Darkness. Endless darkness.
His arms could not stretch out. His body could not stand upright. Even the simple act of opening his eyes was unbearably difficult.
Luo could no longer remember how long he had been trapped within this darkness. From the moment he became aware, it had always been there, inseparable from him, accompanying his existence.
The only thing he remembered was that his name was “Luo.”
In truth, not long ago, this place had not felt so cramped.
At that time, he had only been a vague, shadowy mass but for some reason, recently he had begun to grow more solid, more defined and as he did, the surrounding darkness seemed to shrink, pressing tighter and tighter around him.
If this continued… he would die.
He had to get out.
That was what his instincts, something like a sixth sense, kept telling him.
So Luo cautiously stretched out his hand, groping through the darkness and began to tap against its edges, searching for a way through.
Crack! crack!
At 5:15 in the morning, a time that should have been wrapped in silence, the interstellar network was instead bustling with noise and excitement.
Because the long awaited young male insect was finally about to hatch!
Outside the explosion proof glass of the incubation chamber, three high precision cameras were trained on the one meter tall insect egg, capturing it from multiple angles and broadcasting its condition live across the entire network.
“Ahhh!! The egg just moved again! Is the little male about to come out?!”
“This egg is huge… Do you think it might hatch directly into an S class male?”
“Thank you, General Gu Yuan, sob sob… If it weren’t for him bringing the egg back, we might have missed out on a male entirely.”
“I’ve been camping in this livestream ever since the egg was brought back. It’s been almost a month now, can the hatched male be assigned to me, please QAQ!”
“Pfft! Dream on! If anyone gets him, it’ll be the general, not you!”
“Why are you spacing out? Keep your eyes at the six o’clock position, stop staring at the egg!”
At that moment, the very General Gu Yuan being praised by half the network stood with a cold expression and kicked the absent minded military female squarely in the rear.
He looked only a little over twenty, dressed in the Empire’s standard dark navy military uniform. His features were sharp and striking, his brows and eyes carrying a fierce edge, with a hint of untamed arrogance in his demeanor.
“Yes, General!”
The distracted soldier was kicked straight to his knees yet he didn’t dare show the slightest complaint. Without even brushing off the dust on his pants, he scrambled back to his feet and snapped into attention, answering loudly and firmly, still bearing the clear footprint on his backside.
Not to mention that this was a rare opportunity to witness the birth of a male insect, simply being assigned under Gu Yuan’s command was already something he wouldn’t dare complain about.
After all, this was the Empire’s number one general. He had begun leading troops into battle at eighteen and in the four years since, his record was filled with brilliant victories, never a single defeat. He was the highest figure of admiration in the hearts of all military females.
To serve under Gu Yuan was something one could boast about for a lifetime.
Gu Yuan did not linger. Once the soldier had straightened up, he merely furrowed his brows and continued his patrol, once again drawing waves of admiration from the viewers across the network.
To allow those stationed on site to keep track of the livestream in real time, the broadcast had been projected onto a wall nearby.
When Gu Yuan turned his head like this, he could just so happen to see the barrage of comments drifting across the livestream.
“General actually isn’t even looking at the egg. As expected of the number one general, such strong self control!”
He had no interest in the egg. If he had known earlier that this giant thing would really hatch a male, he would have insisted on giving the credit to his desperately single adjutant.
“Come to think of it, doesn’t this count as another great merit for the general? Shouldn’t the Empire consider assigning him a male?”
Please don’t. He was only twenty two. He had no intention of stepping into the grave just yet.
“Hehehe, I think this egg would be pretty nice…”
…That’s illegal, thanks.
Gu Yuan didn’t actually care much about the comments in the livestream but his eyesight was too sharp. A casual glance would catch five or six lines at once and he couldn’t help but respond to each of them with silent complaints in his head.
What rotten luck. In the middle of a battle, he had to withdraw his troops because of some unknown egg. In his entire life, he had never fought such a stifling, frustrating battle.
Crack!
Just as Gu Yuan was about to continue patrolling farther away from the egg, another crisp cracking sound came from it. The egg, already marked with several fissures, split further.
His steps halted. He turned his head slightly and glanced toward the egg.
This egg was truly enormous, so large that the Empire hadn’t had a suitable incubation chamber for it. They had been forced to work overtime to specially construct a custom chamber just to house and incubate this egg, which stood over a meter tall.
This size had completely exceeded Gu Yuan’s understanding. Even the largest female insect could not possibly lay an egg this big. If the AI hadn’t confirmed it as a male insect egg, he would have almost suspected it was left behind by some unknown lifeform from the depths of space.
