The black-haired youth opened his eyes in the bedroom of his small villa with a garden in Alliance Town. With Xu Yun Cheng’s space-time ability, infiltrating the enemy’s ranks was as easy as strolling through his own backyard.

After Xu Yun Cheng paused time, Xiaoyi had already swapped Wright out for a Black Thread aberration identical to the parasite on a genetic level. Everything was going according to plan.

The main system and Huo Li’s team were occupied with setting traps on Planet G and managing interactions with Interstellar Federation officials. Under the leadership of the Black Thread version of Wright, the Parasite Clan was utilizing its full strength to search for the location of the alien experiment base. Meanwhile, Xu Yun Cheng was monitoring the activities of both sides using his space-time ability. Additionally, the Interstellar Federation was assembling a large army as a precautionary measure.

Among them all, Xiao Yi—the mastermind behind everything—was surprisingly the most relaxed. He had enjoyed a comfortable night’s sleep in the small garden house he had purchased with his accumulated points. After waking up and freshening up, he began learning how to make breakfast for himself.

"Master Host! What if Boss Huo Li and the others can’t defeat the Enhanced Parasites?" zz2d14 asked worriedly as it watched its Host lazing around.

"If they can’t win, then they should just run!" The youth replied absentmindedly, not taking the concern seriously. "Just turn off the anti-teleportation devices they set up and retreat to Alliance Town. Who told them to insist on monitoring the battlefield and restricting our movements?"

2d14: "Huh? But…"

"Just let the Interstellar Federation’s army take on the glorious task of wiping out the Enhanced Parasite forces. The power gap between them and the enemy doesn’t matter. If a hundred humans can’t take down a single Enhanced Parasite, then send a thousand. And if a thousand aren’t enough, then send ten thousand fully armed Federation soldiers. I refuse to believe they still won’t be able to kill even one."

As he spoke coldly, the black-haired youth stirred the boiling fresh milk in a saucepan.

"If the soldiers are wiped out, that’s fine. There are still billions of civilians across countless planets. I don’t believe that 260,000 parasites could kill so many people in just a month."

zz2d14: "Master Host… are you serious? B-but that’s so many people…"

Black-haired youth: "Just teasing you."

But 2d14 still felt chills down its circuits. Master Host is really terrifying! It's better to confess its mistake before things get worse. Lowering its voice, it weakly whispered,

"Master Host… there’s something I need to tell you… I never got the chance before."

The black-haired youth raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. "Oh? Don’t tell me you’re hiding some kind of secret?"

zz2d14: "No, no! But, um… back when we were on Earth, the system mall had a discount, so I bought a whole bunch of items… B-but I got permission from Boss Huo Li before I did!"

The black-haired youth poured the heated milk into a glass.

"How many points do we have left?"

zz2d14 guiltily muttered, "4.5 billion…"

The youth let out a sudden laugh, nearly choking on his milk. "My god, you spent 5 billion points in just three months! Even when Xu Yun Cheng raised Xiao Mao, it wasn’t this expensive. Having you around as a system is really draining my fortune!"

2d14 trembled in fear, terrified that its Host would suddenly decide to abandon it and request a new, high-performance system like zz7777 or zz8888 from the main system instead.

Black-haired youth: "It’s fine, just keep buying! But stop wasting points on things like spatial storage or teleportation talismans—those are just office supplies. Doesn’t the system mall have any leisure or entertainment products?"

zz2d14 let out a huge sigh of relief and excitedly replied, "No, Master Host, it doesn’t!"

The youth added three spoonfuls of sugar into his milk, took a satisfied sip, and asked, "Then what does it have?"

.

And so, for the next three days, the youth didn’t step a foot outside his villa’s garden gate. Instead, he and 2d14 spent their time at home indulging in luxuries. They baked cakes using premium-grade nutrient solutions and brewed tea with the best-tasting water-element enhancement potion the youth had ever tried.

They wove a piece of fabric from a military-grade fiber that cost 10 million points per square meter. The fiber is resistant to high temperatures, corrosion, extreme tension, and everything else.

Then, they carved a tiny thumb-sized pendant out of a cosmic energy stone that cost a staggering 4 billion points per piece.

Lost in their little world, 2d14 and its Host played to their heart’s content, completely forgetting their earlier worries about the 260,000 Enhanced Parasites.

But during these three days, the rest of Xiao Yi’s body was far from idle.

On a desolate planet known as Planet L, a newly constructed—though slightly aged to appear older—research base stood in the midst of a sparse, yellowed grassland. Researchers in white isolation suits busied themselves, moving in and out of the facility.

Inside, research on twelve different viruses was progressing in an orderly manner. At the rear of the base, experimental chambers held captive Parasite test subjects. Meanwhile, the treatments for these twelve viruses were stored in a sealed building at the very center of the facility.

After three days of intensive reconnaissance, the surviving Parasitic Beasts—those who had yet to succumb to disease—finally pinpointed the location of the alien research base. With stacks of maps detailing Planet L's terrain, security layouts, and the exact location of the virus treatments in hand, they swiftly returned to the Parasite experimental planet to report their findings.

