SBWAN CH22

Before the military reinforcements could arrive, Extreme Shadow had to take the people and the loot and retreat.

The rookie soldiers watched eagerly, suddenly feeling a little lonely.

A baby‑faced alpha recruit couldn’t help but run over.
“Brother Li, are you leaving already?”

Li Yuan tilted his head and gave him a strange look.
Why is it always this person again?

“If I don’t leave, should I stay and play house with you?”

Seeing him about to board the spaceship, the baby‑faced recruit hurriedly said:
“My name is Chu Xiao. I’m determined to become the strongest sniper in the military. I hope I can spar with you one day.”

Li Yuan: “Save it. Next time we meet, it won’t just be about singing military songs.”

Chen Sheng, having just finished his task, came over to join the fun.
“Well, well, even Old Li has little fans now? Really envious.”

Li Yuan brushed off his hand from his shoulder and stepped onto the spaceship.

Several other recruits also couldn’t hold back and followed.

Watching them board, a wave of sorrow hit them.

Such great rivals, just gone like that. No one to battle in singing duels anymore.

“Brother Li!” Chu Xiao shouted as the hatch was about to close,
“We’ll definitely study like crazy and send you guys into prison for reform! Eighteen years later, you’ll still come out men! Wuuuahhh—!”

By the end, the whole group had moved themselves to tears.

Li Yuan was so pissed he nearly fired back at them.
“Get lost!”

Seeing this, Jing Xi for the first time questioned his decision.

Was letting the rookie regiment learn under Extreme Shadow truly right or wrong?

“Already the third time.”

Hearing Chi Yao’s voice, Jing Xi pulled his gaze back.

While the rookies and mercenaries were dealing with the corpses, the two of them secretly met behind a tent.

Chi Yao sat casually on a protruding rock, one long leg bent, smile relaxed.
“We’re all on the same boat now.”

Jing Xi’s face showed no expression.

One accidental body‑swap was explainable. But three times? That was too frequent.

“We were never on the same boat.” Jing Xi looked at him.
“I will solve this, and I’ll send you to prison.”

Chi Yao raised an eyebrow.
“You’re so obsessed with me, don’t tell me you like me?”

Completely unserious.

Jing Xi kept a wooden face, turned, and left.

Chi Yao called out teasingly:
“Don’t go making AO relationships misusing my body. If you end up with a child, I won’t take responsibility.”

Jing Xi replied faintly:
“You’ve got enough kids already. A couple more won’t make a difference.”

Chi Yao: “…”

To avoid more trouble, Jing Xi still left X30 together with Extreme Shadow.

Not long after they were gone, the official reinforcements finally arrived.

A warship unloaded a group of fully armed soldiers. Leading them was a beta colonel named Zhu Dachang—fat‑headed, oily‑skinned, greasy shine on his scalp.

Zhu Dachang scanned the mining field. Though traces of battle were visible, there was little bloodstain and no bodies in sight. The rookies were even doing morning drills in one corner as if nothing happened!

This wasn’t what he imagined.

He sent men to the mercenaries for intel, then only slowly went over to Chi Yao.

“Major General Jing, where are Extreme Shadow and the Ghost Regiment?”

His tone was arrogant, questioning, as if his rank was higher than Jing Xi’s.

Chi Yao glanced at the shorter greasy man and said casually:
“And you are?”

Zhu Dachang’s face tightened, but he held his temper.
“I am Zhu Dachang, commander of the 38th Garrison Regiment of Aquarius, in charge of this rescue mission.”

“Rescue?” Chi Yao drawled. “At this hour, I thought you came to collect corpses.”

Zhu Dachang’s face flushed red, then pale.

Usually cold and unbothered, Jing Xi’s open disdain made it extra humiliating.

He ground his teeth and forced a more respectful tone.
“Apologies. The plan took time at headquarters, and on the way we ran into—”

But Chi Yao cut him off with a raised hand.
“Bodies have been dealt with. Nothing more here for you. You can scram.”

Rage festered in Zhu Dachang’s chest.

What good was individual power? He was just a marginalized major general. What was there to be arrogant about?!

Meanwhile, with the military’s signal relays working again, the central headquarters regained visual coverage of X30.

The footage shocked them.

The rookies were all unharmed?!

Chen Bingfeng’s stiff face turned to Jing Xi, his gaze cold.
“The rookies are safe?”

Chi Yao sneered:
“That’s a strange thing to ask, General Chen. What could possibly happen to rookies? Did you hope something happened?”

