Chapter 54: The Fated One?

Chapter 54: The Fated One?

The pinkish-white mist, dense and tangible, swirled among the stone formations of varying sizes.

Visibility inside was nearly zero.

If one got close enough, the faint sounds of ragged breathing and the sharp smack of flesh hitting flesh could be heard.

Qin Zheng's stone formation was at the edge of the mist. Compared to the central area where Jiang Yi was, the mist was thinnest here.

He leaned against a large boulder and sat down, staring blankly ahead. Vites stood on his lap, looking at him with concern and chirping, trying to snap his master out of it.

Qin Zheng shifted his gaze to the little one before him. His vision blurred, and for a moment he saw his late wife.

He reached out to touch Vites's face, as if his wife were still by his side.

He said to his "wife," "Be quiet."

The moment it made a sound, it no longer resembled her.

"Ah?" Vites tilted its head, regarding Qin Zheng with a puzzled look.

After confirming that his master was just weak and hadn't suffered any real harm, he obediently closed his mouth, allowing his master to look at him with an expression he couldn't decipher.

Qiu Xing jumped into the stone formation where Jia Zheyu was, intending to pull Jia Zheyu and Lei Li apart.

In fact, he succeeded.

His power level was significantly higher than Lei Li's, so he easily threw Lei Li, who offered no resistance, into another stone formation.

But Qiu Xing forgot—while his consciousness wasn't controlled, he was still affected by the lust-inducing pollen!

He didn't have time to hold his breath before Qiu Xing felt a spark of heat kindle in his lower abdomen. The fire grew stronger, creeping throughout his entire body.

Damn!

He'd actually been caught by it.

Qiu Xing clutched at his chest and tried to walk out, but the searing heat wracking his body made it hard to breathe. His throat felt parched, and he couldn't help but take deep breaths.

More pollen entered his body.

Just then, a soft body leaned into him, murmuring incoherently, "Sis, don't go..."

Qiu Xing turned to look—it was Jia Zheyu.

Qiu Xing tried to break free with force, but he hadn't expected Jia Zheyu to be quite strong once he locked onto a target. Qiu Xing found himself momentarily unable to break free.

"Senior..."

Qiu Xing frowned. Senior? Was the person Jia Zheyu liked his senior?

This kid, wanting to try an older woman-younger man relationship.

But based on his investigation of Jia Zheyu, the guy probably hadn't been in a relationship yet. It was likely an unrequited crush.

"Let go! I'm not your senior!"

Just as Qiu Xing was worrying about how to slip away, another tall figure barged into their stone formation.

Ji Ming’s ability was linked to hearing. After the aphrodisiac pollen took effect, the earlier mind control over him weakened, and he could hear Jia Zheyu’s voice nearby.

No—there were other sounds too!

Leaning on a rock, Ji Ming staggered as he ran forward.

The aphrodisiac pollen causes people to hallucinate the person they’re attracted to—but if that person is already present, the pollen’s illusory effect becomes unnecessary.

Seeing Jia Zheyu holding someone else, Ji Ming’s mind momentarily broke free from the burning desire, clearing just enough for him to recognize Qiu Xing’s face.

“What are you doing here?!”

As a human Esper requiring strict supervision, Qiu Xing should have been confined to the containment facility.

Realizing he’d been discovered, Qiu Xing cursed under his breath.

He never should have come down; with Ji Ming here, that kid Jia Zheyu probably wouldn’t be reckless enough to do anything with Lei Li.

“Was this all part of your plan? What exactly are you trying to do?!” Ji Ming shouted, lunging forward and throwing a punch at Qiu Xing’s face.

Qiu Xing tilted his head to dodge, intending to counter with his ability—but found the damn pollen mist suppressed abilities.

Dazed, Jia Zheyu felt his actions constantly interrupted and slipped from his control as he stared at the two men before him.

He remained deeply affected by the aphrodisiac pollen’s illusion.

One was the senior he’d had a crush on in school—and the other was…

So familiar…

Jia Zheyu blinked hard, his gaze finally focusing on Ji Ming’s face.

Strangely, Ji Ming also transformed in his mind into the image of that senior.

Wait—why were there *two* seniors?

“Little fatty, are you okay?!” Ji Ming yelled toward Jia Zheyu while grappling with Qiu Xing.

Hearing that detested nickname, the face of the second senior instantly vanished from Jia Zheyu’s vision—replaced by Ji Ming’s.

