Lop-Eared Guard

2011-5-13 13:00PM

    ——

On the Ubidaya snow mountain highway, Lu Shangjin, dressed in snow camouflage, wiped the Mosin-Nagant sniper rifle in his arms behind the bunkers at the commanding heights. The same snow-camouflage painted gun merged with the mottled snowy rocks. 

He tapped on his earpiece, “Yan Yan.”

The rustling of rock-climbing sounded from the earpiece, and Yan Yi answered, “I’m here.” 

Lu Shangjin sent the information on the mob he had transferred to his watch to Yan Yi, “Our opponents are an M2 electric eel alpha (Medium 2, abbreviation for second-order differentiation), and the jackal alpha group are mostly J1 differentiated (Junior 1, abbreviation for first-order differentiation). I’ll deal with the electric eel.” 

The gland cells of alphas and omegas have the probability of awakening under the stimulation of certain pheromones. After they were roused, the genes would be expressed as the biological characteristics of animals, plants, insects etc. Once stimulated again after awakening, they would advance to cell differentiation, which developed into diverse ability expressions.  

Lu Shangjin’s gland type was the M2 peregrine falcon (i.e. second-order differentiated glands, with biological characteristics expressed as the bird of prey- peregrine falcon). He acquired the peregrine falcon’s J1 differentiation ability of “extreme vision” and the M2 differentiation ability of “location tracking”. 

The electric eel race obtained the J1 differentiation ability of “insulation of all things” and the M2 differentiation ability of “high voltage power”. 

Whether alpha or omega, the probability of glands differentiating to J1 was 10%. On this basis, the probability of M2 differentiation was 1%. However, the differentiation of omegas relied on the pheromone stimulation of alphas, and the requirements were stricter. Hence, even differentiating to J1 was extremely rare among the omega group. Their probability of differentiation was low, and the awakening of biological characteristics were of docile temperament, small in size and had to bear the responsibility of reproduction, while instinctually easily influenced by alphas. For these reasons and more, the number of high-order omegas were rare. 

On the other hand, the number of alphas were larger, where their biological characteristics awakened to express as raptors, beasts, and poisonous plants. They had powerful attacks, strong and tall builds, and were the pillar gender of various industries. 

“A car is coming,” Yan Yi’s gentle voice came from the earpiece. 

“The professor is in the car, we’ll go when you get her out. Be careful.” Lu Shangjin stabilized the sniper rifle. Through the telescope, he could see the tall and handsome figure in the distant snow. 

Two speeding GTRs appeared at the end of the road, with the buzzing of tremendous horsepower dragging snow mist all the way at high speed. This type of sports vehicle accelerated at 100 kilometers in 2.7 seconds, violently racing on the road at the fastest speed. Lu Shangjin closed an eye and focused on his aim. It was difficult to aim a target moving at such high velocity. 

The fragrance of daffodil pheromones spread as Lu Shangjin released M2 cell differentiation pheromones and enabled the ability of “location tracking”. 

The front sight of the sniper rifle stuck onto the electric eel alpha who was in the front passenger seat. The angle of the rifle turned stably with the acceleration of the car, the shifting speed as it drove away unaffecting the accuracy of Lu Shangjin’s bullet trajectory. 

In the sight of his telescope, a snow-white figure suddenly appeared on the centre of the highway. The lop-eared rabbit was wearing a white-camouflage bulletproof suit, his hands carrying an elite high-firing portable snow uzi, as his short light gray hair fluttered in the wind. The clear sunlight from the high altitude region spilled on him. He was carved like an exquisite and peerless Roman Valkyrie statue, violent yet beautiful. 

The snow-painted uzi flipped rapidly in the palm of Yan Yi’s hand as he inserted it back into the tactical belt on his waist. At the second when the two speeding GTRs arrived in front of him, he held onto the cars’ hoods. 

The horrifying sound of brakes almost shook the snow off the top of the mountain, and the two jackal alphas were hauled directly out of the car window– 

Two top-speed Nissan GTRs. 

Were forcibly stopped by a little lop-eared rabbit’s bare hands. 

Yan Yi gently lifted his hand. With his right hand that was wearing a handguard, he held the chassis of one of the cars, and the angle between the car and the ground slowly increased. Yan Yi gritted his teeth as he lifted it with force, and the whole car was thrown into the air. 

A female beta who had lost consciousness due to the violent collision fell from the window and into Yan Yi’s arms. Yan Yi took her in his arms and held her single-handedly. 

The whole car crashed to the ground, blood seeping out of the windows. Yan Yi paused and turned to look back.  

