Chapter 3: The Sentinel’s Frenzied Transformation

Was it her ears malfunctioning? Or was there a flaw in the language organization of Manerya?
“You’re not Dili!”
That Lu Xiaohe appeared colder, yet much sharper.
Ye Moxi shrugged.
Obviously, she was not!
Manerya cast her a sympathetic glance, then, recalling her own plight, her eyes reddened suddenly.
“What did you mean just now by saying we were bought to bear its… offspring?”
“Dili…”
“Yuan Xi! My name is Yuan Xi.”
“Yuan Xi, do you know about the Sentinel’s berserk transformation?”
Ye Moxi nodded.
“That dragon beast over there is a Sentinel on the verge of genetic collapse after going berserk!”
Such a hideous monster being called a dragon? Wait a moment!
So, it was actually him?
Interstellar men took pride in awakening as Sentinels; the higher their psychic and supernatural levels, the higher their Sentinel rank, and with rank came status and power. Yet, in battles against alien beasts and insectoid species, overusing their psychic energy and powers would cause their mental seas to riot. A pervasive black energy would constantly erode their minds, driving their berserk levels up, with genetic collapse and berserk transformation hanging over them like a sword.
No Sentinel wished to become a mindless beast through genetic collapse, but they were humanity’s frontline fighters against alien and insectoid foes. Endless wars over countless ages had seen countless Sentinels fall, securing the many habitable worlds where humanity now lived in peace. But war never truly ended; perhaps before the berserk transformation came, they would expend their last strength to perish alongside the alien or insectoid enemies.
Such was the fate of a Sentinel.
Complementing the Sentinels were the Guides, mostly women, some men, who could channel their psychic energy, expel the black energy clusters from their mental seas, suppress their violent mental states, and reduce the chance of genetic collapse turning them into unconscious beasts.
Guides formed their own system and held a noble status. Sentinels sought them eagerly, yet their relationship was delicate: mutually supportive yet wary and restrained.
Guides were exceedingly rare—one might awaken a thousand Sentinels without ever finding a single Guide.

Besides Guides, the interstellar society had healers, alchemists, agriculturalists, and other factions. They too awakened supernatural powers and psychic energy but were far weaker than Guides. Then there were ordinary power-users without psychic energy, who still played supporting roles.
Thus, humanity in the galaxy was essentially divided into three factions: Sentinels forming the majority, auxiliaries next, and Guides—rare and precious!
Outside these factions were ordinary humans without any awakened powers, living at the lowest social strata.
These people mostly lived in hardship; without a powerful family backing them, survival was fleeting. For a family to prosper, resources had to be funneled into nurturing Guides or Sentinels, causing many ordinary, unawakened members to be abandoned and forced to eke out a living on fringe star systems.
Ye Moxi and her brother had been exiled to a fringe system at age nine because they showed no signs of awakened powers during testing.
The giant monster Manerya mentioned was the true identity of a member of the venerable Xiong family from the current Moye star system where they lived.
He was a Sentinel! A high-ranking one on the brink of genetic collapse and full beast transformation! After all, a Sentinel from an ordinary family couldn’t afford the resources to claim land in this desert planet and send three women at once.
Now, most of his day was spent in beast form, with only two or three hours in human form. Manerya and the others were there to take advantage of his human moments, to conceive a child with him and leave descendants!
“If we succeed in getting pregnant, we could be supported by the Xiong family...”
Manerya touched her belly, her cheeks flushed. She and Lu Xiaohe had seen the dragon’s human form before and were willing to bear his children.
But Ye Moxi had never seen it!
And even if she had, she wouldn’t agree! Bearing children was not on her life plan, and even if it were, she would never accept being forced into it.
Most importantly, her body was only nineteen years old this year!
Interstellar law stated that if a woman under twenty-five became pregnant, the man responsible, regardless of status, would face capital punishment.
Interstellar women were considered adults at twenty-five but could marry at eighteen. However, abducting a minor girl to impregnate her was met with direct and severe punishment—discovered offenders were sent for complete reconditioning!
Yet Ye Moxi had no time to ponder these useless details.
“He’s human for only two or three hours a day, meaning the rest of the time he’s a beast following animal instincts. Could we become his prey first?”
Ye Moxi found it hard to admit that the hideous creature was the mighty, imposing dragon she imagined.
Manerya and Lu Xiaohe’s expressions shifted instantly.
When they had been sent here, the dragon had been drugged beforehand. When he awoke, Yuan Xi was still unconscious, so they hid quickly. This meant only Yuan Xi remained within the dragon’s initial hunting range.
“They… they said some beasts have been released in this area, enough for him to hunt…”
Heh!
Ye Moxi sneered inwardly.
That ugly thing’s first prey upon waking was her!
“What about our food? Where will we stay? And what about weapons for self-defense? Were these provided beforehand, or will they also be released for us to find?”
They stood on a roughly cleared grassy patch; beyond it lay dense forest. There were no houses, not even tents!
Were they expected to return to nature, sleeping under the open sky?
Did they want them to die slowly?
Manerya and Lu Xiaohe went pale.
They hadn’t thought of any of this!
Ye Moxi frowned.
“You’re all from noble families on prosperous planets?”
To sign such a contract without even that knowledge? Such naive young ladies, unaware of hardship… but there was no need for regrets now.
They had been sold!
“We come from prosperous planets but not noble families! We’re ordinary people! Our families told us, although it would be dangerous, if we endured, the future…”
They would live lives of wealth and status!
Having heard of successful cases around their communities, they agreed without hesitation.
Ye Moxi couldn’t even bring herself to criticize them. She studied Manerya and Lu Xiaohe’s appearances; they were indeed quite beautiful!
Well dressed, wearing delicate sheer dresses and beautifully made-up faces…
Yet they stood out starkly from their surroundings.