Meng Hao stared blankly at the trembling man whose appearance was all too familiar. The man’s dark eyes – although wide-eyed in fear – were similar to his own, as well as the scholarly feel to him. His hair, however, was cut short in a neat fashion; not a single hair looked out of place.

Meng Hao, on the other hand, never really cared about his appearance. He was constantly thinking about his cultivation and how to strengthen himself. Before he knew it, he had let his hair grow out.

The man was dressed strangely, the likes of which Meng Hao had never seen before. He wore what looked like a thin, buttoned down coat, and a white collared shirt that peeked out from underneath. A blue striped tie hung from his neck, and he wore black leather shoes on his feet.

The strange man lost his balance and stumbled to the floor. With a shaky finger, he pointed at Meng Hao and said, “Y-You…How do you have the same face as me?”

The man was right to be shocked. They were identical in every way, shape, and form – only their demeanor differed.

Meng Hao remained calm, as he had trained himself to never let his thoughts or feelings show on his face.  He hadn’t summoned a blood clone, that’s for sure. He began to consider the possibility that this man was some sort of illusion.

Meng Hao’s lookalike suddenly regained his composure, bouncing to his feet. “Oh, I get it. This is a dream.” The man’s expression brightened, coming to some sort of conclusion. “And you must be my darkest fear. This is the obstacle I need to overcome!”

Dream. How long had it been since Meng Hao had dreamed? It wasn’t possible to recall, no matter how hard he tried. Nonetheless, Meng Hao concluded that his lookalike must be a mortal. He reminded him of his youth – what he might have turned out like if he hadn't taken the path of cultivation.

But what was the purpose of this? Meng Hao couldn’t piece it together. One second he had been in secluded meditation, and the next, this identical man had appeared.

The lookalike inched closer, a twinge of excitement in his eyes. “I will defeat you and pass the promotion exam.”

Meng Hao glanced at him and, after a moment of thought, sat down in meditative position. Maybe if he focused, he could dispel the illusion.

“It’s working! I’m suppressing my darkest fear!” The man yelled.

Meng Hao’s eyes snapped open. This lookalike of his…was kind of annoying. Meng Hao didn’t have to use any magical techniques or divine abilities on this mortal. A simple look from him stopped the man in his tracks.

If Meng Hao had infused killing intent into his stare, then certainly this man wouldn’t be breathing. Even a simple look could send this lookalike groveling on his knees.

And the man would have, if not for the sudden burst of white light.

It was so spontaneous that Meng Hao didn’t have a chance to react. A powerful, almost magnetic pressure weighed down on him. It only took him a second to realize he was being pulled by a powerful force. Where it was taking him, he did not know.

He was powerless against this force. The only incident that could compare was the time when Meng Hao got swept away by the roc with Chu Yuyan. The white light seemed to blind him forever, although in reality only a few seconds had passed.

Then the white light was gone, along with the lookalike, and what replaced him was the vexing sound of honking horns.

It was Meng Hao’s turn to stare wide-eyed. Normally he wouldn’t lose his composure, but this would be an exception.

Skyscrapers replaced mountains. Concrete replaced soft, dewy grass. Noise replaced tranquility.

Before him were lines of machinery on wheels – a most bizarre sight. If he looked closely, he could see that there were actual people in those machinery. The machinery would make noises varying from short high-pitched beeps, to long droning ones.

“Hey, buddy! Get out of the road!” A gruff voice yelled. A muffle of voices sounded out after him, as if in agreement.

Meng Hao could hardly believe it. “What is this place?” There were strange images on several of the tall buildings surrounding him, and some even had moving pictures. This left Meng Hao pondering what kind of magic it was.

More honks blared, getting more aggressive by the second. “Beat it! I’m late for work,” One person yelled in an impatient manner.

In a daze, Meng Hao wandered off the street and slowly took in the changes of this new world. Meng Hao wasn’t stupid. He knew that he wasn’t in his own world – not anywhere in Planet South Heaven.

Without thinking, he found himself in an area along the side of the street where many people walked hurriedly. Shops were lined up along this area, and Meng Hao could feel a headache coming on. He kept seeing articles of clothing labeled “I love NY” and shops called “Starbucks.” He couldn’t help but wonder if he was going in circles.

Meng Hao decided to ignore the crowd, shut his eyes, and go into meditative position.

After a few moments, he felt his heart ram against his chest. He couldn’t feel his cultivation base!

Impossible.

His brows furrowed, drawing deep lines on his forehead. He refused to accept this! Meng Hao delved into deeper meditation and was able to faintly feel his cultivation base. It was still intact, but it was suppressed to the sixth level of Qi Condensation, and he was unable to utilize it. This meant he was left with no divine abilities or any kind of magical techniques in an unusual, foreign land. He had nothing.

Clink.

Meng Hao slightly opened an eye to find the source of the noise. Someone had tossed a small, silvery object into a cup nearby him. How odd.

On closer inspection, he found the silver object had a carving of a man with the words ‘United States of America’ on it. On the back was a carving of a type of bird, majestic in appearance. Meng Hao turned the object over and over in his hand. Was this world called the United States of America?

Another passerby tossed a coin into the cup and gave him a sympathetic look. Meng Hao had an uneasy feeling in his stomach.

“That’s strange. That man looks homeless, but he’s wearing a suit?” A woman said to her friend, glancing in his direction. She was dressed in a top that didn’t seem to quite fit her, exposing her belly button in the process. The material she was wearing exposed the milky white skin of her legs too.

Meng Hao stared, eyes glued to her. After all, he never had the chance to be in a relationship with a woman. This was an extremely rare and precious opportunity for him. But he couldn’t help but wonder how she didn’t realize she was half-naked. The women he’d seen from his own world – at least the ones who practiced cultivation – all wore modest robes.

