Chapter 34

Chapter 34

That was centuries ago.

But actually, it's not that long ago, considering the average lifespan in the Empire is 150 years—this is even after accounting for the generally shorter lifespans of Alphas. In fact, without genetic diseases, the average lifespan in the Empire could be over 200 years.

So, in a way, it's just about three or four generations ago.

Over a thousand years ago, there was a stellar radiation outbreak, rapidly deteriorating the living conditions on all planets governed by the Empire. A vast amount of soil and water sources were devastatingly polluted by radiation, leading to the death of a large number of plants. In the year of the concentrated radiation outbreak alone, the number of extinct plant species reached an astonishing 6,300. And as time went on, this number continued to increase.

The level of destruction from this catastrophe was comparable to the Cretaceous period on Earth, but it wasn’t limited to just a few planets; it swept through the entire universe.

Logically, if plants were struggling to survive, animals that depended on them should have faced even greater challenges. Yet, paradoxically, not only did animals not face mass extinction, but after being exposed to radiation, they underwent genetic mutations, gaining powers beyond their own, evolving into more formidable predators.

During the same period, a similar dichotomy emerged among humans.

Those carrying animal genes, whether Alphas or the rare Omegas, gained extraordinary abilities and stronger physiques. In contrast, those with plant genes, be it Omegas or the rare Alphas, became weaker and faced increasing difficulties in reproduction.

Indeed, it's not accurate to simply attribute animal genes solely to Alphas and plant genes exclusively to Omegas; there are always exceptions in both groups.

Betas, on the other hand, have always remained balanced and inconspicuous.

Initially, Alphas and Betas did not perceive the stellar radiation as a disaster. Contrary to the worried Omegas, they saw it as a miracle that bestowed upon them great strength.

In fact, they even praised this disaster.

Arrogance and conceit led the Alphas, temporarily at the top of the food chain, to underestimate the extinction of plants, and the indifferent Betas also ignored the impending crisis, setting the stage for a future catastrophe.

As mass deaths began occurring among animals, Alphas, after their initial excitement, discovered that their own were dying, exhibiting a highly uniform pattern: first mental breakdown, followed by abnormal activation of their animal genes, transforming lively Alphas into half-human, half-beast monsters within days, eventually degenerating into beasts devoid of human thought, driven only by a lust for killing and destruction.

During this process, the mutated Alphas became increasingly irritable and uncontrollable, losing all human emotions, with only bloodshed and slaughter occupying their minds. Most terrifyingly, once such an Alpha appeared in a crowd, others nearby would quickly become infected, exhibiting the same symptoms.

When this discovery became public, Alphas lived in constant fear. Indeed, as reports indicated, the number of deaths from this unknown disease was rapidly increasing.

Initially, people thought that Alphas, Betas, and Omegas would all succumb to this unknown disease. However, it was soon discovered that Alphas had the highest incidence rate, with six out of ten Alphas affected; Betas were slightly better off, with about four in ten affected; and Omegas had a surprisingly low incidence rate of one in ten.

In other words, this mysterious disease, which swept through the entire Empire, seemed tailor-made for Alphas and Betas, with Alphas suffering the most.

This terrifying revelation led the Alphas to realize that the solution might lie within it. Consequently, the Empire urgently established the Imperial Genetic Research Institute to tackle this disaster.

"Eventually, the Research Institute found that stellar radiation was the main culprit behind this disaster, naming the unknown disease 'genetic illness'. The reason why genetic illness rarely manifested in Omegas was due to their predominantly plant genes. Although stellar radiation severely damaged these genes, those Omegas who survived natural selection could live on."

"Omegas with animal genes initially gained tremendous abilities, but the price they paid was the onset of a deadly genetic illness, inevitable once triggered."

At this point, Bai Tianxing's face showed a trace of grim satisfaction: "Stellar radiation was fair. It made survival and reproduction difficult for Omegas and plants, but also caused Alphas to lose their lives while gaining power."

He then clenched his fists tightly, his tone shifting: "But infuriatingly, once it was realized that surviving plants could alleviate the genetic illness, these Alphas began their insatiable exploitation!"

Qiuqiu's heart skipped a beat, sensing that the forthcoming details from Bai Tianxing would be particularly brutal.

"After the radiation, plant life was already struggling, but those noble Alphas, rather than protecting them, started to exploit them in a bid to survive. They sent armies and private soldiers to every planet, searching for surviving plants. Once found, they would uproot them entirely and rush them to the Genetic Research Institute to be processed into soothing agents."

