Through his observations, Kang Li discovered that the man sitting next to them was indeed very handsome.
Actually, it would be more accurate to say that every movement this stranger made seemed "standard."
He was the definition of precise, stable, and unshakable standards.
He sat with a perfectly straight posture and ate with a brisk efficiency that was neither elegant nor crude. Even under Kang Li’s blatant staring, he remained unfazed and as steady as a mountain. Every gesture carried a sense of formidable, composed power. Even when he reached out simply to pick up a spoon for his soup, Kang Li could easily imagine him drawing a blade or leveling a rifle.
Although the drink before him seemed a bit childish, and the man himself didn't project any sharp aggression or threat, he would look exactly like a career soldier if he just cut his hair shorter—the kind of man used as a model for others to emulate.
As his own meal was served, Kang Li forced himself to politely look away, though he still stole glances at his neighbor from time to time.
Meanwhile, as he bit into a fragrant, juicy meat pie, he began spamming his thoughts to Morgan over their private communication channel.
Morgan glanced at the data on his eyepiece: "........................"
The Resistance leader’s hand trembled slightly.
*No aggression? No threat??*
*Kid, who in the galaxy would dare say this man isn't a threat? Go outside and take a look at the Galactic Core—the man sitting next to you is universally recognized as someone who could blow it sky-high if he felt like it!*
*Your intuition is usually so sharp, but you decide to start acting now?!*
*Tell me, are you teaming up with your old man to mess with me?!!*
While Kang Li continued his internal monologue, marveling at the savory taste of the meat pie and focusing on his food, Morgan was breaking out in a cold sweat.
He chewed a piece of vegetable mechanically, feeling as though he were sitting next to a collapsing skyscraper, a dormant volcano, or even a silent star... While he wasn't exactly panicking, he was incredibly tense.
Halfway through the meal, Morgan stole a glance at the figure. The man had already finished eating and was now sitting upright, his posture impeccable as he watched Kang Li’s profile—specifically, those azure eyes.
Morgan couldn't tell if the man had realized something.
Because that "if" probably didn't need to be there...
A moment later, Kang Li finished his meal and looked up, noticing that Morgan had been staring at the man at the next table. He followed Morgan's gaze, only to find those deep, calm black eyes looking right back at him.
It was a cold, still, and emotionless gaze, yet it sent a chill down his spine, drenching him in a mixture of tremors and awe.
The handsome young man opened his mouth but found himself unable to speak.
In that moment, he realized that although the faint glow from their collars betrayed the fact that they were both wearing suppressors—and neither was releasing any supernatural power—he still felt a natural instinct to submit to a higher-ranking Alpha. He felt a respect for the strong, a high state of alert toward an incomprehensible "existence," and... a strange, inexplicable sense of closeness.
This complex and unfamiliar sensation sparked a flicker of fear in the depths of Kang Li's heart. He finally realized what kind of person he was looking at. The fact that such a person could exist here so silently without attracting anyone else's attention—something that seemed both natural and utterly bizarre—was a testament to an incredibly powerful application of supernatural technique.
For a moment, the young man’s skin crawled. Staring into those deep black eyes, he instinctively sent a message over the private channel telling Morgan to leave immediately, while also wanting to call for reinforcements.
But he soon discovered that, at some point, his external optical computer had lost its connection to the outside world.
Kang Li was young, after all, and possessed a lively, flighty personality—simply put, he couldn't keep his cool most of the time.
Especially when things involved his friends and family and he couldn't see the full scope of his opponent, a heavy sense of anxiety, worry, and restlessness began to sprout within him.
These negative emotions reached a peak when the cold man—whose presence could only be described as an "unknown terror"—stood up.
*This guy has to be over two meters tall...*
A faint pale-gold light flickered in Kang Li’s eyes. He instinctively stood up to shield Morgan, only to find that he barely reached the man’s shoulder. The angle required to meet his gaze naturally put him at a disadvantage.
In that instant, the corner where the three of them sat seemed to be completely carved out and isolated. In a sense, it became entirely independent of the rest of the eight-story establishment. Kang Li and Morgan couldn't even escape—they were tucked into the furthest corner, and this uninvited guest stood right between them and the normal world.
Morgan felt his undershirt become completely soaked with cold sweat, clinging to his back. A red light flooded his eyes, and fine cracks began to spread around his eyelids.
