After the School Games ended, no one had the heart to watch the matches anymore. They shouted in the group chat, and everyone rushed back to the Association activity room.
Zhang Yunli was already waiting for them. He didn’t beat around the bush. He closed the activity room door and began explaining the situation.
The Border Military District’s main combat forces were Alphas. Betas were there too, but mostly in logistics and technical roles.
Alphas stationed long-term at the border faced Heat Period issues.
Especially those Alphas in prolonged high-intensity combat—their adrenal glands were frequently stimulated, making Heat Periods even more likely to trigger.
Suppressants were an essential daily item for Border Military District Alphas.
But Suppressants were pheromone-based formulations. To minimize waste and ensure even those with the lowest Pheromone Levels could use them without issues, standard Suppressants were low-dose Pheromone Suppressants.
For example, the ones commonly found in public areas like streets and schools had low dosages, but they bought time and reduced crime rates.
Alphas who could go to the frontlines in the Border Military District had physiques and Pheromone Levels that weren’t too low. Most of the time, the military district’s Alphas triggered their Heat Periods on the battlefield—they jabbed a Suppressant and had to keep fighting.
So the military district’s Suppressants omitted the sedating, enervating components. They also added various auxiliary stimulants to ensure Alphas recovered to peak condition as quickly as possible.
But overuse of these high-stimulation Suppressants led to side effects.
Like sensory dysregulation or neural degeneration. Mild cases meant a drop in combat ability; severe ones meant disability.
To change this, the Alliance had long been committed to researching improved Suppressants.
The results were much better—at least over the past two hundred years, the number of Alphas disabled by pheromone disorders had dropped dramatically.
The research continued until Zhang Yunli published a pheromone research report over a decade ago—”An Evaluation of Pheromone Activity’s Impact on the Efficacy and Safety of Pheromone Suppressants.”
A key element in it was pheromone activity.
His initial motivation came from Fu Mingyuan’s health issues caused by overusing Suppressants on the border battlefield. He had been trying to improve them.
After the paper was published, it caught the attention of the military district’s medical bigshots.
They contacted Zhang Yunli through Fu Mingyuan, and the two sides began in-depth research.
After years of study, they finally discovered that the best, safest prerequisite for Suppressants was maximizing pheromone activity.
In other words, using freshly extracted pheromones as the base to synthesize Active Inhibitors reduced other chemical components and minimized side effects.
A single Omega could extract a few milliliters of pheromones at a time, enough to produce over a hundred high-quality Active Inhibitors.
With just a dozen Omegas in the military district, they could protect over a thousand Alphas in emergencies. It was a steal.
The Alliance began vigorously developing planets near the border, attracting more Omegas for jobs and life there. They also implemented incentive policies on those planets to encourage Omegas to donate excess pheromones.
At the same time, they guided pheromone pharmaceutical companies to set up factories on those planets, shortening transport times.
But during major Beast Tides, interstellar logistics halted, and high-activity Suppressants couldn’t be maintained. Alphas in prolonged combat still had to use the old Suppressants.
After much deliberation, the Alliance Government considered introducing Omegas into military district logistics or medical roles.
But Omegas’ physical constitutions were a problem—Omegas were truly too fragile. Over thousands of years, medical facilities and drug research for frail Omegas had consumed over half the entire medical system’s budget. Military district facilities and drugs could hardly meet the daily needs of delicate Omegas.
The Alliance tried to address this by surveying common illnesses and physical levels across all Alliance Omegas, preparing targeted support for military districts.
The results were disastrous.
Whether psychological or physiological, Omegas’ constitutions were inferior across the board. Forget serving in military logistics or medical roles—even living on the border was tough.
When Omegas were in poor condition, their pheromone output was minimal, and activity levels low.
Under suboptimal conditions, pheromone extraction volume and performance dropped by over 70%… How many Omegas would they need to plug that gap?
Not only did the Alliance Government balk, but the military districts did too.
The plan was shelved.
Mu Chenxing raised his hand. “Then why can the Military Academy’s Medical College recruit Omegas?”
Zhang Yunli: “…You’re punished—copy the admissions rules a hundred times!”
Mu Chenxing: “?”
Tong Xiao pulled his hand down and stifled a laugh. “Omegas only enter military hospitals. There are no precedents for deployment to the frontlines yet.”
Mu Chenxing: “…Oh.”
He knew they worked in military hospitals, but he hadn’t realized nursing roles didn’t go to the frontlines.
Zhang Yunli said irritably, “Don’t interrupt if you don’t understand. Listen first.”
Mu Chenxing shut his mouth.
In short, over the past two years, the Alliance Government had basically given up hope on Omegas and shifted to researching longer-lasting Active Inhibitors.
That was also Zhang Yunli’s main project after transferring to the Military Academy.
But before the project even started, first-year Mu Chenxing founded the Omega Growth Association and led a group into the front rows of the Military Academy Games—which didn’t match the Alliance’s Omega data surveys.
The higher-ups’ interest reignited. Could big data be hiding some strong, robust Omegas?
Could the Military Academy recruit them specifically?
They recruited and promoted, but results were minimal.
Across the entire Alliance, only three or four Military Academies had Omega applicants. The highest number was at their Alliance First Military Academy, and even that was just a slight uptick from Omegas shining in two consecutive Games.
