Chapter 45: Don’t Be Naughty!

Chapter 45: Don't Get Frisky!

Qi He froze for several seconds.

The cool forehead pressed against the hollow of his shoulder sent shivers through him, yet the breath against his skin was warm, brushing over his collarbone.

Yan Chuanbai asked if he had feelings for him?

His brain attempted to analyze but stalled.

The arm nearby seemed to grow warmer, and during his silence, hair strands brushed past him, causing a faint, tingling sensation.

After a pause, Qi He turned his head to study him: “…Are you feeling unwell?”

“……”

Yan Chuanbai stood up, looking at him with a half-smile. “Heh, alarmingly lucid.”

Qi He hesitated mid-sentence: So, he meant it?

Why? He pondered: “Is it because I saved you?”

Yan Chuanbai gave a low laugh: “Not for such a shallow reason.”

His feelings had started earlier than that.

Qi He lowered his gaze, recalling: “Then was it because of that ‘accident’ in the training room?”

“Accident?” Yan Chuanbai raised an eyebrow.

He propped himself up on one hand beside them and looked at Qi He: “Perhaps it could be called an ‘accident’… after all, I hadn’t planned to reveal it to you so soon. But you said you could handle my entirety—”

His eyes still held a strong, aggressive intensity. Saying such things in this situation.

Qi He’s heart raced briefly.

Then, Yan Chuanbai gently retracted his intensity, his face returning to its usual casual smile, but his tone was unusually serious: “Just like numbers gain meaning only through specific people, I had those thoughts only… because of you.”

His direct gaze fell on Qi He.

Qi He’s knuckles flexed, and the sensation of being kissed on the neck reemerged. Hot, soft, lingering…

So, Yan Chuanbai had wanted to kiss him all along?

He paused to regain composure: “System.”

The system held its breath in his mind: “…Hmm?”

Qi He said: “This is the most lengthy statement Yan Chuanbai has ever made, aside from praising Kamiue.”

“……”

The system shut its eyes gently.

In the wordless lock of eyes.

The communicator suddenly beeped twice. Qi He looked down and took it out: “I need to take a message.”

Yan Chuanbai shifted back a bit to give him space: “Okay.”

The bluish-purple markings on his face were fading visibly, and his lips were gradually regaining their color, but it would take some time here to fully recover.

Qi He eased his shoulders slightly and opened the communicator.

The message was from Meng Yan: 『Been busy all this time, just free now. The serum should have arrived by now, right? [Exhausted]』

Qi He: 『Already injected. Didn’t expect it to be so fast.』

『You said it needed to be rushed, so I asked Miss Yu Jiang for help. The initial collection wasn’t in a sterile environment, but thankfully her Purification superpower helped. The exam room also had Yan’s recent data, and with Xia Jiu’s identification, we cut down on steps.』

He lowered his eyes to type, and a voice came from across: “What is it?”

“It’s Meng Yan. We’re discussing the serum.”

Yan Chuanbai’s gaze lingered on Qi He’s lowered eyelashes and clean-cut side profile, softening slightly. “When did you start preparing the serum?”

“There wasn’t a concrete plan,” Qi He replied. “I just make a habit of collecting any items that might be useful.”

Items? The unusual wording piqued his interest.

Qi He didn’t notice his gaze, still replying to Meng Yan.

Meng Yan: 『But why did Yan use serum instead of antibody? And why so urgently?』

Qi He thought for two seconds and replied: 『That’s the marvel of his physiology.』

Meng Yan: 『???』

The system: “…”

-

His evasive answer dodged Meng Yan’s questions.

Fortunately, the other side was occupied again, and the conversation stopped there.

Qi He stowed the communicator.

When he looked up, he locked eyes with Yan Chuanbai.

The earlier confession came rushing back.

This was the first time Qi He had encountered such a heartfelt confession—past ones had seemed either flippant or rash to him. But Yan Chuanbai was different; he seemed genuine.

An unfamiliar heartbeat picked up subtly.

Yan Chuanbai looked at him and suddenly smiled. “Did my confession make you uncomfortable?”

That smile instantly sparked his competitiveness.

Qi He composed himself: “Of course not.”

“Good,” Yan Chuanbai’s features softened.