Now, through the layer of explosion proof glass, Gu Yuan could clearly see the cracks spreading across the smooth, jade like shell. Starting from a small point in the center, they expanded outward like a web, quickly covering half of the egg.
Crack!
With the final crisp sound, the eggshell shattered completely.
Across the entire interstellar network, everyone held their breath, eyes locked on their screens, afraid of missing even the smallest detail of the male’s birth. Even the military females standing guard were visibly restless.
The moment the shell broke apart, every single insect froze.
At the center of the shattered shell fragments sat a delicate, unbelievably beautiful young boy, kneeling quietly.
His long black hair cascaded all the way to the ground, covering most of his body. Along his pale, tender arms spread intricate black insect markings.
Those dark, moist eyes looked around in confusion, as if everything around him was utterly unfamiliar.
How could there be such a cute male, no, wait, how could a male insect be born already grown?!
And he even had insect markings, this clearly meant he had just completed his second differentiation and was already sexually mature!
“Ahhh!! Is this a male who just turned eighteen?!”
“He’s too cute! Help, I can’t even breathe from how adorable he is just through the screen!!”
“Insect markings… hehe… the male’s markings…”
The entire network fell into chaos. Gu Yuan himself was stunned, never having imagined that the egg he had casually picked up would hatch into something so shocking and unprecedented.
Inside the incubation chamber, Luo hadn’t even had a second to feel happy about “breaking free from the darkness” before he froze in place.
W… where… where is this? Why are there so many insects staring at him??
He sat there blankly, trying to retreat back into the darkness that had nurtured him but of course, that attempt ended in failure.
H… he’s been caught…?
Panic surged through Luo all at once. He tried to open his mouth to call for help, only to realize that he had already forgotten how to make sounds. Outside the glass were nothing but unfamiliar faces and even the writing on the walls was incomprehensible to him.
At this moment, he was like a blank sheet of paper, with no memories at all, acting purely on instinct. The overwhelming unfamiliarity of his surroundings set off every alarm in his mind and tears of self preservation slipped out uncontrollably.
Wait… why is he crying…
Somewhere deep inside, he felt that he shouldn’t be like this but his brain had already chosen the most optimal response. Once the floodgates of tears were opened, they showed no sign of closing.
And so, the viewers across the network witnessed this scene:
The beautiful male who had just hatched looked around in confusion, as though he had no idea why he was here at all.
Then, the male cub simply sat there and burst into frightened tears, blankly letting them fall, as if he had suffered some great injustice.
For a moment, every insect had only one thought left in their minds: comfort the male.
They completely threw aside the bizarre fact that the male had hatched already fully grown.
So what if he had completed his second differentiation? He looked so small, so fragile, clearly still just a baby!
“Quick, open the glass cover and comfort him!!!”
“The baby just hatched, he needs the presence of a male father and a female father! What are you all standing around for?!”
“Where’s the medical team? Hurry up and get over here!!”
“Ahhh I’m dying from anxiety, if you can’t do it, let me do it!”
The female insect in the control room belatedly opened the small door beside the explosion proof glass, preparing to let the medical team in to examine this overly large male hatchling.
Click!
The small door opened and the scents that had been blocked by the glass instantly rushed in.
It smelled… good.
Inside the incubation chamber, Luo abruptly stopped crying.
Like any newly hatched young creature, he began to crawl forward on his hands and knees, following the scent until he reached the glass, only to bump straight into the invisible barrier in front of him.
It hurt…
Luo raised his hand and rubbed his reddened forehead. His lips trembled and he nearly started crying again.
But the scent was just too enticing, so enticing that he could temporarily ignore the pain. He fumbled forward, pressing his hand against the invisible wall, trying to push through it.
With his keen senses guiding him, Luo quickly locked onto the source of the fragrance,
It was that one who looked the most delicious… hm? What should he call him?
The medical team halted outside the door because of the male’s sudden movement, afraid that any action on their part might startle the newly hatched male. This gave Luo a bit more time to think. He stared fixedly in the direction of the scent’s source, trying hard to figure out what he should call the other party.
Perhaps because Luo’s gaze was so intensely locked onto Gu Yuan, even the viewers in the livestream noticed something unusual.
“What’s going on? Did the male take a liking to the general?”
“No way, quq! I was just joking!! I want such a beautiful male too!!”
“Impossible. Just look at his insect markings, this male’s rank definitely isn’t low. A common born general like Gu Yuan wouldn’t be worthy of him.”
