“Mhm. This is for you.”
Mu Yunshan was momentarily stunned.
A suppression patch lay in the palm of his hand.
Although it was not specifically designed for Omegas, it was more than enough to handle the current situation.
“Thank you…”
“Mhm.”
Before his voice had even faded, his benefactor turned and walked away.
Mu Yunshan glanced up at the other person’s neck and saw the exact same suppression patch there.
His benefactor was also in heat…
This suppression patch hadn’t been premeditated, and he felt a wave of shame for his earlier suspicions.
Mu Yunshan’s heart burned hot, and his face flushed red.
Right now, he felt that a simple “thank you” wasn’t enough to express his gratitude; he even felt the urge to offer himself to repay the debt!
He hurriedly chased out the door, but the figure outside was already gone.
That young and handsome Alpha had come and gone in a rush without even leaving his name!
He really was just a kind-hearted stranger passing by.
Mu Yunshan stood in place, feeling lost, and a moment too late, applied the suppression patch to the back of his neck.
The heat gradually subsided, and his rationality slowly returned.
[The last fifteen minutes! The exam is about to end, please take note, contestants.]
The loudspeaker blared. Mu Yunshan let out a breath, looking somewhat dazed.
Should he give up, or keep going?
If he gave up, would he ever see his benefactor again?
“Hello, do you need help?”
A gentle male voice reached his ears. Mu Yunshan took two steps back and cast a wary look in that direction.
“We mean no harm. You might need a suppressant.”
The one speaking was Su Wenshan.
Suppressants were items without offensive capability, so they hadn’t been confiscated.
As it happened, Su Wenshan had one on him.
“No need.”
Mu Yunshan’s rejection was extremely obvious.
Su Wenshan sighed internally as well.
They were supposed to arrive in time, but who would have known they would run into a group of people in retreat along the way.
After taking cover, they lost track of the young master, and only came over to check when they caught the scent of an Omega in the air.
The young master turned out to be an Omega.
He certainly had a lot of nerve.
Mu Yunshan had completely calmed down by now, and after a brief conversation, officially allied himself with the two of them.
Su Wenshan’s intention was to make friends and help each other out.
However, Mu Yunshan tossed them a nameplate, treating it strictly as a cash-and-carry transaction.
Su Wenshan had no objections, merely sighing a couple more times in his heart.
The young master truly didn’t trust them and disappeared from sight the moment the selection ended.
Su Wenshan wasn’t overly disappointed; after all, he had just been trying his luck.
He gripped the nameplate tightly in his palm, a brief and excited smile crossing his face.
He had succeeded. He was going to be a trainee soldier.
“Brother Wenshan, look,” the Beta said, holding up the nameplate in his hand.
After advancing, the blank nameplate had been engraved with a name.
This nameplate would serve as their proof of identity until death.
“That’s great.” Su Wenshan smiled.
He finally saw hope for that matter.
[That’s wonderful!]
The system was similarly overjoyed, [Host, you saved Mu Yuanshan! With this favor, he probably won’t do anything too excessive anymore!]
“He is Mu Yuanshan?”
That person was clearly an Omega. Was the system mentally handicapped?
[Wasn’t the host going to help because he knew Mu Yuanshan was being bullied? With a lifesaving grace, you are his benefactor now.]
Shi Xu gave two perfunctory hums. The system was thinking far too simply.
Mu Yuanshan was not that kind of person.
That person wasn’t Mu Yuanshan.
[How would the host know Mu Yuanshan was being bullied?]
“The person you had me locate.”
[Sun Haolong, what about him?]
Shi Xu patiently explained to this mentally challenged system, “In the original book, this person became a trainee soldier, but somehow offended Mu Yuanshan. Not only was he turned into a human mon-ke-i, locked in the basement, but his family also made a grave mistake and was driven out of the base. Not long after, a pollutant attacked the outer perimeter of the base, and his family unfortunately became casualties.”
[There’s such a thing?!]
“Mhm. This incident was used by Su Wenshan to blackmail Pei Wu into submission. It’s a classic case among the crushed ants.”
That was why he wanted to come and see what happened during the selection.
Who would have thought he would blunder into saving an Omega.
That person wasn’t Mu Yuanshan, but he had a tremendous connection to Mu Yuanshan.
The selection ceremony ended, and only a little over a thousand people successfully advanced.
The vast majority of people were screened out at this stage.