Chen Bingfeng roared: “Jing Xi! Mind your tone!”

“I’ve always had this tone,” Chi Yao answered fearlessly. “If you don’t like it, don’t talk to me.”

“You—!”

Pei Zhenyue cut him off, asking Jing Xi,
“What’s the situation? Any casualties?”

Chi Yao sneered faintly:
“This little skirmish? How could it possibly kill anyone?”

The officers in the monitoring room all hissed inwardly.

Extreme Shadow and Ghost Regiment together, and he calls it “little skirmish”?!

Pei Zhenyue pressed: “Where is Extreme Shadow now?”

Chi Yao: “After helping us repel Ghost Regiment, they left.”

Pei Zhenyue: “Helping?”

Chi Yao smiled.
“Of course. Extreme Shadow’s sense of loyalty is legendary. Don’t believe me? Ask the mercenaries.”

Everyone: “…”

Which Extreme Shadow are you even talking about?!

After investigation, the officers grew even more shocked.

Amid such chaos, Jing Xi not only kept all the rookies safe, but even had them perform a protection mission!

Audacious indeed, but also undeniably strong.

Chen Bingfeng, who had wanted to condemn him, could only grit his teeth in silence.

After reporting, Chi Yao shifted focus.

“I wonder which leader arranged for rescue that arrived only this morning?” His eyes deliberately swept toward Chen Bingfeng. “Seems you all must have great faith in my abilities.”

Pei Zhenyue frowned.
“Impossible. Headquarters already arranged yesterday—”

Mid‑sentence, he glanced at the feed, catching sight of Zhu Dachang behind Jing Xi. Suddenly, everything clicked.

His eyes swept over Zhao Hongyi, expression darkening.
“This, I will handle personally. For now, focus on training the rookies.”

That afternoon, the mercenary group carried off their dead.

Zhu Dachang, after traveling all this way only to be ridiculed by Chi Yao and then summoned away by Pei Zhenyue, was left thoroughly humiliated.

Late that night, Chi Yao fiddled with Jing Xi’s terminal. He built a dial‑simulation system, using the new AI monitoring net to punch in a series of complex codes.

After a long pause, the line connected.

“Why did you change your terminal?” A deep but commanding old voice asked.

Chi Yao: “Got tangled up in some matters. You’ll have to send your own men to Cetus Sector.”

The old voice hesitated: “What could possibly hold you back?”

Chi Yao idly twirled a lock of long hair in his hand, chuckling softly.

“Damn.”

The man on the other side cursed low.
“You didn’t set your eyes on some improper omega, did you?”

Chi Yao froze. “….”

“You brat! How many times have I told you, never find a partner in the circle. You want to achieve great things? First rule: abstain from lust!”

Chi Yao sneered.
“And end up like you—lonely, bitter old man, with nothing to do but nag others about relationships?”

The other side choked: “I—I’m busy!”

Chi Yao snorted, not bothering to argue.
“Cetus Sector, N9. A trade in half a month. Exact location unknown. Send scouts first. If time allows, I’ll go personally.”

The old voice: “I’ll arrange immediately.”

Chi Yao yawned.
At this hour, the Major General’s biological clock was always sharp—bedtime.

The old voice asked:
“Sleepy already?”

Chi Yao drawled lazily:
“With a beauty in my arms, of course I want to go to bed early.”

“Damn it, Chi Yao you—”

But before he could finish, Chi Yao hung up.

“Old geezer talks too much.”

He lay down, but every time he shut his eyes, the grotesque face of the Golden Mask flashed before him, covered in fleshy lumps.

Tossing and turning half an hour, he still couldn’t sleep. Irritated, he stared at the ceiling.

【I am your ending.】

“Damn.”

Too ugly even to let him sleep.

He tried to focus instead on Jing Xi’s face, then ended up prying out the embedded camera on the terminal—

On Extreme Shadow’s ship, Li Yuan and the others were laughing.

Li Yuan: “Boss, when’s the next team‑building?”

Chen Sheng: “If every time we had this kind of harvest, I’d fold blankets into tofu‑blocks every damn day!”

Jing Xi: “…”

Tei Xiong tugged at his pants leg. “Boss, the gun—”

Seeing the child‑bright eyes, Jing Xi handed over the silver pistol from his thigh pocket.
“Really like this gun?”

“Mm!”

Tei Xiong hugged it like a treasure, sat cross‑legged in the corner, and carefully polished it with a cloth.

Meanwhile, Fang Liang left the cockpit to report.
“Boss, I checked the satellite records of nearby planets, and just as you predicted, Ghost Regiment was heading straight for X30.”

