62 (IX)

"Ugh…" Shang Ke held his aching head as he slowly sat up. The soft blanket slid down, revealing the messy traces left on his body. The burning pain from his thighs and lower body almost numbed him while still holding traces of that man. Every time they hit the peak, he would always come inside, not wasting anything.

Goddamnit! He wasn't an omega or beta, no matter how much he shoots he wouldn't become pregnant! Furthermore, that bastard had marked him on their first climax and blended his pheromone into his body, almost like a brand!

Shang Ke looked around him, the room was empty of anyone but himself, Ryan should have been sent off by Rhine.

He got off the bed and walked to the bathroom on weakened legs, planning to clean himself up. But mysteriously, despite using water to flush himself out several times, the stuff in his body would not come out. Rather, it could be said that it was gradually being absorbed until none of it remained.

What is going on? Shang Ke was a bit dumbfounded, his arms propping him up against the wall, allowing the warm water to spray over his body.

Forget it, what's done was done, why should he worry himself over it? It won't kill him. Shang Ke placed his head on the wall as his mind started to repeat everything that had happened last night, the entanglement, the writhing, the possessiveness as they joined together madly, like wild beasts.

"Ah—" Rhine, just you wait. I will make you suffer one day!

Shang Ke punched the wall as rage burned in his misty eyes.

After his shower, Shang Ke left the bathroom only to find that Rhine had returned and was standing as straight as a ramrod. He was dressed neatly and held a solemn temperament, looking the perfect model of a respected and strict person.

Shang Ke glared at him angrily, then turned to his luggage to take out some clothes and swiftly put them on.

Rhine's gaze wandered to his hips as he recalled the flushed appearance of the other pinned under his body last night and a fire lit within him immediately. He did not make any moves though, and stood quietly as he watched Shang Ke put on his clothes.

"Come here." Rhine's tone carried a command.

Shang Ke stopped two steps away from him and silently watched him.

Rhine reached out to pull him closer and lowered his head to scent his neck. Appearing rather satisfied, he released his grip, "Pack your stuff, come home with me."

Go, home, with, you?!

"Why should I go home with you?" Shang Ke was unable to keep up with this man's train of thought.

"I already checked out the room for you." Rhine checked the time and said, "Let's go, let's go home and eat."

Shang Ke really couldn't take it anymore, "Rhine, before you do something, could you ask for my opinion first?"

Rhine paused and asked, "Then, where would you like to eat?"

The problem has nothing to do with eating! Shang Ke fumed silently in anger, two seconds away from blowing his top.

Seeing how Shang Ke wasn't replying, Rhine spoke again, "Since you don't have any suggestions, come back with me for a meal."

"No, I have decided that I will eat right here in this bar!" Shang Ke replied resolutely.

"The food here is plain and barely satisfactory, it cannot be compared to your cooking at all." Rhine seriously declared this fact to Shang Ke.

What's going on with this feeling of being happy and dejected at once?

Shang Ke's lips twitched and he packed his things, "Let's go."

"To where?"

"Back to the training camp." Cooking for himself would be the better option.

Shang Ke did not refuse Rhine's offer to send him back. Arguing over such a trifle matter was senseless.

On the way there, Shang Ke suddenly thought of something and asked, "That's right, where's Ryan? Is he alright?"

"Omegas are the country's treasure, I will not do anything to him." Rhine coldly replied, "However, if I hear that name from your mouth again, I can't guarantee that he will still be fine later."

Shang Ke: "..."

Once they returned to the training camp, Shang Ke headed straight for his dorm and purposefully did not invite Rhine to his room for a meal.

Rhine watched his back, he muttered to himself, "We already established our relationship, why isn't he close to me at all?"

The driver looked up at the sky silently: That lieutenant is an alpha! You marked him like an omega before any emotions had time to take root! Who would tolerate that?

