Chapter 1: First Sight

The damp, cramped basement was filled with the musty smell of decay and fishy pheromones. The boy in the corner was hugging his knees, his tiny body curled into a ball.

“This pup, really? So small. He’s not even differentiated,” the kidnapper muttered quietly.

“It’s true. Otherwise, why would the boss have gone to such lengths to catch him? Heh, a natural born little wanderer.” His companion looked at the boy. “He’s even better looking than his mother and still growing up! It’s a pity we don’t have a chance to try him.”

“Eh. Do you think it will work if we try him now?”

“You’re fucking perverted. He’s what? Five, six years old?”

“Bam!” The one small door burst open. In rushed a scantily clad woman with gorgeous features. She was holding a large metal canister. Her voice shook sharply, “Let my son go!”

“Fuck! It’s a combustion pressure tank! This bitch is crazy!”

Fire, black smoke, curses, screams and explosions intermingled…His senses became blurred and a voice hit his ears clearly, “Ping Mo, run! Don’t ever let anyone know you’re a Therian!”  1

Those were the last words Ping Mo heard before he was pushed out of the basement, and the last words from his mother.

 

Ping Mo 2 opened his eyes suddenly, gasped and sat up. The sunlight leaked in through the gap in the curtains and hit the fine beads of sweat on his forehead.

“Dreaming again,” Ping Mo mumbled. He subconsciously touched the top of his head and the back of his body. Fortunately, neither his ears nor his tail had come out.

The alarm clock memo read, [Report to the military university at 10:00 a.m.]

At the same time, Pei Yutu 3 spoke gruffly on the phone from the Alliance Military Technology University headquarters campus, “Dad, don’t lie to me! I know more about the army than you do. If Ping Mo is really capable, I’ll definitely defer to him, but if he’s not, I’ll straighten him out with a couple of hits…No, I’m only staying three months, so there’s no reason to buy a house…You want me to take advantage of this opportunity to bring a wife back to meet you? Geez, I’m only twenty-five. What’s your hurry? There are quite a few omegas at the University, but no one is particularly interesting…I’m not dreaming! Your son is an alpha and fierce. It’s normal for me to be a bit more demanding…I’m not talking to you. I have a phone call coming in.”

“Hello, Lu–”

“Don’t answer, I’m right here!” A tall, thin young man in a training uniform held up a cell phone and waved at Pei Yutu with a smile.

“Why call when you can fucking see me?” Pei Yutu also laughed, then punched Lu DongWang in the chest. “You changed your clothes?”

Lu DongWang, “Yes. This time the military ministry has a new idea. They changed the ‘all-volunteer education and training’ to a rotation system. We are the only three who came from the big coalition garrisons, right? I’ll be Brother Cao’s second-in-command. Pei Yutu, have you seen Instructor Ping?”

“No.” Pei Yutu raised his hand and pulled on his messy hair. “But my old man was afraid that I wouldn’t obey the dude, so he called me just now. Guess what he said?”

Lu DongWang used his imagination to his heart’s content. “If you stay out of trouble without a hitch and finish gold-plating, 4 you’ll be rewarded with a spacecraft? A house?”

“…” Pei Yutu said, “How did you know I’d get a house?”

Lu DongWang was shocked. “What? Really!?”

Pei Yutu was unconcerned. “He was afraid I couldn’t get used to living in the dormitory.”

Lu DongWang, “…”

Why do the rich buy houses like they buy groceries? This was the main planet, and the rich northern hemisphere. Unlike the remote space station they came from, every inch of land was super expensive! Several high-end residential areas nearby were so expensive that a down payment would be enough for an average person to live off of for a lifetime.

Pei Yutu said, “Hey, let’s get down to business. I’ve heard that the new top officer I’m to serve, Instructor Ping, was transferred from the special operations team and is said to be a ‘Raptor.’” 5

“…” Lu DongWang had his mouth open for half a day. “Bullshit!”

The Alliance’s Special Operations Teams were highly selective, were full of top-tier alphas and commonly known as the ‘Kings of Soldiers.’ They were highly capable of fighting on their own, especially the Raptors, who were known as the Alliance’s sharpest weapons against interstellar pirates. The Captain of the Raptors, who single-handedly leveled an entire pirate space station, had been the subject of much Alliance military gossip. 

Pei Yutu scoffed, “You really believe that, do you? I think my dad was fooled. That Ping guy is definitely a puffed-up king.” 

I’ll have to teach him a lesson when I see him!

Lu DongWang touched his chin. “Makes sense! Nowadays, the most popular way to brag is to start with ‘I know the Raptor Captain,’ huh?”

“But let’s not talk about that.” Lu DongWang’s eyebrows flew up. “It’s nice that the Alliance University is big, unlike our station. But it’s all alphas, then some betas and no omegas! I haven’t seen a live omega in almost two years! Pei, this time we have to make a deal! You stay away from me, so that the omega I’m chasing won’t fall for you again! Don’t steal from me!”

