First Battle Against Fierce Criminals

The moment he stepped into the energy portal, an intense spatial distortion washed over him, several times more violent than during the qualifiers. Lights and shadows flashed before his eyes, accompanied by the rapid breaths and tearing sounds of countless examinees.

When his feet touched solid ground again, Lin Feng found himself in an unfamiliar environment. The air was thick with the smell of damp earth and a faint hint of sulfur. Beneath his feet lay dark red, hardened earth covered in cracks. In the distance, continuous mountains, as if stained by fresh blood, stretched out under a suffocating, dim yellow sky.

"Random teleportation..." Lin Feng understood instantly. The Myriad Phenomena Battlefield was vast, and with tens of thousands of examinees thrown in, they were immediately scattered.

Without the slightest hesitation, his Spiritual Power spread out like a tide. Suppressed by the battlefield's special force field, his perception range was compressed to about a hundred meters, but that was enough.

[Entering Myriad Phenomena Battlefield (Crimson Rock Region). Detected faint Fire Toxin and Chaotic Spiritual Energy in the environment. It is necessary to circulate cultivation techniques to resist.]

[Warning: Detected multiple hostile life energy signatures. Please remain vigilant.]

System notifications sounded one after another. Lin Feng immediately circulated the Thunder Foundation Establishment Chapter, and a faint purple halo appeared around his body, isolating the uncomfortable Fire Toxin and Chaotic Spiritual Energy. Pure Thunder Spiritual Energy was slowly absorbed.

He chose a direction and unleashed the "Lightning Flash" movement technique to its limit, becoming like an electric light skimming the ground, quickly moving away from the teleportation point. In a place like this, staying put was the most foolish action.

After traveling only a few miles, intense fighting sounds and Yao Beast roars emanated from a rocky area ahead.

Lin Feng concealed his aura and quietly approached. He saw three examinees from different cities jointly attacking a massive Yao Beast, shaped like a lizard but covered in crimson scales, spewing flames – a Fire Scale Lizard! The Yao Beast's aura was powerful, comparable to a late-stage Martial Artist. Although the three examinees were all early to mid-stage Martial Artists, they were being pushed back and were in perilous situations.

Lin Feng's gaze swept over them, with no intention of intervening. According to the provincial examination rules, the fastest way to gain points was to defeat other examinees. These three posed no threat to him, and he didn't care about the points from the Fire Scale Lizard.

Just as he was preparing to bypass them, his Spiritual Power suddenly detected an extremely subtle, yet fiercely violent and murderous aura rapidly approaching from his flank! The target was none other than him!

"They're here!" Lin Feng's eyes turned cold, and he instantly turned around.

A blood-red figure shot out from behind a giant rock like a cannonball, moving with astonishing speed! The person was tall, with a ferocious face and eyes as red as blood. His right hand wore a metal gauntlet covered in spikes, around which blood energy swirled, emitting a nauseating stench!

"Blood Hand Tu Gang!" Lin Feng instantly confirmed the identity of the attacker! The ruthless scoundrel from Jiangbei Province mentioned in Chen Wu's intelligence!

"Kid! Die for me!" Tu Gang wore a cruel, bloodthirsty grin. Without any preamble, he threw a punch with his gauntleted right hand! The wind from his fist tore through the air with a ghostly shriek. A condensed, blood-colored fist imprint, as if tangible, carrying corrosive properties and a strong mental shock, instantly enveloped Lin Feng!

This punch's power far surpassed that of an ordinary late-stage Martial Artist! The violent and murderous intent contained within the blood-colored energy was enough to make those with weak willpower falter before the fight even began!

"Good!"

Instead of fear, Lin Feng's eyes blazed with fighting spirit! He needed a whetstone to test the results of his ten days of arduous training, and... to adapt to this battlefield of life and death!

He didn't dodge. The Thunder True Qi within his body erupted, and the second level of the Nine Heavens Thunder Blade circulation technique was instantly pushed to its limit! On his right fist, the dark purple Thunder Gang, no longer flickering, solidified into a thin, lightning-clad gauntlet that enveloped his fist, fiercely meeting the blood-colored fist imprint!

"Thunderclap Break · Thunder Gang!"

"RUMBLE--!!"

The dark purple lightning fist and the blood-colored fist imprint collided fiercely! An explosion far more terrifying than any previous clash erupted! The red and purple energies clashed, annihilated, and exploded! A powerful shockwave spread in a ring, scraping away three feet of the ground around them! The three examinees fighting the Fire Scale Lizard and the Fire Scale Lizard itself were all blown away by the blast, looking this way in horror!

In the turbulent energy, Lin Feng's figure swayed slightly, the ground beneath his feet cracking, but he didn't retreat a single step! Lightning flickered on his fist, shattering and purifying the encroaching blood-colored energy!

Tu Gang, however, grunted and staggered back three steps, each one leaving a deep footprint on the ground! The blood-colored light on his right arm flickered erratically, and several faint, charred cracks appeared on the metal gauntlet!

The cruel grin on his face froze, replaced by shock and a hint of dread!

