The palace was engulfed in darkness, with only faint beams of light illuminating the far depths where the Emperor North. He wore an extravagant imperial robe, yet his frail frame made the luxurious garment appear oversized. Though he was in his fifties and his features still bore traces of youth from careful maintenance, his ashen complexion and slumped posture spoke volumes of his long-term illness—like an old tree slowly withering away.
Neither Ji Mian nor Chu Shiye responded to his earlier words.
North pressed his fist against his lips, coughing lightly before speaking again. “What’s the matter? Overjoyed to the point of speechlessness?”
Chu Shiye’s voice was icy. “I don’t know you.”
North’s tone remained steady. “I am your father.”
Chu Shiye’s eyes glinted coldly. “Then tell me, what did you do to my mother?”
The Emperor didn’t lose his temper. After a brief pause, he responded calmly, “I will compensate you. From today onward, you are the Crown Prince of the Atlan Empire—my rightful heir.”
He spoke slowly and deliberately. “However, the person standing by your side is from the Federation, merely a B-level ability user, with no family background. They are unqualified to marry into the royal family.”
It was clear that North had already investigated Ji Mian and wasn’t giving Chu Shiye any room to argue. “I will find you a new Crown Princess, one with noble blood and powerful abilities. Together, you will produce heirs worthy of the royal lineage.”
Chu Shiye tightened his grip on Ji Mian’s hand.
Ji Mian gently patted the back of his hand in reassurance. His expression remained calm, not angered by North’s words. However, he was slightly surprised—this sudden declaration from North seemed unusually hasty and even suspicious.
Ji Mian’s eyes, now adjusted to the dim lighting of the palace, quietly observed North. The years of illness had left North’s gaze cloudy and dull, devoid of any brilliance it might have once held.
Still, there was more to uncover. Ji Mian’s eyes briefly flickered with a faint silver-blue light. In an instant, his brows furrowed slightly.
Chu Shiye sensed the small movement of Ji Mian’s hand and spoke without hesitation, “There’s no need to continue this discussion.”
“I will not be your Crown Prince, and I have nothing to do with you.”
With that, he pulled Ji Mian, ready to leave the hall.
North, caught off guard by Chu Shiye’s firm rejection, clenched the armrest of his throne in frustration but quickly regained his composure. Slamming his fist down on the chair, he barked, “Stop them!”
At his command, soldiers surged in from the shadows along the walls and from outside the palace. These were not ordinary guards but skilled ability users, each with considerable strength. Out of respect for the Emperor’s presence, they refrained from using high-powered starship weapons and instead released their spirit forms, launching a coordinated attack on Ji Mian and Chu Shiye.
In an instant, the hall was filled with a cacophony of spirit forms—an overwhelming storm of beasts, birds, and monsters clashing like an unrelenting tidal wave.
But Chu Shiye’s golden eyes gleamed with a predatory light. A whirlwind swept through the room as his massive white snake materialized, coiling its immense body and lashing out. Its powerful tail swept through the spirit forms, toppling soldiers and tearing apart a black bear spirit with its razor-sharp claws.
The onslaught was relentless. More soldiers rushed in to replace the fallen. Yet amidst the chaos, a faint blue glow shimmered like stardust scattered across the battlefield.
Ji Mian’s Light Goddess Butterfly gently flapped its wings, and in an instant, countless silver-blue light particles spread through the hall, forming a vast galaxy-like sea of light. The ethereal radiance enveloped the palace and extended endlessly into the void.
In a flash, the soldiers were caught in an inescapable dream-like illusion. They were fully aware of their surroundings but felt as though they were drowning in the vast sea of light, powerless to resist. Fear etched across their faces as they realized they were at the mercy of this overwhelming force.
While the soldiers floundered helplessly, Chu Shiye found himself wrapped in the gentle embrace of the light. Far from feeling disoriented, his mind became sharper than ever. The exhaustion from expending his spiritual energy vanished, replaced by a surge of strength that felt boundless and unyielding.
The enemies around them fell like dominoes, rendered incapacitated by the illusion. Meanwhile, Chu Shiye’s energy grew stronger, flowing through him like an unstoppable river.
He turned to Ji Mian, standing calmly amidst the radiant sea of light. In that moment, Chu Shiye felt a deep awe.
This was his Ji Mian—the true S-leveled support-type ability user.
“So, your spiritual energy has recovered,” a voice chuckled from the side.
Ji Mian immediately turned his attention to the source of the sound.
A low chuckle rang out from the side, and Ji Mian immediately turned his gaze.
A tall, slender figure casually parted the dazed crowd, standing with his hands clasped behind his back, a faint smile on his face.
He, too, stood within the sea of light, yet remained utterly unaffected. In this palace, only one person could achieve such a feat—
Dorn, the strongest spiritual ability user in the galaxy!
