The moment Huo Li met the black-haired youth’s gaze, he felt a little dazed and unconsciously murmured, "Xiao Yi, you're back..."

It was as if some deep intuition told him this one was different from the previous fake replica.

But then, Huo Li noticed the scratches on the youth’s forehead and the pair of unaware, hollow eyes. 'This isn’t Xiao Yi… Xiao Yi is already dead.'

The clarity of reason returning to him struck Huo Li heavily, and his gaze toward the black-haired youth turned cold.

Seeing the killing intent in Huo Li’s eyes, Xiao Yi shrank back in fear and cautiously asked, "Who are you? Where is this place?"

The youth’s clear voice echoed in the basement. For a brief moment, Huo Li’s gaze softened, but soon, his expression became indifferent again.

His voice carried a trace of coldness. "I will only tell you this once, so remember it: You are nothing more than a substitute I created. You are just a clone, a mutated derivative of my beloved Xiao Yi’s genes. You are not a human, understand?"

Xiao Yi choked on his words, almost unable to maintain the innocent look on his face. Huo Li was being way too blunt. Shouldn't he at least deceive himself, pretend that the Black Thread replica was his amnesiac self, and then reminisce about the past, mourning their once inseparable bond?

"And I am Huo Li. This is my home," Huo Li continued before grabbing the youth’s sleeve and pulling him upstairs.

As soon as Xiao Yi took a step forward, he instinctively stumbled. While being dragged along, he silently realized that Huo Li’s mental power was still treating him as the Black Thread replica. To guard against him, Huo Li had used his psychic ability to block all of this body’s mutated abilities, suppressing even its enhanced physical traits.

In other words, ever since Xiao Yi replaced that replica, Huo Li had forcibly suppressed his body into that of a weak and fragile ordinary youth.

For some reason, a trace of joy welled up in Xiao Yi’s heart: 'So, the clone was actually this different from me? That’s great.'

Huo Li placed the youth in the front hall and went to the bedroom. Shortly after, he returned, holding several pieces of paper filled with writing.

"From now on, everything you say and do must be done according to what is written on this piece of paper," Huo Li stated. "The purpose of your existence is to be a good substitute. Do you understand?"

The black-haired youth looked at Huo Li with clear eyes and said obediently, "I understand, Mr. Huo Li."

Huo Li looked at the black-haired youth with a cold look in his eyes: "I'll give you 5 minutes to prepare."

Xiao Yi nodded and moved his eyes to the first note paper.

'What the hell is this!'

[The black-haired boy (with a gleam of success in his eyes): "Huo Li, haven't you figured it out yet? I'm really back!"]

[The black-haired boy happily patted the stunned Huo Li, then explained...]

5 minutes later.

"Have you finished memorizing it?" Huo Li asked calmly.

The black-haired boy replied obediently: "I have memorized it, Mr. Huo Li."

Huo Li: "Let's start. Although you are a stand-in, you have the same IQ as Xiao Yi. You have the ability to act exactly like Xiao Yi himself."

There was a hint of threat in Huo Li's voice as if any mistake in the performance would render this replica worthless and lead to its disposal.

Xiao Yi had no choice but to put the note aside. The innocent and timid look on his face gradually disappeared, and then he gave Huo Li a mischievous smile as if he had just pulled off a successful prank:

"Huo Li, haven't you figured it out yet? I'm really back!"

Huo Li still looked at the boy expressionlessly, but his slightly reddened eyes and trembling hands betrayed the turmoil within him.

Xiao Yi reached out and patted Huo Li's shoulder. Then, he gently stroked his right shoulder and said cheerfully:

"Huo Li, this was all my plan. That desolate planet never exploded, and the nuclear strike was fake. I only did it to trick you into destroying the Interstellar Federation!"

Huo Li's trembling intensified, the shudder in his shoulder traveling up to Xiao Yi’s hand.

The black-haired youth smiled smugly. "Even you were fooled! Ever since the zombie world, you haven’t dared to use your consciousness to probe my thoughts. That night, the officers and soldiers aboard multiple starships were all under Long Tai’s control. As for the footage of the desolate planet being blasted to dust? That was faked by Programmer. Yes, he’s turned over a new leaf!"

