CHAPTER 371: EPISODE 40.2 A BACKDROP?!

Because of the ruckus Shen Yuan and Bai Tingfeng had caused so early in the morning, Chairman Mao gave them both a lengthy dressing down before finally offering them seats.

Bai Tingfeng sat stiffly, cheeks pink with embarrassment—a total contrast to Shen Yuan’s carefree shrug and cheeky grin. The celestial fox even had the nerve to greet the chairman with a bright, "Good morning! It’s been a while," as if he hadn’t just shaken half the building awake.

Chairman Mao inhaled deeply, then exhaled his irritation. What else could he expect from Shen Yuan? The omega was famously untamable—except, perhaps, by his husband.

Deciding not to waste energy arguing, Chairman Mao got straight to business. He led the couple to the grand stadium where Shen Yuan had once tested his powers. Once filled with a roaring crowd, the massive arena now stood silent and empty.

Today’s demonstration was strictly confidential.

"Am I supposed to run out and blast some robots again?" Shen Yuan asked, smiling faintly at the memories the arena held. "Or is this another spar with you, Chairman Mao?"

He stretched lazily, already looking far too eager. "Either way, I’m down."

Bai Tingfeng, ever the worrier, cleared his throat. "Chairman Mao, Yuan’s condition—"

Chairman Mao waved him off. He and Xia Jinhai had already factored Shen Yuan’s pregnancy into the plan.

"Don’t worry," he said. "Shen Yuan’s role is special this time."

That caught both their attention. Shen Yuan leaned forward, his fox ears almost twitching with curiosity. "Special, huh? Tell me more."

Chairman Mao hesitated for a beat, a little surprised by Shen Yuan’s enthusiasm. Gu Jinpeng’s reports had described him as listless and irritable lately.

He studied the young omega some more...

This is definitely not listless and irritable...

Bai Tingfeng supplied the answer with a quiet sigh. "He was bored."

That explained everything. Chairman Mao nodded and continued.

"You once said it takes a tremendous amount of mana to sustain a lifelike illusion," the chairman began.

Shen Yuan nodded. "Right. To make it feel alive, I have to feed it mana constantly and control every movement with my mind. It’s exhausting, but—" He smirked. "I’m good at it."

Chairman Mao’s lips curved in satisfaction. "Excellent. Then you should be able to sustain it for... let’s say, an hour?"

A sound like shattering glass went off in Shen Yuan’s head. "Wait—what?!"

"You heard me," Chairman Mao said calmly. "An hour."

He stepped closer, outlining the plan.

"The shoot for the campaign will take place inside a dungeon. It’s the only way to catch Lee Jinhyuk off guard. But to ensure he doesn’t escape, we’ll need total control of the venue."

Bai Tingfeng nodded. The logic was sound—awakeners with teleportation or spatial powers were notoriously slippery. Every crack had to be sealed.

"That means someone must oversee the entire battlefield," Chairman Mao went on. "Every movement, every illusion, perfectly timed."

Shen Yuan blinked. "So I’m the stage director of this little performance."

"Precisely," Chairman Mao said, utterly unashamed.

He continued, "We’ll deploy several squads during the shoot, but camouflage awakenings below S-class are too risky—Lee Jinhyuk might detect them. Invisibility talismans are unreliable in a dungeon’s unstable mana field. One small failure, and the whole mission collapses."

The weight of the plan settled on Shen Yuan. Maintaining illusory cover for multiple teams—for an hour—was no small feat.

He bit his lip. "Lee Jinhyuk can warp using anything reflective—a mirror, a blade, even muddy water. Dungeons are full of that. So removing every reflective surface is part of my job, too?"

No hesitation, no fear—just mild outrage.

Chairman Mao smiled faintly. "Your foxfire beasts can handle that discreetly. They’ll retrieve or destroy any dangerous variables before the operation begins. You have the power and precision we need, Yuan. I can’t trust anyone else with this role."

He lifted his hands like a man who’d just unveiled a masterpiece.

Shen Yuan was not impressed. His tails (metaphorically) bristled.

He mentally ticked through the absurdly long list of tasks he now had and felt a migraine forming.

"This is exploitation!" he burst out. "You want me to handle all the illusions and the prep work—and then you’re banning me from the actual fight?! I’m always the one who kicks the Cardinals’ asses! Isn’t it only fair I get to strangle Lee Jinhyuk, too?"

