At first, You Zhengping hadn’t known about Yu Hua using his special abilities to cook, either. 

He had been on extended leave, personally watching the chaos of the studio under Yu Hua’s management, watching the Destroyers he had previously fought happily or sadly living their lives. Compared to their lifeless and disinterested attitudes when they had first arrived in this world, compared to the desolation of the head of the league before their death, everyone in the studio was full of feelings. They had a sense of living for real. 

Remembering Yu Hua’s attitude towards the levelers under his command in the little world, You Zhengping could clearly feel the change in Yu Hua. 

You Zhengping was aware that after over two thousand worlds and fifteen years of peaceful life, Yu Hua had set out on a completely different path than before. 

The System had sent people to kill Yu Hua, to force Yu Hua to undo his seal and release Its power. Yu Hua seemed unwilling, but in reality, since ordering Zhen Li to start the studio, he had already had the beginnings of a plan to defeat the System. 

He had slowly and methodically developed this plan, effecting a change in the studio’s levelers and in the Protection Organization’s perceptions through imperceptible influence. 

Yu Hua had spent a lot time strategizing. He understood everything perfectly. 

If you had to allege that Yu Hua had been wayward about anything during this period, it would probably be concealing his identity, and his pretense right under the nose of the Protection Organization. 

Yu Hua could easily have made his identity public, or gone far away from the Protection Organization so he wouldn’t be suspected. 

The reason he had so carefully protected the identity of “Yu Hua” the ordinary person was to prolong his peaceful life as much as possible. 

But days like that couldn’t last very long. 

From the moment he bought the apartment, Yu Hua had no longer been planning to conceal his identity. He had been preparing for the future battle. 

During his leave, You Zhengping had spent as much time as he could with Yu Hua. He had watched Yu Hua at work and understood what part of his behavior was true stinginess and what was put on for his own entertainment. 

Getting rid of his excessively great strength, Yu Hua was a person who liked a domestic life, was a little duplicitous, who like watching others be inconvenienced and enjoyed making others suffer the consequences of their own actions. His character was a little odious, but he had a drop of respect for people who stuck purely to their original intentions. 

Yu Hua was also a dignified person. No matter how dire the straits he found himself in, his expression had to be firm and steady. No matter how poor the studio was, no matter how bad the materials it used, its external appearance had to be in order. 

Yu Hua in fact had a very low sense of humor, but the more he wanted to laugh, the more he would hold back. When there was no one around, he could easily laugh himself sick, but in front of people, he had to be reserved. On the other hand, when he was angry, he would use a smile to cover up his emotions. The angrier he was, the deeper his smile. 

Yu Hua also had a touch of OCD and perfectionism. He detested his pursuit of perfection and couldn’t entirely accept himself as imperfect, so he wanted someone to come along and break through the confines of his thinking. 

Yu Hua…

The deeper his understanding of Yu Hua, the more clearly You Zhengping realized that his love at first sight for Yu Hua originated in attraction at his innermost being, originated in the prompting of instinct. 

A person like this, imperfect, full of little shortcomings that couldn’t detract from his inner strength—You Zhengping loved Yu Hua’s good qualities, but it was his shortcomings he found adorable. 

During the brief glimpse outside the off road car, You Zhengping’s first-rate Protector’s sixth sense had wildly warned him, catch this person, don’t pass him up, don’t let him get away. 

If he could, You Zhengping wanted to always be with Yu Hua. No matter how long, he wouldn’t get tired. 

Unfortunately, however You Zhengping and Yu Hua racked their brains, what must come would always come. 

Today, when You Zhengping had suddenly received the Protection Organization’s notice telling him to hurry back to base as soon as possible, the two of them had dimly felt that the moment had come. 

Yu Hua had smiled very deeply, helped You Zhengping straighten his clothes, and said quietly into his ear, “I’ll go home and cook. I’ll wait for you to come home for dinner.” 

You Zhengping sadly said, “Normally I spend the night when I go to the base. I might not be able to…” 

“That won’t happen,” Yu Hua said firmly. “Today you’ll definitely be able to come home for dinner.” 

How many times had Yu Hua excitedly bought ingredients on his way home from work but then received You Zhengping’s text, telling him that he couldn’t come home that night? Each time he went out on assignment, the Protection Organization would tear You Zhengping away from Yu Hua’s side, but not this time. 

Even if the dining table came crashing right into the Protection Organization’s base, tonight You Zhengping would eat the dinner Yu Hua had prepared. 

Before leaving for the base, You Zhengping had noticed that there was something off about Yu Hua’s expression. 

So when the System’s sudden attack had come and Yu Hua had used his special abilities to prepare food, You Zhengping hadn’t been the least surprised. 

He could even sense that the reason the System had so much power was that Yu Hua had first undone his seal. 

You Zhengping being suddenly recalled had made Yu Hua realize that the Protection Organization had reached an agreement concerning the Source Project. The moment for his arrangement with the world law had come. 

So he had voluntarily undone his seal, releasing that power, luring the System towards this world. Then he had put on this Hongmen Banquet. 

Yu Hua’s determination to merge the levelers’ energy in the Source Project was because this was the power he had always lacked. It was the power to protect, steady and unwavering over many years, invulnerable, despite constant erosion from the System! 

This power couldn’t be taken by force with his “control” ability. The Protectors had to willingly offer everything up to resist the System. Only then could the Source Project produce the greatest power. 

Yu Hua was planning to take this power and go battle the System alone, but You Zhengping wouldn’t agree. 