The woman’s friend sneered at Meng Hao. “People like him disgust me. He can afford to wear a suit, yet he sits here and expects to receive money instead of going out and getting a job.”

Meng Hao rose to his feet. Now he understood. He had been treated as a beggar.

Using the reflection of a glass window, Meng Hao was shocked to realize that, while this was his own reflection, he didn’t quite look the same.

His hair was cut in a neat and precise way, and the clothes he wore matched his lookalike’s in detail, down to the blue striped tie. The man in the reflection was him, yet it wasn’t.

Suddenly Meng Hao felt a strange vibration against his skin, and a ringing noise muffled by clothes sounded out. He pulled out the source of the buzzing from his pocket, eyeing it with interest.

“What is this magic box?” In his hands he held a thin object, squared at the corners. The surface of the object was lit up and the words ‘Incoming call from Fatty’ and ‘swipe to answer’ appeared.

Meng Hao swiped his finger across the surface, amused by the magic box.

“Elder Brother! Where are you? I went to your work but you weren’t there.”

Meng Hao drew back from the magic box and muttered, “It can talk?”  More importantly, Meng Hao recognized the voice. But it didn’t make sense to him. Why would Fatty be in the magic box?

“Don’t tell me you’re not going to Chen Fan’s Bachelor party! Ah, Elder Brother,” Fatty said, “Life can’t be all about work. You need to let loose once in a while. Meet me at the ‘Rebirth Cave.’”

“…”

“Elder Brother?”

It was then that Meng Hao made a decision. He would play along until he could figure out a way back to his own world. But for now, he couldn’t raise any suspicions that he wasn’t the true Meng Hao of this world.

“Ah, yes. I’ll be there.”

"You're going to have fun. You'll see!"

The voice from inside the box disappeared, leaving Meng Hao baffled.

“First Fatty, and now Chen Fan? Not to mention there’s a Rebirth Cave here too.” His eyes glowed as he thought of the possible treasures it might contain.

Still, a suspicion clung to the back of his mind. Meng Hao shook his head, quickly dismissing the idea. He wouldn’t make any assumptions until he found answers. He had never been one to back down from a challenge, after all, and he was eager to discover the mysteries of this ‘United States of America.’

As for his cultivation, in time he would regain it. He had a feeling his chances of returning home would be better when his cultivation was restored.

xxx

Meng Hao had already asked a few people about the directions to this ‘Rebirth Cave’ but he kept receiving odd stares. He had finally been told the directions by a man who had patted him on the back and laughed.

“Have fun,” the man had practically sang, still chuckling.

An uneasy feeling had resurfaced as he stood before the black building with the bold, flashing letters. It read ‘Rebirth Cave’ but Meng Hao had to do a double take just to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. It’s safe to say this place was not what he expected.

As soon as he walked inside, he was attacked by loud, deafening music. He could hardly hear himself think, and the flashing lights didn’t help either.

“Elder Brother!” He barely managed to hear Fatty say, who was sharpening his teeth against a block of wood.

Another voice yelled, “Junior Brother! Over here!”

Meng Hao blinked in surprise. In every aspect they looked like his old friends from the Reliance Sect. It filled him with joy, even if he knew they only looked like them and they weren’t his actual friends.

Chen Fan was clearly intoxicated, for when Men Hao went to greet him, he left a sloppy, drunken kiss on the side of his face.

Meng Hao shrugged him off with a forced chuckle.

After greetings were exchanged, which involved the pumping of a fist, Chen Fan and Fatty urged him to sit down at their table.

Chen Fan hiccuped. He really regretted letting Fatty arrange this bachelor party. His wedding day was getting closer, and he’d rather be with his beautiful fiancé telling her about the weather and every single thing that had happened to him today – as he told her every day.

“I really shouldn’t be here,” Chen Fan groaned, “A member of the Solitary Sect shouldn’t be in this kind of place.”

“Solitary Sect?” Meng Hao’s eyebrows creased.  He pondered if this was the same Solitary Sect from his own world. Surely there couldn’t be such a coincidence?

“Tonight is your last day of freedom!” Fatty scolded Chen Fan. “After you get married, it’ll be harder for us to hang out.” Fatty barely lifted a single finger and several drinks were immediately placed at their table. He crossed his arms, feeling pleased. He was a regular customer so of course he would be served immediately. The members of the Rebirth Cave knew he was loaded and would pay extra attention to him.

Fatty eyed the woman who had served them their drinks – a lovely brunette in a skimpy outfit – and nodded approvingly. He tucked some cash into the girl’s undergarment, to which the girl smiled and said, “I see you’ve brought some friends.”

Meng Hao’s eyes went as wide as dinner plates. He was determined not to show any change in expression, but the crimson flush on his face betrayed him. He looked elsewhere, but this made matters worse as he realized there were other girls in provocative clothing as well. He tried to take interest in anything but the woman before him, but his eyes kept subconsciously drifting back to her.

Fatty laughed heartily and slapped Meng Hao’s back. “This is my Elder Brother. He’s never been to the ‘Rebirth Cave.’ Do you think you could entertain him for a while?”

The woman giggled and approached Meng Hao. He had his hand around a glass of wine and was sure it would shatter every second she got nearer. When he felt a dainty hand on his chest, he blurted, “That won’t be necessary.”

“Are you sure?” Her whispering tickled his ear and a wandering hand explored the broadness of his shoulders.

Meng Hao coughed and rubbed his nose in embarrassment. “Yes.”

Fatty sighed, shaking his head from side to side. “Once a scholar, always a scholar. Ah! How about our soon-to-be-married friend?”

