The sudden turn of events caught everyone off guard.

The alphas in the training room were pale-faced, never having imagined they would one day be brought to their knees by an omega’s pheromones. They tried to use their own pheromones to suppress it, but they were completely unable to even resist.

Ji Ling was on the verge of a breakdown. The pheromones he released were extremely unstable and highly aggressive.

A staff member prepared to activate the ventilation system but was stopped by Lin Quan.

“Wait!” Lin Quan squinted at Ji Ling. “No one stops without my command.”

The staff member’s hand froze. He didn’t dare to move, looking at Ji Ling as if he were a monster.

“Open the door!”

Ji Ruo brushed past Lin Quan, kicked the metal door hard, and turned his head to stare directly at him, his gaze icy. “My brother is in no condition to continue training. I demand you terminate it immediately.”

A defective product dares to speak to me like that? Lin Quan shot him a disdainful glance and waved for the others to drag him away.

Seeing the men approach him, Ji Ruo’s face darkened further.

“I don’t know what your objective is, but if you harm A-Ling, I don’t think Father will just let it go.”

Lin Quan’s gaze fell on Ji Ruo again.

He was just a thirteen or fourteen-year-old omega, yet he showed no fear in the face of him. In that respect, he was indeed rare.

It was just a pity he was a useless piece of trash.

Lin Quan lifted his chin. “Open it.”

The ventilation system activated, and the pheromones in the training room quickly dissipated.

Ji Ruo strode toward Ji Ling in the corner.

“A-Ling!”

Startled by the touch, Ji Ling seemed to be stimulated, violently shaking off Ji Ruo’s hand and curling into a ball, shrinking further into the corner.

“It’s me.” Seeing Ji Ling’s terrible state and the wounds on his arms, Ji Ruo’s heart ached.

After a long moment, Ji Ling finally looked up. Recognizing the person before him, he threw himself into his arms, crying.

“Ge! I can’t take it, I can’t take it anymore, wuuuuu—”

“If you can’t take it, then we’ll stop training. Let’s go back.” Ji Ruo frowned, using all his strength to help him up.

Lin Quan stood outside the training room with his hands behind his back, his sharp eyes scanning the alphas in the room. They were all in a pathetic state; even though the pheromones in the air had dispersed, they still couldn’t even stand up.

Seeing the Ji brothers walk out, Lin Quan said coolly, “Go back and rest for today. We’ll continue tomorrow.”

Hearing this, Ji Ruo noticed Ji Ling’s body begin to tremble.

He didn’t even glance at Lin Quan as he walked past him towards their quarters.

Perhaps due to the excessive stimulation, Ji Ling developed a high fever shortly after returning, muttering deliriously in his sleep. Ji Ruo took care of him through the night, not daring to rest for a moment.

Around three in the morning, Ji Ling woke up with a start.

“I don’t want to!”

Ji Ruo, who had been sitting by the bed, felt his drowsy mind snap to attention. “A-Ling, you’re awake? Do you still feel sick?”

Ji Ling’s face was flushed, his lips cracked and pale. Seeing Ji Ruo, he broke down sobbing.

“Ge, I hate alpha pheromones. I can’t go on.”

“Then we’ll stop training,” Ji Ruo comforted him in a low voice. “Nothing is more important than your health. Father certainly wouldn’t want to see you like this.”

“But… but—” Ji Ling sniffled, his consciousness hazy from the fever, his speech slurred. “If I can’t do it, will Father be very disappointed in us?”

“He won’t,” Ji Ruo said, wringing out a wet towel to wipe the sweat from his face. “And if he would be disappointed by that, then we don’t need a father like that.”

Ji Ling hesitated, then asked in a small voice, “Can I really give up?”

Meeting his eyes, Ji Ruo instantly understood the meaning behind the question.

Firstly, A-Ling had always been competitive since he was young, striving to be first in everything. This was no different. Once he started something, he would push himself to be the best; giving up halfway wasn’t his style.

Secondly, A-Ling believed this was the only way to get closer to their father and gain his approval. Giving it up would mean severing that connection with their father, which made the love-starved boy feel extremely insecure.

“Tomorrow, I’ll go with you to see Lin Quan. We’re not doing this anymore,” Ji Ruo said in a low, gentle voice, but his attitude was firm. “There are many ways to help Father. There will be plenty of opportunities in the future.”

Convinced, Ji Ling nodded, his voice hoarse. “Okay.”

Perhaps because the heavy weight on his heart had been lifted, Ji Ling slept soundly and his fever broke by morning. Ji Ruo took care of him in the bedroom all morning. After lunch, the two of them went to find Lin Quan together.