"With billions of Alphas and tens of billions of Betas in the Empire, can you imagine how many plants would need to be harvested if each one required soothing agents for their genetic illness? I can't comprehend the number; all I know is that in less than a decade, nearly every known planet in the universe had been over-exploited. Billions of planets were emptied and ruined, and the land we stand on now became one of the lowest-grade, abandoned planets due to man-made ecological damage."

"It was only when they had nothing left to excavate, seeing that plants were almost extinct, that they finally panicked and started to desperately breed the remaining plants."

At this, the other Omegas in the room started sobbing. It wasn't just them who felt sorrow; even Qiuqiu, usually emotionally detached, felt a painful twist in his heart.

He himself was a plant. Hearing about the calamities faced by his kind, how could he not be moved, not feel anguish for them?

The endless Gobi deserts of Dark Star, the barren lands devoid of any grass, were not natural landscapes but the results of human actions.

Even stellar radiation, a disaster capable of destroying a civilization, paled in comparison to the relentless greed of humans.

Bai Tianxing took a deep breath, trying hard to calm himself. He feared if he couldn't control himself now, it would be even harder to maintain his composure later.

"You must be a very intelligent Omega, right?" he asked Qiuqiu, his question seeming out of the blue.

Qiuqiu didn't understand the purpose of his question and slightly widened his round eyes. But soon, he grasped Bai Tianxing's intention.

"Guess who's next when the plants aren't enough?" Bai Tianxing asked wearily, closing his eyes.

Qiuqiu suddenly realized something, his pupils dilating in shock.

He felt a chill down his spine: "You mean..."

"Yes."

Bai Tianxing slowly opened his eyes, his gaze filled with a desolate sarcasm and deep-seated hatred etched into his very marrow.

He clenched his fists tightly, the bulging veins on the back of his hands indicating the intense emotional turmoil he was experiencing.

"They extended their claws towards the Omegas."

"Every Omega, whether with plant genes or ordinary ones, as long as they were adults capable of working, were forcibly summoned to the capital star."

Qiuqiu's heart clenched—

Just as he feared.

Bai Tianxing continued: "The capital star, from its recorded history, had never accommodated so many Omegas at once. It was a place for the highest class of human life, filled with superficial entertainment facilities, utterly incapable of hosting so many people simultaneously. For their plan, they even had to designate a new area on the outskirts of the city, hastily building shantytowns specifically for housing Omegas."

"These Omegas, suddenly conscripted to the capital star, obviously weren't awaiting any pleasant tasks. They were housed in makeshift shantytowns, where millions of Omegas were crammed into just a few hundred thousand houses. I can’t imagine how they managed to live squeezed together like that. I only know that the space in those ghostly houses couldn't have been larger than this living room we are in now," Bai Tianxing said with a self-deprecating laugh.

Involuntarily, Qiuqiu clenched his fists, picturing through Bai Tianxing’s description the scene of seven or eight Omegas crowded into a dark, tiny room. They probably struggled even to move a few steps, their exhaled breath mixing into a suffocating, murky air.

The houses were lined up row after row, each with only one window or none, the space inside dark and damp. The Omegas, being timid by nature, could only huddle together for comfort, praying to return home soon.

"They never went home again. Nearly all of that generation of Omegas never returned home until their death."

Perhaps it was Bai Tianxing's desolate tone, or maybe the cruelty of his description, but Qiuqiu's heart shuddered.

The once arrogant and domineering Omega now spoke numbly, "After forcibly summoning Omegas to the capital, the Empire enacted new laws, obligating all adult Omegas to help resolve the urgent crisis facing the Empire."

"Then, they classified the Omegas based on their genetic grade. The highest grade stayed on the capital star to alleviate the genetic illness of nobles; the next tier was sent to developed surrounding planets; the next to poorer, less developed planets; and the lowest grade was sent to the military. As for a place like Dark Star? Ha, it wasn’t even considered by the nobility."

"The fate of Omegas was thus easily decided by others, without asking their opinion or respecting their wishes. They were merely seen as a cure for the disease, not as human beings."

Bai Tianxing looked at Qiuqiu: “I guess you might ask me why these Omegas didn't resist.”

The other Omegas also turned their tearful eyes, redder than Xu Feng's, towards Qiuqiu, their plants wilting and drooping from lack of water.

Unexpectedly, Qiuqiu shook his head.

He lowered his lashes, speaking softly: “No, I wouldn’t.”

To force Omegas into such a plight was demonic, but to question why these Omegas didn’t resist would be no different from the actions of those devils.

Even without firsthand experience, Qiuqiu understood that against the vast Empire, the Omegas, a minority in society, stood no chance of resistance.

