Lin Fan struck with overwhelming force, his movements fierce and domineering, sweeping forward with torrential divine power, utterly relentless.
The expert who had ignited his divine flame was no ordinary foe. Though his cultivation was suppressed, his profound understanding of the Dao and masterful techniques made him formidable.
Boom!
Their clash erupted, shaking the very ground. The tavern could no longer withstand the shockwaves and collapsed with a thunderous crash.
Yet, the battle didn't last long. Lin Fan, ignoring all divine techniques, sent the man flying with a single punch, shattering one of his arms.
With a whoosh, Lin Fan charged forward, delivering a midair kick that sent the man sprawling. He then hoisted him up and began slapping him across the face with brutal force.
"Brat, you dare humiliate me like this?!" The divine flame expert seethed, dazed and disoriented, his head spinning from the blows.
Lin Fan showed no mercy, nearly crushing the man's skull. The attack rattled his primordial spirit, filling him with shame.
A divine flame cultivator, a regional powerhouse who's lived for centuries, beaten down and slapped by a mere child? Who could endure such disgrace?
At this moment, he felt like the naughty child being disciplined by an adult, humiliated beyond measure, wishing he could vanish from sight.
"Still barking? Believe me, I'll smack you with the sole of my shoe!" Lin Fan sneered.
The divine flame expert scoffed, his eyes glaring defiantly, refusing to believe Lin Fan would go that far as he struggled fiercely.
"Senior Sister, lend me one of those cloth shoes you're wearing!" Lin Fan called out to Yue Chan, who stood gracefully nearby, untainted by the chaos.
Instead of a shoe, he received a withering glare from Yue Chan, her expression laced with quiet resentment.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, asking a refined lady to remove her shoe in the middle of the street was far too embarrassing and improper.
Lin Fan chuckled, unfazed. "Fair enough. You're not even worthy of touching my Senior Sister's shoe sole. Mine will do just fine!"
To the man's disbelief, Lin Fan slipped off his right shoe.
Slap! A resounding, crisp sound echoed through the long street. The divine flame expert's face contorted—his nose and eyes skewed, blood streaming down in a pitiful sight.
"Little punk, still acting tough, huh?" Lin Fan growled menacingly.
The expert wanted to spit blood, overwhelmed by shame. A centuries-old cultivator, publicly beaten and disciplined like a child—he wished for a hole to crawl into.
"Oh? Still not convinced?" Lin Fan taunted, raising the shoe sole again.
Slap, slap, slap…
A barrage of ten consecutive strikes followed, each one drawing blood from the man's nose and mouth. His vision blurred, stars dancing before his eyes, completely lost to the world.
A clear shoeprint marked his face, stark and humiliating. At that moment, someone—ever so "kindly"—handed him a bronze mirror, reflecting his battered visage.
"Aaahhh!" The divine flame expert lost it, smoke practically pouring from his orifices as he roared in fury.
Compared to his physical wounds, this humiliation was what truly tore at his heart.
"Hahaha!"
Laughter erupted from the crowd. Onlookers couldn't hold back any longer, and more people gathered, drawn to the spectacle.
"What's with the howling? Answer my questions, or I'll keep beating you!" Lin Fan snapped, his patience visibly thinning.
The divine flame cultivator was dumbfounded. Never in his life had he imagined such an ordeal—pinned to the ground by a child, beaten with a shoe.
This kid's too savage! Where's the dignity of a prodigy? He's just a brutal bear child, utterly shameless!
It was a first in his life. Even his parents had never disciplined him this way. His body trembled with rage, flames practically shooting from his nose and mouth, driven to the brink.
Killing an enemy was one thing, but this utter disregard, this torment—it was worse than death.
"Just kill me!" the divine flame cultivator sighed, his spirit broken, despair overtaking him.
Falling into the hands of such a hateful opponent was the greatest misfortune of his life. He never wanted to relive this moment.
"Death? That's too easy. I haven't even used half my punishments yet," Lin Fan said with a radiant grin, his crystal-white teeth gleaming, his face as innocent as any child's.
Without that shoe measuring someone's face, anyone would've thought him a pure, carefree boy.
But to the divine flame expert, that smile was demonic, utterly terrifying.
He couldn't fathom what tortures Lin Fan had in store, but one thing was certain—they'd make him wish for death.
"Get away from me!" the middle-aged cultivator roared.
In an instant, he unleashed everything, his body surging with divine flames that roared to life, the Dao fire within him blazing as it surged toward Lin Fan.
This was a desperate move. Once his Dao fire left his body and extinguished, he'd fall from the Divine Flame Realm, his foundation ruined, never to ignite it again.
But Lin Fan was fearless. With a dismissive glance, he opened his sole Heavenly Passage behind him, sacred and majestic, effortlessly extinguishing the Dao fire.
"Still not talking, huh?" Lin Fan barked, raising his bare foot—shoeless—and aiming it at the man's face, stomping down with force.
"Ah… you little beast…" The man screamed, cursing through gritted teeth, his lungs burning with rage. Meeting such a vicious bear child was the worst luck of his life.
How did the Heaven Mending Sect raise such a monster? Don't they have elders to keep him in check?
And this style—it's more like our Jietian Sect! Reckless, more demonic than our saintess!
"Keep yapping, and I'll make sure you scare the kids around here!" Lin Fan said, digging at his ear as if the man's cries were too noisy.
Then, he planted his foot squarely on the man's nose and mouth, silencing him. The world grew quiet, and Lin Fan sighed in relief.
Beneath his foot, the divine flame expert broke. His teeth ground together, his face ashen. Is this something a human would say?
That foot on his face even carried a faint "fragrance," so overwhelming he nearly vomited last night's meal.
_
Some time later…
"You're one tough nut. I've used all eighteen of my punishments, and you still won't say who sent you to spread those rumors. Guess I'll just finish you with the Soul-Extinguishing Needle."
Lin Fan's patience had run dry. He summoned a treasure that sent a chill through the soul.
The divine flame expert's eyes widened in terror. If struck by such a weapon, he'd truly die in reality.
But after a moment's thought, he clamped his mouth shut, refusing to speak.
Just as Lin Fan prepared to end him, Yue Chan spoke up. "I know an ancient technique that can instantly probe his thoughts."
"Seriously, Senior Sister? You couldn't have mentioned that earlier? I wasted all this effort on this punk!" Lin Fan grumbled, shooting her a resentful look.
"This secret technique is tricky to use. It works best when the target's spirit is already broken, or it's hard to succeed," Yue Chan explained, covering her mouth to hide a chuckle, her beauty breathtaking.
In the next moment, she acted. With ethereal grace, a glowing mark on her forehead flared, casting radiant divine light onto the battered divine flame expert.
In the end, they gleaned little information. He was a divine flame cultivator, after all, with a formidable divine sense.
But three words—"Jietian Sect"—were enough to reveal plenty.
"I think I know who's behind this…" Lin Fan muttered, his eyes narrowing.
____
If you want to support me and read advanced 100+ chapters and other stories join: patreon.com/Caluem