Even when he was treated differently, Ji Chenxi’s face didn’t show the slightest anger. Instead, he stubbornly pushed his hand forward again.
“Really not coming out?”
You really don’t want to get close to the person you thought was an omega?
Most of Chi Zhuo’s face was hidden in the shadows, so normally, Ji Chenxi shouldn’t have been able to make out his expression. All he could see was a dark head of soft hair and that sharp, chiseled jawline.
Too bad for him, Ji Chenxi’s spirit beast had ridiculously sharp senses. He didn’t miss those blood-red, sinister eyes.
That look wasn’t telling him to “get lost.” If anything, it felt like Chi Zhuo was tempting a clueless omega to come closer, just a little closer… close enough that once he stepped in, there’d be no way out.
He wanted to mark him.
The clash between two predators made Ji Chenxi’s heartbeat quicken, and to cover it up, he curled his fingers slightly, pretending to hesitate like he’d just noticed something.
“If you don’t need help, I’ll just leave.”
The silver-haired young man said it kindly enough, then made a show of pulling his hand back. He even leaned his body upward, as if he was about to stand and walk away.
In his head, he started a silent countdown.
“Three.”
“Two—”
Before “one” landed, a big hand pressed down on his own pale, slender fingers—which, truth be told, weren’t really any smaller than Chi Zhuo’s.
Chi Zhuo’s palm was damp with sweat. That cold, clammy touch would make most people recoil, but Ji Chenxi didn’t mind in the slightest. If anything, he felt a flicker of satisfaction—because in their little tug-of-war, he’d just won.
That tiny, sudden victory put him in a decent mood.
He tightened his grip and pulled the man out from the rose bushes.
The faint rose scent mixed with tequila, and surprisingly, the two together didn’t smell half bad.
Ji Chenxi even had the mood to play the good guy and ask, “You alright now?”
It was a useless question. Anyone could see Chi Zhuo was not alright.
Sweat had completely soaked the strands of black hair sticking to his forehead. The mix of black and white, the strained expression, that heavy, raw tension caught between desire and pain—right now Chi Zhuo looked dangerous as hell. No omega in their right mind would dare go near an alpha like this. The only ways out were either finding a professional to help or marking an omega and letting pheromones calm the storm.
But at the moment, he couldn’t do either.
If Ji Chenxi really wanted to play the savior, he could’ve handed over the alpha suppressant he carried. The special-grade stuff would’ve at least made things easier. But since he was having such a good time pretending to be an omega, how could he possibly pull out an alpha suppressant?
Obviously impossible.
Besides, why would he save someone who, in the story, was supposed to kill him?
Ji Chenxi was actually waiting for Chi Zhuo to lose control and come after this “weak omega.” Then, he’d have the perfect excuse to take care of him. But Chi Zhuo’s self-control was insane—veins bulging at his temple, body trembling with restraint—yet he never once made a move to force a mark.
Then again, not everything in life has to follow the perfect script.
The spiritual energy lingering at Ji Chenxi’s fingertips flickered, then faded away.
He looked down in surprise at the hand that had just been released.
He was planning to use the hand contact to slip into the other’s spiritual realm—if the other’s reason was chaotic enough, his spiritual power might even shred the man’s spiritual realm. But before his force touched Chi Zhuo’s, the man had already let go of his hand.
Ji Chenxi, who prided himself on not giving off any murderous vibe, blinked in mild surprise.
Chi Zhuo pulled his hand back into a tight fist, veins standing out, looking like he was holding himself together by sheer force.
And yet he didn’t come closer to Ji Chenxi. Instead he said, “AO… there’s a difference.”
There are many alphas with gentleman manners, but an alpha like Chi Zhuo—near losing his mind yet still that careful—was rare. Ji Chenxi respected anyone who treated omegas properly; that little bad impression the book gave him of Chi Zhuo marking Bai Anran on the spot softened a bit.
He ran his fingers over the suppressant he carried.
It felt a bit ridiculous, but Chi Zhuo’s small act made Ji Chenxi want to help.
“Would the suppressant help? Or I can call a doctor for you.”
Chi Zhuo shook his head and refused.
Ji Chenxi, who’d been half up to no good, frowned. If Chi Zhuo didn’t want either thing, then he couldn’t help. His rare good deed would end in disappointment. Just as he was about to say goodbye and leave, Chi Zhuo stopped him. “Can you… release a little pheromone?”
Want his pheromones?
Ji Chenxi’s first thought was that the guy wanted to fight, but he quickly remembered Chi Zhuo still thought he was an omega.
An alpha asking an omega for pheromones instantly colored the scene with something intimate. Was Chi Zhuo desperate enough to borrow his scent to calm himself down?
