After Being Aroused By Beauty, I Got Entangled With The Gloomy and Sinister Enigma - Chapter 3

The next afternoon.

When Chen Yao woke up, the sun outside was blazing. His body felt like it had been run over by a truck; every bone and muscle ached. Fortunately, he was still fairly clean—his partner had taken care of the aftermath.

He touched the back of his neck. A sharp sting—there was a band-aid stuck there.

Damn Enigma. He clearly knew that a Beta’s gland was underdeveloped, yet he still bit it open and injected pheromones into it.

Thinking of that madness, Chen Yao’s eyelids trembled shut. He wished nothing had ever happened.

Last night, in the haze of passion, Enigma had pinned his hands and told him his name—Li Ying. And when Chen Yao briefly passed out, he had even taken photos, probably planning to use them as leverage.

Chen Yao didn’t really care too much about the photos, but it still left a bitter aftertaste. He only hoped they wouldn’t be spread around.

He lay in bed for a long time before recovering enough energy. Propping himself up on the bedframe, he slowly got down, bracing against the wall as he walked into the bathroom.

One look at the mottled marks all over his body in the mirror made his vision go dark.

That bastard Li Ying—was he a wolf cub? How could he bite so many marks into him?

Coming out of the bathroom, he saw new clothes neatly folded on the nightstand. After hesitating a few seconds, he decided to put them on.

Dressed, he called his driver and headed downstairs.

Nearly an hour later, he finally got home.

The first thing he did was wash himself thoroughly from head to toe. Thinking of last night’s chaos, he then contacted Jiang Lei, asking if he knew anyone named Li Ying.

Twenty minutes later, Jiang Lei replied that he didn’t—probably a friend of a friend.

Chen Yao had drained so much energy the previous night that he still felt drained. After eating to replenish himself, he lay down again and fell asleep.

Half in a dream, he felt a burning at the back of his neck. Soon, the heat spread through his whole body, as if he had been thrown into Lao Jun’s alchemy furnace.

He snapped his eyes open. His hand flew to his gland, and even through the bandage, he could feel the fiery heat pulsing there.

Sweat soaked his body; his cheeks flushed as red as rouge.

His throat was unbearably dry. He stumbled out of bed and went straight to the kitchen.

Pulling a bottle of mineral water from the fridge, he twisted the cap off and gulped down half.

But the cool liquid sliding into his stomach did nothing to ease the burning.

Remembering last night’s frenzy, Chen Yao pressed his fingers against his temples, trying to soothe the pounding there.

Was this because of Enigma’s pheromones?

No time to think. He called his driver again, asking to be taken to the hospital for a full examination.

The car stopped in the hospital parking lot.

“You can just wait here for me,” Chen Yao told the driver.

The driver nodded. “Call me if you need anything.”

Chen Yao had already made an appointment beforehand, so he went straight to the doctor’s office.

The faint smell of disinfectant filled the room. The gland specialist was named Zhuang Mu—still young, yet already a deputy chief physician.

Not wanting to be recognized in his current state, Chen Yao had put on a baseball cap, hiding half his face.

His voice was slightly labored. “Doctor, I think there’s something wrong with my gland.”

Zhuang Mu wore a white coat and black-rimmed glasses, a very professional appearance.

Standing up, he walked over, pulling on rubber gloves. He brushed aside the hair at Chen Yao’s nape and pressed lightly against his gland.

The swollen, fevered gland didn’t hurt under his touch—rather, it sent an electrifying jolt through his whole body.

A moan slipped from Chen Yao’s lips, and his knees almost gave way. Luckily, Zhuang Mu caught his arm in time.

Chen Yao froze, shocked by the sound he had just made.

Yanking his arm free, he felt a wave of shame burn hotter than the fever in his body.

Damn Li Ying!

“Your gland shows signs of secondary development,” Zhuang Mu said calmly, unbothered by Chen Yao’s reaction. He returned to his seat, his tone steady as he explained.

Chen Yao’s brain felt like a sluggish pendulum, struggling to process the words.

Normally, glands develop during puberty. If they don’t, that means a person will remain a Beta for life.

He had been a Beta for decades—only to suddenly be told now that his gland might be developing again? What kind of cosmic joke was this?

And he had no desire to be either Alpha or Omega. Both felt too confining, too unfree.

Looking up, eyes damp, he asked, “Why would secondary development happen?”

After a pause, Zhuang Mu replied, “Your hormones have been affected. The exact cause will require further testing.”

Hormones affected…

At once, Chen Yao thought of Li Ying.

That exalted Enigma. When he injected pheromones into Chen Yao’s defective gland, Chen Yao should have considered the possible consequences.

He had thought of many things, but never this—that Enigma pheromones could trigger secondary development. He had read research papers on Enigmas before, and none had mentioned it.

Still, his own lust had blinded him. He couldn’t push all the blame onto Li Ying.

“Have you seen this condition before?” he asked.

Zhuang Mu shook his head. “This is the first time in my career. Extremely rare.”

Chen Yao was silent for a moment. “Is there a way to stop it?”

“You could try inhibitors,” Zhuang Mu said. “But I can’t guarantee they’ll work.”

Chen Yao’s eyes darkened. Even a one-in-ten-thousand chance was worth trying.

“Then I’ll try inhibitors.”

“They could have strong side effects,” Zhuang Mu cautioned.

Chen Yao shook his head, resolute. “I’ll only know if I try.”

Zhuang Mu explained patiently, “You’ve been a Beta your whole life. You’re already past developmental age. Even if your gland does change, it won’t alter that fact. There’s no need to take such a risk—the inhibitors might even backlash.”

As a doctor, he couldn’t recommend unnecessary medication for an uncertain condition.

Chen Yao’s mind felt clouded, his whole body burning as though reason were turning to ash. “But I’m burning up.”

Zhuang Mu picked up his pen. “I’ll prescribe suppressor patches. They have almost no side effects.”

When Chen Yao left the hospital, the suppressors had already eased much of the heat.

By nightfall, neon lights glittered on skyscrapers, splitting the city into two.

His driver was still waiting in the parking lot. As Chen Yao walked through the long hospital corridor, a cool breeze brushed past, making him shiver.

Just then, his phone buzzed.

A message. An unknown number had sent him a photo.

It was a picture from last night—taken in the throes of passion.

His eyes red and swollen, gaze unfocused, body disheveled and covered in marks.

Chen Yao froze, his expression taut. After much hesitation, he finally dialed the number.

It rang for fifty seconds before connecting.

The other end was silent—so silent that Chen Yao checked twice to make sure the call had gone through.

One minute. Two minutes. Still silence.

Unable to bear it, Chen Yao finally spoke first:

“What exactly do you want?”