Chapter 110

Chapter 110

He Mingri scratched his head: "So, what should we do now?"

The Dark Star Military Academy's team was randomly placed on the eastern part of the island. Initially, due to the protective mechanism of the simulation field, they wouldn’t encounter other teams — but after that, it's unpredictable. They might encounter strong opponents at any moment while searching for the command flag, risking total annihilation.

Everyone else also wore serious expressions.

They all looked towards Queqiu, the core member of their team. Without any official appointment, he naturally assumed the role of the leader. Both Alphas and Betas awaited his decisions.

Queqiu withdrew his gaze and after pondering, asked Li Congyan, “Can your ability help us eliminate the wrong directions and directly find where the command flag is hidden?”

Li Congyan nodded: “Yes, but I can’t pinpoint a small area. I can only give a general direction.”

He then closed his eyes, focusing on activating his ability.

Queqiu: “That’s enough. If we can get the flag right at the start, even if our chip locations are exposed, many teams probably won’t be able to join the encirclement in time, significantly reducing our risk.”

You Buwei, serving as the scout, flew around the island, accidentally showering Queqiu in feathers upon landing.

“Scouting complete. The island is quite large. From my estimation, each landing point is equidistant to the central forest, just within an hour's reach.”

Queqiu stepped back slightly, annoyed, waving away the feathers shed by You Buwei.

Feige clenched his fists: “The committee is quite sly. If the flag is hidden in the central forest, once the chip coordinates are revealed, almost all teams can reach there within an hour. That would be quite a spectacle.”

Queqiu looked at Li Congyan: “How’s it going?”

Li Congyan opened his eyes, looking somewhat tired. Continuously using his ability seemed to be a strain for a B-grade Beta like him.

“Our landing point is on the east side. Since south, west, and north are not the right directions, the only correct direction left is the central forest.”

Hearing this, everyone's faces showed concern.

Although they could discern the correct direction for the command flag so quickly, it was unfortunately hidden in the most challenging location. They worried that even if they obtained the flag, it would be difficult to hold it for an hour amidst the pursuit and blockade of thousands of competing teams.

Queqiu patted Li Congyan on the shoulder, instinctively wanting to transfer some spiritual energy to him, but then he suddenly remembered: he was in his "Blooming Phase" and couldn't use his spiritual powers.

"You've worked hard. Now, conserve your energy and refrain from using your ability for a while."

Touched by Queqiu's concern, Li Congyan nodded vigorously.

The other teammates also expressed their relief at having him, as his ability to eliminate so many wrong choices meant they didn't have to take detours. Compared to other teams, they were saving much effort.

"I just played a tiny, insignificant role," Beta said modestly, lowering his head and then sneakily glancing at Queqiu, "Later, it'll mainly depend on the chief; he's under much more pressure than me."

"Our princess here is the pillar of us all. We must hold on tight to him."

You Buwei waved his hand nonchalantly, attempting to lean on Queqiu again.

Queqiu: “...”

He tactfully declined, haha.

The team joked and laughed as they made their way towards the center of the forest, surprisingly not encountering a single competitor along the way, smoothly reaching the island's central location.

The journey was so smooth that even You Buwei, usually the most carefree and indifferent among them, found it puzzling.

"What's going on? It's a bit too quiet, isn't it?"

He even worried about an ambush, spread his wings to fly around the forest once more, and landed still muttering to himself.

"Tsk, really strange, still no sign of anyone else."

Hearing this, Duole scratched the back of his head in confusion, "That's really strange. Could it be that no one else thought of coming to the central forest to check?"

The others also seemed puzzled, halting their steps, unsure whether to continue forward.

They had initially feared encountering other teams on the way, but now, the absence of anyone else made them even more apprehensive: Could it be an ambush?

Or some other danger?

Orfei was somewhat frightened, "Could it be that so many people met with accidents at the same time? That would be a bit too..."