Pei Yutu said, “You’re such a child. Who would want to steal them?”

Lu DongWang rolled his eyes at those words. Sure, maybe he had never stolen anyone, but he couldn’t help but get compared to him! However, this fucking dog had high vision. No one could meet his high standards. Maybe he would be a bachelor for the rest of his life.

 

Ping Mo’s luggage had already been sent to the University. He quickly packed himself up, put on his cap, and checked out of his room. He was in no hurry as he went to the nearest pharmacy.

“The M-type inhibitor you asked for is a controlled substance. No one in the entire Star City can buy that.” The pharmacist’s attitude was gentle as they suggested, “Ordinary people use this inhibitor.”

“Thank you.” Ping Mo took the medication, then asked hesitantly, “Is it normal if my bonding heat comes on suddenly and frequently?”

Most of his face was covered by the brim of the hat. It revealed a slender neck in a wide T-shirt that looked a little thin. He looked like someone full of teenage spirit, so the lady took pity on him. “If you’re differentiating, you’re going to go through a period of disorder. If you are worried, you can ask your parents to take you to the hospital to do a systematic examination.”

“…” This lady thought he was a minor.

“Remember to take your inhibitors on time, and most importantly, stay away from alphas.”

Ping Mo didn’t ask any more questions. He ended up buying another spray bottle of unscented blocker, and learned how to pay by cell phone. His military terminal had been turned in when he left the Raptors, so he had a new civilian terminal that he wasn’t yet comfortable using.

It was still early, and Ping Mo was ready to walk to the nearest bus stop. He hadn’t been back to his home planet in a long time, so he took his time, and absorbed the scenery as he went.

Two or three hundred meters away, not far from the road, there were a couple of sleek young men who couldn’t stop glancing at him. Ping Mo seemed oblivious of the stalkers, and made a turn at the end of the road into a more secluded alley.

The couple of punks gave each other a wink, and boldly followed him.

“Stop!”

Ping Mo took it easy and stopped as he allowed himself to be surrounded by their claws and teeth. However, if someone looked closely, they would notice that his sleek arm muscles were tense, while his body leaned slightly forward in an attack-ready stance.

“Is that him? Why don’t I smell pheromones?”

“He got suppressants, right? Isn’t this the guy who just came out of the drugstore?”

Ping Mo stiffened at the words, and a thought quickly flashed through his mind. Was this not just a common robbery? He slowly relaxed, took two steps backward as if scared, and leaned weakly against the wall. “Do you know me?”

“Sort of! Someone asked us to take care of you.” A man with dyed blonde hair said as he reached over and pulled off Ping Mo’s hat. “Why are you covering up so tightly?”

In the next second, the thugs let out a collective shout.

“Fuck!”

“Motherfucker!”

“He’s so fucking good looking, I’m going to make a lot of money today!”

The person in front of them seemed to be somewhere between a teenager and a young man. They couldn’t tell his age, but he really had a good body. A slender physique, lush eyebrows, and eyes that were a rare gray-blue color. The morning light hit his skin which gave it a white, porcelain-like luster.

Two words summed him up. Fucking stunning.

“Who told you to ‘take care’ of me?” Ping Mo’s voice wasn’t too high or too low, not too scared and not too calm. With his handsome little face, he looked so pitiful that the punks laughed obscenely and ambiguously. 

“I don’t know! I’ve heard it’s someone from the top-brass. It’s fast-cash. We’re here, aren’t we?”

“They say fucking an omega in heat is the best since they’re active!”

“There’s no cameras here. Cover his mouth, and let’s do him guys!”

The alpha pheromones in the alley ramped up as the obscenities were accompanied by a barrage of movements, and the thugs pounced on the sheep for slaughter.

The ‘lamb’ suddenly sprang up, smashed the bridge of one man’s nose with a punch, while at the same time, kicked another man in the shoulder blade with a kick so fast that their eyes could hardly follow it. When the gangsters finally reacted, and yelled to “get the guy,” more than half had already suffered casualties.

Blondie picked up a short knife, then pounced on him, as he screamed. Ping Mo had just broken a man’s arm, and the man was at a loss for words. Everyone thought the ‘little sheep’ had to be captured, but then there was a sharp, steely sound. The short knife fell to the ground, while a shining dagger was at Blondie’s neck. Ping Mo had pulled his knife. His posture was textbook standard, while the fairness and delicacy of his skin hinted at his lean muscle tone.

He half-lowered his long eyelashes. “Correction. An omega in heat is not active, but irritable.”

“Yes…yes, yes! Very grumpy…Ah, no. It’s us who have eyes but can’t see!” Blondie was about to be scared to tears, and the wounded men on the ground were also grunting for mercy.

Who would have thought that such a pretty little thing, with such a peculiar skill, would carry a weapon with him? 

Ping Mo said, “Now I will ask you to answer, and you will be rewarded if you are right. Who ordered you to do this?”