“Absolutely not!” Chen Fan declared. “That would sully my honor.”

“Then why did you come here?”

“I…I was curious, that’s all,” Chen Fan stuttered.

Fatty eyed him suspiciously, but decided to let it go. These two were hopeless, but the night was not over yet. Fatty raised his glass. “To brothers! We always have each other’s backs!”

Meng Hao blinked, taken aback. All his life, he had been a bit of a loner, always on the pursuit for immortality. For a second, it was nice to forget all of that and bask in this feeling of belonging.

The corner of his mouth turned up and he too raised his glass. “To brothers.”

A few drinks and Meng Hao was beyond intoxicated – if that was even possible. He hadn’t thought such a thing would happen, but when he recalled that he was practically a mortal after being unable to utilize his cultivation base, it suddenly made sense.

It was in that moment of drunken state that he came up with a spontaneous idea.

“And…what of Xu Qing?” Meng Hao began with slurred words. “How is she?”

“Elder Sister?” Cheng Fan responded in the same state. “She…oh, that’s right. She’s still a part of the Black Sieve Sect. However, she doesn’t seem to be doing too well. It seems the lady who promised to take her under her wing forgot all about her soon after she entered the Sect.”

Excitement glowed in Meng Hao’s eyes. Xu Qing was here! He could see her!

“Elder Sister is strong,” Fatty said, “She’ll work her way up.”

“If I want to go see her, where could I find her?” Meng Hao asked eagerly.

“I don’t know…google the address,” Fatty said. He was back to sharpening his teeth on the wooden block. After chipping away at the wood for so long, the features were becoming visible, and it was clear it would turn into a fine sculpture.

Meng Hao had never been more lost. “And what does ‘google’ mean? How will it help me visit Xu Qing?”

Chen Fan let out a deep laugh. “You really are drunk! Take out your phone, get on the internet, and search up ‘Black Sieve Sect.’ It’ll be the first thing that pops up.”

“My phone?” Meng Hao asked. Chen Fan stared at him in disbelief and took out his own phone. Meng Hao stared at the phone and reached into his own pocket. “You mean the magic box?”

In Chen Fan’s point of view, Meng Hao had reverted back to a five year old. Chen Fan led him through all the steps, to the point where they found the Black Sieve Sect’s address.

Meng Hao gazed at the magic box – no, phone – in amazement. To think so much could be done in an object so small. This world was full of wonders. He was rather disappointed there was no internet magic in his own world.

“Maybe you should get home and sober up. I have a driver who can take us,” Chen Fan told the five-year-old Meng Hao.

xxx

It had been tough for Meng Hao to find where he supposedly lived, but luckily Chen Fan was there to help.

The place was simple, just the way he liked it. It was almost like he had lived there his whole life. There were books all over the place and it had what was required for basic human necessities. But at the same time, he felt like he was invading the owner’s privacy.

However, Meng Hao’s decisiveness to meet Xu Qing wiped away any guilt he might have about the lookalike’s privacy.

“Squawk!”

Meng Hao jerked his head to the noise. “What was that?” The noise was unsettling, and he knew he had heard it before.

Again Meng Hao heard the noise and he inched closer, floorboards creaking underneath his weight.

A flash of colors flew across the room and settled on the couch. Those bold, colorful feathers. Those beady, perverted looking eyes. Who else could it be but…?

“Lord Fifth! Lord Fifth!” The parrot screeched, flapping its wings as it spotted Meng Hao. It circled him and discreetly swiped Meng Hao’s phone from his pocket.

“Give that back,” Meng Hao said wearily. The day’s events overwhelmed him and his mortal body craved sleep. Even in this world he couldn’t avoid this perverted parrot.

The parrot flew out of Meng Hao’s reach and looked down at him arrogantly. “Lord Fifth! Lord Fifth!” It continued to squawk. It seemed like ‘Lord Fifth’ was the only thing the parrot could say.

“Please give it back, Lord Fifth?” Meng Hao asked, giving in.

The perverted parrot swooped down, the phone landing in his hand. It perched itself on the couch, ruffling its feathers in satisfaction.

Meng Hao decided to ignore the parrot issue for now. All night, he studied the basics of this world through the wonders of the internet. He wanted to know everything about this world – which he soon learned to be called Earth, not just the United States of America. He learned fairly fast, for he had always been a hard worker and was a fairly determined person overall.

Unlike his own world where cultivation was exalted, the land where he now resided in – a place called ‘New York’ – held theatre in high regard. Here, theatre was incredibly important and professional actors were seen as gods.

There were Sects here with reputable names that dominated the theatre world, some of which had familiar names: Black Sieve Sect, Golden Frost Sect, Solitary Sword Sect, and a few others. The Violet Fate Sect was a special exception. This Sect contained talented alchemists that supplied medicinal pills producing different effects. Actors of various Sects relied heavily on these medicinal pills to help evoke emotion necessary for the stage.

Meng Hao had a growing suspicion about this world – that it was some sort of parallel universe. There definitely were similarities between the two worlds but, again, he didn’t want to jump to conclusions.

Hour after hour passed. He learned the basics of this world, along with the simple things of everyday life. He learned about how to drive a car – the machinery he had seen when he first arrived – among other technologies. He was rather surprised to find out that he had been automatically speaking a language called ‘English’ upon his arrival, without even noticing.

He even discovered a journal which his lookalike described in detail his everyday life.

More hours passed and Meng Hao learned even more. It was soon morning and his eyes were bloodshot. He had forgotten that with a mortal body he required a sufficient amount of sleep.

But Meng Hao continued to research and research until his mind was filled with nothing but information.

A ringing noise was the only thing that snapped him out of his researching trance.