Hemingri speculated, "You're scaring us. Maybe they're just avoiding hotspots to not run into strong opponents and get eliminated, which is why we’ve seen so few people along the way."

"It’s unlikely that no one but us dares to come to the central forest. Among these teams, at least those from the Empire's First Military Academy wouldn’t be so cowardly," Figo rejected the Hippo Alpha’s guess.

Li Congyan spoke with certainty, "But 'Correct Choice' tells me that the flag is hidden at the center of the island."

Qiu frowned, turning to glance back in the direction they had come from.

Even if many teams are too scared to venture into the central forest, fearing not finding the flag but encountering numerous competitors instead, the journey shouldn’t be this quiet.

"There's something abnormal, and there must be a demon," Qiu thought, feeling uneasy ever since noticing something off with Dong Kui.

He trusted his intuition, which had been proven right many times. So, faced with the obviously unusual situation, Qiu was more cautious than ever.

The members of the Dark Star Military Academy found themselves in a dilemma.

After some thought, Qiu decided to stick with the original plan and trust Li Congyan's 'Correct Answer.'

"We don't know the situation of the other teams right now, and worrying about it won't help. Let's find the flag first. Once we do, the chip we carry will broadcast our coordinates to all participants, and then we'll know what's really going on."

You Buwei followed up: "Normally, if our location and the flag are exposed, teams either looking to save time and effort by ambushing us, or still searching for the flag, will come after us. But if no one tries to intercept us even then, and we continue unobstructed, it might mean something serious has happened."

They looked at each other with solemn expressions, their mood far from the lightness they had at the start – regardless of the situation, they were in for a tough battle.

But at the moment, they had no other choice but to face the challenge head-on.

With no other teams obstructing them and aided by Li Congyan's ability, the Dark Star Military Academy team easily found the command flag hidden in a tree trunk. When Fige carefully took it out, cheers inevitably erupted—

They were the first team to find the command flag!

Queqiu was the first to praise Li Congyan: "Your ability is very useful. If we win the championship, the biggest credit goes to you."

The other teammates also rushed over, hugging him tightly and not letting go: "You did great, kid! Even our leader praises you. When we get back, I'll give you my best comfort enhancer!"

"Impressive, Little Yan. Betas can have big power too."

Blushing at the relentless praises from his teammates, Li Congyan adjusted his glasses to cover his embarrassment.

"Not really, it's because our leader chose to believe in me."

The majority of the audience in the live broadcast room, mostly gathered in Queqiu's room, were unaware of the other teams' situations. Seeing this, they excitedly sent messages supporting Dark Star Military Academy and Queqiu himself.

"As expected of Miracle Queqiu!"

"Ahhh my waifu is so awesome!"

"Queqiu is amazing!"

"This Beta player from Dark Star Military Academy is pretty awesome. Though he seems weak and his ability lacks any offense, in this situation, it's like having a cheat code."

"Queqiu always trusts his teammates so much. If it were my classmates as team leaders, they definitely wouldn't have supported Li Congyan like this."

"So pretty, so capable, and so kind, wuwuwu, my perfect waifu TT"

After obtaining the command flag, the electronic chips on the shoulders of the Dark Star Military Academy team immediately sent their location coordinates to all the participating teams on the island.

Hemingri wiped the sweat from his forehead. Compared to the initial tension, he now felt much more relaxed, as if a weight had been lifted.

"Next, under normal circumstances, we should be getting surrounded by tens of thousands of people, right?"

While handing the flag to Queqiu, Fige said, “What’s meant to come will come eventually. We’ll do our utmost to protect this flag.”

“Given the current situation, being surrounded might actually be a good thing. If we’re not, that’s when the real trouble begins,” Youbuwei shrugged.

Queqiu secured the flag firmly to his right arm, resolved that as long as he had the slightest strength to fight, no one would be able to take the flag from him.

He glanced at Youbuwei, “Enough with the jokes, go up and scout.”

“As you command, Your Highness.”

