101: Chapter 101 Lin Tian Kills the Master of the Blazing Fire Pavilion

Hall Master Lie Fentian, the Liehuo Hall Master, fled for his life. The intense pain radiating from his chest and back burned like fire, and bloody froth mixed with fragments of his internal organs constantly spilled from his mouth.

He had no time to regulate his breathing, let alone look back. Pouring all of his life's cultivation into his legs, he dashed toward the direction of the West City County Yamen in his memory,

like a bloody meteor burning with despair and madness, weaving frantically through the dark and chaotic alleys.

"Magistrate Zhou Wenhai! Magistrate Zhou Wenhai! You must help me! You took so much of my silver! We are grasshoppers on the same rope!" Hall Master Lie Fentian roared frantically in his heart, pinning his last hope on that money-grubbing magistrate.

In his view, as long as he escaped into the county yamen, relying on Magistrate Zhou Wenhai's official status and those hundreds of constables, he could at least temporarily evade his pursuers and perhaps even turn around to bite them back,

accusing the Imperial Guard and the two major martial arts halls of "attacking a sanctuary protected by an official of the imperial court"!

The familiar stone lions and vermilion gates of the county yamen finally appeared at the end of his vision.

A final burst of wild joy erupted in Hall Master Lie Fentian's eyes. Disregarding everything, he crashed through the door, which was already half-closed with a broken hinge, and stumbled into the front courtyard, screaming at the top of his lungs, "Lord Zhou! Magistrate Zhou! Save me! Save me quickly—!!"

However, what met his eyes was not the constables standing in battle formation or a panicked Magistrate Zhou Wenhai as he had expected.

The front courtyard was brightly lit, with dozens of constables and runners forming a semicircle. Each of them was pale, holding weapons, but not a single one stepped forward; instead, they faintly carried looks of fear.

In the center of their circle, Magistrate Zhou Wenhai slumped in a grand armchair, his face as pale as ash, trembling all over, while the goat-bearded advisor had collapsed weakly beside him.

Standing in front of Magistrate Zhou Wenhai, with one hand resting on his saber and a calm, indifferent expression, the black-clothed youth was none other than—Lin Tian!

It was the very Lin Tian who had slain Constable Lie Ming, ruined his grand plans, and was suspected of stealing the red blood vermilion fruit—the Lin Tian he hated to the very bone!

In an instant, extreme shock, disbelief, and the deep-seated hatred and fury that had already seeped into his bones erupted like a volcano in Hall Master Lie Fentian's chest!

Any thoughts of seeking help, plotting, or escaping were completely consumed at this moment by this rage that burned away all reason!

"You—little—beast—!!!"

Hall Master Lie Fentian's eyes instantly turned as red as blood, almost dripping with it, as he let out a roar mixed with endless malice and madness that seemed to come from the depths of the Nine Underworlds of Hell!

He was already critically injured and his Qi and blood were in disarray. Now, triggered by this sudden shock, his last thread of sanity snapped completely, leaving only one thought in his mind—kill Lin Tian!

Even if they died together, he would tear this little bastard, who had ruined everything of his, into ten thousand pieces!

"Go—to—Hell—!!!"

He did not look at Magistrate Zhou Wenhai at all, nor did he care about the surrounding constables, pouring all of his remaining, violently surging Qi and blood unreservedly into his right palm!

That palm instantly turned as red as molten iron, radiating a suffocating heat and destructive Aura. Before the wind of the palm even struck, the scorching heat waves already caused the torches several Zhang away to flicker wildly,

and the constables standing slightly closer were forced to retreat repeatedly, their cheeks stinging from the heat!

"Fire Sand Palm—Burning Heaven and Earth!"

Amidst his fierce roar, Hall Master Lie Fentian, like a crazed fire demon burning his own life, carried a tragic Aura of mutual destruction as he struck out a palm toward Lin Tian, who was several Zhang away!

Wherever the palm wind passed, the air let out an overwhelmed boom, and the blue brick floor was plowed into a charred trench. The heatwave surged through the air, threatening to completely burn Lin Tian, along with the entire area behind him, into ashes!

Facing this terrifying palm strike from a Rank 3 Martial Artist's deathbed counterattack, which was even more powerful than usual, Lin Tian's pupils suddenly contracted to the size of needlepoints!