Splitting, churning, tearing—pain fermented in his mind, haunting him like a shadow.
Kang Li was also covered in cold sweat. This was a completely one-sided confrontation. It felt as long as the birth and death of a star, yet also as brief as a flash of sunlight. But the sun flickered behind dark clouds, and suddenly, the pressure vanished.
The young man looked up, dazed.
He saw the man standing right in front of him, his gaze as unruffled as an ancient well. He was like a mountain or a planet-sized machine—a megastructure devoid of emotion, yet capable of achieving the miracle of omniscience and omnipotence within a vast range, far beyond human imagination and understanding...
—[In the deep darkness, only a sun of indescribable proportions burned fiercely, casting a drop of light and heat into the eons of freezing void, yet preventing the darkness from swallowing everything entirely.]—
He seemed to see such a scene, like a massive portrait.
Kang Li was momentarily entranced. He had never imagined he would meet such a person, nor that he would face them with his sharp perception and vibrant soul.
The man raised his hand, paused above Kang Li's head, and then, with a bit of awkwardness and clumsiness, lowered it to pat the young man’s sturdy shoulder.
"Was the food to your liking?" the man asked.
...To be honest, in the split second that hand had hovered above him, Kang Li almost thought he was about to say goodbye to the Milky Way.
Thus, believing he had just walked the line between life and death, he was stunned and didn't immediately process the meaning of the question.
He even instinctively tried to overthink whether there was some hidden meaning in the words. This caused the other man to sigh softly. The emotional radiation in his eyes remained so cold that the word "emotion" seemed like a misnomer, yet his expression became somewhat helpless.
"I'm asking you, was the food to your liking?" the man repeated, pausing before adding, "Literally."
*If it wasn't to his liking, I'll ask what he prefers and have the best supplied to him,* the newcomer thought nonchalantly.
Kang Li: "..."
Kang Li: "...?"
Kang Li finally understood. This man, who had made him feel smaller and weaker than ever before in his life, was concerned about whether he enjoyed his meal.
The contrast was jarring... It left him completely dazed. His usual eloquence and playfulness evaporated instantly, leaving him to stammer: "It was... it was good."
"Do you like it?" the other asked, lowering his hand and extending it in a gesture of equality. "Allow me to introduce myself..."
The man paused.
"...My surname is Lei. I am a supervisor of the United Starport. It is a pleasure to meet you. What is your name?"
Lei Ting communicated with the young man using the most basic social etiquette, having no intention of telling anyone that although he held no official title, in a sense, he managed the entire United Starport—and the entire galaxy.
*How interesting, isn't it?*
He asked the simulated sensibility in his mind, the other side of his complete persona.
*A biological father and son both in their youth... only in the interstellar era could such a sight be seen.*
Kang Li was a bit dazed. "My name is..." He hesitated for a moment, but ultimately didn't use the alias he had prepared. "...My name is Kang Li."
He didn't see Morgan, behind him, let out a silent sigh of relief.
"Kang Li..."
Lei Ting gazed at that face—a face that bore a striking resemblance to Ivan Heller, yet carried his own features in the details.
With a strange sensation, he chewed on the name, letting every syllable be torn, shredded, and ground into dust between his teeth, only to be reborn within them.
He offered no opinion or praise for the name, simply saying, "Sit down. Let's talk."
"...Oh," Kang Li replied obediently.
He sat back in his original spot and, before Lei Ting could sit across from him, said to Morgan, "Uncle Mo, don't you have something to do right away?"
A pair of black eyes shifted, reflecting Morgan's image in their depths.
The latter felt a wave of heat from his scalp to his back, and sweat began to flow again. He gave a couple of awkward laughs and tried to squeeze his way out. "Yes, yes, I have business to discuss..."
But before he could succeed, Lei Ting, watching the scene, suddenly reached out. With a commanding motion, he grabbed Morgan's collar guard and hauled him back into the inner side of the booth.
"Solo Morgan..." He let out a cold laugh, his tone carrying a strange, low gentleness. "...I believe we need to talk."
—*I'm dead.*
As he was pinned to the seat by a force so powerful it was impossible to resist, Morgan leaned back into the chair with a weary expression, meeting the gaze of Kang Li, who had once again become alert and suspicious.
Under the young man's tense and confused gaze, Morgan remained silent, spread his hands, and simply gave up.
