Ji Mian remembered mentioning to Chu Shiye that he had undergone gland surgery and could not be marked.
But now… clearly, this Alpha didn’t care about that at the moment.
Ji Mian softly called out Chu Shiye’s name a few times, but the Alpha showed no response. He only loomed over Ji Mian, pressing him down firmly so that he couldn’t escape or even struggle. Chu Shiye buried his head against him, roughly rubbing and pressing his face against Ji Mian’s neck like he was inspecting his territory.
Ji Mian quickly realized: this Alpha might have lost consciousness and fallen into some sort of uncontrollable state.
Was it from being hit on the head too hard… or was it something else?
His thoughts shifted to Chu Shiye’s spirit form—the majestic white dragon.
It seemed that Chu Shiye’s psychic power had awakened once again.
As a child, he had survived the Sogra Star explosion, but the incident likely left him with irreversible damage to his psychic power.
And now…
There were no signs of other people around; neither Dorn nor the imperial soldiers were present. Ji Mian threaded his slender fingers through Chu Shiye’s hair, letting faint light flow from his fingertips, attempting to calm the Alpha through a mental soothing.
But just as his hand touched him, Chu Shiye grabbed his wrist in an iron grip, staring at Ji Mian with unrelenting focus.
Those normally warm amber eyes were now flowing with radiant gold, glowing like a blazing sun.
Yet, within their brilliance, Ji Mian saw something cold, hollow, and numb—a bottomless abyss that lacked any spark of vitality.
He just stared at Ji Mian indifferently.
Ji Mian suddenly felt distressed and said softly, “I won’t leave or move… Can you hear me?”
Chu Shiye didn’t answer. His gaze was fixed on Ji Mian for a long moment. Then, as though confirming that the person beneath him wouldn’t escape, he slowly bent down again, embracing Ji Mian tightly.
The scent of Ji Mian overwhelmed him, intoxicating like a potent drug.
His heart was consumed by a violent chaos, driving him to devour his prey entirely. But some primal instinct pulled him back, shackling him with the realization that this person was his most precious treasure, someone he could never harm.
He was like a beast trapped in a cage, bloodshot eyes howling for destruction. Yet, the chains around his neck bit deeper with every struggle, embedding themselves in his flesh, leaving him bleeding and unable to escape.
He looked at Ji Mian with ferocity and an inexplicable sense of grievance.
Ji Mian: “…”
You’re the one about to do something to me—why do you look so wronged?
But he understood that the Alpha wasn’t in a good state right now. He needed to bring him back to his senses as soon as possible.
However, he wasn’t allowed to move, nor could he use his psychic power to soothe him… Should he knock the Alpha unconscious?
That thought lingered for only a second before Ji Mian, very gently, tugged at Chu Shiye’s collar and pulled him closer.
Surprisingly, Chu Shiye didn’t resist. Instead, he obediently leaned in closer, almost as if he were awaiting instructions.
Ji Mian placed his hand on top of Chu Shiye’s head, guiding him toward the side of his neck.
“Take a bite,” he murmured softly. “Just a small bite.”
Whether it was Ji Mian’s suggestion or Chu Shiye finally losing all self-control, the Alpha responded without hesitation.
He buried his face in Ji Mian’s slender, pale neck, rubbed against the smooth skin for a moment, and then bit down hard.
Ji Mian: “…!”
Too deep.
Sharp teeth pierced the skin of his nape. Pain shot through him, accompanied by a sensation that was hard to describe.
Alpha pheromones, invasive and intense, wrapped around Ji Mian like a fiery liquor, making him feel light-headed and dizzy. His fingers trembled as they clutched Chu Shiye’s sleeve, his usually calm eyes misting, the corners reddened.
It shouldn’t have felt like anything.
Ji Mian lowered his gaze, his long lashes fluttering slightly as he tried to remain composed. He could only hope this would end soon.
“……”
Chu Shiye was lost in the cold, clean scent unique to Ji Mian—like pristine snow on a winter day.
The frost-like aroma quelled the chaos in his mind. His thoughts grew clearer, his senses sharper, and a faint light flickered in his once-darkened consciousness.
Then, he realized…
He was marking Ji Mian.
Chu Shiye: “…”
The Alpha froze entirely, his body going rigid.
Ji Mian paused, noticing the shift in his demeanor. “Have you calmed down?” he asked softly.
Chu Shiye: “…”
Chu Shiye: “…………”
Chu Shiye slowly raised his head.
He noticed Ji Mian’s voice was no longer as clear and gentle as usual—instead, it carried a faint hoarseness, as if he’d just been crying.
Though Chu Shiye knew very well that his A-Mian hadn’t shed a single tear.
But right now, he still couldn’t speak.
After a brief moment of stiffness, Chu Shiye wrapped his arms around Ji Mian’s waist and lowered his head.
“Gege… I’m sorry.”
Ji Mian: Oh? So now, after biting me, you remember to call me ‘gege’ and act all innocent?
His expression remained neutral, as if nothing had just happened. He lightly patted Chu Shiye. “Let me up.”
Chu Shiye didn’t move, still pressing him down.
A-Mian smelled so good—like crisp winter snow. He loved it.
He wanted more.
But… not now.
Taking a deep breath of Ji Mian’s scent, Chu Shiye finally loosened his grip slightly.
Ji Mian sat up, his slender fingers lightly covering the back of his neck.
Chu Shiye stared at that spot, his voice low. “Did it… hurt?”