Chairman Mao and Bai Tingfeng both stared at him like he’d grown a few extra heads.

No one had mentioned strangling anyone.

"Besides!" Shen Yuan threw his arms in the air. "An hour?! You’re asking me to sit on the sidelines like some glorified stagehand! I’m not built for that!"

If yelling could sway the chairman, Shen Yuan might have stood a chance. Unfortunately, Chairman Mao’s patience was reinforced steel.

"You just proved my point," he said. "Your mana will be completely drained by the end of this task. You won’t be in any condition to fight afterwards."

"Then give me a mountain of hyper-reactive mana stones and we’re good!"

Bai Tingfeng sighed from the sidelines. "You know your foxfire beasts hate eating mana stones."

Chairman Mao didn’t budge. "You seem to resent being on the sidelines. Is it harder for you to maintain an illusion than to throw around your foxfire?"

That question hit a nerve. Shen Yuan knew it was harder. Controlling an illusion takes a great toll on his mental strength and energy, as it requires precise imagination.

But he wasn’t about to admit it!

He will die proud and omnipotent in front of these alphas!

"I’m a hot-blooded warrior, Chairman Mao," he declared. "I’m used to straightforward combat! Can’t you be a darling and just let me fight?"

The chairman flicked a finger in front of his face. "You’re pregnant, Shen Yuan. Once chaos starts, I can’t guarantee your safety. Are you willing to risk your child?"

The words hit Shen Yuan squarely in the chest. His anger deflated almost instantly. He wanted to argue, but the image of the little potato growing quietly in his womb silenced him.

Pushing further would only make him sound like a terrible parent. And he is not a bad parent! Okay!

Shen Yuan rolled his eyes, sighed dramatically, and slumped back in his chair. "Fine. I’ll be your backdrop. But I’m doing it very reluctantly."

Hearing Shen Yuan’s concession, the two alphas instinctively sighed in relief. Finally, the argument was over.

"Good!" Chairman Mao didn’t expect that the explanation for the plan would take a long time!

Bai Tingfeng silently crept beside Shen Yuan, then he reassuringly touched the lower back of his omega. It’s a bit damp from sweat. Guess this discussion really stressed out his pregnant fox.

"Now, can we hear what kind of demonstration we are doing now?" The alpha asked in his omega’s stead. "Yuan is supposed to work as support and the master of disguise. I wonder what kind of test he will do to see if he was up for the task or not?"

On the side, Shen Yuan begrudgingly glared at Chairman Mao. After all the arguments, he still had to prove himself before he could get a chance to torture his brain?!

"Fuck! Now, I want to go back to my idle ways. Is there a power that can rewind time in this world?" The celestial fox spirit mumbled.

Chairman Mao heard it but only smirked. "Since your job for this required finer control on mana and stamina for magic, our little demo is very special. I asked our country’s best artefact maker to create this unique device."

The old cunning dragon fished something out of his pocket and then proudly flashed it in front of the shocked and confused couple.

Bai Tingfeng was shaking a little when he saw the dreadful metal ball in Chairman Mao’s hand.

"That thing... You want me to insert a Ben Wa ball in my ass?!" Shen Yuan echoed in every corner of the stadium. Just looking at his face, it was obvious how horrified he was at the idea.

What are Ben Wa balls? It is a round exercise device that women insert in their birth canal to strengthen their pelvic muscles and help with medical issues like urinary incontinence, and improve sexual pleasure. Once inserted in the vagina, this round, weighted ball will cause the muscles to contract by instinct, similar to the Kegel exercise.

Shen Yuan can totally understand if the male omega in this world does this thing for the sake of their overall health and sex life.

But now, coming from Chairman Mao, doesn’t this seem to be inappropriate, no matter how shameless they are towards each other?!

Shen Yuan’s face was totally painted with disgust and disbelief.

And Chairman Mao was not much better. His expression is that of a hapless main character in a horror flick!

"What on earth are you talking about?!" Chairman Mao yelled, face red and entire body shaking like a leaf. He raised the metal bead in his hand and roared like he was about to spit fire. "This is a mana-repellent training ball made from molten mage-killer daggers! It was supposed to train mages’ control over their mana!"

What Ben Wa bead?! Why should he give this little asshole a Ben Wa bead? He is not his husband, and his husband never needed such a thing to practice his muscle contraction! His Director Song is flexible and strong!

Chairman Mao held himself back from pulling Shen Yuan’s hair!