Applying a waterproof bandage over his wound, Li Xiao tossed his discarded clothes into the washing machine, laundering them along with Song Jin’s.

Water poured overhead, dispersing the dried bloodstains on his body. Crimson droplets fell onto the floor one by one, blossoming like winter plum blossoms.

As Li Xiao washed, he organized the events of the past two days in his mind.

He wasn’t sure how many raw material bases like the one Wei Feng mentioned still existed, but judging from the base’s configuration, there shouldn’t be very many. Building such a base incurred massive construction and maintenance costs, not to mention the immense risks. The more bases there were, the higher the risk of exposure.

With the scale of the fifth underground floor of the hibernation center, housing a thousand raw materials wouldn’t be an issue, yet there were only eight.

Hu Jiang had mentioned that those who failed to meet the requirements were tortured to death. Correlating this with the situation on several border planets, it was highly likely that they were used as live bait to lure the Raven into a trap. Just like the scene they witnessed at the end of the Rubik’s Cube—a group of bleeding people nailed to the Golden Lark stone statues, intentionally inciting the Raven’s fury to systematically generate hatred and pave the way for a future coup.

It was the same back on Z152; that abandoned base was also bait to lure the Raven. It was just that they had beaten everyone to the punch, resulting in the Raven never showing its face publicly, which caused Meng Jian’s plan to fail.

Using a raw material base as bait this time meant they had invested a fortune. A swarm of modified humans was clamoring to be fed; once the blood supply chain suffered a disruption, every single plan related to the modified humans would face paralysis. If things went wrong, even the alliance between the Meng, Zheng, and Qi families might fracture.

At this thought, Li Xiao’s mind shifted to the Ferrymen.

The faster he cracked the technology behind the modified humans, the more advantageous it would be for him. If he could use this to disintegrate the Meng family’s forces from within, perhaps he could completely avoid the tragic, catastrophic ending of his previous life.

However, Yan Qing had startled the hidden snake, causing the interactions between the Moment Bookstore and the bar to snap. Ferrymen G2 hadn’t shown their face to this day.

“Jin Heng…?” Li Xiao suddenly recalled the name Yan Qing had mentioned.

That second-year Dean of Students, Xiang Hong, was also highly suspicious.

He still needed to find an opportunity to have a thorough talk with Yan Qing.

Knock, knock, knock. A tapping sound resonated against the door.

Li Xiao came back to his senses. Before he could utter a word, the bathroom door was pushed open. Song Jin propped himself against the doorframe and walked in, eating a bun held in his hand.

“Daring to call someone else’s name while taking a shower—your courage is far from small.” Song Jin cast a glance at the washing machine. Seeing that the clothes hadn’t finished laundering yet, he simply leaned against the washstand to wait.

Covered in a head full of foam, Li Xiao saw that this kid harbored absolutely no intention of leaving. He remarked casually, “I haven’t finished washing yet. You go out first; this does not fall within the scope of the 10% trial run.”

Song Jin swiped open his terminal to scroll through the online public opinion. “This is the price for you stealing my bun.”

Li Xiao: “…”

Childish ghost.

“Why did you call Jin Heng just now?” Song Jin steered the topic back.

Li Xiao replied, “Thinking about who exactly G2 is. Both Xiang Hong and Jin Heng are suspects.”

Happily consuming his bun, Song Jin adopted a relaxed cadence: “Just capture them first. With my interrogation level, we can extract results within two days at most.”

Li Xiao: “…That is called extracting confessions through torture.”

Song Jin countered, “But it works.”

Li Xiao pondered seriously for a moment; it truly wasn’t a bad approach.

Rinsing away the foam, Li Xiao pulled a bath towel and stepped out of the shower cubicle. “Let’s talk to Yan Qing first. If necessary, I’ll let you handle the interrogation.”

As the footsteps drew near, Song Jin raised his eyes. Looking at the glistening beauty, he found it completely impossible to shift his gaze away. Suddenly, he felt the bun held in his hand was no longer appetizing.

