Yun Xunlan’s question tonight, “Would you like to smell my pheromones?” was the most direct hint.
After all, if such a phrase were used between an alpha and an omega, it would be blatant flirtation and teasing. Even between two alphas, it’s far from innocent.
Moreover, Yu Chen had tested Yun Xunlan—he had suppressed and invaded Yun Xunlan’s space with an attitude that could be considered insubordinate, yet Yun Xunlan didn’t get angry. When he asked Yun Xunlan for his pheromones, Yun Xunlan actually fulfilled his request, giving him a rose that smelled almost identical to his own pheromones.
Putting himself in that position, if another alpha dared to treat him like that, Yu Chen would twist off that alpha’s head. Just like that pervert he met on the star network called “Novice Fish Keeper”—even grinding their bones to dust wouldn’t be enough.
So Yu Chen believed his judgment was very accurate: Yun Xunlan was flirting with him.
And his flirting technique was extremely sophisticated.
Fu Yanxi, Gui Yan, and the others—it wasn’t at all unfair that they fell for him.
Who could resist a rose personally picked for you by Yun Xunlan, bending down to do so?
Even he couldn’t.
However, all he could do was accept the rose, not respond to Yun Xunlan, and when necessary, he would have to coldly reject the prince’s advances.
Because he had more important things to accomplish, and had long prepared himself for a lifetime without love or marriage, dying alone.
Although he might be able to gain a chance to activate the SSS mech by becoming Yun Xunlan’s bedmate and whispering sweet nothings, Yu Chen might lack manners, but he wasn’t heartless. He couldn’t bring himself to deceive and play with someone’s feelings to achieve his goals.
He thought to himself: It seems he’ll have to act colder towards Yun Xunlan in the future, always mindful of his words and actions, never making any inappropriate moves that might cause the prince to fall too deeply into this doomed affection.
But if he acts too cold, how will he gain Yun Xunlan’s favor and earn the prince’s trust?
Yu Chen felt that finding this balance was incredibly difficult, even harder than getting a perfect score on “War Psychology.” He couldn’t figure it out.
So, for the first time ever, Yu Chen couldn’t sleep.
At the same time, Yun Xunlan, in his bedchamber, was also unable to sleep.
He tossed and turned in bed for an hour, unable to fall asleep. Finally, he couldn’t resist throwing off the covers, hastily putting on his shoes, and heading towards the North Imperial Palace laboratory.
On the way, he kept muttering, “I don’t understand… why wouldn’t it be the same?”
The system helplessly replied, “You’re still hung up on this?”
“It’s hard not to be,” Yun Xunlan said. “According to the scent analysis data, the Type I fragrance used in Elysian’s ice cream has a 99.99% similarity to my pheromone scent. The human olfactory system shouldn’t be able to distinguish that last 0.01% difference.”
The system said: “What if Yu Chen’s olfactory system is especially developed and can distinguish the difference?”
“Then his evaluation shouldn’t have been ‘not like’—99.99% is still similar,” Yun Xunlan frowned while swirling a test tube containing Type I fragrance. “And for the rose he later said was ‘like’ my pheromones, the lychee rose’s floral scent actually has only 99% similarity to my pheromones, almost 1% lower than the Type I fragrance.”
The system couldn’t explain this: “Uh…”
“Perhaps purification alone isn’t enough.”
Standing at the workstation, Yun Xunlan thought for a moment and said: “The diffusion of scent molecules is affected by temperature, and smell interacts with taste… I should have them adjust the formula to consider all these factors.”
The system advised him: “Adjusting the formula is fine, but unnecessary. Because even with adjustments, the room for improvement is limited—as you said, the human olfactory system can’t distinguish that final 0.01% difference.”
Yun Xunlan shook his head: “It’s necessary. We owe it to our consumers.”
“Listen to me—rather than adjusting the formula, why not add variety?” the system suggested. “We could launch various flavors of special waffle cones: watermelon, strawberry, mint, sea salt… letting consumers choose freely according to their preferences. They might like that better.”
Yun Xunlan had an instant revelation: “Little Hermit, that’s brilliant of you.”
The system boasted proudly: “Let’s sell it this way this year. Next year when we raise the price to nineteen star credits, we’ll introduce these special flavored cones. For those who only like the original cone, we can sprinkle some gold and silver flakes inside—those who know, know. No need to say more.”
“Good,” Yun Xunlan felt reassured. “Let’s go back to sleep.”