Youbuwei replied, a bit reluctantly, and obediently spread his powerful wings. After a few days of recovery, the signs of his previous injuries were hardly noticeable.

With a strong flap of his wings, he soared into the sky, quickly reaching a height of several hundred meters above the island.

The further he looked, the more furrowed his brows became.

Soon he returned to the ground, his expression grave, “Still no sign of any team heading our way.”

This obviously defied normal logic—

They were participating in the interstellarly watched Imperial Military School Tournament.

Queqiu's expression grew somber as he turned to his teammates, “Did any of you notice any announcements from the super brain? Whether about eliminations or voluntary withdrawals.”

His question jolted the Dark Star Military Academy team and the live stream viewers alike.

In response to Queqiu's question, the team members first stared blankly, then shook their heads, indicating they hadn’t noticed anything.

Youbuwei, setting aside his playful demeanor, became serious, “Maybe it's not that we didn’t notice, but that there really haven’t been any announcements this whole time.”

Hearing this, everyone was taken aback.

Queqiu’s eyes narrowed as he pondered deeply.

Not just the Dark Star Military Academy team, but the live stream chat exploded with surprise.

“Right, I was too busy admiring Queqiu’s looks, but now that you mention it, I don’t recall hearing any announcements from the super brain.”

"The match has been going on for an hour now, and not a single elimination or encounter?!"

"This is so strange. When they said earlier that there was no one blocking their path, I thought they were being reckless, but not encountering anyone seemed like a good thing. Now, I realize it's actually quite creepy."

"It feels like we're the only few living people on this entire island. What are the others doing? Why is there no movement at all?!"

"It's been almost two minutes since our coordinates were broadcasted, and not a single team has come to surround us. In previous tournaments, by now it would have been a life and death battle, not this eerie silence."

Realizing something was amiss, even the slightest rustle of grass sent chills down the spines of the Alphas and Betas.

Orfe, who was more faint-hearted, looked at the towering trees around and felt an ominous presence everywhere. It seemed as if some monster could jump out from the dark meadows to drag him away.

He unconsciously swayed his fiery red tail and moved closer to Queqiu, feeling a bit reassured after smelling the faint fragrance from the little Omega.

Orfe asked, “So what do we do now? Do we run with the flag or just wait here?”

Queqiu raised his head, his gaze sweeping over his teammates’ faces. After a moment of careful thought, he made a surprising suggestion.

“Who among you can tear off your chip?”

This question puzzled the Dark Star Military Academy team—not because they were unwilling to follow Queqiu's orders, but they truly didn’t understand why he would suggest such a thing.

Especially since Queqiu was not one to speak impulsively or without reason.

“I want to test a hypothesis,” he said, “so I need your cooperation.”

As soon as Queqiu finished speaking, without any further questioning, Fige did not hesitate to tear off the chip on his shoulder. Duole couldn't stop him in time, exclaiming, “Hey, don’t—”

Regrettably, he said, “This will be considered a voluntary forfeit, resulting in elimination.”

But contrary to everyone's expectation, the Super Brain's elimination announcement did not sound.

Fige's heart raced to its limit the moment he tore off the chip; his eardrums filled with the intense thumping of his heart, pounding so loudly that it numbed his ear canal.

After a brief moment of adjustment, the surge of adrenaline gradually stabilized.

Then, he heard Queqiu's solemn voice coming from right in front.

“As I thought, the chips are malfunctioning. They can only broadcast coordinates but don’t recognize eliminations or forfeits—”

Or in other words, it's impossible to leave this simulated battlefield.

This island has now become a sealed space, where entry is possible but not exit.

Hearing this, a chill ran down everyone's spine.

Queqiu raised his head, but all he could see was the dense forest, stretching endlessly, with no visible end in sight.

Due to the obstruction of tall trees, little wind passed through the dense forest, yet a cool breeze somehow found its way, gently swaying the treetops and causing the leaves to rustle softly.

The air carried a faint sweet fragrance, somewhat stifling and familiar.

