When pretense seeped into sincerity, and the deceiver was the first to fall into the net they wove, that taste was even more unbearably painful.

She hated him!

She hated his current calmness, hated his past deception, and hated that even as a prisoner, his eyes still held something she couldn't control.

She stepped forward and grabbed his collar, the force making the shackles rattle loudly.

"Yes! So what if I deceived you first?!"

She practically screamed, her beautiful face flushed with excitement. "But what about you? Did you not have a shred of sincerity? Don't give me that nonsense; I don't believe you felt absolutely nothing for me!

Mo Fengyi! I don't believe it!"

Mo Fengyi silently watched her face so close to his, clearly seeing the pain, struggle, and unwillingness in her eyes.

He opened his mouth, but in the end, he only said, "Whether I believe it or not... does it matter?

You are an important member of the Advent Organization, steadfastly loyal to your Holy Lord, and I can never betray my country and my people.

Our philosophies are different, our beliefs are different; we are destined not to coexist, and there can never be any result."

After nine years of spending every day together, no one is made of wood or stone; who could remain heartless?

If he were truly heartless, how could he have deceived her, and deceived so many people in the Descent?

But this affection, born of conspiracy and nurtured by deceit, was destined not to yield good fruit, only to drag them both into a deeper abyss of suffering.

But he understood clearly from the start that the only possibility between them was mutual destruction.

The moment she approached him with an agenda, the ending was already set.

The romance was beautiful.

But the greater good of the nation was a line he would never cross.

He loved her, but those who violate our territory deserve death!

Mo Fengyi's words and his resolute, icy gaze were like a bucket of ice water, extinguishing the flame that had ignited within Tian Xiuyu and plunging her into deeper despair.

She let go, stumbled back a step, and managed a smile uglier than a cry.

"That's right... it was already destined."

She murmured, her eyes suddenly changing, and her expression instantly shifting.

From miserable bitterness, she reverted to cold arrogance.

She looked down coldly, her gaze sweeping over him like bone-rotting poison.

A seductive curve appeared at the corner of her mouth, and she licked the finger that had previously touched Mo Fengyi.

"Mo Fengyi, you made me fail again."

There was no unrequited love or tangled web of affection and hate.

Her expression now resembled a wild cat that had failed to steal a meal.

It was charming, lazy, and utterly ruthless.

"I 'protected' you for a month, thinking you might change your mind, or at least show me some pity. But... heh heh, well, you really shouldn't be too good to men!"

She raised an eyebrow. "Otherwise! They simply don't know how to appreciate it!"

She suddenly raised her hand, grasping a whip covered in barbs.

"Crack!"

The whip lashed down heavily.

She put all her strength into this strike.

There was no mercy!

The resulting welt not only tore the skin and flesh but even exposed the stark white bone beneath.

Although Mo Fengyi was a man of steel, he was still flesh and blood; strong willpower did not mean his body wouldn't feel pain.

His muscles instantly spasmed, and he painfully curled up.

"Heh, so you can feel pain too?"

"How interesting."

Tian Xiuyu reached out, running her fingertip across Mo Fengyi's wound.

Then she smiled seductively.

She curled her fingers.

All five fingers viciously dug into the bloody, mangled wound.

"Ngh—"

Mo Fengyi groaned, cold sweat continuously breaking out.

"Hahaha... Mo Fengyi, look... this is the relationship that suits us best!"

Tian Xiuyu laughed, then violently yanked her hand back.

"Drip!"

"Drip!"

Bright red blood continuously dripped from her palm. She slowly turned over her crimson hand, brought it to her lips again, sniffed, and lightly licked it.

This scene, though somewhat perverse.

Was demonic and sexy.

Mo Fengyi: "..."

"Mo Fengyi, I know you want to die for your country, but don't worry, you won't die."

Her voice was soft as water, but her eyes were cold as ice.

"At least not until that great genius delivers herself to us."

Mo Fengyi froze.

His gaze instantly sharpened like a wolf's. "You want to use me to lure Mingxi!"

"What else? Why else do you think we kept you, a spy? Did you truly believe it was love?"

She lightly patted his face. "You, my dear, are the bait our Holy Lord specifically kept to catch a fish, you know?"

"Mingxi will absolutely not fall for it!"