Ji Chenxi dismissed that idea fast—no alpha in heat could refuse omega pheromones. If omega scent spilled out, the alpha might go mad and force a mark.
A faint chill passed through Ji Chenxi’s eyes, but because of that earlier shred of good impression he didn’t snap. He answered politely, “Uh… that’s not really appropriate, is it?”
The polite words hid danger.
Chi Zhuo had been holding himself to the edge. Without the suppressant, even a bit of omega pheromone could help. He trusted he wouldn’t do anything cruel to a weak omega, so he didn’t realize how rude his request sounded to an omega.
Luckily he saw Ji Chenxi hesitate and forced himself to sound calm. “Don’t worry—I can hold it fairly well. If you’re… worried, you can step back a little.”
“Are you sure you want me to release pheromones? Omegas can’t just let them out willy-nilly.”
Chi Zhuo stared at the silver-haired omega glowing under the moonlight—so beautiful it seemed to make his long-dormant pulse speed up. He wanted it. He wanted to mark and own, even if it was just a little bit of the omega’s scent.
Reason made him polite—don’t scare the other. Desire made him lock onto the prey—don’t let it go.
The two forces braided together and became one firm answer.
“…Yes.”
Ji Chenxi finally found something different in the man’s persistence. Surprise flashed across his face, then turned into a question: “So do you want my pheromones because you like me, or just because you need them to calm yourself?”
No matter what the black-haired alpha was really thinking deep down, Ji Chenxi actually wanted to hear his answer. Things were already drifting far from what he had planned. At first, he’d come looking for Chi Zhuo out of curiosity, mixed with doubts about how the story was supposed to unfold, and that faint irritation at the idea of an alpha who could stand above him. Ji Chenxi was too competitive to accept being second to anyone. Originally, he’d thought about testing him, maybe even taking him down. But now, that plan fizzled out and twisted into another kind of dark amusement.
Chi Zhuo stayed silent for a long while, maybe because he hadn’t expected to be asked so directly.
When his dry voice finally came, it was hoarse.
“…I guess you could say I fell for you at first sight.”
Ji Chenxi got exactly the answer he’d been waiting for.
“Really?” he asked. “And if you don’t like my pheromones, you won’t regret it?”
“No regrets.”
There wasn’t an alpha alive whose reason wouldn’t crack after smelling omega pheromones in heat. Ji Chenxi knew Chi Zhuo’s motives probably weren’t pure, but since he wasn’t actually an omega, he said, “If you really want it, I can give it to you.”
A smile curved his lips. His cool features bloomed in that moment, striking, dazzling—more breathtaking than any flower.
His fingers unclasped the suppressor ring, sliding it off with ease, freeing himself from that suffocating restraint.
He didn’t even have to try releasing anything. The moment the ring was gone, his body let loose—roses flooding the air in a powerful surge, clashing head-on with the heavy tequila scent that had been wrapping around him, trying to claim him.
But this wasn’t some gentle, soothing pheromone release—it was aggressive, domineering, a force determined to drown out every trace of the other.
The sudden wave of roses made Chi Zhuo’s expression twist.
His careful, hovering scent recoiled in agitation, then lashed out even stronger, his already unstable pheromones thickening into a storm.
And for Chi Zhuo, this was more than just a pheromone clash. It was betrayal. Rage burned behind his eyes—not only because he was provoked, but because he realized he’d been played for a fool.
He had been at his limit already, forcing himself to back down again and again because of what he thought was an omega. But now the truth was shoved in his face—this person had never been an omega. They’d known he was mistaken, and they’d deliberately let him walk straight into the trap.
Chi Zhuo, narrow-minded and vengeful at the best of times, could never let such humiliation slide.
His eyes went dark, and in a flash, he lunged for Ji Chenxi’s throat.
But Ji Chenxi wasn’t easy prey. He shifted sideways, slipping past the attack with ease.
The clash of alpha pheromones had his adrenaline spiking. Even under the pressure, he found himself grinning as he asked, “Why the sudden attack? Wasn’t it my pheromones you wanted?”
If not for that smile tugging at his mouth, Chi Zhuo might’ve believed him. But now, fury burned so hot in him that he wanted nothing more than to tear the man apart.
Ji Chenxi, on the other hand, was still entertained, mocking him with a light laugh: “Didn’t you just say you liked me? I only did what you asked—released my pheromones—so why are you mad now?”
“You’re an alpha.”
Just one simple line exposed Ji Chenxi’s trickery. And yet, he had the shamelessness to keep smiling. “But I never said I was an omega, did I?”
Those sapphire-blue eyes glimmered with soft light, his face so innocent it almost made it seem like Chi Zhuo was the unreasonable one.
Perfect. Just perfect.
