You and I were never meant to walk the same path.

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With a ship that big flying overhead, the military couldn’t possibly remain unaware.

 

As expected, the higher-ups sent orders: “Lu Hang, your coordinates are the closest. You must do everything possible to intercept the target vessel. Reinforcements will arrive shortly.”

 

“Copy that.”

 

Lu Hang ended the communication, ensured the connection with headquarters was severed, then turned around—only to face the aggressively approaching mecha and say:

 

“Stop. Let’s talk.”

 

Black Mask sneered: “I have nothing to talk about with you.”

 

Just as the higher-ups had said, reinforcement mechas arrived quickly. Lu Hang and the black masked man were engaged in fierce aerial combat when the six mechas behind them took the opportunity to raise their cannons and, bang bang bang, fired a volley straight at Black Mask.

 

Eighteen shells. Black Mask dodged seventeen; the last one struck his flank.

 

Lu Hang’s brows knitted. He watched the man’s mecha’s left wing spew black smoke as he fled in panic toward the forest below.

 

He turned his mecha around, blocking the path of those six mechas, and calmly ordered:

 

“Please go intercept the ship. I’ll pursue the suspect.”

 

The six military police readily agreed. In their view, Black Mask was just a small fry of little value. As the saying goes, to catch the bandits, first catch the king—the credit for shooting down the ship was obviously far greater.

 

They also thought Lu Hang wasn’t fighting over the glory and it was quite sensible of him.

 

The six mechas turned and charged toward the mother-ship in the distance, while Lu Hang pulled the descent lever and headed in the opposite direction from the main force.

 

In the fallen, tangled forest, he found the wounded bird.

 

The left wing was damaged and the temperature control system had failed. Lu Hang pried open the cockpit door, and a wave of steaming heat rushed out. Looking inside, the person in the pilot’s seat was slumped limply over the console, already half-conscious.

 

The G-force from the accelerated descent was enough to knock even a well-trained pilot unconscious in an instant.

 

Lu Hang didn’t hesitate. He jumped in, wrapped his arm around Black Mask’s waist, and lifted him. Birds have hollow bones, so Black Mask’s body was much lighter than an ordinary alpha’s, and he managed to carry him with no effort.

 

But as he jumped down from the cockpit, Lu Hang’s palm accidentally brushed across Black Mask’s back.

 

Scalding hot. Freely flowing sweat.

 

The alpha’s aggressive pheromones were violently colliding with his nerves.

 

A fleeting memory flashed through Lu Hang’s mind—the six-man dormitory room after break, the shaking bed curtain, the creaking lower bunk, the iron bed frame knocking against the wall with increasing intensity, sweat soaking through the sheets, yet still unbearably dry.

 

That was the first time in his life he’d lost control.

 

But this daze lasted less than a second. Lu Hang’s mental stability rate was 98%—he could snap back to reality at almost any moment.

 

The same went for the black-masked man.

 

The next second, Lu Hang’s abdomen went cold. The hard, cold sensation of a gun muzzle traveled through the combat suit to his nerves without reservation.

 

“Go to hell.” The man’s black mask was pitch black, revealing no emotion.

 

“You should have shot first, then threatened.”

 

Lu Hang snatched the gun from his hand and tossed it into the grass. At the same time, Black Mask had already landed, and his first move was a vicious sweeping kick.

 

A killing blow from the outset.

 

The howling wind brushed past Lu Hang’s ear, showing its extreme danger. Unhurried, Lu Hang grabbed his calf, pulled and hooked it toward himself, turning force into softness, entangling him to the ground and pinning him down with a knee.

 

“Your combat skills were still trained by me.” Lu Hang breathed slightly heavily, looking down at the face mask.

 

“Get off!” The black masked man’s breath hitched as he fiercely struggled beneath him.

 

Lu Hang reached behind the black mask and found a clasp. If he pressed it, the mask this person used to conceal himself would be forced off.

