I Cheated While Cultivating

“It seems they see me as a thorn in their side,” Zhou Heng said as he lifted some noodles with his chopsticks and slurped them up, thinking to himself, “Since that’s the case, how can I just sit and wait for death!”

He planned to take the initiative.

From now on, he would slay anyone related to the Heavenly Palace of Clouds and the Plague Emperor Sect, and every heretical sect member he encountered.

The burly man didn’t notice the change in Zhou Heng’s mood and continued to talk to himself.

“Young man, you might not know this, but Zhou Heng is a formidable one. Starting as a mere Martial Arts Student, he actually caught the favor of a Celestial Man from the Pure Yang Palace.

“To be taken as a disciple by Yan Shouyi, the one known as ‘True Sun Residing in the World’ and topping the Heaven’s List, leaping straight to become the sixth generation true transmittor of Pure Yang Palace, a Celestial Man’s junior brother—it’s truly an ascension to heavens!

“I’m so envious, it’s killing me!”

Someone nearby scoffed and hummed dismissively, “Don’t bother being envious. We ordinary folks can’t even dream of such things. He’s the reincarnation of a powerful being; right from the start, he’s not the same as us.”

This person was a man in his thirties with a long face, pointed chin, slender eyes, sparse eyebrows, and he wore a colorful robe—one look, and you could tell he was no serious character.

“Now that’s not right,” the burly man shook his head and said, “Even if Zhou Heng is the reincarnation of a powerful being, his former life wasn’t born powerful; he still cultivated his way up. Fundamentally, he was still an ordinary person like the rest of us.”

“Ha, naive!” The man sneered, “You’ll never understand how important one’s origins are. Although Zhou Heng is a reincarnation of a powerful being, he’s too ostentatious in his actions.

“He’s offended two top heretical sects all at once, one of them being Heavenly Palace of Clouds which even has a Divine First Rank among them. I fear this time he won’t escape his fate.”

“Is that so?” Zhou Heng suddenly spoke up, countering, “I heard Zhou Heng is quite formidable, possessing many incredible abilities that are said to be safeguards left from his previous life, infinite in power. He shouldn’t be that easy to kill, right?”

“Exactly! This young man makes sense,” the burly man agreed eagerly, “That’s what I think too.”

“Heh,” the man scoffed again, disdainfully remarking, “That’s exactly why I’m saying Zhou Heng is reckless. Since ancient times, even those who are reincarnated with safeguards from their previous life can only use them a limited number of times.

“Zhou Heng, using those powerful methods one after the other, is practically announcing to everyone ‘come and kill me, I’m almost out of tricks’—he’s clearly courting death!”

“Is that right?” Zhou Heng said, clicking his tongue in amazement, “What if the safeguards from his previous life are inexhaustible, always available? Wouldn’t that mean anyone who goes after him is doomed?”

“Right, right,” the burly man nodded in agreement, “That’s what I was thinking too.”

At this point, others in the restaurant started to look over, sensing that an argument might be brewing and eager to watch the excitement.

Jianghu, jianghu, where there are people, arguments arise, and fights ensue—that’s jianghu for you.

Many were even itching to join the debate.

After all, regarding the issue between Zhou Heng and the two major heretical forces, most people couldn’t truly get involved, but talking about it was still thrilling and satisfying.

The man noticed he had attracted attention from those around and decided not to hold back any longer, “Talking about inexhaustible safeguards, that’s simply foolish. In this world, there’s no such thing as an inexhaustible safeguard.

“I’ll say it here, unless Zhou Heng goes back to Taihua Mount to seek sanctuary and hides away, otherwise, within three months, he’s as good as dead!

“Don’t underestimate a martial artist’s desire for gold, for precious artifacts, for ultimate martial arts techniques. With such heavy rewards from Heavenly Palace of Clouds and Plague Emperor Sect, someone will surely go after him!”

“That’s unlikely,” Zhou Heng laughed, ready to retort further, but at that moment…

Bang!