Queqiu knew where he had smelled it before, and he knew who the owner of this floral scent was—

"Oh no, this isn't a floral scent. In the terms of this world, it's the pheromone released by an Alpha or Omega during their heat."

"And specifically, it's the pheromone of an A-grade Omega."

"Due to its high concentration, it's so potent that it can be sensed even from this great distance."

"At the seashore, the constant sea breeze would spread this pheromone even faster. If we had not set off in time, perhaps the competing teams might have already been affected by it upon landing," Queqiu speculated.

"That’s why we haven't encountered anyone on our way."

He faintly guessed what was about to happen, but at this point, it seemed to be too late.

"Pheromones?"

"What pheromones?" He Mingri scratched his head in confusion, and the others were equally baffled.

Queqiu didn't respond but his gaze fell on You Buwei's Adam's apple.

Feeling the little Omega's stare, the Alpha blushed slightly, his Adam's apple bobbing nervously, yet not feeling offended. Instead, he straightened his neck, allowing a clearer view.

He slowly approached Queqiu, eyes sparkling, and whispered, "After you've had a good look, you’ll have to take responsibility for me."

“……”

"Don't be too flirtatious."

Queqiu reached out and grabbed You Buwei's restraining collar. The Alpha, caught off guard, stumbled forward a few steps, nearly falling into his arms.

"Steady yourself."

"What are you doing?" You Buwei pouted, "Everyone's watching."

Other teammates: "......"

Live stream audience: "......"

"You're really flirtatious.jpg"

Queqiu glanced at him sideways: "What exactly is going through your mind?!"

"Grabbing an Alpha's restraining collar is just like grabbing an Alpha's..." You Buwei whispered softly.

Considering that the team match was being live-streamed to billions of viewers, he prudently self-censored to ensure the content was broadcast-appropriate.

Queqiu ignored his suggestive words and seriously examined the collar in his hands, noticing a difference in color from before.

"Wasn't it black originally? Now why does it have a hint of silver?"

You Buwei leaned in and asked, "Why are you observing it so carefully? This is quite a private thing for an Alpha, you know."

Queqiu snorted coldly. Morfa had shown him his glands the first time they met.

Could anything be more private than that?

Feige, speaking for the frivolous You Buwei, explained: "Because many Omegas are participating in the team match, for their safety, the league officials issued us collars with stronger suppression capabilities before the match started."

Queqiu's expression grew more serious. With the possibility of malfunctioning chips and the sudden replacement of the collars, predicting what issues might arise became difficult.

He glanced at his teammates, who looked clueless and oblivious to what was happening, sighed, and summoned magical mechanical devices to handcuff the Alphas.

The others were confused and puzzled, but You Buwei, far from resisting, seemed to be enjoying it.

When it was his turn, he jokingly said, "So you like this kind of play."

Qiu didn’t even lift his eyelids: "Which kind?"

You Buwei blurted out without thinking: "Public, restraint, handcuffs."

As a result, compared to others, the Falcon Alpha gained a muzzle.

Wearing a metal muzzle and handcuffed, he looked innocently at Qiu.

Hemingri asked in confusion: "Chief, what are you doing?"

Qiu gave him a somewhat pitiful look: "You'll know soon enough."

That 'soon enough' referred to the next second, when Hemingri's pupils suddenly constricted, his brows tightly knotted together.

"How... how can this be..."

Hemingri felt as if all his strength had been drained away, collapsing weakly to the ground. The gland on the back of the Hippo Alpha's neck, suppressed by a restraining collar since adulthood, responded for the first time, emitting heat, both painful and pleasurable, resonating with the sweet pheromones in the air.

Figo and the others were shocked at the sudden change in Hemingri, and when Qiu spoke, their attention was drawn to him.

"B-class Alphas are affected first," he looked towards Figo, Orfei, and Duole, "then, it should be the A-class Alphas."

Before he finished speaking, the Alphas he mentioned finally understood what Hemingri was experiencing.

