Chen Bingfeng slammed his fist on the table. “Where is he? Get in here!”

The adjutant hurried in.

Chen Bingfeng’s face was grim. “Have someone check on that Omega. Don’t let anyone find out.”

The adjutant’s face changed. He acknowledged the order and left quickly.

Chen Bingfeng leaned back in his chair, irritated, his head throbbing with pain.

With this, he and Jing Xi had completely torn all pretenses.

Soon, the adjutant rushed back in. “He’s already dead.”

As expected.

Chen Bingfeng gritted his teeth, his belly full of fire that he couldn’t vent.

Adjutant: “Killing anyone in the military headquarters is a serious crime. We have surveillance. Why don’t we—”

“No.” Chen Bingfeng’s face was foul. “He took the cup of coffee with him.”

If this were to be investigated thoroughly, with Jing Xi’s personality and the Jing family’s power, the matter probably wouldn’t end well.

Now was not the time.

The adjutant said angrily, “So we’re just going to let it go?”

Chen Bingfeng: “We’ll find another way.”

---

When he returned to his office, Jiang Feng had just delivered dinner and coffee.

Seeing the coffee cup in his boss’s hand, he said, “I’m sorry, I thought you were still working. I delivered it late.”

Chi Yao placed the coffee cup on his desk and threw his white gloves into the recycling robot’s belly.

“What matters is Chen Bingfeng in charge of? Report everything you can find to me.”

Jiang Feng: “Now?”

Chi Yao squeezed some hand sanitizer and rubbed his hands vigorously, his lowered eyes empty and dull.

He washed them several times, until the palms and backs of his hands were red, before stopping.

When he turned around, he had returned to his usual carefree demeanor.

“Now.”

---

When he walked out of the office, the sky was completely dark.

Chi Yao walked towards the garage, his mind preoccupied.

Jiang Feng followed beside him, reminding, “It’s already past 7 o’clock. You need to go to Old Jing—”

“Jing Xi!” Huang Hao’s fierce voice came from behind.

Chi Yao turned around, and his wrist was grabbed and pulled back.

“You fucking promised you wouldn’t stand me up!” Huang Hao clamped onto him and walked towards the training building.

Chi Yao exerted a little force, broke free of his hand, and looked at him as if he were an idiot. “I’m kindly letting you off, but you insist on coming up to get beaten?”

Huang Hao smiled smugly. “We don’t know who’s going to get beaten.”

Ten minutes later, Chi Yao rubbed his wrist and stepped out of the training room’s ring. He picked up his jacket from the floor and left without looking back.

Behind him, Huang Hao lay on the ground, his face bruised and swollen, blood slowly trickling down his cheek.

The officers who knew about it had been waiting here for a while, but they didn’t expect that the two major generals’ solo match would end in less than a minute.

Completely dominated.

A total knockout.

A few who were close to Huang Hao ran over to help him up.

“Haozi, don’t cry. It’s no big deal to lose once.”

Huang Hao lay there like a dead pig. “You’re the one who’s fucking crying.”

“Jing Xi is the ceiling of our military’s combat power. It’s not shameful to lose to him.”

Huang Hao bit his lip, tears welling up in the corners of his eyes. “But I was knocked out in seconds, boo hoo hoo hoo—”

“He’s really ruthless. We should just have less contact with people like him who don’t understand social etiquette.”

“No!” Huang Hao cried as he struggled to get up. “I’m going to challenge him again next month, until I win!”

The officers: “…”

You should probably just wash up and go to sleep.

---

Inside the star pirate crew’s base, Jing Xi sat at his desk, looking at the newly compiled list of Extreme Shadow members.

Among these two hundred-plus people, besides Chi Yao, not a single person had the character “yao” in their name.

A knock sounded on the door.

Jing Xi: “Come in.”

A female Beta walked in and neatly placed the washed clothes into the cabinet.

“Boss, still busy so late?”

The Beta was around forty years old, tall and slender, with a gentle face. Her long hair was coiled at the back of her head. She wore a long dress and a cross on her chest, a permanent fixture. She was, besides the big dog, one of the only two clean and tidy beings in Extreme Shadow.

This person was called Chunqin. She assisted Fang Liang in managing the logistics and medical affairs of the star pirate crew. It seemed everyone in the crew was very afraid of her.

Jing Xi looked up from the list and looked at her thoughtfully.

“Chunqin, you’ve been in the crew for so many years. Have you ever seen anyone with the character ‘yao’ in their name?”

Chunqin finished putting away the things and slowly walked to the desk. “Isn’t that you?”

Jing Xi: “…”

Jing Xi: “Besides me, have you seen any others? From other crews is fine too.”

