Chapter 25

Chapter 25

The plane cruised steadily above the clouds.

Shen Hui opened his eyes, his clear gaze shifting from the clouds outside the window to the muscular arm clamped tightly around his waist.

He was wide awake, but his body refused to cooperate, making even lifting a finger a struggle. Yan Gui's presence was so overwhelming that it left him no opportunity to remove the tracker.

Yan Gui’s forehead rested against his scent gland, unconsciously drinking in his pheromones even in sleep.

This was not a normal phenomenon.

An Alpha typically only craves the soothing pheromones of their partner during a rut or intense emotional fluctuations. But Yan Gui was different; ever since the marking, he had been feeding on Shen Hui’s pheromones almost every second. If he was away for even a short while, he would become irritable and aggressive.

In just a few days, the amount of pheromones Yan Gui required had increased several-fold. If Shen Hui could not satisfy him, he would cling to him relentlessly until he was sated, not even stopping when Shen Hui fainted.

Once, Shen Hui truly couldn't take it anymore and locked the bedroom door, leaving Yan Gui in the study. To his surprise, Yan Gui snapped in the middle of the night, kicking the heavy solid wood door off its hinges. With eyes flashing with a predatory green light, he bit into Shen Hui's gland, greedily and frantically devouring his pheromones.

He was like a starving lone wolf, fierce and cruel, wanting to consume Shen Hui entirely, sending shivers down one's spine.

A vague suspicion formed in Shen Hui's mind: the effects of Serum No. 1 did not disappear with a partner's comfort; instead, they evolved in a more extreme direction—something Chen Shenzhi was well aware of.

The issue with the tracker had to be resolved as soon as possible.

He moved gently, trying to slide out of the pincer-like embrace, but the moment he moved, he was instinctively pinned back down by the Alpha.

Shen Hui: !

He clenched his teeth hard, his muscles tensing as a jolt of electricity shot straight to the crown of his head, making fireworks explode before his eyes.

In his half-asleep state, Yan Gui was pleased by his tension. He leaned down to kiss the back of his neck, his voice husky and sated: "Woke up with an appetite, did we?"

Shen Hui had finally had enough. After catching his breath, he balled his hand into a fist and threw a full-force backward elbow strike—Bam!

Caught completely off guard, Yan Gui was sent flying off the bed. His back slammed against the wall before he tumbled onto the floor, looking at Shen Hui in momentary shock and confusion.

Shen Hui had already sat up, his face so cold it seemed to drop icicles. Because his muscles wouldn't allow him to maintain a proper posture, he sat with his legs parted, and Yan Gui could even see the dampening sheets.

It was too lethal and too stimulating; Yan Gui’s Adam’s apple bobbed pathetically.

Shen Hui stepped on that wicked member with a cold face, looking down at Yan Gui with a scrutinizing gaze: "If you dare spend the night like this again, I'll destroy it."

If one ignored the obvious squelching sounds, it would have been a very intimidating statement.

Yan Gui only felt his throat go dry.

Shen Hui didn't look at him again and turned straight toward the shower.

*

After the plane landed, the group checked directly into a five-star hotel belonging to the Federation. After a quick freshening up, they were invited to the welcome reception.

The banquet was held in the rooftop ballroom. At Yan Gui's insistence, Shen Hui still wore a white suit matching his, along with identical cufflinks and ties. Unless you were blind, their relationship was obvious.

As the doors opened, melodious and soft symphonic music wafted toward them along with the scent of expensive perfume and the rustle of silk.

Well-dressed industry leaders held champagne, chatting and laughing elegantly.

Shen Hui had a flash of disorientation. This scene was both familiar and strange—familiar because he had attended countless such hypocritical yet confrontational banquets, and strange because three years with the Yang family had almost entirely blurred this extravagant and bloody past, making him feel like an ordinary person.

"What's wrong?" Yan Gui immediately noticed Shen Hui's abnormality. Or rather, most of his mind was fixed on Shen Hui, monitoring even a single glance.

Shen Hui shook his head slightly. Just as he was about to say it was nothing, he was drowned out by Yang Bai’s heartfelt exclamation from behind.

"Wow—!"