He was a natural blond himself, but he preferred black hair the most. Wet hair paired with Li Xiao’s face was an absolute critical hit.

Since the clothes weren’t dry yet, Li Xiao wrapped the bath towel around his waist. Noticing Song Jin’s vacant, staring eyes, he turned to grab a towel, asking casually, “Choking?”

Song Jin stealthily traced his abs and planted a kiss against his neck. “Why is it salty? Did you wash thoroughly or not?”

Li Xiao: “…”

Li Xiao pinned the stray hand, turning to press Song Jin securely between the washstand and himself. Guiding the youth’s hand upward from his abs to rest on his waist, he spoke right against his ear: “You have to touch like this. What you did just now is groping.”

“…” Song Jin’s heartbeat accelerated. He grasped Li Xiao’s hand, gnashing his teeth with an unyielding spirit. “The one just now doesn’t count. Let’s do it again.”

Li Xiao turned and walked outward with a wooden expression. “I’m hungry.”

“Scared?” Song Jin pinched his bun and pursued him out.

Li Xiao replied, “Afraid you’ll twist my abs clean off.”

Song Jin: “…”

He wasn’t clumsy.

After eating their meal and switching into dried combat uniforms, Li Xiao and Song Jin stepped out, joining Qin Le and the other two waiting at the end of the corridor to go locate Yan Qing together.

Inside the operations cabin, Yan Qing submitted the transfer report for Li Xiao’s five-person unit.

The Beta Major receiving the report reviewed it, signed his name upon the document, and handed another file over to him smoothly: “This is for Xiang Hong. I’ve gone to locate him twice but missed him both times. When you head back, deliver it to him on your way. Just return the signed copy to me.”

“I’ll look for him. I’ve rarely seen him these past two days either,” Yan Qing said, taking his leave from the Major before turning to exit the operations cabin.

His terminal vibrated. Yan Qing saw it was Li Xiao, so he accelerated his pace to arrive at the outer lounge of the cabin, guiding Li Xiao and the others toward the medical center.

The wounds on all five individuals had received emergency treatment, but they still needed to undergo a thorough scan.

Qian Can let out a yawn, rubbing his exhausted eyes. “What’s going on? The moment I relax, I feel so incredibly sleepy.”

Jiang Hao countered, “I told you to sleep just now, but you insisted on dragging me to talk about games.”

Qin Le added, “There should be time to sleep after the check-up.”

Song Jin kept a dark expression, completely saturated with a sense of defeat. His mind had already formulated countless revenge plans to tease Li Xiao until he knelt to beg for mercy. If all else failed, he would threaten his brother to get a video.

Walking beside Song Jin, Qian Can suddenly shuddered, shrinking his neck as he asked, “Boss, who provoked you? Why is your killing intent this heavy?”

Song Jin responded, “Adult business. Don’t pry.”

Qian Can: “…”

You’re the most childish one here, okay?

The medical center was bustling with incoming and outgoing personnel. They headed toward the sector dedicated specifically to routine examinations.

Yan Qing instructed them to wait at the entrance for a brief moment while he went to process the examination procedures.

A chaotic commotion resonated from behind. Two Betas wearing Second Lieutenant uniforms quickly marched over, supporting an Alpha Second Lieutenant.

The Alpha appeared like a drunkard throwing a tantrum, struggling relentlessly. His strength was so immense that even the two Betas could barely restrain him.

“Let go of me! Do you guys want to get beaten up too?!”

“I treated you guys as friends, yet you treat me like this?!”

The Beta on the left was drenched in sweat, trying his best to soothe him: “We aren’t trying to harm you, we’re bringing you to see a doctor.”

Standing beside Li Xiao, Song Jin observed the trio passing before his eyes unobtrusively, inexplicably finding them somewhat familiar.

This Alpha’s crazed, delirious, and abnormally hyperactive state was highly similar to Lin Zhou back when he attacked his companion in the dining hall.

Song Jin looked toward Li Xiao.

With a single look, Li Xiao comprehended his intent and nodded.

Judging by his aura, this Alpha was indeed a modified human.

