The entire asteroid was so tightly covered in roses that at first glance, it resembled a massive hydrangea bloom. The Captain, a coarse man who understood nothing of rose cultivation, immediately perceived it as a tumor.

Ziye shot him a disdainful look. "Stop the nonsense and pilot us toward the glasshouse."

It was a pity that the damned pervert had left with the legion for the Shuiyun Galaxy. Otherwise, seeing Tang Wen, he absolutely would have... Ziye's heart swung wildly between the desire to personally turn Tang Wen into a beautiful robotic gege and the absolute imperative to prevent him from doing so.

She mused darkly to herself, perhaps she should just flay him herself?

Entering the rose garden, Ziye, familiar with the terrain, navigated the seemingly impenetrable thicket of thorns and found a partially obscured path leading toward the glass flower house.

Halfway there, a burst of upbeat, catchy singing suddenly reached her ears.

Ziye froze in horror.

The damned pervert was here!

Ziye pushed aside the roses obscuring her view and peered toward the glasshouse. She saw the K beauty's red gauze skirt fluttering. Without a second thought, she grabbed Tang Wen and bolted back the way they came.

The damned pervert chased after them from the flower house, bellowing, "Little Stinky, I saw you, don't run! And don't think you can disguise yourself as a robot and fool me!"

Ziye spun around, flushed with anger and shame. "Don't call me Little Stinky in front of other people!"

Tang Wen offered a gentle smile. "Little Stinky is a rather nice name."

Ziye gave him a sidelong glance, battling the strong urge to smack him—though she wanted to smack the pervert even more.

The damned pervert arrived before them, still wearing his surgical gloves, which were dotted with crimson stains. A few drops had already splattered onto the ground, quickly absorbed by the soil.

Ziye recoiled in disgust. "You weren't dissecting corpses while watching a dance show, were you?!" That would be taking things to an extreme level of depravity.

She recalled a criminal psychologist saying that some perverts derived intense pleasure from dissecting beautiful women. Had this damned pervert's appetite for gratification escalated to something utterly atrocious?

The damned pervert shrugged. "Actually, I was attempting to make rose jam, but it failed. Fortunately, they were red roses; I don't feel any great loss."

Tang Wen listened silently beside them, uttering no words.

He seemed to grasp the gist of their conversation, yet simultaneously, he felt utterly detached from its meaning.

Ziye nodded, her tone laced with contempt. "Using red roses? Even if you succeeded, would you dare taste it?"

The damned pervert smacked his forehead. "Oh, right!"

The entirety of the red rose juice smeared across his nearly bald head.

Ziye pretended not to notice. "I need to go to Silver Cipher for something. Give me a few Seven-Colored Roses."

"What?" The pervert's expression instantly hardened, as if Ziye had demanded custody of his only son. He looked past her shoulder at Tang Wen. "Give him?"

Then, Tang Wen witnessed a terrifying sight.

The damned pervert’s murky eyes suddenly erupted with an unbearable, brilliant green light, and he lunged toward Tang Wen!

Though outwardly calm and elegant, Tang Wen was trained. The instant the man charged, his mind had already mapped out eighty-one possible methods of resolution.

However, he was not given the opportunity to execute any of them.

Because Ziye reached out and blocked the damned pervert. "He is my teacher."

The damned pervert skirted around her hand. "He's your teacher, not mine. That makes no difference." His gaze was that of a long-starved wolf, drooling over its prey. "He's perfect! If I hollow out the body, I can directly convert him into a robot!"

Ziye's face was a study in frustration. "Damned pervert, calm down! You're embarrassing us!"

The damned pervert glanced between her and Tang Wen, tutting. "You look quite striking today as well. This attire suits you. A handsome man and a beautiful woman, a perfect pair of robots!"

Ziye’s face burned crimson, and she clenched her fists.

Tang Wen couldn't help but smile.

It had been a long time since he had seen such a vivid expression on her face.

He thought to himself—a privilege reserved for family; it was only because he was her family.

The damned pervert remained fixated on Tang Wen and extended a hand. "Give me samples of his bones, skin, hair, blood, everything."

Bran stepped forward and positioned himself protectively behind Tang Wen, stating firmly, "No!"

The damned pervert turned to Ziye. "Little Stinky, do me a favor, won't you?"

Ziye reached out. "Give me the Seven-Colored Roses quickly." She winked at the pervert, signaling that she would help him later. The pervert understood immediately, and though it pained him, he instructed Little Girl G to pluck three Seven-Colored Roses.

Just as Ziye reached out to take them, the damned pervert seemed to recall something and snatched them back first. "Wait, what are you offering in exchange for the roses?"

Ziye assumed he wanted Tang Wen's epidermis and scoffed, "So stingy."

The damned pervert countered, "Bring me back a Jihu Gallbladder."

Ziye angled her body toward Tang Wen. "Bring back a Jihu Gallbladder when the time comes."

Judging by their expressions, Tang Wen instinctively guessed this would be no easy task. But he had never feared any challenge, so he readily agreed, "Certainly."

Only then did the damned pervert hand the roses to Ziye, who immediately transferred them to Tang Wen. "Eat them."

Tang Wen looked at Ziye with the expression one reserves for an utterly bizarre creature, as if he had never met her before.