The bluish-purple markings on his face had almost faded, revealing his sharp, handsome features. The prominent veins on his sculpted hands were now visible: “I confessed to you just because, in that moment, I suddenly wanted to tell you—”

“You don’t need to think about how to respond.”

Yan Chuanbai looked at him: “But from now on, I hope you’ll see my actions as me courting you.”

Qi He’s breathing slowed for a beat, and he nodded: “…I’ll try to adjust my preconceptions about you.”

"..."

"..."

Outside, the sky gradually darkened.

In the dimming light, the last bit of bluish tint on Yan Chuanbai's cheek was barely visible. He stood up and gave a slight smile, "Mm, let's head back now."

Qi He also rose and followed him.

They walked one after the other, with Qi He keeping half a step behind. As he gazed at Yan Chuanbai's profile from the side, a long sigh echoed in his mind:

"The day has finally come..."

The system, sounding both frantic and bitter, said with a bitter chuckle, "He, Hehe... forget it. This world has already gone insane anyway."

"..."

After a two-second pause, Qi He responded sharply, "You knew?"

The system was utterly defeated, "Yeah." It expected questions or blame, but instead—

Qi He reflected, "There are things you know that I don’t?"

"?!" The system flared up, "Don’t casually say something so insulting!!!"

After a brief burst of anger—

They reached the city gate just as the guard from earlier called out, "Colonel Yan, Mr. Qi!" The faint cyan on Yan Chuanbai’s neck went unnoticed. He nodded and walked in.

The system’s mood brightened again, and it marvelled, "Still, you actually thought of preparing serum."

Qi He gave a slight smile. "From my ability to find loopholes in the system, I inferred that the main program’s judgment criteria are mechanical—it doesn’t allow stable structures to enter Yan Chuanbai’s body. So even if that sugar cube didn’t have resistance, it couldn’t be consumed by Yan Chuanbai."

His eyes brightened slightly. "But it’s precisely these rigid rules that opened up a slim chance."

Antibodies couldn’t enter the body, but blood outside the body was fine.

The system was stunned for a long moment: even this bug could be exploited.

"...Damn impressive."

-

They had to report to headquarters early the next morning.

Qi He returned to the guardroom with Yan Chuanbai. After dinner and a quick cleanup, they prepared to rest.

There was only one bed in the inner room.

Yan Chuanbai stood by the bed, glancing at Qi He’s still somewhat pale face. "You should take the bed tonight."

Qi He set his gun down by the bedside. "The bed is quite big. It can fit both of us."

Yan Chuanbai paused before responding. "Without testing, we can’t guarantee the virus is completely cleared."

"Besides," Yan Chuanbai lifted his eyelids, with a faint smile, "now that you know how I feel about you, do you still want to share a bed with me?"

Qi He snapped out of his thoughts and turned his head.

Yan Chuanbai stood just two steps away, as if his true nature, no longer suppressed after a round of mutation, was coming through. In the confined space, it radiated a sense of pressure.

Qi He felt an adrenaline rush like before a fight.

He met Yan Chuanbai’s gaze for a few breaths. "Your psychic ability must be at 4S now."

"..."

The system sighed internally.

After a moment of silence, Yan Chuanbai smiled. It was unclear whether it carried provocation or seduction as he whispered to Qi He:

"After we return, want to test that out?"

Qi He’s heart started racing. "Okay."

...

Having used weak abilities twice in a short time, Qi He was indeed tired. He didn’t refuse Yan Chuanbai again and took the offer and got in bed.

The next day, he woke to bright morning light.

As he woke up, Yan Chuanbai also rose from the sofa.

The frost that had covered him had melted away.

He looked completely like a normal person now, his uniform buttoned up neatly. Yan Chuanbai put on his military cap and said,

"Headquarters personnel will arrive soon."

Qi He quickly got up as well.

The meeting place was still in the city's lounge area.

When Qi He and the others arrived, Xi Moqing, Le Yunyu, and a few others were already there. Tang Ying, the only remaining S-class from F City, was also waiting.

They exchanged looks. Yan Chuanbai looked at Le Yunyu and asked, "Where are the headquarters personnel?"

"They'll be here any minute. Yang Cheng is leading the team to take command of Base III."

