Star Martial Era: From Mortal to Emperor

Chapter 6 Hospital Provocation, One Punch Defeates the Enemy

The warmth of the ward hadn't yet dissipated. On the bedside table sat a bowl of millet porridge that Lin Chen had just bought from the cafeteria, steaming gently. Su Lan was carefully feeding Lin Jianguo, who had just woken up, with a spoon. Lin Jianguo's face was still pale, but his eyes were much clearer. Looking at his son who was keeping watch by his bedside, a weak but gratified smile appeared on his lips.

"Xiao Chen, you've had a hard time." His voice was still a little hoarse. "I'm useless, making you worry all the time."

"Dad, don't talk about this." Lin Chen reached out and tucked the blanket around his father, his tone gentle but firm. "Once you get better, we'll leave the mining area, and I'll take care of you from now on."

Su Lan wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and nodded with a smile: "Yes, in the future, our Xiao Chen will be successful and will never have to go to that cannibalistic place again."

The family of three rarely had such a warm moment; the gloom of the past few days seemed to have been dispelled by the warm sunshine. But just then, the door to the ward was suddenly kicked open with a loud bang, shattering the tranquility of the room.

"Lin Chen, get out here right now!"

The arrogant and domineering voice, filled with deep resentment, belonged to Zhang Hao.

He barged in with three thugs, a bruise still clearly visible on his forehead from the punch Lin Chen had given him the day before. His eyes swept across the room with a sinister glint, finally settling on Lin Chen, a cruel smile curling at the corner of his lips.

Startled, Su Lan dropped the spoon in her hand with a clatter. She quickly stepped in front of Lin Chen, her face pale, and cried out, "What...what do you want to do? This is a hospital! You can't do this!"

"What's wrong with the hospital?" Zhang Hao sneered, taking a step forward and reaching out to shove Su Lan aside. "I'm settling scores with Lin Chen, it has nothing to do with you, you old hag, get out of my way!"

"You dare!"

Lin Chen's eyes turned cold. He reached out and pulled his mother behind him, shielding her in front. He looked at Zhang Hao, his tone calm but tinged with icy coldness: "Zhang Hao, I was in a hurry to save my father yesterday and didn't bother with you. I didn't expect you to be so reckless as to come to the hospital and cause trouble."

Yesterday on the school playground, after awakening his Star Martial Core, he broke through four realms in a row and sent Zhang Hao flying with a single punch. He thought the other party would restrain himself, but unexpectedly, he became even more aggressive.

"You think I'm courting death?" Zhang Hao said through gritted teeth, pointing to the bruise on his forehead as if he'd heard the biggest joke in the world. "Lin Chen, you beat me up in public yesterday, making me lose face in front of the whole school! Let me tell you, if you don't kneel down and kowtow ten times today and pay me ten thousand yuan for medical expenses, I'll turn this hospital room into your father's morgue!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Jianguo, lying on the hospital bed, trembled with rage. He abruptly sat up, clutching his chest and coughing violently: "You...you bastard!"

"Dad!" Lin Chen quickly turned around to support his father, gently patting his back to help him catch his breath, the coldness in his eyes instantly intensifying.

Seeing this, Zhang Hao laughed even more smugly: "What? Are you angry? Go ahead and hit me if you dare! Let me tell you, I didn't come alone today."

He stepped aside, and a tall, dark-skinned young man slowly walked out from behind him. The young man was wearing the standard uniform of the Mercenary Guild, with a gleaming short sword at his waist. He exuded the powerful aura of the eighth level of the Body Tempering Realm, and his eyes were as sharp as an eagle's, carrying a ferocity born from years of fighting on the edge of life and death.

"This is my cousin, Zhang Lei, a bronze-level mercenary from the Qingyang City Mercenary Guild, at the eighth level of the Body Tempering Realm!" Zhang Hao straightened his back, his tone incredibly arrogant. "Lin Chen, you only got lucky yesterday, temporarily boosting your cultivation by eating a forbidden Qi Explosion Pill! Now the effects have long worn off, and you're still that useless third-level Body Tempering Realm cultivator! My cousin could crush you with a single finger!"

This is the source of Zhang Hao's confidence to chase after her all the way to the hospital.