The news that the giant egg brought back by the general had hatched into an adult male spread rapidly. The number of viewers in the livestream surged continuously. In just over ten minutes, nearly the entire insect race across the galaxy had rushed over upon hearing the news, all gathering to witness this extraordinary male who was already unusual from the moment he hatched.
And in those same ten minutes, Luo managed to dig out the correct form of address from his chaotic, fragmented memories.
Under the watchful gaze of the entire interstellar network, Luo pressed both hands against the glass. His eyes still brimmed with unshed tears as he looked pitifully at Gu Yuan. Then, in clumsy, halting common language, he stuttered:
“Ma… ma!”
Gu Yuan, unmarried yet suddenly promoted to mother: ?
The entire network of spectators: ?
And after awkwardly forcing out those two syllables, Luo repeated them again, this time more smoothly:
“Mama!”
This time it was clear and distinct. Even if Gu Yuan wanted to pretend he had misheard, it was impossible.
The corner of Gu Yuan’s mouth twitched. “What did he just call me?”
Inside the glass, Luo saw Gu Yuan’s lips moving.
Although he couldn’t hear what Gu Yuan was saying, he instinctively felt that Gu Yuan was responding to him. So he anxiously raised his hand and slapped against the glass, continuing to repeat the only word he could remember:
“Mama!”
The incubation chamber was equipped with a sound system directly connected to the outside. Perhaps because of his earlier attempts, Luo’s shout of “mama” this time was loud and perfectly articulated.
Gu Yuan: …
But I am really not your mother.
He turned his head and discovered that his adjutant, Wu You, who was guarding the door, was staring at him with a look that seemed to accuse him of “how could you secretly lay an egg behind my back.”
Looking to the other side, the medical team had already consciously stepped aside, clearing a path and inviting him to go in and see the baby.
And on yet another side, the livestream was flooded with questions asking when the general had acquired a male spouse.
Gu Yuan suddenly felt that he might never be able to clear his name in this lifetime.
He was only twenty two! He had barely even seen a few male insects in his life!! How had he suddenly become a mother!!!
What is wrong with you male insects, why are you already falsely accusing people the moment you’re born!
✦ ✧ ✦
Cressilia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
The Realm is pleased. The translator would be even more pleased with coffee.
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
Next →
ChaptersChapter 1 · It’s Hatching!Chapter 2 · Mealtime!Chapter 3 · Angry!Chapter 4 · F.. Found Out!Chapter 5 · SpeakingChapter 6 · RiceChapter 7 · Live BroadcastChapter 8 · XiongbaohuiChapter 9 · Bullet CommentsChapter 10 · I’m sleepyChapter 11 · WrongedChapter 12 · Going to SchoolChapter 13 · ChoiceChapter 14 · Knock KnockChapter 15 · NoisyChapter 16 · AccidentChapter 17 · WingsChapter 18 · CrowChapter 19 · General is blushingChapter 20 · RiotChapter 21 · The Insect EmperorChapter 22 · Good BoyChapter 23 · UnconsciousChapter 24 · DisappearanceChapter 25 · Tail HookChapter 26 · ReturningChapter 27 · DepartureChapter 28 · ReunionChapter 29 · Played with by tentaclesChapter 30 · Moist, Damp EyesChapter 31 Part 1 · Gu Yuan, do you like me?Chapter 31 Part 2 · Gu Yuan, do you like me?Chapter 32 · Don’t cry, sweetieChapter 33 · Reproductive tentaclesChapter 34 · Even if you kill me, I won’t grow backChapter 35 · Lord Evil GodChapter 36 · Why not refuse?Chapter 37 · He can cry; he’s not a monster.Chapter 38 · Some alternative ways of boiling waterChapter 39 · Why aren’t you kissing me?Chapter 40 · Here, my command is the highest orderChapter 41 · The Evil God’s Disguise Makes its Grand DebutChapter 42 · Be the breeding ground for my eggs.Chapter 43 · Carrying EggsChapter 44 · MasterChapter 45 · CryingChapter 46 · InterrogationChapter 47 · LikeChapter 48 · The TruthChapter 49 · ConfessionChapter 50 · Identity ExposedChapter 51 · BackgroundChapter 52 · SuspicionChapter 53 · The Feeling of HungerChapter 54 · SleepingChapter 55 · The NameChapter 56 · Memories (1)Chapter 57 · Memories (2)Chapter 58 · Memories (3)Chapter 59 · Gu YuanChapter 60 · A Falling KissChapter 61 · MonsterChapter 62 · RabitChapter 63 · Bathroom