Chapter 32

The more Su Louzhi thought about it, the more something felt off.

Ji Kailan had come here on short notice due to his sudden illness. The estate couldn't possibly have prepared fresh ingredients in advance. And since his episodes no longer followed a fixed schedule, the place should have been stocked with convenience foods, not fresh ones. Indeed, both lunch and dinner today had been convenience foods.

So where had that glass of fresh milk come from?

She paused, but then reasoned that since Ji Kailan had already agreed to let her stay, she'd let it go. She didn't want to dig deeper.

Right now, having Ji Kailan by her side was the truest thing there was.

Su Louzhi stopped overthinking. She finished her milk, dutifully handed him the empty glass, then climbed onto the bed and sat there, waiting for him to finish washing up and come to sleep together.

Ji Kailan finished his nighttime routine and walked to the bedside, his gaze deep and unreadable as he looked at her.

"Zhizhi," he asked softly, "are you sure you don't want to sleep separately?"

Su Louzhi shook her head firmly.

Ji Kailan sighed again. "Fine. If Zhizhi says we sleep together, then we sleep together."

He got into bed, lay down, and turned to face her, asking gently, "Zhizhi, should we sleep like this, or do you want me to hold you?"

Su Louzhi thought about it. So much had happened today—she hadn't even gone to her exam, and she'd been truly terrified. At this moment, if she could have it her way, she really did want a warm embrace.

So she turned on her side, shuffled over, and rolled straight into his arms.

Ji Kailan's brows curved with a smile. He wrapped his arms around her gently, and as she wasn't paying attention, he pressed a very, very light kiss to the top of her head.

"Good night, Zhizhi."

Su Louzhi obediently closed her eyes.

—

Perhaps because she was still suspicious, or perhaps because the familiar incense wasn't there, Su Louzhi slept very warily that night. She was on guard, ready to catch Ji Kailan slipping away to hurt himself the moment she dozed off.

All night, she hovered in a half-awake, half-asleep state.

She figured that if Ji Kailan so much as moved, she'd snap her eyes open. Either she'd stare at him watchfully, or she'd pretend to still be asleep and rush over to stop him only if he actually tried to harm himself.

But to her surprise, Ji Kailan behaved himself perfectly all night. He barely moved, holding her gently the whole time. Whenever he sensed her half-awake, he'd pat her back softly, trying to help her sleep more soundly.

And so the first day at the estate passed. When Su Louzhi opened her eyes the next morning, she almost couldn't believe it.

She'd expected a hard battle, but it had gone by so peacefully? Just like always, spent in Ji Kailan's indulgent care?

Still, she didn't dare relax. She was afraid this was some kind of trick, that once she let her guard down, he'd hurt himself when she wasn't paying attention.

So on the second day, Su Louzhi basically became Ji Kailan's shadow. Wherever he went, she followed.

Ji Kailan found it both amusing and exasperating, but he didn't say anything, silently allowing her behavior.

Until—

"Zhizhi."

Ji Kailan stood in the hallway, letting out a helpless sigh. "I'm heading this way because I need to use the bathroom. Do you really need to follow me for that too?"

Su Louzhi's footsteps faltered, and her face flushed crimson. She shook her head frantically, pointing at the restroom door to indicate she'd just wait right there.

Ji Kailan shook his head with a smile. "Fine, whatever you say."

He went into the bathroom and closed the door.

Su Louzhi stared at the closed door, and suddenly a thought struck her.

That's right.

Both Shen Boyang and Ji Kailan had said he needed pain to maintain his sanity.

But aside from what she'd witnessed yesterday, Ji Kailan seemed to have been perfectly lucid the whole time.

Was it possible... he was harming himself when she wasn't around?

She'd tried to stick to him as much as possible, but when he showered, she hadn't gone in with him!

Su Louzhi felt more and more convinced.

And his showers really did take an especially long time.

She remembered feeling embarrassed when she first told Ji Kailan that her showers took over half an hour, thinking she was too slow. But after they started living together, she'd casually noticed that Ji Kailan took much, much longer than she did!

She'd never timed it, but she was sure it was at least an hour every time. She'd even wondered once what he could possibly be doing in there.

