Gou Sheng, the deputy head of the security department at Jiangzhou University, watched in terror as Ling Tian approached him, holding a steel fork.
"Don't come any closer!"
Gou Sheng had dabbled in street life when he was younger and was quite capable of fighting back then. He later used connections to get a job at the school as the head of security and hadn't physically fought anyone in years.
His current combat ability was practically zero. He couldn't even defeat the security guards Ling Tian had already subdued.
"I'm coming over, what are you going to do about it!
We still need to settle this today!
I heard you were planning to break my legs!"
As Ling Tian spoke, his eyes roamed over Gou Sheng with ill intent, his gaze lingering on Gou Sheng's legs.
"C-classmate, I think this is a misunderstanding!"
"Misunderstanding? Why wasn't it a misunderstanding when I was being ganged up on? Now, when it's my turn to settle accounts with you, you call it a misunderstanding!"
Ling Tian said, then directly plunged the steel fork he was holding into the ground.
The long handle of the steel fork was embedded more than a meter into the ground.
Seeing this, Gou Sheng's eyes lit up. He reached out and tried to pull the steel fork out.
With such a weapon in hand, his courage naturally swelled.
However, his hand gripped the sharp tip and he strained with all his might, but the steel fork remained firmly stuck in the ground, unmoving!
His face turned red, and despite using all his strength, he couldn't budge the steel fork even an inch.
"Oh, it looks like you're not convinced and want to spar with me!"
Ling Tian walked forward with a smile, looking with ill intent at Gou Sheng's comical struggle.
"Here, let me help you!"
Ling Tian suddenly kicked the steel fork.
"Crack!"
The steel fork, which was locked in a battle of wills with Gou Sheng, was bent into a right angle by Ling Tian's kick.
Gou Sheng was completely unprepared for Ling Tian's kick. He was sent flying backward, landing on his backside and nearly throwing up his breakfast.
Ling Tian clasped his hands together, continuously rubbing them and cracking his knuckles.
As he did this, he walked towards Gou Sheng, who was sitting on the ground.
"My master once told me that when you go out, you should be kind to others and not pick fights.
But my master also told me that if someone tries to bully you, hit them hard, hit them until they never dare again!"
Ling Tian said, arriving in front of Gou Sheng. He bent down and patted Gou Sheng on the shoulder.
"Come on, get up, let's continue fighting until you submit!"
Gou Sheng trembled, daring not to move. At this moment, Ling Tian remembered a joke about a little lamb encountering a lion. The lion asked, "Are you moved?" The little lamb, trembling, replied, "I dare not move!"
Gou Sheng was now that little lamb, completely stunned. He didn't even have the courage to resist when Ling Tian's hand patted him.
However, he felt that Ling Tian's two pats were quite heavy.
But Gou Sheng didn't know that Ling Tian's two pats were not just painful.
Two streams of internal energy were hidden within those palms.
Internal energy was a state of mastery for martial artists. If a martial artist mastered internal energy, they could be considered a grandmaster, qualified to establish their own sect.
Truly skilled practitioners could even inject internal energy into their opponents, causing their vital energy to become disordered, or in severe cases, causing them to die suddenly.
Ling Tian had not yet reached the point where he could kill with internal energy, but he had achieved some proficiency in its use.
The internal energy Ling Tian had sent into Gou Sheng would not erupt suddenly, nor would it dissipate quickly. Instead, it would gather within him and roam erratically.
The most important effect of these two streams of internal energy was to disrupt Gou Sheng's yin and yang balance, causing his bodily functions to become disordered.
A healthy person has a balance between yin and yang. If yang energy is excessive, symptoms like mouth sores, body heat, and inflammation can occur.
If yin energy is excessive, symptoms like feeling cold, catching a cold, or suffering from chills and fever can arise.
Treating these symptoms involves using medicine to force the body back into a state of yin and yang balance, which is the theoretical basis of traditional Chinese medicine.
However, due to the presence of these two streams of internal energy, Gou Sheng's yin and yang balance was completely shattered.
For example, if he had inflammation and didn't use medicine to control it immediately, the inflammation could erupt within a short period, leading to serious illness.
But if he took medicine to control it, he might shift from inflammation to a state of yin deficiency, moving to the opposite extreme.
In short, his body would never be healthy again.
These two streams of internal energy would torment him for at least a year, leaving him plagued by illness. Only after a year, when these two streams of internal energy were completely dissolved, would his body return to normal.
As for whether he would still be alive by then, that would depend on his fate.
This technique was taught to Ling Tian by his fourth master, the King of Assassins who had struck fear into the hearts of East Asian countries years ago.
Killing with internal energy often allowed one to kill without leaving a trace.
An assassin could brush past their target, inject hidden energy into them, and the target would die suddenly after some time, perfectly establishing their alibi.
Ling Tian felt no guilt in dealing with Gou Sheng this way, as it was Gou Sheng's own karma.
Ling Tian could understand Zhao Shuai seeking him out for trouble, as he was merely an ignorant sycophant, a suitor of Wang Bingxia.
It was understandable that anyone would be upset if the person they admired got engaged to someone else, and seeking trouble was within reason.
However, Gou Sheng was someone Ling Tian had no prior dealings with, yet he brought people to cause trouble for him today, even intending to help Zhao Shuai cripple him.
Ling Tian saw no reason to let such a person off the hook! He acted to deliver punishment!
"Big brother, this is a misunderstanding, please, just let me go like I'm a fart!" Gou Sheng pleaded incessantly.
"Alright, I'll let you off the hook today!
But this matter isn't over. I'll keep a record of this.
If you continue to cause me trouble, we'll settle old and new scores together!
Let me tell you, I have a bad temper, and my patience has its limits!"
"Wait, you can't let him off so easily!" Wang Bingxia suddenly spoke up.
Ling Tian paused, looking at Wang Bingxia with suspicion.
"These guys, they always rely on their little bit of power and act like bullies.
They completely ignore, and even help cover up, the actions of wealthy and influential students who engage in brawls and all sorts of wickedness.
But for honest students, not only is justice not served, but they are also extorted and blackmailed by them!
If you let them go like this, who knows how many more people they will harm in the future!"
"Then what do you suggest we do?"
"Of course, we find someone to deal with them!"