Chapter 351: Episode 33.2 Good or Bad News? Pregnancy in Trouble?!
So far, Shen Yuan’s pregnancy had thrown him curveballs he never imagined he could handle. It rattled his opinion of himself more than once. But the biggest shock of all? Realizing that Bai Tingfeng could be utterly shameless if it meant asking the dumbest question imaginable.
What happened to his ever-serious, perpetually businesslike husband?
Apparently, watching him "swallow baby batter" in his current condition had been too much of a traumatic experience for Bai Tingfeng.
Shen Yuan eyed his clown of a husband and came to a decision: maybe it was time to let Bai Tingfeng in on another secret.
"Master Bai," the doctor said carefully after hearing such an unexpected question, "regardless of health condition, it’s never advisable for people to ingest things that aren’t meant to be eaten."
He glanced at the blushing couple. Young, attractive and obviously intimate. It didn’t take a genius to connect the dots. Offering his professional judgment, the doctor continued, "However, if you’re referring to something that naturally occurs during lovemaking, then rest assured—there’s no harm. It won’t affect your baby or Master Shen."
The celestial fox spirit shot the doctor a pleased look. Yes, he was starting to like this doctor.
"Exactly. Harmless, and—surprisingly nutritious." Shen Yuan winked at Bai Tingfeng. That wasn’t just a double entendre; considering his need for ingesting human essence to consolidate his body and spirit, it was a triple.
Too bad only he understood the third meaning. Both Bai Tingfeng and the doctor gave him equally dubious stares.
"Master Shen," the doctor said at last, deadpan, "please just stick to healthy meat sources for protein."
"Got it," Shen Yuan replied without hesitation. Honestly, what mattered most to him was Bai Tingfeng’s reaction.
He arched a brow at his husband, who immediately looked away, ashamed, yet visibly relieved.
"Unbelievable," Shen Yuan muttered under his breath. Still, he couldn’t deny the strange satisfaction he felt. Seeing Bai Tingfeng break out of his usual stoic character—especially because of him—sparked a weird kind of pride. Odd reason, odd feeling, but there it was, and he was loving every minute of it.
In the end, Shen Yuan had to go through with the test. The doctor performed the usual; he took a sample of his blood, checked his pheromone glands and extracted a few pheromones. This seems to be a routine check that Shen Yuan didn’t even sweat over.
The only part that made Shen Yuan uneasy was sliding into a massive machine that looked suspiciously like an MRI scanner.
The doctor had warned that mapping his internal mana could take up to twenty minutes.
To keep their five-year-old from getting restless, Bai Tingfeng had asked Gu Jinpeng to babysit Yanyan for a while. The two were now happily seated in a nearby coffee shop, enjoying sweets, while Shen Yuan and Bai Tingfeng remained in the cold testing room—separated from them by a one-way mirror.
"This equipment will read and map the circulation of mana around your body." The doctor’s voice sounded through the sound system of the laboratory.
"Does mana affect pregnancy?" Shen Yuan asked as he lay down. He closed his eyes for a moment when a cold surge of mana swept through his body. He is not claustrophobic, but with this cold surge of mana sweeping through his body every minute, he cannot help but feel uncomfortable.
Now, he can finally understand the warning that his doctor gave him earlier.
"Should I start limiting my use of powers?"
Even though Shen Yuan couldn’t see him, the doctor shook his head. Bai Tingfeng, watching from the side, caught the gesture and looked quietly amused.
"No, there’s no need to be that cautious," the doctor went on explaining. He made sure he minced the words in order not to put pressure on the pregnant omega. "The only concern is if the mother’s mana starts concentrating too heavily around the womb. That could overload the fetus with more magical energy than it can handle. But that’s an extremely rare occurrence—there’s no reason to be nervous about it. Oh..."
The doctor’s jovial tone faded, and both Shen Yuan and Bai Tingfeng stiffened at the change.
"Why?"
"What’s going on?" Shen Yuan asked, still lying flat inside the machine.
Since he could see the results in real time, Bai Tingfeng stepped closer to the doctor. On the monitor, his husband’s mana map glowed brilliantly—so radiant it was almost awe-inspiring. But one part of the diagram drew his eye—and made his heart lurch.
