Chapter 248 247: Sneak Attack

Mu Lin was perfectly calm. "Come and get me if you've got the guts. But you never, ever should have laid a hand on Lin Shishi and Hong Rui."

The old man said, "If they hadn't been with you, why would I have gone after them? If anyone's to blame, it's you!"

Mu Lin's face hardened. "Have you no shame?"

"Shame? What good is that?"

"Originally, you might have had a chance to live. But since you laid a hand on them... I'm sorry, but I'm telling you right now: today, you will die."

The old man roared with laughter. "I, Pan Tianhai, have to say this: I've roamed the Jianghu for decades, and I can't count the number of people who have said those exact words to me. And do you know what happened to them?"

Pan Tianhai smirked. "They're all dead. Every last one of them. Why? Because they were all dumbasses like you who love to run their mouths. Haven't you heard? Fools die from talking too much."

Suddenly, Mu Lin felt a pressure closing in on him. He glanced back and saw a cloud of black gas.

It was almost identical to the last one.

Mu Lin's eyes narrowed. 'So Pan Tianhai is launching a sneak attack.'

'He was just talking to distract me, hiding this cloud of black gas behind my back to attack at the right moment.'

Mu Lin's entire body trembled as his Qi Force vibrated the surrounding air, sending a violent shockwave surging outward.

The black gas instantly dissipated.

"Is that all you've got?" Mu Lin said nonchalantly.

Pan Tianhai chuckled. "Truly worthy of an Innate Master. That technique of projecting Gang Qi from your body is exquisite. You make it look so easy."

"However, it seems you've overlooked something," Pan Tianhai said with a grin.

Mu Lin's eyes narrowed. He didn't think he'd overlooked anything.

"And what might that be?"

Suddenly, Pan Tianhai stomped his foot with immense force. A massive crack instantly appeared in the ground.

The crack, terrifyingly, snaked its way toward Mu Lin.

Immediately, a jet of black gas erupted from the fissure and lunged at Mu Lin.

It was too late for Mu Lin to dodge. He hastily tried to mobilize his aura to shield himself.

But it was too late.

He was completely engulfed.

His skin was instantly corroded by the black gas, turning it the color of ink.

The faint traces on the necks of Lin Shishi and Hong Rui had been enough to cause significant changes within their bodies.

Mu Lin, however, was turning black over large areas of his body.

One could only imagine the dosage Pan Tianhai had used to completely envelop him like this.

There was no telling how many people such a dose could fell.

"Hehehe, kid, I know you're strong. But when it comes to scheming and backstabbing, you're still far too green."

"I knew it the moment you extracted my divine sense from that woman's body. I've been making thorough preparations ever since!"

The poisonous gas spread rapidly, turning Mu Lin's entire body a horrifying shade of black.

Mu Lin glared at Pan Tianhai, his voice icy. "Your poison gas is incredibly lethal and truly formidable. Your control is masterful. It's no wonder you've won."

Pan Tianhai was incredibly smug. Nothing was more satisfying than being praised by an enemy.

Especially when that person was his enemy.

"But of course. My entire life's work is dedicated to poison. How could a young whelp like you possibly look down on it?"

In his early years, he had used poison to assassinate a master of extremely high cultivation, who ended up dying a miserable death.

At the time, he was merely a Grandmaster, while that expert was a first-rank Grandmaster.

The man's eyes were filled with disbelief as he died.

The memory was seared into Pan Tianhai's mind, and he continued to hone his craft from then on.

Now that his skills had reached their peak, what was there left to fear?

'This Mu Lin fellow is as good as dead.'

Pan Tianhai smugly circled Mu Lin twice. "Ah, young man, I can only say you have terrible luck, showing up now. Otherwise, I would have certainly waited until after I found the Bai Family's Sword Skill to come for you. Then, I would have given you a much quicker death."

Mu Lin could no longer stand. He collapsed to the ground and asked weakly:

"The Bai Family Sword Skill... what's that?"

Pan Tianhai sneered. "You really are young, aren't you? To not even know about that."

After his taunt, he continued slowly, "The old Patriarch of the Bai Family—the father of the current Patriarch, Bai Jingjing—was a Martial Arts Grandmaster in his youth, famous for his Sword Skill. He once faced Dong Wu, and they fought to a draw. After that, his fame exploded, and his name was known everywhere."

