"Put down the gun," Zhou Rong said, one word at a time, his submachine gun pointed at Feng Wentai.

Lu Hui was bleeding profusely, rolling around on the ground in agony. The heavy machine guns of the other three special forces soldiers were each locked onto the Feng Family's bodyguards, safeties off, index fingers on the triggers.

"I'll count to three. Put down your guns, and no one will die." Zhou Rong's gaze swept over each bodyguard's face one by one as he said slowly, "But if anyone fires first, you're all dead. I guarantee you'll end up as nothing more than a pile of meat paste."

"One..."

"Two..."

Before he could say three, the bodyguard at the very front was already trembling as he placed his pistol on the ground with a clatter.

The sense of security from a small pistol was far less than that from a heavy machine gun with a firing rate of nine hundred rounds per minute, not to mention the latter's heavy body was half a man's height. In a standoff, its immense lethal threat was almost oppressive.

Where one went, others followed. The remaining two bodyguards also gave in, tossing their pistols to their feet with trembling hands.

Zhou Rong said, "Kick them over."

All three kicked their pistols to the center of the open space. Zhou Rong gave a look back. "Chuncao."

The young woman slung her assault rifle onto her back, stepped forward to pick up the pistols, and unloaded all the bullets, putting them into the pocket of her military-style skirt.

The tense atmosphere finally dissipated. The men on the walkways finally opened their doors, their hearts still pounding, and the women also poked their heads out, nervously watching the situation in the open space.

Guo Weixiang and Ding Shi's guns were still aimed at the Feng Family's people, but Zhou Rong tossed aside his submachine gun, raised his empty hands high, and turned in a circle to face the crowd. His stern gaze swept over every anxious face.

"Tomorrow," he began, his voice echoing through the atrium, "we will leave the Fertilizer Plant and lead everyone south to the military's South Sea Headquarters Shelter."

"Before the disaster, our Unit 118, 6th Squadron came from the B Military Region to T City to carry out a top-secret mission. Due to the nature of the mission, everyone used Pheromone Inhibitors. After the disaster struck, we led everyone north in our escape, and there was neither the time nor the need to explain the full story, until today."

"But I hope everyone understands that we will treat every single person in this team equally, including men, women, the elderly, and children... After the disaster, all order and laws ceased to exist, and reality became a dark jungle where the strong prey on the weak. But in our team of barely forty people, all the laws, duties, and rights of human society still exist and still apply."

"On our way south, we will encounter more survivors: men and women, old and young, the weak, sick, and disabled. There will be Alphas, and maybe even Omegas." Zhou Rong paused briefly, then added, "But no matter how large our team grows, we all stand on the same ground: to protect and support each other, to advance side by side, and to carry on the flame of survival."

He looked at the faces, each with a different expression, and pointed to the machine guns in Guo Weixiang's and the others' hands. "These guns exist to protect you. Their muzzles will always be pointed outwards. I ask everyone to bear witness to this."

A long silence, without a human sound.

Then, the first clap sounded from the crowd.

The survivors seemed to react all at once, and applause erupted from all around, growing louder and louder.

Zhou Rong bowed his head in acknowledgment, then quietly instructed Chuncao, "Please ask Doctor Zheng to come take a look at those two bodyguards. Don't let them actually die."

He was talking about Wan Bin and Lu Hui. Chuncao acknowledged with a sound.

The Alpha surnamed Wan was still lying on the ground, almost bled dry—if he weren't an Alpha, he probably would have kicked the bucket from blood loss by now. The scene was truly shocking; even Zhou Rong, who was used to all sorts of gruesome sights, couldn't help but feel the corner of his eye twitch twice.

He could tell the difference in the knife wounds on Wan Bin's body: they were basically not combat injuries.

They were wounds of abuse, inflicted intentionally to cause pain.

Si Nan stood far off in a corner of the open space, his lips pressed tightly together, one hand gripping his dagger, hanging by his side.

Zhou Rong met his gaze, and a very strange feeling suddenly arose in his heart. A few sentences surfaced in his subconscious: 'The capture target has potential antisocial personality traits, is extremely destructive, and has been charged with multiple counts of first-degree murder...'

'...Acts with cold blood, his movements are difficult to predict most of the time. Avoid using any stimulating methods to restore his senses...'