"Oh? Is that so? You have done so much for Longhua Country; you are a great hero of Longhua Country, and your Longhua Country people are always so hypocritical, spouting righteousness and morality.

They absolutely won't ignore a great hero like you, so who do you think they will send to save you?"

Mo Fengyi's face was ashen.

In that moment, he regretted not killing himself the moment he was exposed.

If... if Mingxi truly risked danger for him and entered this trap specifically designed for her... his death wouldn't be enough to atone!!

...The illegal airspace of Zetaremu Star.

Chaos was the eternal theme here.

A small cargo spaceship named 'Streamer' was preparing to cross a dense asteroid belt.

Like a speck of dust in the dark night, it silently approached the gravitational perturbation zone of the star system.

Inside the transfer cabinets in the cargo ship's rear compartment, rows of hibernation pods were displayed, each containing a young adult male.

Their eyes were tightly shut, making them look like breathless corpses.

"Warning!"

"Vessel under unknown attack! Shield energy dropping rapidly!"

"High-intensity EMP interference detected, navigation system failure!"

"Capture net attached, 80% loss of maneuverability!"

The cold electronic alerts sounded urgently inside the ship's cabin.

The youth inside one of the hibernation pods slightly fluttered his eyelashes.

"Master, it's space pirates."

"Check which group of space pirates it is."

"Checked. It's the Gray Rat Pirate Group. Their base is located in the 'Bone Shard Market' in the third district of Zetaremu Star. Their stolen goods are usually sold through the Cloud Ice Auction House."

The Gray Rat Pirate Group?

The Cloud Ice Auction?

Perhaps she could change her plan.

This group of pirates came at just the right time.

A plan quickly formed in her mind.

A few minutes later.

The cargo spaceship was completely captured by the Gray Rat Pirates.

"Boss, there are several hibernation pods here. They look like Turan Clan people from Yunhai Star. This cargo ship was transporting people, huh."

"Turan Clan people are worth a lot of money."

"Boss, come look quickly, isn't this that specific person from the Turan Clan?"

"..."

"Holy cow! We hit the jackpot this time."

"Take them all away!"

"Yes, Boss!"

The hibernation pods were moved.

A few days later, as the pirate ships entered the gravitational range of Zetaremu Star, the group eventually entered a massive trading platform in the Third District, pieced together from abandoned starships, derelict factories, and various metal scraps.

This was the so-called Bone Shard Market.

The Cloud Ice Auction was held in a massive venue converted from the hull of an old freighter.

The air was thick, mixing engine oil, poor-quality fuel, and the body odors of countless races.

High-powered spotlights shone on the central display stage, surrounded by circular rising seating and private boxes separated by thick curtains.

The audience seats were filled with the 'big shots' from this chaotic planet.

There were mercenaries wearing ragged leather armor and covered in weapons;

Merchants wrapped in luxurious robes with shrewd eyes;

Ancient races from different planets with unusual appearances;

And members of certain secretive organizations, whose aura was distinctly chilling.

Code name KT-73, along with dozens of other "commodities," was transported onto the display stage.

The air inside the cage seemed thinner and colder than the air outside.

The spotlights poured down onto the 'commodities' like molten silver, without mercy.

These commodities were almost all handsome boys or young men.

Among them, KT-73 was the most stunning.

He was not standing, but sitting in the center of the cage in a strange, completely unguarded posture, as if the cold metal beneath him were his personal throne.

His long legs were casually bent, one arm rested on his knee, and a controller flashing with faint blue light was fastened to his wrist bone.

His handsomeness was aggressive, a splendor that transcended gender and pierced straight into the eye.

Every curve of his features looked like the painstaking masterpiece of a craftsman god from ancient mythology.

However, what was most captivating was his long hair, like a waterfall cascading under the moonlight.

It wasn't a color, but a state.

It seemed to have absorbed the luster of the entire night sky, emitting a faint, cold glow.

But this was not his most unique feature.

Just above the collar of his slightly open silk shirt, the skin on the side of his neck was not smooth; instead, it was covered in extremely fine, neatly arranged scales that shimmered with a mother-of-pearl luster.

The scales began behind his ear, spread down along the elegant curve of his neck, disappeared beneath his clothing, and refracted shifting, rainbow-like glimmers under the bright lights.

They lacked the coldness of snake or fish scales, possessing instead a sacred, artistic quality.