Ji Mian: “…No.”
He then lowered his hand.
Chu Shiye’s gaze lingered on the fair skin of Ji Mian’s nape—now slightly flushed, marked clearly by his teeth. He wasn’t sure if he’d bitten too hard.
He remembered A-Mian telling him once that, because of a gland surgery, he wasn’t like other Omegas who could be marked by an Alpha.
…What a shame.
But even so—A-Mian was his.
Even if he couldn’t leave a permanent mark, he could still claim him. There were other ways to make sure everyone knew A-Mian belonged to him.
Ji Mian stood, and only then did Chu Shiye realize they were in a sea of flowers—their surroundings now a mess of trampled petals.
Chu Shiye: “Just now, I—”
“Stop,” Ji Mian cut him off. “Don’t say anything.”
Chu Shiye obediently shut his mouth.
Ji Mian studied him for a moment. “Still feeling unwell?”
Chu Shiye immediately shook his head.
Earlier, when he saw Ji Mian being taken away, his mind had blanked—his consciousness instantly swallowed by a surge of rage and killing intent—and then… he lost control.
But now, whether mentally or physically, he felt perfect.
Better than he’d ever felt before.
Chu Shiye gently hooked his fingers around Ji Mian’s fingertips. Seeing that Ji Mian didn’t react, he immediately tightened his grip, enveloping those slender fingers in his palm.
“Let’s go.” Ji Mian’s gaze fell to the side. “First, we need to figure out what this place is, then find a way to leave.”
Chu Shiye nodded, though he was still concerned about Ji Mian’s current condition. “Are you feeling unwell? Should I carry you—”
Ji Mian: “No, I’m fine.”
Chu Shiye fell silent again.
Ji Mian surveyed their surroundings.
The sky above was a pitch-black artificial dome, and the gap they had fallen through was now gone. A sea of flowers stretched endlessly, but instead of vibrant colors, there was only one type of bloom here.
A small, unremarkable flower with deep pink petals.
Earlier, their struggle had flattened a patch of the flower field, and many of the little pink flowers had been snapped at the stem, oozing a deep pink sap.
Ji Mian bent down, picked up a broken flower, and his fingertips came away stained with its juice. He brought it to his nose and inhaled lightly—then his expression suddenly stiffened.
“The sap of these flowers… can suppress a person’s psychic power.”
There was a drug in the interstellar world called “River of the Dead” that could also inhibit psychic power, but its effects were short-lived, lasting no more than three hours at most.
Ji Mian had encountered “River of the Dead” before. He clearly remembered that it never contained any flower sap, nor was it made from ingredients related to this unfamiliar bloom.
More importantly, “River of the Dead” had no effect on Ji Mian—but this pink flower was an exception. Just a slight contact with its sap, and he could already feel his psychic power being faintly suppressed.
Though the effect was minimal, like a feather landing on a velvet carpet, it was still impossible to ignore.
Moreover, it reminded Ji Mian of something—or rather, someone—he deeply despised.
The Relief Society.
The drugs developed by the Relief Society manifested as pale pink medicinal serums.
The sap of these pink flowers could suppress psychic power, while the Relief Society’s serums could forcibly stimulate it… Both were forms of research targeting psychic power.
Why would something like this exist beneath the palace of the Atlan Empire?
Ji Mian fell into silent contemplation. Chu Shiye wiped the flower sap from his hands and took out a communicator to record everything around them.
Ji Mian: “Let’s keep moving forward. See what lies deeper in the flower field.”
Perhaps a hidden research facility was concealed in a place like this—along with an exit.
Chu Shiye: “Okay.”
The two continued forward, careful not to step on the small pink flowers.
Chu Shiye seemed to remember something. “A-Mian.”
Ji Mian: “Hmm?”
Chu Shiye: “I think you’re more like a psychic-type.”
Ji Mian thought for a moment, then shook his head. “I’ve undergone multiple psychic power tests. Every single one classified me as a support-type.”
“Besides, as you’ve seen, there’s still a considerable gap between me and a true psychic-type ability user.”
Dorn was a genuine psychic-type ability user. His power allowed him to directly suppress psychic power.
It was the most terrifying ability. Under the mental crushing force of an S-rank psychic-type, even the strongest opponents would instantly lose their ability to fight.
But Chu Shiye said earnestly, “I think you’re stronger than him. You’ll surpass him eventually.”
Ji Mian: Hmph, such smooth talk.
He smiled faintly. “What about you? Have you already reached S-rank?”
Chu Shiye: “Seems like it.”
Though he hadn’t undergone a formal psychic power assessment, the moment his psychic entity transformed into a white dragon, he knew he had crossed a threshold.
But it still wasn’t enough.
He wanted to grow even stronger—strong enough that no one could ever take A-Mian away from him, strong enough that no one would dare covet or lay a finger on his A-Mian.
After all, just moments ago, those people had almost snatched A-Mian away.
Luckily, he had taken him back.
Chu Shiye quietly watched Ji Mian, wanting to be closer to the person he loved.
As they spoke, Ji Mian suddenly noticed Chu Shiye edging nearer to him.
Leaning against his shoulder, staring at him without blinking, not saying a word.
Ji Mian: “……”
He had a feeling this Alpha wanted to bite him again.
No. Not allowed.
He covered Chu Shiye’s mouth.
Chu Shiye: “……?”
R : Ready for the final ?
Thank you so much for support ♡(´･ω･)(･ω･`)♡ :Ko-fi – Patreon
