Xie Sen tried desperately to control his forward movement, but his body seemed to have a mind of its own, completely out of his control.
He glared at Maine, "You're so skilled, why don't you just dodge?"
Maine completely ignored his meaning, remaining motionless, letting him draw closer and closer until their lips met.
Xie Sen's first thought was, "Such a cold expression, yet surprisingly soft lips!" His next thought was, "It's over!"
Before he could figure out whether "It's over" was due to his initial thought or because he had taken advantage of Maine, he lost consciousness and fell on top of her.
The moment Xie Sen fell, Maine quickly retracted his dagger. Only then did Maine realize that he had unconsciously been holding it back as Xie Sen approached.
He stared at the unconscious Xie Sen, his gaze shifting again and again, finally settling on Xie Sen's neck. He reached out, gently rubbing his fingers along the wound where the dagger had inflicted Xie Sen, wiping the blood onto his fingers.
He held his finger and examined it for a moment, then slowly brought it to his mouth. The smell of blood tickled his taste buds, and his brow furrowed slightly. His vision cleared a little, no longer dark.
"Wake up!" He embraced Xie Sen and patted his face, trying to wake him. Thinking of the various poisonous plants and animals in the forest, his jaw tensed.
He laid Xie Sen flat on the ground and examined the exposed parts of his limbs and neck. Aside from the scrapes on his palm, he confirmed there were no bites or scratches from plants. His expression softened.
He grasped Xie Sen's bruised left hand, his eyes cold as he recalled the moment he had pushed Xie Sen away. He lifted Xie Sen horizontally and walked out of the forest.
"Chiu~" A crisp bird call echoed, and the next moment, a small, palm-sized black bird flew to Xie Sen's chest, tilting its head to look at him.
The bird's feathers were fluffy white, but it was injured. A patch of blood stained its left feathers, tangled and drooping, creating a stark contrast to the fluffy right side, creating a look of both distress and humor.
Maine frowned. He remembered it; it had chased and pecked at the beasts when he was hunting them.
He shouted softly, "Go away!"
The bird tilted its head, chirping, and then rolled over on Xie Sen's chest, its round, black eyes darting back at Maine.
Maine glanced at Xie Sen, who was sleeping with his eyes closed. Not wanting to waste time, and with his hands free, he simply ignored it.
Xie Sen was awakened by the tossing and turning. When he opened his eyes, Maine was half-holding him in his arms. Frowning, he grasped his arm with one hand and his left sleeve with the other, attempting to undress him.
However, Maine was unskilled, and he struggled to get his hands off without success.
Xie Sen quickly said, "I'll do it myself."
Maine paused, looking down at him, then slowly released him.
Xie Sen glanced around. This was his room. He slipped off his loose suit jacket and looked over Maine's left shoulder.
Maine had already removed his dark blue suit jacket, leaving him in a thin white shirt, now mostly stained with blood, looking particularly gruesome.
Xie Sen stood up and said sternly, "Let's go to the hospital first."
Maine didn't respond, just staring at him. "What happened to you just now?" He frowned. "This isn't the first time."
He remembered when he and Xie Sen first met, when Xie Sen had suddenly... gotten close to him and then passed out.
Xie Sen's gaze involuntarily fell to Maine's lips, his face flushing slightly, a look of embarrassment on his face. "I... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."
"Why did you pass out?" Maine asked.
Xie Sen blinked, secretly relieved. He hadn't even asked about the taking advantage of him!
He touched his neck, thinking that he had saved his life. Could it be that Maine thought he was unconscious and accidentally bumped into him?
Although it didn't seem credible, Maine looked so calm that he couldn't think of a second reason.
He smiled and thought it would be easier to just ask about the coma.
He couldn't talk about the system, and he couldn't explain it. He gave an answer that was close to the truth: "I'm not in good health. I have to sleep for an hour every eight hours, otherwise my hands and feet will lose control and I will fall into a coma."
"Uncontrollable?" Maine looked at him.
Xie Sen coughed awkwardly: "Yes."