The auction house was filled with suppressed gasps, greedy stares, and the faint clinking of cups.

The air was thick, mixing the scents of expensive perfume, cigars, and aged wood.

Yet, uniquely.

There was no scent of 'humanity'.

This was a furnace of desire.

"Distinguished guests..."

As the auctioneer's voice rang out, it signaled the official start of the auction.

The youth slightly raised his chin, his eyes, clear as water, scanning the decadent and depraved auction house before him.

"Master, in the front row on the left, wearing unified dark red armor, is one of the Vice Captains of the Blood Falcon Mercenary Group. This mercenary group specializes in high-risk missions, and their Captain is an SSS-level Beast Master named Luo Xiu.

However, he usually doesn't like managing things; the main affairs are handled by his brother-in-law, the other Vice Captain, Xitasman.

And the Vice Captain Kailong is a playboy who swings both ways, isn't picky about anything, and is very violent in bed, often playing people to death.

You must be careful not to catch his eye.

Look at me, talking nonsense. In your current appearance, it would be a miracle if that pervert didn't notice you."

"See the box on the right? The person lifting the curtain and smiling suggestively is named Aimanid. He is the regional agent for the Void Merchant Guild on Yunhai Star. This guild conducts legitimate business openly, but secretly deals in 'special goods' like intelligence and human trafficking.

This person is a pervert, just like Kailong.

However, he is a masochist who enjoys being whipped by strong men; the harder the better! If you end up with him, you won't suffer, but you'll have to exert some effort."

"..."

"Master, Master, those people sitting at the back of the venue dressed like Mario are members of the Zeta Sub-Professional Guild, but barely any of them are actual Sub-Professionals. All their 'works' are acquired through illegal means, repackaged, and sold.

There truly isn't a single good person on this Zetaremu Star."

Mingxi, who was currently disguised as a Turan Clan member, was also the commodity KT-73.

"...As everyone can see, these auction items are all Turan Clan people from the Karman Empire on Yunhai ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) Star."

"And among them, KT-73 is the current Yulanka of the Turan Clan!"

The crowd below instantly burst into an uproar. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked collectively at the auction stage.

"The Turan Yulanka?! Is that true?!"

"The Cloud Ice Auction House wouldn't talk nonsense. Looking at this youth's appearance, the quantity and quality of the white scales on his body, and his overall demeanor, it's likely true."

"If it's true, the Cloud Ice Auction House is incredible for managing to capture the Turan Yulanka!"

"He's really good-looking!"

The Turan Clan is one of the oldest human ethnic groups on Yunhai Star, much like the Kabu Clan on Green Field Star.

However, this ethnic group is small in number, and its members, regardless of gender, are exceptionally attractive—the men handsome, the women delicate and beautiful—making them the Alliance's most famous beauty race.

But this clan also has a fatal flaw.

They cannot awaken to become Beastmasters.

It is said that this clan is a mutated race born from the union of humans and the Mythological-level Transcendent creature, Gengjin Tianyou.

Ridiculous?

Theoretically, humans and Transcendent creatures do have reproductive isolation; even the most perverse human cannot conceive offspring with a Transcendent creature.

But the Transcendent creature Gengjin Tianyou is very special.

They possess a trait similar to Emerald Green's 【Second Form】, called the 【Celestial Form】.

In this form, Gengjin Tianyou not only looks indistinguishable from humans but also has physiological functions nearly identical to humans.

To the extent that DNA testing cannot find a difference.

Therefore, if this type of Transcendent creature truly developed feelings for a human, resulting in an epic human-beast romance and the birth of mixed-blood offspring possessing Transcendent creature lineage.

It is not impossible.

Because the Turan Clan people are the mixed-blood offspring of humans and Gengjin Tianyou, they are theoretically a type of mutated Transcendent creature.

And Transcendent creatures naturally have no possibility of awakening to become Beastmasters.

Furthermore, the white scales on the necks of the Turan Clan people are almost identical to the scales of the Gengjin Tianyou, making this rumor increasingly credible.

Some people have tried to form a contract with Turan people because of this, but the Soul Contract Platform gives no reaction at all.

So whether they are human or Transcendent creature remains a mystery to this day.

This clan has also been hunted because of this rumor.

Yes.

Hunted.