After being sent flying by Lin Chen's punch yesterday, he was both shocked and furious, unable to believe that a universally acknowledged loser could suddenly become so strong. After much thought, the only explanation he could think of was that Lin Chen had taken the Explosive Qi Pill—a forbidden pill circulating on the black market that could forcibly boost cultivation by two to three levels in a short period of time, but would cause a sharp drop in cultivation after the effects wore off and would also damage the foundation of martial arts, truly a case of drinking poison to quench thirst.

So he immediately went home and found his cousin Zhang Lei, who was on vacation. Zhang Lei was the most outstanding collateral descendant of the Zhang family in this generation. He passed the mercenary assessment at the age of eighteen and had been hunting ferocious beasts in the Qingmang Forest for many years. He had rich practical experience and was a cultivator at the eighth level of the Body Tempering Realm. He was quite famous among the younger generation in Qingyang City.

Zhang Lei didn't take Lin Chen seriously at all. In his eyes, a poor kid from the mining area, even if he had some lucky encounter, couldn't possibly be a match for him, a battle-hardened mercenary. He crossed his arms, looking down at Lin Chen with disdain in his eyes: "Kid, you're the one who hit my brother?"

"He tore up my test results in public, insulted my family, and even tried to hit me," Lin Chen said calmly, his eyes fixed on Zhang Lei. "I was just defending myself."

"Self-defense?" Zhang Lei sneered, his tone extremely arrogant. "Even if someone from the Zhang family is wrong, it's not your place, the son of a poor miner, to lecture them. I'll give you two choices: either kneel down and kowtow to my brother to apologize and pay me ten thousand yuan; or I'll break your legs so you'll never be able to stand up again."

"What if I don't choose any of them?" Lin Chen slowly clenched his fist.

His current cultivation level is no longer the seventh level of the Body Tempering Realm he was yesterday.

When hunting ferocious beasts in the Green Forest, the Star Martial Core automatically absorbs the essence of blood and qi released after the beasts are killed—a hidden core ability he only discovered after awakening. Unlike inner cores and animal hides that need to be exchanged and sold, this intangible essence of blood and qi is directly purified and stored by the Star Martial Core, without affecting any resource exchange.

During the half hour he spent guarding his father outside the ward, while his mother rested, he quietly circulated the "Ancient Star Martial Body Forging Technique," thoroughly refining the essence of the Azure-Striped Wolf, the Scaled Lizard, and the Black-Bristled Wild Boar stored in its core. Coupled with the breakthrough in his mental state after successfully saving his father, his cultivation naturally progressed, quietly breaking through to the peak of the eighth level of the Body Forging Realm, only one step away from the ninth level.

Moreover, he cultivates the ancient Star Martial Inheritance, making him invincible among those of the same level. Even a martial artist at the ninth level of the Body Tempering Realm would be a match for him.

"Not choosing?" Zhang Lei's face darkened, and his murderous aura erupted instantly. "Then I'll beat you until you choose!"

Before he finished speaking, he took a sudden step forward, his foot propelling the ground slightly, and threw a punch at Lin Chen's chest. The fist whistled through the air, carrying a fierce aura; clearly, he was aiming to kill, intending to cripple Lin Chen's martial arts foundation in one blow.

"Xiao Chen, watch out!" Su Lan screamed in fright, and Lin Jianguo also sat up abruptly from the bed, his face ashen.

Zhang Hao stood to the side, a gloating smile on his face. In his opinion, Lin Chen was doomed.

Just as Zhang Lei's fist was about to touch Lin Chen's chest, Lin Chen moved.

He instantly used the Star Chasing Step, his figure flashing to the side like a ghost, easily avoiding Zhang Lei's full-force attack. At the same time, he raised his hand, clenched his fist, and unleashed the Myriad Manifestations Fist, as fast as lightning, slamming it hard into Zhang Lei's unsuspecting ribs.

Bang!

With a dull thud, Zhang Lei felt a tearing pain in his ribs, as if he had been hit by a galloping bull. He was thrown backward uncontrollably, crashing heavily against the wall of the ward with a thud before sliding to the ground.

He clutched his ribs, his face deathly pale, a trickle of blood escaping from the corner of his mouth, his expression one of utter disbelief: "Impossible! How could you be so strong? The effects of the Explosive Qi Pill couldn't last this long!"

