Chapter 65: The Hero’s Return

Lu Zhanxing was a man possessed, storming through the night with his elite strike team like a relentless predator on the hunt. Their destination? Facility E-45—a sterilized breeding center turned nightmare.

When they arrived, the place was a hellscape. Alliance troops from the Fifth Star System had the grounds locked tighter than a miser’s vault, but it didn’t matter—whatever horrors had gone down here had already burned their mark into the earth. The massive black gate had been blasted wide open, leaving a gaping, jagged wound in its center. Inside, the industrial prison-like complex was a skeletal wreck of scorched iron and crumbling concrete, the aftermath of an inferno that had left nothing standing but a charred ribcage of metal, creaking in the wind.

The air reeked of ash and death, and the black smoke twisting into the sky carried the screams of a massacre. For a split second, no one dared speak. A collective dread clawed its way into every chest, chilling the blood.

Then the grim details started trickling in. Five days ago, armed forces claiming allegiance to the "Omega Alliance" had stormed the facility. Chaos erupted, and in the frenzy, most of the imprisoned Omegas were freed and whisked away. But it hadn’t been clean. People had died—staff, prisoners, maybe even some of the attackers.

The corpses left behind were a grim inventory of failure. DNA tests revealed a macabre tally: most of the staff were dead, a chunk of the registered Omegas had perished too, and there were a few unidentifiable bodies—the unlucky bastards among the Omega Alliance raiders, perhaps.

When they handed Lu Zhanxing the death list, it felt heavier than it had any right to be.

Thin sheets of paper? No.

This was a lead-weighted curse pressing into his palm, threatening to snap his wrist under its unbearable load. Each turn of the page was a punch to his gut, a scalpel slicing his heart open. Sweat beaded on his hands as his fingers trembled, afraid—terrified—that one name would jump out at him.

Shao Ye.

But the name never came. He read the list twice, thrice, scouring every line with the desperation of a man dangling over the edge of sanity. When that wasn’t enough, he marched straight to the morgue, forcing himself to confront every unclaimed, nameless corpse. He checked and re-checked until the truth stood firm: Shao Ye wasn’t among the dead.

Relief washed over him like a cruel trick. Shao Ye wasn’t gone—but he wasn’t safe either. The only thread left was the shadowy Omega Alliance. If they’d taken him, maybe—just maybe—Shao Ye was alive.

For a fleeting moment, Lu Zhanxing let himself breathe. But his respite was short-lived. The Omega Alliance was a ghost, a phantom menace that had eluded the Alliance’s grasp for years. Their operatives were loyal to a fault, their lips sealed tighter than a black hole. Not a shred of intel, not a whisper of their true location—just dead ends and stone walls.

And as if to mock him, the Alliance Committee tried to bury him in bureaucracy, assigning him to oversee reconstruction efforts.

Reconstruction? He laughed bitterly.

As if he could give a damn about bricks and mortar while Shao Ye was out there—somewhere, lost, or worse. He trashed the orders without hesitation, planting himself firmly in the Fifth Star System. Every second was dedicated to chasing a shadow, searching for even the faintest clue of Shao Ye’s fate.

But months slipped through his fingers like sand, and still—nothing. Each passing day gnawed at him, planting darker and darker doubts.

If Shao Ye was alive, if he’d woken up, why hadn’t he reached out?

Why the radio silence?

Shao Ye was no amateur—his technical skills were unmatched. Even with scraps, he could’ve jury-rigged a comm device or hacked into a secure network. So why the void?

Had he chosen this silence?

Was it anger? Resentment?

Was Shao Ye punishing him for failing to protect him, for letting him endure hell alone?

The idea dug its claws deep, twisting the knife in his gut.

Lu Zhanxing was at his breaking point, the need to find Shao Ye clawing at him like a beast trapped in a cage. If the Omega Alliance wouldn’t come to him, then screw it—he’d force them out.

It was time to light the fuse and watch the bastards crawl out of the shadows.

*

Lü Zhanxing, ever the cunning bastard, hatched a flawless plan and went all out broadcasting his twisted masterpiece across the Fifth Star System. The announcement was as bold as it was sinister: they were going to execute an Omega accused of violating O-ethics.

And where would this grand spectacle unfold?

The very spot where the Omega Alliance had recently caused a stir.

The bait was irresistible.

He knew damn well the Omega Alliance—those self-righteous, bleeding-heart heroes—wouldn’t sit this one out. If they were so obsessed with justice and saving their own kind from suffering, they’d have no choice but to assemble their little rescue squad and take the bait.

Meanwhile, Shao Ye had made a full recovery. With Lu Yan’s relentless care, his days had steadied, the chaos in his heart tempered by an unfamiliar sense of gratitude. He had thrown his lot in with the Omega Alliance, and to his surprise, he didn’t hate it.

Hell, after being hurled into another world with no way back to Earth, what other choice did he have?

Sure, life here was rough—cramped quarters, endless struggle—but the camaraderie was intoxicating. These people had his back, and Lu Yan’s constant, almost motherly concern for him brought a warmth he never knew he needed. For the first time, he felt what people might call "home."

His past life? Just a soul-sucking grind, a nine-to-five existence that barely put food on the table. Here, in this world, at least he could play hero, righting wrongs and maybe even finding a little glory.

From the corner of her eye, Lu Yan watched him tinker with a weapon, his hands moving with a skill that baffled her. “You’re telling me you were just a regular college student back on Earth? The way you handle machinery, you’re better than most pros I know.”

