Jiang Yue was startled and immediately retracted the red threads that had extended from her eyes.
Zhang San knelt on the ground and swallowed the white crystal. The effects of this legendary elixir weren’t instantaneous; he clutched his chest and panted for a moment before his complexion gradually improved.
But even so, it was remarkable. His face had originally been a grayish-blue, radiating a heavy aura of death. Yet in just thirty seconds, a thin flush appeared on his cheeks, and his complexion looked surprisingly healthy and rosy, truly astonishing.
Zhang San tried to stand from his kneeling position, but wobbled slightly as he rose. Jiang Yue reached out and helped him up, asking, “Are you alright?”
Zhang San shook his head. He clutched his chest and coughed twice, leaning against the mine wall to catch his breath before he weakly said, “Good thing we have this stuff. This really is a miraculous elixir. Without the white crystal, who knows how many criminals would have died here.”
Jiang Yue glanced at the other prisoners around them. They didn’t react much to Zhang San swallowing the white crystal; most merely cast a quick glance before looking away.
It seemed that the miners around them were already used to such things. Zhang San consuming the white crystal didn’t draw the slightest attention, they must witness this often.
Even the squad leader supervising them looked completely unfazed. Jiang Yue withdrew her gaze and whispered, “I’ve heard this stuff is expensive… isn’t swallowing the white crystal supposed to be punished?”
Zhang San staggered to his feet, a sardonic smile on his face. “With the rations embezzled by those in charge, and this place being a strong magnetic field, working hungry every day… who could survive without the white crystal? Besides, what does it matter to them? It’s not their crystal mine. Making a profit is the only thing that counts.”
Jiang Yue asked, “But I heard this stuff has serious side effects?”
Zhang San shrugged. “Heh, side effects? At a time like this, who cares about side effects? In a godforsaken place like this, living one more minute is a victory. Side effects are nonsense, worry about death when it comes.”
About five minutes later, Zhang San had fully recovered. He warned Jiang Yue, “Don’t think you’re invincible now. I’m telling you, in less than a month you’ll feel chest tightness and shortness of breath. One day, you’ll be in my position. When that happens, take a piece of white crystal, pick one that’s small and round, otherwise it might scratch your esophagus.”
Jiang Yue whispered, “How many times have you taken it?”
Zhang San replied, “Twice. One dose of white crystal lasts a whole month, and that feeling of starving to death just disappears.”
The supervising squad leader walked over and shouted, “What are you chatting about? Get moving and get back to work!”
The two of them picked up their shovels and continued mining, loading the white crystals into the small cart beside them.
They didn’t finish until 11 p.m. Exhausted, the prisoners staggered back to their cells to sleep. Most were too tired to wash, but Jiang Yue couldn’t bear the layer of dust covering her and went to the washroom for a quick shower.
She returned with wet hair. In Cell 888, the steady sound of snoring had already begun. The grueling work had drained the prisoners of all their energy, and the overexhausted inmates fell asleep instantly.
Zhang San shared the cell with her. He was in bed number one, near the door, and because he was close to the light switch, he was always the one to turn off the lights at night.
Click. The light went out.
The twelve-person cell was plunged into darkness. No one had the energy to bother with cleaning, and the stench in the room was overwhelming; calling it a foul, suffocating odor would not be an exaggeration.
At this moment, the downside of her overly sensitive sense of smell became apparent. The intense physical labor in the mine pit and the strong magnetic field hadn’t made her dizzy, but the stench of the cell nearly overwhelmed her, spiraling her into a state of nausea.
Jiang Yue tried to suppress her gag reflex but couldn’t fall asleep. Moreover, her body’s exceptional physical condition meant that the strong magnetic field, which caused dizziness in others, had no effect on her. It also couldn’t exhaust her enough to ignore her surroundings and fall asleep instantly, so she ended up completely sleepless.
At six o’clock the next morning, the prison wake-up whistle blew. All the prisoners groaned and reluctantly opened their eyes, still buried in their blankets.