A sound of table slamming came from not too far off, as a young girl stood up; she too was eating wonton noodles here.

This young lady was dressed in pure white, looking sixteen or seventeen years old, with fair skin, delicate features, clear lines, and her beauty was breathtaking.

She merely had a somewhat cold demeanor, like a lotus upon a snowy mountain, staying aloof from the world.

Next to her was placed a longsword, and judging by the scabbard, it was mostly likely an excellent weapon, suggesting that the girl was skilled in martial arts, perhaps not at a low level.

The people around saw the girl standing up with an angry face, and rather than being shocked, they were delighted, their eyes gleaming, the words almost leaping out of their throats.

Fight! Fight!

Let the fight begin!

A fight is just what’s needed to liven things up!

After all, this was in the prefectural city, with a Sixth Rank Innate like the city lord present, ordinary martial artists wouldn’t harm the common people even if they fought.

However, the girl showed no intention of starting a fight.

“Did you just say that people in the jianghu would kill Zhou Heng for the hefty bounty offered by the Heavenly Palace and the Plague Emperor Sect?”

The girl’s cool gaze turned towards the man as she indifferently said, “He is, after all, the sixth-generation true disciple of the Pure Yang Palace, the junior brother of Tao Lord Yan Shouyi, who is ranked first on the Heaven List and resides in this world, and a disciple personally taught by the former head of the Pure Yang Palace. Who among you would dare to kill him?”

The crowd nodded in agreement upon hearing this.

“Yes, with Zhou Heng’s status, who would dare to kill him?”

“Even if someone really killed Zhou Heng and claimed the reward, they would have completely offended the Pure Yang Palace. They would only be waiting for death.”

“Zhou Heng might not be difficult to kill, but claiming that reward is impossible!”

The bystanders started chattering.

The man from before, however, was still stubborn in his opinion and glanced at the girl before snorting coldly, “Little girl, you must have just come out from your sect to gain experience. You see the affairs of this world as too simple. There are many things you just don’t understand.”

“I might not understand, but that’s still better than some people running their mouths off!” retorted the girl coldly. “Yu Chengyang, you have no idea how strong Zhou Heng really is. There are very few on the jianghu at the Peak of the Seventh Rank who could kill him.”

As soon as these words came out, the crowd erupted into commotion, keeping their distance from the man the girl had named Yu Chengyang, and exclamations arose.

“Yu Chengyang!? The renegade of Ta Hua Mountain Villa, rumored to have fallen into the evil path, why is he here?!”

“This is serious, ‘Scorching Heart’ Yu Chengyang has actually come to Red Leaf Mansion. Report this to the officials, find someone to arrest him!”

“We can’t arrest him just yet, he’s not an outright evildoer, as long as he hasn’t committed any wrongdoing here, we can’t just grab him!”

“What should we do then?”

Everyone became anxious, their gazes filled with fear and alarm as they looked at the man.

Ten years ago, Yu Chengyang had also been ranked within the top ten in the people list, already at the Peak of the Seventh Rank. After being expelled from Ta Hua Mountain Villa for some reason, he wandered the lands and became very extreme in temperament. Whoever crossed him would usually be killed on the spot.

“You actually recognize me.” Yu Chengyang examined the girl with a scrutinizing look and sneered, “I see, so you are a disciple of Ta Hua Mountain Villa.

“So your first mission after leaving the sect is to eliminate me, the outcast who tarnished the reputation of Ta Hua Mountain Villa? Those old fools, didn’t they caution you before sending you to face me?”

“That will depend on whether you’re capable!” The girl drew her sword, her delicate chin tilting slightly upwards as she declared, “The true Ta Hua Mountain Villa disciple Jiang Hong, is here to kill you!”

“Hahaha! What a sharp-tongued, naive brat who doesn’t know the immensity of heaven and earth!” Yu Chengyang laughed coldly. “Fine, I’ll kill you first, then Zhou Heng. Claim the reward and the sky will be the limit!”

“You plan to kill whom?” Zhou Heng suddenly stood up.