Chapter 35
Prolonged exposure to screens, even with the holographic projector’s eye-protection mode, strained his eyes and ears.
Shi Nuo lay on the living room rug, a medical device placed over his eyes, the cool mist soothing and refreshing.
The movie had ended, and the living room was quiet, the sudden silence almost jarring.
As he removed the device, he saw Hugh Elvis emerge from the basement.
“Connected?” Shi Nuo asked nervously.
While he had been watching the movie, the house’s intelligent system had displayed a notification: a satellite signal requesting connection.
Hugh had linked Long Xu to the house’s system a few days ago, discreetly taking control of its functions.
“Yes,” Hugh unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt as he walked. “Connected. They haven’t detected anything unusual. From now on, all data and information will be filtered through Long Xu. I’ll send them some harmless data.”
The house system’s main terminal was in the basement. Although the basement was spacious and well-ventilated, he preferred the open wilderness and felt a sense of confinement underground, becoming restless after spending too much time there.
He tossed a watch-like device onto the rug, not accustomed to wearing things on his wrist, sat down on the sofa, leaned back, and closed his eyes.
The device was a miniature control terminal for Long Xu, similar to Shi Nuo’s optical brain. With this portable terminal, even when Long Xu was stored in its spatial storage device, he could still access and control its functions remotely.
Shi Nuo quietly went to the kitchen, poured a glass of warm water, and returned, offering it to Hugh. “Would you like some water?” he asked softly.
The man on the sofa opened his eyes, their unusual blue hue shifting and swirling, like the changing depths of the ocean, beautiful and unpredictable.
Hugh Elvis took the glass, the water temperature perfect.
Seeing that he wasn’t in a good mood, Shi Nuo hesitated, then suggested cautiously, “Do you want to go outside for a walk? Get some fresh air?”
“Mm,” Hugh agreed, stood up after finishing the water, and placed the glass on a makeshift table beside the sofa.
The table had been improvised from an empty crate. The living room originally had only a single sofa.
He opened the door. A cool autumn breeze blew in, rustling the grass and trees, their green tinged with yellow.
A flash of white light, and the white wolf emerged, Hugh’s discarded clothes and shoes falling to the ground.
Shi Nuo had been thinking of a short walk nearby, not expecting Hugh to shift into his beast form.
A silent understanding had developed between them. As the white wolf approached, lowered its body, Shi Nuo climbed onto its back.
They left the house, and the white wolf, its form instantly expanding to its full size, shot forward like an arrow, a white blur, a fierce wind racing across the vast plain.
Shi Nuo was once again buried in the wolf’s thick, white fur.
He felt the white wolf’s restlessness, as if running to release pent-up energy, and clung to its broad, strong back, the wind whistling past his ears, the scenery blurring.
Faster than any aircraft.
The Alpha’s back was a secure and comforting presence, the ride surprisingly smooth despite the speed, and he rarely felt in danger of being thrown off.
But this time, the white wolf ran much further than usual, so far that when it finally slowed down, Shi Nuo could hear its heavy panting.
Usually, even after a long hunt, the white wolf’s breathing remained steady.
The Alpha’s pheromones were no longer as agitated, the run having seemingly calmed him.
Shi Nuo sat up, and the white wolf walked towards a stream. As he sat on its back, swaying gently with its movements, his vantage point much higher than usual, he looked around.
Unlike their previous trips across the river, they had been traveling north along the riverbank, leaving the plains behind, entering the foothills of a mountain range.
He looked west and saw the massive mountains, majestic and imposing, covered in lush green forests, their slopes dotted with colorful wildflowers and autumn leaves, a breathtaking panorama of nature.
A small stream flowed down from the mountains, forming a clear pool in a slightly flatter area.
White rocks, large and small, their edges smoothed by years of erosion, lined the pool.
The white wolf carried Shi Nuo to the edge of the pool and sniffed the water, confirming it was a clean, fresh mountain spring. With a thought, Shi Nuo felt the spatial storage crystal beneath his collarbone pulse faintly, and a small, blue crystal appeared before him. He reached out and took the water purification stone.
“Drop it in,” the white wolf said.
Plop—
The stone landed in the pool, sending ripples across the surface.
Hugh had brought back some water purification stones a few days ago, placing a few in the living room and storing the rest in Long Xu’s spatial storage and in the wristband he had given Shi Nuo.
The white wolf’s panting subsided. After five minutes, it lowered its body, allowing Shi Nuo to dismount, and then lowered its head to drink.
The spring water was clear and pure, safe to drink even without the purification stone.
Shi Nuo squatted beside the pool and scooped up some water in his hands. It was cool and refreshing. Hearing the white wolf drinking, he also felt thirsty.
They had never been here before.
After drinking and resting, the white wolf looked at Shi Nuo. “Want to go to the top of the mountain?”