The forced estrous period was sudden and intense. Figo instinctively wanted to cover his gland, but his hands were cuffed, preventing any movement. His eyes, overwhelmed by the sudden surge of emotions, welled up with tears as he looked helplessly at Qiu.

It was unbearable, so much so that it made him want to cry.

"Your restraining collars can’t suppress the reception of Omega pheromones. In fact, this pheromone has been affecting you since we arrived at the landing point."

Qiu explained, "I don’t know what reactions Alphas have during their estrous period, but for safety, I had to restrict your movements."

Before he could finish his sentence, the Alphas overwhelmed by the sudden onset of the estrous period were already losing their rationality. The long-suppressed glands on their necks were now free, releasing intense pheromones.

In this state, Alphas nearly lose all sense of reason, instinctively seeking their mates for marking and relief.

However, the presence of other Alphas’ pheromones, perceived as territorial challenges, could provoke their innate aggressive instincts, causing even close Alpha companions to view each other with hostility, ready to tear apart any Alpha perceived as a rival.

Fortunately, thanks to Qiu's preparation, Figo and the others, though unable to tolerate each other's pheromones, were unable and incapable of fighting. They leaned against trees, weak and suffering, tormented by intense, unfulfilled desires.

Qiu, alarmed, observed the chaos, realizing that the estrous period for Alphas and Omegas was not a pleasure but a punishing compulsion to mark, akin to the estrous periods of cats and dogs, unbearably painful without relief.

Li Congyan, being a Beta, was immune to both Alpha and Omega pheromones. Seeing his teammates in such agony and unable to help, he was as restless as an ant on a hot pan.

In his panic, he blurted out, "What should we do? I... I... should I let them bite me a few times?"

"You're not an Omega; even if they bite your neck off, it won’t help at all."

You Buwei, however, seemed quite unaffected, apparently not influenced by Dong Kui's pheromones.

Qiu looked at him, his eyes somewhat obscure and unclear.

If an A-class Alpha like Figo is suffering this much, how much worse would it be for an S-class Alpha in estrus?

Noticing Qiu's gaze, You Buwei looked up, and on finding worry in his eyes, tried to lighten the mood with a smile: "Princess here is an Omega, and S-class at that. Maybe you should bite me? As a thank you, I'll dedicate myself to you."

Seeing this, Qiu relaxed a bit: He's still joking, so he must be alright.

He looked into the distance and said to You Buwei and Li Congyan, "I guess the entire island's Alphas and Omegas are now affected. I need to see what's happening. You two stay here and don’t move."

Anweiran had mentioned that an Alpha or Omega's estrus could last from a week to a month. Enduring it alone was already unbearable, but now with over a hundred thousand contestants trapped in the simulation, most of them Alphas and Omegas, dragging this on wasn't a solution. If left unchecked, the consequences could be severe.

Qiu wanted to find a way out or a solution to the collective estrus.

Li Congyan quickly nodded in agreement: "Okay, Chief, be careful. I'll take care of Figo and the others."

You Buwei also nodded, signaling Qiu not to worry.

His hands were hidden behind his back, fingernails digging deeply into his flesh, his palms already bleeding, but his face showed no sign of it.

In reality, even an A-class Alpha like Figo was in such agony during forced estrus, so as an S-class Alpha, You Buwei's senses were even more acute.

But he didn't want to end up tormented by Omega pheromones like Figo and the others, reduced to a mindless, mating-driven beast.

So You Buwei used pain to maintain clarity and a bit of dignity in front of Qiu.

Qiu didn’t notice the hidden distress of the Falcon Alpha, thinking he was genuinely alright. After getting affirmation from Li Congyan and You Buwei, he finally felt a bit more at ease.

Qiu rejected Li Congyan's offer to use his ability to choose a correct direction for him, his golden eyes looking into the distance filled with clarity and determination.

"Right or wrong, this is my choice."

"Whatever the outcome, I will have no regrets."

Author's Note: