"Sigh, it seems I've really failed as a transmigrator," He Heng mocked himself. In his previous life, he was an "expert" in literature and history and had some knowledge of web novels. Although he was quite old when web novels first appeared, he was still familiar with these stories mostly read by young people. He thought about how the protagonists in those novels always thrived after transmigrating, yet here he was, just blending in with the crowd.
"Indeed, this world has no protagonist!" He Heng concluded. These were just some jokes he made to lament about life. How could the world revolve around one person? For him, being able to live again was already incredibly fortunate. Heaven had treated him well, so how could he ask for more? No, everything had to be earned through his own efforts! Let the past be gone with the wind, the future was in his own hands!
He Heng looked up at the scorching sun, his eyes showing a hint of determination as he continued walking down the street. It had been over a year since he came to Shuangjiang City from his family's home in Beigu City. He had been focusing on cultivation and hadn't had a chance to explore until today.
"Hmm, last time Wang San mentioned that the black-rimmed sawfish in Shuangjiang City was exceptional and famous far and wide. That guy's father is the city lord of Shuangjiang, so he should know what he's talking about. I can try it today." Having made up his mind, He Heng headed south, where there was a place called Linjiang Tower. True to its name, it backed onto the Wuchuan River, with beautiful scenery and an excellent location. Business had always been booming, and it was famous within a radius of ten thousand miles. It was said to have a history of over a hundred years, and its seafood dishes were top-notch in Yichang Prefecture.
Shuangjiang City was named "Double River" because it was situated between two rivers - the Wuchuan River to the south and the Fuming River to the north.
He Heng, having achieved success in the Hundred Veins Realm of martial arts, had a fully connected body and perfect embryonic breathing. Although he hadn't achieved a body as hard as gold or indestructible spirit in the external hundred veins, and thus couldn't truly integrate internal and external, harmonize dragon and tiger, break through the mysterious gate of life and death, and truly reach the great perfection of hundred veins, his martial arts skills were still impressive. In some martial arts novels, he would be considered a top-tier expert, renowned throughout the world. Naturally, his travel speed was extremely fast.
Because this world was so vast, even the urban area of a city was several hundred miles in circumference. Linjiang Tower was tens of miles away from where He Heng was, so even with his lightness skill, it took him nearly half an hour to arrive.
As a century-old establishment and one of the top restaurants in Shuangjiang City, Linjiang Tower's service was naturally excellent. As soon as He Heng entered, someone came to serve him, leading him to the second floor. He Heng chose a private room near the Wuchuan River, ordered a few signature dishes, and drank alone while admiring the vast, majestic river flowing by, feeling quite content.
He Heng was naturally fond of peace and quiet, disliking going out with others. So usually, he preferred to practice behind closed doors or read books in the academy's library. This was why he hadn't inspected his family's properties here in the year since he arrived.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted from upstairs, breaking the tranquility and causing He Heng to frown.
"Which bastard is disturbing the peace? How inconsiderate," He Heng cursed under his breath, but had no intention of going out to look. He knew that Linjiang Tower, having survived for a hundred years and growing its business, must have strong backing. Their tower master alone was a renowned expert in Shuangjiang City, having awakened his Yin Spirit and transcended mortality. Those who dared to cause trouble here were either inexperienced newcomers or truly powerful figures with strong backgrounds. If it was the former, Linjiang Tower's people would quickly deal with them. If it was the latter, it wasn't something he could interfere with without risking trouble for himself.
These days, weren't there plenty of people who got into trouble just by watching?
Thinking this, He Heng continued eating his meal, ignoring the commotion outside. However, some things can't be avoided no matter how much you try to stay out of them.
"Bang!"
With a crisp sound, a table came flying in, directly smashing through the door of He Heng's private room and crashing onto his table, shattering it to pieces. Fortunately, He Heng's reflexes were good, and he leaped several feet away as soon as the table came flying in, avoiding the impact.
"Damn it, who did I offend to suffer this misfortune?" He Heng grumbled, pulling away the table that had broken into several pieces, and strode towards the room's exit.
He Heng wasn't someone to be bullied easily. Although he didn't want to cause trouble, now that trouble had found him, backing down wasn't his style.
So, he grabbed the nearly disassembled table with one hand and rushed out of the private room, shouting, "Which bastard dares to throw a table at your young master!"
However, he was stunned by the scene outside. The entire Linjiang Tower was in chaos, with things broken and scattered everywhere. Many tables seemed to have been pulverized by some kind of fierce wind, several marble floor tiles had been ground to dust, and several walls had collapsed.
But this wasn't what terrified He Heng the most. What truly shocked him was that in the middle of the restaurant, two groups were engaged in a fierce battle. One was a charming woman in black, about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. The other group was the people from Linjiang Tower, led by the manager, with over a dozen subordinates. And beside them, a familiar body lay in a pool of blood.
"Wang Da?!" He Heng's jaw dropped, thinking he must have seen wrong. But he quickly realized that he wasn't mistaken, and that this situation had become very serious.