Yang Bai was wearing a high-end custom suit provided by Yan, and his eyes were nearly blinded by the magnificent ballroom. He had scrolled through various "wealth-flaunting" videos on social media, but only by experiencing it firsthand did he realize how staggering it truly was.

The delightfully naive college student cared nothing for current politics and had no concept of luxury goods. He completely ignored the glossy elites and focused entirely on the dazzling buffet.

Chilled king crab, Antarctic shrimp, Grade A Wagyu... and many delicacies that looked delicious but whose names he couldn't even recall.

Yang Bai swallowed pathetically: "Brother, can we eat all of this?"

Shen Hui nodded: "Go ahead."

Seeing him look like he was about to drool, Yan Gui felt a sudden surge of competitive instinct: "This is nothing. When we get back, I'll give you a VIP membership card for Yan Group hotels. Go try them when you have time."

The Yan Group hotel buffet blew those of certain luxury brands out of the water! And with the VIC membership system, calling it a "Heavenly Feast" wasn't even an exaggeration.

Yang Bai suddenly felt Yan Gui’s image grow as tall as a towering hero, and the words slipped out: "Thanks, Pops."

Yan Gui was very pleased. He pointed at Shen Hui: "Then call your brother 'Mommy,' and I'll give you a lifetime card."

Shen Hui: ...

Yang Bai’s mind went blank. Fortunately, the appearance of Chairman Nathan saved him just in time.

"Mr. Yan, Mr. Shen, welcome, welcome!" Nathan walked enthusiastically toward them with his assistant, shaking hands with Yan Gui, but was subtly blocked by Yan Gui when he moved to shake Shen Hui's hand.

A flash of complex calculation flickered in Nathan's eyes, quickly masked by a politician’s smooth and friendly smile: "And this is..."

He had investigated Shen Hui's past—an orphan adopted by the Chen family, a devastating beauty who made both Chen Shenzhi and Yan Gui obsessed to the point of coming to blows.

To summarize, he was a seductive consort who could topple empires.

In a large international meeting like this, the disappearance of a little plaything wouldn't be a big deal. But if it were the rightful spouse of an invited representative, it would be a diplomatic incident and very troublesome.

Shen Hui coldly and calmly sized up the chairman before him, keenly perceiving the somewhat obsessive scrutiny directed at him.

"This is, of course, my—"

Yan Gui had been waiting for this moment. He wanted to announce his ownership of Shen Hui in front of everyone, so that no one would dare covet his kitten. Then, he felt a sharp pinch on his lower back.

His expression turned very sour. If one had to use a metaphor, it was like his beloved kitten was threatening to run away at the slightest disagreement and wouldn't even let him go looking for her.

"...is my butler."

Yan Gui smiled ferociously, each word gritted out through a cold, biting wind.

Nathan showed a look of realization that it was "nothing special," and his smile became a bit more sincere: "Then please, don't stand on ceremony—"

Before he could finish, a commotion broke out in the ballroom, followed by gunshots and screams. Nathan’s face changed the moment he looked over, and he strode toward the center of the chaos.

Yan Gui and Shen Hui exchanged a look and followed. In the center of the turmoil, they saw Yang Bai standing helplessly behind a female Omega, confronting another Black male Omega.

The male Omega was tall and dressed like a dandy. His dark skin was radiant, but now he clutched his wrist in pain, his furious eyes looking as if he wanted to swallow Yang Bai and the girl blocking him alive: "You dare ruin my royal business? I'll kill you!"

The girl gave a cold laugh and took a sharp step forward. The man immediately retreated, his bodyguards moving to block him.

This move completely enraged the Omega: "No one has ever dared to defy a Prince like me! Go, kill them!"

As he spoke, he tried to charge forward, but his subordinates quickly held him back. Nathan also immediately stepped in to persuade him, "Prince Ayada, calm down!"

Shen Hui and Yan Jiu shielded Yang Bai behind them. "What happened?"

Yang Bai hadn't yet recovered from the earlier shock. "I was just eating here when he swaggered over, grabbed me, and said he’d taken a liking to me."

