Chapter 25: Can You Kiss Me Once?
Mo Qi was very unhappy.
And whenever Mo Qi was unhappy, someone was bound to suffer.
In Mo Qi’s eyes, although these men in front of him were extremely unpleasant to look at, the most unpleasant person of all was naturally the one who had brought them here.
He remembered that the other person seemed to have quite a distinctive name.
What was it again… Bian Tai.
Bian Tai, Bian Tai. In Mo Qi’s opinion, that name suited him perfectly—he really was a complete pervert.
A ridiculous name, doing disgusting things.
Mo Qi had never been someone who would tolerate being wronged. In an instant, he gathered his spiritual consciousness and launched an attack directly toward the other man’s mental domain.
Back when Mo Qi had been a Demon Lord, he often punished people who displeased him in exactly this way. It was something he was extremely familiar with.
Although his current body limited him and the power of his spiritual consciousness was far weaker than when he had been in the cultivation world—his opponent, Bian Tai, was no powerful cultivator either. He was merely a Level-1 ability user. How could he possibly withstand such an attack?
Almost immediately, Bian Tai felt as if his head were splitting apart from the pain.
He could not even stand steadily and collapsed to his knees.
His appearance was utterly undignified, but Bian Tai couldn’t care less. He only felt that his head had never hurt like this in his entire life.
A few seconds later, he even slammed his head against the ground repeatedly, his forehead striking the floor several times before he collapsed completely.
Then he stopped moving.
He appeared to have fainted.
Watching his reaction, even Mo Qi couldn’t quite tell whether the man had been knocked unconscious by the attack on his spiritual consciousness—or whether he had simply knocked himself out by slamming his head into the ground.
But Mo Qi didn’t care either way.
To him, this kind of minor punishment was already very lenient.
To the people around them, however, it looked as if Bian Tai had suddenly gone mad, like he had been possessed by something. The sight frightened them badly.
None of them could understand how such a bizarre scene had occurred.
Especially the men he had brought with him. They looked around in terror, worried that some unknown mutated creature or ability attack had occurred.
Mo Xiu frowned when he saw this.
He had originally been thinking about how to refuse them politely.
But the man had suddenly fainted?
Although he didn’t know the reason, it certainly saved him quite a bit of trouble.
Looking at the other confused men across from him, Mo Xiu waved his hand dismissively.
“Alright. You can all leave.”
“Leave?”
Hearing Mo Xiu’s words, the men looked at each other.
Before coming here, they had already been briefed and clearly understood the purpose of this visit.
Even though Bian Tai had fainted for some unknown reason, if they simply left like this, how would they explain it later to the deputy base commander?
More importantly, most of them had no real abilities and relied on their looks to get by.
Finally they had found an opportunity to attach themselves to a powerful supporter. How could they give it up so easily?
Before coming here, Xu Liang had told them that the man in front of them was a dual-ability user of lightning and wind, someone with a very promising future.
Moreover, this man treated his “lover” extremely well.
If they could follow him, they would surely live comfortably in Shanhe Base.
But seeing that he clearly showed no interest in them, they hesitated.
Could it be that among all of them, not a single one caught his eye?
Bian Tai’s sudden collapse had caught them off guard, and for a moment none of them knew what to do.
Only one man named Xie Wu seemed not to hesitate at all.
He stepped forward decisively and said to Mo Xiu, “Brother Mo, I don’t want to leave. Can I stay with you?”
As he spoke, the man even adjusted his hair and looked at Mo Xiu with hopeful eyes.
Xie Wu’s appearance was naturally the gentle and refined type.
He was fair and clean, with somewhat delicate features that bordered on androgynous. His voice was soft as well.
Perhaps because of this, his face gave off a fragile impression.
So even though he wasn’t deliberately using his advantages or trying to look pitiful, compared to the others, he naturally appeared more likely to evoke sympathy.
If it were someone else facing him, they might have softened.
Unfortunately for him, standing opposite him was Mo Xiu—someone who in his previous life had endured countless assassinations and life-and-death battles. His heart had long since turned cold.
As for Mo Qi beside him, he was a Demon Lord who had come from the ruthless cultivation world where the strong preyed on the weak.
Therefore, facing the man’s expression, neither of them even blinked.