Observing his general's appearance, it seems that he honestly had not noticed where he went wrong. The driver really didn't know if he should feel sympathy for the lieutenant, or silently observe a moment of silence for his general who did not even remotely understand what was wrong with such a forceful method…

The next day, Shang Ke cancelled his vacation and threw himself into training again. Besides training now and striving to complete his mission as soon as possible, he did not think about anything else. For this reason, he even blocked all communications. If there was something urgent, his teammates would naturally come notify him.

He would try to force off the mark Rhine left on his body whenever he got the chance—there was no way he was going out while wearing his scent. He had run into Zeka once, and he had pretty much immediately done a U-turn and escaped. Although he felt that Zeka was not the person he was looking for after their past interactions, he still did not want anyone to know he was wearing the scent of another alpha.

Five days later, Shang Ke managed to rid himself of Rhine's mark. The body of an alpha was hard to mark in the first place. If it weren't for Rhine's indomitable strength, it was impossible for any form of marking to stick, even for a little while.

Shang Ke left the training room drenched in sweat. Unfortunately for him, the first person he ran into was the one he had wanted to avoid the most. Shang Ke's face went stiff then he straightened himself into the standard army posture.

"You have been overdoing it a bit much these days, your body…" Rhine suddenly stopped mid-sentence and his eyes locked onto Shang Ke sharply, "Where's my mark?"

"I got rid of it." Shang Ke calmly replied.

"Is that so?" Rhine smiled viciously, his eyes hinting at the danger Shang Ke was in, "I don't mind marking you again."

"Rhine, in the future, if you sleep with me once, I will go find a beta to sleep with once."

"You dare!" Rhine's voice was very dark and cold.

"Why wouldn't I? Both of us are alphas, what you can do, I can also do." Shang Ke looked him straight in the eye, "This is normal within the army, each person just does as they please."

"You can try." Rage burned in Rhine's chest, "I have plenty of ways to make you behave."

"Rhine, don't treat me as an omega living only to adhere to the will of alphas. I am not only a pure alpha, I am also a soldier who fights for honor and for life." Shang Ke solemnly spoke, "Forcing me like this, are you trying to destroy me? Snatching away my dreams and honor so that I will become worthless, is that what you want?"

Rhine answered quietly, "I never thought of snatching away your dreams, or honor."

"Then please let me go. Let me work peacefully for the country, like all the other alphas and soldiers, showing our value as fighters on the battlefield." Shang Ke's gaze was very clear and flickering with bright splendor.

Rhine was both happy and depressed. He wanted nothing more than to subdue Shang Ke, to tie him to his bed and live under and over the sheets, but he also didn't want to restrict him. If Shang Ke was willing to get close to him of his own accord and grow to trust him, Rhine would be willing to let him fly high and use his own abilities to help Shang Ke achieve his dreams. However, he was always rejected and refused to make love with him. Perhaps it was because his first impression on Shang Ke wasn't the best?

A certain person apparently did not know that, for two people to be together, there need to be social and emotional interactions. A relationship must be open to communication, not just relying on desire, impulses and strength to force it.

Shang Ke was unable to accept or adapt to this kind of active method. Truly, he was not completely unfeeling for Rhine, it was simply the lack of a mole that made him unable to put aside his misgivings and date him. Rhine's forceful ways of doing things placed a thick firewall between the two of them. Everything led to Shang Ke feeling ashamed to show his face to the one he loves. Since he was constrained by the mission, he could not escape Rhine any time soon, so his heart had to suffer.

Rhine stayed silent for a moment, then handed the medical box he was holding in front of Shang Ke, "There are fifteen restoration pills and fifteen body supplements. Take one of each with water every day after you train. It should help."

Shang Ke hesitated before taking the box. "Thank you."

Rhine nodded and left after looking at him one last time.

Shang Ke watched his leaving figure and a slightly peculiar feeling went through him. Strange, why was he was so easy to deal with this time?