Shen Hui followed Yang Bai's gaze to Ayada, whose eyes were filled with the fury and frustration of a man whose plans had been ruined. Shen Hui narrowed his eyes dangerously. "And then?"

Yang Bai slowly regained his composure, a mix of fear and grievance overwhelming him as he hid behind Shen Hui. "He said he wanted to take me to a room to see how good I was in bed. When I refused, he pulled out a gun and threatened to break my legs! I pushed him away, and he actually tried to shoot me! Luckily, this young lady helped me dodge it."

When the gunshot rang out beside his ear, Yang Bai was completely stunned. In that moment, he truly saw death waving at him with his great-grandmother in tow.

Hearing this, Yan Jiu's expression turned icy as he glared at Ayada as if looking at a dead man. Yang Bai was Shen Hui's brother and someone he had brought along—this was nothing short of a public slap in the face.

"%&@#! It’s an honor for me to fancy you! How dare you refuse? I'll kill you right—ah!" Before Ayada could finish, a gunshot rang out, followed by a piercing scream.

Yan Jiu had picked up the dropped gun at some point and fired a clean, swift shot, shattering Ayada's knee.

"I'll kill you!" Ayada howled in pain but still had the strength to charge forward. A flash of sadistic satisfaction gleamed in Yan Jiu's eyes as he aimed and fired several shots at the man's joints. The scent of blood and gunpowder ignited a primordial thrill in Yan Jiu, a sense of releasing his true nature.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The hall fell deathly silent except for the gunshots. The onlookers' curious gazes gradually turned to terror.

At the same time, Yan Jiu's brutal, dominating pheromones erupted, sweeping through the room. Most of the Alphas and Omegas present were local elites, but under the weight of Yan Jiu's pheromones, their legs trembled as they fought to remain standing.

Only when the magazine was empty did Yan Jiu casually toss the gun aside. The clatter of metal was unnervingly clear in the silent hall.

The nearest Alpha dropped to his knees with a thud. This first fall set off a domino effect as everyone else knelt—a pure, instinctual submission to the Alpha's absolute power.

Yan Jiu finally smirked with satisfaction and wrapped an arm around Shen Hui's waist. "Darling, how does this feel?"

Shen Hui silently observed the bloodied Ayada and the kneeling crowd, recalling an obscure theory he had once read while studying gland differentiation: "Glands grant humans the potential for evolution, enabling them to acquire greater power. In the near future, glands will replace wealth and power as the new tool for class division. Glands have even been pre-classified into S/A/B/C tiers, with predictions that S-class will become the new uncrowned kings."

Back then, this theory was widely criticized, and the theorist was reportedly silenced and vanished.

But as Shen Hui watched the crowd prostrate themselves, he felt that the foresight of that predecessor was eerily precise.

Shen Hui scanned the room and noticed one person still standing—the female Omega who had earlier shielded Yang Bai.

She appeared to be only seventeen or eighteen, dressed in an elegant cheongsam with her hair coiled up, exuding a cool, aloof beauty. Most strikingly, she was completely immune to Yan Jiu's pheromones.

Shen Hui was surprised. "Who are you?"

Yan Jiu followed Shen Hui's gaze and reined in his pheromones, finally allowing the crowd to stand up.

Nathan quickly shielded the young Omega behind him, then pulled her into his arms, affecting an air of intimacy. "This is my partner, Shaoyao."

The girl didn't resist, staying quietly in Nathan's embrace, but her gaze fell on Yang Bai.

That single glance made Yang Bai's face turn as red as a baboon's bottom, and he scratched his head flusteredly.

Shaoyao gave an almost imperceptible nod to Yang Bai. "Thank you."

Yang Bai was baffled: Huh? Shouldn't I be the one saying thank you?

But Shaoyao had already turned and left.

***

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**Author's Note:**

Yang Bai shook Diao Diao wildly. "Am I about to welcome spring (find love)?!"

Teacher Diao's eyes spun like pinwheels from the shaking. "Get a grip... That flower already has a gardener!"

Yan Jiu: So what? It's just poaching—I've had plenty of practice.

Shen "The Wall" Hui: Are you sure you've succeeded in digging me out? Yan Jiu: ?!!