Chapter 6

Qin Fei didn’t expect to meet Li Sen so soon, after just inquiring about him with Ai Nuo a while ago.

Today is Xi Yuan’s birthday, so he had invited Qin Fei to have a meal together. He also gave him a gift—a bouquet of flowers and a silver ring engraved with their initials. Xi Yuan was extremely happy when he received the gift, his eyes even reddened. He immediately put it on his finger. This was the token of affection between him and his Male Master, and he thought to himself that he would lock it in a safe when they got back. Wearing it on his hand was too risky. What if he lost it by accident?

Qin Fei noticed how reluctant he looked and teased, “You’re not going to hide it away, are you?”

He then saw Xi Yuan lower his head. His face was very pale, so when he blushed, it was very obvious.

Qin Fei:…

He actually guessed right?! He was a bit at a loss for words and laughed, “I gave it to you so you could wear it. What would be the point of giving it to you otherwise?”

Caught in the act, Xi Yuan had no choice but to agree.

The two zergs’ relationship was becoming more comfortable. After half a year of being together, the awkwardness had disappeared, and they now had the feeling of a long-established couple. Neither of them saw any issue with this. Qin Fei thought it was fine—he couldn’t treat Xi Yuan as a woman, but considering his family worked just as well. Ai Nuo, on the other hand, found it unbelievable. How could two zergs be together for such a short time and already lose their passion? With so much time left ahead of them, how were they supposed to continue? If it were him, just thinking about it made him shudder.

“Ah! It’s Sen! What a coincidence, you’re eating here too.” A surprised voice rang out. Since the distance wasn’t far—just two seats away—and although a large potted plant blocked the view, the voice was crystal clear.

At first, Qin Fei was puzzled, thinking the name “Sen” sounded familiar. But after listening to their conversation, he quickly figured out who it was.

“Arthur, you’re here too? Are you alone? Want to join us?”

“Yeah, no companion. I’d love to chat with you. Who’s this?” Arthur replied bluntly, seemingly pausing for a moment after hearing the question.

“Let me introduce. This is my queen, female. We’re getting engaged next month. You’re welcome to come to the ceremony.”

The newcomer’s tone shifted to something melancholic: “So Sen is getting engaged, huh? I wonder if you still remember me, if you still remember the promises you made back then? Someone said they were going to marry me. I didn’t dare hope for it, but Arthur knows my position. What about the others?” His tone gave Qin Fei the chills. It was a tone that might sound acceptable if a woman were speaking, but that voice came from someone with a body that, while smaller than most female zergs, was still undeniably male!

Sen, it seemed, was enjoying this attention, even smiling as he reassured, “How could I forget? I’ll still marry you, just need to hold the ceremony later. Don’t worry.”

“We’ll get along fine in the future. I’m sure we’ll manage,” said the quiet female zerg, his voice low.

“That’s great! Sen, you can’t forget me. My heart’s been yours for so long…” The speaker leaned toward him as they said this.

—

Qin Fei felt that he had eaten enough and it was time to leave—if he stayed any longer, he would probably throw up.

After exiting the hotel and getting into the hover car, Xi Yuan activated the autopilot to take them home. Noticing that Qin Fei didn’t look quite right, he asked, “What’s wrong?”

“The tone of the person who spoke earlier… spoke made me feel uncomfortable,” Qin Fei replied.

“He’s an A-female. Don’t you like that kind of personality? Many male zergs actually prefer A-females,” Xi Yuan explained.

Qin Fei then understood. An A-female was a gender that existed between male and female zergs. While A-females were still considered female, their reproductive capabilities weren’t as strong as a true female zerg’s, and their physical attributes were also not on par with those of a female zerg. However, they were still stronger than male zergs.

He didn’t know what the situation had been like in the past, when males and females were more equal, but in modern times, females were generally considered superior to males. So, while males had an absolute advantage in marriage, they still felt somewhat inferior, which created tension in relationships with females. This was where A-females came in—being weaker than females, they tended to have gentler, more obedient personalities, which made them quite popular among male zergs.

The number of A-females was also limited. The male-to-female ratio was 1:15, while the male-to-A-female ratio was 1:20, meaning A-females were even rarer than males. Although A-females’ combat abilities couldn’t compare to those of female zergs—making them unsuitable for the battlefield or for territorial expansion—they had their own strengths. They excelled in fields like art appreciation and medical treatment. Many A-females worked in the military, mostly in logistical and administrative roles. For a male zerg, being able to gain the favor of such a rare A-female was a source of pride.

“Qin Fei! What are you looking at?” Lin Yu suddenly called out, startling Qin Fei, who then turned around and said with a hint of helplessness, “Oh, it’s you, Lin Yu. What’s up?”

“I wanted to ask,” Lin Yu continued, “My female father recently got an Ice Orchid from outside, and my male father really likes it. I was wondering if you’d like it. If you do, I can give you a seedling. That Ice Orchid is really beautiful. Every morning, you can see the ice beads hanging on its flowers.”

The Ice Orchid was purely ornamental, it didn’t have any medicinal properties, but its beauty and delicate nature made it rare and highly sought after.

