Hua Rongyue and Yi Linglong

The martial world has never been a peaceful place, and for the people of Jiangnan, the past two months have been particularly tumultuous.

First, the Tianyi Tower mysteriously caught fire, and the previous Tower Master was killed. Then came a series of power struggles across the Jiangnan region. Even ordinary people, those completely uninvolved with the martial world, caught wind of the unrest.

Lately, every night, the sound of “thump, thump” could be heard from the rooftops of some homes. Those who heard it wouldn’t dare go out to investigate, as everyone was well aware that it was unlikely to be stray cats but rather skilled martial artists.

As for the question of who was responsible for the death of the Tower Master of Tianyi Tower, the martial world was rife with speculation. However, most people leaned toward one answer—

It was likely Yi Linglong.

Yi Linglong, the former second-in-command of Tianyi Tower, was the top candidate to become the next Tower Master. Yet, after the Tower Master’s death, he suddenly disappeared from Tianyi Tower.

There was no direct evidence to prove that he was responsible for the incident, but there was one thing that everyone had witnessed.

On the night Tianyi Tower burned down, Yi Linglong suddenly appeared in the tower’s dungeon. Witnesses saw him unlock the cells and free all the children and other martial artists imprisoned there.

Amidst the stormy days in the martial world, no one paid attention to a young man arriving at a small town in Jiangnan and working as a humble apprentice in a medical hall.

March 7th, in a small town in Jiangnan.

Inside Baicao Hall.

Hua Rongyue was helping a patient gather herbs. He had been at this place for two months now and had started to take on some simple tasks.

There were two other people in the medical hall: the doctor, Qi Xiaofang, and a young girl named Wan Fulian, who, like Hua Rongyue, was an apprentice.

“You’d think after two months, things would’ve calmed down by now,” Qi Xiaofang said, taking advantage of the sunny midday when no patients were around. He sprawled across a warm, sunlit table in the main hall, competing for space with a large tabby cat.

“Don’t even mention it. Last night, I heard banging and clanging on the roof,” Wan Fulian rubbed her eyes, “It scared me so much I couldn’t sleep a wink.”

“Don’t worry. As long as you don’t go out and see them, they usually won’t break in,” Qi Xiaofang said, glancing at Hua Rongyue, who was slicing medicinal herbs nearby. “Am I right?”

“Right,” Hua Rongyue replied with a soft laugh as he worked. “If they dare to come in, we’ll report them to the authorities. No need to worry.”

Hua Rongyue had arrived about two months ago, during the most chaotic period in the martial world. He appeared to be no older than twenty, very young, and it was said he had spent some time roaming the martial world.

But in this small medical hall, what drew more attention than his past in the martial world was hia overly charming appearance.

Hua Rongyue was a tall, slender man with exceptionally delicate features. Even more striking than his appearance was his attire.

No matter how busy or exhausting the day was, he always dressed impeccably, keeping himself clean and presentable— well-pressed, tailored clothing, whether cheap or expensive, always neat and tidy. Spotless shoes free of dust, smooth hair, and a clean face that seemed ready for a banquet at any moment.

Maintaining such a polished look required considerable time and effort, and it was entirely unlike a doctor’s demeanor, more akin to that of a young nobleman. Compared to the other two in the medical hall, he didn’t seem like someone who worked there but rather someone who had come for a consultation.

Many people, upon seeing his age and appearance, doubted his claims of having roamed the martial world. He was too different from the typical image of rugged, weathered martial artists, and they assumed he was just a young man prone to exaggeration, making up stories for the sake of pride.

It was no surprise that when Baicao Hall’s staff heard he wanted to become an apprentice, they thought he was joking. Some even suspected he was a nobleman out on a whim, traveling incognito. But when he quietly and diligently completed all the apprentice tasks within a month, the two at Baicao Hall were astonished.

No one had expected that this seemingly pampered young man would be so serious about his work.

He woke up early every day, tidied himself up, and prepared for the day’s business. By the time he had everything ready, Qi Xiaofang and Wan Fulian would just be getting up.

Previously, Wan Fulian was responsible for the daily chores at the medical hall. But since the more meticulous and thorough Hua Rongyue arrived, both Wan Fulian and Qi Xiaofang had become hands-off managers.

Ancient medical halls were different from modern hospitals. A skilled doctor could sustain an entire hall. Typically, these places didn’t keep patients overnight; they operated like regular shops, open during the day and closed at night.

After tidying up the hall’s medicinal supplies, Hua Rongyue greeted the others and said he was going out to buy something. Qi Xiaofang told him to return quickly.

Hua Rongyue headed to the market, passing an alley plastered with wanted posters for Yi Linglong. He walked through the stalls and stopped at one selling pastries.

As he chatted with the vendor, a seemingly ordinary man passed behind him, muttering to himself.

“Eighth Tower… Jiangnan…”

Hua Rongyue continued selecting pastries as though he hadn’t heard anything, asking the vendor to wrap them up for him.

As the man walked away, he glanced back casually, his gaze lingering on a particular spot.

“What beautiful hands.”

Hua Rongyue returned to the medical hall quickly, almost running the entire way. Once inside, he glanced at the sky and then suggested to Qi Xiaofang, “There aren’t many patients today. How about we close early and have dinner?”

“Hmm?”

Qi Xiaofang found the suggestion odd but agreed. Although Hua Rongyue had only been there for two months, he had gradually earned a reputation for being reliable.

When he first arrived, Qi Xiaofang and Wan Fulian were wary of his because of his appearance. They often scrutinized him with suspicion.