But the system said: “Don’t sleep yet. Let’s review the progress of your friendship with Yu Chen tonight.”
Yun Xunlan said: “I think it went quite well.”
He pointed to his ear cartilage, where the blue gemstone communicator that Yu Chen had once worn was now placed, and said: “In ancient times, people drank animal blood to form alliances. Although Yu Chen and I haven’t shared blood wine, we’re now brothers who have bled together.”
“My mech is also named after half of his name.”
“This sincerity can be witnessed by the sun and moon, and attested to by heaven and earth,” Yun Xunlan declared. “Once he feels this, he will surely reciprocate with his heart.”
Hearing Yun Xunlan say this, the system simulated the sound of applause and praised him: “Not bad! You don’t even need my guidance anymore. Where did you learn all these techniques, one after another?”
“‘Interstellar Journey: The Supreme New Emperor.'”
As he spoke, Yun Xunlan opened his light brain and showed the system a book from the “Touching Brotherhood” collection in his reading app: “I’m just following the brotherly relationship described by the author in this book. It’s clearly very effective.”
The book had just updated to the scene where the protagonist, piloting his mech like a savior descending from the heavens, shields his good brother and shouts at the villain with bloodshot eyes, “If you dare break my brother’s wings, I will destroy your entire fleet!”
The reading section also featured a pinned comment from a reader: [I’m crying! The friendship between the protagonist and his brother makes me cry every time I read it. Love may let you down, but friendship won’t. Everyone must read this book!]
Seeing Yun Xunlan’s dedication, the system felt proud, as if watching a child about to become a dragon or phoenix. It earnestly advised Yun Xunlan not to become arrogant: “Pride leads to defeat. You must continue to study the wisdom in the book diligently and not become complacent. Your relationship with Yu Chen isn’t deep enough yet. Look, he hasn’t smiled at you even once so far.”
“Yu Chen’s naturally cold face has that ‘the young master hasn’t smiled in ten years’ novel vibe. Even when he called your name tonight, he sounded fierce. He probably only shows his smile to those he trusts most. So when he genuinely smiles at you from the bottom of his heart, that’s when you can consider yourself successful in becoming his best friend and brother.”
Yun Xunlan humbly accepted the advice: “I’ll work hard on it.”
“However, some people don’t smile simply because it’s not in their nature,” Yun Xunlan then shared his own insight. “If I could make Yu Chen’s eyes turn bloodshot for me, like the protagonist and his brother in the book, wouldn’t that also count as success?”
The system said: “Of course it would. You should strive towards these two goals.”
Yun Xunlan thought: In “Interstellar Journey: The Supreme New Emperor,” the protagonist’s eyes turned bloodshot for his brother because he saw him severely injured and almost killed by the villain. In a moment of urgency, his true feelings were revealed. But with an entire royal guard protecting him, Yun Xunlan was unlikely to face such a “severely injured and almost killed” situation.
Moreover, if such a situation did occur, it would mean the royal guard had failed in their duty. As one of the guards, Yu Chen would certainly be held responsible. Therefore, Yun Xunlan decided not to pursue this path for now and instead focus on trying to make Yu Chen smile at him.
However, the next day at the training ground, Yun Xunlan saw Yu Chen wearing a bite inhibitor and realized he had entered his susceptibility period.
The Galactic Empire didn’t prohibit alphas in susceptibility periods from going out, but they were required to wear bite inhibitors in public. This effectively notified others to keep their distance and prevented alphas from randomly marking others during this time.
Yu Chen was currently in his susceptibility period. Theoretically, he could have taken leave to stay in the dormitory. However, for S-class and above high-level alphas—especially those like them who had graduated from military academies, undergone rigorous training, and had years of combat experience—being unable to control their emotional state during susceptibility periods and needing to take leave was considered shameful. So no matter how difficult the susceptibility period was, no alpha would take leave for it.
Yun Xunlan sighed: “He definitely won’t be able to smile during his susceptibility period.”
He stepped back, choosing a position farther from Yu Chen, and said to the system: “Other alphas being too close to him during his susceptibility period would make him uncomfortable. Let’s wait until his susceptibility period ends.”
As a high-level alpha himself, Yun Xunlan understood the discomfort of susceptibility periods well. He felt that keeping his distance from Yu Chen was the best choice at this time. So after completing his daily system tasks, Yun Xunlan cast a distant glance at the black-haired alpha’s deep, pure sea-blue eyes before turning to leave, and continued to do so for the next two days.