The two Betas escorted the man into the right corridor, halting before the nearest office door.

The Beta on the right shouted inside, “Doctor Jin, Old Yu seems to have contracted a viral infection and is experiencing hallucinations. Quick, take a look at him!”

Very quickly, a forty-something Alpha stepped out of the office. He looked refined, wearing a lab coat over his military uniform, his posture completely upright and proper.

Song Jin’s gaze swept across the man’s name tag.

Jin Lin, Medical Officer of the Fifth Legion, rank of Second Lieutenant.

Jin Lin scanned the situation briefly, gesturing for the two Betas to bring the man inside.

Song Jin issued a command to 07 using his thoughts: [Go take a look.]

The blue decorative buckle on his terminal cascaded down to the floor like liquid threads, moving rapidly toward that office before assembling into a tiny, concealed camera in the corner of the entrance.

Simultaneously, a surveillance frame popped into the fields of vision of both Song Jin and Li Xiao.

Inside the office, the Alpha was pressed down onto a chair. Jin Lin rapidly conducted a routine examination on him. “Was he injured recently, or did he consume something unusual?”

The Beta replied, “He hasn’t gone to the frontline these past two days. He ate together with us, and we are all perfectly fine.”

Jin Lin asked, “When did he become like this?”

The Beta explained, “During the meeting this afternoon, a colleague passed by and accidentally brushed against his clothes. He suddenly lunged forward and gave the person a beating, and things spiraled completely out of hand.”

Jin Lin put down his examination instruments. Looking at the loudly cursing Alpha, he spoke to them: “Send him to Special Sector C, and request a leave of absence for him while you’re at it.”

The Beta gasped in surprise, “Isn’t that the psychiatric ward?”

Jin Lin walked outward. “Hurry up.”

The two Betas scrambled to keep up.

The Beta on the left muttered in a low voice, “I keep feeling that over these past one or two years, more and more people are being sent to Special Sector C. Is our Legion too oppressive, driving people into mental illness?”

The Beta on the right countered, “Who goes to the battlefield without feeling oppressed?”

In the corridor behind, Li Xiao watched Jin Lin passing before his eyes. His aura was relatively clean, carrying a hint of disinfectant scent.

This Jin Lin is normal.

Qin Le and the other two noticed as well, their eyes questioning the two bosses whether they should follow and investigate.

Li Xiao shook his head.

Surveillance cameras were everywhere aboard the military vessel; approaching would make it far too easy to get targeted.

To avoid drawing the attention of the modified humans, 07 transformed into a tiny flying insect, following behind Jin Lin and the others toward Special Sector C.

Beside the examination room, Yan Qing was processing the registration on an automated device.

Upon confirming his signature, he caught the voices of several soldiers conversing inside the examination room.

“Another person developed mental issues?”

“Seems to be from the ground forces. Facing such immense pressure day in and day out, how could they not go crazy?”

“Don’t just mention us, even the military academy students face immense pressure. I saw that Dean surnamed Xiang from the military academy heading to Special Sector C in the middle of the night yesterday. Perhaps some students are experiencing mental breakdowns as well.”

“The competition is fierce; they’re grinding themselves to death.”

Yan Qing paused to listen for a brief moment. Noticing someone approaching to register out of his peripheral vision, he took his leave.

Routine examinations didn’t require blood draws. Li Xiao and the other four passed through the physical scanning sector sequentially, then stood beneath the therapeutic lamps of corresponding intensity according to the system prompts.

As the instructor leading the team, Yan Qing dutifully accompanied them until every individual’s examination report was generated.

“Qian Can, re-examine your thigh injury in an hour.”

Qian Can: “Understood!”

Yan Qing looked toward Song Jin: “Re-examine your shoulder and arm injuries in half an hour.”

“Mm,” Song Jin responded casually, his attention entirely focused on the surveillance screen in his field of vision.

Special Sector C consisted entirely of single-occupancy isolation wards, reinforced with steel plates compared to standard hospital rooms.