Although he had already made a Breakthrough to Rank 3, it had not been long and his Realm was not yet stable. This palm from Hall Master Lie Fentian contained his life's cultivation and frenzied hatred; its power far exceeded the full-strength blow of an ordinary Rank 3 Early Stage Martial Artist!

Take it head-on? He would definitely be severely injured, and might even lose his life on the spot!

In a flash, thoughts spun rapidly in Lin Tian's mind, and his body instinctively reacted! His "Wind-Chasing Footwork" at the Perfection Realm was instantly pushed to its absolute limit!

He did not retreat, nor did he dodge to either side,

instead, as if stepping on invisible wind wheels, his figure moved like a ghost. By a mere hair's breadth, he glided along the edge of that scorching palm wind, floating backward lightly like a fallen leaf blown by a gale!

The posture seemed perilous in the extreme, but was actually exquisite to the utmost, bringing the Concept of "fluidity" in his footwork to its Peak!

"Boom—!!!"

The crimson palm print brushed past Lin Tian's lapel and slammed hard onto the screen wall behind where he had originally stood!

That screen wall, built of hard green stone and over a foot thick, was like tofu pressed by a red-hot branding iron, instantly melting, collapsing, and vaporizing without a sound!

It left only a massive, charred hole with dark red magma flowing along its edges, along with a spreading, pungent burnt smell and billowing heatwaves! The entire front courtyard of the county yamen seemed to shake!

The palm strike missed!

"Huh?!" Hall Master Lie Fentian's hate-filled strike was meant to be a surefire kill, costing almost all of his remaining strength and focus. He never expected that Lin Tian would actually evade it with such a bizarre and agile footwork!

The Qi and blood in his body recoiled violently because the palm strike missed, worsening his injuries. His vision went dark in waves, and his figure could not help but stall slightly as a wave of absurdity and rage welled up in his heart—

How could this kid's footwork be so fast?! So bizarre?!

"Little bastard! I'll see how long you can hide!" Hall Master Lie Fentian roared, forcing down his churning Qi and blood. He twisted his body to pounce again, determined to kill Lin Tian under his palm!

However, right at the fatal gap when his old strength was spent, his new strength had not yet arisen, and his mind fell into a momentary trance due to shock and anger—

Lin Tian, who had been calmly watching him all along, moved.

He did not draw his saber, nor did he throw a punch.

Instead, like a magic trick, his left hand whipped out a handful of grayish-white powder from his sleeve!

The powder was as fine as dust, inconspicuous under the firelight. Propelled by a gentle yet precise force, it blanketed toward Hall Master Lie Fentian's face like a shower of falling petals!

It was none other than the most common thing in an ordinary household's kitchen stove—flour!

Flour? Hall Master Lie Fentian was stunned, then sneered in his heart. An ant's trick!

He instinctively waved his palm, wanting to disperse it,

but he was currently heavily injured and exhausted, and his palm wind was far from what it used to be. Furthermore, because the flour was propelled by Lin Tian with clever force, it dispersed extremely widely. Quite a bit of it actually clung to his bloodshot eyes, which were wide with rage, as well as his mouth and nose!

"What is this?!" Hall Master Lie Fentian only felt a flash of white before his eyes, his vision instantly blurring. He even inhaled some powder through his nose and mouth, choking him and making him instinctively want to close his eyes and cough.

Although with his cultivation, this flour could not harm him in the slightest, nor did it even count as a distraction, this sudden, completely unexpected "underhanded" method

nevertheless caused his mind, which was already somewhat sluggish due to heavy injuries and rage, to experience an extremely brief shock and discomfort—perhaps only a tenth of an instant.

It was this negligible lag, which ordinary people could hardly even perceive!

This was the very moment Lin Tian had been waiting for!

"Four Elements as One!"

With a low shout in his heart, Lin Tian's entire Aura suddenly changed!

It was no longer his previous quiet restraint, nor was it the violent or resilient nature of any single attribute like gold, wood, water, or fire.

A harmonious, profound, and singular Concept—as if containing the flow of earth, fire, wind, and water, and the Reincarnation of all things living and dying—rose from his body!

He clenched his right fist tightly. Beneath his skin, gold, green, blue, and crimson light swirled and fused rapidly, ultimately turning into a chaotic, hazy gray luster that condensed at the tip of his fist!

There was no earth-shattering momentum, nor any dazzling brilliance.