Chunqin’s gaze lingered on him for an extra moment, and she smiled. “There are too many of those. Are you looking for someone?”

Jing Xi: “Mhm, I took on a commission.”

Chunqin: “Is that the only information? No age, gender?”

Jing Xi: “Around twenty-seven or twenty-eight, male, secondary gender unknown.”

Chunqin smiled and agreed. “Okay, I’ll go back and think about it. If there’s anyone who fits the criteria, I’ll report back to you.”

Jing Xi: “Thank you.”

Although they were all star pirates, Chunqin was courteous and well-mannered, speaking gently, completely different from those other ruffians. Jing Xi’s attitude towards her was naturally better.

“Boss! Are you there?”

The sound of hurried footsteps came from outside the door, and a hoarse, milky voice sounded.

Jing Xi and Chunqin looked over at the same time.

Tie Xiong was running and panting, his hair wet and plastered to his smooth forehead.

“Huh, Chunqin? You’re here too?”

Chunqin took out a handkerchief and knelt down to wipe his face. “Running around so late?”

Tie Xiong pushed her hand away and wiped the sweat off his face with his sleeve. “I have something to see the boss about.”

As he spoke, he trotted to Jing Xi’s feet on his short legs and gently tugged his pants.

“Boss, I fucking want to go to training too.”

Jing Xi frowned. “Your eye—”

The eye that had been covered with a patch two days ago was now revealed, bright and full of spirit.

Tie Xiong touched his eye and giggled. “It’s not a pirate costume today, so my eye is fine!”

Jing Xi lifted the little rascal onto the desk and carefully examined his eye.

It wasn’t a prosthetic eye.

Jing Xi: “…”

Why did he believe the words of a little star pirate brat?

“Boss, I want to go.” Tie Xiong tugged his sleeve and shook it. “Li Li and Liang Liang are both going. I fucking don’t want to stay here alone.”

Jing Xi frowned as he listened to him say “fucking” over and over.

“You can go if you want.”

Tie Xiong’s eyes lit up. “Thank you, boss!”

Jing Xi: “But, you first have to get rid of your bad speaking habit.”

Tie Xiong was confused. “Bad habit? I fucking don’t have any bad habits.”

Jing Xi: “The second and third words can’t be said together.”

Those two words again? Tie Xiong was angry and thought very seriously.

“I fucking? ‘Fucking’ can’t be said together?”

Jing Xi: “Mhm.”

“I… he—” Receiving an encouraging look from the boss, Tie Xiong tried hard to change it: “His dad!”

Jing Xi: “…”

Tie Xiong: “?”

He clearly changed it, why was the boss still unhappy?

Chunqin covered her mouth, unable to stop laughing.

---

At night, Jing Xi was suddenly awakened by a nightmare. He looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings and belatedly remembered that this was Chi Yao’s room.

He was covered in sweat. He sat up, preparing to go to the bathroom for a quick shower.

Just as he lifted the blanket, a slight noise came from the door.

Jing Xi’s eyes darkened. Just as he raised his military knife, the door was pushed open from the outside, and Tie Xiong, wearing frilly pajamas, walked in.

He was rubbing his eyes, his legs tangled, as if he could trip over himself at any moment.

Was he sleep-talking or sleepwalking?

Jing Xi watched him walk to the bedside step by step, his hands grabbing the bedsheet, one short leg lifting up, trying to climb onto the bed.

Unfortunately, the bed was too high. He struggled a couple of times but couldn’t get on, and he had already fallen asleep.

Jing Xi waited for a moment. He still didn’t move. “…”

So skilled, it seems he often climbs into bed.

Seeing that he was about to slip under the bed, Jing Xi hurriedly picked him up and placed him on the bed.

As soon as he touched the bed, Tie Xiong rolled over to his side, his chubby face rubbing against his leg, and fell asleep in a second.

Jing Xi didn’t dare to move recklessly. He only moved the person inward after he was sure he was sound asleep.

Children are the most frank. They will cling to whoever is good to them.

“It would be good if he also met someone who was good to him.”

Jing Xi stared at him for a long time, then reached out to straighten his messy little clothes.

Feeling that the skin under his hand was a bit uneven, Jing Xi felt it through the clothes.

Could it be some kind of scar?

Jing Xi was afraid he had been abused and carefully rolled up his sleeve.

Through the dim light, Jing Xi saw a “5” branded on his upper arm near his shoulder.

Why does such a small child have this kind of mark on him?

Author’s Note:
Chi Yao: Wife, what is social etiquette?
Jing Xi: Social etiquette is when you punch me once, and I pay you back double. (j/k)
Chi Yao: Oh, then I understand it very well.