Xiao Yi nearly failed to maintain his cheerful tone as he acted through this almost fairytale-like script, riddled with flaws, that Huo Li had written just to 'bring him back to life.' He quickly lowered his head, forcing a smile to mask the wetness gathering in his eyes.

The black-haired youth reached out and shook Huo Li slightly. "What are you so worried about? I’m really back. If you don’t believe me, take a starship to that planet and see for yourself—it's still right there!"

Xiao Yi watched as a tear slipped from Huo Li’s reddened eyes, tracing down his cheek before falling to the ground.

"Xiao Yi, are you really not dead?" Huo Li’s voice was slightly tense. "But 2d14… it really did return to the main system..."

At this point, Xiao Yi was using nearly all of his mental energy just to maintain his expression, forcing himself to continue acting according to the script Huo Li had written.

The black-haired boy couldn't help but laugh. "You actually believe that? The main system and I were just fooling you. You can’t see the system, so how would you know if 2d14 really returned? It’s still in my head—it never left."

The boy took a step forward, cupped Huo Li’s face in both hands and tilted it down so their eyes met. "I’m an Alien! How could I possibly die so easily?"

He let go, smiling as he looked at Huo Li.

Xiao Yi watched as Huo Li slightly raised his head and closed his eyes for a brief moment. This beautiful illusion was like a sweet yet deadly poppy. Huo Li wiped his tears away with the back of his hand—he had already abandoned all reason, willingly sinking into the fantasy he had created.

Huo Li gazed greedily at the living, breathing youth in front of him, a delighted smile spreading across his face. "Xiao Yi, you’re really alive… I knew it. Someone as smart as you wouldn’t be killed by those humans."

Turning around, Huo Li reached for a metal tin on the cabinet, his expression slightly embarrassed. "I prepared this coffee for you. It’s the same brand as the one that the researcher used to carry around in front of your experimental pod. It took me a long time to find it—I was going to give it to you as soon as the Parasitic Beasts were wiped out!"

Huo Li skillfully brewed the coffee, adding three spoonfuls of milk and sugar, just as Xiao Yi liked before handing it over.

He watched Xiao Yi expectantly, his eyes brimming with joy and affection. Yet, buried deep within his gaze, the sorrow and despair burned even stronger.

The black-haired boy lowered his head and took a small sip of the coffee, remaining silent. At this moment, Xiao Yi no longer had the energy to memorize the script, he was using all his willpower just to keep up the joyful expression on his face. Crying now would be too foolish.

"Xiao Yi, you said that as long as I destroyed the Interstellar Federation, you would stay with me." Huo Li’s voice carried an unmistakable plea for recognition. "Now, I’ve completely wiped them out. No one will ever hunt you down or slander you again..."

Huo Li pulled Xiao Yi into his arms, whispering softly in his ear, "Xiao Yi, I’m sorry. I should’ve eliminated the Interstellar Federation sooner. You told me so clearly on your birthday that you knew about their plan, but because of my ridiculous sense of morality, I let things unfold that way."

Huo Li’s voice was filled with boundless regret. "If I had made my decision sooner, I wouldn’t have lost you... No! I mean, I almost lost you." He stubbornly refused to acknowledge the possibility that the youth before him had ever died. His voice carried the overwhelming joy of regaining something he thought was lost forever.

"Xiao Yi, I love you! Will you stay with me?" Huo Li’s voice trembled slightly, even carrying a trace of pleading. "You promised me—if I wiped out the Interstellar Federation, you would be with me. Now, I’ve done it! Xiao Yi..."

It was unclear whether he was begging for the youth’s answer or for this dream to never shatter.

For the first time, Xiao Yi felt his eyes well up with tears. He hugged Huo Li tightly, burying his face against his shoulder and neck. "I love you too! Huo Li, I’m really back!"

Then, he heard Huo Li chuckle softly near his ear. The despair from moments ago had vanished, replaced with a teasing warmth.

"So you finally admitted it? You little fool! The second time I went down to the basement, I already knew it was you. Looks like I finally managed to fool you!"

With that, Huo Li turned his head and captured the youth’s lips in a deep, fervent kiss.