Two weeks after his heat ended, Yifan stood in Mo Ran's bathroom staring at the thermometer in disbelief. 99.2°F. Again. For the third morning in a row, his temperature had been elevated despite taking his evening suppressants religiously.
Something was wrong.
"It's not working anymore," he said when Mo Ran knocked on his door. "The suppressant. My body's rejecting it."
Mo Ran took the thermometer, examined the reading, and sighed. "I was afraid of this. Come to my office. We need to talk."
In her office, surrounded by ancient texts and modern medical equipment in equal measure, Mo Ran pulled out a file she'd apparently been compiling. "Your grandmother's suppressant formula was incredibly powerful—strong enough to hide a Phoenix for twenty-two years. But it was always meant to be temporary. The body builds resistance. And after your first heat, after your powers partially awakened, the formula became much less effective."
"So what do I do?" Yifan asked, fighting down panic. "I can't go into heat again so soon. It's only been two weeks."
"You won't. Heat cycles for unmated Omegas occur roughly monthly, though Phoenix cycles can be irregular. What's happening now is different—your body is trying to complete its transformation. The suppressants are preventing your full awakening, and your Phoenix nature is fighting back."
"Complete transformation into what?"
"Into what you truly are. Right now, you're partially awakened—you can create fire, you have some enhanced senses, your scent is distinctly Phoenix. But you're not fully manifested. Full manifestation means wings, complete control over your abilities, access to your past life memories, and..." she hesitated. "Complete fertility. Right now, even though you experienced heat, you couldn't actually conceive. Your body is still partially suppressed."
Yifan sat down heavily. "So I have to stop taking the suppressants entirely."
"Yes. And soon. The conflict between the medication and your nature is causing the fever, the discomfort. If you keep fighting it, you'll make yourself sick. Potentially dangerously so."
"What happens when I stop?"
"Your powers will surge. Your scent will become much stronger—unmistakable to any Alpha within miles. You'll likely experience vivid dreams as past life memories surface more clearly. Physical changes will manifest—your eyes are already gold, but you'll develop other Phoenix characteristics. And most significantly, you'll become visible to the entire supernatural world. Right now, you're like a candle flame. Fully manifested, you'll be a bonfire."
The implications settled over Yifan like a heavy blanket. "Everyone will know. Everyone will come."
"Yes. Which is why we need to plan carefully." Mo Ran pulled out a calendar. "The Council has already sent multiple requests for your formal presentation. I've been stalling, claiming you need recovery time, but they're getting insistent. We have maybe two more weeks before they demand your appearance."
"Two weeks to figure out what I'm doing with my life," Yifan said bitterly.
"Two weeks to prepare. To train your powers, to understand supernatural politics, to decide how you want to navigate what's coming." Mo Ran's expression softened. "You're not alone in this, Yifan. I'm here. And Tianyu—"
"Has been very respectful about giving me space," Yifan finished. The Dragon King had left the day after Yifan's heat ended, despite clearly wanting to stay. They'd been texting daily—mostly Tianyu sharing random observations about his day, asking how Yifan felt, sending photos of his paintings. Sweet, normal things that made Yifan smile despite the chaos of his situation.
But Tianyu hadn't pushed, hadn't demanded to see him, hadn't tried to leverage their intimacy during heat into claims of relationship. He was being patient, just as he'd promised.
"He cares about you," Mo Ran observed. "More than I expected, honestly. I thought he'd be possessive, demanding. But he's been almost... humble."
"He learned from losing me before," Yifan said quietly. "He won't make the same mistakes."
"Then he's wiser than most ancient Alphas." Mo Ran closed the file. "Tonight, take your last suppressant dose. Tomorrow morning, we begin full manifestation. I'll contact Tianyu and a few others I trust to reinforce the sanctuary wards. When you fully awaken, the power surge will be noticeable. We need to be prepared for uninvited guests."
