AMTPA Extra 7

Today could barely count as a special day..

 

Ji Chenxi had turned eighteen.

 

The Emperor naturally made proper arrangements for his youngest son, but for Ji Chenxi, it didn’t feel any different from any other birthday.

 

Everyone sat together at the table, pretending to be harmonious, polite smiles hanging on their lips, but underneath it all, undercurrents were raging. Even every seemingly casual remark was actually a trap being dug for someone else.

 

Ji Chenxi honestly had no interest in any of it.

 

Calling it a birthday, but today Ji Chenxi didn’t even get a gift or a slice of cake.

 

After the birthday, there would be a three-day banquet. At that time, many people would give gifts, and fancy cakes would be a must-have decoration. But what meaning did a cake have if it wasn’t eaten on the actual birthday?

 

Everyone kept their polite smiles locked on their faces. Back and forth they went, acting out the long performance of “brotherly harmony,” and finally, the birthday meal came to an end.

 

After leaving the palace, it wasn’t too late yet. Ji Chenxi drove his hover car into the city, wandering around aimlessly, looking for something.

 

Maybe he should give himself an adult gift today, or maybe just buy himself a cake.

 

For him, whether it was cake or gifts, none of it was really a luxury. Whether he went home or gathered with friends, he could always receive endless blessings and a cake that every birthday must have. The gifts would be beautiful and well-made, the cake would be sweet and delicious, and even every blessing would be sincere.

 

But today was a little different from before, because it was his eighteenth birthday.

 

He kept wandering, not even knowing what exactly he was looking for.

 

After drifting around for quite a while, Ji Chenxi found a cake shop hidden deep inside an alley. He picked a small cake that was already made, then left again with it in hand.

 

His wrist computer kept buzzing nonstop. Gu Hechuan had been extremely busy lately, and the birthday wishes had already been sent at exactly midnight last night. Ji Chenxi didn’t even need to look to know it was Su Yu.

 

He opened the wrist computer and rejected Su Yu’s invitation, then kept walking.

 

This alley had already drifted away from the brightly lit city center. The hidden darkness slowly started to show itself.

 

Ji Chenxi held a fork in one hand and cake in the other, watching a gang fight happening in a hidden corner.

 

The cake was unexpectedly good, and the fight was unexpectedly interesting too.

 

He had long heard that the underground forces had been completely brought under control, but unfortunately, this particular faction had hidden itself too well. Even after multiple investigations, he hadn’t found anything. He didn’t expect that today he would be lucky enough to run into it live.

 

Maybe this was the “birthday bonus.”

 

But stumbling upon this fight wasn’t exactly a good thing. For example, he was already being watched.

 

As an SS-ranked alpha, Ji Chenxi had always been proud. If he wanted to hide, no one should be able to find him. But now, he was very sure—someone was watching him.

 

Ji Chenxi ate another bite of cake expressionlessly. The people in the fight had already cleaned up the scene, leaving no trace behind. He hadn’t moved from his spot the entire time, but even now, that gaze on him hadn’t left.

 

“You’re staring at me like that… don’t tell me you also want cake, Mr. Mamba.” Ji Chenxi smiled toward a direction, though his eyes were cold to the core.

 

A nimble snow leopard pressed down on a black mamba that had been creeping toward him in the darkness.

 

But the black mamba under his paw turned into a wisp of black smoke and vanished.

 

Ji Chenxi became even more alert toward the person hidden in the dark.

 

“Shouldn’t I be the one asking why you’re squatting here spying?”

 

A low, pleasant male voice made Ji Chenxi’s ears twitch slightly.

 

Male, alpha, spiritual form: a mamba. Likely in his twenties or thirties, an adult. His depth couldn’t be seen through. And this was exactly the type of person Ji Chenxi disliked the most—someone whose background he couldn’t figure out at all.

 

He secretly curled his lip. “Clearly I was just eating cake here. They barged in themselves. How is that my fault for spying? I can’t just close my eyes and ears and pretend I’m blind and deaf, right?”

