After the war ended, there was still a mountain of aftermath to deal with, but the trainees’ mission concluded here, and they prepared to return to school.

In the military ship’s rest cabin, there was still an hour left before departure.

Li Xiao had just finished showering and was lying horizontally across the sofa, one long leg bent with his foot resting on the floor. Clad only in a pair of trousers, he was looking at the virtual screen projected into midair.

Song Jin sat beside Li Xiao, his slender and handsome hand stroking across Li Xiao’s abdominal muscles, asking from time to time, “How is it? Feeling anything?”

Looking at the news on the screen, Li Xiao answered casually, “No.”

Song Jin stroked again. “Is it tingly and numb?”

Li Xiao: “My skin is thick, I can’t feel it.”

Song Jin: “…”

Refusing to accept defeat, Song Jin pressed his right hand against Li Xiao’s chest to check his heart rate, while his left hand moved back and forth over his tight abdomen. “Now?”

Li Xiao’s expression didn’t ripple at all. “I can feel that there’s a hand.”

Song Jin: “…………”

Across the small table, Qian Can and the other two were eating snacks while spectating the scene.

Chewing on some dried meat, Qian Can suddenly realized, “I see it now! Boss is learning how to give a body scrub! But a body scrub without a scrubbing mitt has no soul.”

Jiang Hao observed seriously: “Is it a ma-sa-□□? Helping Big Brother relax his muscles.”

Qin Le: “This pressing technique looks like an abdominal palpation.”

Song Jin: “…”

Did they think he was dead?

Qian Can and the other two were discussing enthusiastically when they suddenly saw Song Jin coldly looking over. In an instant, they were so frightened by the Alpha’s oppressive aura that the hairs on their backs stood up.

“I suddenly remembered, I still have things left to pack.” Jiang Hao got up and left immediately.

Qin Le followed: “I forgot to make a video call to my dad.”

Qian Can flipped over the sofa and ran: “I’m going back to the dining hall to grab some more food.”

Seeing the rest cabin door close once again, it was finally quiet.

Song Jin’s gaze fell back onto Li Xiao.

Could a person really be defeated by a pair of abs?

Song Jin leaned down close to Li Xiao’s face, blocking his view of the virtual screen.

Li Xiao looked at him in confusion: “Finished stroking?”

Song Jin: “Did you take anesthesia?”

Li Xiao: “…Where would I get anesthesia?”

Song Jin: “Then why are you acting like a dead pig?”

Li Xiao: “…”

A dead pig?

Li Xiao looked helpless: “Then what do you want me to do?”

Song Jin ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “I’ll go get a scrubbing mitt. Once the skin is scrubbed thin, you’ll have a feeling.”

Li Xiao: “…”

Are you serious?

As he got up, Song Jin’s fingertips inadvertently brushed across Li Xiao’s skin.

From an angle Song Jin couldn’t see, Li Xiao’s expression became unnatural for a brief moment.

Once Song Jin went into the shower room, Li Xiao raised his hand to cover his face and let out a heavy sigh of relief.

This was practically more agonizing than torture. If he hadn’t used the news to distract his attention, he wouldn’t have been able to endure it at all.

Hearing footsteps approaching, Li Xiao raised his eyes. “…?”

This kid actually brought back a scrubbing mitt.

Song Jin cracked his neck and shoulders, making his knuckles pop with a loud click. He looked down upon Li Xiao from above, his aura incredibly imposing.

“There’s only half an hour left before departure. We need to pick up the pace.”

Li Xiao: “…?!”

Li Xiao sat up. “Calm down.”

With a cold face, Song Jin pressed him back down. “I am very calm.”

Li Xiao: “…………”

_

Facts proved that one must never challenge a little lion’s competitiveness, or they would lose miserably.

On the way to assembly, Li Xiao’s abdomen felt hot and stinging, as if it had been smeared with a layer of chili sauce.

Song Jin walked beside him, his voice loose and relaxed: “This is the first time in my life I’ve given someone a body scrub. You should be secretly rejoicing.”

Li Xiao praised in a flat tone, “Mm, very excellent. Don’t scrub next time.”

Song Jin: “…”

Behind them, Qian Can proudly gave Jiang Hao and Qin Le a look, stretching out his hand.

See that? I told you it was a body scrub, right?

“…” Jiang Hao and Qin Le silently pulled out their hoarded snacks from their pockets and placed them into his hand.