Ziye gave him a dismissive look, casually plucked a petal, placed it in her mouth, chewed twice, and swallowed. "They’ve been cleaned and sterilized. The fertilizers and nutrients used were fine. They're safe to consume."

The truth was, making Tang Wen eat the roses was a necessary last resort.

Since Old Dog had left space, there were no hunters for Jihu, and thus no Jihu Gallbladders. If an outsider entered that area, they would almost certainly be driven insane by the Gamma Baseline radiation. The Seven-Colored Roses were the only substitute available.

The Seven-Colored Roses were painstakingly cultivated by the damned pervert after stealing several Jihu Gallbladders from Old Dog. There were only ten stalks in total, making them incredibly precious.

However, Tang Wen could not comprehend her intent and stubbornly refused to eat.

Ziye explained, "That location emits unusual radiation. The Seven-Colored Roses will grant you resistance to that radiation."

Tang Wen frowned. "What radiation?"

Ziye looked at him, then back at Tang Wen. She gripped his wrist with her left hand and gently traced the symbol "γ Baseline" onto his palm with her right.

Tang Wen’s expression changed drastically.

He said nothing, but silently plucked a rose petal and placed it into his mouth, petal by petal.

Ziye then turned to the pervert. "Damned pervert, lend me a hat. I’ll return it when I get back."

The damned pervert sulked, annoyed that she was helping Tang Wen and not him, and lazily instructed Little Girl G to retrieve a gentleman's hat that matched his suit, also bringing a matching one for Ziye’s uniform.

Ziye took them, immediately handing one to Tang Wen while placing the other atop her head. The damned pervert paused, then sent a message to her Silver Messenger: "Bring me something back."

Ziye nodded, waved, and re-boarded her ship.

Along the way, Tang Wen remained unusually silent.

He wasn't foolish.

He knew precisely where Gamma Baseline radiation originated.

Watching Ziye's expression, as placid as if she were simply returning home, he could barely fathom how such a young girl managed to survive in that place.

Perhaps only after enduring such brutal hardship could one maintain such calm when the Mengya Group faced public scrutiny, and deliver the most severe counterattacks to their enemies.

He found it even harder to imagine how his grandfather had survived in that legendary place, reputed to be more terrifying than any planet. He dared not picture it...

Tang Wen propped his elbows on the coffee table, supporting his head with his hands.

Ziye seemed to grasp the direction of his thoughts and patted his shoulder. "It's not as terrible as you imagine, otherwise, I wouldn't be sitting here opposite you right now."

Tang Wen looked up, his gaze fixed intently on her. Suddenly, with great seriousness, he said, "Little Stinky..."

For some reason, Ziye became instantly indignant and flustered. She lunged forward, twisting, hitting, and grasping his neck. "I demand you dig those two words out of your brain!"

Watching her flail about, Tang Wen's mood inexplicably lifted, and he smiled faintly. "You're just embarrassed, aren't you?"

Fortunately, the chime of a Silver Messenger call interrupted her embarrassment.

Ziye sprang up and answered the call with maximum speed.

The incoming message was from An Junlie.

An Junlie greeted her with a warm smile. "Little sister, did you enjoy your meal?"

Mentioning food brought a wave of resentment to Ziye. Staying at the Tirra Hotel was convenient in every way except dining. Having meals delivered to her room was too conspicuous under the watchful eyes of many; going out meant being paraded like a celebrity with a massive entourage trailing behind her. Every day, she had to rely on Butler W to hunt for sustenance—it was truly a tale of blood and tears.

An Junlie chuckled. "Where are you? I can bring you something to eat."

His tone was casual, sounding unforced, but in reality, An Junlie was extremely tense.

Tang Wen was a smart, rational, and exceptionally handsome man. In the words of the X-Bents, his appearance could charm everyone from centenarians to one-year-old infants, and he was particularly adored by girls aged fifteen or sixteen.

An Junlie had met Tang Wen a few days prior and felt an immense pressure.

Because he couldn't openly involve himself in the Mengya Group's affairs, An Junlie could only offer protection from the shadows. Ever since the trouble started, he had assigned Gemini to guard Ziye covertly.

When Gemini reported that Ziye and Tang Wen had gone out together, he immediately formulated a plan. He swiftly finalized his work arrangements, then casually initiated conversation with her, bringing up her favorite topic—food—at the earliest opportunity.

Ziye pouted playfully. "Can you cook for me every other day? I'm too far away today; I can't make it."

An Junlie actually wanted to say he didn't mind traveling to find her, but he restrained himself. "Call me whenever you crave something. I finally managed to fatten you up just a little bit; don't let all my hard work go to waste."

An Junlie wasn't usually this kind of person, but he knew Tang Wen was sitting right beside Ziye, so those words were guaranteed to hit their mark.

And indeed, his strategy succeeded.

Tang Wen glanced sideways at the man displayed on the Silver Messenger screen.

In that instant, a faint bitterness surfaced in Tang Wen's heart.

Ziye acted like a child around the damned pervert, displaying every raw emotion; and now she was pouting sweetly at An Junlie...

At first, he had wondered why An Junlie had so readily agreed to cooperate with him; now he realized their relationship was incredibly close! Far closer than he had ever imagined!