He knew he disliked Ji Ming, yet his feet moved closer involuntarily.

What terrified him even more was that the senior he’d initially embraced also shifted into Ji Ming’s likeness.

Now, in his eyes, two Ji Mings inexplicably fought each other.

“Stop fighting—you’re both insane…”

Jia Zheyu clutched his head, burning with unbearable heat, desperate to find someone to relieve him.

He slammed his fist hard against his temple—the sharp pain finally breaking the mind control.

Once the mind control lifted, he vaguely realized he’d been drugged.

That explained why he’d seen the person before him as the senior he secretly admired—and even dared to embrace them.

But what was happening with Ji Ming now?!

Could it be that he actually liked Ji Ming, too?

No way!

I'm straight, dammit!

Jia Zheyu had a splitting headache as he watched the two Ji Mings tussling in front of him. He rolled up his sleeves and joined the fray.

Just as well. He was burning up all over with pent-up energy. A good fight was just what he needed.

By early the next morning, the pinkish-white mist had completely dissipated.

The people in the stone array came to their senses, leaning weakly against the rocks as they silently recovered their strength.

Some were exhausted from fighting all night, while others were worn out from having sex all night.

Iddis returned to his vantage point. Since transforming into a variant, he had nearly lost his vision.

But his powerful psychic energy allowed him to sense the state of everyone in the stone array.

He "saw" Jiang Yi and Ke Lin clinging to each other as they rested, while the black-haired girl he had handpicked lay unconscious alone in the stone array originally meant for Jiang Yi.

Another stone array was even more absurd—Jia Zheyu, Ji Ming, and Qiu Xing were tied together with several climbing ropes, unable to break free. They struggled against each other while cursing one another.

For the first time, Iddis felt such intense anger.

"Qiu Xing! What is going on!"

A grating, gravelly voice echoed from above the group.

Qiu Xing stopped struggling and cursed under his breath. "Stop shouting. Get me out of here first."

In his mind, even though he was in a somewhat sorry state, Jiang Yi had already been with that girl, and it hadn't affected Iddis's plan. Why all the yelling?

Though Iddis couldn't see, his mental perception was acute. The girl hadn't even taken off her clothes—she had simply passed out from the feverish heat.

"Come out here and see for yourself!" Iddis roared.

Iddis made no move to help Qiu Xing break free. Now that the effects of the aphrodisiac pollen had worn off, Qiu Xing could use his abilities.

The climbing ropes had been taken from someone's gear bag during their fight the previous night. Originally meant to tie someone up, they had ended up entangled around the three of them in the chaos.

Now that his abilities were restored, Qiu Xing released his energy, transforming it into blades that sliced through the climbing ropes.

Seeing this, Ji Ming immediately broke free and pulled Jia Zheyu behind him.

Jia Zheyu had now realized that the other "Ji Ming" was actually Qiu Xing—their enemy. He obediently hid behind Ji Ming, watching Qiu Xing warily.

Qiu Xing gave him an exasperated look. If it weren't for trying to save him, he wouldn't have descended and gotten a pointless dose of the aphrodisiac pollen.

Being affected by something like that without timely release could cause serious harm to the body!

If it happened too often, it might even lead to lifelong impotence.

Though he had only been affected once, he should probably get checked out one of these days.

With these thoughts, Qiu Xing leaped lightly out of the stone formation and landed beside Iddis.

The people in the stone array had already straightened their clothes and were now looking up at them.

Qiu Xing glanced at the situation below and said in surprise, "Jiang Yi, you didn't hook up with your fated partner?"

As he spoke, Qiu Xing tsk-tsked and shook his head, "Too bad. She was a total knockout, with a killer body and face."

Hearing this, Ke Lin looked at Jiang Yi in confusion.

What beauty?

Jiang Yi smiled bitterly; he couldn't explain his experience at the moment.

He was well aware that he had no connection with this girl—they had never met before. As for the idea of a "fated partner," it was complete bull.

His true fated partner had appeared when he first crossed over—the werewolf he had encountered at the secondhand market, the one he had spent his entire fortune on after just one glance.

"This is your idea of keeping watch?" Iddis glared angrily at Qiu Xing.

Qiu Xing immediately stepped away from him, sticking a finger in his ear. "Director, keep your voice down. You sound awful. Even if I had been staring the whole time, what could I have done? Once Jiang Yi regained his senses, he went for the hot werewolf instead of the girl. Was I supposed to make them do it?"