Standing outside Lin Quan’s office, Ji Ling said quietly, “A-Ruo, I made you miss class all morning. Why don’t you go to class? I can go in and talk to him myself.”

Ji Ruo frowned. “No.”

Ji Ling shook his arm. “I’m so old now, how can I still need my older brother to accompany me just to talk to someone? It’s too embarrassing. Besides, it’s not like he’s going to eat me.”

Ji Ruo was reluctant to let him go in alone, but he considered that A-Ling was proud and might feel awkward with him there. Unable to resist Ji Ling’s persistence, Ji Ruo reluctantly took a step back. “Then come to class right after you’re done. Don’t go to the training room.”

A faint smile appeared on Ji Ling’s pale face. “Don’t worry, I’ll be over soon.”

Watching Ji Ruo turn and leave, Ji Ling took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

He wasn’t letting his brother accompany him because of pride. He had noticed long ago that Lin Quan had a very bad attitude towards A-Ruo. It was better for A-Ruo to have as little contact with him as possible.

The door opened before him, and Ji Ling walked in.

Lin Quan sat behind a large desk and looked at him. “How are you? Feeling better?”

“A little better.” Ji Ling didn’t dare sit in the chair in front of him and stood about three meters from the desk. “I’m sorry, General Lin, but the matter I agreed to before, I’m afraid—”

“You’ve come at a good time,” Lin Quan interrupted, rising from his chair. “Your father heard you’ve been working so hard lately and said he wants to see you. Do you want to go?”

Ji Ling’s eyes widened, and for a moment, he forgot why he had come.

“F-Father wants to see me?”

Lin Quan: “You’re not willing?”

Ji Ling nodded frantically, a healthy blush returning to his pale face. “I’m willing! I’m willing!”

Lin Quan glanced at his face, unable to hide his delight, and lifted his chin. “Let’s go.”

As they walked out the door, Ji Ling suddenly remembered something. “Um, I want to ask my brother to come with us. Could you wait—”

“Your father doesn’t want to see him,” Lin Quan refused flatly. “If you bring him, then neither of you will get to see your father. Think it over carefully.”

Ji Ling’s expression stiffened, and he looked down, thinking for a moment.

“Then… then I’ll go first this time. I’ll ask my brother to come with me next time.”

From an angle he couldn’t see, the corner of Lin Quan’s mouth curved up as he continued walking forward.

---

Ji Ming’s laboratory was outside the base. The straight-line distance on the surface was just over a thousand meters, which wasn’t far, but this was a no-man’s-land where mutated creatures could appear and kill at any moment. Every extra second exposed on the surface was an extra second of risk.

Previously, Ji Ling could only time the patrol team’s shifts, secretly running behind them to get to the lab. But even if he got in, he could only watch from a distance, unable to go inside.

Today, he entered the place he could never normally get into with ease.

Ji Ling looked at the people in white lab coats fiddling with various medical instruments, his eyes full of curiosity.

At the end of the corridor, a heavy metal door opened. Inside was Ji Ming’s workshop. Ji Ming spent most of his time here, occasionally going out to guide others. Out of ten times Ji Ling had snuck out, he could probably only catch a distant glimpse of Ji Ming once or twice.

The closer he got, the faster Ji Ling’s heart beat.

“Professor Ji,” Lin Quan called out to Ji Ming.

Ji Ming was engrossed in his experiment and didn’t hear him at all.

Ji Ling’s fingertips trembled with nervousness. Looking at his father’s back, his voice was tight. “Father, I’ve come to see you.”

The hand Ji Ming was holding a test tube with paused, and he turned around.

When he saw Ji Ling, his eyes lit up. He threw the test tube aside and dashed over.

“A-Ling!”

Ji Ling felt a blur before he was lifted off the ground.

“My, you’ve grown so big!” Ji Ming held him and bounced him a little, then patted his head and pinched his cheek, smiling happily. “Last time you were only up to my waist, and now you reach my chest! Looks like you’ve been eating well.”

Seeing his father so happy after being reunited after so long, Ji Ling was infected by his joy and started to smile too.

“I’m turning fourteen next month!”

Ji Ming’s expression froze. He opened his terminal to check the date and calculated carefully. “You really are. Time flies so fast.”

“I told you I’d take good care of them. Are you relieved now?” Lin Quan interjected from the side.

Ji Ming hugged his son, unwilling to let go, and smiled. “I’m certainly relieved when General Lin does things. I wouldn’t have entrusted them to you otherwise.”

As he spoke, he looked behind them. “Where’s A-Ruo? Did he not come?”

“He—”

Just as Ji Ling was about to explain, Lin Quan cut him off.

“His schoolwork is heavy, so I didn’t want to disturb him.”

