Electricity suddenly ran through my entire body and I woke up- I panted while staring around the darkness, my body felt wet and a headache drilled my head. I raised my hand and reached out to the right side of my bed. I frowned when I noticed that my bedside table was missing.

Okay, not the strangest thing. I thought while I started cupping my bed. For all I know, someone moved my table or I'm the one who moved it last night. I thought to myself while I did my best to ignore the rising dread at the realization that my bed isn't just hard, but that the mattress is now missing, replaced by what feels like a stack of hay.

I forced myself to calm down when I noticed that my breathing was getting harder, "Haaaaaaa..." I breathed out.

Okay, think. You're in the dark, your bed is missing, and what? The bedside table that you always put your phone in is now gone. I gave myself mental reminders of my situation.

What else? I asked myself.

DING.

That sudden, hollow ding felt like a good answer to my question so I focused and tried to listen. The sound of chirping birds felt normal, the footsteps too, I guess, but what's strange to me is that somehow, I can hear a conversation even from where I am- "Come on Li ming, it's not that strange is it?"

The words sounded Chinese, and their tone (not to be racist,) felt Chinese too.

Why can I understand them? I asked myself while continuing to listen- "Bai Lin, how many times do I need to remind you that the Demonic Sword of the Blood Moon going missing is the strangest and most dangerous thing to happen to the sect?"

I sat there, most likely with an expression that made me look confused, because it took a while for me to reboot my head.

Sect? Blood Moon Sword? What? Did I get kidnapped by a bunch of weebs or something? The fear of the possibility of me being kidnapped suddenly disappeared and got replaced by righteous anger. I stood up and noticed that my bed isn't even raised! It's directly placed on the floor! What the hell?!

DING.

That chime came back again but I didn't even bother to notice it because talking to the two people outside felt important- "Li Ming, you know that the sword is just a myth! I've been a disciple of this Sect for over 120 years and I've never seen such a sword! You're new so you must trust me to guide you like this!"

120 years my ass. I thought in anger while hurrying my footsteps.

Then I stopped when something warm wrapped around my wrist. I faced backward to see a young girl with black hair wearing rags for clothes and dirty looking pants. Her face looked dirty too, covered in soot and dirt. Her hand was bandaged, I could also see some fresh looking wounds around the general area of her fingers.

She looked at me with black eyes full of worry, her lips looked pale, "Yu Song?" she asked.

"Who are you?" I asked back.

She gave me a sad smile, "I guess Gang Gong's hit to your head must've been worst than I thought," she used her other hand to press against her lip, then she started biting her nails, "I am Xie Wen," she said, "y-your partner in this Sect."

There goes the whole Sect bullshit again. I thought for a moment before the realization hit me like a truck, "Why can I understand you?" I asked, it was very strange because I know for a fact that we're speaking Chinese but here I am, perfectly understanding Xie Wen with clarity, "I don't speak Chinese." I said.

Xie Wen bit her nail even harder, "I- I don't know what you're talking about but the language of Immortals should not be disrespected or the heavenly Dao will strike you down," she replied and I violently took my wrist away from her hand, "Yu Song-"

"Shut the fuck up." I pushed my face closer to hers and she turned red, "I don't know what the fuck you're talking about okay? I'm American and I don't speak Chinese-"

"AHHHHHH!" incredible pain assaulted my head and I fell to my knees. I grasped my hair and started pulling, I yelled and screamed and kicked. Something warm ran down my cheeks and when I pulled my hand back to stare at it, I saw through my blurry vision that the entire thing is colored in a deep red. Then the pain worsened and I felt like I was getting cooked alive, then it subsided, replaced by an indescribable chill that shook me down to my bones, and then finally, it disappeared.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

When I came to, I came face to face with two clean looking people wearing what I can only describe as bathrobes. I stood up and winced, "Ow," I touched my head and flinched, "fuck that's painful," I cursed.

I glared at the two people in front of me, "And what-" I stopped talking when a hand placed itself on top of my mouth. Right next to me is a crying Xie Wen, she looked panicked and was bowing down.

"This mortal is sorry for disrespecting the great Cultivators of Deep Running Rivers and Oceans Sect!" I tried to speak but Xie Wen pushed my head down, making me kowtow alongside her, "Please forgive us!"

I heard a scoff and got angry but that anger turned to fear when an unseen pressure washed over me.

It disappeared a few seconds later and was replaced by an uninterested, cold voice, "very well, that bastard is forgiven, it is not every day that I get to see a show from the Heavenly Dao after all."