Jing Xi’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Chi Yao had asked Fang Liang to investigate already? Since when had he suspected the surveillance issue?

Jing Xi asked calmly:
“Anything else?”

Fang Liang shook his head.
“Not right now. But judging by their timing, they must have already been in Aquarius.”

The exact number of Ghost Regiment members remained a mystery.

Jing Xi himself had always wondered how such a group could evade military intel for so many years. But he never liked meddling in others’ affairs, so his understanding wasn’t much deeper than most.

“Boss! Trouble!”

A scar‑browed young alpha dashed in.

Seeing his panic, Jing Xi asked on the move:
“What’s the matter?”

Scar‑Alpha: “Our AI ‘Pixiu’ detected star pirates ahead robbing a civilian ship!”

Jing Xi frowned and unconsciously quickened his pace.

Li Yuan, Chen Sheng, and several others followed eagerly.

Fresh off one big raid, another opportunity right away!
Their luck was outrageous.

In the command room, Jing Xi looked up at the multiple projected screens.

Two ships with skull insignias had surrounded a civilian ship, one already docked.

The Skull Syndicate had been infamous like Extreme Shadow twenty years ago before being purged by the military. Survivors had retreated to Aquarius space, preying on civilian ships. Recently, they’d started resurging.

Jing Xi zoomed the feed.

The vessel was an express liner—technically open to all, but costs so high only nobles could afford to travel it.

Li Yuan cursed:
“Figures it’s those Skull bastards. How come they always land such fat prey, but we never do?”

Fang Liang, calm:
“They analyze routes, patrol times, find gaps, then ambush. Very different from us.”

Hearing that, Li Yuan and Chen Sheng exchanged a glance, sneaking a look toward Chi Yao.

True indeed. They themselves never analyzed—just drifting, casually robbing.

Chen Sheng cracked his knuckles.
“Bold enough to eat meat right under our noses? They’ve got nerve.”

Li Yuan flexed his fists with a wicked grin.
“Boss, let’s hit them!”

Jing Xi: “Mm.”

He flipped the projection into full 3D and rotated.
“There. Fang Liang, take us there.”

Fang Liang saw the chosen spot was very close to the Skulls. He personally took the helm.

Inside the civilian ship though, chaos erupted.

The cockpit was seized. All passengers sat in the hall at gunpoint, crying and screaming.

“Boss, all goods are here.”

The Skull leader’s face wrinkled deeper in greedy glee at the piles of jewelry and clothing. Enough to feed the group three months if fenced.

He barked at the nobles:
“No wanting to die? Then pay up! Two hundred million credits each. First ten to pay live. Bank wires only!”

The hall exploded with panic again.

“I’ll pay! Just let me live!”
“I’ll take a spot!”
“Three hundred million! Please, don’t kill me!”
“Four hundred!”

For nobles, money was nothing.

The Skulls grinned ear to ear, quickly changing rules:
“From now on it’s auction. Ten spots, highest bids win!”

Nobles screamed over each other, driven mad by hope of survival.

Then—

“Freeze!”

A cold shout shattered the frenzy.

“Who the hell dares ruin my deal?!” The Skull leader snarled, striding toward the docking bay.

But rounding the corner, he froze—barrel pressed to his forehead.

It was Fang Liang with the gun, followed by Jing Xi and a dozen men.

The nobles cried with joy—rescue!

But when they saw who it was, their knees buckled.

“Is—is that Extreme Shadow?!”
“That face—I’d never mistake it. That’s their leader!”
“Why is such a damn handsome alpha… Extreme Shadow’s head, ughhh—”
“I—I don’t want to dieeee!”

The nobles completely collapsed.

Chi Yao’s face was as infamous as his reputation.

Years ago, just one blurry paparazzi pic had landed him in the Empire’s “Top 100 Most Perfect Alphas” ranking. He had blown away mainstream celebrities, ultimately tying Jing Xi for third place.

First place being the 70‑plus‑year‑old King of the Empire.

From then on, all knew—the Extreme Shadow captain was outrageously handsome, endlessly infamous, shamelessly adored.

People cursed him while secretly worshipping his face.

Now, with Extreme Shadow appearing here, the atmosphere darkened instantly.

The Skulls raised weapons, but their leader frantically stopped them.
“Show respect!”

He glanced nervously at the muzzle still aimed at him, then forced a smile at Jing Xi.
“Leader Chi, had no idea you were in this area. We’ll leave the field to you then!”