That required a bit of a confession, and Blondie, with a shiny military dagger around his neck, was the most useful, “I really don’t know. We haven’t actually seen him. But he gave us something.” 

Ping Mo relaxed his hold just slightly. Blondie got busy pulling out a heavy gold leaf. It wasn’t a gold trinket, but an extra-territorial plant that was extremely rare and precious. The gangsters thought that they would be able to settle the matter honestly, but they hadn’t expected that the big brother’s mood would change drastically after he saw the gold leaf, and that his beautiful gray-blue eyes would almost look murderous.

The big brother’s way of letting off steam was simple. There was a brutal beating, and pleas for mercy in the alley, which finally attracted the police, even though the alley was deserted.

The thugs, who usually shunned the cops, were so excited at the sound of the police car that they almost shed tears. Ping Mo stopped the beating and asked, “Do you know what the crime of molesting an omega is?”

The thugs instantly quieted down, and cowered in unison. It had definitely been attempted and they got beaten up. But the smell of their alpha pheromones was still in the air, so the evidence was clear.

But then Ping Mo said, “So, I’m going to leave. You know what to say later.”

The sound of the police car got closer and closer. He stepped on Blondie’s back, then leapt over the wall and disappeared with great dexterity. So when the police arrived, they saw a field of bruised and battered thugs, who were crying and confessing that they were just fighting with each other.

Since these punks were regulars at the jail, the police didn’t question them, just detained and fined them.

Ping Mo came out from the other side of the alley, and rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. The gland at the back of his neck was colored a not-so-subtle shade of red.

“It’s getting more and more sensitive,” he mumbled. He frowned and subconsciously touched his tailbone.

Ping Mo’s mood didn’t improve when he finally arrived at the Alliance Military Technology University. He had lost his cap, and several alpha boys stared at him as soon as he entered the university. One of them even had the audacity to accost him, and called him, “Junior.”

Ping Mo scared the guy with a fierce glare.

No one could blame him for being grumpy. He’d just gotten into a fight in a pheromone-filled alley that irritated the glands in the back of his neck, so the last thing he wanted right now was another alpha near him.

The boy cringed and muttered to his companion, “So mean. Such a beautiful face all for nothing.”

The corner of Ping Mo’s forehead jumped. He admonished himself that this was a school. He couldn’t behave like a bear, at least not on the first day of school.

Tsk, these pesky alphas.

Two hundred meters away, Pei Yutu, who was still waiting for his new boss and had nothing better to do than run laps around to warm up, was just getting comfortable and sweaty when he saw a grumpy-faced beauty staring at the signs.

Three hours ago, he had the audacity to say that the entire coalition army was mostly crooked alphas. Big Pei, “!!!”

Ping Mo only smelled a tequila-scented alpha pheromone near his face, stronger than a dozen thugs combined, and much too strong to ignore. It caused his tailbone to itch.

They both spoke at the same time.

“Student, are you…lost?”

“Fuck off.”

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Author: Finally! Thank you for waiting! 

Tips.

1. First go kidney then go heart. 6 

2. Rough and unruly gong x cat eared shou. It’s a good idea to have a few things in mind.

3.The basic setting is ABO with private settings. CP is the traditional AO match.

The ABO setting we should all know about, right? It’s okay if you don’t know, just remember “Instructor Ping is so provocative that you can’t stop (not).”

The background of this story: low interstellar technology, a little higher than Earth. Limited human activities expanded to artificial space stations, not to other planets. But this is not important, and doesn’t affect the reading.

Translator Notes:

So this word was my choice as a translator. The original Chinese is 兽人 which directly translates to beast person. But to me, a beast person doesn’t sound cool. So if many of you don’t know, werebeasts (such as werewolves or any human/animal that can transform into an animal/human form) it is called Therianthropy and those that can shapeshift into other creatures are called Therians, hence why I decided to use this term instead of the direct translation of ‘beast person.’ 平 – Peaceful, 墨 – Ink 裴 – Flowing, 与 – United/Giving, 屠 – Slaughter/Butcher 镀金 means to made something that seems super ordinary seem special. Like those in impoverished families actually graduating from high school. It’s ordinary, but if you’re the first to do it in your family, it becomes special.鹰隼 – Eagle Falcon. A general term for a ferocious bird, used as a metaphor for ferocity or bravery. Often used as a metaphor for someone who is ferocious and fearful or brave by nature. Since there is no such thing as an eagle falcon (they are two different species of birds or prey) I went for the term that they call all birds of prey, like owls, eagles, osprey, falcons etc, which is Avian Raptors, i.e. raptors. So don’t confuse it with dinosaur raptors. 先走肾后走心 – roughly translated as “kidney before heart” – it means a relationship/to develop a relationship that start with body first/or physical attraction before falling in love. Kidney is a metaphor for men’s “downstairs,” so “to think with the kidney first” means to think with your ahem first.