 

The clasp clicked.

 

“Shameless bastard!” The man went all out, using his leg bone to brace against the other’s arm. He was an alpha, and his physical strength wasn’t far behind Lu Hang’s, so this burst nearly fractured Lu Hang’s elbow.

 

“Hiss.” Lu Hang let go in pain. Black Mask seized the opening, lunging without hesitation toward the grass, and reaching for the gun.

 

But Lu Hang was more experienced. One kick sent the gun deeper into the brush. He stood in front of Black Mask, his expression almost flat: “You hate me that much? Can’t wait to kill me?”

 

The man sneered coldly: “As the Tyrant’s Hound, everyone has the right to put you down.”

 

Lu Hang wasn’t angry: “I only want to ask you properly, in these past three years, have you been doing well?”

 

The man fell silent. After a long pause, he let out a scoff: “I don’t know what you’re talking about. You’ve got the wrong person.”

 

“Is that so?” Lu Hang smiled helplessly. “You might not know this, but when you lie, your pinky always rubs against your palm.”

 

Black Mask instinctively looked down at his hand, then froze, and quickly hid it behind his back.

 

You can change your name. You can change your identity. But you can’t change your habits.

 

The man’s breathing grew heavier; the inside of the mask was covered in exhaled moisture. In his increasingly blurry field of vision, Lu Hang’s expression was as calm as ever—but the calmer he was, the more Black Mask resented him, a resentment twisting so deep it made his heart and lungs ache.

 

“I… really hate you!”

 

Lu Hang answered softly: “Mm.”

 

“You’re a good brother, a good son, a good subordinate, a good captain—a good person in countless people’s eyes.” Black Mask’s voice strained. “You abide by the law, live a celibate life, have orthodox thinking, follow every rule. You’re a noble with a clean background and good family standing. You’ve never stepped out of line your whole life—so I—”

 

You and I were never meant to walk the same path.

 

Besides, unnatural relationships between alphas have never been tolerated by society.

 

“I have.” Lu Hang suddenly interrupted.

 

“What?”

 

“A moment when I stepped out of line.” Lu Hang looked at him. “With you.”

 

At that moment, a fierce gust of wind swept down from above. The cyclone it raised made them both instinctively duck and dodge. Caught off guard, the mask was blown away, leaving only a stunned face behind.

 

They were forced to face each other honestly, with their true appearances.

 

Lu Hang’s heart tightened involuntarily as he stared at that face.

 

Three years had passed. His features had thinned a little, but he was still as tall and striking as ever. Blood-red nictitating membranes, snow-white hair. Most distinctive were his upturned eye corners, as if naturally lined with black eyeliner, carrying a hint of seductive charm.

 

As an alpha, he was far too provocative in appearance.

 

It was hard to imagine that such a beauty could come from a barren planet like the Wild Planet.

 

Lu Hang recalled the past. A precious jade invites crime—if not for the family’s inherited beauty, Huo Yuan’s sister would never have been forcibly violated…

 

After fleeing the military academy, Huo Yuan changed his name to “Kepler.” He killed his way to the powerful family’s home that very night to avenge his underage sister, who had been forced to lay eggs and suffered harm, and thus became the number one fugitive.

 

He could no longer show his true face to anyone.

 

As his thoughts wandered, the wind above grew louder and louder.

 

Lu Hang looked up warily—the source of the cyclone was two mechas approaching at high speed, likely follow-up forces coming to investigate.

 

He made a quick decision. With one hand he picked up the mask, with the other he took the person’s hand and pulled him directly into his own cockpit.

 

“You have to leave immediately.” Lu Hang took out the mecha key and quickly instructed the onboard AI to verify the other’s biometric information. “Take my mecha and go. I have internal recognition with the military—they won’t stop you.”

 

Huo Yuan instinctively grabbed him and asked: “What about you?”

 

“I’ll find a way.” Lu Hang stood by the door, casting a faint smile over his shoulder.