A look of regret flashed across Ji Ming’s face but was quickly hidden. “Studies are important.”

They had only exchanged a few sentences when a bell in the workshop rang. Someone needed Ji Ming to check on an experiment’s results.

Lin Quan looked at Ji Ling, his expression serious. “Alright, your father is busy. We should head back now. I’ll bring you here again next time.”

They had just met, and he still had so much he wanted to say.

Ji Ling hugged his father’s waist, reluctant to leave.

Ji Ming smiled. “It’s rare we get to see each other. If he wants to stay a bit longer, it’s fine.”

Lin Quan: “There can be no mistakes in the experiment. It’s better to go check on it first. You can see your son anytime.”

Ji Ming’s expression stiffened, looking slightly awkward. “That’s true.”

Since his father had said so, Ji Ling had to leave even if he didn’t want to. His father liked obedient and exceptional children; he couldn’t interfere with his father’s work.

Walking out of the lab and seeing the reluctance on Ji Ling’s face, Lin Quan said in a low voice, “As long as you perform well, you’ll be able to see your father often in the future. Once you can resist the pheromones of all alphas, perhaps you can be transferred to work in the lab. Then you’ll be able to see him every day.”

Ji Ling: “Really?!”

Lin Quan: “When have I ever lied to you?”

Ji Ling’s hands by his sides clenched and unclenched, his heart racing with temptation. Although the training was painful, maybe he could work with his father in the future.

“By the way, what was it you came to find me for today?” Lin Quan asked casually.

Ji Ling’s eyes flickered. He hesitated for a long moment, then shook his head.

“It’s nothing. I just wanted to tell you that I’ve recovered. I can continue training tomorrow.”

A smile touched Lin Quan’s lips. “That’s good.”

---

Ji Ruo waited and waited in the classroom. A whole class period ended, and Ji Ling still hadn’t returned. He couldn’t sit still any longer and prepared to go look for him.

Just as he reached the door, he ran right into Ji Ling.

“What took so long?” Ji Ruo took his hand and led him into the classroom.

Ji Ling shook his head. “I was just talking with General Lin for a while.”

Ji Ruo: “Did you refuse him properly?”

Ji Ling bit his lip, looking at him hesitantly. “A-Ruo, I… I thought about it carefully, and I think it’s better to persevere.”

Ji Ruo stopped in his tracks, turning to look at him with a frown. “What did he say to you?”

“He didn’t say anything.” Ji Ling’s gaze shifted away nervously, then back. “Look, giving up halfway isn’t my style. Besides, apart from this, I don’t know what else I can do.”

Ji Ruo: “A-Ling—”

Ji Ling: “I know you’re worried about me, but I can really handle it.”

His face grim, Ji Ruo walked out of the classroom and strode quickly towards Lin Quan’s office.

“A-Ruo!” Ji Ling chased after him.

“You stay here. Don’t you dare follow me,” Ji Ruo said coldly.

Ji Ling’s eyes flickered, and he froze on the spot.

A-Ruo had never been so harsh with him before.

When he reached Lin Quan’s office, he saw him just walking out, looking as if he was about to leave.

“Stop!” Ji Ruo went over and looked up to meet his gaze. “What did you say to A-Ling?”

Lin Quan snorted. “Are you questioning me?”

Ji Ruo: “I won’t allow him to continue the training.”

As if he had heard something hilarious, Lin Quan sneered. “You can’t even decide your own life. What right do you have to decide his?”

Lin Quan walked past him and headed out.

“This isn’t something I forced on him. You can’t stop him from doing something voluntarily. Don’t waste your energy.”

Ji Ruo gritted his teeth, his hands by his sides clenching into tight fists.

__

Four years later, on a winter day, Ji Ling walked out of the training room. Through the crack in the door, a room full of collapsed alphas could be seen.

Lin Jing glanced inside, then followed Ji Ling out.

“A-Ling, you’re so amazing! To think you can suppress alphas into unconsciousness with just your pheromones!”

Ji Ling’s lips curled into a faint smile, his beautiful phoenix eyes becoming even more captivating.

“What’s so amazing about that?”

“We’ve trained for so many years and can barely resist alpha pheromones. Compared to you, we’re all a bunch of weaklings.” Lin Jing sighed, then, as if remembering something, he smiled again. “Good thing we still have ARuo at the bottom.”

At the mention of Ji Ruo, the smile on Ji Ling’s lips faded.

On V99, snow and wind raged. At a space station, Qin Lin tightened the coat around himself and stepped off the spaceship—

__

Author’s Note:

The purer a person’s heart, the greater their potential to become a major boss.
The silly rabbit father is coming next chapter~