Heavenly Dao? Bastard? What the fuck? I wanted to ask why the guy is speaking the way he does but honestly? I'm starting to believe that there's probably a reason behind it. That pressure earlier didn't just affect me, no, even in my weakened state, I heard my surroundings shake and creak.

I swear I heard something fall down at one point too.

Xie Wen and I stayed in that position until the room went dark again. When I stood up, I tried to say something to the girl but she hugged me before I could, "Yu Song what were you thinking?!" she yelled, "I told you that the Heavenly Dao would punish you but you didn't listen!"

"I-" I stuttered, did the Heavenly Dao actually exist? That felt way too real. I touched my face, it felt cold, "I'm sorry Xie Wen." my body slumped into her arms weakly, "I won't do it again."

DING.

I heard the gong again and frowned, "do you hear that?"

Xie Wen nodded, "Yes, it comes from the giant bell on the third floor of the Sect's Alchemist Pavillion, it tells us outer disciples that work is starting soon." she held my hand, "When we hear the sixth bell, it means that we have no choice but to go out and start working for the Sect."

I nodded, "I see," light is in the room now and it's so much easier to see compared to when I first woke up, "we should get going then."

I met Xie Wen's eyes, they looked worried, "are you gonna be okay Yu Song?" she looked somewhere to her left and stayed silent for a while. "Gang Gong is gonna see you again today and we both know that he's gonna fight you again when he sees you're fine," her grip tightened around my hand, "I don't wanna go with him Yu Song."

What? I asked internally, What the fuck do you mean you don't wanna go with him?

Did the world just dump the problems of the original owner of this body on me? Why am I stuck with Xie Wen? Why couldn't have I just been given a better situation?

"What do you mean by that Xie Wen?" I forced a smile, "I don't- I don't get it?" what the fuck does Gang Gong want from me? Xie Wen, obviously, but why Xie Wen? "Can you tell me why Gang Gong wants you?"

Xie Wen blushed, "i-it's because he wants me to be his woman,"

Ah, so typical Xianxia stuff. "So what? You're a Jade beauty?"

Xie Wen got redder? "J-Jade beauty?" she shook her head, "I wish!" she said while smiling, "I think Gang Gong just thinks I'm pretty."

"I want to see you clean now actually," I said while looking her up and down. The Xie Wen in front of me did look pretty good, and since she's been working as an outer sect all this time, the body underneath the baggy, rag-like clothes she's wearing probably isn't bad either.

"You know what? Is there a shower here?" I started looking around.

Xie Wen blushed even harder, "Y-yes?" she said bashfully, "There is," she pointed somewhere and I followed her finger to a corner of this hut. It looked simple, just two walls right next to each other with a small opening covered by a tarp for privacy, "see?"

She looked at me and I looked back, "I see it yeah," I looked at Xie Wen, and out of curiosity, I pulled on her shirt and yep, she has curves, "yeah, you don't look bad." I said.

Tossing the part where I probably got a bit too forceful with her just now, my relationship with Xie Wen feels pretty strange to me, I mean it just... it feels so cliche.

I frowned at the thought and looked up, What the fuck, Heavenly Dao?

If the thing heard me, it probably didn't care because I feel fine.

"Alright Xie Wen, I think it's best if we prepare for the day." at my words, Xie Wen's dazed expression straightened up. It was like she was snapped out of her own head. I'd like to think that she was just shy but... I don't know, Xie Wen feels a bit off to me. I'd wait and see before making a move on her, "you go first," I said to her.

"A-ah right," she giggled, "okay! See you later Yu Song!"

Again, it feels like an act. Girls don't talk like that unless they want something from you. I reminded myself mentally.

While Xie Wen cleaned herself, I ran around our house to see what kind of place I am gonna start living in for the foreseeable future and except for two beds made of hay and topped with rags to make a bedsheet. I pulled on the cloth that the original Yu Song considered his Bedsheet, "yeah, it looks shitty," I said in disgust, "feels shitty too."

After that I dug through the hay and found something interesting, it was a stone, green in color, and had a whirlpool pattern at its center. Touching it alone energized me. Just from looking at it, I already know what it is, "a spirit stone," I said.

I looked at the bathroom Xie Wen is currently in and then put the spirit stone back into the bed, "huh, this feels like a reason why she's with me."

Did Xie Wen want my- Yu Song's spirit stone? I don't know, but I'll see soon enough.