Late at night, in the bar at Lingjiang Airport, a handsome young man frowned so hard his brows practically tied themselves into a knot.

“Shifu’s wife, I’m only twenty-two, okay? Even if you’re trying to push me into marriage, isn’t this a bit too hardcore?”

From the phone came a sharp, no-nonsense voice.

“You’ve got a disaster written into your fate. If you don’t want to get struck to death by lightning, then you must marry a woman with the Heavenly Phoenix body and break the calamity. Got it?”

Brock Lorne curled his lips. “The problem is, I haven’t even seen the girl’s face.”

“You little brat, you still dare talk back to me? I picked her out myself. You think her looks could be bad?”

“Shifu’s wife, I…”

“What ‘I’? I need my beauty sleep. No time to waste on you, you little punk. I’m hanging up!”

Beep. Beep. Beep.

“She really hung up?”

Brock stared at the disconnected call, then let out a long sigh. “This is so messed up. I haven’t even enjoyed life enough yet, and now I’m already being forced into marriage.”

Just half a day ago, he’d still been lounging on a beach overseas, living the dream. Then by night, one phone call from his shifu’s wife had dragged him straight back to the country.

He’d wanted to refuse.

But she had said that when he turned twenty-four, a major calamity would strike. Before that happened, he had to marry a woman with the Heavenly Phoenix body to break it. Otherwise, heavenly lightning would blast him to death on the spot.

So in the end, Brock had no choice but to come back obediently.

In his hand was a yellowed marriage contract. His mood was rotten beyond words. On it was the name of the girl he was supposed to marry: Alvina Hollister, president of the Lingjiang Su Group.

“Don’t tell me Shifu’s wife got scammed too? What does this fiancée of mine even look like?”

Brock sat there with nothing better to do, sipping tea lazily. Every now and then, his gaze drifted toward the women on the sofa across from him.

They were dressed in revealing clothes, all curves and skin, each one heavily made up, with sultry faces and movements dripping with provocation. Especially the full swells at their chests—enough to make ordinary men lose their minds on the spot.

Brock looked twice, then instantly lost interest.

“Tacky. Seriously tacky.”

Right then, a cold, bitter voice suddenly rose from the bar counter.

“I’d rather die than marry trash like Beresford Whitmore!”

Brock turned his head.

A stunning beauty was sitting there alone, drinking herself into a bad mood.

She was tall and elegant, her features delicate and flawless, her skin pale as fresh snow. Her curved brows were fine and soft, and her rosy lips looked as bright and sweet as cherries.

Her silky black hair spilled casually over her shoulders, smooth and glossy, making her already porcelain-white skin look even more striking.

That long, graceful neck. The proud rise of her chest. The rounded curve of her hips. Her slim, straight legs…

That S-shaped figure was honestly unfair.

Brock couldn’t help thinking, if my fiancée looked even half this good, I’d be thanking the heavens.

“Wow. Same tragic situation, huh?” Brock walked over and sat down beside her, clearly in the mood to chat a little deeper.

Hearing him, Alvina lifted her beautiful eyes and looked at him. “You’re being forced into marriage too?”

“Yeah.” Brock nodded. “My shifu’s wife wants me to marry a woman I’ve never even met. I’m just thinking—what if she’s a total pig-headed mess?”

Alvina burst out laughing. “Then yeah, we really are in the same boat. Come on, cheers.”

She raised her glass and clinked it against his.

Brock smiled. “What about you? What’s your story?”

Alvina gently swirled the drink in her glass. A trace of sorrow floated through her eyes.

“My parents want me to marry the young master of one of the Four Great Families. But that guy is a complete scumbag. The real deal. Human garbage.”

“Oh, got it.” Brock nodded.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. Her fingers tightened around the glass.

“I, Alvina Hollister, would rather die than marry him.”

Brock froze for a second. “Wait. Your name is Alvina Hollister?”

Alvina looked at him. “What? Is that a problem?”

“My fiancée is also named Alvina Hollister,” Brock blurted out.

Alvina laughed right away. “Cute guy, but your pickup line is seriously weak.”

“It’s not weak at all. I’m telling the truth.”

As he spoke, Brock reached for the marriage contract.

But before he could take it out, Alvina suddenly swayed. Her vision blurred, her body went limp, and the next second she collapsed straight into Brock’s arms.

“Drunk?”

Brock paused, then quickly placed two fingers on her wrist to check her pulse.

A second later, his expression changed.

“She’s been drugged?”

His brows drew together. He was just about to carry Alvina out of the bar when six fierce-looking thugs strode toward them.

The burly man in front sized up the unconscious Alvina in Brock’s arms, his face full of filthy lust.

“Kid, that chick belongs to us. If you don’t want to die, leave her here and get lost.”

Brock let out a mocking laugh. “Leave her for your mom.”

The man’s face instantly twisted with rage. “Damn it, you’ve got a death wish!”

With a wave of his hand, he signaled the others to rush Brock together.

Holding Alvina, Brock shifted two steps to the side. Then his hand flashed.

Several silver needles shot out in an instant.

Pfft. Pfft. Pfft.

The needles struck precise acupoints on the men’s bodies.

In the blink of an eye, all six thugs crashed to the floor, shrieking in pain.

Without even sparing them another glance, Brock carried Alvina toward the exit. But as he passed the fallen men, the lead thug still kept barking threats.

“You little punk, you’re dead! You messed with people you should never have messed with!”

“Oh? You like yelling?”

Brock narrowed his eyes, then lifted his leg and drove a kick straight into the man’s crotch.

“Awoooo!”

The scream that came out was so tragic it could’ve shattered glass.

The thug’s body curled up instantly. Both hands clutched his groin, and his whole face twisted in agony.

…

A few minutes later, in a nearby hotel.

Brock looked at Alvina, who was tossing and struggling on the bed, and felt his patience wearing thin.

“Could you cooperate a little?”

What Alvina had been hit with was a kind of gu poison from overseas. Nasty stuff. Extremely vile. If the victim didn’t sleep with someone within an hour, their body would rupture and they’d die.

“Good thing you ran into me. Otherwise, you’d be so dead you wouldn’t even have time to cry about it.”

Brock sliced open his fingertip and brought the bleeding finger to her lips.

His body was immune to all poisons. His essence blood could neutralize virtually any toxin in the world. The poison in Alvina’s body was no exception.

But Alvina seemed to sense danger even in her haze. She clenched her teeth shut and refused to open her mouth.

“Unbelievable. You really don’t know what’s good for you.”

Brock snorted. Then, without another word, he pried her lips apart and forced the blood in.

“Cough, cough, cough…”

Still half-unconscious, Alvina started coughing violently, then suddenly bit Brock hard.

Brock jerked back and quickly let go. Watching her spit it out in a panic, he got annoyed.

“What are you, part dog? Why are you so obsessed with biting people?”

Still, some of it had gone down. The poison rapidly began to dissolve, and before long, Alvina drifted into a deep sleep.

Brock looked at her quiet, gentle sleeping face and muttered to himself,

“She’s also called Alvina Hollister… could she really be the fiancée I’m supposed to find?

I ran into her in a bar right after getting off the plane. That’s way too much of a coincidence.

Forget it. I’ll ask her properly when she wakes up tomorrow morning.”

It was already late, and Brock didn’t think too much more about it. He simply dropped onto the bed beside Alvina and went to sleep.

Early the next morning.

“Ahhh!”

A piercing scream suddenly exploded through the room.

Brock snapped his eyes open and looked over.

Alvina was sitting upright at the head of the bed, clutching her chest tightly with both hands. Her eyes were wide round with shock, and she was glaring at him with pure fury burning in them…