Each base required an S-class Combat Department member from headquarters to be stationed there. Aside from Zhu Gedun, who was primarily defense-oriented, the only two Combat Department members from headquarters were Yang Cheng (wood element) and Le Yunyu (fire element).

Yan Chuanbai said, "I thought you’d be staying here directly."

Le Yunyu said with a sigh. "I originally thought so too. But Yang Cheng insisted I return to headquarters. He..."

Just as he spoke, sounds came from outside.

The door opened, and Yang Cheng entered with a team of military personnel.

The conversation halted, and everyone snapped to attention.

Both groups of soldiers saluted solemnly! Then Yang Cheng lowered his hand and announced to the room, "Yang Cheng from headquarters, 3S-class Combat Department. From today onward, I will be stationed at Base III."

Base III was different from the other two fully operational bases. Not only was it located underground in the northern border, but it also needed major reconstruction.

Yan Chuanbai looked at Yang Cheng. In terms of rank, he was Yan Chuanbai’s superior:

"I heard you volunteered for this assignment."

"Yes. Compared to fire element, the underground city is more suitable for wood element."

Yang Cheng stood before the crowd.

He held his breath for a few breaths, his face slightly flushed, then said, "I am ashamed of my past arrogance and ignorance."

"Everything for the people."

After these words, the lounge fell silent for a few breaths.

Many of those present had participated in the previous rank assessment, and their eyes showed moved emotion. Though Tang Ying was unaware of the details, she too felt a surge of emotion for a moment.

This was the military personnel.

In the solemn and stirring atmosphere,

Qi He suddenly heard a voice in his mind: "Ding! Key plot about to begin. Please prepare, Host."

Qi He: "..."

System: "..."

System: "I—I didn’t clear my program’s cache."

Since tasks didn’t matter anymore anyway, Qi He said, "Pull it up and let’s take a look."

The final script loaded.

The system summarized the backstory: "After discovering you were infected, you took advantage of the fact that no visible changes had appeared and claimed you were feeling unwell. When your teammates came to support you, you scratched their skin. No one noticed anything unusual, and you smoothly returned to F City."

『Just one night later, everything was turned upside down.

The superpowered teammates you infected had all mutated into zombies, rushing out of their residences to attack people in the city. More and more people became infected as a result, and the military soon traced it back to you.

At this point, you made a false countercharge, exposing Yan Chuanbai’s actual situation!

You claimed that, as a 3S-level, his contagion was too strong, and you had also been infected by him▇▇▇▇』

Qi He’s gaze fell on the "3S-level" in the script progress: "Next page."

『Your words immediately threw the military personnel into disarray! Combined with the turmoil in the city, F City, which had been a hard-won defense, was on the brink of collapse again.

Just then, Yan Chuanbai, who had been self-isolating, suddenly appeared. His appearance was no different from a zombie’s, yet as he mobilized his psychic energy, the zombies causing havoc in the city all stopped their actions and gathered as if following commands.』

『Yan Chuanbai had become the Zombie King.』

Qi He and the system quietly read the text, which was exactly as anticipated.

『F City was held, but your misdeeds were exposed before everyone. Infected by the virus and responsible for the military losing one of its strongest superpowered combatants, you had no possibility of survival.

In the end, you finally met your dea▇▇▇▇』

Qi He narrowed his eyes: ...Just as expected.

According to the plot, he should be dead by now.

Although he wasn’t actually infected, his body would be forced into a state of death to align with the script.

He remained still until the military personnel stayed behind to handle affairs while the others prepared to leave.

The plot had already exceeded the time limit, yet no punishment was imposed.

People around gradually dispersed.

The system asked curiously, "If you don’t die, how will you play out this part of the plot?"

Qi He replied lightly, "A cinch."

Just then, Yan Chuanbai turned to him and asked, "Not leaving?"

Qi He’s contemplative gaze settled on him.

The system sounded an alarm: "Wait—he has designs on you now, don’t act frisky!"

Author's Note:

Qi He: Freed from the plot’s constraints, I have to restrain my innate nature. [Spreads hands]

Yan Chuanbai: Don’t suppress it. I can take all of you. [Kiss]

Qi He: [Pushes up glasses]?