The people in the stone forest, not yet understanding the situation, stayed put and didn't make a move, carefully observing the two figures above the stone forest.

To be precise, one was a high-level mutant, and the other was a high-level human Esper.

Hearing Qiu Xing address the mutant as "Director," Jiang Yi narrowed his eyes in recollection.

Countless images in his mind formed a complete chain of clues.

"Iddis? You had an escape plan all along, using the pretext of removing my Psychic Ability suppression collar to break free, didn't you?"

Jiang Yi stared at the tall mutant not far away.

He hadn't expected Iddis's psychic power to be so formidable that he could separate his spiritual body from his physical form.

Fortunately, he could only possess low-level creatures like mutants, which lacked brains. If he could possess humans, wouldn't he be able to achieve infinite rebirth?

"You're right. Unfortunately, my plan wasn't entirely successful, Jiang Yi. That girl was the fated partner I found for you. A child born from your combined genes would undoubtedly be an S-level psychic Esper."

The mutant's voice was truly grating. Jiang Yi only managed to grasp Iddis's meaning after his ears stopped ringing.

He scoffed, "You can't even manage all your sons, and you're already planning for your grandchildren?"

"If you won't obey, I naturally need new, obedient descendants," Iddis replied.

Jiang Yi glanced at Qiu Xing, who was covering his ears and standing disdainfully to the side.

"Don't you still have one son who sticks by you?"

Jiang Yi's implication was too obvious. Almost instantly, everyone understood that Qiu Xing, the strongest S-level warrior of the Federal Research Institute, was also Director Iddis's son.

"Hey, what nonsense are you spouting? I'm not his son!" Qiu Xing was quick to deny.

"I didn't say it was you," Jiang Yi retorted.

Qiu Xing was frantic, "What's the difference between that and saying it outright? I'm the only one left by this old man's side."

Hearing this, Iddis fell into a rare silence.

Qiu Xing was a child he had brought back from an orphanage in the capital. Back then, little Qiu Xing hadn't shown any exceptional talent and was even bullied in the orphanage.

But when several older children pinned him to the ground and beat him, he didn't cry or scream in pain. Instead, he glared fiercely, as if memorizing each of their faces to exact revenge in the future.

At that time, Iddis thought this child was ideal to raise as the research institute's watchdog.

Later, it was proven that although Qiu Xing had an eccentric personality, he was exceptionally powerful and unwaveringly loyal.

Such a person, such an encounter—how could he be my child?

Although Jiang Yi wouldn't listen to him, there were times when he trusted Jiang Yi as he trusted himself.

"You really are..." Iddis's pitch-black eyes turned toward Qiu Xing.

Iddis stood quietly. He had used his own sperm to father nine batches of children, with eight to ten kids per batch.

He had handpicked all their mothers, compatible with his Psychic Abilities, likely to bear high-level Psychic users.

These children were raised by various branch institutes, and their development was regularly reported.

Once the last batch all came of age, and still no heir that Iddis desired had appeared, he stopped inquiring about these children.

It turned out that over the years, due to his neglect, many children had ended up lost in the outside world.

Jiang Yi was one.

Qiu Xing was another.

Back when Qiu Xing had risen to a certain position in the research institute, he had secretly searched for his biological parents.

In the end, he was shocked to discover his original name was a code: Y0703QJJ.

This meant he was the third child in the seventh batch of experimental children, with the mother's initials being QJJ.

And who the sperm source for the institute's experimental children was went without saying.

"How did you know?" Iddis asked Jiang Yi.

"Because I was truly curious—why would Qiu Xing still be willing to stay by your side, given your utter disregard for human life and twisted psyche?" Jiang Yi had once sensed Qiu Xing's inner thoughts when his psychic abilities were suppressed.

The result surprised him but was also within expectations.

Iddis fell silent. For the first time in all these years, he doubted whether all his previous actions had been correct.

"Iddis, it's impossible for me to have a child with the girl you selected. Your plan has failed. Hand over the other two girls," Jiang Yi said.

Iddis acted as if he hadn't heard, his stone-like mouthparts opening and closing, emitting a piercing sound, but the volume was so low it was unclear what he was saying.

Jiang Yi activated his Telepathy ability. Surprisingly, Iddis did not resist his psychic power.

Jiang Yi clearly heard Iddis's inner thoughts: "Enough, enough... I've already done my best..."

Author's Note:

Everyone, I've revised the last two chapters. I almost messed up the plot and mismatched couples—did anyone notice something off?