07 intentionally lingered before each ward door for a brief moment, enabling Li Xiao and Song Jin to see the situation inside clearly.

Every individual was restrained to their hospital beds. The vast majority were asleep, while a minority struggled violently.

That Alpha was brought into one of the wards. After two on-duty medical officers secured him to the bed, they administered a sedative. The Alpha quieted down very quickly, beginning to weep without any warning.

Jin Lin patted him, comforting, “No need to be nervous. Just relax and get a good night’s sleep, and you’ll be fine.”

Having finished speaking, he departed along with the two Betas.

In the therapeutic lamp sector.

Two Betas wearing Sergeant training uniforms were loosening their joints, gossiping about Special Sector C.

Li Xiao listened for a moment before inquiring politely, “Once admitted to Special Sector C, can one only await discharge notice?”

Individuals with psychiatric issues were prohibited from returning to the battlefield.

The two Betas had noticed Li Xiao long ago; they just hadn’t felt comfortable approaching to greet him, afraid of disturbing the Prince. Seeing Li Xiao initiate conversation, they felt somewhat flattered.

“That’s not the case,” the brown-haired Beta replied. “Most cases are temporary mental episodes. According to the doctors, it’s generally caused by excessive pressure. They can recover after resting for two days.”

The black-haired Beta nodded. “You guys might not have witnessed this spectacle before, but it’s quite common within the Legion.”

Li Xiao asked, “Reduced to that state, yet they can fully recover after resting for two days?”

Seeing that Li Xiao looked incredulous, the brown-haired Beta stated, “Truly. I saw Lieutenant Lu from the mecha unit being brought in previously. When I saw him again a week later, he was already executing missions normally, completely unable to tell his mind had suffered an issue.”

The two candid soldiers spent ten minutes recounting everything they knew to Li Xiao.

Seeing Li Xiao looking thoughtful, the brown-haired Beta reacted belatedly. Fearing he had spoken out of turn, he asked cautiously, “It won’t be mandated in the future that anyone who has suffered a mental issue must be discharged, right?”

Li Xiao let out a chuckle. “No, I am merely contemplating whether there is a way to alleviate the pressure on the frontline warriors to reduce the occurrence of such ailments.”

The two Betas let out a sigh of relief, exchanging a look.

The Second Prince is truly kind and acts without airs; no wonder he is well-liked.

After basking for half an hour, Li Xiao patted Song Jin, who was napping against his shoulder. “Go to the scanning sector for your re-examination.”

“Troublesome,” Song Jin opened his eyes with impatience.

Li Xiao said, “Finish the check-up early so we can head back to rest early.”

Song Jin looked as though nothing was amiss, but having just forcefully suppressed his susceptibility period, he would naturally experience fatigue more easily than usual; it was just that this kid refused to vocalize it.

Song Jin bargained, “Let me touch your abs when we get back.”

Li Xiao replied, “At most a 10% trial run.”

Song Jin asked, “What does the 10% include?”

Li Xiao stated with absolute solemnity, “From the neck up.”

Song Jin: “…”

So only his head belonged to him?

Song Jin ran a hand through his hair. Just as he was about to call Qin Le, he turned his head to see that Qin Le and Qian Can had fallen asleep standing up. Jiang Hao was behind them, supporting one with each arm.

Noticing Song Jin’s gaze, Jiang Hao patted Qin Le’s shoulder. “Lele, go get your check-up.”

Qin Le jolled awake. “I fell asleep?”

Qian Can added groggily, “This composite therapeutic lamp is just exceptionally easy to fall asleep under.”

Yan Qing returned after taking two communications. Qin Le and Song Jin had already concluded their re-examinations. Their reports indicated that their wounds had basically knitted together, advising them to continue basking under the lamps for two more days to ensure complete tissue repair.

Once everyone had concluded their treatment, Yan Qing personally escorted them back to the lounge cabin.

On the way, Li Xiao asked Yan Qing, “There are a few questions on the history paper that I have doubts about. I wonder when Teacher Yan will be free?”

