When Chi Yao woke up, he was alone on the sofa, covered with a blanket. The towel on his forehead had been removed.

“Liar.”

Didn’t he promise to tell him a story?

Chi Yao threw off the blanket and sat up, rubbing his sore temples.

Although the symptoms had eased a lot, he was still very annoyed.

There was an urgent knock on the door from outside.

“Boss, are you awake?”

Chi Yao composed himself and, with a grim face, signaled the warship’s AI to open the door.

Lu Meng rushed in and held the terminal connected to the monitor in front of him, his face looking grim.

“Boss, the situation is pretty much as you expected, much more serious than the intelligence we had before.”

Chi Yao glanced at the situation monitored by the Flying Dragon’s own systems, using Lu Meng’s hand to steady the terminal.

The two southern towns, originally marked in red, were now in ruins. The roads were littered with rubble and piled-up scrapped vehicles. Shattered clothes and goods were scattered everywhere.

The adjacent yellow area was also heavily damaged, with almost no difference.

As he watched, Chi Yao said, “Execute the plan. Report to me every half hour.”

Lu Meng: “Yes, sir!”

After acknowledging, he glanced at his boss’s slightly weary face and hesitated. “How about I have a word with the old brothers and let you stay alone as much as possible?”

Chi Yao: “No need.”

Lu Meng: “But you—”

Chi Yao: “I’ve used the medicine. There’s no problem.”

Since his boss insisted on not being treated specially, Lu Meng could only leave with regret.

As he reached the door, he thought of something, and his eyes lit up.

“Boss, I heard that eating old hen soup helps get through the susceptible—”

“Get lost!”

Lu Meng: “…”

Old hen soup was such a good thing. Why didn’t the boss like it?

Just as he was about to open the door, he was called back.

Chi Yao: “Where is he?”

It took Lu Meng a moment to realize who he was talking about.

If word got out that the leader of Extreme Shadow had infiltrated the Flying Dragon under disguise, it would definitely keep the entire Flying Dragon corps awake at night.

However, for now, only he knew.

“In the repair bay. I heard a report from a subordinate when I was coming over,” Lu Meng replied.

Chi Yao waved his hand, signaling that he could get lost now.

The repair bay was generally a place used during wartime for repairing large-scale military equipment like mechas, fighter jets, and artillery tanks. It was fully equipped with tools.

After searching for a moment in the maze-like repair bay, Chi Yao had already lost his patience.

“Xiao Hong, help me find him.”

Xiao Hong: [Searching—Target located!]

Chi Yao saw the red dot marked on the map in his vision and went straight for it.

When he arrived, Jing Xi was sitting at a console wearing a one-piece work suit and protective goggles, seemingly welding something.

“I’m in this state, and you have the heart to leave me alone?”

“His own” voice suddenly came from behind. Jing Xi turned his head and saw someone standing behind him with crossed arms and a cold face, looking down on him like a lingering spirit.

“You’re awake?” Jing Xi put down the tool in his hand and casually pressed a button. A mechanical arm descended to serve as a stool.

Chi Yao sat down, his entire being exuding the three words “not happy.”

“When I came out, I told the guards at the intersection to let you know after you woke up,” Jing Xi raised his hand to test his forehead temperature, explaining patiently.

Chi Yao was indifferent to his approach.

“What if I lose control?”

Jing Xi carefully felt the temperature under his hand and said without expression, “Besides having rather large mood swings, I don’t randomly attack people, let alone bite them. There’s nothing to worry about.”

Chi Yao: “…”

Seeing him retract his hand, Chi Yao caught it and sneered, “But I’m not you. Are you that confident in me?”

If you wanted to bite, you would have bitten long ago.

Jing Xi didn’t take the bait and picked up a component to show him.

“It’s almost finished.”

Chi Yao glanced at it. “What is it?”

“The defensive form of the super-intelligent body,” Jing Xi turned his head to look at him. “I tried to add a pheromone filtering system, just in case.”

A glint flashed in Chi Yao’s eyes.

This kind of filtering system was not uncommon in large mechas, but the difficulty of integrating the function into a chip smaller than a fingernail was imaginable.

“A rush job for me?” Chi Yao asked.

Jing Xi shook his head. “Not just for you.”

After speaking, he saw Chi Yao’s face darken from the corner of his eye, and he changed his tune. “It’s for us.”

Chi Yao snorted lightly and woke up Xiao Hong and Xiao Lan, having them float over.