Only Cheng Cheng felt a little sorry for him.
But since the boy had absolutely no authority to speak, his sympathy didn’t matter.
However, after Xie Wu stepped forward, the other men also began saying they wanted to stay and follow Mo Xiu.
“We don’t keep idle people here,” Mo Xiu said coldly.
Hearing this, Xie Wu clenched his teeth.
His gaze briefly swept over Bian Tai, who was still lying unconscious on the ground, and he decided to plead again.
Before the apocalypse, Xie Wu had been a veterinarian.
Through his own efforts, he had opened a small clinic.
He didn’t earn much money, but he could do work he loved and spend time with cute animals.
He had been happy and satisfied.
Until one day, the apocalypse suddenly arrived.
Everything changed.
When Xie Wu rushed home, he discovered that his family had already turned into zombies.
They lunged at him without hesitation, trying to tear apart his flesh.
He could only flee in panic.
Suppressing his grief, he eventually found a group of survivors and, after enduring countless hardships, finally reached Shanhe Base.
But even after arriving there, life wasn’t easy for an ordinary person without abilities.
Even though his physical condition was decent, surviving well was difficult.
Living conditions were poor. Food was poor.
But as long as he could stay alive, Xie Wu could endure it.
He had always believed that as long as one lived, there was hope—that the apocalypse would end someday.
What he could not tolerate, however, was what happened recently.
He had accidentally caught the eye of a man named Bian Tai.
Since the day they met, that man had constantly harassed him, even threatening and coercing him into becoming his subordinate.
Bian Tai’s reputation was notorious.
Xie Wu knew very well what happened to the people who followed him.
He refused to suffer such humiliation.
But he also knew that with his own strength, resisting the man would be extremely difficult.
So after hearing about Mo Xiu, he had deliberately joined the group on the way here.
He thought that if Mo Xiu truly had a good relationship with his lover, then as long as he managed to stay, Mo Xiu probably wouldn’t treat him badly.
He could work hard in exchange for protection.
With Mo Xiu around, Bian Tai wouldn’t dare act so recklessly toward him.
Therefore, when Mo Xiu said he wouldn’t keep idle people, everyone else hesitated.
Only Xie Wu did not retreat.
He looked straight into Mo Xiu’s eyes and said seriously,
“I’m willing. I can work. I can do many things. Please don’t drive me away.”
Cheng Cheng felt even more sympathetic seeing him like this.
He timidly whispered to Mo Qi,
“Brother… can’t we let him stay? He looks pretty pitiful…”
The moment Cheng Cheng finished speaking, Mo Qi shot him a cold glare.
He immediately shut up.
Inside his heart he wailed:
Boss is so scary!
Mo Qi’s expression looked terrible.
Mo Xiu, however, suddenly felt much better after noticing Mo Qi glaring at Cheng Cheng.
He even felt like laughing.
“You should think carefully,” Mo Xiu said.
“If you stay, I will never let you freeload. There’s no such thing as getting something for nothing here.
Maybe you’ve heard about the people who were in my team before we reached the base.
Back then I made them do all the hardest and dirtiest work.
When they went out to collect supplies, they also had to hand everything over to me.
If you stay here, your life might actually become worse than before.”
Mo Xiu deliberately spoke bluntly.
He knew very well that these people wanted to rely on him for a better life.
But if staying made things worse, would they still want to remain?
Sure enough, just as Mo Xiu expected, the others began hesitating.
Only Xie Wu nodded firmly.
“I’m willing. As long as you let me stay, I’ll do anything.”
Now it was Mo Xiu’s turn to feel surprised.
What exactly had Xu Liang promised this man that made him so determined?
Even after hearing all this, he still wanted to stay.
After some consideration, among the five men, two of them withdrew after hearing Mo Xiu’s words.
But the other two, after seeing Xie Wu’s persistence, also said they were willing to stay.
One of them didn’t seem very good at hiding his thoughts.
His gaze kept shifting between Mo Xiu and Mo Qi, as if weighing something.
It was obvious they knew Mo Qi was the “lover” Xu Liang had mentioned.
Just by looking at Mo Qi, they could tell he lived well.
His clothes were clean and comfortable. He looked pampered.
