Jian Wenxi looked up at Yun Xunlan’s eyes and asked, “Is it really only me?”

Yun Xunlan replied, “It’s really only you.”

“Ah… since you’ve said that, what can I do?” Jian Wenxi sighed, feeling troubled. “I can only help you for ten years. After that, let’s just cut ties.”

Yun Xunlan smiled at him, “What if I can make it so you only have to recite the employment oath in front of me and not anyone else?”

Jian Wenxi raised his chin and huffed, “Then I’ll work for you for a lifetime.”

The system, witnessing this, praised itself: “Did you see that? This is what professionalism looks like. This is what I call professional.”

“Thank you, Wenxi.” Yun Xunlan sincerely thanked Jian Wenxi, “My problem is solved.”

Jian Wenxi asked him, “Do you have any other questions?”

Yun Xunlan shook his head, “No more.”

“Oh, okay.”

With the blessings delivered and Yu Chen Zhenren also met, Jian Wenxi shivered as he looked at the crowd in the banquet hall. He didn’t even dare to enter the inner hall, retreating while mumbling, “So many people… Yun Xunlan, since you have no more problems, let’s meet again in the lab. Bye-bye.”

Jian Wenxi waved goodbye to Yun Xunlan.

Yun Xunlan saw him off to the car, saying, “Be careful on the road. See you.”

Both of them thought their conversation tonight was very fulfilling.

But to others, it didn’t seem that way.

In their eyes, the Third Prince was forced by Jian Chexiao to leave the birthday banquet and personally went to the hall door to pick up the “forever just friends” precious omega young master Jian Wenxi.

After getting out of the car, the lovesick omega saw the person he liked with shining eyes but only dared to hold onto the alpha’s clothing corner.

The two of them talked about something, with the alpha still smiling gently, while the omega lowered his head in disappointment, seemingly sad, and ultimately left without entering, getting back into the car.

Two alphas from the Daylight Empire, who were close to the banquet hall entrance, were discussing this scene—

“Do you think that even someone like Jian Wenxi, an omega, doesn’t like Yun Xunlan? What kind of person does he like then?”

The other alpha, wearing a purple tie, replied, “Just because he says he doesn’t like someone doesn’t mean he really doesn’t. Maybe they’ve even slept together privately, but he still says, ‘We’re just friends.’ We’re all alphas; you know what they’re like, right?”

“Why insult yourself for no reason?” The person lightly bumped the purple tie alpha’s shoulder with his wine glass. “Besides, the Third Prince has a good reputation, unlike us.”

“Donating that much money, even a dog would have a good reputation. Who knows if he donated out of kindness or had other intentions?” The purple tie alpha scoffed, “Yun Xunlan has no real power, so he can only rely on this good reputation to boost his public support.”

“What’s the use of boosting it? The Crown Prince Yun Xun Guang is still around.”

“Tsk, Yun Xun Guang’s approval rating has dropped this year because she’s marrying a beta, and that beta is her attendant. It’s ridiculous. Do you think this banquet is so grand for no reason? Yun Xunlan is just floating around like an invisible person because of her.”

“Yun Xun Guang is marrying a beta? Their family is really interesting; even the queen is an omega left over from the Jian family. Yun Xunlan not marrying Jian Wenxi and playing around privately is probably a way to get back at the Jian family, right?”

“That’s possible. Thinking about it, it’s better for Yun Xun Guang to marry a beta. If she married an omega, who knows if it’s just someone else’s leftover goods, hahaha…”

The two alphas, looking all dignified, exchanged smiles and clinked their glasses.

“Damn it!” Gui Yan, hearing this, directly cursed, “Are the beasts from the Daylight Empire eating shit? Is this how they talk?”

Even Fu Yanxi, who usually didn’t curse, couldn’t help but frown and curse, “Two dog bastards.”

Gui Yan grew angrier, “There’s not a single good thing among those beasts from the Daylight Empire. Why did the prince send them invitations? They’ll bring bad luck on such a good day!”

Fu Yanxi said, “Because…”

He had just started to speak when a commotion erupted at the entrance of the banquet hall.