Right where Shen Yuan’s womb should be was a swirling mass of light. It doesn’t look like a baby was being developed there, but a whole damn universe.
Bai Tingfeng cannot help but take in a sharp breath.
"Is... is this normal?" Bai Tingfeng blurted, his chest tightening as his heartbeat thundered in his ears.
The doctor’s expression twisted with hesitation. "In a normal scan, we’d see very little mana concentration around the womb. Mana serves no purpose there, so this level of clustering shouldn’t exist."
He exhaled, clearly troubled. "And even when we do see abnormalities, they usually appear as a static mass. But this... this is different. I have no explanation for why the mana in Master Shen’s womb is swirling."
The doctor turned to Bai Tingfeng, worry etched across his face.
"So, is that a good thing or a bad thing?!" Shen Yuan practically shouted from inside the machine. Damn it—he just wanted to crawl out of this metal tunnel and shake the answer out of the doctor. The suspense was unbearable!
~~~
After Shen Yuan’s ordeal inside the mana-mapping machine, the couple returned to the consultation table where they had first spoken with the doctor.
But this time, they weren’t alone. A panel of doctors now surrounded them, passing around the results of Shen Yuan’s scan like it was some sort of holy relic.
The hospital had summoned every available obstetrician and gynaecologist. Shen Yuan’s results were astounding—too strange for a single doctor to handle. It would take several heads together to decide how best to approach this pregnancy.
"You know," Shen Yuan finally said, unable to stop his sharp tongue, "this many doctors huddling in silence is more nerve-wracking than the machine itself. You, you, and you—tell me straight. Do you think this is harmful for me and the baby?"
His attending doctor and the two unfortunate souls he had singled out froze for a moment.
"We believe it could become harmful for the baby if the mana accumulation in the womb continues," Shen Yuan’s doctor admitted. "We don’t know how much mana your developing child can withstand. Left unchecked, miscarriage is a real possibility."
Both Shen Yuan and Bai Tingfeng’s faces darkened.
"We recommend Master Shen take medicine to disperse the mana," the second doctor added cautiously. "That would reduce the risk of miscarriage."
Just as Shen Yuan and Bai Tingfeng were about to curse in frustration, another voice cut in. The head of the OB/GYN department stepped forward, her presence commanding the room.
"Or... we can keep the status quo and allow the child to develop within this strong mana flow. Think about it: the baby is still thriving despite the overwhelming presence of energy. A normal fetus would have collapsed under that strain. But this child is different—born from two S-class awakeners, with an extraordinary tolerance for mana." She looked at them with the weight of experience in her eyes.
"The swirling mana in the womb could very well be a blanket, nurturing development rather than threatening it. If we recklessly disperse it, we may strip away what is actually sustaining the child."
Shen Yuan and Bai Tingfeng exchanged a long, loaded glance. Only the two of them knew the true nature of Country C’s first S-class omega. And now, hearing the head doctor’s words, Shen Yuan couldn’t ignore the possibility: the storm of mana in his womb might be tied to his being a celestial fox spirit.
Shit. Am I carrying a fox spirit? Shen Yuan thought, nerves tightening in his chest. The idea left him shaken. Spirits were beings of energy, humans of flesh—what would happen when the two mixed?
His fox ears metaphorically drooped. For the first time, the celestial fox spirit truly felt afraid and uncertain.
"I just want my baby to be born healthy," Shen Yuan whispered—not to the doctors, but to Bai Tingfeng.
Bai Tingfeng drew in a sharp breath. At this moment, he knew he had to be the pillar of their family. "If our child needs the mana, then tell us—what can we do to control the amount, to keep them safe?"
The doctors exchanged uneasy glances.
"There are methods we can attempt," the head doctor said at last. "But they are unconventional, with very little research to support them."
"Such as?" Shen Yuan arched a brow.
"One option is to slowly expand your mana reserves," she explained. "That way, instead of pooling in the womb, the excess will be redirected and stored in your body. It would stabilise the swirling energy. But the process is slow, the success uncertain, and the risks unknown."
She hesitated, then added, "As for another option, Master Shen could try..."
That first example brought a sense of clarity to the celestial fox spirit for Shen Yuan. If that is the solution to the problem, then he has a viable option that guarantees more success. He needs Bai Tingfeng’s supply of milk, and this time, he really had to come clean about it.