After confirming that his condition was stable, Yan Yi was brought home to recuperate.
The new house wasn’t as spacious as the old villa, but it was much closer to Lu Shangjin’s company.
The interior had been deliberately designed in a traditional Chinese style. Lu Shangjin had chosen a set of rosewood furniture and let it air out for days. Now that the little rabbit was always running around barefoot, he had an extra soft wool carpet laid in the bedroom.
They hired a housekeeper to help look after Yan Yi. Lu Shangjin couldn’t always stay home, and leaving a child alone was simply too dangerous.
He went to Amphia Hospital to pick up two doses of high-potency energy supplements.
The pharmacist initially suggested standard energy injections. The high-potency version was specially formulated for A3-level glands—if someone below that level used it forcefully, it could cause irritation, though not serious harm.
Lu Shangjin took the medicine to the injection room. Inside, two omega nurses were preparing medication for patients. When they noticed the alpha man entering, they exchanged excited glances.
Everyone in the hospital had already noticed him. He had been staying there for quite a while. Rumor had it he was a friend of the hospital’s young master—just over thirty, successful, wealthy, and handsome. If not for the fact that his entire attention was fixed on Yan Yi, he would have long noticed the hungry, predatory looks from the omegas.
One of the nurses took the medication, glanced at it, and froze. “Sir… are you sure this is the right one?”
“Yes.”
“The side effects will be strong. It won’t feel good…” she hesitated, explaining. Usually, this kind of high-potency energy supplement was used when an alpha’s gland had deteriorated or aged prematurely—often during an omega’s childbirth—to force the release of soothing pheromones and ease the omega’s pain.
Lu Shangjin rolled up his sleeve slightly and checked the time. “Finish it within five minutes.”
Both the high-potency supplement and inhibitors couldn’t be injected near the gland—they had to be administered intravenously to avoid excessive stimulation causing gland damage.
The reaction wasn’t as intense as expected. Lu Shangjin stayed in the injection room for a while, and the nurse asked him to remain in the hospital for an hour to monitor for allergic reactions.
He happened to hear that Doctor Zhong was giving a lecture on glands in the auditorium. Most of the idle doctors and nurses had gone. Esteemed professors sat in the front row, occasionally jotting down notes.
Lu Shangjin sat in the back row, listening quietly.
Midway through the lecture, Doctor Zhong introduced a long-standing theory: the High-Level Reproductive Instinct Theory—suggesting that high-level omegas develop a pathological dependency on the alpha who marks them.
Lu Shangjin’s heart tightened. His brows knitted together as he straightened slightly, focusing intently on the projection.
Doctor Zhong explained that years of overseas research had once again confirmed the validity of high-level dependency. This dependency could not be removed through standard mark-cleansing procedures and would persist until the gland aged or was damaged.
Their future research direction was to eliminate this dependency while enhancing independence, so that high-level omegas would not become subordinate attachments to alphas.
With every sentence, Lu Shangjin’s face grew paler. By the time he snapped out of it, his palms had been dug into by his own nails, leaving bloody marks. His chest felt tight, as if something were lodged inside, making him restless to the point of pain. Every blood vessel throbbed uncomfortably.
He had always treated this pathological instinct as a source of pride—believing Yan Yi would never leave him.
“In today’s increasingly harsh survival environment for high-level omegas, our team is committed to finding a new path forward, contributing to the healthy continuation of human genetics.” Doctor Zhong bowed on stage.
In the guest section, Xia Jingtian slouched in his seat, playing on his phone, until his brother forcibly dragged him up to applaud.
Lu Shangjin stared at the words “High-Level Dependency Instinct” hovering in the holographic display, his fists clenching unconsciously, knuckles turning white.
On the drive home, his heart pounded rapidly. A creeping sense of dread spread wildly through his body.
The moment he pushed the door open, a terrified scream struck him, leaving his mind blank for a split second.
He rushed inside.
Yan Yi was curled up in the corner, trembling violently, hugging himself in extreme fear. The newly hired housekeeper was beside him, sweating anxiously. “What’s wrong with him?!”
On the dining table, a juicer was still running, buzzing loudly.
Lu Shangjin hurried over and turned it off. The moment the noise stopped, Yan Yi’s terrified screaming ceased.
He rushed over and scooped him up. The trembling little rabbit was soaked in sweat, like he had just been pulled out of water.
“It’s okay, it’s okay. There’s nothing there.” Lu Shangjin released a large amount of soothing pheromones, gently stroking his hair, then glanced at the housekeeper. “Throw the juicer away.”