Maine touched his own lips: "How many people have you done this to?"
"How could I be so unlucky?" Xie Sen said, "Just this once."
"Unlucky?" Maine frowned.
"No, no, no, you're the unlucky one," Xie Sen quickly corrected, helplessly saying, "Brother, this was truly an accident. Forget it. Let's go to the hospital and treat your wounds first, shall we?"
Maine stared at him. "I'm not unlucky. I'm fine."
Xie Sen was stunned. Before he could wrap his mind around it, Maine said, "Come on, get a full-body checkup too. Your condition is too dangerous. It could easily get you into trouble."
"No need for a checkup," Xie Sen followed him out of the bedroom. "It won't be cured soon. We need to find something."
"What?"
"I don't know for now," Xie Sen shrugged.
Maine glanced at him. Xie Sen said, "I don't want to lie to you. This is hard to explain. It'll take some time before I know where to find something to treat me."
Maine looked at him for a moment, then said nothing more. The two of them headed to the hospital to treat their wounds.
Elsewhere, at the Kes residence.
Maine and Rilo suddenly attacked, startling the guests. Music played in the hall, and no one could tell what the "□□" was. All they could hear was Maine's demand, "You forced him to do it, didn't you?"
Many speculated on his meaning. Some perceptive observers, reflecting on Maine's identity, quickly linked it to Maine's father.
By the time Meier received the news, Maine had already left. Rilo, despite the shock and the gruesome wound on his neck, was unharmed.
Meier calmly apologized to the guests and sent Rilo to clean himself up. The party resumed, the atmosphere lively, though still different from the beginning.
After the banquet, the Cox family, along with Socteau, gathered in the study.
Han Zheng's face was sullen, his sharp, hawk-like eyes fixed on Rilo. Rilo paled under his gaze, his body trembling slightly. Soria, heartbroken for his son, said, "Father, Maine was the first to attack. Rilo is the victim!"
Han Zheng ignored him and demanded, "What did you say?"
"No, nothing," Rilo's lips trembled.
"You want me to check the surveillance?" Han Zheng's tone was cold.
Rui Luo didn't dare to hide it, and subconsciously excused himself: "I didn't mean to do it. I didn't know he was behind me."
"What did you say?"
Rui Luo: "He said he was a fool. He always thought his father was born in a car accident, but in fact he committed suicide because of him."
Han Zheng's face was extremely ugly. Meyer was shocked and turned to look at Soria: "You did it?"
Soria's eyes were panicked, his face trembled, and he spoke loudly, as if this made sense.
"It's none of my business. He committed suicide! You only blame me, but have you ever considered how embarrassing my situation would be if he showed up? I'd be the laughing stock of everyone in Star City. It's you," he pointed at Meier. "It's all your fault. It's all because of what you did!"
"Enough!" Han Zheng slammed the table.
He had lost his patience with them and announced his decision. "If Rui Luo keeps going like this, you'll ruin him. I've arranged for someone to take him away shortly. He'll be back when he's better."
"Where are you sending him?" Soria asked nervously.
"Youth training camp." Han Zheng showed no emotion.
"No!" Soria shook his head frantically and grabbed Rui Luo's arm. "I won't let anyone else take him!"
It was a place known for its harshness. Everyone who entered used an alias and was treated equally. The daily training was extremely rigorous. Worst of all, they even had a death penalty.
How could his son, who had been pampered since childhood, go to such a hellish place?
Han Zheng ignored him and looked at Sokto. "Your transfer order will be conveyed to you tomorrow morning. Go back and prepare!"
"General," Sokto said, a look of unease on his face. "Where will I go?"
"You'll find out tomorrow morning. Go back first."
Seeing he wasn't about to answer, Sokto gritted his teeth, saluted, and left.
A moment later, four men in black military uniforms forcibly took Rui Luo away. Soria cried and raged, so Han Zheng had him knocked unconscious.
Finally, Han Zheng and his son were alone in the study. Meier said, "I'm sorry, father."