Zhou Rong shivered ever so slightly.

"Captain Zhou," Doctor Zheng suddenly hurried forward.

Zhou Rong turned his head to see Doctor Zheng's face had changed color, his forehead covered in cold sweat. He said softly, "That pregnant woman, Wang Wen... was startled by the gunshots. She's going into premature labor..."

In Zhou Rong's own words, when he was young, he feared nothing in heaven or on earth. He'd kill gods if they stood in his way, and slay buddhas if they blocked his path. He'd dare to blow up a terrorist's tank turret with a time bomb tucked under his arm. If not for the fact that his job later forced him to become more composed, he could have fucked a hole in the sky.

But he had indeed never seen a difficult childbirth.

Zhou Rong hastily had someone tie up Feng Wentai along with those unlucky bodyguards and lock them in the back garage. Then he went up to the dormitory building, rubbing his hands. It was chaotic everywhere. A few older women were gathered around the bed. Wang Wen's hair was disheveled, and she was letting out soft moans.

"She's not screaming?" Zhou Rong was full of questions. "Don't you need hot water, scissors, and cotton cloths? And to yell 'push' or something?"

Doctor Zheng said irritably, "You've watched too much TV, Captain Zhou. This is a premature birth at thirty-two weeks. The situation is very dangerous. Quickly have someone boil water to sterilize gauze, maintain the lighting, keep the room warm... Hurry, go! She's already having contractions!"

"..." Zhou Rong said sheepishly, "I've indeed only seen 'The Grand Mansion Gate'."

Zhou Rong scrambled to ask people to prepare things, boil water for sterilization, and bring in electric heaters and a diesel generator. Doctor Zheng wasn't a professional obstetrician and was not very skilled with many of the procedures for premature birth. The women vied to offer their own birthing experiences, cheering on Wang Wen, and even ran to the kitchen to start a fire to prepare a hot post-partum soup for her.

All the survivors were mobilized. Even the men standing guard outside were looking on with anticipation, discussing nervously amongst themselves, as if this new life about to be born on a winter's night signified some distant and faint hope.

"You can do it, you can do it!" Doctor Zheng was sweating profusely, freeing one hand to direct the others, "Brighter, maintain the lighting!"

Zhou Rong quietly slipped out of the crowd, glanced left and right, and asked with a frown, "Where's Si Nan?"

Guo Weixiang, who had just become a father out of the blue and inexplicably gained a son for cheap, was on his tiptoes in the corridor, peering inside. He said carelessly, "Probably went back to his dorm."

"I'll go check." Zhou Rong simply tossed out this sentence and squeezed out of the crowd.

·

"Si Xiaonan?"

The dorm room door was shut tight. Zhou Rong knocked twice. "Comrade Xiao Si?"

There was no answer from inside.

Zhou Rong had keys to all the single dorm rooms. After hesitating for two seconds, he unlocked the door and pushed it open.

Si Nan was lying on his side on the single bed in the dorm. Moonlight poured in from the window, casting a pale, cool light on his back.

He was asleep.

Because of his position, his head was curled slightly inward, his long neck hidden in the collar of his shirt. The side of his waist dipped in, forming an arc of shadow.

That shadow was indescribably intimate and ambiguous, making one's gaze unable to resist following his figure downwards, but the curves were hidden under the blanket.

Zhou Rong stood by the bed. After a long moment, as if possessed, he lifted his hand, only to stop it in mid-air.

If it dropped just a few more inches, his fingers would touch the narrowest part of the small of his back, feeling the fiery warmth in the depths of the shadow through the thin fabric of the shirt.

"..." Suddenly, Si Nan stirred, seemingly uncomfortable, and rubbed against the sheets a few times.

He shrank deeper into the pillow, the movement exposing his cheek to the moonlight. His cheeks were slightly flushed, his brows were actually furrowed, and the tip of his nose was beaded with sweat, which made Zhou Rong startle.

"...Ngh..."

Si Nan let out a breath, the end of the sound trembling with unease, as if he were trapped in some hazy, chaotic dream. Then he turned over, his neck arching back, his messy collar half-draped over his distinct collarbones.

Zhou Rong's gaze involuntarily drifted downwards, only to find his skin was somewhat flushed. He reached out to cup his forehead; his temperature was very high.

