"Shang Ying, Li Jiao?" Qin Heng recognized these two girls.

In his second year of high school, he'd visited Suzhou-Hangzhou. During the trip, he met two friends he'd been chatting with online, who were none other than the two beautiful girls in front of him.

Of course, there hadn't been any intimate contact; they had only engaged in daytime activities like taking a boat trip on West Lake and strolling around Lei Feng Tower.

The tall girl with a pair of beautiful legs was Shang Ying, while the petite one was Li Jiao; both had a good impression of Qin Heng.

They were both high-achieving students from Jiangzhe University with rather high standards. Yet, in their eyes, Qin Heng was articulate, and every gesture carried an air of refinement; he was clearly not an ordinary person.

Although they had only spent two or three days with Qin Heng previously, and their interactions were limited, the impression he left was deep, prompting them to recognize him as soon as they met again.

"Qin Heng, we haven't seen you in two years, and you've grown so much taller!" Shang Ying approached Qin Heng and said with a smile, "I remember last year, when I wore high heels on the boat, I was taller than you. HAHA."

Shang Ying was about 172 centimeters tall. With six or seven-centimeter heels, she'd be close to 180 centimeters. Last year, Qin Heng was only 175 centimeters tall, and girls often appear taller than they are. That's why, when Shang Ying hung out with Qin Heng last year, she always wore flat shoes.

However, Qin Heng had now grown to over 185 centimeters, nearly 190 centimeters, a full head taller than Shang Ying, who could only look up to him.

Qin Heng looked down at Shang Ying and Li Jiao.

Truly a splendid sight.

"Why bring up the sad topic of height in front of me!" Li Jiao pouted, clearly dissatisfied, then turned to Qin Heng and said, "Anyway, why are you here? This is where the Suzhou-Hangzhou Martial Dao exchange meeting is taking place."

"Yeah, Qin Heng, how come you're here?" Shang Ying also looked at him curiously and asked, "Could it be that you're also a martial artist? You don't look like it."

The physical characteristics of a martial artist are quite distinct—their gait, breathing rhythm, overall spiritual aura, and even certain aspects of their skin are markedly different from ordinary people.

In Qin Heng, Shang Ying and Li Jiao had noticed none of these martial artist traits.

"I suppose I'm also a martial artist," Qin Heng said with a smile and a nod. He had a favorable impression of the two young women and therefore spoke to them quite amicably.

"Wow! Then you must be a martial arts enthusiast," Shang Ying nodded. "Let me guess, you must know a high-ranking martial artist who brought you in, right?"

"The person who brought me in is named Xue Yi," Qin Heng said after a moment's thought. "He's high-ranking?"

Previously, Xue Yi had been ridiculed by so many people, so he had naturally assumed Xue Yi was just a low-level martial artist from the Suzhou-Hangzhou area. Indeed, in his eyes, the mere Open Force realm was far too insignificant.

"Xue Yi! You actually know Xue Yi!!" Shang Ying said, thrilled. "Don't you know? Xue Yi is a genius who mastered Open Force at the young age of twenty-three. He comes from a martial arts family. Though their family line isn't flourishing, his father is a well-known Half-step Grandmaster!"

"But I heard Xue Yi left a few days ago; I didn't expect him to be back already." Li Jiao approached Qin Heng, looking him over. She gently covered her mouth and said, "Sigh, you've grown taller again! Standing next to you makes me feel even shorter. Anyway, Qin Heng, let me guess what you're doing at this Martial Dao exchange meeting? It must be for the elder from the Sun Temple, right? He's an Innate Grandmaster who came with his disciples to give a lecture. Just hearing a little from him would be incredibly beneficial to us!"

Qin Heng was taken aback, then smiled and said, "You could say that."

He did indeed plan to meet the Great Grandmaster from the Sun Temple, but not to listen to any lecture—it was to... kill him!!

"Then that's perfect, let's go together," Li Jiao and Shang Ying said with a smile. "The Great Grandmaster hasn't started his lecture yet, but his disciple is already explaining Martial Dao knowledge. That disciple is a Grandmaster of Transcendence! Let's hurry over."

"The disciple of the Great Grandmaster from the Sun Temple?" Qin Heng narrowed his eyes slightly and replied with a smile, "Sure."

Then, Qin Heng, Li Jiao, and Shang Ying boarded a horse-drawn carriage to the lecture platform, experiencing this traditional mode of transport.

In the Martial Dao exchange meeting, there were no modern technological creations; even transportation was by horse-drawn carriage.

Qin Heng, Li Jiao, and Shang Ying sat inside the carriage. Since the carriage was designed according to ancient standards, the space inside was not large; all three of them were squeezed together, with Qin Heng in the middle, flanked by Li Jiao on his left and Shang Ying on his right.

Both of these beautiful women were pressed tightly against Qin Heng.

And the carriage, of course, had no suspension system, so it was quite bumpy.

Close physical contact was nearly unavoidable.

Even when turning a corner, Li Jiao or Shang Ying would lean and almost fall into Qin Heng's arms.

These women were both top-notch beauties.

In his current situation, Qin Heng could be said to have a beautiful woman on each arm, enjoying a fortune most men coveted.

「After a full half-hour had passed.」

They finally arrived at the location of the lecture platform.

Li Jiao and Shang Ying hurriedly got off the carriage, blushing furiously.

Qin Heng could feel their bodies pressed against him, and naturally, they could feel his too.

Their hearts were racing.

They really shouldn't have taken the carriage!

Even walking would have been better!!

In the cramped space of the carriage, they both felt their entire bodies burning up.

It took quite a while for both to regain their composure.

"Let's go, let's go," Li Jiao said, head lowered. "The lecture by that Grandmaster of Transcendence should have already started."

"Yes, absolutely!" Shang Ying nodded eagerly, adding, "Let's hurry!!"

They were trying to alleviate the awkwardness.

Qin Heng nodded slightly, ready to head to the lecture platform with the two women.

"Jiaojiao, Yingying, you're here too."

Just then, a tall and handsome man approached, his gaze fixed on Li Jiao and Shang Ying, completely ignoring Qin Heng beside them.

"Chu Yuanlang, I've told you not to call me Yingying," Shang Ying said with a slight frown. "And as for Jiaojiao, that's what I call her, not what you should. We're not that familiar!"

"Exactly, we're not familiar," Li Jiao agreed seriously, then said to Qin Heng, "Let's go to the lecture platform."

"And who might this be?" Chu Yuanlang finally noticed Qin Heng. Seeing the intimate manner between Qin Heng and the two women, fury ignited within him. After sizing up Qin Heng, he said, "You're a Martial Artist? You don't look like one! Are you crashing this event? Guards! Guards!! There's an ordinary person who's sneaked in here; grab him, check him, and if he isn't a Martial Artist, throw him out!!"