Chapter 145: The Day the Code Fell in Love (15)

There were others nearby who watched the two men fighting fiercely. Several times, they wanted to intervene, but the two men were so skilled and the fight so intense that it was impossible for them to get involved.

It was only when Ruan Jiaojiao let out a cry of helplessness that the two men, each handsome in his own distinct way, finally stopped.

Ruan Jiaojiao was weeping, her face streaked with tears, looking utterly pitiful. "Li Shenjue, you are the person closest to me. And Gu Mohan, you are my best friend. I don't want to see either of you get hurt."

The girl spoke with such sincerity, her eyes red and swollen like a rabbit's, making her look so pathetic and adorable that even the hardest heart would soften.

Li Shenjue shot a fierce glare at Gu Mohan and pulled Ruan Jiaojiao into his arms, his possessiveness evident in the domineering gesture.

Gu Mohan was also a handsome man. With his foreign ancestry, he possessed distinct, chiseled features and an exotic charm, while his wheat-colored skin gave him a wild, untamed aura. The scar on his face only added to his dangerous, alluring appeal.

Gu Mohan belonged to the Pioneer Corps; in plain terms, the team he led was responsible for colonizing other planets. While navigating toward their destination, he had unexpectedly discovered escape pods drifting in space. Under interstellar law, every citizen is required to provide humanitarian aid to fellow citizens in danger within their capacity—let alone a member of the military—so he had rescued the people in the pods and brought them onto his ship.

There were three people in the two escape pods: Li Shenjue, Van Gogh, and Ruan Jiaojiao.

The Pioneer Corps usually went to barren, desolate places, so seeing such a delicate and soft girl like Ruan Jiaojiao caused the group of men to experience a sudden surge of hormones. They frequently tried to curry favor with her, only to be scared off by Li Shenjue’s icy glares.

But Gu Mohan was no ordinary man.

In the Interstellar Alliance, there were two notorious figures: one was Li Shenjue, and the other was Gu Mohan. The former was cold and ruthless, like a stony-faced Asura; the latter was a roguish, untamed madman who treated rules as non-existent. The two had always disliked each other, but since their lines of work rarely intersected, they hadn't had any real conflict—until now.

At first, Gu Mohan had only been curious about Ruan Jiaojiao, occasionally taking an interest in her much like one would tease a small rabbit. However, the more Li Shenjue warned him to stay away from her, the more rebellious and interested he became. Others might fear Li Shenjue, but he certainly did not.

Now, as Li Shenjue held Ruan Jiaojiao to assert his dominance, Gu Mohan simply curled the corner of his lips, returning the gaze with a smile that showed he would not back down. A heavier chill radiated from Li Shenjue.

Trapped in the man’s embrace, Ruan Jiaojiao cast an apologetic look toward Gu Mohan.

Seeing that the situation had calmed down, Van Gogh cleared his throat and stepped forward to say to Li Shenjue, "Commander, this is a barren planet in the Andromeda Galaxy."

This was the destination for Gu Mohan's team, but their ship had suffered a sudden system failure during descent and crashed. Now, excluding himself, Gu Mohan’s group was reduced to only three people.

Or more accurately, two. One was a tall, thin man with a decent appearance named Si Dezhao, who served as his adjutant. The other was a tall, striking woman with a beautiful, confident appearance, dressed in a black uniform that accentuated her curvaceous figure; her name was Hua Xin. She was Gu Mohan’s childhood sweetheart and the fiancée matched to him by the higher-ups.

As for the one left who didn't count as a person...

Movement came from the woods, and a figure approached rapidly, finally coming to a halt before the group. This was the latest generation of military androids. Unlike civilian models, it was equipped with weapons and the most advanced combat systems. There had once been discussions about whether such androids might pose a threat to humanity, but all androids were bound by the Three Laws of Robotics. They could not defy or harm humans, and only within that framework could they act to protect themselves—which meant protecting their master's private property. The spread of androids into every facet of human life had long since become a trend.

Hua Xin, also a lady of status, found the sight of Gu Mohan and Li Shenjue squabbling over a woman to be an eyesore. She took the initiative to look away and asked the one who had returned, "Twenty-three, what’s the situation ahead?"

Twenty-three replied, "There is life on this planet. Data is insufficient, so I cannot determine if there is danger. There are traces of human activity ahead; based on the traces, there are two people."

Gu Mohan asked, "What were the scanning results?"

Twenty-three said emotionlessly, "Twenty kilometers from here, there is a waste reclamation ship belonging to Paradise Island."

Ruan Jiaojiao was surprised. "Doesn't that mean there are people there? We can ask them for help!"

Li Shenjue and Gu Mohan, however, felt the situation was far from optimistic. A waste ship shouldn't be on this barren planet; its presence here could only mean that it, too, had malfunctioned and crashed. Nevertheless, since their own ship was destroyed, they had no choice but to investigate the state of that vessel.

The group headed in the direction Twenty-three had indicated. Ruan Jiaojiao watched Twenty-three with curiosity, feeling a sense of wonder. He was also dressed in a black uniform with broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and long legs. His posture was upright, and his steps remained steady regardless of how uneven the path through the woods was. Naturally, his face was designed according to popular aesthetics—clean and handsome.

Because he was an android serving the military, his personality was set to be exceptionally calm, and he lacked the facial expressions of civilian models designed to be approachable. This served as a constant reminder to humans that he was merely a machine devoid of emotion, which meant he could perform suicidal missions on the battlefield without causing anyone psychological distress. His designation was Twenty-three because, in Gu Mohan’s team, numbers one through twenty-two had already been scrapped in previous missions.

Li Shenjue, walking at the back with Ruan Jiaojiao, saw her staring intently at Twenty-three. Displeasure flickered in his eyes, and he leaned down to gently bite her soft, rosy earlobe.

"Jiaojiao, if you look at him one more time, I’ll dismantle him."

The domineering, cold words echoed in her ear, causing her body to soften. She pulled her gaze away in a panic and glared at him, though her glare lacked any real intimidation.

She was truly as cute as a soft, fluffy little rabbit. Li Shenjue’s large hand steadied her supple waist, and seeing her earlobes flush even redder, a trace of satisfaction finally appeared in his eyes.