Editor and proofreader: Oceanblue

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Faced with Gu Shenyuan’s sudden confession and his sincere gaze, Ye Qingyun was momentarily stunned.

However, he quickly came to his senses and refused, saying, “I’m not willing.”

Gu Shenyuan himself was never one to seek power or glory, nor did he have any ambition for such a high-ranking position. This was evident, as Gu Shenyuan hadn’t developed his influence or sought powerful roles before meeting Ye Qingyun.

Even without deep thinking, Ye Qingyun understood that vying for control over this star domain was an extremely dangerous endeavor—one wrong move could cost Gu Shenyuan his life.

If Gu Shenyuan’s true aspiration had been to rule an empire, Ye Qingyun might have supported him. But since Gu Shenyuan never had that intention, Ye Qingyun was, of course, determined to stop him. There was no way he would agree to this just to encourage Gu Shenyuan to pursue such a path.

A hint of sadness flashed in Gu Shenyuan’s eyes. He lowered his gaze but did not release Ye Qingyun’s hand, gripping it more tightly. After a moment of silence, he offered a faint smile, “Speaking so boldly before even starting—my mistake. I’ll ask you again once I’ve succeeded.”

Ye Qingyun: ‘???’

Hearing this left Ye Qingyun in shock. He was just about to say that even success wouldn’t change anything when he caught a glimpse of Gu Shenyuan’s expression.

It was a look that carefully guarded something fragile.

Gu Shenyuan was cautiously holding onto the possibility of being with him. If Ye Qingyun rejected him again, it would cruelly shatter Gu Shenyuan’s hopes, and there was no telling what Gu Shenyuan might do if he lost all hope.

Ye Qingyun felt the words stick in his throat, unable to respond either way.

Fortunately, back at the hotel, Ye Qingyun came up with a plan to stop Gu Shenyuan.

Perhaps his overly positive demeanor had given Gu Shenyuan the impression that he was full of life and no longer contemplating tragic decisions, prompting him to make such ambitious plans for the future.

If he showed a more negative outlook, Gu Shenyuan’s focus would shift away from interstellar conquest.

“You wouldn’t take me with you, right?” Ye Qingyun mumbled, fiddling with the blanket. “I can stay here by myself.”

As expected, Gu Shenyuan paused at his words.

“I’ll stay by your side,” Gu Shenyuan said.

He could stay with Ye Qingyun to prevent him from doing anything reckless, while also trying to take control of other planets. Although this would require more effort and significantly slow his progress, it didn’t matter—as long as Ye Qingyun was safe, everything else could proceed gradually.

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That night, Ye Qingyun found himself unable to sleep.

Although he had temporarily reassured Gu Shenyuan, he was reminded of his original goal—to find a way to lift the bloodline curse binding Gu Shenyuan and to get him to cooperate in providing the resources needed for research.

But his plan to make Gu Shenyuan dislike him and thus comply voluntarily had failed. Gu Shenyuan’s feelings for him were anything but dislike; he was very much in love.

Ye Qingyun couldn’t help recalling the passionate gaze Gu Shenyuan had shown him during his confession—a gaze intense for Gu Shenyuan, like ice thawing and boiling.

Thinking of that look, Ye Qingyun became lost in thought again.

The system spoke softly: “Host, do you like the protagonist?”

Ye Qingyun: “Why are you asking this?”

The system replied seriously: “I advise you not to develop feelings. Whether the protagonist is single and who his partner is constitutes a fundamental law in this world. If there’s a deviation in this core, the world’s awareness may awaken. Based on my experience traveling through multiple worlds, the world’s consciousness may reject you as unworthy, someone who taints its unblemished “high mountain flower” of a protagonist.”

Ye Qingyun said nothing.

The system continued: “The plot in this world is too chaotic. The main system has already granted you permissions so that even if you don’t maintain your character, you won’t experience headaches. You must have noticed this by now.”

Ye Qingyun: “Hmm… Thank you.”

System: “However, the world consciousness is beyond our control. We don’t know how it might react, so please stay vigilant. But don’t worry too much; we also have a rebirth package ready for you if needed.”

Ye Qingyun: “I understand. Thanks for the reminder.”

The system fell silent again, and Ye Qingyun raised his hand to rub his temples.

To be safe, he decided he should quickly find a way to break the bloodline curse on Gu Shenyuan.