Chi Zhuo, who hadn’t been openly mocked like this in years, actually let out a laugh of sheer fury. His attacks at Ji Chenxi grew faster, sharper, carrying terrifying force.
Ji Chenxi still wore that careless smile, but his movements were anything but careless. If Chi Zhuo could be this precise even under the influence of drugs, what kind of power would he wield without them? Could Ji Chenxi still stay so relaxed then?
Dodging and countering, he kept needling him with words, fanning the fire: “Didn’t you just say you wouldn’t regret it? Now you’re throwing punches over my gender? Guess your ‘love’ doesn’t mean much.”
“How could it not? I like you so much I want to mark you.”
Mockery. Pure, biting mockery.
When an AO bit a gland, it meant intimacy and desire. But when an AA did it? That was nothing but domination and submission.
Faced with that, Ji Chenxi’s smile only deepened, but his eyes went cold. “Then let’s see you try.”
The two of them—both quick, both strong in spiritual power—clashed fiercely, whatever heat had lingered before completely burned away.
As the fight escalated, both reached for their spiritual power. If not for Chi Zhuo’s spirit beast—the massive black mamba—being too large to move without attracting the attention of whoever drugged him, he would’ve already unleashed it.
Ji Chenxi didn’t take advantage. Since the other hadn’t called his spirit beast out, neither did he.
Every near-hit only made him more excited. His moves grew sharper, wilder. When he finally caught Chi Zhuo’s throat in a claw-like grip, he tilted his head aside almost lazily, slipping past a nasty strike of spiritual energy.
But before he could laugh or taunt, a sharp sound broke through—something small and hard rolling across the floor.
Click.
The clear sound froze him in place.
His fingers tightened on Chi Zhuo’s throat as his eyes lowered slowly, unwillingly. And there it was, just as he feared—his most treasured yin-yang bead, dangling with its black tassel, the bead’s surface spiderwebbed with cracks.
Shattered.
It shattered.
Ji Chenxi’s face darkened, uglier than when he’d first read that ridiculous book, uglier than when he saw the ending where he died miserably.
“This was my favorite thing.”
“My very favorite.”
His voice was low, hoarse—gone was the light teasing, replaced by something heavy, terrifying.
Chi Zhuo, throat caught in his grip, still had the gall to sneer, “And so… what?”
Ji Chenxi laughed—a cold, cruel laugh.
His spiritual power poured recklessly through that point of contact, slamming toward Chi Zhuo’s spiritual realm. But an SSS-level alpha’s spiritual realm was no empty field to be trampled. Every charge was beaten back, every strike shattered before it could land.
And besides—killing an alpha wasn’t the kind of humiliation Ji Chenxi wanted to deal.
Ji Chenxi’s other hand drifted up, fingers brushing lightly against Chi Zhuo’s neck, pausing right at the gland.
A bad premonition hit Chi Zhuo—sure enough, the alpha who had been grim and cold a second ago suddenly bloomed into a dazzling smile.
“Didn’t big brother just say you liked me so much you wanted to mark me? Well, I like you too… except—”
Ji Chenxi leaned closer, voice laced with a teasing laugh. “Except it looks like I’ll be the one marking you, hmm? Brother Chi Zhuo.”
The alpha’s face darkened instantly, and Ji Chenxi sighed in mock regret. “What a shame.”
“You wouldn’t dare!”
Dare? He’d already dared to kill—what was a mark compared to that?
Ji Chenxi moved closer still, his breath warm against the alpha’s neck. Before another strike of spiritual power could hit, he raised a shield. Chi Zhuo’s force was stronger, true, but all it did was shatter the barrier and leave a shallow scratch across Ji Chenxi’s neck, nothing serious.
The sting of blood almost drowned out the choking, clashing tequila scent.
Lowering his gaze to that fragile spot—fragile even for alphas—Ji Chenxi lingered deliberately, savoring the tension tightening through Chi Zhuo’s body. And then, without the slightest hesitation, he sank his marking teeth into the gland.
The movement was smooth, ruthless—one fluid motion without pause.
Pain jolted through Chi Zhuo’s body. His fists clenched so hard his knuckles cracked, and with one vicious step he crushed the bead that Ji Chenxi had called his “most beloved.”
Another alpha’s pheromones surged wild inside him, tearing through him like a storm. Chi Zhuo’s grip on Ji Chenxi’s arm tightened viciously, as if he wanted to rip him apart on the spot.
“You’re dead!”
An alpha’s mark on another alpha couldn’t last long, but it was enough to leave that invasive scent inside for a good while.
Pulling back, Ji Chenxi glanced at the reddened gland and gave a refined little smile. “Mm? I’ll look forward to it.”
Look forward to it enough to let you live—for now.
*
TL Note: New chapters will be released every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!
Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)