The housekeeper was so frightened she nearly lost her soul, scrambling to carry out the order.
Yan Yi struggled in his arms, biting and clawing at his neck like he’d gone mad.
“Go away—go away!” Yan Yi shoved him hard. When Lu Shangjin set him on the sofa, he took the chance to kick him—his foot landing squarely on an injury that hadn’t yet healed.
Lu Shangjin let out a muffled groan. Blood quickly seeped through his clothes. He grabbed Yan Yi’s ankle and pressed it down, leaning over him and gently kissing the corner of his lips.
“I’m not leaving.” Lu Shangjin held him tightly. The entire living room filled with the scent of narcissus pheromones. He cupped Yan Yi’s face, pressing their foreheads together, his voice hoarse. “It’s okay. Don’t be afraid. I’m here.”
Yan Yi, voice trembling with tears, asked, “When is Brother Jin coming to pick me up?”
Lu Shangjin closed his eyes. “I’ve already brought you home.”
Yan Yi shoved him hard. “I want the Little Prince from the castle. Go away, go away.”
He didn’t understand.
Back then, Yan Yi had stood on tiptoe to place a crown studded with stars on his head.
And now, he was the one who shattered it.
So the shining Little Prince in Yan Yi’s heart… had never been him.
Panic surged through Lu Shangjin as he released even more soothing pheromones.
He pulled the little rabbit into his arms, stroking him over and over as if afraid of losing him. “He’ll come. Be good.”
Yan Yi gradually quieted down, lightly clutching his clothes and murmuring, “The Little Prince will come take me home.”
Lu Shangjin held him until he fell asleep, leaning against the wall, exhausted, his head splitting with pain.
The pride and arrogance of a second-stage differentiated alpha had completely collapsed. To the current Yan Yi, whether it was the Little Prince in his memories or a high-compatibility alpha—either could be more appealing.
A highly compatible alpha only needed to release a trace of soothing pheromones to calm an omega. Lu Shangjin, however, had to expend ten or twenty times the effort to make up the difference.
He was afraid Yan Yi would ask for the Lu Shangjin from when he was ten, or twenty. Afraid he would ask for the scent of baby’s breath pheromones. Afraid he would long for Xia Jingtian, whose compatibility with him was overwhelmingly high.
His dried-out gland began to heat and swell under the effect of the high-potency supplement. At the same time, his blood vessels and muscles throbbed painfully, and a wave of nausea churned in his stomach.
Lu Shangjin shut himself in the bathroom, clutching the toilet as he vomited again and again, forcing himself to stay silent so he wouldn’t wake Yan Yi, who had just calmed down.
His consciousness remained clear the entire time. The excess medication surged through his veins, pressing forward, gradually rising toward his gland.
Half an hour later, he had vomited even bile. After rinsing his mouth and splashing his face, he sat on the closed toilet lid, elbows on his knees, staring blankly—then suddenly covered his eyes. His broad shoulders trembled faintly.
He reached blindly into the medicine box, grabbed a syringe of inhibitor, snapped the cap off, and jabbed it haphazardly into his arm, using the pain to force himself awake.
Tiny beads of blood seeped from the puncture. Lu Shangjin slumped weakly against the wall, his temple pressed to the cold tiles.
In front of Yan Yi, he was like air—struggling to squeeze out just enough oxygen for him to breathe, yet going completely unnoticed.
Without that high-level dependency, what was he to Yan Yi now?
Nothing.
He regretted marking Yan Yi at seventeen.
Had Yan Yi ever truly liked him? Or had it all been driven by instinct—clinging to him even as every inch of his body and heart ached, refusing to leave?
Right. Before this, he had even tried to follow that spider who had marked him.
Lu Shangjin’s eyes dimmed with disappointment.
So it had all been his own delusion. He had thought the omega was deeply infatuated with him.
The bathroom door creaked open softly.
Yan Yi stood there, rubbing his sleepy eyes. The warm light from the living room shone from behind him, falling over Lu Shangjin.
Instinctively, Lu Shangjin pulled himself together, releasing soothing pheromones at the same time, afraid his current state might frighten him.
The little rabbit pressed his lips together and walked in, stopping in front of him. Then he bent down and gently hugged him.
“Did I hurt you when I kicked you?”
Lu Shangjin froze for a moment, then wrapped his arms around Yan Yi’s waist, burying his face in his chest.
“…A little.”