To research this curse, he would need to get a few samples—some of Gu Shenyuan’s hair, blood, saliva, or crystal fluid—the more he could gather, the better.

Crystal fluid was out of the question, so he aimed to obtain as many of the other items as possible.

As for the research, he could pretend to study the “Stone of Love” while secretly analyzing Gu Shenyuan’s components.

This shared room certainly wasn’t equipped for his research, so Ye Qingyun approached Gu Shenyuan with a request.

“I don’t want to stay here anymore. I need a quiet place with a lot of research equipment if I’m going to study the stone,” Ye Qingyun said.

Gu Shenyuan agreed to his request, taking Ye Qingyun off-planet in a spacecraft to a quiet world.

They landed in front of a large courtyard, which exuded a sense of solitude, surrounded by a dark mist. The place was silent as if it had been uninhabited for a long time.

Gu Shenyuan, familiar with the layout, led Ye Qingyun inside. As Ye Qingyun curiously looked around, Gu Shenyuan said, “This is my old home. I’ve stocked it with research equipment; it should be helpful. Let me know if there’s anything else you need.”

“Ah…” Ye Qingyun hesitated, recalling something. “This is your old home… Is your grandmother here?”

When Gu Shenyuan boarded the ship, it was supposedly because his grandmother had been captured and used as leverage by Pu Tian. Ye Qingyun wasn’t sure what had happened to her since then.

“My grandmother?” Gu Shenyuan seemed slightly surprised by the question but answered, “She passed away many years ago.”

Ye Qingyun: ‘…’

So Gu Shenyuan’s grandmother had been gone for years, meaning Pu Tian’s hostage situation was impossible. Then, why did Gu Shenyuan board the ship?

Could it be admiration for his talent that made him come all the way to see him?

That’s too strange!

Unable to figure out Gu Shenyuan’s motives, Ye Qingyun stopped thinking about it and focused on how to obtain what he needed from him.

Ye Qingyun thought that hair would be the easiest to acquire among the needed items.

People lose a few strands of hair every day, so picking a few up from the floor shouldn’t be too difficult, right?

To make it easier, when Gu Shenyuan claimed that there was only one bedroom, Ye Qingyun didn’t expose his lie.

Thankfully, even though Gu Shenyuan pretended there was only one room, he still arranged two beds, setting them up like the shared room they had stayed in before.

Ye Qingyun slept soundly, and the next morning, when Gu Shenyuan got up to make breakfast, he quietly got up too.

He went to Gu Shenyuan’s bed, only to find the blanket neatly folded, revealing a spotless bedsheet underneath.

Not a single hair on the sheet.

That doesn’t make sense! Did Gu Shenyuan tidy up the bed as well?

Perplexed, Ye Qingyun knelt to inspect the floor, only to find it spotless, not a trace of dust, let alone hair.

…Maybe today was just a hair-free day?

Ye Qingyun decided to be patient. He still had time.

But after three days of searching the entire house, he hadn’t found a single strand of Gu Shenyuan’s hair. It was as if Gu Shenyuan couldn’t shed hair at all.

Ye Qingyun was stunned, becoming even more curious about Gu Shenyuan’s makeup.

This was the simplest task—if he couldn’t even obtain hair, what excuse could he possibly use to acquire blood or saliva?

And as for another specific type of fluid—not even worth considering!

The system’s voice chimed in, seriously: “In my opinion, the easiest item for you to obtain isn’t hair—it’s crystal fluid.”

Ye Qingyun: “…”

The system continued in its earnest tone: “You wouldn’t even need to build much of an emotional connection. Just have a drink or two, pretend to be drunk, lean into Gu Shenyuan’s embrace, and let nature take its course. The next day, head to the lab, retrieve your research target and get to work. Oh, and if you prepare, you might even gather some saliva at the same time.”

Ye Qingyun hadn’t fully understood at first, but as he followed the system’s instructions in his mind, he suddenly felt both angry and embarrassed: “Stop talking and go wash your brain!”

The system quickly fell silent, leaving Ye Qingyun flushed.

Scratching his head, he did his best to erase the method from his mind.

There were countless ways to achieve his goal, so he certainly didn’t need to consider that one.

Besides, the system didn’t understand Gu Shenyuan at all. Even if Gu Shenyuan let his guard down momentarily, he’d clean everything up afterward. He’d never just leave things as they were.

Hmph, utterly unreliable!