—Less than 50 in total over two years, fewer than the Omega Growth Association members.
The Alliance Government despaired again, estimating it would be a long, arduous process.
Then Zhang Yunli discovered that Omega Association students generally had delayed Heats, but high-quality pheromones—some even showing signs of Pheromone Level breakthroughs.
He and his assistants collected diverse samples: from school Omegas to local residents, ages 18 to 88. After testing thousands, they pinpointed an issue—the Omega Growth Association members’ data was different.
Not just from others, but from their own first-year training data.
In other words, after three years of ups and downs, everyone’s physiques and pheromone quality had improved dramatically.
Mu Chenxing couldn’t help muttering, “After exercising for three years, even a Yuxing Black Pig could slim down. What’s wrong with better physical condition?”
This time, Zhang Yunli didn’t mind the interruption. “The key is pheromone quality. For generations, no one’s seen major pheromone quality improvements during sexual gland maturation. A 10% pheromone quality boost in an Omega multiplies Active Inhibitor yields exponentially.”
Mu Chenxing: “…No one’s tried exercising before?”
Zhang Yunli: “They have. Thousands of times over thousands of years.”
Mu Chenxing: “…So we just got lucky?”
Zhang Yunli: “Maybe. Perhaps current Omegas are just constitutionally better, or maybe your group’s special. We replicated your training on over a thousand pre-Heat students across regions. After half a year, all showed pheromone data gains.”
“Through you, the government confirmed Omegas’ constitutions have evolved and improved over time. Through you, they learned Pheromone Levels can rise.”
“Most importantly, you 64 broke the stereotypes: Omegas can’t join Games, can’t compete alongside Alphas, their stamina and speed far inferior.”
Even Tong Xiao and the others were puzzled now:
“But that was a first-year thing. Why award it in senior year?”
“Yeah, three years late—something’s fishy.”
“And a First-Class Merit? Feels undeserved.”
“Exactly, Teacher Zhang’s team deserves one too—”
“Ahem.” Zhang Yunli coughed awkwardly. “We got commendations and rewards, of course.”
The Omegas blinked.
Zhang Yunli: “But we’re not military, no military merits. Ours were different—you don’t need to worry about that. As for why the award’s coming now…”
He hesitated.
“The Alliance Government wants us to enlist, right?” Mu Chenxing asked.
The Omegas: “!!”
Zhang Yunli: “…Yes.”
Since it was out, he was frank. “This is the result of negotiations between the government and military. Omegas rarely earn military merits, so giving you First-Class Merits is fine—it motivates enlistment. If you don’t join the military districts, they lose little.”
The Omegas: “…”
Zhang Yunli: “That said, the government and military asked me to persuade you to enlist and go to the frontlines.”
The Omegas exchanged glances, hesitation on their faces.
Mu Chenxing asked, “The frontlines are at least 70% Alpha. For us to go, are basic safety measures in place? One rutting Alpha could wipe them out. Without sufficient protection, how could Omegas dare enter an Alpha-dominated military district?”
Zhang Yunli: “Cough. When they decided on the merits, the Fourth Military District Frontline already started building Omega dorms and office buildings to ensure you’re safe and sound.”
Mu Chenxing’s heart stirred. “Which military district?”
Zhang Yunli looked at him. “The Fourth Military District, General Pei’s district.”
Mu Chenxing: “…”
He started suspecting the merit was Pei Yao’s idea.
Zhang Yunli saw everyone hesitating and simply showed them the Fourth Military District Frontline base construction: “Made from aerospace ship materials—earthquake-proof, Beast Tide-proof. As long as you stay inside, you’re perfectly safe.”
Mu Chenxing glanced at the skeletal framework and asked, “Do we need to reply now? Or choose at graduation?”
Zhang Yunli pulled up the agreement: “You can sign the enlistment contract now, but I don’t recommend it. It’s valid until graduation anyway. Discuss with your families first, and best wait until the military district’s protections are ready.”
Mu Chenxing: “Send me the link. I’ll sign now.”
“Xingxing!”
“What?”
“Are you crazy?”
Zhang Yunli was startled too: “Talk to your dad first. This isn’t child’s play.”
Mu Chenxing: “No need. I grinded my professional courses not to nurse in a rear military district hospital, giving shots, wiping down, changing bandages. My expertise has more value at the frontlines.”
“It’s not about value.”
“It’s super dangerous.”
“Star Beasts could attack anytime.”
“The frontlines aren’t a game—Star Beasts everywhere.”
Everyone chimed in, trying to dissuade him.
Mu Chenxing reassured them instead: “Don’t worry. I’ll protect the wounded Alphas properly. I can’t pilot Mecha, but my marksmanship’s decent. Frontline Thunderbolt 17s are lighter than the Thunderbolt 12s I used at the land combat range, with way more power. I won’t come out behind.”
Everyone: “…”
“You’re thinking of protecting Alphas!?”
“You’re the medical personnel who needs protecting!”
“Good marksmanship doesn’t handle Star Beasts!”
“Battlefields aren’t Games.”
Even Zhang Yunli, the persuader, disagreed: “What are you showing off for? You’re going as medics, not warriors.”
Mu Chenxing: “…Fine. If you don’t believe me, I won’t sign yet. I’ll wait until after the University Arena Competition.”