Shao Ye froze for a moment, caught off guard. “Maybe it’s… talent,” he muttered, though even he wasn’t convinced. His mind raced through memories of his former life. Back in Da Xia, strict gun control meant his hands never touched anything close to this. Hell, his studies weren’t even in the same ballpark as mechanical engineering.

But here? He worked as if born for it, every movement precise, every mechanism an extension of himself.

He shrugged it off as some dormant talent—a skill buried by the monotony of his old life, unearthed by the chaos of this new one. Maybe he wasn’t as mediocre as he’d thought. Maybe the world just hadn’t given him the right stage.

“Come here,” Lu Yan said softly, her tone slipping into professional mode. “Let me check your gland recovery.”

She was a doctor, after all, but more than that, she’d become his anchor, her gentle care breaking through the walls he hadn’t realized he’d built. Trusting her completely, Shao Ye tilted his head, exposing the back of his neck. Her fingers pressed against his skin, skillful and sure, as she monitored his progress.

“You’re healing well,” she said, satisfaction lacing her voice. “I’m starting to pick up faint traces of your scent now. It’s still weak, though. Any guesses what it might be?”

Shao Ye thought for a moment, a wry smile tugging at his lips. “Oleander.”

Lu Yan raised an eyebrow, curiosity sparking in her eyes. “Oleander? Beautiful, sure, but it’s poisonous. Why that?”

“No deep reason,” he replied lightly. “I just like the smell.”

His words hung in the air as his gaze drifted, memories of his tiny, grimy apartment flashing through his mind. On that narrow balcony, surrounded by smog and solitude, he’d once nurtured a single oleander plant. Its delicate flowers had been his only companion in a world that offered nothing but indifference.

It was white, pure as a lie, yet the only speck of romance in Shao Ye’s gray, joyless existence.

The oleander wasn’t his doing—hell no. It clawed its way out from a crack in the wall, defiant, a survivor just like him.

When Shao Ye first scoped out the rental, he spotted that stubborn flower wedged in concrete, thriving where it had no business to. He’d thought, Yeah, that’s me. Maybe this place and I… we’re meant for each other. And just like that, he signed the lease.

“I love oleanders too…” Lu Yan’s lashes flickered, her voice brushing against something raw. Then she smiled, teasing, “Who knows? Maybe you’ll end up crushing on an Alpha whose pheromones smell just like them.”

The word hit like a slap.

“Alpha.”

Shao Ye’s face twisted, his easy grin gone, replaced by a scowl deep enough to bury dreams in. “I hate Alphas. I’ll stay with the Omega Alliance forever. No way I’m falling for anyone.”

“Kid, you’re young.” Lu Yan’s voice softened, her eyes full of bittersweet hope. “Don’t give up on love so soon. It takes guts to love, you know.”

Shao Ye went quiet, her words cutting deep.

Love?

Who didn’t want that?

But courage—real courage—felt like a bouquet of thorned roses. You clutch it, thinking it’s beautiful, only to bleed all over it. Hurt yourself. Hurt them.

So why bother?

He’d been unloved before. His past life was a wasteland of half-acquaintances and hollow connections.

But this time around?

He had Lu Yan—his so-called “mother.” That was more than he deserved.

Anything else was asking for too much, wasn’t it?

As Lu Yan prepared to leave, she didn’t let him off the hook. “Tomorrow’s mission—watch your back. Don’t forget your pheromone suppressant patches. With all those Alphas in the military, if one locks onto you and your newly recovered gland, you’ll have no way to fight back.”

Her warning hit like a cold slap. Pheromones, Alphas—this world’s twisted biology still felt like a maze he couldn’t map.

“Got it. I’ll be careful,” Shao Ye said, forcing a calm that didn’t reach his bones.

*

The next morning, the rescue squad rolled out. Three armored trucks, a plan sharp enough to slice through steel, and a pack of outlaws ready to defy death. The captain laid it all out with ruthless clarity, and soon enough, they were hurtling toward the execution ground.

Shao Ye, sitting stiff in the back, didn’t know what fate had in store. But he clung to one thing—a sense of justice, a raw respect for life.

No hesitation. No turning back.

They hit the site fast. Dust clouds kicked up as their convoy screeched to a halt. There, at the center of the grim scene, stood a tall man, bound hand and foot, waiting for the bullet that would finish him.

Snipers perched in the distance, their scopes locked and fingers itching. One shot. One kill. That was all it’d take.

Seeing the man, Shao Ye didn’t think twice. A fellow Omega, miscast in life’s cruel drama, damned to a body that didn’t fit. Yeah, this guy was worth saving.

The captain barked orders. “Shao Ye, you’re on extraction. Get that Omega out of here. The rest of us will block the snipers. Once you’re clear, we’ll split into three groups. One week to regroup at headquarters. Move it.”

“Got it!” Shao Ye and the team answered, steeling themselves for what was next.

Moments later, the Omega Alliance’s trucks roared into the execution ground, engines growling like beasts. Dust swallowed the air as they stormed the site, throwing chaos into the mix.

From their sniper nest, the enemy’s special forces spotted the commotion. Their scopes landed on a figure among the rescuers—Shao Ye. The radio crackled with excitement.

“Boss, it’s him,” a voice hissed, barely containing their thrill. “Shao Ye’s here. He really came.”