 

“Then why are you squatting here eating cake?”

 

Ji Chenxi looked like he had just heard a stupid question. The fake smile he had worn all day was already enough, and now he couldn’t be bothered to act anymore. He said carelessly, “I just felt like eating it. As for the spot, I just thought it looked nice.”

 

There was silence on the other side for a while. Maybe seeing that Ji Chenxi hadn’t heard anything he shouldn’t have, the person didn’t say anything else.

 

Ji Chenxi seemed casual while chatting, but in reality he was already ready to fight. He knew the man wasn’t someone easy to deal with. But now, it seemed like he was letting him go.

 

Ji Chenxi tilted his head slightly. Maybe this was his birthday luck.

 

The cake in his hand wasn’t very fresh anymore. He poked at it casually, and then heard the person, who had already walked a few steps away, say to him, “Happy birthday, little snow leopard.”

 

That deep voice was like aged wine. Fine… 

 

Ji Chenxi put a piece of strawberry into his mouth from the cake. Actually, he didn’t hate people whose depth he couldn’t see that much.

 

Because of that simple “happy birthday” from a stranger, Ji Chenxi’s cold brows relaxed. A faint smile appeared on his lips as he withdrew the spiritual power he had been ready to attack with.

 

The other side noticed the subtle change and let out a low chuckle. “Soft-hearted kid.”

 

But Ji Chenxi had already left the moment he retracted his spiritual power, and didn’t hear that sentence at all.

 

Recently, Ji Chenxi had noticed that no matter what he did, he kept running into one person again and again. 

 

The illegitimate son of the Chi family—that was how Su Yu referred to him. But Su Yu, usually carefree and reckless, would show a complicated look when mentioning him, and according to Su Yu, it felt like Chi Zhou had taken an interest in Ji Chenxi.

 

Ji Chenxi just smiled at that. Compared to the idea of being “taken an interest in,” he thought the man saw him more like prey.

 

He was always careful. He couldn’t not investigate the man he met on his birthday. But after checking again and again, he still couldn’t get a clear answer. All he knew was that the man was called “Mamba,” but his real identity was completely hidden in fog.

 

After many investigations, he eventually equated “Mamba” with Chi Zhou. And once that was the case, Chi Zhou’s approach suddenly made sense. If he really was the uncrowned king of the underground world, would he be eyeing the real throne? It looked like he wanted to turn Ji Chenxi, the third prince with little power, into a puppet emperor.

 

Ji Chenxi found this very interesting. He played back and forth with Chi Zhou during their interactions, just waiting to bite off a piece of flesh from him.

 

After putting himself in the position of a snake hunter, Ji Chenxi even started looking forward to every meeting with Chi Zhou.

 

The turning point came when Ji Chenxi deliberately got drunk during a one-on-one drink with Chi Zhou. He wanted to lure the snake out, but he didn’t expect to be kissed instead.

 

Ji Chenxi, who had originally only had three parts of drunkenness and the rest acting, suddenly widened his eyes like he had seen something unbelievable.

 

He had already run through several layers of conspiracy theories in his head, and yet this guy was actually just after his looks??!

 

That shocked, helpless expression made Chi Zhou lean in and kiss him again. Air kept being stolen from his mouth. Ji Chenxi grabbed Chi Zhou’s face and forcefully stopped the kiss.

 

“Mr. Mamba, you’re crossing the line.”

 

“Oh? Why stop acting? Or is the third prince shy after being kissed?”

 

Shy? How could an alpha possibly have something like shyness.

 

The slight drunkenness combined with provocation instantly made the young alpha lose his temper.

 

The taste of tequila was actually not bad. Once it hit, it had a sharp burn to it. Ji Chenxi felt like he was being tightly wrapped and squeezed by a mamba.

 

That lingering, inescapable feeling made him extremely irritated. After that night, he stopped paying attention to the man. But only a few days later, Chi Zhou’s call came through.

 

Ji Chenxi hung up impatiently, but the calls kept coming one after another.