The rest of the day passed in a haze of preparation. Mo Ran drilled Yifan on supernatural politics—the major clans, their territories, their leaders, the delicate balance of power that his choice of mate would disrupt. She taught him formal protocols, how to address Council members, what insults to avoid, what rights he could claim as Phoenix.
"You have more power than you realize," Mo Ran explained. "Phoenix is neutral—you belong to no clan, answer to no territory. That gives you leverage. You can demand things, set terms, refuse customs you find objectionable. Don't let them bully you into traditional expectations just because 'that's how it's always been done.'"
"But won't that make enemies?"
"You'll have enemies regardless. Might as well have them while maintaining your autonomy."
That evening, Yifan stood in his room holding the small blue pill that had defined so much of his life. Twenty-two years of taking this every day at six PM. Twenty-two years of being hidden, suppressed, kept safe through chemical means.
After tonight, that safety was gone forever.
He swallowed the pill, chasing it with water, and felt nothing. No different than any other day. But he knew—tomorrow morning, everything would change.
That night, Yifan barely slept. When he did doze, the dreams were more vivid than ever:
Flying over ancient China, the landscape both familiar and foreign. Rivers where modern cities now stood. Forests where highways had been built. The world as it had been a thousand years ago, when the Phoenix had last lived.
Council chambers, ornate and intimidating. Being presented like a prize, assessed like livestock. Alphas competing for his attention, each more aggressive than the last. And through it all, Tianyu's cold presence at the edge of the room, watching, waiting, ice forming on the walls whenever another Alpha got too close.
The garden again, that memory that kept recurring. But this time, more details: "Why me?" the Phoenix had asked Tianyu. "You could have anyone. Any Omega would bond you for status alone."
"I don't want anyone. I want you." Tianyu had cupped the Phoenix's face with reverent gentleness. "You see me as a person, not just as power. You challenge me, make me think, make me want to be better. You make eternity seem not long enough."
"Pretty words."
"True words. I love you. Not Phoenix. Not the legend. You. The person who laughs at terrible poetry and argues about philosophy and puts cinnamon in tea because you like the spice of it."
"I love you too," the Phoenix had whispered. "That's why I'm afraid. Love this big, this consuming—what happens when politics tries to take it away?"
"I won't let them," Tianyu had promised. A promise he'd failed to keep.
Yifan woke with tears on his face, the memory so vivid it felt like it had happened yesterday rather than a millennium ago. That love had been real, profound, worth dying for. And Tianyu had carried it for a thousand years, waiting for a chance to prove himself again.
How could Yifan not give him that chance?
Morning came too quickly. Yifan's alarm went off at seven, and for the first time in seven years, he didn't reach for his pill case. His hands shook slightly as he showered and dressed, uncertain what to expect.
At first, nothing seemed different. He felt normal—slightly anxious, but normal. Maybe the transformation would be gradual, barely noticeable.
Then he walked into the kitchen for breakfast, and Mo Ran took one look at him and said, "It's already starting."
"What? I feel fine."
"Your eyes." She handed him a mirror.
Yifan looked at his reflection and gasped. His eyes, which had turned gold after his heat, were now actively glowing. Bright, molten gold that seemed to have its own light source. And as he watched, small flames flickered in his irises, dancing like captured fire.
"That's... that's normal?"
"For Phoenix, yes. It'll be more noticeable when you're emotional or using your powers." Mo Ran studied him clinically. "Any other changes? Physical sensations?"
Now that she mentioned it, yes. Yifan's skin felt hypersensitive again, but different from pre-heat. This was like every nerve ending was waking up, becoming more receptive. Sounds seemed sharper—he could hear birds outside with crystal clarity, could distinguish individual conversations from the village miles down the mountain. Scents were overwhelming—Mo Ran's tea, the wood of the furniture, the lingering traces of magic in the wards, all of it distinct and identifiable.
"Enhanced senses," he managed. "Everything's... more."