On the third day, Yun Xunguang came to the North Imperial Palace to give him good news: “You can return to the Seventh Experimental Base now.”
Until the third day, Yun Xunguang came to the North Imperial Palace to tell him some good news: “You can return to the Seventh Experimental Base now.”
At that time, Yun Xunlan was organizing experimental data in the study. Upon hearing this, he looked up from his desk and asked: “Has the guard’s anti-pressure reinforcement training ended?”
“No, but they’ve met the basic requirements—they can withstand your pressure and move normally, and can give you an injection if your pheromones go out of control,” Yun Xunguang picked up a few scattered draft papers from the floor and put them back on the desk. “They’ll continue to receive training afterwards.”
“Good.” Yun Xunlan started packing up his manuscripts without further ado, looking as if he was ready to leave the North Imperial Palace for the Seventh Experimental Base immediately.
However, halfway through packing, he suddenly stopped, pausing for a few seconds before speaking to Yun Xunguang: “By the way, Royal Sister, Father Emperor has given me Crescent Moon Peninsula as a birthday gift. From now on, I won’t be staying in the base dormitory on workdays. I’ll go live at Crescent Moon Peninsula and return to the North Imperial Palace on weekends.”
Yun Xunguang, who always emphasized that “the palace is the safest,” didn’t object. Instead, she said: “That’s fine. Crescent Moon Peninsula has nice scenery and it’s close to the Seventh Experimental Base. You can relax there, just make sure the guards don’t leave your side. Remember, as long as you’re not in a place I consider absolutely safe, even if you’re doing…”
Yun Xunlan pinched the bridge of his nose, interrupting Yun Xunguang: “I know, I know. I’ll have them accompany me even when I sleep, okay?”
Yun Xunguang made an intrigued “Oh” sound: “You’d better.”
Yun Xunlan said: “I definitely will.”
This wasn’t just talk—Yun Xunlan indeed had this intention. He planned to have Yu Chen sleep in the same bed, feet touching.
How could deep friendships between male friends lack this activity?
In “Interstellar Journey: The Supreme New Emperor,” the protagonist often slept with his good brother in the wild during their battles, having heart-to-heart talks. Their friendship gradually deepened during these “wild sleep night talks,” eventually becoming brothers of life and death.
While he and Yu Chen obviously couldn’t sleep in the wild, they could still sleep together.
If he could lie in bed with Yu Chen, opening their hearts and talking through the night a few times, their friendship would surely deepen day by day. So Yun Xunlan planned to find an opportunity to do this once Yu Chen’s susceptibility period ended.
Right now, the most urgent matter was to return to the Seventh Experimental Base first.
Yun Xunlan had been working at the Seventh Experimental Base since graduation. All his daily necessities were in the base dormitory, and if anything was missing, the first attendant Ni Chun would arrange everything for him. Yun Xunlan only needed to bring his recently carefully “raised” tea pet, Little Blue Fish.
But for the alpha guards, things weren’t so simple.
After escorting Yun Xunlan into the top-secret experimental area where no one except researchers were allowed without permission, Ni Chun gathered all the guards and explained their “onboarding” notes face-to-face: “His Highness’s life is very regular. Every Monday, I will send everyone His Highness’s schedule for the coming week. If there are any changes midway, I will notify everyone the night before.”
As he spoke, Ni Chun took out ten briefcases, opened them, and distributed them to all the guards and Commander Dike.
The group opened the briefcases to find three white tube injections and a silver handgun inside.
Ni Chun pointed to the three white tube injections on top and said: “This is the M20 type high-concentration potent painkiller. During your duty, everyone must carry three of these. If His Highness suffers severe external injuries, please inject him with M20 immediately. His Highness is allergic to other painkillers, so using any other painkiller is strictly prohibited.”
Most of the alpha soldiers present had heard of the M20 painkiller. It was the famous “chicken rib painkiller.”
When it was first developed, it became renowned for its excellent analgesic effect that worked instantly, had no addictive properties, no respiratory depression, and was effective against chronic pain, acute sharp pain, and neuropathic pain.
Unfortunately, its high hepatotoxicity made it difficult for the body to metabolize. Once injected, it would cause irreversible liver damage and could lead to pheromone imbalance, causing alphas and omegas to immediately enter prolonged susceptibility or heat periods. Even betas could experience pseudo “susceptibility” or “heat” symptoms. Therefore, it was never widely used and was strictly controlled by the state to prevent misuse as an aphrodisiac.