Dammit, they actually guessed wrong.

Along another metal corridor, Qi Ge, Zheng Lin, and their group were walking out when they saw Li Xiao and his friends emerging from a crossroad ahead in the distance.

“Look quick, it’s Li Xiao! He really stole the spotlight this time.”

“Isn’t that right? People are praising him in the group chat every single day.”

“I heard he spent the last few days doing rescue work on the front line, unlike us who could only move supplies.”

“I want to go to the front line to show off too, but who gives me the opportunity?”

Zheng Lin glared at them. “Can you stop talking about him? Aren’t you annoying?!”

The group instantly shut up, averting their gazes awkwardly.

They had almost forgotten that Zheng Lin had just been taught a lesson by Li Xiao.

Staring at Li Xiao’s back, Zheng Lin’s anger flared up again as he thought about being beaten.

“It’s just temporary success. In the future…”

Thinking about the mission he had just received, Qi Ge pinched his fingertips, calculating where to make his move.

_

When they arrived at the assembly hall, Yan Qing had already arrived a step ahead. With the assistance of the first- and second-year teaching assistants, he was confirming the personnel and making the final handover work with the Legion.

Song Jin stood in line expressionlessly, carrying an aura that warned strangers not to approach.

He was born with a cold face that made him difficult to approach, and coupled with being a highly powerful Alpha, people without a certain amount of courage didn’t dare to actively strike up a conversation.

The surrounding students subtly sensed the low pressure and retreated half a step away.

“Make way.”

A few students squeezed through from the back of the queue, making their way forward with difficulty.

Song Jin felt his shoulder get bumped. The next moment, he smelled a familiar pheromone scent. His vision suddenly blurred, and a voice deliberately lowered by someone rang in his ear:

“Kill Li Xiao.”

07: [Beep beep beep! Abnormal pheromone detected—initiating targeted pheromone filtration!]

In a flash of lightning, the blue decorative buckle on the terminal bracelet transformed into strands of thread, gathering along Song Jin’s arm up to his neck to form a suppressor ring.

The influence only lasted for a split second. Perhaps because he had smelled it before and developed a resistance, combined with 07’s effect, Song Jin snapped back to his senses almost immediately.

It’s this Qi Ge again.

In the blink of an eye, Song Jin made an operational judgment. He drew the sidearm from his leg holster, racked the slide upward, and pointed it at Li Xiao, who was standing in front.

Qi Ge unconsciously held his breath, watching Song Jin’s finger rest on the trigger, his heart pounding violently.

Success!

As long as he got Song Jin to kill Li Xiao, the Legion’s responsibility could be wiped completely clean.

The self-detonation of the rescue vehicle could also be naturally pinned on Song Jin.

After all, the Shengya Empire had always harbored malicious designs, so assassinating a prince was highly logical.

Just as Song Jin’s finger rested on the trigger, Li Xiao suddenly turned around, grabbed Song Jin’s wrist to raise it, reached out to seize the gun, quickly unloaded the bullets, and twirled the sidearm twice between his fingers before slipping it back into Song Jin’s leg holster.

“Stop playing.” Li Xiao looked at Song Jin. “It wouldn’t be good if it caused a misunderstanding.”

Qi Ge’s eyes widened in astonishment.

Li Xiao’s speed was actually this fast!

Fearing discovery, Qi Ge turned to leave, but his arm was grabbed by a hand reaching out from the side.

“Wait a minute!” Jiang Hao brought him back. “Why did you release pheromones?”

Jiang Hao didn’t deliberately lower his voice. With this shout, the surrounding people snapped out of it one after another.

The Betas in the queue hadn’t smelled anything, but hearing the word ‘pheromones’ made them reflexively grab the nearest Alpha students and retreat outward.

“I didn’t!” Qi Ge struggled hard. “Let go!”

Jiang Hao raised his hand and shouted toward Yan Qing’s side: “Teacher Yan, Qi Ge is releasing pheromones in the crowd!”

This shout drew everyone’s gaze instantly.

Seeing things turning sour, Qi Ge explained with a tense face: “I’m close to my susceptibility period, maybe I didn’t control it properly. I didn’t even notice it myself.”

The pheromones released just now weren’t a lot, so they hadn’t caused a large-scale commotion.

Hearing him explain it like this, many people just accepted it and moved on.

