Kāng nà couldn’t help but freeze, as scenes from seven years ago seemed to float before his eyes.

Back then, he had just crossed over to the Insect Clan and was playing a shooting game for the first time. Not knowing he needed to hide his gender, he foolishly registered as a male insect, only to be mistaken by two female insects as a lowly male insect in disguise. After all, male insects rarely played shooting games, and even if they did, they would be surrounded by a group of female insects.

Kāng nà explained several times, but those two female insects wouldn’t listen at all. They just caught him and beat him up, reducing his score to negative numbers. Frustrated and dizzy with anger, he sent a video request to Jiā lè tè without thinking.

That very night, Jiā lè tè rushed to Kāng nà’s house after work and gave those two female insects a good beating.

On that day, Jiā lè tè was just like this, holding a victory medal and kneeling on one knee in front of him.

It was also on that day that Kāng nà decided to propose to Jiā lè tè and become his partner. Not because Jiā lè tè was good at games and could help him score points, but because of a saying he had seen online:
— When you feel wronged and the first person you think of is him, then you can get married.

At that time, his heart was filled with joy, thinking he had found the right insect.

However, he never expected that seven years later, the one who would take revenge for him, help him score points, and present him with trophies would be the same military female who would poison his drink for the sake of power.

So, had Jiā lè tè changed his heart, or was the scoring and revenge just a play, merely a means to use him to climb the ranks and gain wealth?

If everything was just for use, then why was Jiā lè tè playing games with him today?

“male master?”

The voice of the female insect pulled Kāng nà back to reality. He took the trophy, feeling as if his heart was stuffed with a sponge soaked in bitter medicine, both painful and swollen, making him feel quite uncomfortable.

He forced out a “thank you” and exited the game.

Jiā lè tè followed him out of the game, pulling out a beautifully wrapped gift box from his storage capsule. “male master, this is a gift I personally selected for you for Insect God Festival.”

Kāng nà took the box and opened it to find a set of exquisite high-end suits inside.

The pure white suit was adorned with champagne-colored tassels on the shoulders, and the cuffs were embroidered with sunflowers in the same color, shimmering with golden light under the sun, perfectly showcasing the essence of understated luxury.

Kāng nà glanced at Jiā lè tè suspiciously. “You picked this suit?”

He couldn’t believe this female insect had such good taste.

Jiā lè tè scratched his head a bit awkwardly. “It’s my initial design draft; the suit shop made some changes based on it.”

No wonder.

Kāng nà put away the suit, feeling the sponge in his heart swell even more.

Clearly, he had already gotten involved with the Third Prince, and he had already planned to poison him, so why was he doing this?

He forced a smile. “I really like it, thank you.”

“As long as you like it.” Jiā lè tè visibly relaxed. “Next week is the Marshal’s conferment ceremony; you can wear this suit to attend.”

Kāng nà was stunned, feeling a buzzing in his ears, but his mind was suddenly clear. Ever since their wedding anniversary, Jiā lè tè’s various odd behaviors had all found reasonable explanations.

Whether it was being cautious everywhere, the lunch he personally made, or the necklace and dress he picked out, as well as the shooting game they played this afternoon, it was all to coax him, ensuring he could attend the Marshal’s conferment ceremony on time and maintain his image as a model partner.

Only in this way would the public not suspect his sudden death; they would only sympathize with Jiā lè tè, who had suddenly lost his male master. The Insect Clan had no concept of fidelity for reproduction, so even if Jiā lè tè married the Third Prince three days after his death, the citizens wouldn’t think he was cold-hearted; they would only feel he was remarrying for the sake of the Insect Clan’s reproduction.

What a good scheme, what a good strategy!

With a bang, Kāng nà could almost hear the sound of the sponge in his heart shattering, leaving only a bitter taste and a mess behind.

Kāng nà clenched his fists tightly, unable to help but deeply despise himself in his heart.

Clearly, he had known how good this female insect was at acting and how ruthless she could be for power. Why did it still hurt so much when he realized the truth?

Kāng nà set the gift box aside, trying to control the surging emotions within him.

“I’m a bit tired from the game; I’ll go rest for a while.”

“Why not play another round? I’ll take you to the high-level area.” Jiā lè tè said as he pulled out his smart brain to recharge the game. “Which item do you like? I’ll buy it for you.”

“No need.” Kāng nà avoided Jiā lè tè’s outstretched arm, his voice showing no fluctuation. “Don’t worry, I will definitely attend the Marshal’s conferment ceremony on time next week.”

Watching the back of the male insect, Jiā lè tè felt a bit confused and wronged.

He could sense that the male master wasn’t having fun. But he didn’t understand why; clearly, the male master used to be so happy playing games, and he even helped him win championships. Why wasn’t he happy now?

The powerful military female sat dejectedly on the ground, wrapping herself tightly with her golden wings.