No one wanted to get up, but hunger prevailed. There was only one serving of breakfast in the canteen, and if you arrived late, you’d miss it.
Jiang Yue was exhausted as well, but she forced herself out of bed. She splashed cold water on her face in the washroom to wake up, then went to the canteen to collect her breakfast.
In the West District cells, there was no rush for breakfast. Perhaps everyone was pale and emaciated, and with the white crystal prolonging their lives, there was no need to fight over a few bites of food.
Jiang Yue finished the meager breakfast. Back in military school, her appetite had been more than double that of others, so this tiny portion barely filled her at all.
Her body’s metabolism was much faster than the others’, making her feel hungry far sooner. Continuing to starve like this was absolutely dangerous, it could really cost her life.
So during breaks, she pressed herself against the mine wall and let the red threads from the eyes extend, absorbing energy from the crystals.
Even so, after half a month, Jiang Yue’s hump had noticeably shrunk. An Alpha’s hump stores energy, which meant hers was depleted.
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and the transformation of an A into her current state didn’t happen overnight either.
Then, one day, Jiang Yue suddenly realized… her chest was gone.
She touched her flat chest and stared at the buzz-cut Alpha in the mirror, feeling completely disoriented.
Ever heard of gender dysphoria?
Jiang Yue was experiencing it firsthand. Even though she was dressed as a nearly 1.9-meter-tall female Alpha and had grown certain organs, she had still considered herself a girl because of her two prominent humps, just upgraded from XS to a gargantuan XXXXXL.
But now, with those two humps gone, there was hardly any difference between her and a man.
The last trace of her feminine features had disappeared.
Although in this world gender wasn’t classified as male or female, but rather by ABO, she still found it hard to accept.
She vaguely realized why female Alphas were never seen in the West District prison: everyone had been starved into becoming an Alpha. Among the sea of shaved heads and gray prison uniforms, female Alphas and male Alphas were truly indistinguishable.
Jiang Yue stared into the mirror, touching her face. The extreme weight loss had hollowed her cheeks, and her already sharp features became even more angular. Her face now radiated an intensified sense of aggression and dominance.
The day after she discovered she had become an A-Alpha, a prison guard called her to the office.
By now, the very words “office” triggered severe PTSD for Jiang Yue.
She wanted to refuse, but there was no choice, she went to the guard’s office anyway.
Three polite knocks on the door, and a very familiar, lazy voice called from inside: “Come in.”
Jiang Yue’s scalp tingled.
She pushed the door open with a blank expression. Zhong Lai, whom she hadn’t seen for days, was sitting in the office chair, holding that familiar leather strap.
When he saw Jiang Yue enter, the corners of his lips curled into a teasing, enticing smile. He tapped the strap against the desk with a sharp crack.
Jiang Yue’s heart jumped. She straightened up and said stiffly, “Officer Zhong, what do you need with me?”
Zhong Lai smiled. “Do I need a reason to come see you?”
His gaze lingered on Jiang Yue’s chest, a hint of regret flashing in his eyes. “Tsk tsk tsk, the humps have all flattened. Must have been tough these past few days, huh?”
Jiang Yue replied expressionlessly, “I’m fine.”
“You’re a stubborn one, aren’t you? I like stubborn bones, it suits my taste.” He said this while lifting his hand to undo the top button of his uniform, revealing a long, pale neck.
Alarm bells rang in Jiang Yue’s mind, and she instinctively took a step back.
Zhong Lai teased, “Oh? Why’s our little Alpha so nervous?”
He stood up from the chair and stepped toward Jiang Yue. She backed away, all the way until her back pressed against the door, with nowhere left to retreat.
A mischievous, triumphant smile spread across Zhong Lai’s face. He reached out with his cold fingers to gently stroke Jiang Yue’s eyes, his voice soft and suggestive: “Look at that, your eyes have even turned vertical. Truly frightening.”
Jiang Yue turned her head to avoid his fingers, her expression one of utter despair. His fingers slid down along her cheek, all the way into her collar.
