Chapter Sixty-Five: The Iridescence of Black

Chapter Sixty-Five: Iridescent Black

"Xiaolun, let's go. I don't want the wings anymore."

Looking at the weak, pitiful, and helpless Ge Xiaolun, Yunyang felt he couldn't bring himself to take Ge Xiaolun's wings for his own sake. He simply grabbed his arm and tried to leave.

"You can't. Is my laboratory a place where anyone can come and go as they please?"

In the next instant, Ge Xiaolun and Yunyang were enveloped by a transparent dome, which even made Yunyang, who was in the lead, bump his nose against it, making him wince with discomfort.

"How about this—if you can break out of this spatial cage, you won't have to dismantle the wings. If you succeed, I'll make you a new one," He Xi said with a sudden bright smile.

Annoyed, Yunyang touched the transparent shield that had struck his nose. He took out the King’s Sword He Xi had given him and slashed at it.

A fine crack appeared, but before Yunyang could show any sign of delight, the fissure instantly mended, returning to flawless perfection.

"It's useless. As long as it has energy, it will recover in an instant. Don't waste your strength," He Xi said coolly, secretly sighing in relief. She knew the effectiveness of the King's Sword—she had given it to Yunyang and seen its power firsthand. When Yunyang drew the sword, He Xi herself had been uncertain about the spatial dome’s resilience.

"Xiaolun, try your anti-void," Yunyang whispered to Ge Xiaolun, then turned to He Xi with a beaming smile.

"Your Excellency, Celestial Base King, it's just a pot of tea, isn't this a bit much?"

"What tea? I don't know what you're talking about," He Xi replied playfully, a mischievous curl to her lips.

Yunyang’s face twitched; clearly, He Xi was determined to give them a hard time. Even a fool could see that neither he nor Ge Xiaolun was any match for her. They couldn’t even break a simple spatial dome.

Seeing that He Xi was immovable, Yunyang turned to Kaisha with a plaintive wail that could move even the coldest heart.

"Sis, help me..."

Kaisha, feeling a little embarrassed, turned away and tugged at He Xi's cloak, hinting that enough was enough.

He Xi turned to her with a broad smile and whispered, "Just a moment more."

Meeting Yunyang's expectant gaze, Kaisha gave him a helpless look.

Watching the exchange between Kaisha and Yunyang, He Xi admitted to herself that she was jealous. When Kaisha was with her, she was always the queen—thoughtful toward all angels, but never to one in particular. Yet this boy, whom she’d only known for six months, could make Kaisha respond to his every whim, even bestowing him with that doting gaze.

Fine, maybe that helpless look was actually indulgence. Jealousy welled up in He Xi’s heart as she fixed her gaze—mostly on Yunyang, but also on Ge Xiaolun.

Under He Xi's glare, Yunyang felt a chill run down his spine.

He forced a grimace, elbowed Ge Xiaolun, and whispered, "Xiaolun, can you do it? I think she's out to get us."

"Not a chance, not enough computing power. I’ve only cracked five percent so far," Ge Xiaolun replied, woken from his reverie. He hadn’t even been actively restrained, yet had managed just five percent. If He Xi decided to suppress or attack him, wouldn’t he be completely at her mercy?

"Keep going, I’ll boost you."

With Yunyang’s support, Ge Xiaolun’s computational speed increased by three frames. At a high speed of fifteen frames per second, his decryption rate improved significantly.

"Ge Xiaolun, this was a trial Yan once faced. If you can solve it, I'll put in a word for you with her. Maybe you won't have to wait a thousand years—how about it?" He Xi said excitedly, sensing the sudden surge in computational speed. As a scientist and the creator of secondary biological engines, her interest in Shenhe’s anti-void system was piqued, and her jealousy vanished.

She began frantically gathering data through the Celestial Base cloud, though Yunyang and Ge Xiaolun were unaware. Inspired by He Xi’s offer, Ge Xiaolun’s face hardened with resolve, and his computational speed increased further.

Ten minutes later, with an exclamation of "Awesome!" from Yunyang, Ge Xiaolun used his Xiong Core to open a hole in the spatial cage.

He Xi’s expression darkened at the sight. She had intended to activate the flare at fifty percent decryption to teach Yunyang—a boy favored by Kaisha—a lesson. But Ge Xiaolun had broken the rules.

"Fine, you win this round. I’ll talk to Yan, but it’s up to her in the end," she said irritably.

"Oh, that’s really kind of you," Ge Xiaolun replied, scratching his head awkwardly.