Han Zheng rubbed his brow. "I should have broken off your engagement. For so many years, because the Kes family felt guilty about him, we kept backing off, and that ended up hurting Rui Luo."
He said gravely, "Rui Luo is still young and can make things right. If there are any talented young men in the side branch, you should pay more attention to promoting them. As for Maine... issue a statement tomorrow to sever ties with him."
"He's not even eighteen yet," Meier reminded him.
"When's his birthday?" Han Zheng asked. "I'll make a statement the day after his birthday."
"This month," Meier said. "I'll make arrangements."
He hesitated. "Father, are you really going to transfer Sokto to Mineral Planet A?" It's a resource planet with the harshest environment.
"Do you think he wasn't involved in any of those things? Keep an eye on him; he's no pushover."
"Yes."
Xie Sen and the others were completely unaware of what had happened to the Kes family. They went to the hospital to treat their wounds and then returned directly to their apartment.
Xie Sen noticed Maine's dry lips, thinking he was dehydrated from excessive blood loss, so he said, "Sit down. I'll get you a glass of water."
Before Maine could even finish his words, Xie Sen had already made his way to the water dispenser.
Xie Sen finished filling the water and was about to return when he heard a bird chirp from the kitchen. He thought he'd misheard, but then another chirp came.
He handed Maine the water and went into the kitchen to check.
On the counter, he saw a small, palm-sized bird happily pecking at the meat on the cutting board. He'd taken too much meat from dinner and forgotten to put it back in the refrigerator.
Xie Sen watched in amazement. He approached and waved, trying to shoo the bird away. The bird chirped and, flapping its black wings, flew towards his arm.
Startled, he instinctively shook it off, but the bird latched onto his clothes tightly, clinging securely to his arm, chirping non-stop, seemingly excited.
"It followed me all the way back from the forest," Maine said, leaning against the door.
Xie Sen turned to look at him, then stopped shaking his arm and raised his arm. The bird perched on his arm, its feathers half drooping, half fluffy, its dark eyes gazing at him.
Its entire body was plump and adorable.
Xie Sen glanced at the meat on the cutting board. At least half a pound was missing. Had that little creature eaten it all?
"Can you tell what species it is? Is it a carnivore? Is it dangerous?"
"It has empathy. It's a bird-contracted beast. It's not dangerous. I can't tell the species," Maine said.
Xie Sen suddenly realized, "No wonder it's so smart."
The bird chirped and rolled steadily on his arm.
Xie Sen gave it a strange look. Did it understand his compliment? A bit too smart, wasn't it?
Maine said, "If you like it, keep it. If you don't like it, throw it away."
Xie Sen thought for a moment and said, "Let it be. It's quite intelligent. If you want to keep it, keep it. If you don't care, I'll see."
"Whatever you want." Maine said indifferently.
Xie Sen pointed at the remaining meat and asked the bird, "Are you full?"
The bird flapped its wings, flew to the cutting board, and continued eating.
Xie Sen immediately understood that it was not full.
He didn't know if the bird understood, so he warned, "It's rest time at night. No singing."
The bird raised its round head from the meat, stretched out its right wing, and waved it to the left, covering most of its fat body and beak, revealing a pair of round eyes.
Xie Sen stared at it in amazement for a moment, then ignored it, turning and leaving the kitchen. As he walked, he exclaimed to Maine, "Its IQ seems even higher than Jin Yao's."
Maine glanced at the bird and followed Xie Sen back to the living room. "The higher the level of the contracted beast, the higher its IQ."
"But," Xie Sen thought of the chubby bird, "it's so small, how powerful can it be?"
"It's a chick," Maine said. "Don't worry about it. Go get some rest. I'll check it out tomorrow."
Xie Sen reminded him, "The doctor said you need to rest for a few days and avoid any overexertion."
"I won't be going out tomorrow,"
Xie Sen smiled contentedly. They both went back to their rooms to rest.
Back in his room, Xie Sen thought about Maine's reaction and felt a little uneasy. In the forest, Maine's condition was clearly off. He had been unconscious for less than an hour, and yet Maine had recovered. It didn't seem normal.