“Huh?” Meng Hao’s eyes were burning by now, but he was still lucid enough to realize that his phone was ringing. He brought the phone up to his ear. “Hello?”

“What do you mean ‘hello’? You haven’t shown up to work since yesterday! If you don’t show up today, you’ll miss the promotion exam!” The voice on the phone was irritated and altogether familiar. It had to be Bai Yunlai.

Like Meng Hao had in the past, his lookalike was a part of the Violet Fate Sect. In a way, he was excited to return to the Sect where his master was. He had been gone for so long and missed the tranquility inside the Sect.

Meng Hao was well-aware of the examination to become a master alchemist from his lookalike’s journal. It had described every aspect of the exam, so he knew exactly what to expect. In fact, he had studied medicinal plants and formulas all night. It wasn’t too hard because of his scholarly tendencies.

“I apologize for my absence.” Meng Hao respectfully bowed, but felt foolish when he realized the man on the phone couldn’t see him. “I’m actually on my way right now.”

With the help of coffee, Meng Hao was able to quickly get dressed and catch a taxi with little difficulty.

Despite all the buildings, streets, and cars, the Sect looked almost exactly like Meng Hao remembered it. As soon as he stepped inside, the aroma of medicinal plants overwhelmed him.

Everything looked celestial in appearance with the richly ornamented buildings and areas where medicinal plants grew in bulks.

The only thing that differed from before were his fellow alchemists; they wore light yellow lab coats instead of robes. If Meng Hao hadn’t seen that they were tending to medicinal plants or studiously reading from books, he might’ve thought he had gone to the wrong place.

Bai Yunlai soon found Meng Hao reminiscing in the middle of the Sect. “Junior Brother! Hurry or you’ll be late for the exam,” Bai Yunlai urged, snapping Meng Hao out of his trance.

Meng Hao nodded and quickly followed him to a clearing between buildings. They were in the public square, if his deductions were correct.

Placed in the exact middle of the public square was a huge blue-green furnace, filling the entire place with a heavy medicinal aroma. Surrounding the furnace were eight old men – the proctors of the exam.

Including Meng Hao, there were thirty thousand participants and thirty thousand worktables with computers lined up in the square.

One of the old men surrounding the pill furnace cleared his throat and said, “We shall now commence the promotion exam of the East Pill Division, where only one can earn the prestigious position of a master alchemist. The first round of the exam will test your knowledge and will narrow down the competition to ten participants. In the second round we will test your skills and determine a winner. Now go find a workstation and begin!”

All thirty participants hurried to a workstation and turned on a computer. The screen automatically displayed pictures of exotic looking medicinal plants.

Meng Hao wasn’t the least bit worried. When he got to his workstation, he calmly shut his eyes and recalled the information he studied all last night and that morning. When he was ready, he faced the screen with determination and began filling out answers. The plants were different in this world, but only barely. They were grown the same way and contained similar traits, making it easy to identify the plant, its characteristics, and other details.

Meng Hao also still had his secret weapon – the Resurrection Lily.

As he answered question after question, the nature talent of the Resurrection Lily in him began to awaken. This allowed him to use his basic knowledge of the plants of this world and expand on it so that he could find the right answer. Even if he drew a blank on a certain medicinal plant, the information for it would appear in his mind after a moment of thought.

Time passed and soon the last ten participants established themselves, with Meng Hao ending up in first place.

Meng Hao seemed to have rediscovered his passion for alchemy after answering all the questions with fervent passion. The other participants watched in amazement and disguised jealousy as he perfectly answered all of the questions. This gained the attention of the eight old men, as well as a certain important individual of the Sect.

The second round seemed to follow the exact same pattern. First, the ten participants were presented with a series of complicated machinery. Everyone was given the same medicinal plant seed, and the winner would be able to catalyze it to the most mature form.

The participants got to work immediately with the machinery, using all kinds of difficult techniques and procedures to catalyze the medicinal plant seeds.

Meng Hao sighed inwardly. It was becoming increasingly obvious that these techniques and procedures they were using were time consuming and would cause the seed to lose a lot of medicinal strength. But the participants were just mortals, and it wasn’t possible for them to nourish the medicinal plant seeds with their own cultivation base.

Meng Hao decided it was time to get to work. He pretended to use the machinery, but was secretly rotating what little of his cultivation he had left. He placed the seed in the palm of his hand, in which a violet Qi appeared.

He went into a trance and, suddenly, he was one with nature. The seed wriggled and two leaves sprouted out, followed by four, five, six leaves and so on.

Gasps from onlookers could be heard. They had never seen a medicinal plant seed sprout so quickly.

Meng Hao continued to nourish the medicinal plant with spiritual power, allowing it to grow at a rapid rate. To his delight, Meng Hao found that using his cultivation base in this way was actually helping to repair it. It was barely noticeable and could only be strengthened over a long period of time, but this was still great news to him. If he slowly built up his cultivation base like this, perhaps he could find a way back to his own time.

“What kind of technique is he using?” One participant asked. Similar questions were being asked among the onlookers.

Meng Hao’s medicinal plant now looked majestic in appearance – tall and sturdy. The other participants looked at one another, and silently agreed to give up. Even using their own techniques, they could never produce a medicinal plant greater than Meng Hao’s.

The title of master alchemist went to Meng Hao and no objections were raised. But the winner was more excited about the discovery to do with his cultivation base than with his new position.

After exiting the public square, he ran straight into the person he least expected to see.

Delicate, creamy skin and a faint flush. It would be wonderful if this was the flush of a blushing maiden but, instead, it was the flush of bloodthirsty rage. The woman he ran into was tall and slender, with beautiful hair that went down to her waist. Every curve could be seen perfectly from the way her white lab coat fitted around her body. Her expression, on the other hand, contradicted her other worldly appearance.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“I hear congratulations are in order…Meng Hao,” Chu Yuyan seethed.