"If you’re embarrassed, we can skip it. That saves me the trouble," He Xi shot back instantly.

This time it was Ge Xiaolun’s turn to be baffled. He opened his mouth, unsure what to say, and finally blurted out the only phrase that captured his feelings.

"You, me, this—awesome."

Ge Xiaolun’s expression was as if he’d swallowed a fly. Yunyang and Kaisha exchanged glances and, unable to hold back, burst out laughing.

Yunyang clapped Ge Xiaolun on the shoulder, laughing so hard that tears streamed down his face. Kaisha covered her mouth and stomach, doubled over with laughter.

Uncomprehending but unfazed, He Xi tossed a diamond-shaped crystal to Yunyang.

With tears in his eyes, Yunyang didn’t see what was flying toward him. He instinctively reached out, but his hand missed, and the crystal struck his nose. This time, his tears were from pain, not joy.

One can imagine the sensation of a ten-centimeter solid diamond striking the nose—painful beyond words.

Ignoring Yunyang, who was now crouched on the ground clutching his nose, Ge Xiaolun picked up the crystal. Inside, he saw a chibi pair of wings.

He held the crystal against Yunyang’s back, imagining him with a set of cute, tiny wings. On the battlefield, no one would need to fight—enemies would die laughing.

Seeing Ge Xiaolun pick up the crystal, He Xi spoke up, "Galaxy Force, just press the crystal onto his back."

Ge Xiaolun’s eyes lit up. Without waiting for Yunyang to object, he slapped it onto Yunyang’s back with a resounding smack. The crystal instantly disintegrated, and Yunyang nearly fell flat from the force.

"What good does it do you for Ge Xiaolun to flatten me?" Yunyang demanded, momentarily forgetting his nose and kicking Ge Xiaolun in the rear.

Ge Xiaolun didn’t react, his attention fixed on Yunyang’s back.

A white, glowing wing was slowly taking shape, indistinguishable from a normal angel’s wing.

Seeing it wasn’t the chibi version, Ge Xiaolun looked disappointed. He’d even opened the camera app, only to be let down in the end.

In less than a minute, the wings on Yunyang’s back solidified from ethereal energy into real feathers. Ge Xiaolun curiously touched Yunyang’s white wings, then his own black ones.

He smacked his lips and remarked, "Apart from the color, there’s not much difference."

"Tch, he really looks like a Celestial Scum," He Xi muttered under her breath.

Kaisha heard her and waved it off. "No problem. We can change it later."

Looking at the backup vial of Galaxy Force genes, now reduced to a mere sliver of usable material, Yunyang was dumbfounded. That huge bottle, and there was so little left? Was this a joke?

Under Kaisha’s direction, Yunyang lay down on a massive machine, preparing for gene infusion.

At that moment, Kaisha, operating the machine, asked, "Yunyang, what color do you want your wings?"

Yunyang thought for a moment. "Black, I guess. But since Xiaolun already has black, I need something unique. How about iridescent black?"

At his words, Kaisha, He Xi, and Ge Xiaolun all developed black lines across their foreheads. Iridescent black? Why not rainbow white while you’re at it?

Suddenly, He Xi darted to the console. Before Kaisha could react, she pressed the confirmation button, calling out, "White, right? Coming right up!"

He Xi had her reasons. Kaisha could not stand Celestial Scum. If Yunyang ended up with white wings, perhaps Kaisha’s aversion would extend to him as well.

Five minutes later, Yunyang emerged from the machine and unfurled his wings, feeling a bit awkward.

He reached back to touch them. It felt odd, like running a hand through stiff hair—hard, yet somehow familiar.

Catching Kaisha’s strange look at Yunyang, He Xi was delighted, scheming to embarrass Yunyang further.

"Come on, try flying," she urged.

"I’ll give it a shot." Yunyang had already wanted to, and didn’t hesitate.

"This is indoors. Don’t use too much force," Kaisha warned to keep him from hitting the ceiling.

"Got it."

Giving Kaisha an OK sign, Yunyang restrained his strength and gently flapped his wings, slowly rising off the ground.

He didn’t understand the principle—he barely moved his wings, and the airflow was nowhere near enough to lift him, yet he rose steadily. He could only chalk it up to the awesomeness of angelic technology.

As Yunyang hovered less than a meter above the ground, He Xi, unseen by the others, pouted, then turned to stare intently into Kaisha’s eyes, as if searching for something.

Kaisha, who’d been watching Yunyang, only realized He Xi was gazing at her after a moment. "What is it?" she asked.

"Nothing," He Xi replied softly, turning away.