An Alpha’s susceptibility period was unavoidable, so one couldn’t be too harsh when occasional problems arose.

“I’ll go stand aside by myself.” Qi Ge broke free from Jiang Hao’s hand. Just as he was about to turn around, his collar was suddenly yanked violently forward, and a sharp pain flared across his face. “Ugh!”

Qi Ge’s face was slapped to one side. Before he could turn back, he was struck hard by another punch. A bloody taste quickly spread through his mouth, and the next moment, his neck was forcefully gripped. Only then did he clearly see the person beating him.

It was actually Song Jin.

Song Jin’s strike was too fast. The people around didn’t even have time to react before Qi Ge was beaten until his nose bled, swaying unsteadily in Song Jin’s grip, unable to even stand firmly.

“A fight broke out! Quick, pull them apart!” A chorus of shouts rang out from the surroundings.

“All Betas, pull the Alphas and Omegas beside you and step back!” Li Xiao scanned everyone, his voice incredibly cold.

The Betas closest to the inner side consciously formed a cordon line, making the students behind them retreat.

Yan Qing rushed over, but was pulled back by Li Xiao: “Don’t get too close, you’ll be affected. I’ll handle it.”

Yan Qing looked up at him and said worriedly, “Be careful, don’t stimulate him further.”

While Li Xiao was busy maintaining order, Qi Ge was choked by the neck and received a severe thrashing.

Zheng Lin and his companions were squeezed to the back by the crowd, shouting toward that direction: “Stop hitting! Quick, let Qi Ge go!”

But the louder they shouted, the harder Song Jin struck.

“Let… let go of me!” Qi Ge was forced to tilt his neck up, hearing the sound of bones creaking under the pressure, as if it would be snapped at any moment.

The terror of impending death made his entire body tremble uncontrollably.

Song Jin raised his fist again, but before it could fall, his hand was grabbed from behind.

Li Xiao wrapped his arm around Song Jin’s waist, pulling him toward himself, and said in a low voice: “Calm down, take deep breaths with me.”

Under the watch of thousands of eyes in the entire hall, Song Jin took two deep breaths and finally loosened the strength in his hand.

Just as everyone let out half a sigh of relief, they suddenly saw Song Jin raise his leg and kick Qi Ge four or five meters away.

“…!!!”

Like a lump of mud, Qi Ge lay on the ground with a face full of blood, looking as if he was about to fall apart.

Two Betas who were close by hurriedly went over to support him and notified the medical center to send a stretcher robot over.

Li Xiao held Song Jin by the shoulder and walked out quickly, whispering as he passed by Yan Qing: “We will board the spaceship separately. I’ll take him out to calm down.”

Yan Qing nodded.

Zheng Lin shouted at them: “You can’t just leave! You beat someone into this state and that’s it?!”

Qian Can’t voice was even louder than his: “Who is the one who always fails to control their pheromones?! How many times has this been?! Is it justifiable to not wear a suppressor ring?! Do you know people could die if so many Alphas start fighting?!”

Zheng Lin: “He didn’t do it on purpose!”

Qian Can: “Then my brother didn’t do it on purpose either! Wasn’t he driven into a rampage by Qi Ge?!”

“Enough!” Yan Qing signaled everyone to be quiet and asked the faculty team to lead the students to the adjacent hall to assemble.

The stretcher robot arrived quickly, but with departure imminent, the medical staff only performed emergency treatment.

Qi Ge was sent onto the return spaceship lying down just like that.

_

On the other side, Li Xiao and Song Jin took a separate corridor and went directly to the rest cabin mentioned in Yan Qing’s message.

“Does your hand hurt?” Li Xiao grabbed Song Jin’s hand and turned it over to examine it.

“It’s not even enough to scratch an itch.” Song Jin took off his gloves and threw them aside. “Daring to plot against me, I must not have beaten him hard enough before.”

Li Xiao’s gaze fell on his reddened knuckles. He pulled Song Jin’s hand over and pressed a kiss against it. “This is exactly what I worry about most.”

Song Jin was from the Danse Empire and held a special relationship with him; there was too much room to be exploited.

“Fortunately, your reaction was fast enough, otherwise the secret would have been leaked.” Song Jin turned to look at him. “Get 09 back sooner. You are the one who is truly in danger.”

Just as he finished speaking, the furious voice of 09 rang in their ears.

[You guys finally thought of me!]