 

When he finally picked up, Chi Zhou’s voice was already rough and hoarse with something like restraint: “Little snow leopard… emergency… Bai Xinke banquet… drugged.”

 

Ji Chenxi: “Then just die.”

 

After saying that, he frowned in annoyance. “…Location.”

 

Annoying mamba. Even such a low-level trick as being drugged could succeed on him.

 

Though he complained inwardly, he still went to find the man first thing.

 

*

 

Chi Zhou had spent the first twenty years of his life wanting power more than anything. But after truly holding absolute authority, he felt an indescribable emptiness and loneliness.

 

It was a trivial matter that didn’t even require him to show up, yet it led him to discover someone very interesting.

 

The beautiful little prince didn’t obediently attend his coming-of-age ceremony. Instead, he was secretly squatting on a hidden rooftop, watching his subordinates deal with an unruly minor force.

 

He was truly beautiful. Pure silver-white long hair, clear blue eyes, holding a pink-and-white cake, eating bite by bite with puffed cheeks. Everything about him was cute—except for the emotion hidden in those eyes.

 

Loneliness.

 

Could a prince born at the peak of power, with countless friends and followers, still feel lonely?

 

Chi Zhou found it curious, so he stayed a little longer. And sure enough, the little prince spoke to him.

 

He had long heard that the third prince was elegant and gentle. But after actually talking to him, he realized the other wasn’t as gentle as the rumors said. Rather than gentle, he was more like a large feline baring its claws, his dangerous mental power locking onto him, ready to tighten and crush at any moment. Chi Zhuo deliberately wished him a happy birthday, and then he saw something—

 

The one about to hunt showed a very faint, very faint smile. Even the mental attack dispersed.

 

A soft-hearted kid. A foolish decision.

 

But Chi Zhou’s heart still skipped at that smile, lost and leaving him momentarily entranced.

 

From that moment on, a real hunting plan began in his mind.

 

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TL Note: And… that’s the end of AMTPA!

It was so much fun watching this alternate timeline unfold. It’s fascinating to think that even if our prince had never found that book, Chi Zhuo still would’ve fallen head over heels for him. Some things really are meant to be. The royal politics were intense, but their romance somehow managed to be even more intense. I would’ve loved to read another hundred chapters of these two just being sweet together, but I guess I’ll just have to keep rereading the novel. (╥﹏╥)

I’ve always had a soft spot for power couples. If you’ve read my other translations, you’ve probably noticed that almost all of them feature strong couples. I’ve also seen quite a few comments joking that they’re basically “AA couples.” That’s actually what led me to start searching for novels with that kind of dynamic. First I found RRP, which, despite not being an ABO novel, had a very similar vibe. After finishing that, I kept searching and eventually stumbled upon our amazing prince and mamba—an actual AA couple in an interstellar fantasy world with spirit beasts.

If you enjoyed AMTPA, I think you’ll have a great time reading RRP as well! I’ve already finished translating it, so you can check it out –HERE–. And if you loved the spirit beasts in this novel, I’d also recommend GWTOS. It’s another interstellar fantasy, but set in a Sentinel/Guide universe instead of an ABO one. It’s one of my all-time favorite novels and still my most-read translation. You can check that one out –HERE– too!

A huge thank you to 冷山月, the amazing author for creating such a wonderful story and giving us these lovable characters. And an even bigger thank you to every single one of you who read along, left comments, or supported me through Ko-fi. Even if I don’t always reply, I promise I read every comment, and they genuinely make my day.

If you enjoyed this translation, I’d really appreciate it if you could leave a rating or review on NovelUpdates. It helps more readers discover this hidden gem and gives the novel the love it deserves.

And if you’re looking for your next read, don’t forget to check out my other completed translation projects! I’ve spent years digging through countless novels to find hidden gems, and I’d love to share more of them with you. You can find them all –HERE–.

Thank you once again for joining me on this journey. I hope we’ll meet again in another one of my translations.

Take care, lots of love, and see you again soon! ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡

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