Yesterday, with the shock of his sudden illness, she'd been too overwhelmed to think about it. And since he always took long showers, she hadn't noticed anything unusual when he finished washing up that night.

But now, thinking back, an entire hour or more locked in the bathroom—wasn't that the perfect opportunity for self-harm?

Su Louzhi was certain she'd figured it out.

But what could she do about it? She couldn't just barge in and watch him shower.

She furrowed her brow, deep in thought, and didn't even notice when Ji Kailan came out.

Until a finger snap exploded in front of her face.

Su Louzhi snapped back to reality and looked up, meeting Ji Kailan's smiling eyes.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked with a grin. "You were so absorbed."

As if she could tell him that. If she was right and said it out loud, wouldn't that just put him on guard?

So she put on her signature obedient smile, looked at him, and shook her head lightly.

Ji Kailan knew Su Louzhi too well. He could tell at a glance she was brushing him off.

The volatile emotions from his pre-rut period were already churning inside him, barely suppressed by sheer willpower because she was here. The realization that she was keeping something from him pierced his heart like a thorn.

Why did she have secrets from him?

Wasn't he good enough to her?

Didn't she trust him completely?

Jealousy and irritability surged up from the depths of his soul, threatening to overwhelm his reason.

He looked at her face—innocent, defenseless, full of trust.

With every ounce of his willpower, he pushed the surging emotions back down.

Ji Kailan put on a gentle smile.

"Alright," he said. "My Zhizhi has her little secrets now. I won't ask."

He lowered his gaze, looking at her tenderly. "So what movie does Zhizhi want to watch today? Or would you rather play a little game?"

Su Louzhi was in no mood for movies or games. Her entire mind was consumed by the revelation that Ji Kailan had a serious illness. She'd only agreed to spend the day watching movies yesterday because she was afraid he might hurt himself or others if he couldn't control it, so staying at the estate was the only option.

But she wouldn't say something that hurtful. She obediently pulled out her phone and typed: 【Senior Ji, I'm fine with anything. You pick for me.】

A flicker of something deep passed over Ji Kailan's face, then he smiled. "Then let's watch Absolute Controller today."

Su Louzhi nodded. She didn't know much about the movies in this world, so she'd just watch whatever Ji Kailan chose. The films he picked were never bad, after all.

The estate had a media room, of course. The two had spent the entire day there yesterday. Now, Su Louzhi and Ji Kailan stepped back into that familiar space.

The reason she walked in under her own power instead of being carried was that, ever since she'd seen the wounds on his arm yesterday, she refused to make him use his injured arm to carry her.

She was adamant.

Ji Kailan couldn't persuade her, so he had to give in.

But once they were in the media room and settled on the sofa, they fell back into their old habits.

Ji Kailan said with perfect logic, "Sitting in my lap doesn't require my arms to exert any force. Surely Zhizhi won't refuse me even this?"

Su Louzhi had no comeback. Besides, she hadn't planned to refuse anyway.

So they resumed their usual position—Su Louzhi sitting on Ji Kailan's lap, wrapped in his arms, watching the movie together.

Ji Kailan picked up the remote, scrolled to Absolute Controller, and pressed play.

—

The movie began.

The opening scene showed a hospital corridor outside a delivery room, a crowd of people waiting anxiously. A flashback depicted the pregnant woman in the throes of labor, medical staff rushing about in a frenzy.

A baby's cry rang out, and everyone's faces relaxed into relieved smiles. Then the camera cut to a teenager.

Hospital.

The camera deliberately zoomed in on the sign outside the consultation room—

Differentiation Department.

Su Louzhi blinked.

Differentiation Department? Did hospitals have that? Wasn't that a typo? Shouldn't it be Gastroenterology?

She kept watching.

In the consultation room, a teenager sat across from the doctor. The doctor, expression both grave and gratified, said, "Congratulations. You've differentiated into an enigma. Based on current records, you are the world's only enigma."

The teenager looked up, bewildered, as if he didn't understand what it meant to be 'the world's only enigma.'

Su Louzhi was even more confused.

What was an enigma?

The movie then briefly explained the world's setting: humans were divided into three genders—alpha, beta, and omega. But legend had it that above the alpha, there was another rank: the enigma.

However, since records began, fewer than ten people in history had ever differentiated into enigmas.