Jing Xi: “I have no interest in robbery.”

Li Yuan chimed in: “Don’t think we’re like you. We don’t rob!”

“Don’t rob?” The Skull leader blinked.
“Then why are you here—?”

Li Yuan stole a look at his boss’s face before booming:
“We came here to rescue them!”

The nobles almost choked.

What? Extreme Shadow says they came to save us?!

Hallucinations?

The Skull leader scratched his head.
“If you want them, sure, then—”

Chen Sheng cut him off sharply.
“There are rules in the star pirate world. Let’s compete. If we win, the passengers go and you leave. If you win, we leave. Deal?”

“Compete?”

The Skull crew exchanged nervous glances.

Compete with Extreme Shadow? That’s suicide.

But the prize was huge. The Skull leader didn’t want to give it up.
“Fine. How? Shooting? Hand‑to‑hand?”

Who knows, maybe they’d win.

After all, the Skull legacy wasn’t weak.

Li Yuan and Chen Sheng exchanged smug looks.

Li Yuan: “Those violent contests are outdated.”
Chen Sheng: “Let’s do something fresh.”

The Skull leader frowned. “Fresh?”

Sounded like a trap.

Li Yuan: “Standing military posture.”
Chen Sheng: “Folding blankets into tofu blocks.”

Skull crew: “???”

Li Yuan gloated:
“What, you don’t know these? We in Extreme Shadow follow modern discipline—military management. Your barbarian bands are just too low.”

Jing Xi: “…”

This was spiraling.

Moments later, nobles teary‑eyed, trembled as they witnessed the absurd sight: both pirate groups lined up immobile on one side, while on the other, quilts were flying as teams folded them into precise blocks.

…This wasn’t the star pirate battle they had imagined at all.

Half an hour later, the Skulls were thoroughly beaten.

Chen Sheng pointed with pride:
“This is a proper tofu block.”

He gestured at the Skull leader’s misshapen attempt.
“Yours looks like fried tofu. Fail!”

The Skull leader choked back tears.
“We admit defeat. Take the passengers. We’re done!”

This “new game” was hellishly inhuman!

The nobles could hardly believe their ears—Extreme Shadow said they’d save them, and they actually did!

Their shackles were unlocked.

“Um… we really don’t need to pay ransom anymore?” one asked nervously.

Fang Liang: “No need. You are safe.”

Eyes widened.

Were they dreaming? Fake Extreme Shadow?

After the rescue, Jing Xi ordered his men to supervise as the Skulls left.

Expression blank, voice cold:
“This is only a warning. Next time I see you robbing civilians, it won’t end with games.”

Li Yuan clapped the Skull leader’s shoulder, grip nearly breaking bone.
“You heard him. Rob nobles if you like. But touch commoners again, and you’re finished.”

Shivering in agony, the Skull leader bowed repeatedly.
“Y‑yes, never again!”

As they left, fear gnawed at him.
Would Extreme Shadow really let them go? Or blast them to pieces the moment they boarded?

Halfway to the dock, the Skull leader whirled back, dragging Li Yuan aside.

“These nobles wired money to my account. Better if you take charge.”

Glancing at the balance filled with endless zeroes, Li Yuan reluctantly accepted.
“Don’t do this again.”

“Yes, yes!”

After the Skull ships left, the civilian liner took flight again.

Just then, Jing Xi’s terminal buzzed. Before he could check, Li Yuan and Chen Sheng bounded over.

“Boss!” Li Yuan gave a thumbs‑up, grinning. “Money!”
Chen Sheng mirrored him. “Reputation!”

“Maintaining order—it feels damn good!”

Jing Xi: “…”

Do they even understand the meaning of ‘maintaining order’?

Shaking his head, he checked the message.

It was from “himself.”

Attached was a photo: he lay on a bed, eyes hazy, lips slightly tilted in a smile, long hair unkempt across the pillow, shirt unbuttoned down to the chest. The whole picture radiated indecent allure.

【Saved to my album. Note: ‘Eye‑cleanser XL, insomnia cure edition.’】

Jing Xi’s fist curled tight, knuckles cracking.

Just as he prepared to delete it, a new message arrived.

【If I don’t find this picture in the album next time, I’ll shoot a nude one instead.】

Jing Xi: “…”

Just you wait.

---

Author’s notes:

Chi Yao: If my wife won’t pose, then I can only do it myself.

100 selfies later—

Chi Yao: My wife’s so beautiful, no way I could abstain. [slurp]

Jing Xi: …You only know how to pose (strip), don’t you?