The slope wasn’t too steep, the scenery was beautiful, and the air was clean and fresh, a perfect autumn outing.
Shi Nuo didn’t hesitate and nodded in agreement. He stepped onto the white wolf’s massive tail, using it as a foothold to climb onto its back.
As they ascended the mountain, the forest became denser, and the white wolf shrunk to its smaller size. It moved gracefully, carrying Shi Nuo at a leisurely pace, as if on a sightseeing tour.
They passed a patch of low, red bushes, rounded a rocky outcrop, and a breathtaking view unfolded before them.
The open area was devoid of tall trees, the ground covered with mushrooms of all shapes and sizes, some standing alone, others clustered together.
It was a mushroom kingdom.
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, and every other color imaginable, even fluorescent, iridescent, and multicolored mushrooms, a fantastical display.
As the wind blew, spores rained down from their caps, some carried into the air, creating a hazy mist that enveloped the entire valley, like a dream.
The ordinary mushrooms on the ground no longer held Shi Nuo’s attention. His gaze was fixed on the medium-sized and giant mushrooms, some as tall as a person, others towering like trees, their massive caps like umbrellas, sheltering the smaller, colorful mushrooms below.
The white wolf had also never been here before. It stared at a few plump, blue mushrooms at its feet, each as large as a basin, yet seemingly normal-sized in this strange landscape.
The blue mushrooms looked thick and fleshy, and after staring at them for a moment, it couldn’t resist and swatted one with its paw.
The mushroom wobbled slightly.
The texture was indeed appealing.
It swatted a few more, then casually sliced open the cap and stem of another with its claws.
After examining and damaging a few different mushrooms, it carefully stepped around them, carrying Shi Nuo further into the valley.
Seeing the white wolf swatting and slicing the mushrooms, Shi Nuo’s own hands itched to touch them. He slid off the wolf’s back. “I’ll take a closer look,” he said.
Hugh didn’t object. Standing on the ground, his perspective much lower now, a pale purple, crystalline mushroom, taller than him, loomed beside him, its shadow making him feel even smaller in this giant mushroom kingdom.
Several smaller, dark purple mushrooms, the size and shape of his fingers, grew at the base of the larger one, their delicate appearance a stark contrast to the giant mushroom.
The ground was covered with mushrooms of all shapes and sizes, and Shi Nuo couldn’t resist patting the cap of one, its soft, slightly springy texture surprisingly pleasant. He patted a few more, his mood inexplicably lifting.
“Are these edible?” he asked the white wolf.
“Not sure. There are too many, and the mingled scents interfere with accurate identification. Their toxicity might also affect each other. Don’t pick any for now,” the white wolf replied, retracting its paw, having flattened several mushrooms on its left.
“Okay,” Shi Nuo wasn’t disappointed. He had only been curious. The refrigerator still had plenty of the delicious, non-toxic light green mushrooms. He wasn’t going to risk his health for a new flavor.
Another gust of wind blew, and the valley was once again filled with a hazy mist of spores.
The white wolf opened its mouth and released a burst of white flames, incinerating the spores in front of them.
The intense heat was palpable.
“Some of those spores are hallucinogenic and toxic,” the white wolf explained.
Shi Nuo wasn’t surprised. Hugh was always alert to potential dangers. But a moment later, a burst of white flames enveloped his hands, then his entire body, startling him.
He braced himself, expecting to be burned, but when the flames disappeared, there were no injuries, not even a scorch mark on his clothes.
“You might have picked up some invisible spores when you touched the mushrooms,” the white wolf explained. “Get on. Let’s leave this place.”
Shi Nuo climbed back onto the wolf’s back, and they returned the way they had come, not venturing further into the dense mushroom valley.
They reached the highest point of the mountain, and Shi Nuo, sitting on the white wolf’s back, held a branch laden with clusters of orange-red berries, large and plump.
A lake came into view, surrounded by trees, with mountains in the distance, a serene and tranquil scene.
His eyes, having rested in the natural light, no longer felt strained or dry.
In the evening, Shi Nuo didn’t turn on the projector. Unable to sleep, he picked up a comic book, cautiously flipped through a few pages to make sure there were no explicit images, then leaned against a pillow and started reading.
The sound of running water in the bathroom stopped, and Hugh Elvis emerged, wrapped in a towel.
Shi Nuo instinctively looked up, sensing something was wrong.
The cold lotus scent filled the air, turbulent and restless, accompanied by a faint chill that lowered the temperature in the room.
The Alpha’s pheromones surged uncontrollably, a strong, cold fragrance laced with potent arousal pheromones, wrapping around the Omega huddled in the corner of the bed.
Hugh Elvis’s bloodshot eyes locked onto Shi Nuo, who felt a surge of fear and confusion.
He suddenly remembered the Alpha’s restlessness earlier. The most likely cause: his rut had arrived.
