discuss this topic as if no one else was present, felt a chill run down their spines.

Casualties were already greater than 80%. They had to withdraw.

One of the assassins made a retreat gesture, but before his hand could drop, his palm was shot through.

“Ugh!”

He gripped his wrist tightly, severe pain radiating from his palm.

The next moment, his forehead was struck with force. He swayed, then fell straight down from the branch.

Seeing their captain killed, the other assassins retreated one after another.

“Now you know to run?”

Chi Yao’s voice sounded from behind, making everyone’s scalps tingle.

Ten minutes later, the small woods returned to calm.

The two walked over, treading on fallen leaves.

The assassins on the ground wore camouflage uniforms, protective helmets, and their faces were tightly covered.

Chi Yao kicked off one person’s mask with his toe, revealing a fair, clean face.

“Step back two paces.”

He drew the military knife from his lower back. Waiting for Jing Xi to walk to the side, he neatly sliced open the assassin’s gland.

The dispersed pheromones were murky, like cheap liquor diluted with water and mixed with artificial flavoring.

“Failed product,” Chi Yao said.

Jing Xi could faintly smell the pheromones. aside from repulsion, his body instinctively felt discomfort.

“They were modified too?”

Chi Yao nodded, wiped the blood from the blade on the assassin’s clothes, and sheathed the knife.

“These people couldn’t adapt to the modification. Their bodies can’t beastify. Compared to ordinary people, their strength isn’t that great, but they’ve been strictly trained.”

Jing Xi frowned.

In other words, whether forced or voluntarily contacting that organization, regardless of whether the modification was successful, they no longer possessed freedom.

“Don’t pity them.” Afraid the smell would bother him, Chi Yao pulled him further away. “These people get commissions ten times higher than the market rate. They did this voluntarily.”

It wasn’t that Jing Xi felt pity, but whenever something involved Chi Yao, he couldn’t help but overthink it.

“Can they refuse to listen to the organization’s arrangements?”

“No.” Facing his questioning gaze, Chi Yao explained, “But they can make themselves appear useless.”

Jing Xi: “Pretend?”

Chi Yao: “The rules in the organization are simple. Many who didn’t want to harm people honestly mined in the mining areas. It was bitter work, but not to the point where they couldn’t survive.”

Jing Xi’s eyes flashed, suddenly thinking of that ‘Zone C’ in the Extreme Shadow’s lair.

“So when you set up that Zone C, this was the meaning?”

Chi Yao nodded. “To prevent some idiots from not understanding the rules and being used, I gave them a second chance to choose.”

Captured ‘Ghosts’ could freely choose to stay in Zone B or enter Zone C.

“If they chose to enter Zone C, regardless of winning or losing, they wouldn’t survive in the end.” Jing Xi looked at him. “This door that seemingly leads to wealth is actually a door to death.”

“These people, modified or not, are trash.” Chi Yao sneered. “Modification only amplified the evil in their hearts. The stronger they are, the more evil they do. Why keep them?”

Seeing the coldness in his eyes, Jing Xi’s chest felt tight, and he squeezed Chi Yao’s hand.

“When you have time, tell me more about your past, okay?”

The two walked a lap around the vicinity but found nothing.

“There must be something nearby, otherwise they wouldn’t have been lured here,” Chi Yao said.

Jing Xi looked thoughtful. “Maybe there isn’t necessarily a problem here, but rather I’ve severely infringed on their interests, so they planned to kill me while I was on campaign.”

Chi Yao held the steering wheel with one hand and held Jing Xi’s hand with the other.

“Don’t be reckless next time.”

Jing Xi: “But it was very cute—”

Chi Yao pulled a sour face.

Seeing Jing Xi laughing endlessly, he felt helpless.

This kid was born to be his kryptonite.

---

The next morning, Chi Yao woke up to find Jing Xi already up and fiddling with something.

“The bed is so cold, when exactly did you get up?” Chi Yao walked over.

Jing Xi beckoned him to sit. “Your chip is ready.”

Chi Yao was stunned. “The chip to control Xiao Hei?”

Jing Xi nodded. “I’ve been busy lately, only just finished it now.”

The chip was in a liquid solution, small enough to be negligible.

Chi Yao only felt like he had used eye drops; his eye stung slightly, and then Xiao Hei’s punchable voice sounded in his ear.

[Why am I always the one getting hurt?]

Chi Yao: “…”

Jing Xi: “Try making it transform?”

Previously, without chip control, Chi Yao could only issue commands via voice, and Xiao Hei could only perform a few preset conventional transformations.

But with the brain chip, he could control it freely.

This meant Xiao Hei could transform into whatever Chi Yao thought of, as long as Chi Yao could imagine the object.

Chi Yao looked at the black bean in front of him, and an object flashed through his mind.

Almost simultaneously, the black bean’s shell cracked and began to transform at extremely high speed.

In the blink of an eye, a handgun hovered in front of him. The gun body was entirely pitch black, with “Phoenix” engraved on the side of the barrel.

“It really is that,” Jing Xi chuckled.

Chi Yao gripped it in his hand. The feel was exactly the same as the one Jing Xi had made, not even a fraction of difference in weight.

“Xuanfeng is my first love; you wouldn’t understand.”

Jing Xi: “…”

You have quite a lot of first loves, don’t you?

“I remember you said you saw a knockoff Xuanfeng in Xingbang?” Jing Xi packed up the tools at hand. “Actually, I also thought about designing an air gun back then, but the supercharger placed too many limitations on bullet strength. In the end, I made a mechanical one. But with Xiao Hei, there’s no such limitation.”

Chi Yao looked at Jing Xi with sparkling eyes. “Can it switch to air pistol mode?”

Jing Xi nodded. “Its compression ratio is at least ten times that of currently top-tier air guns. You can try it when you have a chance.”

“I don’t know if it can splatter brains, but it can definitely shatter a skull.” He added seriously.

Chi Yao smiled. “Bro Black, suddenly I think you smell good.”

[Hah, I always smelled good.]

Chi Yao played with Xuanfeng, thoughtful. “Since it can turn into Xuanfeng, then others—”

“Of course it can.” Jing Xi sat down beside him. “I’ve returned everything I ‘robbed’ from you over the years in one go. Are you satisfied?”

How could he not be satisfied with such a grand gift?

Chi Yao pulled him over and planted a kiss on him.

“Thank you, wifey.”

Moments later, Jing Xi pulled back slightly, breathing a bit heavily.

“En, this is the betrothal gift.”

Chi Yao: “…”

Suddenly, it feels a bit hot to hold.