"How is this possible?! You're only a mid-stage Martial Artist! How can your True Qi be so condensed?! This lightning power..." Tu Gang stared intently at the dark purple Thunder Gang on Lin Feng's fist that hadn't completely dissipated, his eyes filled with disbelief. His Blood Fiend True Qi was incredibly overbearing, capable of breaking through all sorts of protective True Qi and even corroding the mind. Yet, in the moment of collision, he felt his True Qi hit an unshakeable lightning barrier and was instead repelled by the supremely yang and rigid lightning power!

"Is this all you've got?" Lin Feng flicked his wrist, his tone cold and openly mocking, "Is this the kind of trash the Zhang family hired?"

"You're courting death!" Tu Gang was completely enraged, his eyes blood-red. The blood energy around him erupted, like a layer of blood flames igniting! "Blood Fiend Soul Burn!"

He was burning part of his Blood Essence and Soul Power at the cost of greatly increasing his strength! His aura instantly surged, approaching the peak of a Martial Artist! He roared and unleashed both fists, countless blood-colored fist shadows raining down like a storm, accompanied by piercing ghostly cries, completely engulfing Lin Feng! His power was more than double what it was before!

Facing this desperate offensive, Lin Feng's eyes were serious, yet he remained calm. The Thunder Foundation Establishment Chapter circulated to its extreme, lightning flashing around him. The "Lightning Flash" movement technique was executed with consummate skill, weaving through the sky full of blood-colored fist shadows like a phantom, dodging fatal attacks at the last possible moment.

Simultaneously, he flicked his fingers repeatedly, incorporating the "Electric Light Finger" with the True Meaning of Thunder. Streaks of condensed purple finger arrows, like darting lightning snakes, accurately shot towards the weak points in Tu Gang's offense, constantly weakening and disrupting his rhythm.

"Bang! Bang! Boom!"

The figures of the two collided and intertwined at high speed on the red earth. Lightning and blood flames exploded continuously, leaving the surrounding terrain in ruins. The three examinees and the Fire Scale Lizard had long since fled in terror.

Tu Gang grew increasingly alarmed as they fought! He had already used a secret technique, his strength had greatly increased, and he had expected to quickly subdue his opponent. Yet, this brat was like a slippery loach, his movement technique bizarre and unpredictable, and those lightning finger arrows were cunning and vicious, constantly depleting his strength. What was even more frustrating was that the opponent's Thunder True Qi seemed to naturally counter his Blood Fiend True Qi. With every clash, he felt his Blood Essence churning and his Soul Power burning!

"I can't drag this out any longer!" A trace of ruthlessness and anxiety flashed in Tu Gang's eyes. The secret technique had a limited duration and severe side effects!

He feinted a move, forcing Lin Feng back half a step, then drew his right fist back to his waist. All his blood energy and Soul Power converged madly into the gauntlet, which glowed like a red-hot iron, emitting a heart-stopping destructive wave!

"It's your honor to die by my 'Blood Slaughter Soul Annihilation'!" Tu Gang's face contorted as he let out his final roar. The punch, which condensed his life's power, shot towards Lin Feng like a blood-colored meteor!

This punch locked down all of Lin Feng's evasion space; he could only meet it head-on!

Lin Feng's pupils contracted, feeling a fatal threat! But instead of fear, a hint of determination flashed in his eyes!

"Now!"

He no longer dodged, nor did he use "Electric Light Finger" to harass. Within his body, the Blood Essence and True Qi, which had already approached their limits, boiled over under the pressure of life and death! The circulation speed of the Thunder Foundation Establishment Chapter broke through a certain limit!

He met the blood-colored meteor with a punch of his own! But this punch was no longer dark purple; it became incredibly pure and dazzling, as if compressed from countless tiny lightning bolts! The space around his fist slightly distorted!

He poured all his strength, all his understanding, all his will into this single punch!

"Break!"

The brilliant lightning and the terrifying blood-colored meteor, like two comets, collided fiercely!

"BOOM--!!!!!"

An unprecedented explosion occurred! A massive energy sphere, a mixture of lightning and blood, soared into the sky, illuminating the dim sky with a stark white light! The ground was blasted into a giant crater over twenty meters in diameter!

The energy storm slowly dissipated.

At the edge of the crater, Lin Feng knelt on one knee, a trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth, his right fist raw and charred, trembling slightly. But the aura around him, like the sun breaking through the clouds, had suddenly risen to a new height! More powerful, more sharp!

[Realm Breakthrough: Martial Artist (Late Stage)!]

[Strength: 1258kg!]

[Agility: 58m/s!]

[Spiritual Power: 41]

[Nine Heavens Thunder Blade Second Level Mastery: 25%!]

On the other side of the giant pit, Tu Gang remained frozen in his punching stance. The blood flames on his body had long since extinguished, his eyes hollow, filled with extreme fear and disbelief.

A scorched crack, starting from his gauntlet, rapidly spread across his entire body.

"Crack... Pfft..."

His entire being, like a dried-out sand sculpture, shattered inch by inch, finally turning into a pile of scorched remains. A gentle breeze within the battlefield blew, and he dissipated into nothingness.

Lin Feng slowly straightened his body, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and felt the Thunder True Qi surging within him like a mighty river, along with his explosive increase in strength.

His gaze, cold as ice, swept over the spot where Tu Gang had vanished, then turned towards the deeper parts of the battlefield.

"The first one."

"Next, who will it be?"