Quan Yan left Alhandra’s estate and arrived at a friend’s private medical office two hours later.
The doorbell rang, and Ruan He, half-asleep, reached out from under his covers to press a button on his bedside table, automatically unlocking the door.
Quan Yan, accustomed to this method of entry, walked in and headed straight to the bedroom, where he promptly lifted Ruan He out of bed. “I need something from you.”
Ruan He, still groggy, squinted at Quan Yan before lazily propping himself against a cabinet full of expensive liquor. “What is it?”
“Test my Zerg source,” Quan Yan replied.
Ruan He narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing him. As time passed, his expression grew serious. “Has the agitation in your Zerg source subsided?”
You should know that Quan Yan’s insect source restlessness some time ago could be felt from a long distance, and this situation is very common in the insect race.
Although the slight restlessness of the insect source can be concealed by mental power at ordinary times, when the annual restlessness period comes, such a degree of agitation cannot be concealed.
Quan Yan had already gone through one agitation period six months ago. Somehow, instead of subsiding, his agitation had escalated, a dangerous situation since the agitation of the Zerg source inflicted significant damage on a female Zerg’s body and neurons. Experiencing two agitation periods in one year would double, if not more, the usual damage.
Currently, no race in the galaxy had found a way to suppress this condition caused by the EY substance. The only remedy was through the intervention of a male Zerg, which is why female Zerg were required to stay with their male fathers during their agitation periods.
However, many female Zerg were without male fathers and had to endure the agony at the cost of their health, hoping to survive until they could find a male lord after reaching adulthood. Unfortunately, many never found one.
Quan Yan definitely hadn’t waited until after the agitation period to come to him—he wasn’t that idle!
With these thoughts, Ruan He straightened up, eagerly dragging Quan Yan to the adjacent room where the Zerg source testing equipment was located.
By the time Quan Yan returned to the estate in the evening, Wei’an was sitting in a fluffy cloud, being flown around by Alhandra on the lawn. When Wei’an saw him, he waved his little hand, “Brother~”
Quan Yan approached with a gentle expression. “Male father.”
“Hmm,” Alhandra acknowledged with a nod.
After exchanging pleasantries, Quan Yan reached out to ruffle Wei’an’s hair. “Have you been good?”
Wei’an grabbed his hand with both of his own, his bright blue eyes filled with a sparkling smile. “Wei’an~ good~”
“Very good,” Quan Yan praised with a soft tone.
His Zerg source’s agitation had decreased significantly—a drastic reduction—all thanks to the little male cub before him.
So this is the power of a male Zerg?
Delighted by the praise, Wei’an beamed even more and tried to mimic him, “Good~”
Later that night, in the hallway of the dormitory at Gu Yi Military Academy, a small, transparent figure wobbled along, leaning against the wall.
Wei’an’s eyes were filled with tears as he slowly made his way toward the direction where he could sense his brother. He moved at a snail’s pace, covering only a small distance in ten minutes. When he grew tired, he sat down on the floor, panting in small gasps.
From around the corner, Quan Ci watched coldly as the tiny figure rested against the wall.
For the past two months, he had sensed something strange at night, and the sensation had grown more intense each day. Today, he finally saw the source of the abnormality—a strange, translucent little Zerg, who seemed to be a male cub.
He approached and stood in front of the cub, examining him closely.
Noticing a pair of feet in front of him, Wei’an blinked in confusion and looked up. When he saw his brother, his eyes crinkled in joy, and he tried to throw himself into his brother’s legs.
Just as Wei’an was about to grab onto him, Quan Ci stepped back, causing Wei’an to stumble and fall to the ground.
It hurt.
Wei’an sat up, rubbing his scraped knee, as large tears rolled down his cheeks.
Quan Ci paused, surprised. He’s crying?
He started to walk away but, after taking a few steps, inexplicably stopped.
Glancing back, he saw the strange little male cub still crying. The tip of his nose was red, his mouth pouting in grievance, and his blue eyes, now vertical slits from crying, looked up at him expectantly, as if waiting for him to come over and comfort him.
But comforting wasn’t something Quan Ci did. He never comforted any Zerg.
Five minutes later, Quan Ci bent down, grabbed Wei’an by the back of his collar, and lifted him off the ground. His voice was cold. “You sure know how to cry.”
Wei’an, dangling from Quan Ci’s hand, kicked his legs a little and looked up, giving him a tearful smile. “Brother, play~”
Listening to the cub’s babyish voice, Quan Ci glanced at him, expressionless. “I’m not your brother, so stop calling me that.”
Wei’an tilted his head, puzzled. He was his brother, though. “Yes~ brother~”
“No.”
“Yes~”
“If you keep calling me that, I’ll throw you out.”
“No~” Wei’an wasn’t the least bit afraid of being thrown out and even started playing with his legs while still hanging in Quan Ci’s grasp.
Small as he was, he had quite a bit of courage.
Quan Ci, thinking about it, carried him back to his room, where he folded a small blanket out of a soft pajama set and placed the tiny cub on it.
Having never slept alone before, Wei’an saw his brother getting into bed nearby. He immediately propped himself up and wobbled over to the bed, trying to climb up.
However, Wei’an was too small to even reach the edge of the bed, let alone climb onto it.
“Brother~ Wei’an~ wants bed”
Quan Ci got annoyed by the noise and got up to carry him to the bed, with a cold face and unfriendly tone, “Go to sleep. If you keep making noise, I’ll throw you out.”