*

Although he had faced setbacks one after another, Jiā lè tè still didn’t give up. That night, after carefully cleaning himself, he wrapped a towel around himself and crawled cautiously to Kāng nà’s side, prying open his honey-colored buttocks.

“male master, please enjoy.”

Kāng nà didn’t even look away from his smart brain, casually tossing a towel over Jiā lè tè. “I’m not feeling well today; let’s talk about it later.”

After saying that, Kāng nà was about to turn off the light and sleep when he suddenly felt a warm, wet sensation on the top of his foot. He quickly looked down and saw that Jiā lè tè had somehow emerged from under the towel, naked and kneeling by his legs, reverently kissing the top of his foot.

In just a moment of distraction, Jiā lè tè had already kissed his way up to his ankle. There was even a hint of upward movement. The female insect’s golden eyes were filled with burning desire, like flames from hell, boiling and dangerous.

He suddenly realized that while Jiā lè tè could poison him for power, it didn’t mean the female insect didn’t like his body. After all, according to the Insect Clan’s aesthetics, his face was considered quite good-looking.

Thinking of this, Kāng nà shivered all over, quickly retracting his ankle, a layer of cold sweat forming on his back, and his heart racing nervously.

With escape imminent, he didn’t want any accidents. If Jiā lè tè insisted on mating with him, he could only compromise.

However, looking at the desire in Jiā lè tè’s eyes, Kāng nà felt a wave of nausea.

This desire without love was particularly disgusting.

As Kāng nà hesitated, Jiā lè tè had already kissed his way to his waist. Kāng nà instinctively recoiled, unexpectedly locking eyes with the female insect.

Those sharp golden eyes were tinged with an abnormal red, and his breathing was heavy, exuding a faint scent of cedar.

This scent was very familiar; it was the female insect’s pheromones!

Kāng nà’s expression changed, suddenly recalling that he hadn’t helped the female insect with mental relaxation for a long time. Plus, Jiā lè tè had been on missions recently, consuming a lot of mental energy, and the calming agents he had made before should be running low.

Female insects needed to rely on male insects for mental energy guidance, and mating was the simplest and most direct way to relieve stress. Therefore, for thousands of years, female insects had evolved corresponding estrus periods; as long as their mental energy was chaotic, they would go into heat, thus enticing male insects to mate.

Kāng nà let out a sigh of relief.

If it was just because of chaotic mental energy causing estrus, then it was easy to handle; he just needed to help the female insect with mental relaxation. He condensed his mental energy at his fingertips, raised his palm, and slowly covered it on the female insect’s forehead.

In the next second, the female insect’s mental sea appeared before Kāng nà’s eyes.

In the image, Jiā lè tè and the Third Prince were sitting across from each other, having lunch together.

Jiā lè tè seemed quite attentive to the Third Prince.

Perhaps he had already been stimulated too much that afternoon, but Kāng nà didn’t feel sad at all; instead, he was quite interested in observing what they were eating.

Roasted pigeon, braised beef brisket, salt-baked chicken, and tempting bread. The more Kāng nà looked, the more he felt the dishes on the table were familiar.

Wasn’t this the Zhen Xiang Yuan?

Even the private room was the same one they had for their seventh anniversary date!

Kāng nà’s breath hitched, and his gaze involuntarily slid toward the window. On the large screen of the CBD building across the street, a video playing “Happy Insect God Festival” was rolling.

Insect God Festival, wasn’t that today?

So Jiā lè tè hadn’t gone to work this morning; he had gone to accompany the Third Prince!

Having lunch with the Third Prince in the morning and then coming back to play games with him in the afternoon, he really managed to do both!

Kāng nà thought he would be upset, but to his surprise, he found that he wasn’t upset at all. He could even continue to help Jiā lè tè with mental relaxation without changing his expression.

It truly echoed the words of a stand-up comedian from Blue Star—when you are truly desperate for someone (or an insect), you achieve true tolerance for them.

If it weren’t for Jiā lè tè poisoning him in his past life, Kāng nà estimated he wouldn’t have been so harsh on this insect.

Indeed, sadness and sorrow are built on the foundation of love; without love, other feelings don’t hold.

Kāng nà chuckled softly, withdrawing his mental energy and turning to look out the window.

In the dark night sky, a golden star, shining like the moon of Blue Star, was particularly dazzling.

That was the Ant Star, the closest to Insect Star.

Kāng nà suddenly felt a sense of openness in his heart.

In this second life, he originally only thought about escaping the fate of his past life, but now he suddenly realized that in this life, he could do more than just passively escape, just like life isn’t only about love.

The stars and the sea, the endless distance, the millions of fans on his account, and his pet suffering from illness but unable to express itself—all of these could constitute the meaning of his life.

Kāng nà gently exhaled, taking advantage of Jiā lè tè’s dazed state after the mental relaxation, he turned over, lay down, turned off the light, and silently counted the days.

Only seven days left until freedom.