Yun Xunlan, who had just seen Jian Wenxi off and was about to return to the banquet hall, immediately turned around and walked straight toward the black gold stone square outside the hall. It wasn’t just him; others in the banquet hall were also shouting and heading in the same direction, repeatedly mentioning a name.

At the moment he heard that name, Yu Chen, standing in the corner of the banquet hall, paused, shifting his gaze from Yun Xunlan to the man descending from the aircraft— a legendary figure of the galaxy, the Duke of the Daylight Empire: Manuiyin Hest.

“Good evening, Your Highnesses.”

Manuiyin Hest, after landing from the aircraft, took off his gloves and performed a chest salute to Yun Xunlan and Yun Xun Guang. He had silver hair like satin, deep and mysterious Roland purple eyes, and a handsome face that showed no signs of age, smiling gently, “Sorry, it seems I’m late.”

Crown Prince Yun Xun Guang slightly bowed his head in return, then smiled and said, “The situation on the border battlefield is tense. It’s not easy for Duke Hest to find time to come, so there’s no need to blame yourself.”

“I am indeed late, and an apology is necessary, but I hope my blessings are not late.” Manuiyin Hest’s response was so appropriate that it couldn’t be faulted, “Happy birthday, Third Prince.”

Yun Xunlan thanked him with a slight smile, “Thank you.”

His attitude was polite but not enthusiastic.

In stark contrast to the youth was Gui Yan, who stood beside Fu Yanxi. Upon seeing Manuiyin Hest, he couldn’t help but exclaim softly, “Wow! It’s really Duke Hest! This is the first time I’ve seen him in person.”

Fu Yanxi added, “I’ve seen him a few times, but this is the first time I’ve seen him up close.”

Yu Chen’s gaze had long since returned from Manuiyin Hest’s face to Yun Xunlan. He silently listened to Fu Yanxi and Gui Yan’s chatter, hearing them talk about how many times they had seen Manuiyin Hest. Suddenly, he recalled what he had previously said to Fu Yanxi and Gui Yan— no matter the topic, they were no match for him.

Yes, even when it came to the number of times they had seen Manuiyin Hest, Fu Yanxi and Gui Yan couldn’t compare to him.

After all, they were from two different countries and different star regions. They might see news about him online, but seeing him in person was another matter entirely, as their military ranks weren’t high enough. Fu Yanxi had only seen him a couple of times from a distance because of his general father, while Gui Yan, coming from a welfare home in the slums, had even less chance to see him in person.

But he was different.

He had seen Manuiyin Hest in person more times than Yun Xun Guang and Yun Xunlan combined.

But that was many years ago…

“The Third Prince’s birthday banquet has so many military and political officials from the Federation attending. It wouldn’t be right not to invite people from the Daylight Empire.”

Yu Chen’s wandering thoughts were pulled back by Fu Yanxi’s voice, and then he heard Gui Yan and Fu Yanxi say, “Then just invite Duke Hest alone. I think he’s the only one from the Daylight Empire who still looks like a person.”

Fu Yanxi retorted, “Did you forget that Duke Hest was from the Nebula Federation? He only later acquired Daylight Empire citizenship.”

Everyone in the galaxy called Manuiyin Hest a “legend” because he started as an S-class alpha from the slums of the Nebula Federation, and now he had shed his commoner status and risen to become a duke of the Daylight Empire. He was the only SSS mecha manufacturer in the galaxy and, so far, the only alpha to have crossed two ranks from S to SSS.

After Fu Yanxi mentioned it, Gui Yan said, “Right, I remember now. The reason he immigrated to the Daylight Empire seems to be to marry the Duchess…”

Their conversation abruptly stopped.

—They were distracted by another conversation, their eyes widening in surprise.

Yu Chen was no exception, but his expression remained calm.

Yun Xunlan, standing beside Yun Xun Guang, also maintained his usual demeanor.

His lips gently curled up, the arc of his smile seemed to have been precisely calculated and practiced, showcasing elegance and nobility just right, neither making him seem arrogant nor cold.