As for the silver handgun below the M20 painkillers, the guards were even more familiar with it—it was the Alpha Pheromone Riot Suppression Gun.
As the name suggests, it was a weapon used to suppress alpha pheromone outbursts. Instead of bullets, it contained alpha pheromone pressure reduction injections.
An alpha hit by this would rapidly lose their pheromone pressure level, unable to exert pressure effects on other alphas or omegas, and would be weakened for three minutes, making it easy for police to control their actions.
However, the suppression gun provided by Ni Chun was different from the ordinary ones used by the police. Ni Chun explained: “The drug bullets in this suppression gun are specially made. They only reduce the pressure level without affecting the alpha’s movement. Each gun contains 20 bullets.”
Hearing this, Yu Chen’s eyelashes flickered, and he looked up at Ni Chun, listening as he continued: “If His Highness’s pheromones go out of control, you can only use this gun to suppress his pheromone outburst. Using any other suppression gun is strictly forbidden.”
“There’s no limit to the number of shots. Fire until you can completely ignore His Highness’s pressure and move freely.”
“There’s nothing else to note for now,” Ni Chun softened his voice. “Whether here, in the North Imperial Palace, or elsewhere, you don’t need to be too formal. Just treat His Highness as a friend. This is also His Highness’s wish.”
Although Ni Chun said this, from Yu Chen’s observation, he felt that probably everyone except himself was prepared to worship Yun Xunlan like a god.
During lunch break in the cafeteria, Song Tingxiao patted his brother Song Tingyan’s shoulder and said: “God, being a guard for the Third Prince is so awesome! Brother, it’s good we were both selected, otherwise I’d be so jealous of you that we couldn’t be brothers anymore.”
Song Tingyan replied: “What a coincidence, I thought the same.”
Putting everything else aside, just considering being Yun Xunlan’s guard, Yu Chen also felt it was quite nice.
To sum it up in seven words: high pay, low work, good benefits.
The high pay was self-evident. From their current schedule, Yun Xunlan’s life was indeed very regular. On weekdays, he stayed in the Seventh Experimental Base from 9 to 5, and on weekends, he returned to the North Imperial Palace or Crescent Moon Peninsula. He rarely traveled or went out for entertainment, and had almost no social activities. This fixed, unchanging schedule and narrow, simple social circle meant the guards had a light workload. The good benefits were most directly reflected in their extremely luxurious meals.
The cafeteria at the Seventh Experimental Base offered twelve dish options for all employees to choose from at every meal, every day. Fruits and various desserts were available unlimited and around the clock. The Carved Lake Lobster, which cost a thousand star credits each outside, could be eaten here as much as one wanted. If you didn’t like today’s menu, you could inform the chef in advance to prepare a different meal for you. Any dietary restrictions or preferences for lighter or heavier flavors could also be accommodated, with the chef adjusting according to your needs.
When Gui Yan stepped into the cafeteria, he thought they had come to attend a party.
Even Fu Yanxi, from a wealthy family, said: “My dad is frugal by nature and doesn’t allow extravagance at home. I’ve never eaten this well even during New Year’s at home.”
Among all the guards, only Yu Chen didn’t take any delicacies, just grabbing a concentrated nutrient solution. He sat alone away from his colleagues, slowly sipping through a straw.
This wasn’t because he was still in his susceptibility period and couldn’t remove his bite inhibitor.
The base cafeteria had special compartments for alphas in susceptibility periods to eat without their bite inhibitors. Yu Chen could have gone there to eat if he wanted, but he simply had no appetite.
The dizziness from the side effects of the third-generation alpha susceptibility period suppressant had subsided, but the nausea remained. At this moment, even the most delicious dishes couldn’t arouse Yu Chen’s appetite; they only made him want to vomit more. He was even struggling to drink the nutrient solution.
This was also why most alphas in their susceptibility periods were willing to wear bite inhibitors but refused to take suppressants. After all, drinking even water made them want to vomit throughout the entire susceptibility period after taking the suppressant.
In comparison, feeling irritable, having a stronger possessiveness towards one’s omega, or an increased libido was nothing. It wasn’t a big deal at all.
In the past, Yu Chen wouldn’t take suppressants during his susceptibility periods unless he was on a mission.
As for this susceptibility period… it was an exception.
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