You Zhengping stood beside Director Xiao and said to Yu Hua, “The origin of the Source Project is ‘protection.’ Your origin is ‘control.’ These are two sides of the same sort of power. They’re similar, but hard to transform. You can’t use both these types of power at the same time. Resisting the System while dividing your attention to protect all the parallel worlds and all the levelers is too dangerous.” 

“I can bear the harm of the Source Project. You might not,” Yu Hua reasoned. 

“I can,” You Zhengping said firmly. “Only a Protector can control the Protection Organization’s power.” 

The melancholy husbands stood opposed. The rest didn’t dare to make a sound. They watched their confrontation. 

You Zhengping’s words passed unobstructed through the monitoring device to the Protection Organization’s upper echelons. Director Xiao heard his superior’s orders and asked, “Captain You, do you have a way to completely control the Source Project?” 

“If I can’t do it, then no one can,” You Zhengping said confidently. 

“I know.” Director Xiao looked at Yu Hua. “Having consulted the organization, I can agree to your first condition. While it is true that we have a grievance against the Destroyers, in the bigger picture, that grievance isn’t worth mentioning. But we don’t agree to the second condition. Handing over the whole world’s power to a single person and letting him go to oppose the System alone, entrusting the world’s fate to a single person’s hands—forgive me, but we can’t do that.

“The Protectors have fought united from beginning to end. Our last battle will also be this way. Whether we win or lose, we will still personally control it.” 

Yu Hua didn’t speak. He looked at You Zhengping. 

You Zhengping stepped up and grabbed Yu Hua’s collar. Overbearingly, he said, “Do what I say!” 

Yu Hua looked at You Zhengping and thought, How can he always ruin my plans? 

When he had decided to go to the end of his life alone, taking the System’s power to the grave, You Zhengping had appeared in his life, evoking the idea of dating and marriage in Yu Hua; when he had arranged their first date, You Zhengping had crushed his plan under the wheels of his trendy motorbike; when he had prepared a perfect proposal, You Zhengping had dragged him to the Bureau of Civil Affairs to obtain a marriage license; when he had decided to oppose the System alone, You Zhengping once again disturbed his flawless plan. 

Xiao You was the assembly of all the accidents in his life. 

“I…” Yu Hua looked at You Zhengping and quietly said, “I don’t have a way to protect a single person from the System’s attacks.” 

Yu Hua had planned and strategized, attempting to protect everything, but he couldn’t protect You Zhengping in time. 

Each time there was a battle, Xiao You would always be the one getting injured. 

“I never asked you to protect me,” You Zhengping said firmly. 

The captain of the Xuyang District’s Protector squad wasn’t a figure to hide behind a strong person and wait to be rescued. He had always stood at the front, blocking the heavy fire ahead with his flesh and blood form. 

“You still have family. Why must you go with me to fight a battle with no certainty of success?” Yu Hua asked. 

“If there’s no certainty of success, I’m not supposed to fight? Sacrifice is your responsibility alone? Why does all the weight of the world have to sit on your shoulders?” You Zhengping’s head had never been as clear as at this moment. “You save the world. I’ll protect you. All right?” 

Yu Hua looked at You Zhengping and at last couldn’t resist. He opened his arms and drew his husband into his embrace. 

No one inside the room disturbed them, but a sudden bolt of lightning struck directly at the window, and the sky-shaking thunder forced the melancholy husbands to separate. Yu Hua looked coldly at the dark clouds outside the window. “My power won’t hold for long.” 

Director Xiao seized the opportunity: “We’ll go to the base at once. The Source Project installation is there. Every nation’s Protection Organization is currently pouring all its power into the installations. The power from each installation will passed through an energy field to gather together. The exit for that power is the installation at our base. The helicopter is on the roof, we can…” 

Before he finished speaking, Yu Hua snapped his fingers lightly, and everyone appeared above the base. 

“We can activate the Source Project at once,” Director Xiao continued steadily after a pause. 

It wasn’t only those who had eaten dinner at Yu Hua’s house who were there. There was also Junjun, carrying a pen and a notebook, working on problems. 

Junjun had been at home racking his brain to do problems for the International Mathematical Olympiad. Suddenly appearing in a strange place, he didn’t scream. He looked at his familiar Xiao Ha and hugged the husky. 

Seeing the child look so accustomed to this, You Zhengping felt a little sad. At such a young age, Junjun had experienced too much. 

“Junjun is also a special ability user. He’s also included,” Yu Hua said. “There are also the two Destroyers imprisoned in the base. While they’ve lost their power, they still bear the imprint of the System. They also have to join.” 

Director Xiao rapidly arranged for the base’s personnel to organize their manpower. He drove his hands apart, and the whole base floated up. The Source Project installation ascended to the very top of the base. 

This was a round installation that resembled a Yin-Yang symbol. The curve in the center separated the forms of two koi, one black and one white. Looked at from above, the microchips on the koi looked very much like ripples in the energy field. 

Of the two koi, one had black eyes, the other white. The black was the power input installation. All the Protectors poured their power into the eye of the black fish. The white one, meanwhile, was the power output installation. You Zhengping stood alone in the white fish’s eye, absorbing all that power. 

The Protection Organization’s outside staff brought Destroyer 187 and the still unconscious “Guan Shaoguang.” Everyone encircled the black fish’s eye. 

Director Xiao issued everyone a handheld input installation, then placed his hand on the installation. The koi could absorb energy on its own. 

“Begin,” said Director Xiao. 

---

Author's Note

Yu Hua (cleaning up the vegetables in the fridge): The natural enemy of perfectionism, You Zhengping. 

You Zhengping (casually messing up the fridge): Behave yourself. Just follow your inclinations. 

Yu Hua: …Xiao You and I really are a perfect match.