Yan Qing replied, “The deployment period is very busy. Let’s wait until we return to school before I look over it for you, alright?”

Li Xiao noted, “It shouldn’t consume much time.”

Yan Qing refused coldly, “No time.”

Song Jin tucked his hands into his jacket pockets, dragging out a lazy tone to ask, “Just say it, how many first-place finishes do you want?”

Yan Qing: “…”

As the Dean, he found it completely impossible to refuse such an exchange condition.

Yan Qing cleared his throat. “If the two of you—”

“Two exams? Deal.” Song Jin agreed with absolute casualness and decisiveness.

Yan Qing: “…”

Is placing first something you can achieve just by wanting it? This easy?

Upon returning to the lounge cabin, Yan Qing ultimately relented.

“If nothing goes amiss tomorrow evening, I will have a modicum of spare time. I will answer your questions then.”

Once Yan Qing departed, Jiang Hao asked Li Xiao, “Big Brother, do you guys want to go eat?”

“We’ve eaten,” Li Xiao swiped his terminal to open the lounge cabin door. “Return early to rest after you finish eating. There might be other missions tomorrow.”

This was a subtle instruction telling them not to wander off.

Jiang Hao acknowledged, heading to the nearest dining hall with Qin Le and Qian Can.

It was currently 6:30 PM local time, and the dining hall was quite crowded. The food service was very direct; everything was laid out ready-made, and one simply gathered what they wanted.

Jiang Hao queued at the rear of the line. After gathering the dishes he desired, he went to seek a seat, catching sight of that Wei Wen they had met at the bookstore previously. His left arm was suspended in a sling, appearing injured.

The moment Wei Wen sat down, Jiang Hao approached right after him. “Excuse me, is anyone sitting here?”

“No, just me.” Wei Wen raised his head, observing him with bewilderment. “Aren’t you the Second Prince’s friend?”

“My name is Jiang Hao,” Jiang Hao sat opposite him, waving to Qin Le and the others who had finished gathering their food. “You recognize me?”

Wei Wen’s eyes shone brightly. “Your strength is immense; I have a profound impression of you! As expected of His Highness’s friend!”

Jiang Hao noted, “The fact that you could join the campaign proves you aren’t lacking either.”

At the mention of himself, the light in Wei Wen’s eyes vanished. “I am far from it. My grades have stagnated, and I accidentally suffered an injury from a fall on the battlefield. I might not be able to continue executing missions.”

Seated adjacent to Jiang Hao, Qian Can saw Wei Wen looking utterly dejected and smiled. “What’s the big deal? Didn’t the few of us get injured as well? We almost got blown to pieces, so you count as fortunate.”

“I saw it online,” Wei Wen pursed his lips. “Fortunately, you are all unharmed.”

Jiang Hao suggested, “Are you alone? How about we arrange a time to bask under the therapeutic lamps together tomorrow?”

Wei Wen asked, “Is that alright?”

Jiang Hao replied, “Of course, we are all classmates after all.”

Wei Wen smiled. “Great!”

The friendship of youth blossomed exceptionally easily; across a single meal, they were already calling each other brothers. Jiang Hao and the other two added Wei Wen’s terminal ID, chatting all the way back to the lounge cabin.

2:00 AM.

Li Xiao was woken up by 09’s notification tone.

Across a small table, Song Jin was sleeping soundly on another small bed. Li Xiao rose soundlessly, not intending to wake him.

Taking just one step forward, his sleeve was gripped tight, and Song Jin’s exhausted, raspy voice resonated by his ear.

“Not taking me along to play?”

Li Xiao: “…”

The medical center was staffed twenty-four hours a day, but this hour saw the least soldier traffic.

The duo had 09 and 07 encase their entire bodies, activating stealth mode. With the metallic shells simulating the environment, even military surveillance equipment couldn’t perceive them.

The corridors of the medical sector were indeed vacant, avoiding drawing any commotion from being spotted by modified humans.

The duo headed straight for Special Sector C, first seeking the examination rooms and laboratory equipment of this sector.