In the time following that, Rhine did not seek out Shang Ke in person, but watched him very closely in secret and prevented him from finding other people to bed. However, Shang Ke was far more single-minded than he imagined. Besides training every day, Shang Ke also trained every day. Forget about him finding other people to bed, Shang Ke didn't even go out for fresh air.

Although Rhine admired his determination, he was also a bit upset. Seeing Shang Ke wear himself out to the point that he could hardly stand stably at the end of the day gave him the urge to shut the man in his room and order him to rest. But when he recalled what Shang Ke had told him before, Rhine suppressed the urge and limited himself to just sending him medicine at set dates and arranging a specialized doctor to inspect him. Heaven knows that he was almost going crazy from the sheer want to push him down, especially after his first taste of Shang Ke. Being made to suppress his desire had turned into an act of unbearable cruelty.

About a month later, a notice for battle came in and Rhine hurriedly left again with his unit.

The battle this time lasted for over a year. They had launched several attacks against the arthropods, the one leading every charge always being Shang Ke. His merits accumulated at lightning speed and it only took him three months to go from a reserved member to an official member of the specialized combat unit.

His excellent skills were ended up emulated far and wide within the army.

During the battle, Isaac, who had challenged Shang Ke before, went to Shang Ke with his tail between his legs to ask for guidance in his skills. Shang Ke did not hide anything. He straightforwardly recorded his martial skills into a video that was distributed to his other comrades-in-arms as his way of interacting.

What Shang Ke learned in the System Space were ancient martial arts, the essence of martial arts gathered from every period. Without a strong foundation, it was very hard to truly display their might, but among the countless styles, there were points people could use as references.

The martial arts the warriors of the Empire used were mainly based on power. While strong, it was inflexible and lacked variation, being easily predictable and therefore easy to counter. Before this, the soldiers did not feel there was anything wrong with the way they fought. However, after researching Shang Ke's martial arts, they finally understood the benefits of his way of fighting. They soon learned when to use certain techniques, the best timing, when to catch people off guard, and when to adapt.

Shang Ke's martial art video quickly went viral amongst the members of the military, giving rise to a wave of interest in learning ancient martial arts. Not long after, a portion of the video was uploaded onto the public internet and once again led another wave of shock and heated debates. Everyone called the martial arts the "Dance of Mor", sharing a piece of Filmore's name, and left strokes upon strokes on the evolution of the army's history.

Because of the influence from the Dance of Mor, Shang Ke was promoted to Captain a year later.

"Look! It's Filmore!" At the celebration party, a group of omegas and betas stared in surprise at Shang Ke's arrival.

"Hey, isn't that Brigadier General Lancelot next to him?"

"Ah—Both of them are so outstanding! Who should I choose?"

"If they are going to choose anyone, they're gonna be a beauty. You'd best stop dreaming."

"Hmph, you can't say for sure. Maybe they like my type, an 'easy-going' beta?"

"Hehe."

Shang Ke wore a carefully tailored white formal suit today, while Rhine wore an immaculate black ensemble. The colors contrasted brightly, but were still complementary to each other. The two of them stood together and attracted the gazes of countless people.

Shang Ke did not really like this kind of event, but the invitation was personally given by the Marshal, so it was hard to decline it. He would be dragging along Rhine to the event after all.

In the past year, Rhine had not done anything overbearing towards him and Shang Ke finally put aside the grudge in his heart somewhat. After all, he did not have enough energy to worry about these things when he was fighting bugs every day. He only wanted to complete his mission and then leave this world.

Rhine could vaguely sense Shang Ke's mentality. For this period of time, besides training it was fighting, and Shang Ke kept a lukewarm relationship toward everyone, just living his life like a robot. According to his personal history, this kind of behavior was really strange.

Rhine felt that Shang Ke hadn't originally been like this. He should be more cheerful, more care-free, happier. From the quality of food he once made, it showed he understood how to enjoy life and contrasted his current mindset, so difficult and tedious and only focusing on the fight.