Questioning their lack of resistance from the standpoint of a bystander is itself a form of perpetrating harm.

Bai Tianxing seemed taken aback by his response, pausing before speaking with a hint of sarcasm: “I thought you were the type who would turn a blind eye to the suffering of Omegas, only sympathizing with Alphas and Betas.”

Qiuqiu didn’t bother to correct this misunderstanding.

There was no need to argue—he didn’t take any particular side, nor did he care about being misunderstood.

In Qiuqiu’s view, whether Alpha, Beta, or Omega, each had their own hardships.

The true perpetrators of their suffering weren’t any ordinary group.

It was those who stood above all, the nobility, a minority in this world’s population.

Bai Tianxing gazed deeply at Qiuqiu, then continued: “Most Omegas lack combat capabilities and have poor physical health. At that time, there weren't advanced radiation protection products like today. Under the dual pressure of intense labor and hazardous living conditions, many Omegas, after working only three or four years, died in agony due to mental power exhaustion or pheromone disarray.”

“Even then, they did not learn their lesson and shamelessly started a plan to cultivate the next generation of Omegas.”

Omegas, compared to plants, had the advantage of being reusable, and their effectiveness was somewhat better. The nobles initially thought perfectly: once this generation of Omegas was used up, let them mate with Alphas to produce more Omegas, thus sustaining a continuous supply.

Bai Tianxing let out a cold laugh: “Sadly, their wishful thinking failed.”

Qiuqiu raised his eyes—

"The Omegas resisted."

"They lacked physical strength, extraordinary abilities, and sharp teeth; their cries went unheard, their agony ignored, their desire for freedom stripped away."

"But they still had their own indomitable souls, which no one could enslave."

Bai Tianxing lifted his head proudly, as if standing in solidarity with the Omegas who bravely resisted centuries ago.

He said, "Those Alphas wanted Omegas to produce more Omegas, right? Well, they deliberately did the opposite."

His expression was oddly satisfied despite the cruel content: "As soon as they confirmed their pregnancies, the Omegas would find out the fetus's attributes. If it was an Omega, they would abort it. When abortion was later prohibited, they would give birth and then strangle their newborns, the babies they carried for ten months. Later, when Omegas were monitored during childbirth, they chose to commit suicide, ending their lives and denying those noble Alphas any chance."

"Rather than allowing the little Omegas to be born only to be used as cures and destined to suffer the same fate as their mothers, it was better not to be born at all—after all, this world never welcomed Omegas."

He raised his eyebrows triumphantly: "So, within a decade, not a single newborn Omega was born in the entire Empire, but there were many genetically flawed Alphas."

"The nobles of the Empire had no more options and became increasingly burdened. They finally realized that, like plants, Omegas too were at risk of extinction. So, they repeated their old tactics, started protecting and favoring the Omegas. But what of it? The birth rate of Omegas continued to decline, and more and more Alphas died painfully from genetic illnesses, unable to receive comfort and guidance from Omegas. The exploitation and demands they made on the Omegas finally came back to haunt them."

Human greed is endless and only recedes when it threatens their own survival. This, Qiuqiu understood all too well.

After sharing this heavy history, Bai Tianxing took a long breath and settled back into the sofa, contentedly enjoying the attentive service of the Beta butler.

Seeing Qiuqiu's perturbed expression, Bai Tianxing glanced meaningfully at the butler kneeling beside him, peeling an orange, and said with a smile, "Don't worry, no one will report that we gathered here to incite an inexperienced little Omega. Every Omega on Dark Star knows these things, after all, this is a forsaken planet abandoned by the Empire; they can't control what happens here. As for the school's administration, ha, do you think they don't need our emotional guidance and pheromone comfort?"

Understanding Bai Tianxing's explanation and realizing that revealing these truths wouldn't lead to punishment, Qiuqiu relaxed.

Then he heard Bai Tianxing calling him: "You know the Empire has enacted laws specifically for Omegas, right? Do you, like those foolish Alphas and Betas, think those laws are for protecting Omegas?"

"I'm not familiar with it, but I guess it's not entirely for protecting Omegas," Qiuqiu responded.

Bai Tianxing and the other Omegas looked at him approvingly. The Pachira Omega gently held the hand of a little Omega and said softly, "As expected of our Omegas, not like those foolish Alphas and Betas."

Bai Tianxing continued, "Indeed, most of the special laws grant privileges to Omegas. But at the same time, they also bind them. A criminal Omega is not exempt from punishment, but to Alphas and Betas, it might not seem like punishment."