Truthfully, it wasn’t such a coincidence that Chu Yuyan ran into him. As soon as she heard Meng Hao was a participant in the exam, she raced over to watch him. She was furious that he had slipped in right under her nose.

This was the man who took everything from her fiancé. Ever since Meng Hao had snatched the leading role from Wang Teng Fei in the play, The Legacy of the Flying Rain-Dragon, Wang Teng Fei had been incredibly bitter and angry. In fact, he was so angry that he had punched a wall in a fit of rage, and seriously injured his finger in the process.

It took a while for Meng Hao to regain his composure. He was never sure what he was to Chu Yuyan, although their relationship seemed like it was always on the rocky side. It had been forever since he had seen her so, nonetheless, a part of him rejoiced a little. “You don’t look so good, Miss Chu Yuyan. Could it be you’re not happy with my promotion?” He finally answered playfully.

Meng Hao was unclear about the relationship between this world’s Meng Hao and Chu Yuyan, but it seemed like she hated him, which meant everything was normal.

With a narrowing of the eyes, she said, “I wasn’t even informed that you were admitted into the Sect. Had I known, I wouldn’t have let you past the gates.” Chu Yuyan had actually wanted to kick him out of the Sect, but her master, Grandmaster Pill Demon, had taken an interest in Meng Hao after secretly watching him in the promotion exam. All Chu Yuyan could do was grind her teeth and curse him.

“Don’t let a lowly alchemist such as myself get you all riled up,” Meng Hao said, preparing to make his exit, “Now if you’ll excuse me, I must retire to my studies.”

“I will find a way to kick you out of the Sect!” She called after him. “You have my word, Meng Hao!”

It was almost romantic if you ignored the loathing in her voice.

Meng Hao smiled bitterly. “What an honor.”

xxx

The days passed by peacefully with Meng Hao reliving his experiences in the Violet Fate Sect. He studied from books, tended to his medicinal garden, and thought up theories.

His most prevalent theory explained his presence here. If he was indeed in a parallel world, it would make sense to have the Meng Hao from Earth go through the same kind of experiences that he, himself, had went through in his own world. Perhaps ‘setting the stage’ for his lookalike would balance the world and he could go back to his own time. The theory was a bit of a stretch, but it was all Meng Hao had.

“If I follow my own experiences, the next thing that should happen is…the auction where Grandmaster Pill Cauldron first made his appearance,” Meng Hao muttered to himself.

It was with sudden realization that Meng Hao remembered Xu Qing and his plans to visit her. He had been enjoying his current circumstances and had forgotten all about her.

The Black Sieve Sect was very secluded from the rest of the city. Although it was enormous in size, it was very difficult to find.

Meng Hao found himself lingering in front of the entrance to the Sect. The steel gate at the entrance towered over him; it was clearly meant as a form of intimidation.

But this kind of stalling in front of the Sect couldn't last forever and, soon enough, a woman in a formal navy blue blouse and pencil skirt met him at the gate.

"Excuse me sir," she said, "Do you have any business with us? If you're here for the auditions, then you'd better hurry. They're going to stop accepting participants soon."

Meng Hao nodded. This was easier than he thought. "I am."

"Please follow me."

The woman turned quickly on her heels and began leading the way. She was surprisingly fast, and Meng Hao had a little bit of a hard time catching up. He marveled at how fast she could walk wearing heels at least 6 inches off the ground.

Meng Hao didn't pay much attention to his surroundings. The Sect had tried to incorporate nature into the Sect's environment, but it simply couldn't compare with the Violet Fate Sect.

Meng Hao was brought into a black marble building and, immediately after he stepped in, he found there to be at least a hundred people in the building. The main entrance area was absolutely huge, but the room felt cramped due to the amount of people.

It was expected that there would be so many people at the auditions. The Black Sieve Sect was a big name theatre, after all. People would do anything to be able to act in one of their plays and make it big.

"You're lucky," the woman said, "Before there were hundreds of people here, but now there's barely anyone left. You'll only have to wait a few hours." The woman then gave him a sticker with a number on it and a sheet of paper. "Memorize your lines and wait for your number to be called."

Meng Hao nodded and thanked her. As she was leaving, she said, "Break a leg!" This only left Meng Hao confused. He had thought he had been polite, but this woman told him to seriously injure himself.

"I don't get the women in this world," he muttered to himself.

Meng Hao found a corner of the room and sank to the floor, scanning the sheet of paper with his eyes. He read through his lines over and over again, engraving them into his memory.

Cold and calculating; that was the character he had to portray. It wouldn't be hard for him, seeing as the character so similarly resembled himself.

Everyone seemed to be reciting from the same sheet he had received. The place looked like a madhouse with everyone mumbling to themselves instead of conversing.

The mumbling was broken when one man stood up and shouted, “It’s some of the Black Sieve Sect members!”

Indeed, a line of women carrying lit candles were walking by gracefully in the corridor. It was turning nightfall, so some lower members of the Sect were tasked with placing candles alongside the hallways.

Meng Hao stared at them through the few windows in the room. He studied the women’s faces until he almost gave up hope.

At the end of the line, a lonely, beautiful woman followed. She stared down at the flame, the candle’s light illuminating her face exquisitely. But the heat of the flame couldn’t melt her icy features.

Xu Qing.

Although there were one or two guards, Meng Hao slipped away without notice. In the space of a few seconds, he was able to pull Xu Qing into a separate hallway.

Her body stiffened, but then relaxed when she recognized his face.