This was indeed his good friend, the eldest brother of Wang Bian, the third son of Shuangjiang's city lord, whom he jokingly called Wang San. This was Wang Yu, the eldest son of Shuangjiang's city lord!
It was unthinkable that someone would dare to openly kill the son of Shuangjiang's city lord right here in Shuangjiang City. Didn't they fear the wrath of the Dao Embryo realm expert who was once known as the "Blood Butcher"? This matter was truly...
He Heng immediately understood that this incident had blown up to an unimaginable scale, far beyond what he could get involved in. Even if he was a member of the He family, that "Blood Butcher" Wang Panlong wouldn't easily let him off. This guy was known as a madman in his youth, and when he went berserk, it was terrifying. He had seen Wang Bian being punished by him more than once, and it was unbearable to watch.
So, the best option now was to... run! Run as far away as possible, preferably as if he had never been here.
In just a moment, He Heng made the decision for a strategic retreat. Seeing a man who was similarly scared and fleeing towards the exit, he suddenly shouted, "Brother, wait for me!"
"Damn you, who's your brother!" the fleeing man cursed in his heart, running even faster because he noticed that the two fighting groups had turned their attention towards them due to the young man's shout.
"Sorry, brother, better you than me. After this, you'll be my sworn brother," He Heng apologized inwardly to the man, then took advantage of the others being distracted by his earlier shout to sprint towards the exit of Linjiang Tower.
"Stop right there, you little thief!" Clearly, He Heng had underestimated the consequences of his earlier outburst when he first came out. Women can be very vindictive, especially those with high martial arts skills. Just as He Heng was about to run, the woman who was still in a standoff with the Linjiang Tower manager noticed him and sent a scorching palm force flying towards him.
"Damn it, I just shouted once, was that necessary? Such a petty woman!" He Heng cursed inwardly, but his legs didn't dare to stop. He quickly leaped into the air, jumping to the third floor to avoid the palm strike.
When he looked back, he saw that where he had been standing, the ground made of hard-as-steel granite had been shattered into powder, leaving a large hole. Comparing that to his own body, He Heng broke out in a cold sweat.
"Indeed, a woman's heart is the most poisonous!"
"What did you say, you little thief? You're asking for death!" The heightened senses of a martial arts expert are extremely sensitive. He Heng's curse was immediately heard by the woman, who sent another palm strike his way!
"Big sister, you misheard! I was complimenting your beauty!" He Heng quickly dodged, avoiding the palm strike. The wall beside him was instantly pulverized.
This time, He Heng didn't dare to say anything more and frantically ran towards the exit, wanting to get as far away from this trouble as possible. "Hmph, you ugly woman, just you wait. When I've mastered my martial arts, I'll teach you a lesson. I'll cripple your martial arts and throw you into Chunhua House to serve hundreds of clients a night!"
He Heng, venting his anger, clearly didn't notice that the woman in black had no intention of letting him go. For some unknown reason, she directly disengaged from her fight with the Linjiang Tower manager and others, and leaped to grab He Heng!
"Damn it, big sister, what did I do to offend you? Is this necessary? Men and women shouldn't have physical contact!" He Heng shouted as he ran frantically towards the exit.
"Sharp-tongued brat!" Suddenly, a scarlet light flowed around the woman's body, with dazzling patterns etched in it, looking extremely demonic. Brilliant fire light shimmered, but to He Heng's eyes, it was another cause for terror.
"The Earth Fire Devouring Heaven Technique, you're a disciple of the Red Fire Demon Sect, one of the Seven Demon Thrones!" He Heng's face was filled with horror, his mood plummeting to rock bottom.
"Hehe, you're quite knowledgeable, boy. Be a good lad and come with me!" The woman in black laughed cruelly, reaching out to grab He Heng. He felt a suction force engulf him, pulling his body involuntarily towards the woman, unable to break free.
"Ah!" He Heng cried out in panic as his body was directly grabbed and lifted by the woman. He could even feel a scorching, vicious aura enveloping him, along with a faint, elegant scent.
"This is... Three Corpses Completely Severed, True Self Unblemished. This woman is actually at the Three Peng Realm of martial arts!" He Heng exclaimed. What could be said about this? Just a casual outing and he ran into a Three Peng Realm demon cultivator. He really shouldn't have gone out without checking the almanac!
"Indeed, all transmigrators are prone to accidents. No matter where they go, something always happens. I truly have a protagonist's fate!" For some reason, He Heng thought about this even in such a critical moment.
At this time, the woman in black suddenly changed her expression, looking towards the outside of Linjiang Tower. A middle-aged man was rushing over angrily - it was the master of Linjiang Tower, an expert who had awakened his Yin Spirit. Even she was no match for him.
So, with one hand grabbing He Heng, she leaped to a window, jumped down, and plunged into the Wuchuan River below with a splash, raising huge waves and disappearing without a trace.