Shi Xu also harvested a rich bounty, finding seven or eight nameplates relying merely on the sparse hints from the original book.
Coupled with those who tried to rob him but ended up being robbed instead, fighting and moving along, by the time he reached that Omega’s side, he already had over fifty nameplates in his possession.
An extremely impressive quantity!
Subtracting the one for advancement, he had a full fifty-three nameplates that could be exchanged for points.
Shi Xu did not hesitate and traded all the remaining nameplates for points.
One nameplate was worth ten points.
Do not underestimate these ten points.
Take Pei Wu’s family home, for instance; the rent for the entire year was only worth ten points.
But no one would treat points as mere money, because that was far too extravagant.
After all, points could be exchanged for money, but money could never buy points.
In the blink of an eye, Shi Xu’s account had five hundred and thirty points, resulting in a bountiful harvest.
Trainee soldiers who obtained their ID tags were given three days of rest, after which they were to report to the training area.
Trainee soldiers from the four military districts would undergo a one-year training life together.
Afterward, everyone would go their separate ways toward their own futures.
Carrying a sweet bread roll, Shi Xu boarded the bus home.
As soon as he sat down, someone appeared beside him, shouting, “Pei Wu!”
That cheerful voice belonged to the Beta, who asked, “Did you participate in the selection too? Did you pass as well?”
“Mhm.”
Pei Wu remained as aloof and cold as ever, neither overly enthusiastic nor intentionally distant.
Su Wenshan sat in the row in front of the two of them and smiled, saying, “That’s wonderful. I didn’t see you at all during the selection, and I was getting a bit worried.”
Pei Wu replied, “I was delayed on the way, so I went in late.”
“No wonder,” the Beta let out a long sigh of relief. “The selection was really too hard, and I almost got eliminated. My legs felt like they were going to break running all morning, and before I even had time to rest, I had to start running for my life again. It was terrifying!”
Pei Wu stated, “The faster you run, the higher your chances of survival. Pollutants will never give you time to rest.”
The Beta scratched the back of his head and chuckled foolishly, “That’s true.”
“This selection was all thanks to Brother Wenshan. If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t have made it to the end. It’s really great to become a trainee soldier.”
“Ah, this way my family will have residency rights in the base. It’s just a pity I didn’t get more nameplates; if I had, we could have moved in within a few days. Those are all money…”
Pei Wu remained silent.
Perhaps frightened out of his wits, now that he was in a safe place, the Beta’s floodgates of chatter couldn’t be shut.
Even if no one replied, he could keep talking to himself.
Shi Xu’s gaze drifted out the window, watching the streetscape rapidly recede.
That white-noise-like voice made one feel somewhat drowsy.
“Alright, stop talking,” Su Wenshan reminded gently, “Everyone is tired. Let Pei Wu get some good rest.”
“Sorry about that,” the Beta apologized, scratching his head and tightly clutching the nameplate in his palm. “It feels just like a dream…”
“What will training be like? I heard we can take on missions to the ruined cities right in the middle of training. What do those ruined cities look like? Are pollutants easy to kill? The points for pollutants are so high, hey, if I work hard enough, will I be able to afford a house inside the base? I won’t hope for the center of the base, the outer perimeter will do!”
“Just thinking about it makes me so happy. The future, ah…”
“What will the future look like?”
Having said that, the Beta closed his eyes in exhaustion.
He was worn out.
Everyone was worn out.
Su Wenshan softly said, “Yeah, what will the future look like?”
Pei Wu replied, “We’ll find out in the future.”
“That’s right,” Su Wenshan narrowed his eyes to hide his probing gaze, and then turned back around.
It quieted down.
Inside the bus, there was only the sound of everyone’s tired and heavy breathing.
After a two-hour bus ride, Shi Xu closed his eyes for a short nap.
He knew the future.
The future the Beta was longing for with all his heart wasn’t as good as he imagined.
Trainee soldiers were divided into hierarchies; Alphas were at the top, while Betas were at the bottom.
If you asked about ordinary people:
Their status was higher than that of Betas.
Ordinary people who managed to become trainee soldiers weren’t too badly off, and as long as they accumulated enough points, they could obtain Alpha catalysts.
They had a future that Betas lacked.
In the original book, Betas were often marginalized during training, something instructors were completely accustomed to.
Very few teams were willing to accept a Beta.