"That will level out as you adjust. Your Phoenix senses are much more acute than human ones. You'll learn to filter." She poured him tea. "Drink. Eat. You'll need energy for what's coming."
Yifan had barely finished his breakfast when the first wave hit.
It wasn't heat—Mo Ran had been clear about that. But it was intense nonetheless. Power surged through him like electricity, making his skin light up with golden patterns, Phoenix marks blazing across his arms, chest, back. He gasped as fire erupted from his hands involuntarily, golden-red flames that didn't burn him but scorched the table.
"Outside!" Mo Ran commanded. "The training yard, now!"
Yifan stumbled to the yard, barely making it before the power exploded outward. Flames burst from him in waves, wings of fire manifesting on his back—not physical wings, but constructs of pure energy, spanning fifteen feet and blazing with heat that made the air shimmer.
He couldn't control it. Couldn't stop it. The power just poured out of him, a thousand years of suppressed Phoenix nature finally unleashed.
Through the chaos, Yifan heard Mo Ran speaking urgently on her phone. "It's happening now. Yes, full manifestation. No, I can't contain it alone. The wards are holding but barely. How soon can you—good. Hurry."
The world blurred. Yifan was simultaneously himself and something other—ancient, powerful, cosmic. Memories flooded him, not as dreams but as lived experience. A thousand years ago, five thousand, ten thousand. Every life the Phoenix had lived, every death and rebirth, all of it pouring into his consciousness at once.
It was too much. Too overwhelming. Yifan felt himself fragmenting, unable to hold onto Shen Yifan's identity against the weight of millennia.
Then cold washed over him. Blessed, soothing cold that dampened the flames, that grounded him, that gave him something to focus on besides the chaos inside his head.
"Yifan." Tianyu's voice, steady and calm. "Listen to my voice. Focus on me. You're not drowning in the memories—you're integrating them. Let them flow through you, not over you. You're Shen Yifan. The memories are yours, but they don't erase who you are now."
The Dragon King stood at the edge of the training yard, ice spreading from him in waves, his own power manifesting to counterbalance Yifan's fire. He hadn't entered the yard—respecting Mo Ran's sanctuary boundaries even now—but his presence alone was enough to help.
Yifan latched onto that cold presence like a drowning person grasping a rope. He focused on Tianyu's voice, on the memories of the past two weeks rather than the past millennia. Gradually, painfully, he pulled himself back together.
The flames receded. The wings dissolved. The glowing patterns on his skin faded to faint marks that were visible but not blazing. Yifan collapsed to his knees, gasping, sweat-soaked despite the cold aura surrounding him.
"Better," Mo Ran said, joining them. "You held onto yourself. That's the hard part. The rest is just learning control."
"That was horrible," Yifan managed.
"That was awakening. It's always intense." She looked at Tianyu. "Thank you for coming so quickly."
"You said he needed help. Of course I came." Tianyu remained outside the training yard, clearly wanting to approach but restraining himself. "Yifan, may I come closer?"
The fact that he asked, that he still respected boundaries even during crisis, made Yifan's chest tight. "Yes. Please."
Tianyu crossed the distance in seconds, kneeling beside Yifan, his cold hands cupping Yifan's face gently. "You did well. I know that felt like losing yourself, but you didn't. You held on. You're stronger than you know."
"I remember," Yifan whispered. "I remember everything. Every life. Every death. Every time we—" He couldn't finish the sentence.
"I know. The memories can be overwhelming at first. But they'll settle, become part of you rather than consuming you." Tianyu's thumbs brushed away tears Yifan hadn't realized he was crying. "You're still Yifan. Just Yifan who understands the full scope of what you are."
Over the next hours, Yifan learned to manage his newly awakened powers. With Tianyu's help, he practiced summoning and dismissing his flame wings. Learned to control the fire that wanted to burst from his hands at every emotion. Worked on filtering his enhanced senses so the world didn't overwhelm him with input.