A sense of danger surged in Ji Mian’s heart. Without hesitation, Chu Shiye stepped in front of him, the white serpent coiling into a whirlwind as it lunged forward. Yet Dorn merely smiled faintly.
“Where do you think you’re running off to, little Prince?”
The moment he spoke, the whites of his eyes were swallowed by ink-black darkness, like an encroaching night.
Spiritual Suppression!
In an instant, it was as though mountains had descended from the sky, crushing down on Chu Shiye’s back. He coughed up blood, his knees buckling under the pressure as he collapsed to the ground.
The white serpent trembled violently, its form flickering between clarity and dissolution. Chu Shiye’s head felt like it was splitting apart—under the overwhelming force of an S-rank spiritual ability user, he couldn’t even maintain his spiritual form.
A hand gently settled on Chu Shiye’s shoulder. Though Ji Mian, too, was forced to one knee by the pressure, his cold eyes churned with a storm of sapphire-blue light, resisting the crushing weight of the mountains.
Just that single glance caused blood to seep from Ji Mian’s lips, the thousand-meter sea of light dimming and dispersing.
Yet, Chu Shiye’s headache eased slightly, the mountainous pressure lessening just enough for him to regain movement.
Dorn let out an intrigued “Oh?” as he studied Ji Mian. “You see, the first time I met you, I already thought you…”
He didn’t finish his sentence, instead flicking his wrist. “Take them.”
With the sea of light gone, the soldiers previously trapped in the illusion regained their senses. Not only that, but dozens of ability users—stronger than the soldiers—arrived on the scene.
Several powerful ability users rushed in, swiftly separating the already suppressed Chu Shiye and Ji Mian. The close distance between them was forcibly torn apart, widening uncontrollably. Chu Shiye reached out, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t touch his person.
He could only watch helplessly as Ji Mian was seized, dragged further and further away—until he vanished completely from sight.
At that moment, the nightmare that had tormented him for days resurfaced, the horror of it tearing through his mind, shattering his heart. Chu Shiye coughed up another mouthful of blood, and when he raised his head again—golden flames ignited in his eyes.
A blazing golden light erupted from the white serpent’s pupils. With a deafening roar, its body expanded violently, steel-like scales covering its form as thick, hooked limbs sprouted from its sides. A pair of gleaming bone wings tore through its back, splitting the sky apart!
The magnificent, winged creature threw its head back and let out a piercing cry—a sound that shattered the clouds, scattering the gloomy sky and bathing the world in radiant golden light.
“A dragon!”
“Heavens—the Empire’s sacred beast!”
Ji Mian whipped his head around. The white dragon, bathed in golden light, spread its wings and effortlessly tore through the crowd of ability users, charging toward him with unstoppable momentum!
Instinctively, Ji Mian stepped forward. The dragon landed heavily before him, and amid the howling winds, he was pulled into an icy embrace.
Silence fell in an instant. Ji Mian could feel Chu Shiye’s arms trembling around him, his body cold as if submerged in a winter lake.
His heart clenched. Immediately, he soothed the Alpha, gently patting his back. “I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere.”
Chu Shiye didn’t speak, didn’t respond—he just held Ji Mian tighter, his face buried deep in his shoulder, his arms like unyielding steel, the force of it almost painful.
When Ji Mian shifted slightly, those arms only tightened further, as if trying to fuse him into his very flesh, never to be separated again.
Chu Shiye’s cold breath brushed against Ji Mian’s neck, sending a faint shiver down his spine. Ji Mian sensed something was off with this Alpha, but before he could say anything—
Crack.
Boom!
The palace floor shattered.
Ji Mian: “…”
He knew the Empire’s economy was in shambles—now even the structural integrity was failing.
But the moment they fell, Ji Mian instinctively moved to shield Chu Shiye—only to be abruptly pulled against the Alpha’s chest as Chu Shiye twisted midair, turning his own back toward the ground to protect him.
The fall lasted only seconds, but Ji Mian could clearly sense the light being cut off.
A rich, intoxicating fragrance filled his senses as they crashed into an endless sea of flowers.
Beneath the Imperial Palace… was a hidden garden.
And strangely, it seemed only the two of them had fallen here. The Imperial soldiers—even Dorn—were nowhere to be seen.
But right now, Ji Mian wasn’t concerned with that. He urgently tried to check on Chu Shiye, barely managing to sit up before—
The world spun.
Chu Shiye pinned him back into the flowers, hands locking around his wrists, face buried against the nape of his neck, inhaling raggedly before nuzzling in frantic, uncoordinated desperation.
Dark hair obscured Chu Shiye’s expression, but Ji Mian didn’t need to see it to recognize the raw, feral need radiating off him.
This Alpha was like a wild beast—dangerous, frantic, red-eyed, snarling—his entire being screaming a single demand.
Ji Mian froze for a second before realization struck.
Ah.
This Alpha… wanted to mark him.
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