He thought for a moment, and left his door open before going to bed, ensuring he could hear any noise outside.
His sleep was restless. His dreams were filled with images of Maine, wounded and frantic. He chased after him, but couldn't find him. Maine had suddenly vanished from Star City.
The scene suddenly shifted, his ears filled with wailing and howling. He
saw a scene of devastation before his eyes: beasts tore through the crowd, blood splattering everywhere, a pool of blood spraying towards his face. Xie Sen jolted awake, gasping as he opened his eyes. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, his gaze casually glancing at the doorway, only to notice someone standing there.
His room was dark, while the lights in the living room were on. The person stood backlit, a dark silhouette, and the sudden appearance was particularly terrifying.
Xie Sen's hair stood on end, and he suddenly cried out, "Ah!!!!"
"It's me," Maine said, entering the bedroom. "Are you having a nightmare?"
Xie Sen's heart pounded. No nightmare could be more terrifying than suddenly finding someone standing at the doorway.
He reached out to turn on the light. The bedside lamp showed that it was 2:08 in the morning. He climbed up and sat up, rubbing his forehead: "What are you doing standing at my door?"
He actually wanted to curse, but Maine was pale, half of his shoulder was bandaged, and he looked really pitiful. He couldn't say anything harsh.
Maine sat on the edge of his bed and pursed his lips: "See if you are there... You didn't close the door."
Xie Sen was stunned, and his heart ached slightly. Was he worried that he would leave?
He reached out and tapped Maine's forehead: "Where can I go if I'm not in the room at night? Do you know that you are a patient now and need more rest? Your face is comparable to the walls of the hospital."
Maine's eyes were full of color: "Are you leaving during the day?"
Xie Sen realized that something was wrong with him. He was afraid that he would leave!
He quickly said, "I go to work during the day and come back at night, every day."
Maine said, "You said it. Every day."
Xie Sen nodded hurriedly, "I said it."
Maine looked at him and raised his hand to rub the top of his head. "You had a nightmare. Are you afraid of sleeping alone? Do you want me to stay with you?" Xie
Sen laughed, thinking about the scene in his dream. What if Maine gets upset and runs away again?
He rolled over to the other side of the bed, making room for most of the space. He patted the empty space and smiled, "That's great. Let's sleep together!"
Maine's mouth curled up and he lay down next to Xie Sen, looking at him with his head tilted.
Xie Sen yawned and closed his eyes. "Go to sleep, you need more rest."
Maine asked, "Will you have trouble sleeping with the lights on?"
Xie Sen drowsily replied, "It's okay. I can always fall asleep when I'm sleepy." His eyelids fluttered, and he whispered, "Why do you turn off the lights when you sleep?"
Maine was silent for a long moment before speaking, his voice dry. "When I was very young, I was alone in a house with no lights on, and I couldn't see a thing."
Xie Sen cursed himself for asking such a stupid question. He reached out and took Maine's hand. "It's okay. You're not alone now, and there's a light on. Go to sleep."
"Okay." Maine looked at him, feeling the warmth in her hand, then took Xie Sen's hand and closed her eyes.
The next morning, when Xie Sen woke up, Maine was already awake, looking over her shoulder at him.
Xie Sen felt a slight discomfort, sensing something was off. He tried to cover it up, but he got up and looked at the Energy 3 indicator in front of him, looking at Maine in surprise. Maine
also sat up. "What's wrong?"
Xie Sen smiled and shook his head, feeling both sad and touched. Maine gave him back his energy, probably because she was grateful for his company!
At this moment, he deeply realized that Maine lacked love and was too lonely.
He thought that he would never be like that scumbag Sokto, and would never let Maine down!
He spent a lot of energy chasing Maine last night. He slept late and woke up in the early morning. He was not in a good mood. He felt a little more awake after washing up.
He had breakfast with Maine. Before going out for work, he reminded Maine again with concern: "Don't go out, don't do strenuous exercise! Order takeout for lunch."
