The Beast

Another omega was thrown out, and the door quickly slammed shut. Behind that tightly closed door was a beast in the throes of his rut.

The doctor standing nearby frowned. It looked as though this batch of omegas would fail again. Not one could resonate with the marshal's pheromones; Si Jinyan instinctively rejected them all.

Pheromones of a terrifying concentration seeped through the slightly opened door. The slightest trace was enough to leave the omega limp and unable to move, like the weakest creature in the jungle coming face-to-face with its starving king. One glance alone drove terror deep into the heart.

The omega seemed to have been frightened to tears, even their voice trembling. "I'm not doing this anymore. I'm not..."

The man in a white lab coat, holding a small light-screen, appeared to be the highest-ranking person here. He frowned. "Take them out. Next."

The staff nearby escorted the dazed omega out, long accustomed to the sight. The man turned to Chi Li, the last omega of the day. If this attempt failed too, they would have no choice but to inject the marshal with an extremely potent suppressant.

Chi Li glanced at that omega, his shoulders shrinking back almost imperceptibly as a timid expression appeared on his face. Had anyone looked closely, they would have noticed that there was not a trace of fear in the little omega's eyes. He was even calmly surveying the people and surroundings out of the corner of his eye.

It was hard to imagine that the Empire had built an entire private clinic specifically for Si Jinyan. Chi Li had discreetly studied it when he was brought in. It looked more like a secret research facility, with its pure-white interior and unsmiling medical staff, all dressed in white lab coats, meticulously carrying out their duties at their respective stations.

Chi Li had been blindfolded on the way here, so he could not determine its exact coordinates. But there had to be a reason the place was so well hidden. He made a mental note to record its approximate location on the way back if he got the chance.

While Chi Li was thinking, someone grabbed his shoulder. He reflexively wanted to strike, but immediately caught himself. Looking timidly up at the man, he asked in a small voice, "Wh-what is it?"

The man in the white lab coat holding the small light-screen, who appeared to be the highest-ranking person here, glanced at him. "Number 06. Cream-scented pheromones."

Chi Li nodded.

To the man, the boy before him was no different from the previous omegas. If there was anything special about him, it was probably that he was prettier and more delicately featured than the others.

The man took another look at Chi Li's identification details: an omega from the slums of West City who had volunteered for a clinical medical trial. He was not surprised. Many omegas volunteered every year, but most were poor candidates, with compatibility rates that did not even reach 10%. Chi Li was one of the rare omegas whose compatibility reached 80%.

"Go in."

Chi Li glanced at the door, then nervously at the man. When the man said nothing more, he gathered his courage and walked toward it. Before he reached the entrance, a staff member had already opened the door a crack for him.

By the time Chi Li approached the doorway, he could already smell the overwhelmingly powerful pheromones. Perhaps because his body had undergone "omega modification," even the slightest whiff made his legs go weak. Another unpleasant sensation soon rose within him, as though two sets of alpha pheromones were clashing.

The physical reaction triggered by the pheromones made Chi Li's heart feel as though it were sinking. Being forced into a rut like this was far from pleasant.

But he was given no chance to hesitate. Someone shoved him hard into the room, and the door closed immediately behind him.

The room was pitch-black. Before his eyes could adjust to the sudden darkness, Chi Li noticed a hazy silhouette in the shadows. Si Jinyan was like a dangerous beast lying in wait.

"Get out!" The man's voice struck Chi Li's ears, heavy and strained.

Chi Li could not get to his feet. His calves had weakened, and his entire body felt limp. He realized that his breathing was becoming unsteady too.

Damn it. Chi Li calmed himself. An omega's body really is more delicate.

Chi Li said timidly, "Sir, sir..."

The closer he got to the man in the shadows, the harder it became to breathe. He even began to feel a fatal attraction. Though he knew the danger, he could not help drawing nearer.

"I told you to get out!" With a beastlike roar, the huge dark figure lunged at Chi Li and seized him by the throat.

In the darkness, Chi Li gradually made out Si Jinyan's face. It was flawlessly handsome, exactly like the portrait of his target-even more handsome than he looked in the photograph.

The hand around his throat tightened. Chi Li had not expected Si Jinyan to pull something like this so suddenly, and there was not the slightest movement outside the door. As he pried at the hand, he considered whether he should prioritize protecting himself and throw this crazed beast off if it continued.

The grip suddenly loosened. A flicker of astonishment crossed Si Jinyan's eyes. He released Chi Li, but braced his arms on either side of Chi Li's body and leaned toward his face like a primal beast, sniffing him.

Si Jinyan seemed to calm down all at once and asked a baffling question. "You're an omega?"

Chi Li nodded cautiously.

Si Jinyan had never approved of this plan. After coming into contact with several omegas brought in by the research institute, he became even more convinced that it was an empty notion, impossible to realize. His illness was unprecedented in the Empire's medical history, and its symptoms matched no known pheromone disorder.

He had long anticipated the consequences. As his ruts became increasingly severe and frequent, he would gradually lose his reason and become a true beast, capable of nothing but attacking. Or the powerful suppressants would turn him into an idiot, their excessive suppression of his bodily functions causing those functions to die off.

Si Jinyan was the Empire's once-in-a-century "god of war." No one would allow him to fall, much less to a minor condition like a pheromone defect.

Si Jinyan suddenly pulled Chi Li into a tight embrace.

"Let me hold you for a while." Si Jinyan's voice was hoarse, like a traveler who had spent ages in the desert finding his first mouthful of sweet water.

The more he touched him, the more comfortable he felt. The faint pheromones this omega gave off soothed the raging agitation within him, making him crave more.

Chi Li noticed Si Jinyan's sudden change too.

Long before his role as a "spy" was confirmed, Chi Li had undergone a comprehensive pheromone examination. He was one of the few members of the royal family with cream-scented pheromones, and he had received military training since childhood, giving him a foundation in physical responses, reconnaissance skills, and other areas.

Chi Li's pheromones were highly compatible with Si Jinyan's. The result astonished even the researchers, who had only intended to give it a try. Two alphas had actually achieved a compatibility rate above 80%.

But Chi Li's status as an alpha was indeed a problem. After several rounds of screening, they ultimately selected him anyway. With the methods currently available, disguising him as an omega was not impossible.

What followed was a lengthy process of "omega modification": rejection reactions, various clinical trials, counter-surveillance training, and more.

Still, every step of infiltrating the enemy Empire carried risks. Chi Li knew that well.

When he keenly detected the change in Si Jinyan's attitude, Chi Li let out a slight breath of relief.

As an alpha, accepting another alpha the way an omega would presented a psychological barrier that few alphas could overcome. But Chi Li had prepared himself long ago. This was a crucial step. He could not back down, much less expose himself.

Chi Li closed his eyes. At this moment, his trembling arms did not seem out of place. He released his pheromones, responding to Si Jinyan.