After Shang Ke dealt with the umpteenth individual expressing their honor at meeting him or otherwise posturing about their status, he rubbed his aching head and tuned out the sounds around him. He suddenly felt very tired. He had only lived in this world for two years, and it was harder to bear compared to all the past worlds he had experienced. Was it because "he" was not here?

"If you're tired, go back and rest early." He didn't know when Rhine had gotten so close to him, nor that he was now supporting him by the waist.

Shang Ke nodded and did not take notice of how close Rhine was to him. With Rhine's help, he prepared to walk out.

At that moment, a burst of laughter rang from the side. A quartet of officers dropped by and greeted them passionately. They couldn't avoid another clinking of glasses.

Rhine seamlessly shielded Shang Ke from further interaction with these men and guided him away from excessive wine. In front of Rhine, few people dared to be impudent and they left after a few more lines.

By the time Rhine turned around, he discovered that Shang Ke was gone from the spot.

He frowned and stepped out of the building just in time to see Zeka help Shang Ke into a car and leaving with a whistle to the driver.

Rhine's face fell and he immediately started up his own car and quickly chased after them.

In a short moment, Rhine exceeded the speed limit and passed Zeka's car. Then, with a turn of his wheel, he blocked the other vehicle's way.

Cold sweat was startled out of Zeka and he stopped at a distance of barely ten centimeters after a panicked slamming of the breaks. Seeing how it was Rhine who walked out of the car, he cursed in his heart. He turned around to look at Shang Ke who was sleeping in shotgun and felt some self-pity for his own bad luck. Such a rare chance had came by for him to spend a night with Shang Ke. He didn't expect that Rhine would find out.

"Get off!" Rhine pulled open the door and shot Zeka a frigid glance before stretching his hands out toward Shang Ke.

Shang Ke looked at Rhine fuzzily, he could not see his appearance clearly under shadows of the night. He only felt that his scent was very familiar and subconsciously stretched out his own hands, allowing himself to be pulled into a strong chest.

Shang Ke leaned against him, his hands holding his waist.

Rhine's heart jumped a beat and he felt an indescribable happiness brought by Shang Ke's involuntary intimacy.

He turned his eyes that were shooting daggers into Zeka as he warned him, "Filmore is mine. If I discover you have had so much as a passing thought about him and you, you will not enjoy the consequences."

Zeka first looked back at him terrified, then said in amazement, "You chose him? But he's an alpha, will your family admit him?" Rhine was different from him. The man wouldn't have done anything if he hadn't made his decision to be with Shang Ke.

"This is my matter, you don't need to worry about it. You only need to take care of yourself." Rhine kicked the door close and carried Shang Ke back to his own car.

"Tsk. Such a pity that I acted too late, now it's impossible." Zeka watched the car leave and lamented morosely.

Rhine held Shang Ke the whole time he flew his car while he pondered over Shang Ke's intimacy in that moment. It tickled his heart in a way that was hard to endure, like a kitten scratching him and mewling adorably.

Driving into his villa, Rhine did not rush to get into his house. Rather, he turned to look at Shang Ke, his eyes blazing with fire.

"Fil." Rhine leaned over him, nibbling gently on his lips.

"Hm?" Shang Ke opened his eyes. Even in his muddled state, he finally recognized the familiar figure. His heart couldn't help but sour. The loneliness and longing almost swallowed him after so long.

Rhine looked at his hazy eyes and his heart burned passionately. His intense and tyrannical pheromone filled the entire air.

He easily folded back the car seat to lie flat and held Shang Ke tight to his chest as he engaged him in a fiery kiss.

It was him… Shang Ke indulged in his scent, his mind incapable of any other thought.

Within the narrow car, two fiery hot bodies tangled together as one. Softly panting, rubbing and shaking, they mixed and entwined together, writhing and rutting together uncontrollably, their passion leading them all through the night.