Maine nodded and stood at the door to watch him leave.
Xie Sen swiped his work card. Seeing that he was in low spirits, Sun Mao reached out and patted his shoulder, and advised him earnestly: "Young man, you must know how to be moderate!"
Xie Sen glared at him helplessly: "Don't talk nonsense, didn't you see the report about Rui Luo's birthday party?" Such a big thing, there must be a report, right?
Sun Mao knew that he had attended a banquet last night, and asked quickly: "No, what happened?"
Xie Sen shrugged helplessly: "Something unpleasant." Sun
Mao opened the bracelet to check the news and shook his head: "No news."
Xie Sen guessed that the news must have been suppressed by the Kes family. It would not be a good thing if the news of internal family fighting got out.
Thinking of the fat bird at home, Xie Sen stopped Sun Mao as he was leaving the office. "Manager Sun, do you know of a bird-like contracted beast? It's very intelligent, with white feathers on its head and a black body?"
Sun Mao pondered for a moment. "There are quite a few bird-like contracted beasts with white heads and black bodies. As for being very intelligent, what level are they?"
"Above an A-level contracted beast."
"So it's S-level?" Sun Mao pondered for a moment, his eyes suddenly lighting up. "If it's S-level, I can think of one—the Bald Eagle."
The brightness in his eyes quickly faded, and he shrugged. "There are currently no known owners of Bald Eagles. Birds naturally crave freedom, making them the most difficult species to contract. Moreover, Bald Eagles are the dominant species in the skies. The only recorded instances of Bald Eagles forming contracts date back hundreds of years."
He concluded, "So your discovery of the Bald Eagle is useless."
Xie Sen smiled and thanked him. He didn't care whether it was useful or not; he just wanted to understand.
The workday passed quickly in a rush. When he left work, Xie Sen checked his system to see his remaining energy. It was already 151.
He averaged over twenty energies a day working at Gold Medal. At this rate, he should be able to activate his third plant in three days at the latest!
Xie Sen was excited. He checked his calendar. Tomorrow was Friday, and he would have two days off after working one day.
He immediately decided to go to the orphanage on Saturday. That way, he could activate his third plant that day.
When he returned to his apartment, he saw Main sitting on the sofa, assembling something. The coffee table in front of him was covered with various parts and circuit boards.
Hearing the noise, Main tilted his head toward the door. Xie Sen smiled at him, approached, and asked curiously, "What's this for?"
"Controller," Main explained. Just as Xie Sen was about to ask what controller it was, there was a knock on the door.
Xie Sen opened the door to find Xu Da standing there, his brow furrowed. Xie Sen was puzzled; he usually wore a smile, and it was rare to see him so serious.
"Uncle, what's wrong?"
Xu Da said bluntly, "We've tried everything, but we can't get the potatoes and peppers to sprout. They don't seem to be able to be planted."
Xie Sen ushered Xu Da into the living room. Main glanced at them and continued with his work.
Seeing him startled, Xu Da hurriedly asked, "What happened? How did you get hurt?"
Maine paused, a chill emanating from him. Xie Sen shook his head at Xu Da and changed the subject, "Both plants won't sprout?"
"Yes," Xu Da nodded, not asking further. He continued, "The plants we cultivated at the same time sprouted a few days ago. Only the potatoes and peppers you gave me haven't sprouted."
Xu Da asked, "Is there some special method for growing them?"
Xie Sen shook his head. He knew nothing about growing vegetables back then; he'd just tossed potatoes and peppers into the ground and they'd grown on their own.
He'd assumed the plants exchanged by the system were incredibly resilient, and he'd assumed the research institute would be able to grow them without any problems. He was almost ready to wait for them to send him food!
Xu Da sighed, unable to help but wonder, "Could it be that the fruit of a plant-contracted beast simply can't be planted?"
Maine glanced at him sharply. Xu Da was startled, then looked at Xie Sen. "He doesn't know?"
Xie Sen looked embarrassed, looking at Maine with concern. Was Maine imagining he was deceiving him?
Maine said calmly: "I know."