Li Xiao: “…”

Song Jin: “…”

09: [I was hiding outside alone holding the medicine box, and nobody cared about me.]

Li Xiao asked with his mind: [Did you get on the spaceship?]

09: [I hid under the vehicle and sneaked up.]

Li Xiao: [I knew you could definitely do it.]

09: [Of course~]

Song Jin: “…”

Coaxed with just one sentence, truly spineless.

After boarding the ship, Qian Can and the other two headed straight over. Seeing that Song Jin was fine, their hearts finally settled back into place.

“Qi Ge’s bunch is scarier than terrorists. You never know when they’ll sneak up and drop a massive move, how do we guard against that?” Qian Can grumbled.

Song Jin took a seat by the window. “The targeted suppressor rings have already been made. I’ll have someone send a few over for you guys to test.”

“It’s not enough for just us to wear them, everyone needs to wear them.” Jiang Hao chimed in. “They can control a third party to attack you.”

Li Xiao: “So we must remain vigilant, and—remember the information of all the modified humans.”

Qin Le: “Are there no effective countermeasures?”

Li Xiao: “There are, but the commotion caused by that would be too big. The time hasn’t come yet.”

If nothing else, the acoustic frequency band measured at the raw material base was a lethal weapon.

The items obtained from Jin Lin this time were also crucial. If Shen Sinian’s team could develop a drug to restrain modified humans, their threat level would drop drastically.

_

As the spaceship departed, Meng Jian, who was far away on the Imperial Capital Star, was listening to the report from his subordinate.

The adjutant: “They checked all the rest cabins where Li Xiao stayed and found nothing. When Li Xiao boarded the spaceship just now, the security check showed that the items he carried didn’t include the Ferryman’s tools either.”

Meng Jian pondered: “Is it possible they were sent onto the spaceship in advance?”

The adjutant shook his head: “The spaceship isn’t the same one they came in, and no notice was given in advance. The Second Prince shouldn’t have been able to know, unless there’s an insider in the Fifth Legion, but in that case, the area to investigate would be too vast.”

Though he said this, the adjutant was more inclined to believe that the items weren’t taken by Li Xiao.

From beginning to end, apart from Li Xiao happening to be in the Second Medical Department, there were no other clues proving that Li Xiao was related to the missing tools.

Before leaving the room, the adjutant thought of something and added another sentence: “Admiral Qi’s grandson, Qi Ge, failed his mission and was beaten by Song Jin.”

Meng Jian wasn’t surprised at all: “I knew it would fail. If it were that easy to succeed, would we have dragged it out until now?”

The adjutant: “Then next—”

“Stand down for now.” Meng Jian’s gaze fell upon a photo frame at the corner of the desk. “An excellent opportunity is coming up next, we will definitely turn the tables.”

The adjutant followed his gaze. The photo showed a group picture of Meng Jian and the young Li Ji, and he suddenly seemed to understand something.

_

When they returned to the military academy, it was 3:00 PM local time.

A group of middle- and high-level leaders of the military academy were waiting eagerly in the cold wind for the spaceship to land.

Seeing the spaceship’s hatch open and the faculty team leading the students out in an orderly manner, they actively went forward to greet them.

Walking among the crowd, Li Xiao and Song Jin didn’t intend to pay attention to that group of old men, but unexpectedly, the other party actively approached them.

“Second Prince, you’ve worked hard on this trip.” The principal was all smiles, even carrying a hint of flattery.

Li Xiao: “How can going to war not be hard work.”

The principal: “You are absolutely right! This ideological awareness is truly exceptional.”

As soon as his voice fell, the other old men chimed in one after another.

This enthusiastic attitude was a complete 180-degree turnaround compared to when Li Xiao first arrived.

Answering casually with a few words as he walked, Li Xiao used the excuse of being tired, took Song Jin’s hand, and left directly.

Song Jin watched this: “Not going to socialize a bit?”

“No need.” Li Xiao said in a low voice, “There are plenty of people in this world who kick you when you’re down or push a falling wall, but few who offer timely help.”

As long as the weak situation of the Royal Family could be reversed, those fair-weather followers would naturally change their stances. There was no need for him to waste effort dealing with them.

Song Jin chuckled softly: “Then do I count as offering timely help?”

Li Xiao tilted his head to look at him: “You’re not offering help, you’re offering a cat.”

Song Jin: “…”