"For instance, if an Alpha commits murder, they face capital punishment; but if an Omega does, they aren’t sentenced to death but to service. The location and duration of the service depend on the severity of the crime."

"Another example, Alphas in the Empire can partner with Alphas, and Betas with Betas, but Omegas cannot partner among themselves. If they do, they violate the special laws and are sent to the front lines to provide emotional guidance and pheromone comfort to soldiers. Except for the First Legion, all other legions in the Empire’s military find ways to bring criminal Omegas to the front lines to fill the gap left by the absence of healing Omegas."

Bai Tianxing scoffed, “They all tell you that no healing Omegas are willing to go to the army, right? They say Omegas are selfish, cowardly, and unwilling to sacrifice for the Empire. But do you know what those healing Omegas forced to the front lines endure?”

“They face stellar radiation that even Alphas struggle to withstand, insect species that can kill them even at the lowest levels, mental exhaustion, and pheromone disarray, living in constant fear day and night.”

“None of this will be told to you by an Alpha or Beta. They don’t even know themselves. It’s not recorded in books or searchable on the star network. And all they’ll tell you is, ‘Omegas are just delicate and selfish creatures’.”

At this point, the Omegas sitting around started grabbing Qiuqiu's hands, telling him about the wrongdoings of Alphas and Betas, discontentedly saying, “Tianxing told you so much, now you must see how despicable Alphas and Betas really are, right?”

“Exactly, you're still so young and naive, don’t let them deceive you.”

“Not a single Alpha is good! Nor are the Betas! Come back to the healing department, that’s your real home.”

“Without Omegas, those stinky Alphas and dumb Betas would just be waiting to die! We’re willing to provide them emotional guidance and pheromone comfort; they should be grateful!”

“Isn’t it good to stay with us? You’d have a big house to live in, do whatever you want, and keep those useless Alphas and Betas from even getting near you.”

Qiuqiu looked at the chattering Omegas surrounding him, and through them, at Bai Tianxing who calmly awaited his decision. His feelings were incredibly complex at that moment.

He had his answer now, a reasonable explanation for why Omegas harbored such deep hatred for Alphas and Betas. It was a vendetta embedded in generations of their genes, not something that could be erased by the Empire’s recent policies and resource allocation favoring Omegas.

Yet, with his exceptionally keen intuition, Qiuqiu acutely sensed who the real culprits were.

However, the indignant Bai Tianxing and these Omegas didn't think that deeply or far ahead, just instinctively hating the ordinary Alphas and Betas based on the information they had received.

But this deep-seated hatred had a fatal origin—it was artificially instilled.

So, who is this "person" behind the scenes?

Qiuqiu looked towards the Beta butler kneeling humbly on the ground, serving Bai Tianxing fruits. Sensing Qiuqiu's gaze, the butler looked up and offered a polite smile.

Qiuqiu suddenly gripped the fabric of the sofa beneath his hands—

There was only one answer.

The nobility.

The nobility must have known that completely erasing the past was impossible. Instead of suppressing it entirely, they selectively revealed parts of it to the Omegas, directing their hatred towards the ordinary Alphas and Betas.

Subsequently, they provided preferential treatment to Omegas, sparking resentment in Alphas and Betas; fueled by past grievances, Omegas developed a deep hatred for Alphas and Betas; and Betas, being naturally the most average and ordinary, engaged in most of the physical labor without receiving their due recognition.

The nobility divided and ruled Omegas, Alphas, and Betas, setting them against each other, fostering division and hatred, leading them towards a future where reconciliation was impossible, while forgetting or ignoring who the real mastermind was. In the end, they would watch as the fisherman reaps the benefits of the fight between the snipe and the clam.

Qiuqiu shivered, realizing the rulers of this world were far more terrifying than he had imagined.

Having understood all this, Qiuqiu had his answer.

Bai Tianxing and the other Omegas looked at him with hopeful eyes.

They believed no Omega, after learning of the inhumane sufferings their ancestors endured, would still hold any hope for Alphas and Betas; Qiuqiu would surely abandon them and return to the healing department.

But Qiuqiu said, “If that's the case, I’m even more determined to stay in the combat department.”

—In the silent room, the air stood still for a moment.

Caught off guard, neither Bai Tianxing nor the Omegas could muster anger, their eyes filled with astonishment.

Why?

They asked, “Why?”

Author's note:

The story is currently building its world view. The interstellar league in the plot will reach the capital star, where Qiuqiu will shine brightly. Regardless of being Alpha, Beta, or Omega, everyone will see him as their only salvation.