Chapter 21: The Beta Who Hates Alphas

Yu Sui broke out in a cold sweat immediately. This was like getting smashed right in the face with an ultimate attack.

“But I didn’t make you wear it on stream. What a pity.” Even so, he kept stoking the flames.

Sure enough, those words made Shen Anliu’s cheeks burn red with anger, his chest heaving violently.

Afraid of taking a punch, Yu Sui scooted back a little.

“Bro… how could you…” Shen Anliu bit his lip. Putting on that kind of show in front of everyone was utterly mortifying.

Yu Sui mistook his trailing off for complete disillusionment.

“I’m just that kind of guy.” He fully embraced his venomous persona, his face full of feigned regret. “That damn He Baiyan—if he hadn’t wrecked my plan…”

He left the sentence hanging, certain the protagonist shou would melt into a puddle of emotion, their bond shooting up like a rocket.

Yu Sui padded off in his slippers to freshen up, letting his actions prove he was a lost cause.

Shen Anliu clutched his thumping heart, his thoughts spiraling wildly from those words. Taming him on stream in front of everyone?

Making him kneel in front, stepping on him… or…

Shen Anliu slapped his cheeks. He was burning up.

Calm down. He changed out of that shirt and locked it away in several cases—his teammates were all light-fingered thieves, after all.

Yu Sui splashed cold water on his face, but his mind wasn’t nearly as steady. Retaliation was bound to come next.

When he emerged, Shen Anliu was no longer in the room. Yu Sui figured the young man had gone to thank He Baiyan.

Spotting breakfast on the table, Yu Sui tucked in without a shred of guilt.

Nine o’clock, dance studio.

Yu Sui strolled in late, blinking at the others drenched in sweat from their dancing. They were working way too hard.

[Who knows, maybe it’s not just the dancing…] the system said mysteriously.

Yu Sui’s eyelid twitched. He didn’t dare pursue that thought.

The Four Elites halted their moves and turned toward Yu Sui.

Today, the young man sported a sleeveless hoodie up top and black cargo pants below, radiating teenage vigor. The dark tones made his arms look even more strikingly pale, impossible to ignore.

Shen Anliu swallowed hard, his eyes gleaming as he approached with a greeting. “Bro.”

He Baiyan’s gaze remained impassive as he silently moved off to grab some water.

Yu Sui eyed Shen Anliu’s forced smile and thought he was holding up admirably—especially once the captain drew near too. He got the picture right away.

A perfect duo, in sync like a married couple. Tsk tsk.

“You’re here, so let’s train.” He Baiyan finally spoke.

Yu Sui didn’t push back this time, though his efforts came off as blatant slacking.

No one called him on it, though; they patiently coached him along.

After half an hour, a staff member came and whisked away Captain Lu Jinxia and Shen Anliu.

Yu Sui shot Jiang Nianxing a puzzled look. “Why not us?”

“Their susceptible periods are coming up soon,” Jiang Nianxing explained. “When’s yours?”

His cheeks flushed at the question, his tone turning a bit unnatural.

“Susceptible period?” Yu Sui blinked blankly. What was that?

[It’s their heat cycle,] the system clarified. [Only Alphas and Omegas in ABO have them—a few days each month in that state. Inhibitors, venting some other way, or best of all, marking an Omega.]

Yu Sui could scarcely believe it.

[But in this all-Alpha company, there are no Omegas. An Alpha’s susceptible period makes pheromones go haywire, causing chaos, so they prep inhibitors ahead of time.]

[The protagonists are all Alphas and can’t mark anyone, so they soothe each other the old-fashioned way.]

Yu Sui caught the drift of “old-fashioned,” and his mouth twitched.

[Round after round, non-stop.]

“No driving!” Yu Sui cut it off.

Seeing Yu Sui clam up, Jiang Nianxing figured he’d been too forward. “I was just worried about your health. Make sure you stock up on inhibitors ahead of time, or things can go wrong.”

Yu Sui nodded offhandedly. He wasn’t an Alpha anyway, so no worries.

Knock knock knock.

A rap came at the door.

Jiang Nianxing frowned and opened it. Spotting the visitor, he raised a brow. “What do you want?”

“Just checking out your team’s new member.” The orange-haired Alpha craned his neck to peer inside.

Jiang Nianxing bristled. “You’re not welcome here.”

Yu Sui perked up at the noise and wandered over. “Who’s there?”

“Hey.” The Alpha waved at Yu Sui, resentment flickering in his eyes. “We were supposed to be teammates.”

Jiang Nianxing scowled. “That’s the assessment result. Take it up with the company if you’ve got a problem.”

This guy shared Jiang Nianxing’s vibe—constantly sidelined, resentment festering as a result.

Yu Sui suddenly recalled the plot mentioning this character. Alphas were competitive by nature; no one liked being shown up. It wasn’t just Jiang Nianxing—the other protagonists drew hate too, but these guys were all disposable cannon fodder.

An odd unease stirred in Yu Sui’s chest, and he took a step back.

The wave of fragrance that hit him anyway made him choke.

Madness gleamed in the orange-haired youth’s eyes as his lips curved into a smile. “A 4S Alpha hitting susceptible period? That’ll take half your life.”

Jiang Nianxing hadn’t anticipated such brazenness. The spray was laced with Omega pheromones designed to force an Alpha into susceptible period prematurely.

He clamped a hand over his mouth and nose, sweat streaming down his forehead, veins bulging in his neck.

“Have fun, you two.” The youth sauntered off.