Seven of them had done so in ancient times, leaving no accurate data. Only three had differentiated into enigmas after the Industrial Revolution.

As such, humanity's knowledge of enigmas was extremely limited.

All they knew was that those who differentiated into enigmas far surpassed even the highest-ranked S+ alphas in physical constitution, function, stamina, capability, intelligence, and every other aspect.

Because he was the world's only enigma, the teenager was invited by a research institute to collaborate, hoping to uncover the secrets of enigmas.

Of course, this wasn't a horror movie. The institute was completely legitimate. They simply conducted regular physical check-ups and drew blood samples from the teenager. The boy didn't mind it either.

As Su Louzhi watched, she suddenly recalled that strange movie she'd picked herself at the media room in Minghua Yuan—what was it called? Spring, Thin Rain? It had also mentioned words like alpha, beta, and omega, though that film hadn't mentioned enigma.

She thought vaguely: Could this be some popular fantasy element in this world?

She kept watching.

—

The teenager had differentiated at fifteen.

For the first three years, he was no different from ordinary people, except his physique was indeed superior. But three years later, things began to change.

His pheromones became aggressive.

Ordinary people couldn't stand it, couldn't even get close. And as the only enigma, his pheromone intensity far exceeded that of an alpha. Even the strongest Suppressant Patch on the market couldn't fully contain his leaking pheromones.

His life began to suffer.

The teenager had once had a normal life, but after his pheromones started leaking, others couldn't tolerate his scent. He was ostracized at school.

The research institute tried to develop a special Suppressant Patch for enigmas but failed.

They'd originally assumed an enigma's pheromones were simply stronger and more concentrated than an alpha's. So they strengthened the formula and created a specialized Suppressant Patch.

But even after using it, the teenager still couldn't fully stop the pheromone leakage.

Finally, the institute concluded that an enigma's pheromones might contain some component they couldn't analyze. Simply strengthening the patch wasn't enough to block it.

Research ground to a halt.

And as he aged, the teenager's pheromones grew stronger and stronger. The institute kept developing new Suppressant Patches, but nothing worked.

Within just a year, the teenager's pheromone leakage had become so severe he couldn't leave the house.

The teenager fell into depression.

To keep him from doing something drastic, the institute even arranged for a researcher with a psychology certification to live with him. This researcher was a beta they'd carefully chosen—betas couldn't perceive pheromones, so they thought it would be fine.

But contrary to expectations, the researcher couldn't get close to him either.

For some reason, while betas truly couldn't sense alpha and omega pheromones, they could sense the presence of an enigma. Otherwise, the teenager wouldn't have been isolated at school, since there were plenty of betas there too.

Things deteriorated further.

The teenager's pheromones began leaking through the walls, affecting his neighbors. In the end, he had to move into a specially constructed research room at the institute.

Although the institute had never imprisoned him, the teenager never stepped outside that door again.

Perhaps he still longed for sunlight and people. He became more cooperative with the research, even voluntarily pushing for more aggressive studies.

But two years passed, and the research yielded nothing.

Even the researcher grew hopeless. Privately, he told the teenager: perhaps the enigma differentiation was fate—something we can't explore or change.

The teenager fell into utter despair. He began to self-harm, attempting to end his life. The institute pulled him back from the brink of death multiple times.

—

A year later, something unexpected happened.

The researchers surrounding the teenager suddenly began behaving uncontrollably.

After investigation, the subjects themselves had no memory of their actions. And all the anomalies were connected to the teenager.

They had no choice but to speculate that the teenager could somehow control people. Yet years of acquaintance told them he wasn't that kind of person.

So they boldly theorized: perhaps this was the enigma's special trait. They could use their pheromones to suppress, or even dominate, those whose pheromone levels were lower than theirs.

The researchers scoured the records of the ten enigmas in history and finally concluded—

Their theory was very likely correct.

Of the seven ancient enigmas on record, all were kings, lords, or generals, commanding obedience from vast numbers.

As for the three recorded after the Industrial Revolution, two had committed suicide, and the third, after a violent conflict with the local research institute, had single-handedly killed everyone there.

Su Louzhi was completely lost.