A fever?

"Si Nan?" Zhou Rong called in a low voice.

"..."

Zhou Rong's throat tightened, his Adam's apple bobbing violently as if to forcefully suppress some kind of wanton thought. He reached out and pulled Si Nan's upper body into a sitting position, gently patting his face. "Wake up! You're sick, get up and take some medicine!"

But Si Nan, who was usually very alert, was mired in a daze. After a long moment, he groggily opened his eyes, only to immediately close them again.

"Si Nan?"

"Go..."

Zhou Rong moved closer to his lips, only for Si Nan to struggle and say hoarsely, "Go away...!"

His movements were unexpectedly violent. He actually broke free from Zhou Rong's arms and then curled into a ball under the blanket on the bed.

Because of his struggling, the hem of his shirt had ridden up his back, exposing a small patch of bare skin. The protruding vertebrae were clearly visible beneath his skin. Zhou Rong couldn't bear to look at the scene. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before forcing himself to say in a stern tone, "What's with the tantrum! Get up and take your medicine!"

"...Go away!"

Zhou Rong reached out, grabbed his feverish shoulder, and forced him to turn over and face him, only to realize something was wrong.

—Si Nan's usually tightly pressed lips were bright red and seemed to glisten with moisture. Hoarse breaths escaped from between his teeth, sounding vaguely like soft moans.

Zhou Rong suddenly thought of a possibility.

A small number of Betas who were very sensitive to Pheromones would experience a temporary heat-like phenomenon when stimulated by strong A/O Pheromones. This pseudo-heat was usually easy to handle. If there were no Pheromones around to continue stimulating him, it would subside after he was left alone for a while.

Si Nan's aversion to Alpha Pheromones was so extreme he was like a startled bird. If this was a pseudo-heat...

Zhou Rong's breathing unconsciously became very heavy, his heart pounding in his chest. He didn't even realize that his fingers gripping Si Nan's shoulder had sunk deep into his flesh, with so much force that if one were to peel back the shirt, several red fingerprints would probably be visible on the skin.

And that layer of cloth could hardly conceal anything. In the rapidly rising temperature, it seemed to be gradually losing even its ability to barely cover the body.

"What?" Zhou Rong asked in a low voice. "You're a grown man, what's there to be shy about?"

He lifted a hand, as if wanting to touch Si Nan's sweaty forehead, but the latter suddenly grabbed his wrist.

Zhou Rong looked at the red corners of his eyes, while Si Nan stared back at him without a sound.

A moment later, Zhou Rong finally couldn't resist lowering his head, asking almost directly into his ear, "What is it you want, hmm? Tell your ge."

Si Nan still gripped his wrist tightly, neither relaxing his hold nor pushing him away.

If one looked closely, his jawline was extremely taut, the result of clenching his jaw, not daring to loosen it in the slightest.

Zhou Rong knew he should leave now. If he hadn't come in, the pseudo-heat would have passed in his sleep, and upon waking tomorrow morning, Si Nan wouldn't even be very aware of what he had gone through.

But he was here now.

His Pheromones, more distinct and stimulating than a normal Alpha's, were constantly interfering with Si Nan. That interference was almost tyrannical and malicious, giving the alluring body in his arms, which was constantly sliding towards the abyss, a hard push.

Zhou Rong, half-kneeling by the bed, shifted his position. His camouflage pants were starting to feel uncomfortably tight. When he spoke again, his baritone was extremely hoarse. "Do you want me to leave?"

Si Nan's lips parted slightly, his breaths making them moist and looking very luscious, but he still refused to speak.

Zhou Rong looked into his eyes and smiled faintly:

"Hmm? Si Xiaonan?"

Si Nan gripped him, trembling nonstop. It felt like a long time had passed before, as if suddenly defeated, his fingers loosened slightly.

"—Rong-ge!" The sound of thudding footsteps came from outside the door, immediately followed by Guo Weixiang shouting from down the corridor, "Rong-ge, are you there? Something's happened!"

Zhou Rong whipped his head around and asked in a deep voice, "What?"

"Where are you?! This is bad!"

Guo Weixiang caught his breath, his voice actually trembling slightly. "Feng Wentai stole the minibus, crashed through the wire fence, and is now trying to run north!"