He passed out with a single slap!
Despite Brother Hu's swagger, he was nothing more than an unaffiliated Martial Artist with below-average talent. Why would Lin Zhen fear him, especially when he was so arrogantly confident? Whom else if not him should Lin Zhen lash out against?
Lin Zhen bent down and pulled the short dagger from Flying Dragon's waistband. "You see how I draw a knife now, but what does that demonstrate? Your lousy dagger isn't even fit to kill a chicken, better not show it off!"
With that, he flung the dagger far away.
Liu Le, who was outside the door, was petrified. He hadn't realized Lin Zhen was a Martial Artist and turned to run.
But who was Lin Zhen?
He was a Spiritual Mind Master!
With the enhancement of psychokinesis, the dagger traced a small arc in the air and stabbed Liu Le in the buttocks!
Not on the left, nor the right, but right in the middle!
Liu Le screamed in agony, his legs went weak, and he knelt on the ground, cursing his luck. It seemed the knife had a navigation system.
By this point, Brother Hu still didn't realize he'd hit a wall with Lin Zhen, showing how oblivious he really was.
Lin Zhen was definitely no ordinary person; he had to be a Martial Academy student otherwise he wouldn't have dealt with him so easily.
He had been foolish, indeed. Lin Zhen had an imposing aura, yet he had foolishly believed Liu Le's one-sided story and got himself into this mess.
Realizing this, Brother Hu's attitude did a complete one-eighty.
Instant submission!
Brother Hu was an old fox, aware of whom he couldn't afford to offend. These Martial Artists were law unto themselves; their crimes were handled internally, well out of local police jurisdiction.
This meant that even if the young man before him were to kill him today, although it would be wrong, he wouldn't immediately face any consequences, and since Chen Changhu didn't know any Martial Artists, presumably no one would avenge him. His death would be in vain.
Suppressing his dizziness, Chen Changhu got up from the ground and bowed deeply to Lin Zhen.
"I really didn't see Mount Tai before me. I, Chen Changhu, was blind. Please don't stoop to my level, sir."
Lin Zhen remained silent, his gaze fixed on Chen Changhu with a chilling intensity that sent shivers down his spine.
Chen Changhu continued, "Sir, that bastard Liu Le deliberately set me up. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been so blind. Please give me a chance; I won't let Liu Le and his father off easily."
A soft hand doesn't hit a smiling face; Lin Zhen wasn't interested in bothering with trash like Liu Le. Since Chen Changhu was taking on the responsibility, he was inclined not to let go.
Having taught them a lesson, Lin Zhen didn't feel the need to show off his power to these ordinary people, "Alright then, keep your eyes peeled in the future. The world is a dangerous place."
"Yes, yes, don't worry Brother Lin, I understand."
Lin Zhen waved his hand, and Chen Changhu turned and left, dragging Liu Le with him. The fierce look in his eyes boded ill for Liu Le's family.
Turning back to the hospital room, Lin Zhen smiled but didn't elaborate on the incident. His parents also didn't ask, their mindset gradually changing as well.
Compared to the Common Era, the greatest advancement in the God Transformation Calendar was probably the medical level. Since people had to battle Mutated Beasts, injuries were common, particularly external wounds, and could almost be instantly healed with medication. Bone Healing Medicine, Bone Setting Medicine, bruise medicine, taken orally or applied externally with anti-inflammatory effects — Lin Liye felt much better immediately.
"Dad, the doctor said that your injuries are not severe, and you can be discharged tomorrow morning after staying here for one day today. Can you tell me now what happened?"
Li Qin, seeing her son's vitality and that her husband wasn't in serious trouble, perked up and immediately said, "I'll explain. It was like this: your dad was setting up his stall this morning when four people came to eat. They started complaining about the meat in the buns and said the soy milk tasted off. Your dad has been in this line of work for nearly twenty years and has always been honest. How could he possibly be making dirty money? What those people said was really quite nasty. Your dad couldn't help but talk back a few times, and then those people started hitting him."
Lin Zhen nodded. These people were clearly looking for trouble, but they were not martial artists—he had seen his father's injuries, and if a martial artist had been involved, the injuries wouldn't have been so light.
Such an incident had not occurred in his previous life, but now it had happened in this one, which meant it was influenced by him.
The number of people he had offended these past two days wasn't many, only having a big fight yesterday with Dragon Slayer's men. If there were offenses to speak of, it would only be against Ouyang Yu, Zhang Huai, and those others.
"Did those people say anything else?" Lin Zhen asked Lin Liye, feeling a bit guilty.
"They said... let me think... ."
Lin Liye thought for a moment and suddenly said, "Right, those people said, if we're not happy about it, we could find them at the Black Swan Bar."
Lin Zhen nodded, and then said to his parents, "You both don't need to worry about this. We'll just stay here for today, and then we'll go back home early tomorrow. But we won't be returning straight home, we'll go to my villa at the martial arts gym. That area belongs to Gale, the security is very strong, it's absolutely safe."
Delight appeared on his parents' faces. Having lived their whole lives in a common district, they never expected that in their old age, they would actually get to live in a standalone villa—a matter that was highly prestigious in the common district.
Lin Liye also forgot his pain and began excitedly discussing future life plans with Li Qin.
Seeing his happy parents, Lin Zhen smiled and stepped out of the hospital room.
Making his parents happy gave Lin Zhen a great sense of accomplishment, yet for those who hurt his parents, Lin Zhen would definitely not let them go.
He took out his phone and dialed Zhao Liang's number.
"Lin Zhen, what's up?" Zhao Liang answered the call.
"Brother Zhao, I need a favor."
"We're brothers, no need to be polite. Just say it." Lin Zhen was now a key trainee at the martial arts gym, and Zhao Liang was more than willing to get on good terms with him.
"Some people beat up my father, and they specifically left a message saying they were from the Black Swan Bar. What's the background of this bar? Can you help me check it out?"
"No problem, there's nothing in Ice City that us in Gale can't find out. Just wait."
After hanging up, Zhao Liang called back within five minutes.
"I've got it. The behind-the-scenes boss of Black Swan is indeed Zhang Huai, that Zhang Huai from Dragon Slayer, known as Butcher. He has a bunch of societal trash under him. When martial artists shouldn't make a move, it's these men who do the dirty work. I've also found out who hurt your father; they are all his subordinates."
"Just as I thought! It must be because of last night when I beat Ouyang Yu, and now they've targeted my family in retaliation. Brother Zhao, this isn't over."
"Of course it isn't over, Lin Zhen. We have the moral high ground. My suggestion is to first have the police arrest those who assaulted, and when Zhang Huai shows up, we'll talk and demand compensation."
"Your words then actions" is the best way for martial artists to resolve disputes. Lin Zhen nodded, "Let's do it that way."
**********
PS: Been having a stomachache all day, wrote this chapter in sheer agony—it's the most painful writing experience since I started writing.
Looking for some recommendations, Heitu wants to make it to the top of the new authors' list.