“I heard about your promotion. Congratulations,” She said, and her lips broke into a small smile. It was with amusement Meng Hao thought of the vast difference between Xu Qings’s congratulations and Chu Yuyan’s sarcastic, spiteful one. “But why are you auditioning for The Blessed Land? I thought you wanted to establish yourself as an alchemist.”

“I…wanted to see you.”

She let out a laugh, but tried to disguise it with her hand. “You know you could have just called me, right?”

Called. He could have just called her. Of course.

Meng Hao felt incredibly stupid as of this moment, but he wasn’t about to let Xu Qing know. “I wanted to surprise you.”

She cocked her head to the side. “With what?”

Meng Hao fumbled with his pockets, looking for any kind of last minute gift. Luckily, he felt a medicinal pill in his pocket, so he pulled it out and presented her with it.

“A cosmetic pill,” Xu Qing gaped. This pill maintained one’s beauty and enhanced favorable features. Many women longed for it, but it was very expensive.

He blinked back in surprise. He had created lots of medicinal pills within the past few days in an attempt to strengthen his cultivation base. Fate had to be messing with him for there to coincidentally be a cosmetic pill in his pocket.

“Thank you,” she whispered, holding the cosmetic pill carefully in her hands.

Meng Hao rubbed the back of his neck. He knew that Xu Qing was having a hard time getting recognized in the Sect. He would do anything to help her. “I can make a few more medicinal pills. It’s no big deal for me.”

She smiled, but shook her head. “I want to work my way to the top without the help of medicinal pills. If I can get acknowledged through my own acting skills alone, then it will all be worth it.”

Meng Hao nodded. This was the Xu Qing he knew. Many actors from great Sects would buy medicinal pills from the Violet Fate Sect to enhance their skills and looks. Meng Hao admired her for choosing to use her own skills.

A voice sounded out, “Number 1023!”

Meng Hao glanced back. Now that he met with Xu Qing, he didn’t have a reason to audition for

the play. But from the lines he read, this character really intrigued him, and Meng Hao decided it wouldn’t hurt to audition.

Meng Hao turned to go back. “Xu Qing.”

“Yes?”

“I’ll call you next time.”

She couldn’t hide her laugh this time. “That sounds nice.”

A man in a black suit led Meng Hao through empty corridors. When he stepped into the audition room, he found that the judges looked completely worn out. They were restless in their chairs and longed for a good night's sleep. They had seen perhaps a thousand people that day and had very little patience left.

Meng Hao knew that, being one of the last ones, he had to quickly gain their interest. He had to perform his role perfectly, or he was done. The script only had a few lines, but he believed it was enough to impress the judges.

But the judges didn't seem to notice his presence at all. They continued shuffling through paperwork and didn't make an effort to make contact with him.

Finally, Meng Hao cleared his throat. "Excuse me."

One of the judges barely looked up from his paperwork and gestured to him. "What are you waiting for? Go on then."

Meng Hao drew in a deep breath, trying to enter the character's mind. If the judges weren't paying attention, then he would make them.

An aura of coldness burst forth from him as he said his first line, "Your smile is sweet, but your words cut through stone."

Meng Hao imbued killing intent as he stared ahead. The room seemed to become colder, and the judges unconsciously shivered.

Meng Hao continued calmly, completely in control of the situation. He had captured the judges' attention with just one sentence. "You even killed your fiancé in cold blood and he didn't suspect a thing."

He made a gesture that made it seem as if he was tenderly stroking a woman's face. This was a romantic gesture, yet the coldness in the depths of his eyes suggested the opposite. "Never have I met a beautiful woman as cunning as you."

The corner of Meng Hao's lips twitched, turning into a hearty laugh – a laugh that caused the

judges to tremble in their seats. "You led me here to help you attain your Clan's treasure, but you never expected to be duped yourself, did you?"

A cold smile crept onto his lips. "A schemer cannot outwit a schemer."

Dead silence.

The judges stared blankly at Meng Hao, not quite knowing how to react.

"What's your name, boy?" One judge asked, leaning forward in his seat. All of the judges studied Meng Hao intently, wondering where this sort of talent appeared from.

"Meng Hao."

“Tell the others that the role has been filled,” the same judge said to a black-suited man. He then turned to face Meng Hao. “Rehearsals start next Monday, 5 p.m. sharp. Don’t be late.”

xxx

Meng Hao didn’t know what he had been thinking. On top of creating a suitable pill for the upcoming auction, he now had the rehearsals to worry about.

The door to his apartment opened with ease, and he was just in the middle of pouring himself a glass of wine when he noticed a figure sitting on his couch, face hidden by the dimness of the room.

“Who are you?” Meng Hao said, already beginning to rotate his cultivation base.

A feminine giggle sounded out. “Calm down,” the stranger said playfully. The figure leaned into the light, revealing her beautiful features. She had an air of royalty about her, and her femininity knew no bounds. “Don’t put on such a scary face. You gave me a key, remember?”

Meng Hao’s face relaxed. “Song Jia.”

“My family is really strict, so it took an effort for me to meet you here,” she said, standing up from her position on the couch. Her dress rose up a little as she stood up, but Meng Hao would deny looking if he was asked.

Song Jia made her way over to him and took his hands in hers, intertwining their fingers. She had expected Meng Hao to invite her to the famous auction in the Violet Fate Sect, but she had received no word from him. This was the reason why Song Jia risked being lectured by her overbearing family and decided to wait for Meng Hao to come home. With her position in the Song Clan, she could definitely afford to attend the auction, but she wanted to Meng Hao to personally invite her.

It was sad to say this was the longest Meng Hao had made physical contact with a woman. He had no idea what to do or say, and had no idea what her intentions were. All he could think about was how soft her hands were.

“…Would you like a glass of wine?” He finally asked.