Wei’an covered his mouth with his small hands, indicating he would be quiet.
As the night deepened, after Quan Ci fell asleep, Wei’an quietly crawled onto his pillow, rubbing his little face against Quan Ci’s cheek before finally falling asleep beside him, head to head.
Quan Ci, who wasn’t really asleep, grabbed the back of Wei’an’s collar and moved him away. But no sooner had he closed his eyes again than Wei’an crawled back over.
This repeated several times until Wei’an, eyes full of hope, looked at him. “Sleep~ with brother~”
Quan Ci met his gaze, saying nothing, and after a long pause, he finally gave in, letting him stay.
Time passed slowly, and the soft, barely audible breathing beside him didn’t bother Quan Ci as much as he expected.
When the little male cub eventually disappeared, Quan Ci, who had appeared to be asleep, turned to look quietly at the empty spot beside him before sitting up in bed.
Gone again?
No fluctuations in the space transfer device? !
Is this little male cub real or a virtual character? If he’s a virtual being, why is he only visible to me? And if he’s real, how does he do it?
Quan Ci spent the entire night pondering these questions.
At dawn, Wei’an, who had woken up early at Alhandra’s estate, asked Alhandra to put him on the floor.
Alhandra, puzzled, obliged, curious to see what Wei’an was planning.
Once on the floor, Wei’an nimbly crawled to the wall, then slowly pulled himself up, leaning against it. But midway, he lost his balance and plopped down on the ground, his chubby cheeks jiggling from the fall.
Luckily, the thick carpet cushioned the impact, so it didn’t hurt. After rubbing his bottom with his small hands, Wei’an tried again, wobbling as he stood up against the wall.
Realizing what was about to happen, Alhandra held his breath. Then, he watched as Wei’an, who had finally managed to stand up, slowly and unsteadily began walking toward him.
He was a white and tender little ball, walking very slowly and unsteadily, as if he was about to fall at any time.
But this scene made Alhandra’s eyes warm. He stared at Wei’an closely, and when he was about to fall, he quickly stepped forward and hugged him in his arms.
He kissed Wei’an’s cheek, his voice a bit hoarse. “Amazing, my little Wei’an can walk now.”
Wei’an, having been kissed on his right cheek, obediently turned his left cheek toward Alhandra for another kiss. When Alhandra didn’t move, Wei’an even patted his own cheek to urge him, “Kiss~”
Once he got the kiss he wanted, Wei’an clapped his hands. “Wei’an is amazing~”
Wei’an had learned to walk!
The entire estate was filled with joy at the news. Upon hearing it, Quan Yan immediately dropped what he was doing and rushed home.
“Where are you going? You’re not done here,” Ruan He called out.
“Wei’an can walk now. I’m going to see him.”
“What’s the big deal? Isn’t it normal for a cub to learn to walk?” Ruan He looked puzzled.
Well, it’s different because Wei’an is a male cub. If he were a female cub, he’d be running around getting into fights by now.
Quan Yan turned to look at him, his expression saying, “You don’t understand.” He replied, “Wait until you have a male cub brother, and you’ll get it.”
On second thought, no thanks. His male Zerg brother was already a handful. Adding a male cub brother to the mix would probably drive him crazy.
As soon as he entered the estate, Quan Yan asked the servants where Wei’an was. Upon hearing he was in the orchard, he immediately headed that way.
At first, Quan Yan thought that spending time with Wei’an was merely a way to suppress his Zerg source agitation. But as they spent more time together, he found himself feeling like something was missing whenever he didn’t see Wei’an.
Wei’an, who was sitting on a cloud picking grapes, lit up when he saw Quan Yan. He slapped the control panel in front of him, and the cloud floated over to Quan Yan. Holding out a grape, Wei’an offered it to him with some effort. “Brother, eat~ Sweet~”
Quan Yan lifted Wei’an out of the cloud and leaned down to eat the grape from his hand. “Mm, very sweet.”
Wei’an patted his chest with his small hand, smiling so widely that his newly grown baby tooth peeked out. “Wei’an will pick more grapes for brother~”
Quan Yan’s heart warmed, and he held Wei’an closer. This pure affection and concern were becoming addictive.
Even if Wei’an grew up to be like other male Zerg, Quan Yan thought, it wouldn’t matter. He would always protect him.
“I heard our Wei’an can walk now?”
“Yes~” Wei’an replied, munching on a grape as he answered his brother.
Quan Yan wiped Wei’an’s sticky face with his hand and gently said, “How about walking for brother so I can see?”
“Okay~”
When that small figure stumbled into his arms, Quan Yan felt a warmth fill the emptiness he had carried in his heart since birth.
As a child, he had yearned for love from his male father, but after being thrown into the punishment hall several times, he had let go of that hope. He had also longed for love from his female father, but with his heart tied to his male father, his female father had no time for him.
The relationship with his siblings was neither particularly good nor bad.
That time, he had sent Quan Fei to the medical hall on his own initiative simply because, at that age, he couldn’t stand by and watch his blood-related brother die.
Gradually, Quan Yan stopped longing for those things.
He never expected that he would, at this time, encounter such a soft, sweet, little male cub brother who called him brother with a babyish voice.
So small, yet he warmed Quan Yan’s heart whenever he saw him.