“While you’re at it, install a voice module for these two little mutes.”

Jing Xi: “…”

Time was tight. He didn’t chat much with Chi Yao. After embedding the three auxiliary chips into the three super-intelligent bodies, he left the repair bay.

On the way to the command cabin, Chi Yao couldn’t help but ask, “Is that repair bay yours?”

When watching Jing Xi work, he was very familiar with the placement of every tool, as if it were his own workshop.

Jing Xi nodded. “I forged an authorization for myself. Otherwise, I couldn’t get in.”

Chi Yao: “…”

The image of Jing Xi working flashed through his mind, and he couldn’t help but ask again, “Did you often stay there before?”

Jing Xi glanced at him. “Besides training and catching you, that’s where I spent most of my time.”

Chi Yao: “…”

When the two arrived at the command cabin, Lu Meng had already departed with the vanguard.

Seeing his boss enter, Jin Ze strode over to meet him.

“Boss, we were just about to depart. Do you have any other instructions?”

Chi Yao shook his head, then suddenly thought of something and said, “There’s a new recruit named Chu Xiao. His marksmanship is good. He’s a good prospect.”

Chu Xiao?

The new recruits had only been in the Flying Dragon for a short time and hadn’t finished their rotations in the various departments yet. Jin Ze had no impression of this person.

But few people were ever mentioned by the boss, and even fewer were praised.

Jin Ze nodded in acknowledgement. “I will arrange a suitable position for him.”

Jing Xi looked at Jin Ze’s departing back and asked in a low voice, “You think highly of that kid?”

“Still green,” Chi Yao chuckled. “But he does have talent. In two years, transfer him to the assassination unit. After he’s well-trained, transfer him to Extreme Shadow for my use.”

Jing Xi: “…”

Jing Xi: “Extreme Shadow does not belong to the military.”

Chi Yao glanced at him and smiled enigmatically.

Jing Xi watched him walk up to the command seat, frowning.

What else was Chi Yao hiding?

In the huge open space in front of the command seat, dozens of virtual screens were scattered and overlapping, displaying the situation on various battlefields.

Chi Yao had never seriously dealt with these things before and soon ran out of patience.

“You must be really desperate to be a general. This is so damn boring.”

Jing Xi, looking at the data on the virtual screen, heard Chi Yao’s soft mumbling and replied casually, “If you came too, I wouldn’t be bored.”

Chi Yao was stunned for a moment, then quickly reacted and sneered, “Stop thinking about putting me in jail all day. If I went to jail, who knows who would be the unlucky one.”

They still didn’t even know why their souls had swapped or how long it would last.

Under these circumstances, even jail time might have to be shared.

Seeing his misunderstanding, Jing Xi didn’t explain.

There were too many obstacles in the way of getting everything back on the right track.

The main ship hovered outside the atmosphere, and the various small and medium-sized warships departed from the hangar, flying towards their target locations in an orderly manner.

In less than an hour, Jin Ze connected to the main ship.

“Boss, there are more refugees here than expected, preliminarily estimated to be 10% more. The garrison has only a few people and is basically useless!”

Chi Yao: “Settle them in a nearby safe zone for now. The guard troops will patrol 24 hours a day.”

Jin Ze: “Yes, sir!”

Soon, Lu Meng’s side also connected.

In the picture, he stood in a ruin of reinforced concrete, his face looking grim.

“The main force is tiger packs and elephant packs. Their attack power is very strong, and their movements are fast. Our men can’t get any support! This fight is damn hard!”

It had only been an hour.

Jing Xi’s brows furrowed tightly.

If this were a desolate planet pioneering battle, without having to consider the presence of people, simple and brutal bombing could solve most of the mutated beasts.

But this was an inhabited area, and there were too many factors to consider.

Generally, it required the cooperation of the local garrison to transfer refugees, while the corps lured away the beast packs. Only with both sides cooperating could the disaster be stopped as quickly as possible.

But the local garrison base on Planet 333 was practically non-existent. The local troops were useless, so the corps had to take on all the work.

Just rescuing and transferring refugees alone would consume half of their forces.

Chi Yao received Jing Xi’s hint and said, “Focus on rescue.”

Lu Meng ran a hand through his buzz cut. “This is too passive! We’ll be worn down.”

While protecting people and dealing with the beast packs at the same time, their firepower would definitely be limited.