And so they made small talk – well, it was Song Jia who did most of the talking. But there was no mention of the auction. She had no choice but to bring up the topic directly.

“You are going to invite me to the auction as a plus one, right?” She finally worked up the courage to ask. “I mean, I am your fiancé. It’s only natural.”

Meng Hao hadn’t even considered it. His lookalike mentioned something about having a fiancé in his journal, but Meng Hao didn’t give it much thought. “Will you accompany me to the auction, Miss Song Jia?”

Finding a date was surprisingly easy, but creating a medicinal pill befitting a grandmaster wasn’t. It took a number of sleepless nights, and the spending of an enormous amount of money – in which he almost cried tears of blood – to finish his masterpiece.

What he created was his ‘Bedevilment Pill.’ It would allow one to stay up for days with a miraculous amount of energy. One’s strength and speed would go past the human body’s limits. This kind of out-of-this-world pill was unheard of and would cause a big uproar in the auction.

“I’ll be rich,” Meng Hao thought after he created the pill.

The Violet Fate Sect auction was a huge event, not only across New York, but across the whole country. It was extremely exclusive and fancy. The entirety of a famous hotel was rented out for the event, and because millionaires would be there, the place was heavily guarded.

The salary of a master alchemist was actually a hefty sum, so Meng Hao was able to tailor a brand new suit for himself. He walked in with Song Jia on his arm. She wore a blinding white dress that showed off her hour-glass figure; she was a goddess in the eyes of many men that night.

The scene before Meng Hao was something from a fairy tale. Everything was painted in gold, and classical music soothed his ears. Men and women wore expensive, custom-made outfits and enjoyed pleasant conversation of the upcoming auction that was to take place.

Waiters swiftly navigated their way through the crowd with trays containing drinks. One waiter eventually found his way to Meng Hao and offered him a drink, to which he gladly accepted. Meng Hao was never a social person, and figured he could use a couple drinks to loosen him up.

Nobody recognized him, which was to be expected since he was no one important in the eyes of the rich and famous. Song Jia, on the other hand, was recognized immediately and pulled away by several rich women in their mid-twenties. She mouthed a ‘sorry’ as she was being pulled along.

Meng Hao had a few more drinks before he heard a voice say, “Elder Brother!”

“Fatty and Chen Fan,” he said, “How did you two get here?”

Fatty stuck up his nose. “You’ve forgotten how much of a powerful person you have as a friend, Elder Brother. If I couldn’t get myself and Chen Fan into this event, I’d be too ashamed leave my bed.”

“You’ve started drinking before us?” Chen Fan shook his head. “How cold of you.”

The corners of Meng Hao’s lips lifted. “I didn’t know you guys would be coming.”

Fatty swung an arm around Meng Hao’s neck. “Where’s your Violet Fate Sect’s number one beauty, Chu Yuyan?”

“I haven’t seen her,” Meng Hao replied. He had expected her to torture him about kicking him out of the Sect, but she was nowhere in sight. It was odd, seeing that Chu Yuyan was an important member of the Sect.

Another waiter eagerly showed Meng Hao his tray – perfectly shaped, golden buns placed neatly in lines. Meng Hao inspected it with enthusiasm; they smelled surprisingly good.

“Would you like a meat bun?” The waiter asked politely.

Meng Hao immediately shuddered and quickly shook his head. “No thank you.”

The lights in the hotel room dimmed a bit, signaling that the auction was about to begin. A spotlight focused on a single middle-aged man on the stage at the front of the room. Conversations ceased to hushed whispers.

“Thank you all for attending,” the man began with a dazzling smile, “Ladies and gentleman, the Violet Fate Sect’s annual auction shall now begin!”

The room roared with applause. Medicinal pills were brought out one after another. This was only the beginning, so the tensions weren’t high. The rarer medicinal pills would come out much later – the ones people would be bidding extremely high for.

It was only a minute or two into bidding that Meng Hao had an urge to use the restroom. Fatty and Chen Fan were too absorbed in the biddings to notice his absence.

The rest of the hotel was surprisingly void of people since everyone was busy bidding in the auction room. Although the outside of the hotel was heavily guarded, there were barely any guards inside the hotel.

Meng Hao wandered the hallways; he had gotten lost a while ago, and there was no one around to ask for directions. He picked a random direction and went with the flow. When turning a corner, he heard a rather unusual sound.

It was the sound of someone struggling – a kind of muffling noise.

A man in a rather expensive suit was holding down a young woman; one of his hands clamped down on her mouth, and the other explored under her dress.

The young woman kicked sharply at the man, doing her best to get away. Her tangled hair indicated she had been putting up a fight, and there were plenty of scratches on the man’s face to prove it.

She bit down on his hand and the man yelled a sputter of curses, cradling his wounded hand with the other. The woman, overcome by fear, ran straight into Meng Hao.

“M-Miss Chu Yuyan?” Meng Hao couldn’t hold back his surprise. He recognized those fear-filled eyes, which once held a certain pride. She couldn’t fight back with her mortal body, and he knew that. If this was the Chu Yuyan from his own world, she would have been able to shred that man to pieces.

Meng Hao didn’t know why he felt such a strong need to help her. Perhaps this originated from some strong feelings he had unknowingly never acknowledged. Or perhaps it was seeing the dignified Chu Yuyan in that tattered state that gave him so much discomfort.

She had barely registered who Meng Hao was before he stepped in front of her protectively.

“Stay back,” he said, without giving her a second glance.

Meng Hao rotated his cultivation base. He would use just enough power to knock him out.

The man, recovered from Chu Yuyan’s bite, charged straight towards Meng Hao.