At the start of the film, she'd thought it was exciting, a creative fantasy piece. She'd already decided that alpha, beta, and omega were popular fantasy elements in this world. The last movie hadn't mentioned enigma, but she'd figured this one would be a new branch branching off from those three genders and would probably be interesting.

But to her surprise, the movie grew more and more boring as it went on.

The entire film seemed to revolve around the teenager: research, more research, and still more research. That was it.

Su Louzhi wasn't the kind of person who could stay focused on something she found uninteresting. That was exactly why she'd initially needed tutoring in finance—she couldn't get into it, so she couldn't read the textbooks.

So when she found the second half of the movie utterly boring, she couldn't concentrate on it either.

But since Ji Kailan had chosen it, she couldn't bring herself to say, "Your pick was terrible this time." She just gritted her teeth and kept watching.

Still, she was basically half-watching and half-daydreaming. She only paid real attention to about half of the film's later content.

Because of that, Su Louzhi completely missed it when, at the very end of the movie, as the teenager successfully had his gland removed and the screen began to fade, a small line of text slowly appeared in the corner of the screen:

This film is dedicated to Xu Tianming, the 11th enigma on record. We thank him for donating his body to medical science. Although the research team ultimately failed and we have been unable to unlock the secrets of the enigma, we will forever remember his contribution.

The movie ended, and Su Louzhi couldn't help but yawn.

A voice full of laughter sounded from above her. "What's wrong? Didn't like this movie?"

Su Louzhi felt a little embarrassed. She lowered her head and typed: 【No, it's not that. Maybe I just didn't sleep enough yesterday. I'm a bit sleepy now.】

Ji Kailan said gently, "Alright, I'll make lunch. After we eat, we'll take a nap."

Su Louzhi nodded.

Ji Kailan made two bowls of noodles from the convenience food supplies. After eating, they lay down together for a nap.

Actually, Su Louzhi's words just now were just an excuse to fob him off. She hadn't slept poorly yesterday—in the latter half of the night, Ji Kailan had kept patting her back to soothe her, and she'd slept quite deeply. She'd only said it to cover her embarrassment.

But to her surprise, the moment she lay down, she did fall asleep quickly. When she woke up, the afternoon's movies were far more exciting.

Maybe Ji Kailan had noticed that Absolute Controller wasn't to her taste, because every film he picked afterward was better than the last. Su Louzhi was thoroughly engrossed, thinking to herself: the film industry in this world was far more advanced than in her own.

The last movie ended at ten in the evening.

After washing up, the two lay side by side on the bed. Ji Kailan was about to turn off the lights when Su Louzhi suddenly reached out and stopped him.

He raised an eyebrow. "What is it, Zhizhi?"

Su Louzhi held up her phone, where she'd already typed out a message: 【Senior Ji, I'm going to check your body for wounds now.】

Ji Kailan reacted quickly. His eyebrow arched, and his tone turned teasing. "So Zhizhi is afraid I'll hurt myself while you're not looking?"

Su Louzhi nodded seriously.

Ji Kailan couldn't help but laugh, then let out a sigh. "Have mercy on me, Zhizhi."

Su Louzhi shook her head with the utmost gravity, making it clear there was no room for negotiation.

Ji Kailan fell silent for a moment.

In the end, he conceded before her unyielding gaze.

"I really can't do anything with you." He sighed and, in a measured, leisurely manner, removed his sleep shirt.

Su Louzhi watched him undress with such refined elegance, so slow and unhurried, and for some reason, a strange feeling stirred in her heart.

Her face flushed silently.

By the time he finished stripping and exposed his powerful, well-built torso, Su Louzhi's face was absolutely beet red.

Ji Kailan wasn't particularly dark-skinned, but what was revealed beneath his clothes wasn't the pale pallor of someone who never saw sunlight, but a healthy wheat tone.

Under the lamplight, his robust frame glowed with a soft luster. The muscles covering his body were smooth and powerful, making it easy to imagine just how much strength this body could unleash in an explosive moment.

Su Louzhi looked at his naked form, and she felt as if she were on fire—her ears red, her neck red, her cheeks red, even her hands lightly tinged with pink.

Ji Kailan found her appearance positively tempting—she was the one who'd asked him to take his clothes off, and now she was staring at his body with such a flushed, dreamy expression.