If the vast beast packs were not controlled, they would continue to spread.

They would be forced to constantly chase after the beast packs.

Just as Jing Xi was about to give Chi Yao another hint, he heard him say, “Drag it out for now. The situation will improve in a couple of days.”

In the picture, Lu Meng received a report from a subordinate, hastily acknowledged it, and then hung up.

Chi Yao turned his head and sent a video call to the garrison base on Planet 333.

But after waiting for a long time, no one answered.

“Someone,” Chi Yao said with a straight face.

A handsome alpha colonel strode over.

“Report! I am Yan Kai, number 3302934.”

“Do you know where the garrison base on Planet 333 is?” Chi Yao asked.

Yan Kai: “I do!”

“Take me there.”

Chi Yao stood up, his vision suddenly blurred, and a dense pain spread through his chest.

“Sir!”

Jing Xi was closer and supported him before Yan Kai could. He said in a low voice, “If you can’t hold on, authorize me.”

Chi Yao waved his hand and took his hand, walking down the steps.

“You hold my hand and walk.”

Jing Xi gripped his hand back tightly. “Okay.”

To be able to cooperate with his acting under this physical condition, Chi Yao’s performance was very surprising to him.

If it were in the past, with Chi Yao’s personality, he would have caused some trouble even if there wasn’t any, let alone commanding the Flying Dragon in battle.

Yan Kai’s peripheral vision caught their joined hands. He followed them, trembling, his mind screaming wildly.

—Brother Jiang, save me! Am I going to be silenced?!

Upon reaching the hangar, Yan Kai habitually walked towards the boss’s dedicated spaceship but was called back.

Chi Yao randomly pointed to a spare fighter jet.

“Use this one.”

The journey was unusually silent.

Jing Xi looked at Chi Yao several times, but saw him looking out the window, lost in thought.

Was he counting little wolves?

He quietly reached out his hand. Just as his pinky was about to hook the other’s, his entire hand was grabbed.

The palm wasn’t damp. It shouldn’t be that he was enduring pain, just simply daydreaming?

All sorts of thoughts flashed through Jing Xi’s mind like a revolving lantern.

As he was thinking, long, slender fingers slipped between his own and tightened.

Jing Xi’s heart skipped a beat. His fingers twitched and tightened in response.

Fingers intertwined, neither of them spoke.

Carrying his own boss, Yan Kai used the best piloting skills of his life, turning a 30-minute journey into a 10-minute dash.

Stopping outside the garrison base, Yan Kai reported to his boss, his face begging for praise.

“Boss, we’ve arrived!”

Chi Yao / Jing Xi: “…”

Chi Yao released Jing Xi’s hand and walked out of his seat.

“Well done. You’re never allowed to fly again.”

Yan Kai: “…”

Did he do something wrong?

The garrison base was heavily guarded. When the three of them walked over, they were directly stopped by the AI at the gate.

Yan Kai stepped forward and showed his identity.

“You dare to stop the commander of the garrison corps?!”

But there was no reaction for a long time.

Yan Kai pursed his lips, thinking that perhaps his rank was too low and no one bothered with him. He felt a little upset.

“I’m sorry, boss. My face isn’t as useful as Brother Jiang’s.”

“Mm,” Chi Yao lifted his chin, signaling him to step back. “Go learn from your Brother Jiang when you get back.”

As he said this, he casually drew the gun from his waist and shot the control panel of the access control system. The door opened by itself.

“Xiao Hong, take down the AI.”

Xiao Hong: [Hijacking—Hijacked—]

Yan Kai was dumbfounded.

They were forcing their way in!

The boss was so manly!

As soon as they entered, a piercing alarm sounded.

The first batch of AI patrols was taken down by Xiao Hong before they could even rush over. They flew to a corner and stood in a line, starting to sulk.

Chi Yao didn’t even glance at them and walked straight towards the central office building.

Just as they rounded a large garden, four teams of guards ran over from all directions.

“Who dares to break into the garrison base?!”

The physical discomfort and the tedious work had already made Chi Yao extremely irritable.

Hearing the commotion behind him, he tilted his head slightly, took two steps, grabbed the first guard’s wrist, and slammed it against the wall, elbowing his temple.

“Ah—!”

The guard collapsed to the ground, instantly losing his ability to attack.

At the same time he struck, the other guards aimed their guns at Chi Yao.

Jing Xi drew his gun and shot the guns out of their hands before they could react.