This kind of smile was a necessary mask for social occasions. Throughout tonight’s banquet, Yu Chen had followed Yun Xunlan, and he had only seen the youth take it off when talking to Jian Wenxi. Once Jian Wenxi left, facing the legendary duke Manuiyin Hest, Yun Xunlan put it back on.

Even when he heard Manuiyin Hest say he would gift him an SSS mecha as a coming-of-age gift, the mask remained firmly in place on Yun Xunlan’s face.

He simply smiled and thanked, “Thank you, Duke Hest.”

Manuiyin Hest returned Yun Xunlan’s smile with an even deeper one, then lowered his eyelashes and tapped on the light brain on his left wrist, commanding the aircraft he arrived in to rise into the air, gradually merging into the dark night. But just a few seconds later, the aircraft cast a dazzling yet not blinding light screen, outlining a massive humanoid figure in the darkness with countless ice-blue light particles.

Everyone present recognized it.

When it was dormant, it was dark as night; when it awakened, it shone brightly, like stars burning in the universe. It was a miracle created by the hard work of countless humans, a mechanical beast born solely for victory in war, and the world’s top weapon that was hard to surpass— the SSS nuclear-powered Titan-class heavy mecha.

“It belongs to you now.”

Manuiyin Hest turned to look at Yun Xunlan and stepped aside, making an inviting gesture, “Third Prince, please give it a name.”

This time, the calmness on the youth’s face vanished. He raised his face, gazing at the mecha’s holographic projection, as if enchanted, slowly walking toward it until he stopped just a step away, reaching out to gently touch the light particles that formed the projection, as if teasing the blue-tailed sea fish swimming in a pool, watching the light particles dance around his fingertips.

If Yu Chen could see Yun Xunlan’s face at this moment, he would see the gentle smile in the youth’s eyes, even more tender than when he saw Jian Wenxi. Unfortunately, the youth was facing away from him, so Yu Chen only heard Yun Xunlan’s alluring, slightly husky voice utter the name of his mecha: “Jian Xing Chen.”

“Jian Xing Chen?”

Manuiyin Hest asked Yun Xunlan, “Is it like seeing you is like seeing the stars?”

“Not that ‘Chen’ character.”

Yun Xunlan shook his head, correcting Manuiyin Hest’s misunderstanding, saying, “It’s the ‘Chen’ from ‘Chen Luo’.”

Jian Xing Chen— seeing the stars fall, didn’t sound like a good name.

Manuiyin Hest didn’t understand why Yun Xunlan would name the mecha this way and asked, “Does it have any special meaning?”

“It’s derived from ‘Yue Luo Xing Chen’, meaning the moon sets, and the starlight also dims.”

Yun Xunlan’s answer confirmed that “Jian Xing Chen” literally meant “seeing the stars fall,” but in the end, he smiled and asked back, “But is seeing the stars fall necessarily a bad thing?”

“It’s actually an idiom describing the scene at dawn when the sky is about to brighten. So—”

The silver-haired alpha said as he withdrew his hand from the holographic projection’s light particles, turning his gaze toward the crowd behind him.

He was the only protagonist of tonight’s banquet, and everyone’s attention was gathered on him like the light from the chandelier above.

But in that moment, Yu Chen saw that the golden eyes, shining like stars, skipped over everyone else and precisely locked onto his eyes, “I see the stars fall, and I also see the dawn.”

When all the stars fall, it is the moment of dawn breaking.

—Seeing the stars fall means seeing the dawn.

“That’s indeed a good name.” Manuiyin Hest clapped in admiration, “Third Prince, I believe that one day in the future, you will pilot it to reclaim the first border line lost in the galaxy, bringing a brilliant dawn to all humanity.”

Yun Xunlan looked back at the projection of the 3S mecha, promising, “I will.”

At this moment, everyone and Yun Xunlan reflected the icy blue glow of the mecha projection in their eyes.

But in Yu Chen’s eyes, he could only see Yun Xunlan. Even though all he saw was the distant back of the silver-haired alpha, he still felt as if he was watching a rare and magnificent aurora— a brilliant aurora that erupted just for him, and it was hard not to be dazzled and enchanted by it.