He couldn't understand how a sixteen-year-old boy from a poor family could have such terrifying strength, defeating him, a battle-hardened mercenary at the eighth level of the Body Tempering Realm, in a single move.

The ward fell into a deathly silence.

Zhang Hao's smile froze instantly. His eyes widened as he stared at Lin Chen as if he had seen a ghost, his whole body trembling. He never expected that even his most prized cousin would be no match for Lin Chen in a single move.

The three young men who came with Zhang Hao were also terrified, their faces turning pale. They retreated repeatedly, not daring to take another step forward.

Lin Chen slowly withdrew his fist, his eyes coldly fixed on Zhang Lei on the ground, his tone completely calm: "I'll say it again, I didn't eat any Qi-exploding pills. What you think is luck is just because you have a very low perspective."

He slowly walked towards Zhang Hao, each step feeling like a blow to Zhang Hao's heart. Zhang Hao was so frightened that he staggered back, his legs going weak, and collapsed to the ground with a thud, his face filled with terror: "You...you stay away! Let me tell you, I'm from the Zhang family. If you dare touch me, the Zhang family won't let you get away with it!"

"The Zhang family?" Lin Chen's lips curled into a cold smile. "I told you yesterday not to push your luck and not to insult my family. You didn't listen and insisted on courting death."

He crouched down, looking at Zhang Hao who was trembling with fear, his voice low but carrying an undeniable authority: "First, apologize to my parents. Second, compensate for the things you broke today, plus five thousand yuan for my father's emotional distress. Third, get out of the hospital. If you ever dare to show your face in front of me and my family again, I'll break your legs."

"I...I apologize! I'll pay you back!" Zhang Hao didn't dare to resist anymore. He nodded frantically, his voice trembling with tears, "I'm sorry, Uncle and Auntie, I was wrong. I shouldn't have caused trouble, and I shouldn't have said those awful things!"

As he spoke, he pulled his wallet from his pocket, took out all the money inside, and handed it to Lin Chen with trembling hands: "Here's six thousand yuan, take it all, please let me go!"

Lin Chen took the money, casually handed it to his mother, then stood up and looked at him coldly: "Get out."

Zhang Hao felt like he'd been granted a pardon. He scrambled to the wall, helped the injured Zhang Lei up, and ran out of the ward without looking back, not even daring to pick up the wallet that had fallen to the ground. The three young men quickly followed him out, afraid that if they were even a second late, Lin Chen would deal with them.

The ward finally returned to calm.

Su Lan looked at the mess on the ground, then at Lin Chen, her face full of lingering fear: "Xiao Chen, are you alright? They are from the Zhang family, we can't afford to offend them, they definitely won't let this go."

Lin Jianguo frowned and said worriedly, "Yes, Xiao Chen, the Zhang family has been operating in Qingyang City for many years and has connections with schools and mercenary guilds. We are just an ordinary family and can't compete with them. How about... we move to another city when I feel better?"

Lin Chen shook his head, walked to his parents' side, gently patted their hands, and said firmly, "Dad, Mom, don't worry. We couldn't afford to offend them before because we didn't have the strength. But it's different now; I have the ability to protect you."

"If the Zhang family knows what's good for them and lets it go, then so be it. But if they dare to cause trouble again, I don't mind letting them know that children from humble backgrounds are not to be bullied."

There was no fear in his eyes, only unwavering determination. After today's events, he understood even more clearly that in this dog-eat-dog world, only strength matters.

He had long anticipated the Zhang family's revenge. But he wasn't afraid; instead, he used it as motivation to move forward. Next week was the school's martial arts placement test, and he wanted to completely tear off the "good-for-nothing" label in front of the entire school, letting everyone know that he, Lin Chen, was no longer that poor boy who could be trampled on by everyone.

Sunlight streamed through the window, illuminating Lin Chen's tall and imposing figure. A faint starlight seemed to emanate from the young man, and his eyes were sharp as swords.

The incident at the hospital did not break him; instead, it strengthened his resolve to pursue martial arts.

Zhang Hao and Zhang Lei, who fled the hospital in a sorry state, were naturally not going to let the matter rest. A much larger storm was quietly brewing around the martial arts assessment test.