With a shift of his steps, Lin Tian's figure moved like lightning, instantly closing in on Hall Master Lie Fentian, whose movements were slightly stalled because of the flour in his eyes.

That right fist, which condensed all the essence and power of "Four Elements as One," was silent yet as fast as lightning,

striking with absolute precision toward Hall Master Lie Fentian's chest wound, where the bones had already cracked and the Qi and blood had collapsed due to previously taking the attacks of Hall Master Chen Qingfeng and Master Bai Song head-on!

"Pfft—!"

An extremely muffled sound, like a heavy hammer crushing cotton, rang out.

Hall Master Lie Fentian's body shuddered violently, and the expression of mixed rage and shock on his face instantly froze.

He lowered his head, looking at his chest in disbelief. There, a fist covered in hazy gray Qi had already pierced through his powerful Rank 3 Martial Artist physique, entering from his chest and protruding from his back!

Dripping from the fist was not only his own blood, but also some shattered fragments of his internal organs!

"How... how is this possible..." A wheezing sound came from Hall Master Lie Fentian's throat, his eyes filled with extreme bewilderment, shock,

and a hint of terror in the face of death that had finally surfaced.

Was it Lin Tian? Was it really Lin Tian?

This country kid, whom he had never truly taken seriously and had regarded as an ant, had actually... pierced through his body with a single punch?

Was it that white mist? No, that was nothing. Was it this bizarre fist force? What kind of fist technique was this? Who on earth was he...

Countless chaotic thoughts flashed through his rapidly fading consciousness like final sparks of electricity.

Then, boundless darkness and coldness completely submerged him like a tide.

*Thud!*

Hall Master Lie Fentian's burly yet ruined body, following the fist that Lin Tian withdrew, fell straight backward, crashing heavily onto the cold green stone ground of the county yamen's front courtyard, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Blood gushed out rapidly like a stream from the hideous, transparent hole in his chest, staining a large area of the ground red.

In his wide-open, blood-red eyes, all light had completely vanished, leaving only emptiness and deathly silence, along with that frozen look of terror that he could not believe even in death.

Deathly silence.

The front courtyard of the county yamen fell into a deathlike silence.

The night wind blew, swirling the flour dust that had not yet dispersed, carrying a dense stench of blood.

Magistrate Zhou Wenhai slumped in his grand armchair, his mouth open wide enough to fit an egg, his eyeballs nearly popping out of their sockets. The muscles on his face twitched and contorted from extreme fear and shock, and his entire body seemed to have its bones removed, even forgetting to tremble.

The advisor's eyes rolled back and he fainted completely, his crotch soaking wet and emitting a foul stench.

The dozens of constables and runners around them stood frozen like clay sculptures, their minds going completely blank.

What did they just witness?

The Liehuo Hall Master, Hall Master Lie Fentian, who had dominated Heishan City for many years with a fearsome reputation and had just melted a stone wall with a single palm like a descending fire demon... was dead?

Blown away and killed with a single punch... by Lin Tian, who looked excessively young and was previously only "suspected of being a Genius"?

Were their eyes playing tricks on them? Was this not a dream?

That punch had no earth-shattering commotion, no magnificent light, and was even somewhat... unremarkable.

Yet the result was so shocking, so terrifying!

A Rank 3 Martial Artist, one of the top martial arts experts in Heishan City, had... died just like that? Dead at the hands of a youth under twenty years old?

Everyone's gaze, filled with unparalleled shock and awe, locked onto the black-clothed youth in the center of the courtyard, who was slowly pulling back his fist and gently flicking the blood from its tip.

Lin Tian slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, his chest rising and falling slightly.

That blow of "Four Elements as One" just now had seemed effortless, but in truth, it had condensed all of his essence, Qi, and spirit after making his Breakthrough to Rank 3, as well as his Peak comprehension of fusing the four elements' Fist Intent.

Furthermore, he had seized the perfect opportunity when Hall Master Lie Fentian was heavily injured, exhausted, and had lost his mental focus to achieve a one-strike kill.

At this moment, he also felt a wave of emptiness in his Qi and blood.

Yet his expression remained calm. His gaze swept over Hall Master Lie Fentian's corpse on the ground, then looked at the surrounding constables who seemed to have seen a ghost, before finally landing on the pale Magistrate Zhou Wenhai, saying indifferently:

"The rebel Hall Master Lie Fentian put up a desperate struggle and has been slain. Lord Zhou, do you have anything else to say?"