He suppressed the heat spreading through his body and said in a husky voice, "Zhizhi, have you seen enough?"

Suppressing her embarrassment, Su Louzhi carefully examined every inch of his skin.

As she looked, she froze.

Apart from the wounds on his arm she'd witnessed yesterday, there was not a single new injury anywhere on his body.

She frowned, instinctively feeling something was wrong.

But no matter how she thought about it, she couldn't figure out what.

Ji Kailan watched her frown and inspect for a long while, apparently finding nothing, and teased her in a hoarse voice: "Alright, Zhizhi, no wounds to be found, right?"

Su Louzhi was thoroughly puzzled.

Something was definitely off, but she truly couldn't think of another explanation. Reluctantly, she pulled back a little, signaling she was done.

Ji Kailan put his clothes back on and said gently, "Alright, shall I turn off the light then?"

Su Louzhi nodded suspiciously.

The light went out, plunging the room into darkness.

Only then did Ji Kailan let out an unnoticeable breath.

Just now, his Zhizhi had endured her shyness to stare at his body. Heaven knew how much restraint it had taken to keep his reaction under control.

He turned on his side and, just like the night before, gently wrapped his arms around her, patting her back to coax her to sleep.

Last night, he'd sensed almost immediately that Su Louzhi was sleeping restlessly, as if constantly on alert for him to hurt himself while she slept. He'd patted her for a long, long time, and only in the second half of the night had she finally fallen into a deeper sleep.

So tonight, the moment they lay down, he began patting her gently, hoping she'd get proper rest.

Under Ji Kailan's rhythmic pats, Su Louzhi finally drifted into a deep sleep.

In the middle of the night.

As her consciousness floated, Su Louzhi suddenly realized that the warmth holding her was gone. She snapped awake almost instantly.

Her eyes flew open. The space beside her was indeed empty.

Su Louzhi sat up at once, scanning the room. It was dim, and there was no one but her. She slipped out of bed, moving with the lightest steps, and slowly pushed open the door.

At the end of the hallway, a faint sound could be heard.

Su Louzhi followed the sound, each step making her heart pound faster.

It was the room from the first day.

The room where Ji Kailan had hurt himself.

Because of all the blood on the floor, they hadn't slept there that night, but in the adjacent room.

At this moment, behind that tightly shut door came clear, heavy breaths.

Su Louzhi's heart tightened.

She thought Ji Kailan was hurting himself again, trapped in agony.

Without a second thought, she rushed over and threw open the door—

The moment she saw what was inside, she froze in the doorway.

What she saw was nothing like what she'd imagined.

Ji Kailan was indeed frowning in torment. But his hand was reaching down below, and his whole body was covered in a thin sheen of sweat, gleaming in the moonlight.

Most importantly—

He wasn't wearing any clothes.

Su Louzhi stood frozen in the doorway, unable to go in or back out.

She'd been too anxious, so she'd barged straight in. The instant the door opened, Ji Kailan's eyes snapped toward her.

Those eyes were laced with intense desire, his brows sharp and fierce, making Su Louzhi inexplicably feel a flicker of fear.

Even more alarming, at this moment, Ji Kailan's eyes were crimson.

Seeing Su Louzhi standing motionless in the doorway, a trace of displeasure flickered in his eyes, and the violence inside him could no longer be suppressed.

He said in a hoarse voice, "Why isn't Zhizhi coming over? Are you afraid of me?"

Hearing his voice, Su Louzhi snapped back to her senses.

Ji Kailan wasn't in a normal state right now.

Forgetting her fear, she hurried to the bedside and sat down, reaching out to gently touch his face, trying to turn his head so she could see what was wrong with his eyes.

He turned his head, following her touch, and looked at her.

Su Louzhi couldn't speak, so she could only gaze at him with worry, then pointed at her own eyes, signaling: what's wrong with your eyes?

Ji Kailan didn't answer her question.

"Zhizhi," he said, his voice low and husky, "do you want me to go back to normal?"

Su Louzhi nodded hastily.

Ji Kailan suddenly smiled—a smile tinged with mischief that made Su Louzhi's heart skip a beat.

He fixed his gaze on her and said, word by word:

"Zhizhi, do it with me."