Meng Hao drew back his fist and, in one swift motion, landed a blow on him. The man practically flew from the impact, his eyes rolling back. He lost consciousness before he even hit the floor. The man running madly at full power only made the impact stronger; his recklessness led to his own demise.

“You deserve a lot more than one punch but…I’ll let the police deal with scum like you,” Meng Hao said indifferently. He had long since learned that this world’s rules were different from his own, and he had to abide by them.

Meng Hao turned to face Chu Yuyan. She was staring off into space, trying to forget the events that had just occurred. She had no tears.

“Let me walk you to your room,” Meng Hao said. He figured she wasn’t in the mood for auctions. It wasn’t like she could go in a ripped dress, anyway.

She nodded, not making any kind of eye contact with him. She was too ashamed of how gullible she had been. The man who assaulted her had praised her skills as an alchemist, and said he had a proposal to offer. When he asked to speak with her in private about it, she had naively agreed. Her ambition to one day become an alchemist like Grandmaster Pill Demon clouded her judgement.

And now she had been helped by her own enemy! It was humiliating for her. But she couldn’t help but feel something foreign to her surface in her heart. Maybe he wasn’t as bad as she thought.

“This is it,” Chu Yuyan said softly, stopping in front of a room. Many of those who had put up medicinal pills for bidding, or were bidding themselves, had rented a room.

“This is it,” he repeated. They lingered at the doorway for some time. Meng Hao could tell she was shaking, and didn’t feel like it would be right if he just left her as she was.

She finally decided to go inside, but seemed hesitant while closing the door. “I…I don’t hate you,” she said quickly before closing it.

With his back to her hotel room door, he gave a half-smile. “I guess that’s her version of a ‘thank you.’” Meng Hao slid down to the floor. The least he could do was make sure no one else bothered her for the night.

And so Meng Hao guarded her door for hours. People would pass by from time to time, giving him strange looks.

“Was it a couple’s quarrel?” One middle aged man asked while laughing.

Meng Hao was already nodding off into sleep when he felt the door behind him open.

Chu Yuyan studied him silently. Her hair was dripping wet, and she wore a white robe. “I already owe you one debt…I’d rather die than be indebted to you twice,” she said.

“I happen to like sleeping on cold, hard floors.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“I’m not leaving,” Meng Hao said decisively.

A part of Chu Yuyan was moved. She made a decision to deal with this stubborn man. “If you’re going to be like that, then at least come inside.”

Meng Hao blinked. He would never expect such a bold statement from Chu Yuyan. “Are you sure about that, Miss Chu Yuyan? I’m still a man, after all. Don’t be so trusting.”

“I’m not in the mood for lectures,” she snapped, and opened the door for him. “Either come in, or leave.”

Meng Hao waited for her to change her mind. When she didn’t, he reluctantly stepped inside. All the lights were on, and the bed was still neatly made.

“I couldn’t sleep,” she said quietly. She pulled out two glasses of wine, and motioned for him to come over.

Meng Hao stiffly sat down, not quite knowing what to do. He didn’t understand why he was feeling so nervous. It was rather uncomfortable, really, and he wished it would stop soon.

Chu Yuyan spoke up after a brief, awkward silence, “Have you heard about Grandmaster Pill Cauldron? I wasn’t at the auction, but news of him is all over social media.”

“How could I not?” Meng Hao responded in a matter-of-fact way. He secretly rejoiced. Grandmaster Pill Cauldron had been born despite him not being there to witness it. Looks like things were on the right track.

“I wonder what he’s like,” Chu Yuyan said with a thoughtful look, “I bet he’s tall...”

“He certainly is.”

“…And handsome.”

“That sounds about right.”

“And nothing at all like you.”

Ouch.

Meng Hao clutched his chest in dramatic fashion. “That hurts, Miss Chu Yuyan.”

“Good. Because you…,” she trailed off. Her lip trembled and, without warning, her eyes flooded with tears. She continued, “…really aren’t good-looking, stupid.” As the tears rolled down her cheeks, her shoulder began to shake with sobs.

Meng Hao didn’t know what possessed him to do such a thing but, before he knew it, he was holding her in his arms. He soothed her sobs by caressing her hair while she cried into his shoulder.

He could tell himself that he was crazy. He could tell himself that he was being delusional. But he couldn’t sit there and do nothing.

When she was finally able to calm down, no words were needed. There was a long, comforting silence. She drank, and drank, and recovered in her own way.

He let her.

The rest of the night was a blur. In the future they would wonder if they regretted that night or not. Neither would come to a conclusion.

xxx

The first rays of the morning light is what woke Meng Hao. Then it was the pounding hangover that really woke him up.

It was later that he noticed the petite body entwined in his. Her silky dark hair caressed his face, and the softness of her milky white skin against his astonished him. In fact, the whole scene astonished him.

Her full, thick lashes were closed, and she had the most serene expression on her face. If she woke up, Meng Hao couldn’t begin to imagine what her reaction would be. She certainly wouldn’t be as peaceful as she was now, and he’d hate to break that peacefulness. The way she was right now, with the sunlight hitting her at just the right angle, was almost enough to make him give up any thoughts of returning home.

Nothing about this felt wrong. He didn’t feel wrong. But just because it didn’t feel wrong, it didn't mean it was right.

Meng Hao’s jaw tightened, and his brows furrowed deeply.

He couldn’t stay. As much as he had grown accustomed to it, this wasn’t his world. This wasn’t his woman. He didn’t belong here.

Meng Hao carefully untangled himself from the beautiful woman. If she woke up, perhaps he wouldn’t be able to convince himself that he was doing the right thing.

After getting dressed, he lingered by the doorway. And for a second, Meng Hao thought he saw her smile in her sleep. He wouldn’t ever be sure, for he left at that exact moment.

“I will find a way back.”