Most Betas, failing to successfully form a team, instead turned to become logistics personnel.
There was no future for Betas among the trainee soldiers.
Nor was there a future for Omegas.
The bus stopped at the outer perimeter of the base, and everyone got off.
Guan Beita waved goodbye to the two of them and walked toward the shuttle bus, because he lived outside the base, following a different route from theirs.
On the way back, Su Wenshan opened up the topic again, “Great, we can participate in training together. I wonder what our luck will be like, and if we could become roommates, that would be great.”
Pei Wu nodded, and a trace of a smile finally appeared on his face.
He had always been cold by nature, rarely showing expression on his face.
But Su Wenshan knew he was just not good with words.
“What thing tied you up today?” Or did he intentionally shake him off?
Before Pei Wu could speak, the two of them saw Pei Guang standing at the entrance of the alley.
“What’s going on here?”
Pei Guang hadn’t noticed the two of them yet, shouting angrily at the people inside the alley.
His clothes were dirty and tattered.
The well-behaved child from the morning’s farewell had now bared his fierce fangs, resembling a small beast driven into a desperate corner.
His hands were tightly clenched into fists, and his thin spine was trembling slightly.
“Crybaby! Three-fingered thief!”
“Drag-along bottle, clatter-clatter!”
“Your brother left you, and he doesn’t want you anymore!”
Pei Guang let out a shout, picked up a brick from the ground, and prepared to fight them to the death.
“Pei Guang.”
A cold and authoritative voice rang out. Pei Guang’s back stiffened, and the brick in his hand clattered to the ground.
That group of children also looked like startled birds as they stared at the two approaching adults.
People who had just emerged from the selection still carried the lingering aura of violence from the brawl.
Adults might not think much of it, but children were terrified to the extreme.
Su Wenshan knew Pei Wu was not good at handling such occasions, so he took the initiative and walked forward.
Using a mix of intimidation and gentle persuasion, he handled the situation.
By the time that group of children left, tears and snot streamed down their faces as they cried, “We’ll never do it again!”
With his side resolved, the two brothers were still locked in a stalemate over there, looking like a pair of high and low statues.
Su Wenshan stepped forward to smooth things over, saying, “Let’s talk at home, because the neighbors are watching.”
Pei Wu walked in front, his back tall, straight, and aloof.
The child was terrified of his older brother’s expression. The fierce glare in his eyes vanished entirely, and tears pattered down.
Amidst the child’s choked words, Su Wenshan sorted out the whole story.
Those few children were the older brother of Pei Guang’s classmate and his classmate’s friends.
The classmate had lost something some time ago and insisted that Pei Guang had stolen it.
Pei Guang had a huge argument with him, which later escalated into a physical fight.
The teacher had stopped and criticized them.
That classmate had complained to his older brother, so every day after school, they would ambush him right here.
“Why didn’t you tell your brother?”
“Brother is already so tired, and I didn’t want to trouble him.”
“Your brother won’t think you’re a trouble,” Su Wenshan softly said. “A matter that seems huge to you is just a piece of cake to your brother. If you had told him earlier, your brother would have solved it already, alright? Don’t underestimate older brothers, you know.”
Pei Guang sobbed, asking, “Don’t lie to me, Brother Wenshan?”
“Why would I lie to you? Look, even your classmate knows to complain to his older brother. Is your brother any less capable than his?”
“Of course not! My brother is definitely the capable one. That other guy is just a little punk, and he ran away the moment he saw my brother!”
“There you go!”
Pei Guang lowered his head, whispering, “Brother told me this morning, and I promised him I’d tell him everything tonight, but before I had the chance, he saw this. He must think I’m a bad kid, because I even wanted to hit someone with a weapon.”
A weapon meant a brick.
Su Wenshan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry as he rubbed the child’s head, saying, “Rest assured, do you trust me?”
“Mhm.”
“Honestly tell your brother, and nothing will happen,” Su Wenshan patted him, telling him, “Go on home, because your brother is waiting for you.”
The lights inside the home were on, and the warm yellow glow reflected on Pei Wu’s cold and rigid profile.
“Still not coming over?”
“Coming!”
Pei Guang trotted all the way inside.
Pei Wu nodded toward his friend, and Su Wenshan waved back.
The door closed.
On the way back, the doubt in Su Wenshan’s heart slowly dissipated.
No one understood better than he did just how important his younger brother was to Pei Wu.