Strangely, Zhong Lai’s fingers were so cold, like ice.
His icy fingers traced circles along Jiang Yue’s collarbone, making her shiver violently.
She could no longer tolerate it. Gripping his wrist, she spoke in a low, steady voice: “Officer Zhong, I’m a normal person. Completely normal in every way. My orientation is normal too.”
Zhong Lai smiled. “It doesn’t matter whether you’re normal or not. All that matters is that I’m not.”
He raised an eyebrow, a lascivious, indulgent glint in his eyes, staring at Jiang Yue with blatant intent. “You look now like a finely honed blade, far more enticing than when I first saw you.”
He tilted his head back, letting a soft laugh escape from deep in his throat. “The way you are… it’s driving me mad with desire.”
Jiang Yue’s pupils trembled. Zhong Lai chuckled lightly, then suddenly bent down and took the button on her prison uniform in his mouth, biting it open.
His tempting red lips held the iron-gray button, his eyes sparkling with a teasing, seductive glint as he looked at Jiang Yue.
Jiang Yue’s scalp tingled violently as she shoved him away.
Startled like a cat seeing a cucumber, she leapt back, instantly covering over a meter in distance.
Zhong Lai wiggled his middle finger at her and gave her a sidelong glance. “Jiang Yue, can’t handle it?”
Blood rushed to her head. Jiang Yue nearly fainted from anger. She took several deep breaths, gritting her teeth as she ground out, “What does whether I can handle it have to do with you?”
Zhong Lai shook his head. “Such a striking, imposing little Alpha, yet such a clumsy, unromantic one. Truly a shame.”
He adjusted his collar, buttoned the top button back into place, and sat down in the office chair again. “During these days of mining, have you eaten any white crystal?”
Jiang Yue grew alert, her gray vertical pupils nervously fixed on him.
Zhong Lai rested a hand on his forehead and sighed. “Still so wary, I see. I’m not going to do anything to you.”
Jiang Yue sneered. “You’re the one who sent me to the West District to mine, and now you’re asking if I’ve eaten white crystal. What exactly do you want?”
Zhong Lai propped his leg on the desk and said leisurely, “Oh ho, so you’re blaming me now? If you hadn’t angered me, how could I bear to send you to the West District? By now, we’d be enjoying ourselves in my bed.”
Jiang Yue rolled her eyes. Zhong Lai squinted at her, studying her carefully. “You haven’t already eaten white crystal, have you?”
Jiang Yue hadn’t eaten any white crystal, but she had absorbed its energy through her eyes.
Why was Zhong Lai asking this? He was a strange man, ever since she entered the first prison, he had inexplicably fixated on her.
It couldn’t really be because she was too handsome, making him obsessed, could it?
Could it be the Zerg Race?
No, that didn’t make sense. If it were the Zerg Race, they would have made a move on her long ago. There’d be no reason to delay this long.
But she had been on this trash planet for so long and hadn’t seen a trace of the Zerg Race. Their actions couldn’t really be this slow, could they?
Could it be that the Zerg Race knew about her mental body exploding and the permanent damage to her brain, and that’s why they abandoned this body?
That guess wasn’t entirely impossible. Any Zerg Race body would easily surpass this one in physical ability, so what would catch their attention must be something related to her mental power, or perhaps some unique trait in her brain.
Jiang Yue’s mind raced. In just a few seconds, she ran through every possible scenario, but not a single one seemed reliable.
Could it be that she was simply being hypersensitive and paranoid?
Zhong Lai smiled as he looked at her. “So… have you prepared your answer?”
Jiang Yue composed herself and said, “You should know that prisoners mining here couldn’t possibly avoid taking white crystal. Why are you asking me specifically?”
Zhong Lai tapped his fingers against the desk. “Is that so? But Zhang San, who mined alongside you, told me that you haven’t eaten any white crystal, not even once.”
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Sam Williams On TYMIMA Chapter 152