In the other car, the electric eel alpha in the passenger seat pointed an AK47 at Yan Yi, sizing him up imposingly with raised eyebrows. He whistled, “Omega? Put down your gun.” 

The jackal alphas who were still alive rushed out of the car and a dozen AK47 muzzles surrounded Yan Yi in the center. 

Yan Yi slowly put down the female professor, then tossed two uzi on the ground and kicked them to the electric eel alpha in front of him. 

The electric eel alpha stood deliberately close to him– if he had a teammate, he must be afraid to shoot for fear of accidental injury.

Powerful oppressive alpha pheromones spread, a distinct difference from the first-order differentiated pheromones of ordinary alphas. Instead, it was the powerful second-order differentiated pheromones, which were dreadfully oppressive and unbearable to vulnerable rabbit omegas. By now, his legs would have gone soft as he knelt on the ground to cry and beg for his life. 

Yan Yi was unfazed. He opened the sealed neck guard, and the soft, sweet scent of milk candy spread out. An omega who was trying to suppress the pheromones by releasing his own was too funny. 

Unexpectedly, behind him, the first-order differentiated jackal alpha suddenly turned pale, picking up his tail and taking two steps back. The muzzle of the gun trembled, as he was completely taken aback by the little rabbit who was surrounded in the center. 

Without warning, the electric eel alpha fired mercilessly. 

Living on the edge of violence and danger for many years, the electric eel alpha’s sixth sense was very sensitive. He was certain that if he didn’t shoot now, he would not have the chance again–

The characteristic expression of the opponent was unexpectedly an A3 lop-eared rabbit—- a lop-eared rabbit omega with third-order differentiated glands. 

Numerous guns were aimed at Yan Yi, bursts of sparks targeted at a single point. The fuel tank of the GTR that crashed at high altitude suddenly exploded, and the thick smoke of gunpowder accompanied by the flying snow reduced the visibility to zero. 

At that moment, the electric eel alpha felt his back turn cold. 

Yan Yi was safe and sound. Holding the unconscious female beta in one hand, he appeared behind the electric eel alpha and smiled gently next to his ear, “Kidnapping a researcher from the base, a serious violation of joint biosafety regulations. Lieutenant Colonel Yan Yi of the Pacific Biodifferentiation Base, sending you off.” 

The lop-eared rabbit’s J1 differentiation ability, ‘high-speed bounce’.

M2 differentiation ability, ‘fluid deformation’.

A3 differentiation ability, ‘transience’. 

Before he could speak, the Uzi held in Yan Yi’s right hand hit the electric eel alpha and fired. 

Bursts of blood spurted out of the electric eel alpha from the bullet. He instinctively resisted, dedicating all his pheromones towards killing this lop-eared rabbit whose danger level was higher than a missle attack. High-voltage electricity burst out of the electric eel alpha. 

A gunshot fired. Sparks flew in all directions. 

Lu Shangjin pulled the trigger, carrying the Mosin-Nagant sniper and walked out of the bunker. He stepped on the debris of the high rock before jumping down and walked towards Yan Yi. 

The electric eel alpha fell at Yan Yi’s feet with a charred bullet hole between his eyebrows. 

Yan Yi stood in a daze. A piece of skin on his left arm was burnt; he had been hit by the high-voltage electricity and didn’t avoid it in time. 

Lu Shangjin walked over quickly and grabbed Yan Yi’s wrist. All of a sudden, he pulled Yan Yi into his arms and hugged him tightly, his heart palpitating rapidly. Like a drum, the beat shook Yan Yi’s cheek. He clenched his teeth and bit off the gloves, heart wrenchingly pressing against the wound, “Does it hurt? There’s medicine in the car.” 

“Why didn’t you dodge?” Lu Shangjin held Yan Yi’s shoulders in fear. 

Yan Yi sighed and said gently, “His pheromones were surprisingly highly compatible with mine, probably above 90%? Like being entangled in a spider’s web, it’s difficult for me to move.” 

Lu Shangjin’s face visibly turned ice-cold. 

Yan Yi held his injured left arm, lifting his face to kiss the corner of Lu Shangjin’s lips, “I won’t be attracted. I love you, Jin ge.” 

They took the unconscious female professor back. Before leaving, :Lu Shangjin abnormally took the Uzi and shot the corpse of the electric eel alpha into a sieve, half of the bullets targeting the glands on the back of his neck. 

But at that time, Yan Yi thought the 20 year old Lu Shangjin was very cool, captivating him more than the highly compatible pheromones. 

Like a well-behaved little rabbit toy, he stuck to Lu Shangjin’s side and skipped along home. Once back, he took a hot shower, then slept comfortably in Lu Shangjin’s arms until the next morning.  