Seeing him try to please him like this, Qin Fei couldn’t help but think back to his past. Back then, his girlfriend was a junior, a beautiful and eloquent girl who was very popular. He had fallen for her at first sight and pursued her for a whole year. Every morning, he would get up early to buy breakfast and deliver it to her dormitory, and during finals, he would accompany her to study in the library. With the money he earned from part-time jobs, he treated her to meals and movies, bought her gifts for her birthday and holidays. After a whole year of dating, they had only progressed to holding hands and hugging, but he was perfectly content with it. Back then, he was just like that—whenever he had something new and exciting, he would share it with her… When did things change? They had started out as the perfect couple, and many classmates said they’d never break up. They were inseparable whenever they had free time, but who would’ve thought that they would end up apart, and in such a way…?

In the six months since arriving here, he had set many goals for himself: to absorb the memories as his own, to study hard and keep up with his peers, to recall the original owner’s behavior without revealing himself, to care for his parents and siblings, to develop a relationship with his future mate… So many things to do, and he had never had the time to think about that relationship, or perhaps, he just couldn’t bring himself to. Would she cry if she knew about his death?

He had always ignored Lin Yu’s passionate pursuit, knowing full well that he wouldn’t accept, so why not reject him outright? Wasn’t that also unfair in its own way?

“Lin Yu, it’s fine, but don’t do this again in the future.”

The smiling face suddenly stiffened. Lin Yu didn’t understand what he had said or done wrong. After saying those words, he saw Qin Fei deep in thought, and when he came back to his senses, he rejected him. What did he mean by “don’t do this again in the future”? Did he not like him? Was there no hope at all?

“What did I do wrong? Tell me, I’ll change, I promise!” His face still held a trace of immaturity, and now that he was flustered, it was all too clear. Usually, he appeared to be a fully grown female zerg. But he was only eighteen years old.

But if there was no possible outcome, why give him hope? Wouldn’t that be cruel?

“You’re great, but we’re not suited for each other.”

Lin Yu stared at him, wide-eyed, for a long time without speaking. Then, as if suddenly snapping out of it, he walked away dejectedly.

Seeing him leave like that, Qin Fei let out a sigh of relief. He had once been an ordinary person, with no prestigious family background or outstanding intelligence. At most, his height and well-proportioned face, gained from playing basketball as a child, set him apart. But he certainly didn’t look the way he did now. If he were like this on Earth, he’d definitely be a superstar, no doubt about it. So he had no experience in rejecting others and didn’t know what to say, only managing to repeat a line from a TV drama.

Qin Fei hesitated for a moment, closed the physical book in his hands, and opened his light brain. He clicked on the search bar, typed in “Earth,” and held his breath.

A line of text popped up on the screen: Sorry, no such planet found.

His heart suddenly races. No Earth! He had been here for six months and had gained a deep understanding of the strength of the zerg race. If they discovered Earth, they would treat it just like all the other colonized planets—invading and plundering, and then humans on Earth would become second-class citizens. Humans could never defeat the zerg race.

In terms of physical strength, he, a male zerg who was weaker than a female zerg and even less powerful than an intersex zerg, could easily lift hundreds of pounds with one hand. He had been curious about Qin Fei’s claws. Normally, they were just like regular hands, but when needed, his nails would grow exponentially, and with ease, he could slice through the bones of exotic beasts as if cutting tofu. He had heard that some female zergs even had wings, shoulder spikes, or tentacles, though he hadn’t seen them in person, so he didn’t know their full power. However, from what he had learned in class, some female zerg wings could even slice through mechs!

From a population standpoint, on the main star, the zerg race numbered over 10 billion. Then there were nine secondary planets, each with around 5 billion zergs, plus several ordinary planets like the Qin family’s planet, which had between 100 million to 2 billion zergs. There were nearly a hundred of these ordinary planets, and as for the colonial planets, the zerg population on each was typically in the millions, though the total number was vast—there were thousands of colonial planets! The zerg race truly deserved its title as the interstellar overlords! Of course, the zerg race wasn’t the only one. There were three other similar factions, but they were far away and there hadn’t been any major conflicts yet.

The zerg race is numerous, but the number of high-level zergs is not very large. On the main planet, where zerg elites are gathered, despite the vast population, there are only about 5,000 level 9 zergs, and fewer than 100 of them are males. Level 8 zergs number over 60,000, with fewer than 1,000 males. There are hundreds of thousands of level 7 zergs, but fewer than 10,000 males. The exact numbers may vary slightly, but the deviations are limited. The higher the level, the more attention they receive. For example, level 9 males are constantly in the public eye, with every move they make attracting attention.

“Male Master,” Xi Yuan called softly, and saw him hurriedly turn off the light brain. However, Xi Yuan still caught a glimpse of it: Earth? What is this? He suppressed his curiosity, the Male Master’s current attitude indicated that he didn’t want him to know. Xi Yuan had just gone out to take a communication call and didn’t know someone had visited earlier. The communication had stirred the Male Master’s homesickness: “I received an order from the military department. I’ll begin patrolling tomorrow.”

“Where?”

“Around the main planet.”

“How long will you be gone?”

“Male Master, don’t worry. I’ll leave in the morning and return before evening. I’ll have dinner ready on time.”

Qin Fei: “…”

I’m not asking if you would return to cook dinner. Never mind, I already know your schedule.