It wasn’t until he consistently spoke to patients in a calm yet warm tone, effortlessly recited medical advice for each patient, recalled their previous symptoms, and quickly mastered the task of preparing herbal remedies that Qi Xiaofang and Wan Fulian reluctantly admitted that he seemed… competent?

Their attitudes began to shift. Gradually, they had to acknowledge that while Hua Rongyue was young and had a somewhat delicate appearance, his demeanor was steady, and his mind was sharp.

Moreover, Hua Rongyue’s personality differed from the gentle nature of Wan Fulian and Qi Xiaofang. Though he was warm, he was also rational and composed. When his beautiful face turned serious, it could sometimes give people an air of inscrutability. Paired with his strikingly formal attire, he could intimidate patients prone to impulsiveness.

When they discovered he could also make fermented sauces, pickled vegetables, and dumplings, Qi Xiaofang and Wan Fulian were completely won over.

…

After finishing her tasks, Hua Rongyue returned to her room. Before going to bed, she closed the doors and windows and placed a porcelain bowl by the window.

To outsiders, Hua Rongyue appeared calm and composed. But in reality, when she was alone in her room, she was far from the image of tranquility she projected.

She let out a long sigh, feeling as though she had narrowly escaped death.

She had managed to survive another day.

Her experiences over the past six months could be compiled into a book titled A Survival Guide for Transmigrators. In the first paragraph of this book, she would write: “Based on real-life experiments, if humans are subjected to immense pressure within a short period of time, given sufficient information and practice opportunities, they can indeed play the role of someone entirely unfamiliar to them…”

Hua Rongyue, a civil servant, an engineering major, and an otaku with a penchant for anime and manga.

Yi Linglong, a professional assassin, a human weapon, a person whose life was steeped in tragedy, and someone whose instincts and personality were perpetually suppressed.

How did Hua Rongyue become Yi Linglong?

About half a year ago, Hua Rongyue woke up one morning and realized that something was terribly wrong with the world. After a bout of doubt and verification, she discovered something in a corner of her mind that could vaguely explain what had happened.

It was something akin to a Word document. If she wanted to open “it,” a semi-transparent page would appear before her eyes.

[This is the past and future of a pitiful soul. I know you must feel bewildered by all of this, but what you need to focus on right now is how to change this fate.]

After reading the entire document, Hua Rongyue felt dazed— and a little nauseous.

Although her new body was a head taller than her original one, a few years younger, and undeniably beautiful, that didn’t mean she wanted to become Yi Linglong.

At the age of 25, Hua Rongyue had already graduated from university and settled into a stable life as a civil servant. At 25, Yi Linglong… was already dead. And his death was anything but peaceful.

This infamous assassin was destined to endure a series of misfortunes in his original timeline. As a child, he was trained as a human weapon. When he finally gained some semblance of autonomy as an adult, the years of repression led to severe psychological disorders and even mental instability.

But the event that most drastically altered his life trajectory was this— he once infiltrated a pleasure boat for a mission, disguising herself as a renowned courtesan. She became so immersed in his role that he lost herself entirely. During his performance, he committed a scandalous act that defied societal norms— he developed a romantic entanglement with another man.

After returning to Tianyi Tower, his behavior grew increasingly erratic as his obsession deepened. He began to favor brightly colored, eye-catching women’s clothing, applied heavy makeup, and his demeanor and actions increasingly resembled those of a woman.

Eventually, everyone in the world came to know him as a mentally unstable effeminate. His tragic end came when he was besieged by a group of righteous individuals and ultimately died miserably in Tianyi Tower. Even in death, the man he had once loved never looked back at him.

After reading the entire story, Hua Rongyue could only sigh deeply. From her perspective, the tale seemed even more tragic.

Because this “effeminate” Yi Linglong… was, in fact, just a girl who had fallen hopelessly in love. Physically speaking, “he” was truly a woman, but had disguised herself as a man for safety reasons.

Women in Tianyi Tower had it far worse than men.

However, all of this was to happen later. Before Tianyi Tower burned down and the sixth master mysteriously died, Yi Linglong was supposed to remain a calm and composed assassin.

To play this role convincingly, Hua Rongyue had to put in a tremendous amount of effort— wearing clean and impeccable clothing that could even make ordinary people feel a sense of distance, maintaining constant vigilance, and meticulously jotting down every detail she needed to remember on her arm. She adhered strictly to the principle of speaking less and doing more, revealing only a fraction of the truth even to acquaintances.

About two months ago, she finally seized an opportunity.

In the timeline, Tianyi Tower was destined to experience a significant event— a fire would break out, the old master would die, and the worms used to control the assassins would fall into the master’s hands.

In the original trajectory, Yi Linglong never left Tianyi Tower until her death. Hua Rongyue, however, made a choice completely different from Yi Linglong’s. Using her foreknowledge, she preemptively retrieved the worms and escaped far away. For some reason, though, rumors spread that she was the one who killed the master.

This chaos had been ongoing for two months now. She hadn’t expected the incident to cause such a stir. The martial world was still in turmoil— when would it finally settle down?

Because she wasn’t sure if her identity might be exposed, Hua Rongyue had no choice but to continue playing this role.

…

“Rongyue, the officials came by this morning and said someone might come to inspect the security in this area. Don’t wander around; just stay in the clinic,” Doctor Qi said to Hua Rongyue early in the day.

Officials coming by? Would her identity be discovered? Probably not. Although Yi Linglong was well-known, few people had seen his face before his descent into madness.

Hua Rongyue froze for a moment, then hesitated before agreeing.

---