And next to where he had been sitting earlier was a large plate of fresh fruit.
Fresh fruit was a luxury in the apocalypse.
Even ability users couldn’t always eat it, let alone ordinary people like them.
If Mo Xiu treated his lover so generously, maybe if they stayed, they could enjoy the same kind of life.
So the two of them also said they didn’t want to leave.
Mo Qi observed all their expressions.
Their little schemes were obvious.
Why was his own meal ticket so popular?
It was really irritating.
But since they insisted on staying, Mo Qi suddenly had another idea.
So when he saw Mo Xiu frowning and preparing to refuse again, he reached out and patted the young man’s shoulder.
“If they want to stay, then let them stay.”
Seeing Mo Xiu’s surprised expression, he smiled reassuringly.
After assigning the tasks, Mo Qi stopped paying attention to them.
He returned to the room, leisurely continuing to eat fruit while casually ordering Cheng Cheng to massage him.
Mo Xiu, however, slowly walked over and said to Cheng Cheng beside him, “You can go out first. There’s nothing you need to do here. Come back at dinner time.”
Cheng Cheng obediently left, and the room was left with only Mo Xiu and Mo Qi.
Mo Qi lounged lazily in the chair and looked up at Mo Xiu, signaling for him to just say whatever he wanted.
“Did Bian Tai faint just now because of you?” Mo Xiu asked.
In truth, he was only slightly suspicious. He didn’t really think Mo Qi had done it, but the man did have many strange abilities.
For example, he was immune to the zombie virus. And with a mere wave of his hand he could render zombies motionless, turning them into ordinary corpses.
Bian Tai’s fainting had been too strange, so Mo Xiu decided to ask just in case.
What he didn’t expect was that after he asked, Mo Qi actually nodded.
“You really did it? How?”
Mo Xiu looked at him with surprise. He hadn’t seen the man do anything at all—unlike when they dealt with zombies, where Mo Qi at least lifted his hand.
So when exactly had he done it? And how had he made Bian Tai faint like that, even causing him such obvious pain beforehand?
Mo Xiu’s questions came like rapid-fire bullets, leaving Mo Qi unsure how to explain.
What could he say? Of course he had used his divine consciousness.
But how was he supposed to explain what divine consciousness was?
At first, Mo Qi hadn’t cared much about explanations—he had simply thought it troublesome.
But now that wasn’t the main issue anymore.
The most important thing was that he didn’t want Mo Xiu to feel wary of him because he had transmigrated here and had once been a demonic cultivator.
In this world, it was acceptable for someone to possess a special ability.
But if someone’s powers completely surpassed people’s understanding and belonged to an entirely different level, that was another matter entirely.
Those who were different were always more likely to become targets of attack.
Mo Qi didn’t want Mo Xiu to guard against him—or even reject him.
Just as Mo Qi was worrying about how to explain it, Mo Xiu suddenly had a flash of inspiration.
“Could it be… you’re a psychic-type ability user?” he asked excitedly.
If that were the case, everything would make sense.
Perhaps earlier Mo Qi had used mental power to destroy the zombies’ brain domains, causing them to lose the ability to move.
And Bian Tai had likely suffered a mental attack as well.
Seeing Mo Qi looking somewhat confused, Mo Xiu patiently explained:
“A psychic-type ability means someone has extremely strong mental power that can launch mental attacks.
These attacks usually target the brain domain. Some psychic ability users can even extend their mental power over an area for reconnaissance.
It’s a very special and rare ability.”
“Mo Qi, can you feel that strong mental force?”
Attack brain domains? Area reconnaissance?
Wasn’t that exactly what his divine consciousness specialized in?
So Mo Qi nodded.
Seeing the joy appear on Mo Xiu’s face made him want to nod again and tell him that his psychic ability was actually incredibly powerful—far stronger than any psychic ability user Mo Xiu knew.
Since divine consciousness and psychic powers were so similar, why couldn’t they be considered the same thing?
Perhaps the psychic abilities in this world were actually just low-level versions of divine consciousness.
In the cultivation world, powerful cultivators could use divine consciousness for many things—placing spiritual marks, forming contracts, controlling puppets, and so on.
Mo Qi’s divine consciousness had even reached the ascension level.
