Reverse-Flash Escapes

"Why do you think you can fight me?"

"With that pathetic electricity-discharge ability?"

"You're unworthy. You can't even touch my body."

"Only a speedster can rival a speedster."

"You... deserve only to be killed by me."

Reverse-Flash spoke arrogantly, his magnetic voice produced through rapidly vibrating vocal cords.

Lin Li gritted his teeth and glared hatefully at Reverse-Flash. He was paying for his own recklessness. If he had not let his anger get the better of him and used all his stamina to generate electricity in an attempt to defeat Reverse-Flash in one blow, he could at least have held on much longer and planned things out slowly. Even a speedster could not defeat him that quickly. At the very least, Lin Li knew that Reverse-Flash could not use the Speed Force infinitely at this point. If he held out until the Speed Force ran dry, he would definitely win.

Reverse-Flash rapidly vibrated his right hand until it became a blur, then smiled cruelly.

"It's over. Let everything return to its proper course."

Lin Li struggled to his feet. The shattered bones and damaged organs in his chest made him feel unbearably itchy as his cells rapidly repaired all the damage. In barely a dozen seconds, some of his strength had returned, enough for him to stand.

Damn it, was he going to die here?

Lin Li was unwilling—deeply unwilling. He only wanted to go back. He had never intended to destroy anything here. He had even known from the start that Reverse-Flash was Dr. Wells, Barry's mother's killer, yet he had not wanted to interfere because he knew the final outcome. But now, because of his transmigration, the entire future had changed. It had made Reverse-Flash wary and desperate to force things back onto the correct future. That was something Lin Li had never expected.

He dragged his injured body backward in haste because Reverse-Flash was approaching him step by step, his hand vibrating into a blade.

"Do you know how long it took me to create this day?"

Lin Li did not answer. Super-Speed Thinking raced through his mind. All he could do now was stall. He understood Reverse-Flash's condition perfectly: every bit of Speed Force used was one bit less.

"Fourteen years. I will not allow any accidents."

"You were originally very valuable. Now, only your death holds the greatest value."

With that, Reverse-Flash advanced with his hand blade, intending to stab it into Lin Li's heart.

Just as he moved to kill Lin Li, his body staggered and nearly fell. Red arcs flickered across him. His hand blade stopped vibrating, and his body was no longer blurred, becoming visible again.

The Speed Force was gone.

A perfect opportunity!

He had finally waited until Reverse-Flash's Speed Force was nearly exhausted.

Lin Li remained calm. He understood that Reverse-Flash's Speed Force was about to run out.

He stepped forward, ignoring the pain tearing through his chest, and threw a punch at Reverse-Flash.

His fist struck Reverse-Flash squarely in the chest, cracking the lightning emblem across his chest in two. Reverse-Flash was sent flying more than ten meters.

Reverse-Flash choked, vomiting bright red blood as he glared at Lin Li with savage hatred. That punch had broken several ribs on his left side, and his heart had nearly been crushed under the pressure.

Damn it!

He had not expected the Speed Force to have reached such a critical point. The thought of retreating arose in him. He knew how strong Lin Li's body was—seven times stronger than an ordinary peak human—along with his powerful recovery, regeneration, blood cell production, and metabolism. If he had not knocked Lin Li down earlier with dozens of rapid punches, a Lin Li at full strength could have blown his heart apart with one punch.

"You think someone like you can kill a speedster?"

Reverse-Flash did not show weakness. Even while vomiting blood, he remained proud and arrogant.

Villains died from talking too much.

Lin Li said nothing. The tearing agony in his chest reminded him just how ruthless Reverse-Flash had been. If he had not transmigrated here and been struck by lightning into this powerful body, those dozens of super-speed punches would have killed him long ago.

Fortunately, in his Speed Force state, Reverse-Flash's speed did not increase kinetic energy. Otherwise, the accumulated kinetic energy from those dozens of punches would have shaken him to death.

Die, Reverse-Flash. If you want to kill me, then die!

Arcs of electricity surfaced over Lin Li's arm as he continued his pursuit. The distance of more than ten meters vanished in an instant. In less than a second, his fist smashed toward Reverse-Flash.

But he was still too slow. Reverse-Flash turned into a blurry silhouette again and vanished.

His fist slammed into the muddy ground. Dirt sprayed everywhere, and a fist-shaped crater appeared in the mud, giving off a scorched stench. The heat generated by the electric current had burned the soil black.

Lin Li's heart sank. Reverse-Flash had escaped.

"I told you, only a speedster can rival a speedster."

"Lin Li, I will not let this go."

"When I recover, your death day will come."

The magnetic voice carried from afar. A yellow phantom, streaked with red lightning that flickered between dim and bright, ran away.

Lin Li panted heavily, drenched in sweat as he collapsed onto the muddy ground. His upper body was bare, and intense pain radiated from the slightly sunken bones in his chest.

Waves of numb soreness and excruciating pain surged through his mind, making him remember this unbearable agony.

Fifteen minutes later, the pain from his chest was no longer as intense. Lin Li braced both hands on the ground and slowly stood up.

His body craved energy, sending him the message that it needed electricity.

Lin Li found a branch as tall as a man and used it as a cane, slowly starting to walk.

This was a forest, with a muddy road running through it.

He did not know where Reverse-Flash had brought him. After identifying the direction of the footprints, he followed the tracks Reverse-Flash had left on his way here.

Leaning on the branch, he walked for thirty minutes and emerged from the forest. There, he saw a thirty-meter-high power tower.

Good. Heaven hasn't abandoned me. Once I'm fully charged, I'll toy with you to death, you beast, Eobard Thawne.

Lin Li excitedly threw away the branch and climbed the power tower. Electricity was food to him now. As long as he had enough power to replenish himself, his cells could divide, his broken bones could reconnect, his injuries could heal, and he could return to peak condition. He could recover without electricity too, just much more slowly.

That night, the outskirts lost power for half an hour...

STAR Labs.

Cisco and Caitlin were sorting boxes of equipment that would soon be moved to another site to test Barry and Lin Li's abilities.

At eight in the morning, Lin Li appeared energetically in the main control room.

A red women's T-shirt clung tightly to his body, revealing his six-pack. Paired with summer beach shorts and his bare feet caked in black mud, he looked completely mismatched.

Seeing Lin Li's unconventional appearance, Cisco asked in surprise, "Are you going out dressed like that to perform some kind of performance art?"

Several layers of wariness appeared on Caitlin's cold face. She said icily, "Change into something normal, pervert."

Lin Li helplessly spread his hands, indicating that he had not wanted to wear this outfit either.

Last night, he had climbed straight up the power tower and fed on electricity for half an hour. Once he was full, he had fallen asleep right there. When he woke up that morning, he was completely naked. He had found a farmhouse and stolen some clothes, then sprinted into the city. It had taken considerable effort to find a taxi driver willing to bring him here.

Given the circumstances, he thought he had done pretty well. At least he had not come back naked.

Lin Li walked over to Cisco on mud-caked feet and patted him on the shoulder. "Brother, it's a long story. Something earth-shattering happened last night. I still haven't paid the taxi fare for getting back here, and the driver is waiting outside. Please pay him for me. I'm going to take a shower first."