It was exhausting, frustrating work. He scorched half the training yard, accidentally set a tree on fire, and nearly incinerated Tianyu twice when his emotions got away from him. But gradually, painfully, he gained control.
By evening, Yifan could manifest his wings at will, could create fire without destroying things unintentionally, could manage his senses well enough to function. He was nowhere near mastery, but he was functional.
"Good enough for now," Mo Ran declared. "You'll keep practicing, but you won't accidentally burn down the sanctuary in your sleep anymore."
"That's a low bar," Yifan said, but he was smiling despite his exhaustion.
Tianyu had stayed the entire day, helping, encouraging, cooling Yifan down when the fire got too intense. His presence had been invaluable, and Yifan found himself not wanting the Alpha to leave.
"Stay for dinner?" he asked as the sun set, painting the sky in shades that matched his Phoenix fire.
"If you want me to," Tianyu said carefully.
"I do." Yifan took his hand, lacing their fingers together. "I want you to stay."
Over a simple meal Mo Ran prepared, Yifan felt the weight of the day settling into his bones. He was fully awakened now. Fully Phoenix. There was no going back, no more hiding, no more pretending to be normal.
Tomorrow, Mo Ran would inform the Council. Within days, the formal presentation would be scheduled. The supernatural world would officially know the Phoenix had returned, and the political maneuvering would begin in earnest.
But tonight, he had this—a quiet dinner with people who cared about him, Tianyu's cold hand in his, the sense of having survived something monumental and come out the other side still himself.
"What are you thinking?" Tianyu asked softly.
"That I'm scared," Yifan admitted. "That everything's about to get much more complicated. That I don't know if I'm ready for what's coming."
"You don't have to be ready. You just have to face it. And you won't face it alone." Tianyu squeezed his hand. "I'm here. Mo Ran is here. You have allies, Yifan. You're not facing the supernatural world undefended."
"Will it be enough?"
"It will have to be."
After dinner, Tianyu prepared to leave, respecting that Yifan needed rest after the intensity of the day. But at the door, Yifan caught his sleeve.
"Thank you," he said. "For coming when Mo Ran called. For helping me hold myself together. For staying all day even though I know you have responsibilities elsewhere."
"There's nowhere else I'd rather be." Tianyu's expression was soft. "Watching you come into your power today, seeing you fight to remain yourself despite the weight of millennia—it reminded me why I fell in love with you in the first place. Your strength, your determination, your refusal to be anything other than authentically yourself."
"I'm not who I was a thousand years ago."
"No. You're better. You're you and all those who came before, integrated into something unique. You're magnificent, Yifan."
On impulse, Yifan leaned up and kissed him. It was brief, chaste, nothing like the desperate kisses during heat. But it meant more, because it was chosen freely, in full possession of his faculties, with no biology driving the decision.
When they parted, Tianyu's eyes were glowing brighter, and ice had spread across the floor at his feet. "Yifan..."
"Come back tomorrow?" Yifan asked. "Help me practice more?"
"Every day. For as long as you want me here."
After Tianyu left, Yifan returned to his room, exhausted but oddly content. His reflection in the mirror showed him transformed—golden eyes that glowed faintly even at rest, Phoenix marks visible as delicate patterns across his collarbones and arms, an aura of power that made the air shimmer slightly around him.
He looked supernatural. Looked like what he was—Phoenix Reborn, legendary Omega, the being the supernatural world had been waiting a millennium to see.
But underneath the power and the marks and the glowing eyes, he was still Shen Yifan. Still the person who liked history and valued friendship and wanted to choose his own path.
Tomorrow would bring new challenges. The Council, the presentation, the political machinations. But tonight, he allowed himself to feel hope. He'd survived awakening. He'd held onto himself. And he had Tianyu, who loved him enough to wait, to respect his choices, to help him be strong without trying to control him.
Whatever came next, he wouldn't face it alone.
And that, Yifan thought as sleep finally claimed him, was everything.