Yu Sui pinched his nose, coughing from the fumes. “How’s he get away with that? Doesn’t the company care?”

“The company loves when artists screw up—they get to dock our pay,” Jiang Nianxing said. His pheromones were surging wildly now; he couldn’t risk leaving the room.

Gritting his teeth, he backed inside and slammed the door.

Exhausted, he slumped against it to the floor.

Yu Sui stood a few paces away, watching him pant like he’d been drugged. It was shocking.

Was this a susceptible period? Terrifying.

Jiang Nianxing bit his tongue and looked up, noticing Yu Sui standing there unchanged. Puzzled, he rasped, “You… how are you fine?”

That suspicious stare made Yu Sui’s heart skip. He blurted, “I’m a 4S Alpha. Stuff like this doesn’t faze me.”

“Impossible,” Jiang Nianxing shot back. “The stronger the Alpha, the worse the reaction to that spray.”

His eyes were glazed over as he strained to focus on Yu Sui’s face. “Don’t tell me you’re…”

“Yep, I dosed up with inhibitor early,” Yu Sui said quickly. “I’ll go grab the doctor.”

He couldn’t smell the pheromones, but danger prickled at him all the same, the hairs on his neck standing on end.

Jiang Nianxing was panting raggedly, face twisted in restraint. That wild red hair of his was disheveled, like a beast on the verge of snapping.

Yu Sui needed to get out, which meant shifting him aside first.

But the young man was barely coherent now.

As Yu Sui drew near, his legs went wobbly. Shocked, he thought, Pheromones? This was insane.

“Jiang Nianxing?” He hesitated to touch him, terrified an unhinged Alpha might snap his neck.

Hearing his name, Jiang Nianxing lifted his head. His vision swam, but he could make out those pink lips.

He swallowed thickly, a savage hunger roaring inside him.

This hit harder than ever before.

Yu Sui’s breath hitched under the mounting pressure. He couldn’t stay here.

Lips pressed tight, he reached to steady Jiang Nianxing and drag him aside.

The instant his fingers grazed the young man’s arm, though, his wrist was seized in a vise grip.

Before Yu Sui could react, he was shoved flat on his back.

Jiang Nianxing loomed over him, wave after wave of scorching heat pressing down.

Yu Sui’s face drained of color. Terrified of getting pummeled, his lashes trembled wildly. “Jiang Nianxing, what the hell are you doing?”

He thrashed desperately but froze, eyes flying wide.

Because he felt it… against his leg.

Jiang Nianxing even let out a muffled groan.

“Fuck!” Yu Sui’s expression hit rock bottom. “Look at me! Who am I?!”

As he yelled, he mentally pinged the system. “Wasn’t it supposed to only affect the protagonists…?”

[He’s out of it—thinks you’re Shen Anliu,] the system replied, lighting a candle for him. [In his head, the only one whose pheromones don’t clash with his is the protagonist shou. You don’t have any, so no clash either…]

Yu Sui nearly spat blood. One hand shoved at Jiang Nianxing’s chest while the other dug into his arm, desperate to snap him out of it.

But his voice only spurred Jiang Nianxing on. He dove in headlong for a kiss.

Yu Sui instinctively jerked his head aside, leaving his cheek damp.

Eyes bulging, he gasped, “Jiang Nianxing… you!”

It wasn’t just a kiss—the guy was licking his face too…

Goosebumps erupted all over Yu Sui, but he couldn’t rouse the delirious Alpha or shove him off.

Hot breaths ghosted over his neck, leaving Yu Sui’s face ashen.

This person in his arms had no pheromones, yet he was inexplicably drawn.

Jiang Nianxing lavished kisses on his neck, leaving a trail of marks. Unconsciously, he shifted toward the nape, hunting for a spot to mark a gland.

Yu Sui cursed under his breath, but it did no good.

He was flipped facedown, and Jiang Nianxing started on his nape, teeth grinding against the smooth skin like a dog worrying a bone.

“You asshole… mmph…”

Yu Sui jolted as electricity shot through him. His struggles had rumpled his clothes, sending his phone skittering from his pocket—but right now, his dignity was all he could worry about.

Jiang Nianxing grew agitated, unable to mark the body in his arms. A frustrated growl rumbled from his throat.

His hand slipped under Yu Sui’s shirt hem, seeking relief elsewhere.

Yu Sui felt the hot hand pressing against his back, his body trembling violently as his eyes widened in horror, a chill running down his spine.

“Damn it! System, save me!”

He cried out to the system in his mind, but received no response.

His shirt was pushed up to his armpits, and hot kisses rained down on his bare back one after another—intimate yet utterly pitiable.

Bang—

The room’s atmosphere hung thick with ambiguity. Sexy gasps rumbled from deep in his throat, mingled with trembling curses laced with a sobbing edge, enough to make anyone’s heart race and cheeks flush.

But a harsh slamming sound shattered the scene.

He Baiyan took in the sight before him, his face darkening ominously.

The towering alpha had all but enveloped the slender beta in his embrace. Faint fingerprints marred the visible sliver of waist—marks of raw possession. The shirt had been torn at some point, and the pretty young man’s neck was covered in kiss marks. His face was turned to the side, streaked with tears, his lips glistening and vividly red.

His hands were pinned tightly in the alpha’s grip, his legs wrapped up as well, leaving him utterly immobile. If not for the fact that his other clothes remained intact, He Baiyan might have thought they were in the midst of a marking ceremony.