“Yangyang, you said this meal was on me. How did you sneak off and pay the bill behind my back?”
You Lu gave Yunyang an accusing look, though she wasn’t truly angry.
“I didn’t—”
Yunyang had barely gotten the words out when she suddenly remembered that Adaina had seemed to seek out the restaurant manager before leaving.
She understood at once.
“It was Sister-in-law Adaina who paid.”
You Lu blinked. “Then I got to enjoy the benefits of knowing you, too. I don’t care—next time we have hot pot at your place, I’ll prepare all the ingredients. Don’t you dare fight me for it!”
“Okay.” Yunyang didn’t stand on ceremony with her at all.
The two of them sat in the restaurant for a while longer before leaving arm in arm.
Living in the Central Star was truly convenient. Even after staying out so late, it took less than twenty minutes to get home.
Yunyang was genuinely beginning to appreciate the advantages of moving to the Central Star.
She had nearly finished digesting her meal by the time they arrived home. Once inside, Yunyang looked toward Fu Shiyi and Chen Yueli—the only two of her beast husbands who hadn’t been chosen this round.
There was no need to mention Fu Shiyi. Little Leopard’s luck was truly terrible.
He had already moved in nearly half a month ago, yet he still hadn’t been chosen. Compared with the little fox, he was practically living in two different worlds.
Fortunately, the female master he had met was Yunyang. Otherwise, after going so long without a chance to show himself, he might have been forgotten in some corner long ago.
Chen Yueli was anxious, too.
But his luck was simply far too poor, while his female master happened to enjoy choosing nameplates. No matter how anxious he became, there was nothing he could do.
Thankfully, the Beast God had not completely forgotten him. The nameplate chosen that evening was his leopard token.
The Little Leopard was so excited that he could barely speak coherently. “F-Female Master, let me carry—no, I mean, shall I carry you to bed?”
It was indeed very late, so Yunyang nodded and let Chen Yueli lift her into his arms.
Compared with her other beast husbands—apart from the little fox—Little Black Leopard was relatively well-behaved when helping her bathe. He only used his hands and mouth, not daring to do anything else.
After her bath, Yunyang changed into a soft, fluffy set of pajamas and lay down on the bed.
Her new pajamas were so comfortable that she suddenly didn’t feel like doing anything anymore.
But that tiny thought was immediately banished the moment she saw Chen Yueli emerge from the bathroom.
He was wearing a black bathrobe, the belt tied so loosely that it looked as if it might come undone after just a few steps.
His entire upper body was practically exposed.
Yunyang sat up and unconsciously swallowed.
She had seen plenty of handsome men before, but faced with two Chen Yuelis who looked exactly alike—even down to their physiques—she found it impossible to look away.
Chen Yueli approached and sat down on either side of Yunyang.
They were clearly the same person, yet at that moment, they began tempting her.
“Female Master, guess which one is me?”
Yunyang answered without hesitation. “Aren’t you both?”
Although one was the original and the other was a clone, they were both her Little Black Leopard.
The one on the left took her hand and pressed it against his abdominal muscles. “Then, Female Master, guess which one of us is the original?”
The one on the right wrapped his arms around her firm waist. “If Female Master can’t guess, can I have a reward tonight?”
Both Chen Yuelis revealed black leopard ears and tails.
Yunyang stroked their abdominal muscles and pinched their leopard ears, but refused to give an answer.
She teased the Little Yueli until his entire body tensed.
Chen Yueli’s breathing fell out of rhythm.
Only then did Yunyang ask, satisfied, “What kind of reward do you want?”
Chen Yueli immediately leaned close to her ear and whispered something.
Yunyang’s face grew hot.
This black leopard really was making the most of his ability.
Then again, it wasn’t as if she had never experienced it before.
“Granted.”
That meant he would be rewarded whether or not he guessed correctly.
Chen Yueli hadn’t expected such generous treatment. He grinned foolishly for a long while before gently kissing Yunyang on the lips.
The original and the clone both possessed independent consciousness. Even the sensations they gave Yunyang were exactly the same.
…
With his cloning ability at his disposal, Little Black Leopard spent the entire night taking turns with himself.
And because the original and the clone could alternate their efforts, Chen Yueli didn’t feel tired at all despite the relay lasting through the whole night. Afterward, he still had enough energy to prepare breakfast for Yunyang.
After eating a simple breakfast, Yunyang fell straight back asleep.
She slept until noon.
After getting up, Yunyang first checked whether her father had replied. When she saw that he still hadn’t sent a message, she began washing up.
After eating, she spent some time absorbing insect cores. Then it was time to leave for the Purification Tower.
The purification work went very smoothly that day, and Yunyang quickly completed the group purification.
To prevent herself from feeling unwell due to excessive mental-energy consumption, Yunyang took her eight beast husbands to the lounge to rest for a while after the group purification ended.
At the same time, a distress call reached Jenkins.
“Old Jenkins, someone’s going to die!”
Seeing the familiar face on the holographic screen, Jenkins’s gaze sharpened. “Commander, what happened? Take it slowly.”
Before becoming the Purification Tower’s chief supervisor, Jenkins had been the former adjutant of the Federation’s Third Army.
The person contacting him now was Wu Zhengming, the current commander of the Third Army.
“You know that kid Zhuonian, right? His pollution level was already extremely high. Last night, when the insectoids attacked, he insisted on going to the battlefield to help despite everyone trying to stop him. After the battle, his pollution level shot straight up to ninety-six.”
Whenever Cang Zhuonian came up, Wu Zhengming felt both furious and fond of him.
At those words, Jenkins’s expression shifted. “Where is he now?”
“We’ve already had him escorted back to the Federation. He should arrive at your place soon.” Wu Zhengming sighed. “I remember that Yunyang and You Lu are helping you there. Old Jenkins, could you ask the two esteemed purifiers to help him?”
He truly had no way to contact either of them, which was why he had to trouble Jenkins.
“What’s the trouble? If that kid Zhuonian dies, the Third Army will suffer a devastating loss.”
“I’ll go ask the two esteemed purifiers right now.”
Jenkins stood up. After ending the call, he quickly straightened his uniform before heading to the lounge.
Yunyang and You Lu were sitting together and resting. When a knock sounded at the door, Wen Wenzu went to open it.
When Jenkins saw that both esteemed purifiers were there, he brightened. This saved him a bit of trouble.
Yunyang was the first to speak when she saw him. “Mr. Jenkins, is something wrong?”
Jenkins hesitated for a moment. “Esteemed purifiers, how are you feeling?”
“Not bad. Thank you for asking.” You Lu instinctively sensed that Jenkins hadn’t come merely to exchange pleasantries. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have entered with his entire body so tense. “Has something happened to someone?”
Jenkins hurriedly nodded.
Only afterward did he realize he had been too impatient. He took a deep breath and explained, “The Third Army has sent a young man here. He just returned from fighting the insectoids, and his pollution level is extremely high. And…”
He had only gotten halfway through the sentence when Jenkins’s expression suddenly became cautious.
