Chapter 12: Unable to Detect the Pheromones

When Yu Xia woke up, Huo Lin and the others were already prepared to take her out of the contaminated zone.

During her deep sleep, the sentries scattered throughout the contaminated zone, due to scarce resources and increasing pressure from the rear, had lost contact with the outside world and were considering abandoning their mission.

This mission was strange in every way; even their superiors had lost contact with the outside. They had every reason to leave to find out what was going on, rather than lose their lives pointlessly.

It was the early hours of the morning, and the temperature in the contaminated zone had dropped close to freezing.

The mutants lurked in the shadows, waiting patiently for the opportunity to devour the sentries, who were on the verge of breaking.

Wrapped in a blanket, Yu Xia leaned against Huo Lin’s side; the cold made her breath visible in white mist.

There was no heating inside the room; even with doors and windows shut tight, the chill persisted. Yu Xia relied on a few old blankets and Huo Lin, who had stayed by her side all night, to keep warm enough to sleep.

Today’s temperature was clearly lower than yesterday’s, and Yu Xia, pressed close to Huo Lin, had no desire to move.

Huo Lin pulled her into his arms to keep her warmer. Nyx brought her some food and comforted her, “It’ll be better once we get out.”

“I... I found some clothes,” Baru said, as if presenting a treasure, offering a few garments to Yu Xia.

Huo Lin took the clothes and set them aside, smoothing Yu Xia’s tangled hair. “Once you finish eating, we’ll take you out of the contaminated zone.”

Yu Xia nodded; she also felt her health deteriorating. The environment here was harsh and prolonged exposure would affect her well-being.

After filling her stomach, Yu Xia took the clothes into the previous guidance room to change.

When she came out, she was holding her pants by the waistband.

Both the clothes and pants were excessively large for her.

The neckline of the shirt was so wide it slipped off one shoulder, revealing her smooth, pale shoulder.

Disheveled pink strands of hair hung loosely over her shoulder. She stood there somewhat awkwardly, one hand gripping the waistband, the other pulling at the collar, and said to the sentries staring at her, “The clothes seem a bit too big.”

As soon as she spoke, the sentries all covered their noses and quickly looked up; some even yelped and ran out.

“...”

Nyx rubbed his nose. “Seems like they really are too big…”

Huo Lin took a sweater from the sofa and put it on her, then bent down to rebutton the inner shirt.

When Yu Xia looked up, she caught sight of his reddened ears.

“Wait a moment.” After fastening the buttons, Huo Lin quickly turned away, long legs crossing as he disappeared outside the door.

Ten minutes later he returned, holding a leather belt and a large needle, much thicker than an ordinary one.

Huo Lin, not very skilled with needle and thread, carefully sewed the oversized collar for her.

“I’ll do it,” Nyx said, snatching the needle and thread from him. His sewing was much more practiced and nimble. Soon, he had fixed the collar for Yu Xia and tore off a portion of the overly long pants, securing them with the belt so she could barely wear them.

The shoes, however, were a lost cause; she had to wear ill-fitting long boots.

When Yu Xia entered this world, she was dressed only in the simple vest and shorts she wore when entering the treatment pod, barefoot all along.

Huo Lin stuffed some torn cloth from the pants into the shoes to fill the empty space, making them more comfortable.

He then tucked the pants into the boots and tied the laces securely.

Next, he took off his own combat uniform to serve as an outer coat for her. The sleeves were too long, so he rolled them to her wrists and tied them with a string, then fastened the belt tightly to prevent cold air from seeping in.

Huo Lin’s combat uniform was long enough to be a skirt on her, but the material was lightweight, durable, waterproof, and fire-resistant. Once she wore it, she no longer felt cold.

The sentries found the little guide dressed in their standard combat uniform, though ill-fitting and tightly wrapped, inexplicably adorable and alluring.

Even more so than when she wore the oversized shirt earlier.

They covered their noses again—oh, it was truly unbearable.

Even Huo Lin rubbed his itchy nose, his heart skipping a beat.

Nyx found a black hat for her to wear, hiding her conspicuous pink hair beneath it.

From behind, without a careful look, she resembled a juvenile sentry.

In truth, Yu Xia was already twenty years old, a year older than Baru.

“I can smell her pheromones from hundreds of meters away,” Nyx said, his throat rolling as he spoke to Yu Xia: “You have to control your pheromones.”

There were thousands of sentries in the North District contaminated zone, each pushed to their limit and irritable. Nyx could control his own squad, but not the others.

“Pheromones?” Yu Xia asked. “What are those?”

The sentries froze. She didn’t know what a sentry guide was, but pheromones were innate; how could she not know?

They knew Yu Xia’s age. Like sentries, guides experienced mating heat after reaching adulthood. At her age, she should be entering that period.

Even if the sentries who held her captive managed to endure letting her pass through her mating heat alone, they would have to administer suppressants.

She should have been aware of this.

Huo Lin thought about how Yu Xia had not shown any reaction to the pheromones all day, feeling a rising sense of unease.

“Pheromones are a kind of scent emitted by sentries and guides, only detectable by sentries and guides.”

Huo Lin released his own pheromones. “Do you smell the scent on me? It’s like fresh grass.”

Nyx also leaned close to her. “Mine smells like burning wood.”

Other sentries followed suit, releasing their pheromones.

For a moment, the small room was filled with various pheromone scents. If their mental states weren’t stable, a fight would have broken out.

Yu Xia tried hard to sniff and sense the scents they mentioned.

But... “I think I only smell sweat,” Yu Xia said awkwardly.

The sentries all stepped back, some clutching their chests in mock heartbreak.

For them, the only scent that could attract a guide was her pheromones, but the cute little guide could only smell their body odor.

It was a crushing blow.

Huo Lin didn’t know whether to feel relieved or alarmed that Yu Xia couldn’t smell pheromones.

Danger was certain.

Because Yu Xia couldn’t detect pheromones, she couldn’t control her own.

Although her pheromones were stable, sentries’ keen noses were extremely sensitive to guide pheromones; even the slightest trace could be detected.

Since they planned to escort Yu Xia out, they had to pass through the rear exit. Without control over her pheromones, she couldn’t conceal her identity.

There was a mental suppression and screening device at the exit to check whether sentries were contaminated, so they couldn’t activate mental shielding.

She must not be discovered as a guide.

“We’ll have to mark her,” Nyx glanced at Huo Lin.

Huo Lin replied, “...I’ll try.”

Marking was no simple matter, and now was definitely not a good time.

“Just a temporary mark will do,” Nyx said. “If it triggers mating heat, we’ll have to waste effort fighting you.”

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