If his body weren’t limiting him, no one here would be his opponent.
Thinking this, Mo Qi felt rather proud.
So what if he had been a demonic cultivator in his previous life?
He wasn’t merely a demonic cultivator—he was a demon, the strongest existence in the cultivation world.
None of those so-called righteous cultivators could defeat him.
Mo Xiu picking him up was basically the same as finding treasure.
But just as Mo Qi was about to brag, he remembered his slow speaking speed in this body and shut his mouth gloomily.
This body was really too weak.
Although he could now control it well enough that people wouldn’t treat him like a fool anymore, to outsiders his reactions were still slow.
Even if he wasn’t stupid, he still looked dull-witted.
Just thinking about it was depressing.
Mo Xiu, unaware of his inner thoughts, assumed Mo Qi simply didn’t understand how powerful psychic abilities were.
“That’s great! Mo Qi, you’re actually a psychic ability user!”
“You know, psychic abilities are extremely powerful. This means your safety will be much better protected.”
Psychic abilities were among the rarest abilities in the apocalypse.
At first, people hadn’t even realized such abilities existed.
After all, a Level-1 psychic user merely had a clearer mind than ordinary people and didn’t seem very different.
At least during the years Mo Xiu had stayed in Shanhe Base in his previous life, psychic abilities had not yet been discovered.
Only later, after he was framed and forced to flee the base, did a few high-level psychic users gradually appear.
But every single one of them became extremely important figures within their bases.
It was said that if a psychic ability reached a high enough level, the user could even block zombies from sensing ability users, allowing them to walk through zombie hordes as if entering an empty land.
By that standard, Mo Qi’s psychic ability level should be fairly high—at least above Level 1.
Otherwise he couldn’t have attacked Bian Tai’s brain domain and made him faint.
“Mo Qi, I didn’t expect you to be so amazing. Your talent must be incredible—you might even be a genius!”
Mo Xiu said with a smile.
The more time he spent with Mo Qi, the more fascinating secrets he discovered about him.
Mo Qi was like a treasure waiting to be uncovered.
But if Mo Qi had so many abilities, why had he ended up in such a miserable situation in the previous life?
Mo Xiu couldn’t understand.
Still, ever since his rebirth and their meeting, everything had been improving.
Perhaps this was fate.
In this new life, they had come together to become each other’s salvation.
“You used quite a lot of ability just now, didn’t you? Do you feel uncomfortable?” Mo Xiu asked worriedly.
Mo Qi shook his head.
Seeing Mo Xiu’s concern made his mood unexpectedly brighten.
He leaned forward and suddenly pulled Mo Xiu into a hug, burying his face in the man’s neck and closing his eyes to enjoy the closeness.
At such close range, the energy inside Mo Qi’s body began circulating much faster again.
Every time he felt this change, it seemed miraculous.
It was as if some higher-level contract existed between him and Mo Xiu—something invisible.
“Why are you suddenly hugging me again?” Mo Xiu laughed.
But he gently hugged him back, subconsciously ignoring the strange feeling in his heart.
“I wanted to hug you. It feels nice like this. When I hold you, my head doesn’t hurt and I don’t feel uncomfortable anymore.”
Mo Qi mumbled against his neck, rubbing slightly and making Mo Xiu feel ticklish.
Mo Xiu’s smile widened.
He enjoyed this sense of dependence.
He stroked the man’s hair gently.
“So you’re saying hugging me makes you feel better? Why are you so clingy?”
“Is that not allowed?” Mo Qi raised his head and looked at him.
Though he was slightly taller, he deliberately bent down and looked up at Mo Xiu as if seeking affection.
“Can’t I cling to you?”
“Of course you can,” Mo Xiu answered without hesitation.
He combed Mo Qi’s hair affectionately with his fingers.
“Your psychic ability probably hasn’t awakened for long, and you’re not used to using it yet.
Why did you use it without thinking?
Does your head hurt now?”
He sat down while speaking and began gently massaging the pressure points on Mo Qi’s head.
Mo Qi took a deep breath of Mo Xiu’s pleasant scent and nodded.
Enjoying the massage, he slowly complained,
“It’s all because of that thing called Bian Tai. He brought those useless people here. I don’t like them.”
