Chao Ning was unknowingly followed by Shen Xi for several days. Well, it's not entirely accurate to say he was unaware, as Chao Ning could sense Shen Xi's presence due to that shameful mark. However, he never actually caught sight of Shen Xi's figure even once, to the point that he started to doubt his sanity.

Gao Yan and the others also felt that Chao Ning was being overly suspicious, but according to Chao Ning's description of his fiancée Baiyueguang, they also felt that this was not something that would be too surprising. If one could undergo a secondary differentiation from Omega to Alpha, then causing trouble during the sensitive period was not impossible either.

Some Alphas have obvious and glaring inherent flaws.

These days, Zhao Ning has also been researching Alpha marking-related information for same-sex individuals.

The marking behaviour of Alphas on Omegas is natural, just like the union of males and females for reproductive purposes in the past. As one of the most common natural reproductive forms, the influence, marking, and complete marking of pheromones by Alphas and Omegas fall within the scope of everyone's compulsory knowledge. However, the combination of Alphas with Alphas, Omegas with Omegas, and even some same-sex Beta and Beta unions belong to minority cases, even though current laws allow these types of minority lovers to marry. However, there is very little research conclusion regarding their physiology.

For example, many people know that there is a pheromone antagonism between Alphas. However, they do not know that this situation does not occur between inferior Alphas, A-Ranks, and Alphas below A-Rank. What's more, they are unaware that the pheromones between them might even blend.

The last point is not a conclusion that Chao Ning came across in the materials, but one he derived from his own experiences. However, this conclusion lacks strong practical and theoretical support because currently, his only variable is Shen Xi, and it seems that the "marker" is also a necessary factor to draw such a conclusion.

Zhao Ning didn't know if this was a special case or if it could exist. If it could exist... perhaps it would be a breakthrough in the physiological research of dual-Alpha lovers, which would be a welcome development for them.

Even though Zhao Ning had little interest in this research, she still organized her findings into writing and uploaded them to her private cloud storage.

"Why isn't there any information on the duration of the Double-A ranking period?" Chao Ning flipped through the documents in his hand several times. Fortunately, all the information was in electronic files; otherwise, with Chao Ning's strength, the documents would have been torn apart.

The surroundings were quiet and peaceful, as if Gao Yan, Chris, and Henry were not in the laboratory at all. However, the three of them were sitting in their respective positions, all looking towards the entrance, their gazes following the person who was entering and moving back.

"What is this 'Double-A label'?"

The familiar sound rang from above, startling Chao Ning so much that she slammed the back of her e-reader hard on the desk, like a child caught by their parents playing games. While feeling sorry for the expensive e-reader, Chao Ning mourned silently for herself. After that day, Chao Chengyan never contacted him again, and he remained immersed in suspicious thoughts, completely forgetting about Chao Chengyan's plan to come to school and find him.

To my surprise, he ran straight into the arms of Chao Chengyan.

"Brother." Chaoning suddenly became obedient and timid, even placing the e-reader on Gaoyan's desk. "This e-reader isn't mine, I borrowed it."

Gao Yan furrowed her brows slightly, glancing at Zhao Ning with a hint of concern in her eyes. Chris and Henry also looked at Zhao Ning with sympathy, then proceeded to blacklist him, considering him as the eldest brother with a relatively low presence among them.

The family members of the Zhou household are despicable, and they have always treated Zhou Ning poorly. All of them are well aware of this fact. However, they never imagined that even a simple e-reader would be worth Zhou Ning resorting to lies to conceal it. To what extent has the Zhou family abused Zhou Ning? Without this job in the laboratory, would he have starved to death at school?

Zhao Chengyan did not expect that Zhao Ning's first reaction upon seeing him would be to hide her e-reader. Although he had joined the army a long time ago, he was still the older brother at home, so he had seen quite a few brands and models of e-readers. The e-reader Zhao Ning had just used was only a mid-range one, which as a child of the Zhao family, she could easily afford and did not need to hide.

However, his purpose for coming today had nothing to do with the reader. He didn't care about how Chao Ning developed this habit, so he decided to change the subject. "Hmm. The last time I came to find you, you weren't here. Do you have time now?"

Chao Ning had just wanted to weakly say a word of "yes," but Gao Yan spoke up for him first.

"No." Gao Yan tapped on the table. "As you can see, we are preparing for a new experimental project. Ao Ning is also busy with final exams and major assignments. We don't have any spare time to deal with you."

Zhao Ning cleared his throat and gestured to Gao Yan with his eyes, but Gao Yan completely ignored his reminder.

Chao Chengyan looked at Gao Yan and furrowed his brows slightly after focusing for two seconds. He restrained himself and took a step back, saying, "I won't waste too much of his time."

"That won't work either," Gao Yan said with a serious face. "It's only because you're his older brother that we allowed you to have a proper conversation with him inside the laboratory. So, before we kick you out, I suggest you leave quickly so that everyone's reputation remains intact."

Chao Ning couldn't bear it and instinctively turned his head. Chris and Henry both made a symbolic gesture of waving their fists.

Chengyan's brow furrowed even more, but not out of anger. Instead, he felt somewhat relieved seeing these few people so devoted to protecting his younger brother. He gave up communicating with the Omega woman in front of him and looked directly at Chaoning, saying, "Chaoning, I need to discuss something with you. Consider it giving your brother some face, alright?"

"He..." Gao Yan wanted to retort but was restrained by Zhao Ning.

Zhao Ning looked at the older brother in front of him, whom he wasn't very familiar with, and felt a bit complicated. Although Zhao Chengyan didn't bully him when they were younger, he was an indulgent bystander, so Zhao Ning's impression of him wasn't really good. But perhaps it was because of the bloodline connection, he still felt somewhat close to Zhao Chengyan, and when he found out that Zhao Chengyan had joined the army and fought on the Bug Star, he both admired and envied him.

And now, for the first time, he witnessed Chao Chengyan lowering himself to "beg" him.

"Alright, let's talk outside of school. I'll find a place and let you know when I do." Although Chao Ning seemed calm, he was a little nervous. He was afraid that Chao Chengyan would scold him.

However, Chao Chengyan simply nodded and said, "Alright."

Chao Ning breathed a sigh of relief and, after comforting Gao Yan and the others for a few words, left first. The reason he chose to go alone was simply because he didn't want to attract attention at school. Perhaps Gao Yan and the others didn't understand Chao Chengyan, but how could the people who have always been concerned about the Chao family not know about Chao Chengyan? Chao Chengyan is the legitimate young master of the Chao family, the former heir, and now he has even received a medal for his merits. He's simply the super version of the Chao family's golden boy.

Moreover, his older brothers and sisters, in particular, always listen to this eldest brother. If they were to find out that the eldest brother personally came to see him, do I even need to mention his fate?

Thinking about the childhood encounters, Chao Ning felt repulsed, disgusted, and a chill down his spine. He wiped his face and quickened his pace. The moment he walked out of the school gate, he suddenly stopped and unconsciously touched the spot on the back of his neck where a Band-Aid was placed.

The gland was no longer in pain, but the tooth marks remained for a long time. That's why he used a band-aid to conceal them. Recently, he had also gotten used to feeling bound by the pheromones emitted by Shen Xi as soon as he stepped out of the school gate. However, now this bond had completely disappeared.

"Shen Xi left?"