"Everyone knew he possessed a sword manual that could turn anyone into a master. He was plagued by countless thieves and extortionists. Eventually, Elder Bai grew so tired of it all that he threw the manual into a fire and burned it."

Mu Lin said, "You're a real piece of work. The manual is clearly gone, so why are you still killing the Bai Family? Do you think this is a video game where they'll drop a secret scroll?"

Pan Tianhai said, "I know the Bai Family has a hidden treasury where they keep all sorts of things. The sword manual is bound to be in there."

"Every single member of the Bai Family is shameless. They refuse to hand it over."

"It's not that I wanted to kill them. They're just too pathetic. I barely touched them, and they died!"

Mu Lin asked, "Are you done?"

Pan Tianhai narrowed his eyes and rubbed his hands together. "What, you can't wait to die?"

"Then I'll grant you your wish," Pan Tianhai sneered, walking toward Mu Lin, certain the poison had paralyzed him completely.

'In that case, I might as well send him on his way.'

He raised his hand, preparing to shatter Mu Lin's skull. He would give him a quick death, then go find the Bai Family's treasury.

But as his hand came down, it was caught by Mu Lin's.

Mu Lin's hand was still tinged with black, and where they made contact, the poison even began to flow back toward Pan Tianhai.

However, Pan Tianhai had long since adapted to his own poison, so he wasn't seriously affected.

Pan Tianhai's eyes widened. "You're..."

'How can he still move after being exposed to such a concentrated dose of my poison?'

Normally, even an expert at the Peak of Grandmaster would have no choice but to wait for death in this situation.

Mu Lin smiled. To Pan Tianhai's astonishment, he watched as the black color drained from Mu Lin's skin, the effects of the poison vanishing completely.

"Impossible! How did you do that? The amount of poison I released was enough to immobilize ten Martial Arts Grandmasters, so why are you perfectly fine?"

Mu Lin smiled faintly. "Yes, why am I fine? Why don't you let your imagination run wild?"

But Pan Tianhai yelled, "No, it's impossible! I've even killed a Grandmaster! You're too young, you can't possibly be stronger than a Grandmaster!"

Mu Lin grinned. "You're right, I'm not. But since I already knew you were a master of poisons, did you really think I'd come completely unprepared?"

He held out his hand, palm down, and then used a fingernail to pierce the skin.

Then, Pan Tianhai watched in shock as large drops of blackish-purple blood dripped to the ground.

As they hit the concrete, they sizzled, eating small pits into the surface.

The drops fell one after another, relentlessly.

Pan Tianhai's expression was grim. His poison had been rendered completely useless.

He had refined this insidious poison over and over using his own life force; every last drop was incredibly precious.

But now, Mu Lin had expelled all of it.

'What is going on?'

'He expelled all of it.'

While Pan Tianhai was still reeling in shock, Mu Lin kicked him.

The old man, who relied solely on poison, went flying and rolled three times across the ground.

A jet of icy marrow shot from Mu Lin's palm, enveloping the old man.

In the blink of an eye, the old man's legs were frozen solid.

Having relied on poison for years, he had no skill in direct combat and was completely powerless against the icy marrow.

Mu Lin laughed. "Look at you now. You're screwed, aren't you?!"

Pan Tianhai pointed a trembling finger at Mu Lin. "How did you do it?! How are you unharmed?"

Mu Lin said, "I told you. Poison is a low-class tactic. It's nothing for the grand stage, and it can never defeat absolute strength."

"No, impossible!" Pan Tianhai thought back to all the powerful people he had killed with his insidious methods. "Didn't I defeat all of them?"

'So why can't I beat Mu Lin?'

To him, Mu Lin looked like a demon, his menacing aura surging as he closed in for the kill.

Mu Lin stepped forward. "I told you I would kill you. Do you have any last words?"

Pan Tianhai's eyes were filled with fear and disbelief.

Watching Mu Lin's steady advance, he cried out, "You can't kill me! If you do, my master will surely avenge me! You can't handle his power!"

Mu Lin smiled. "And who's your master? What if I'm not afraid of him?"