Chi Yao lifted the guard who was like a pile of mud off the ground, pressed the muzzle of his gun against his chin, and swept his sharp gaze over the others.

“Don’t move.”

The guards who came from the other directions raised their guns but didn’t dare to take another step forward.

Chi Yao continued walking towards the office building with him.

The guards followed closely behind, completely helpless.

“Which floor is the person in charge on?” Chi Yao asked coldly.

The guard: “Fi-fifth floor.”

Without waiting for his boss’s prompt, Yan Kai automatically led the way, taking them to the elevator and up to the fifth floor.

The fifth floor was a large, open-plan space, luxuriously decorated.

Chi Yao glanced around and sneered, “You, a general, are less comfortable than a small garrison commander.”

Jing Xi’s face was also not looking good.

Failing to control the spread of the beast packs could barely be explained as a lack of ability, but being denied entry by the garrison base after they had announced their identity, in wartime, this was already considered treason.

Who gave them the nerve?

At the office door, there was a carved wooden door with a sensor next to it.

Chi Yao threw the guard he was holding to Yan Kai, shot the door lock and the sensor twice, and kicked the door in.

Behind the huge desk sat a tall, thin alpha officer, who looked to be in his forties. His eye bags and dark circles were heavy, his skin dry, and he looked as if he had been hollowed out.

“Who are you!” the alpha slammed the table and stood up.

Chi Yao couldn’t be bothered to say a single word to him. He raised his gun, and the bullet grazed his face, hitting the magnificent golden backdrop behind him.

“As of now, you are suspended from duty.”

The alpha dodged clumsily. Disbelief was followed by a towering rage. “What do you think you are, daring to shoot at me?!”

He was about to draw his gun, but a sharp pain suddenly shot through his wrist.

“Ah—!”

“Shooting is nothing?” Chi Yao sneered, throwing away the empty magazine and reloading smoothly. “So what if I kill you?”

His wrist shot through, the alpha finally realized something was wrong.

This person was really Jing Xi?!

Even when facing vicious star pirates, an officer couldn’t just kill people, let alone the person in charge of a garrison.

Chi Yao took a few steps over, ignored his resisting hand, and kicked him in the chest.

The alpha slammed hard against the wall.

Chi Yao raised his gun and fired several shots in succession, each bullet grazing his neck.

“Ah—!”

The alpha trembled all over in fear, leaving a series of bloody scratches on both sides of his neck.

The wounds weren’t deep; it was more of a psychological fear.

Yan Kai watched from the side, his eyes shining brightly.

The marksmanship was too amazing!

As expected of the boss of their Flying Dragon!

Jing Xi, however, was a little worried.

Chi Yao was sweating again, and a faint, very light smell of alcohol could be detected in the air.

“Trash like you is worthy of sitting in this position?”

Chi Yao approached, pressing the muzzle of the gun into the alpha’s mouth and lifting it upwards.

The alpha’s legs went weak with fear, but he had no choice but to stand up.

“Wuwu—!”

Watching his tears and snot flow, Chi Yao’s eyes were cold, and his finger on the trigger tightened.

At the last moment, his hand suddenly felt warm.

Jing Xi smashed the butt of his gun on the alpha’s carotid artery, knocking the man out directly.

He turned around, put a hand on Chi Yao’s shoulder, and leaned in to whisper in his ear, “You rest first. Leave this to me.”

Chi Yao’s eyes scanned his neck, and it took a great deal of effort to tear his gaze away.

With the garrison leader under control, Jing Xi opened the AI control system here and broadcast a video message.

“Effective immediately, the Flying Dragon will take over the 333rd garrison base. Any disobedience to military orders will be treated as treason.”

“Please report the number and distribution of troops in each area, as well as the current status of emergency supplies and shelters in each area, within ten minutes—”

Turning off the system, Jing Xi looked at Chi Yao, who was sitting on the sofa, holding his forehead, his expression unclear.

Just as he was about to walk over, his heart suddenly thumped, and a dense pain spread through it.

Jing Xi steadied himself by holding onto the desk.

Over there, Chi Yao was taking deep breaths continuously.

Counting little wolves was no longer useful, but counting pictures of Jing Xi still worked.

While counting, he could also recall Jing Xi’s expression in the photos.

He unconsciously rolled his Adam’s apple.

Was he the only alpha who wanted to mark another alpha during his susceptible period?