Chapter 118: As a Test Subject

The group enjoyed a friendly moment of camaraderie before dealing another blow to the fragile hearts of the single Alphas.

Ji Laili finally understood the purpose of his friends’ visit.

Listening to Lei Po’s awkward yet sincere apology—where he insisted that he really did have a strong Alpha presence, especially when he was being particularly Alpha-like—Ji Laili finally experienced the true meaning of secondhand embarrassment.

“Po-ge, I was just spouting nonsense… What even is ‘Alpha scent’? Can’t it just be ‘human scent’ instead?”

Lei Po didn’t believe him. “Didn’t you say that helmet—” He suddenly stopped mid-sentence, recalling the experience, and looked at Ji Laili in surprise.

Seeing Lei Po finally realize the truth, Ji Laili smiled. “I had no choice at the time; I had to say that. I thought you’d understand.”

So, it was all just a misunderstanding. Thinking back on how foolish he had been, Lei Po felt suffocated.

How embarrassing.

“Zhai-ge, you too?”

Zhai Yifei paused, his silence saying it all.

Ji Laili found it both amusing and touching.

Seeing his two friends looking dejected, he quickly reassured them, “Ge, it’s fine. I know you guys care about me, and that makes me happy.”

“If Po-ge had said I was annoying or something, I’d probably overthink it too.”

Lei Po clicked his tongue. “Why would I say that? Shouldn’t it be that toxic guy instead?”

Ji Laili: Are you seriously arguing about this, my dude?

Zhai Yifei shot Lei Po a cold glare, his murderous intent impossible to hide.

Afraid they’d start another fight, Ji Laili wisely changed the subject. “Alright, alright, let’s focus. We made an unexpected discovery today—it’s a good start.”

Hearing this, even Eugene, who had been uninterested in the conversation (or rather, unable to get a word in), became serious.

They were all well aware of the responsibility they carried.

Ji Laili said, “It looks like this base is mainly divided into two groups: the security force and the researchers.”

Throughout the day, they had only seen two types of people—those wearing black security uniforms with a sun emblem on the shoulder and those in white lab coats.

Ji Laili shared his speculation. “Recruits like us are probably just being added to the security force to boost their numbers.”

“That makes infiltrating easier,” Shen Yu said. “But we shouldn’t act yet.”

The Empire clearly didn’t fully trust the returning Alphas. If they slipped up now, all their efforts would be wasted.

Eugene frowned, irritated. “These Imperial bastards—why recruit talented people just to make them guards? Do they even understand what they’re doing? They expect me to be a security guard?!”

“Senior Eugene, it’s fine to vent in private, but you have to hold it in when the time comes.”

Ji Laili reminded him.

Before Eugene could protest, Ji Laili continued, “But aside from the security force and researchers, there’s someone else who stands out.”

Shen Yu’s lips moved slightly as he spoke a name. “Laurie.”

“That’s him.” Ji Laili winked at him. “Senior, do you know much about him?”

Shen Yu shook his head, his voice flat. “I only know of him. I know more about Garna.”

The others turned to look at him, their expressions showing mild surprise. This was their first time hearing about Laurie—Aiger’s briefing hadn’t mentioned him, and even Zhai Yifei, who had deep connections, was unaware of his existence.

Ji Laili realized that this must be Shen Yu’s secret, so he quickly smoothed things over.

“Senior, you’re seriously dedicated. Not only did you memorize the briefing, but you even investigated their network? No wonder you didn’t slip up even once today—we were all terrified of Lord Lance.” He grinned.

Eugene scoffed and muttered under his breath, “Yeah, definitely overachieving. But I bet I’ll play the biggest role in this mission…”

Zhai Yifei spoke up. “This person seems to have high clearance.”

Shen Yu nodded. “If my guess is correct, he’s one of the base’s leaders.”

“One of them?” Lei Po frowned. “Then who’s the other one? Laurie?” He recalled the Alpha with the dark circles under his eyes and looked a little skeptical.

Working twelve-hour shifts can actually get you into management?

“Hmm… Maybe it’s that Omega researcher?” Ji Laili raised an eyebrow. “This is a research base, after all.”

It wouldn’t make sense if the researchers didn’t have any authority.

Lei Po clicked his tongue. “Guess not.”

So, working twelve-hour shifts wasn’t enough to get into leadership—what a loser.

For once, Zhai Yifei agreed with him, his tone indifferent. “It’s not surprising that an Alpha would fall from grace in the Empire.”

If they kept badmouthing Laurie like this, he was bound to sneeze in his sleep. Ji Laili felt a moment of sympathy for him. Then he said, “That’s why I plan to replace him.”

“Even if I can’t take his position, gaining his trust will make things much easier for us.”

The Alphas nodded in agreement with Ji Laili’s plan. His social skills were unmatched—he seemed to instinctively know how to make people like him.

He was already impressive when he did it unconsciously, so if he put in real effort, it was hard to imagine anyone resisting him.

Still, this was a team mission. It wouldn’t be right to let Ji Laili handle everything alone. Zhai Yifei said, “We’ll take care of the security force.”

Lei Po raised an eyebrow. “Good plan. With my strength, I can climb the ranks easily. Once I do, I’ll find a way to smuggle some weapons in for you guys.”

To infiltrate the base, they had been stripped of all weapons and equipment.

Having reliable teammates was a blessing. Ji Laili couldn’t help but smile. “That just leaves getting someone into the research team.”

This was the most difficult part. None of them had any scientific expertise, nor did they understand the experiments. Gaining access would be nearly impossible.

If they couldn’t get in, they wouldn’t be able to learn about the project—let alone destroy it. At the very least, they had to gather all the information before they could wipe out the research and ensure its complete eradication.

Suddenly, Shen Yu spoke up. “Leave the research team to me.”

“I have a way in.”

“Through Garna?” Zhai Yifei frowned. He didn’t think that was a good option.

But Shen Yu shook his head. “There’s another way.”

Like Zhai Yifei, Shen Yu knew that using Garna to enter the lab wasn’t a viable strategy. In fact, knowing Garna as well as he did, Shen Yu considered it outright impossible.

In his past life, after defecting from the Federation, he had fought against Garna and understood him well. Garna looked down on Omegas—especially one who had fought him to a standstill.

To Garna, it was a humiliation. Once he confirmed that Shen Yu wouldn’t side with the Empire, he had relentlessly hunted him down.

If the other leader of the base was an Omega, their relationship must have deteriorated completely. There was no way Garna would vouch for him to join the research team.

Even if he somehow got in, the researchers would be hostile toward him because of that connection.

Shen Yu had never even considered that option.

“Then what’s your plan?”

“As a test subject, I’ll join the research.”

He said it as if it were nothing.