The following morning, brilliant sunlight streamed in through the sliding glass window, casting dappled columns of light across the dorm room.
Awakening by his internal clock, Huang Xiu stirred from his slumber.
He found his entire body throbbing with an intense ache, as though Star Platinum (TL Note: A powerful Stand from the manga series JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, known for its rapid, overwhelming punches often accompanied by the battle cry ‘Ora Ora Ora!’) had delivered a full page of ‘Oras’ upon him.
He managed to pull himself from the bed with considerable effort, only to cry out as his long hair snagged, pulling painfully at his scalp.
“Ow, ow, ow!”
Clutching his head, Huang Xiu had barely uttered a few words when he realized his voice sounded distinctly different.
While still retaining a soft, clear quality, it now possessed an unexpected richness, a deeper resonance than the day before.
‘Could it be?’ he thought, a surge of elation washing over him. He swiftly flung back the covers, launching into a thorough self-inspection.
“It’s refreshed, truly refreshed!”
While his chest still retained a faint curve, it was almost imperceptible, and the ‘stolen Baron Nashor’ (TL Note: ‘Dalong’ or ‘Baron Nashor’ is a powerful neutral monster in the game League of Legends, often referred to humorously to imply male anatomy.) had gloriously respawned back into the canyon.
His face, while still possessing a hint of feminine softness, had undeniably reverted to its former, masculine contours.
Overnight, she had once again become he!
“Nice!” Huang Xiu exclaimed, standing on his bed and pumping his fist in exhilaration.
Though lingering after-effects of the transformation still afflicted his body, merely being a boy once more was cause enough for celebration.
‘Oh, right, my special ability…’
The initial rush of euphoria subsided, and Huang Xiu’s thoughts turned to this crucial detail.
He promptly closed his eyes, focusing his senses inward, and to his surprise, he still felt the presence of the crimson and emerald light sphere within him.
[Sen Luo] had not forsaken him simply because he had reverted to his original form.
Such energetic antics so early in the morning, creating such a significant ruckus, naturally could not go unnoticed by those in the vicinity.
Knock, knock! A sudden rap sounded at the door.
“What’s all the commotion?” came Yun Ning’s voice from outside.
Huang Xiu sprang from his bed with a whoosh, covering the distance to the door in a blur of motion, and yanked it open.
“I’m back to normal!” he declared, his face alight with unbridled excitement.
“Huh?”
Standing outside the door, Yun Ning was clad in sportswear, breathing slightly heavily, with a sheen of sweat visible on his forehead. He appeared to have just returned from a workout.
Gazing at the Huang Xiu before him, whose features were still soft and held a touch of femininity, yet was undeniably a young man, Yun Ning’s eyes widened.
Ignoring his own physical fatigue, Yun Ning instinctively seized both of the young man’s hands. “Really? That’s absolutely wonderful!”
“Yes! And my special ability, [Sen Luo], hasn’t vanished either,” Huang Xiu reported, beaming with the good news.
Just then, a middle-aged man clad in a pair of brightly patterned shorts ambled over from the left side of the corridor.
“Oh? You’ve changed back?” Professor Yuan murmured, his face etched with confusion as he scratched his cheek.
This shouldn’t be possible! A physical completion, once achieved, was supposed to be irreversible.
From both a scientific and an esoteric standpoint, Huang Xiu should not have been able to revert.
What could be the reason?
Professor Yuan stroked his chin thoughtfully. “Student Huang, while it’s certainly good news that you’ve reverted, I think we should still get a physical examination done first, just to ascertain if the transformation has left any lasting effects on your body.”
“Alright!” Huang Xiu readily agreed, without a moment’s hesitation. He, too, harbored a fear that the transformation might have left him with some irreparable issues.
After all… he had just noticed that his ‘great dragon’ seemed to have shrunk a size compared to before.
Initially, he’d attributed it to thermal expansion and contraction, but a moment’s reflection told him that even with the air conditioning running, it shouldn’t have shriveled quite so dramatically!
Yun Ning’s morning workout routine hadn’t concluded; he had merely returned to the dorm to re-energize.
Consequently, only Huang Xiu accompanied Professor Yuan to the examination room.
The Bureau of Anomalous Jurisdiction certainly lived up to its name as a specialized agency overseeing all matters concerning anomalous individuals and the Void Realm.
The sheer power of their budget was mind-boggling!
They even boasted their own subterranean examination center, replete with an extensive array of instruments designed for comprehensive physical assessments.
Huang Xiu observed numerous devices he had never encountered in any hospital prior.
“This is a Void Energy Detector,” Professor Yuan explained, gesturing towards a spherical device crisscrossed with numerous tubes. “It’s specifically designed to measure the concentration and tier of Void Energy within anomalous individuals.”
“The blood samples taken during your preliminary assessment were, in fact, sent here for analysis.”