Yan Yi believed that he could love him all his life, and would never be moved regardless of growing temptations. 

On his ring finger, he tattooed a string of the English words “everlasting love” and covered it with the wedding ring. He had never once told Lu Shangjin. It was his own little secret that he firmly believed and spurred on.   

    ——

A bedside lamp was turned on in the dark intensive care unit. 

Yan Yi touched the gland that was aching with pain due to failed anesthetics, discovering that there was a layer of gauze over it. He opened his eyes, seeing an unlit light over his head, and the pungent smell of disinfectant overflowed his nasal cavity. 

Mixed in the odor of disinfectant was a familiar scent. 

He was here. There was the scent of being hugged by him on his body. 

Pleasantly surprised, Yan Yi sniffed carefully and confirmed it was Lu Shangjin’s scent. 

A little while later, he felt a sense of loss and touched his glands, but didn’t feel anything. Perhaps the drug that improved one’s compatibility did not exist. He was foolish yet again. 

The door of the ward was gently pushed open, habitually not disturbing the person sleeping soundly inside. 

Lu Shangjin stood at the doorway and met Yan Yi’s line of sight, who was sitting on the hospital bed wrapped in a white hospital gown. 

“Jin…xiansheng.” Yan Yi paused. His first reaction was to pick out a rose from the vase in the ward that was changed everyday, and take it in his hand to give to Lu Shangjin. 

Lu Shangjin placed a lunch box on the bedside table next to Yan Yi’s hand, “The assistant bought it.” 

Yan Yi felt overwhelmed by the unexpected favour. WIth slender hands that had not yet regained their healthy blood colour, he picked up the lunch box and opened it; a warm aroma, a bowl of small shrimp wontons. 

He glanced at Lu Shangjin with gratitude. Using a small spoon to scoop one up, he blew it to cool before eating in small bites. 

Actually, he preferred to eat ones filled with shepherd’s purse or carrots. But it didn’t matter, as long as it passed through Lu Shangjin’s hands, everything tasted good. 

As he continued to eat, his lips gradually pressed together. 

Big drops of tears rolled into the soup. 

Lu Shangjin watched him attentively, walking over next to him and touching his hair. 

Yan Yi put down the lunch box. He retracted into Lu Shangjin’s arms and quietly put his head on the hollow in his shoulder, hugging Lu Shangjin’s waist like a found lost treasure, sniffing with choked sobs, “I think the drug is effective. Are the lab results out yet? Do we fit a little more today…?” 

“Alright,” Lu Shangjin released soothing pheromones and stroked his hair, “Don’t try all sorts of drugs by yourself. Fortunately, the injection dose was small and not fatal. I had someone find a hamster gland type with a 97% compatibility level, and the test results have just been released. You have a high match for that gland type. If you’re really willing to give up your rare gland, I’ll arrange the surgery for you.” 

Yan Yi’s eyes brightened, his little rabbit ears raised up in pleasant surprise, “I’m willing! I’m willing!” 

Lu Shangjin frowned slightly, “it’s a cream-scented hamster gland. Because of the high degree of match with your gland, the success rate of the operation is higher, but it doesn’t mean it won’t fail.” 

Yan Yi buried his head in Lu Shangjin’s arms as he prayed, “Please, let me try… even if it fails…”

Even if it failed, Lu Shangjin’s love for him wouldn’t be worse than what it is now. 

If it succeeded, he could ascend from hell to heaven with a single step. 

He could feel that Lu Shangjin’s feelings towards him had already been very weak and faint, but not completely absent, and the love could be rekindled with a higher pheromone compatibility. Yan Yi proceeded without hesitation. 

After leaving the battlefield, the precious third-order differentiated glands were not as valuable to Yan Yi as an ordinary weak hamster. 

Lu Shangjin hoped that he could like Yan Yi. With an equal compatibility level, he hoped the one who accompanied him by his side was Yan Yi instead of someone else. 

This was his honest thought. 

Yan Yi was not the only one who hoped their feelings would not gradually drift away. Lu Shangjin also had an expectation—-

Let Yan Yi become more compatible with him, let the rusty feelings restore to what they once were. Love will deteriorate, but pheromones will not. 

He could recall the fragments of their lingering love in the past; eighteen year old love, the turmoil and chaos of war, wantonly pure. 

In actual fact, he hoped more than anyone that he could fall in love with Yan Yi again, but it was a pity that he was unable to, honestly. 

What if it failed. 

Then, forget it. 

The surgery was scheduled for next month.