He simply disliked him and wanted to punish him. So what?
Mo Qi thought to himself.
Mo Xiu couldn’t help laughing.
He hadn’t expected Mo Qi to say he was upset simply because Bian Tai had brought those people.
Mo Xiu liked Mo Qi’s straightforward honesty and felt strangely pleased by the possessiveness behind it.
“If you don’t like him, then you don’t like him. If he makes you uncomfortable, it’s definitely his fault,” Mo Xiu said indulgently.
“But if you want to punish him, that’s fine—but don’t harm your own body.”
“Don’t worry,” Mo Xiu added softly.
“He won’t live much longer.”
Thinking of Bian Tai, a flash of killing intent passed through his eyes.
He had already killed Ren Zha earlier to vent his anger.
Originally, he had planned to leave Bian Tai for later—after he found the opportunity from his previous life and restored some of his ability level.
But now that Bian Tai had come to provoke Mo Qi and made him unhappy, Mo Xiu couldn’t wait any longer.
Even if it caused more trouble, he would move up Bian Tai’s death.
Thinking this, Mo Xiu looked at the man leaning lazily against him like a large cat and rubbed his head again.
He didn’t think it strange at all that such a big man was clinging to him.
While continuing to massage Mo Qi’s head, Mo Xiu quietly considered how to eliminate Bian Tai as soon as possible.
The two of them sat close together on the sofa by the window.
Warm sunlight streamed in.
From his angle, Mo Qi could see the open space behind the apartment and the three men who had chosen to stay.
Most of the time, only Xie Wu was working diligently.
The other two were lazy from the beginning.
Later, seeing Xie Wu working so hard, they reluctantly sped up a little—but their efficiency was still far worse.
By sunset, one of the men who had barely worked ran away.
Only Xie Wu and a baby-faced boy remained.
“Boss! Brother Mo! Dinner’s ready!” Cheng Cheng called from the door.
Mo Qi withdrew his gaze.
Tonight’s dinner was braised chicken with vermicelli, rice, and a large pot of stewed potatoes and eggplant.
Oil was scarce, so Lu Pingwan mostly cooked dishes by steaming or stewing.
The rich aroma of food filled the second floor and drifted out the window.
The baby-faced boy drooled at the smell.
“Let’s go eat first,” he said to Xie Wu.
Xie Wu didn’t answer.
He silently took out a flatbread from his clothes and sat on a stone, eating it.
The boy laughed mockingly and ran upstairs alone.
But when he knocked on the door, Cheng Cheng simply looked at him strangely.
“What are you here for?”
“To eat… it’s dinner time.”
“Who told you we provide meals?” Cheng Cheng replied exactly as Mo Qi had instructed earlier.
“If you want food, the person who brought you here should feed you.”
Then he slammed the door shut.
The boy stood outside in disbelief, nearly getting his nose hit by the door.
Furious, he cursed.
This was completely different from what Bian Tai had promised.
He had believed he could replace Mo Qi and become Mo Xiu’s favorite.
But now he realized they were actually treating him like cheap labor.
Even worse—he had worked for so long and still didn’t get food.
So he quit and ran away.
Only Xie Wu remained in the yard behind the apartment.
After finishing his flatbread silently, he went back to work.
After dinner, Mo Qi stood by the window.
Through his divine consciousness he could clearly see that Xie Wu’s palms were already covered in blisters, yet he kept working.
Quite resilient, Mo Qi thought.
But he did nothing.
After eating his fill, he lay down comfortably to rest.
However, lying down made him think of something new.
He already knew that close contact with Mo Xiu doubled his cultivation speed.
When they hugged, the larger contact area made the effect even stronger.
Then what if they became even more intimate?
Thinking about the multiplied cultivation speed, Mo Qi felt eager to try.
More importantly—if the person was Mo Xiu, he felt no resistance at all.
So when Mo Xiu finished washing and sat beside the bed, Mo Qi cautiously asked:
“Um… Mo Xiu… can you kiss me once?”
![The Max-Level Boss Just Wants to Be a Slacker [Apocalypse]](https://i3.wp.com/panda-translations.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/20250902175028_300_420.jpg?resize=151,215 "The Max-Level Boss Just Wants to Be a Slacker [Apocalypse]")