Leading Huang Xiu to stand before the machine, he continued, “We’ll start by measuring your Void Energy concentration, and then proceed with the other standard tests.”
“Understood.” Huang Xiu offered no resistance, allowing Professor Yuan to draw a vial of his blood with a syringe, which was then inserted into the large spherical device.
The Void Energy Detector immediately whirred to life. The indicator light on the sphere’s surface glowed crimson, and the entire machine vibrated with a low hum.
While the detection process was underway, Professor Yuan retrieved two cups of coffee from a nearby machine. He then materialized, seemingly from nowhere, with two packets of instant bread.
He offered the coffee and bread to Huang Xiu. “Have something to line your stomach this early in the morning,” he advised, “lest you suffer from low blood sugar.”
Huang Xiu dutifully accepted the offering, first taking a bite of bread, then a tentative sip of coffee. The bitter taste exploded on his tongue, a shock to his system as he rarely drank coffee, causing his otherwise delicate features to contort in a grimace.
“Hahahaha!” Professor Yuan chuckled at the sight. “Pure black coffee, without sugar, can indeed be a bit bitter.”
‘A bit bitter?’ Huang Xiu thought, shooting a resentful glance at Professor Yuan. He wasn’t particular about food, but he had an innate aversion to bitter flavors.
Bitter melon, in particular, had always ranked as his most detested food.
Silently, Huang Xiu placed the offending coffee on the table and obediently resumed eating his bread.
Having finished the bread and waited a short while longer, the indicator light on the spherical device turned green, emitting a series of insistent beeps.
Professor Yuan settled himself before the computer, meticulously examining the refreshed test results displayed on the screen, his expression one of profound astonishment.
“I never would have imagined that after reverting to your original form, your Void Energy concentration would remain undiminished.”
“That should be a good thing, shouldn’t it?” Huang Xiu inquired.
“Let’s call it a good thing for now,” Professor Yuan replied, offering no further explanation. He then ushered Huang Xiu through another series of tests.
Unlike the preliminary assessment, with only Huang Xiu undergoing examination, the numerous tests were completed in less than half an hour.
“Student Huang, I have both good news and bad news to impart,” Professor Yuan announced.
Professor Yuan, still seated before the computer, swiveled halfway around to face Huang Xiu squarely, his expression grave.
“The good news is that, just as you desired, you’ve reverted from a complete and utter female to a male.”
After returning from the Void Realm yesterday, Huang Xiu had been dragged by Professor Yuan to a hospital for a full physical examination.
The results had shown that the ‘he’ at that time was, in every respect, a normal female.
“And the bad news?” Huang Xiu asked, his brows furrowed.
“The bad news is that your estrogen levels are currently dozens of times higher than your testosterone levels.”
Professor Yuan pointed to the line graph on the screen, where the red line representing estrogen soared far above the blue line representing testosterone.
He then tapped on the keyboard, pulling up Huang Xiu’s initial test data from the People’s Hospital.
“In fact, even during your previous physical, your estrogen levels were already several times higher than your testosterone.”
“But compared to last time, the increase in estrogen content this time is an exponential explosion,” he added.
“What kind of impact will this have on me?”
Huang Xiu’s face instantly darkened.
Despite his lack of medical knowledge, he understood that an excess of a single hormone could have severe repercussions on the body.
Specifically, the mention of estrogen immediately brought many unpleasant terms to mind.
“Are you familiar with castrati?” Professor Yuan asked, stroking his chin. “You are currently like a castrato—no, you are the ultimate castrato among castrati.”
“After all, their estrogen levels are utterly negligible compared to yours.”
Observing Huang Xiu’s face, which had turned so grim it seemed capable of wringing out water, Professor Yuan stated gravely, “If this continues, infertility, mental instability, and internal circulatory disorders would be your best-case scenario.”
If the best-case scenario was already so dire, Huang Xiu understood the worst without needing to hear it.
To be honest, he had been thoroughly frightened the moment infertility was mentioned.
He still needed to carry on the family line for the Huang family!
“Can this be cured, Professor?” Huang Xiu asked, unconsciously kneading the hem of his clothes, a hint of trepidation on his face.
“I have two potential methods,” Professor Yuan sighed. “However, I am not a professional doctor, so take my advice with a grain of salt.”
“Of course, doctors aren’t anomalous individuals, so they might not understand your situation as I do.”
“First, you could continue to use your special ability. It seems that whenever you use it, you undergo a s*x change. Even if you revert afterwards, the effects won’t disappear. At this rate, if you use your ability two more times at most, you will permanently become female.”
“Therefore, by simply continuing to use your ability and fully transforming into a female, you wouldn’t have to worry about the excess estrogen in your body.”
“What about the second option?” Huang Xiu had only just reverted and had no desire to change back again.