"Lord Wright, after three days of investigation, we have finally located the alien research base!" During a brief military meeting, Fernandes, dressed in a full military uniform, reported, "It’s on Planet L, right in our neighboring star system. The entire planet is staffed by only about 500 Black Thread aberrations acting as researchers. It seems they assumed that our entire Parasite race was fooled by the joint trap on Planet G."

Wright gave a silent nod, his gaze shifting toward the row of officers seated to his right.

Matthew stood and reported, "According to logistics, there are 23 suitable planets where a teleportation array to L-Star could be established, including our current location, the experimental planet."

"Of the 9 million Enhanced Parasites under our command, 8.5 million remain alive. Around 8 million of them are combat-ready soldiers, but as time drags on, our numbers will continue to dwindle."

Wright’s expression remained unreadable as he asked, "What’s the status of the humans and the Salvation Alliance?"

Another officer sitting at the back immediately stood and reported, "Our intelligence division has been closely monitoring their movements. On Planet G, there’s a significant divide between the Interstellar Federation’s military and the Salvation Alliance's Ability Users, causing delays in setting up their traps. Furthermore, the Salvation Alliance has fallen for the false information we spread—they firmly believe we only have 260,000 Enhanced Parasites and have severely underestimated our ability to replicate Ability Cores."

The dozen or so Parasite officers nodded in understanding.

"Relay my command: immediately recall all Enhanced Parasites stationed outside the experimental planet. We must strike Planet L and reclaim the antidote before the virus spreads further." Wright’s tone was firm and unquestionable. "Every hour we gain means more uninfected soldiers at our disposal. By 2 AM tonight, all Enhanced Parasites must return to the main base for final preparations. At 4 AM, 8 million Enhanced Parasites will infiltrate Planet L through the teleportation array and launch an all-out assault!"

"Understood, my lord!" The officers rose to their feet in unison.

"At the same time, spread false information to the Salvation Alliance and the humans—convince them with absolute certainty that our so-called 260,000-strong army will launch an attack on Planet G at 5 AM tomorrow, targeting the alien stronghold, which is actually their trap. We must lure their main forces away, especially Huo Li and that Alien, to Planet G—half a galaxy away from our real battlefield!"

"Yes, sir!"

With that order issued, the Enhanced Parasites that had been secretly operating across various planets throughout the star system immediately began their covert retreat. One by one, they made their way back to the experimental planet, ensuring that by 4 AM, they would be in position to transport through the teleportation array and descend upon Planet L in full force.

.

Salvation Alliance Town – Inside Xiao Yi's Villa

Over the past few days, Xiao Yi used his psychic power to manipulate his Black Thread aberrations. He had been single-handedly playing the roles of several key figures within the Enhanced Parasites. After a series of close calls, he had finally arranged everything without a hitch. As he carved the final stroke into the astronomically expensive cosmic energy stone, Xiao Yi admired his masterpiece with satisfaction.

"Host! The raven you carved looks pretty accurate!" zz2d14 praised excitedly.

Black-haired youth: "This is a Guardian."

zz2d14: “……”

Black-haired youth: "It's already 11 o'clock. Is Huo Li still on Planet G?"

zz2d14: "I don’t know, Host! My authority is too low!"

The youth hesitated for a long moment before finally speaking. "2d14, help me connect the call with 099…… Wait, forget it!"

zz2d14: "Okay! Master Host—ahhh! I already dialed it!"

Xiao Yi facepalmed in exasperation. Listening helplessly to the call connecting in his mind made his emotions a complicated mess.

"Xiao Yi! You’re calling me?" Huo Li’s surprised voice rang in his head. "What’s up?—Wait, no…" Realizing how foolish his question sounded, he quickly corrected himself, "I mean, your Planet G plan has been fully handled! The Interstellar Federation was a bit troublesome, but all the Black Thread aberrations are in position, and the Salvation Alliance's traps have been set. Even if all 260,000 Enhanced Parasites arrive, I can still hold them off even without exposing the full extent of my psychic power!"

Huo Li’s voice carried a hint of exhaustion, but it couldn't conceal the subtle excitement of wanting to claim credit.

The black-haired youth let out a silent sigh.

"Xiao Yi, to prevent the Interstellar Federation from finding a chance to secretly make a move against you, just stay put in Salvation Alliance Town during tomorrow’s battle, got it? And Xiao Yi, why did you call me…?"

Bracing himself, the black-haired youth calmly said, "2d14 and I have been messing around too much these past few days. It dialed the wrong communication number. You can go back to what you were doing."

"Oh…" Huo Li’s voice held a faint trace of disappointment, but he quickly perked up again. "Xiao Yi, open the door for me!"

"What?" The youth frowned.

"I’m right outside your villa."

Three minutes later, the black-haired youth stared at the unexpected additions to his living room—a cake, a bouquet of fresh flowers, four candles, and Huo Li.

"Xiao Yi, I wanted to tell you…" Huo Li’s heart pounded wildly in his chest, but at the last moment, he changed his words.

"Happy birthday."