Li Xiao commanded: [09, hijack the surveillance of this sector.]

09: [Hijacked—Activated random loop playback of surveillance footage—]

Only two medical officers were on duty inside the guardroom. The duo stepped lightly past the guardroom entrance, opening the door to an examination room.

The equipment here was sparse, mostly common medical apparatus. After a sweep, Song Jin gestured for Li Xiao to head to the next room.

Even after searching through every single examination room in the entirety of Special Sector C, they still failed to locate any equipment suspected of being utilized by the Ferrymen.

Looking thoughtful, Song Jin inquired using his thoughts: [Could our line of thinking be flawed? Perhaps it only needs to be injected into the bloodstream?]

Li Xiao shook his head, gesturing for him not to fret, and suggested looking inside the wards.

07 captured footage of each ward, and they reviewed them one by one, indeed failing to locate any bizarre apparatus.

Passing before the ward of the Alpha from this afternoon, Song Jin suddenly pulled Li Xiao back, gesturing for 07 to open the door.

Inside the ward, the Alpha wasn’t asleep at all. Having been administered a sedative, his reactions were sluggish. Hearing a commotion, it took him several seconds to turn his head toward the entrance, only to see two black bears standing over two meters tall marching inside, scaring him until he almost leaped off the bed.

“Ahhhh—! Don’t come over! Don’t come over!!”

Uncaring whether they understood or not, the black bears paused at the entrance for a brief moment before walking over regardless.

His survival instinct prompted the Alpha to snap his restraint straps, falling off the bed with a miserable shriek. Scrambling to hide in a corner, he grabbed the nearest item and hurled it over.

Yet the black bears were unexpectedly agile, dodging left and right as they advanced toward him.

“Help!” The Alpha cradled his head, his mental state completely shattered. As the black bear approached, he scrambled to leap onto the hospital bed to cross over, but was tripped by a black bear’s foot, tumbling straight down from the foot of the bed, his shoes flying a considerable distance away.

Song Jin squatted beside him while retaining the black bear guise, speaking leisurely with a camouflaged coarse voice: “Even your shoes flew off, no hope left for living.”

The Alpha was completely dazed from the fall. Raising his head to see a magnified bear face, tears surged from the corners of his eyes from the fright.

“Ahhhh—!”

Just as the Alpha was about to crawl away, the other black bear squatted down before him.

Li Xiao stated, “Conveniently saves us from treating you. Leave the blood for others.”

The Alpha was terrified, his entire being caught in utter confusion. Suddenly hearing this sentence, he whipped his head up, screaming hysterically, “Didn’t we agree you would help me use it tomorrow?! What am I supposed to do if it’s given to others?!”

Song Jin propped his chin with a bear paw. “What time tomorrow?”

The Alpha yelled, “3:00 PM tomorrow! You guys promised!”

Li Xiao asked, “Where?”

The Alpha shouted, “In Examination Room Eight! I remember it clear as day!”

Song Jin inquired, “Who helps you use it, and how is it used?”

Shivering violently from the fright, the Alpha cried, “You never let me look each time, so how would I know?!”

Song Jin and Li Xiao exchanged a look. Pointing a bear paw toward the hospital bed, Song Jin instructed, “Lie back down.”

The Alpha protested, “I won’t!”

Song Jin bared his claws against the man’s neck. “Go lie down, or die—choose one yourself.”

The Alpha recoiled violently, rising with trembling legs to scramble back onto the hospital bed. “Fine, I’ll go.”

Flanking him on either side, Li Xiao and Song Jin bound his restraint straps within a few swift motions, even thoughtfully pulling the blanket over him again, rendering the scene identical to how it was initially.

His mental state completely shattered, the Alpha was left with the sole notion of awaiting death, watching as the two black bears turned and departed hand-in-hand.

“…”

The ward door opened and closed once more, and the frigid room plunged into a deathly silence again, as though everything just now hadn’t transpired at all.

“An illusion, it’s an illusion…” the Alpha muttered to himself. “Black bears don’t hold hands, correct, it’s all fake…”