Chapter 139: One Punch Knockout

As Luo Lin walked toward Trishi step by step, the grievances that had accumulated between them over the years surfaced in his mind.

Seven years ago, when Luo Lin and Karina first arrived at Potter Academy to register, Trishi had blocked Karina’s path with a snide remark, marking the beginning of their animosity. Later, Trishi led the students of Dorm 1991 to challenge Dorm 2015, setting the stage for a long-standing rivalry.

A few months later, in front of the cafeteria, Trishi—who had already become a First-Rank Mage—cast a Fireball spell that nearly severely injured their leader, Mahler. Fortunately, Luo Lin arrived just in time to save him. Half a year after that, in the fire-attribute class, Luo Lin and Trishi had their first formal duel under the supervision of Teacher Monroe to test their fire element affinity. The match ended in a stalemate, and just as they were about to go all out, Monroe intervened.

Following the first-year end-of-term competition, Trishi attacked Luo Lin because of Karina, only to be stopped by the arrival of Victoria.

From their days as First-Rank Mages to Second-Rank, the two remained evenly matched. The balance was only shattered when Luo Lin became the first to break through to the Third Rank. After returning safely from several months of training in the Maya Mountains, Luo Lin’s reputation was at its peak, and Trishi found himself firmly suppressed.

However, in the years that followed, as Trishi achieved successive breakthroughs while Luo Lin remained stagnant at the Third Rank, the scales tipped in the opposite direction. Luo Lin fell behind in his cultivation. Eventually, when Karina left Luo Lin to be with Trishi, it seemed that Trishi had thoroughly bested Luo Lin in both magical attainment and matters of the heart. Yet, looking back, it seemed they had truly lacked a decisive battle.

As Luo Lin approached, waves of emotion stirred in Trishi’s heart. He had been captivated by Karina’s gentle and sweet nature the moment he first saw her, but her heart had always remained with Luo Lin. She constantly referred to him as "Brother Luo Lin," which fueled a deep-seated jealousy within Trishi.

To crush Luo Lin and prove to Karina that her "Brother Luo Lin" was inferior to him, Trishi had spent the following years in a state of frantic, relentless cultivation. Though his progress was rapid, he was devastated to find that Luo Lin had reached the Third Rank before him. Upon hearing that, he nearly collapsed, but the thought of Karina kept him going. He pushed himself harder, eventually reaching the Fourth Rank first. When he learned that Luo Lin had still not broken through, he was ecstatic. After several more years of tireless cultivation, he reached the Fifth Rank, while Luo Lin’s progress seemed to have completely stalled.

When Karina finally accepted him, he could barely believe it. For nearly a year, he had felt as if he were walking on air.

Though the invitation to this duel was ostensibly to assist the Alchemists of the Dark Alliance, Trishi felt a sick sense of vengeful pleasure. Even though his rank was two levels higher than Luo Lin’s—which would normally invite scorn—the prospect of crushing Luo Lin in front of Karina was too sweet to resist.

Luo Lin stopped three or four steps away from Trishi, looking at him with calm eyes.

Nearby, Mahler and the others were frantic. They had tried to dissuade Luo Lin, but he had remained unmoved. A Third-Rank Mage stood no chance against a Fifth-Rank; it was suicide. But now that Luo Lin was face-to-face with Trishi in the open, there was no turning back.

Victoria said nothing, but she stepped forward, positioning herself as close to Luo Lin as possible, ready to shield him the moment the fighting began.

Cervantes was equally shocked that Luo Lin had accepted the challenge. As he moved to intervene, Mandel caught his intent and sneered, "Save your breath, Cervantes. Do you really think Luo Lin would listen now?"

"But if something happens to Luo Lin, the Light Alliance will suffer a tremendous loss at this Alchemy Conference!" Cervantes said anxiously.

"Hmph, a loss? I think not," Mandel retorted. "While his alchemy is decent, there are plenty of others in the younger generation of the Light Alliance who are better. Besides, if he fails and cannot attend, he brought it upon himself." Ever since his nephew, Mackey, was expelled from the Alchemy Guild, Mandel had thoroughly investigated Luo Lin and knew he was only a Third-Rank Mage. If Trishi defeated him, it would be sweet revenge for his family.

"You—" Master Cervantes was so incensed his beard bristled.

Due to the confrontation, a crowd gathered, including Anthony and Princess Nancy. When Anthony spotted Victoria standing behind Luo Lin, a flash of desire crossed his eyes, but it was quickly replaced by a look of malice as he saw the deep concern in her gaze. "Trishi," he thought, "I hope you strike hard—it would be best if you killed him."

In the center of the clearing, the two stared at each other for a long time. Trishi spoke first: "Luo Lin, you have guts to actually show up."

"If we are to fight, then fight. Enough talk," Luo Lin replied calmly.

Trishi drew a pitch-black staff and began chanting. A suit of armor forged from flames materialized around him. Even though Luo Lin was only a Third-Rank Mage, Trishi sensed something unpredictable about him and didn't dare to be careless.

The heat radiating from the flame armor forced the onlookers to retreat. Trishi signaled for the battle to begin.

Before his arm could even drop, a blur of motion caught his eye. Luo Lin charged at a speed beyond Trishi’s imagination. Realizing he couldn't dodge, Trishi instinctively fired over thirty massive fireballs, followed by a surging vortex of water.

First-Rank Fire Magic: Fireball!
Third-Rank Water Magic: Water Binding!

Trishi felt a moment of relief after unleashing the spells, but what happened next would haunt him forever.

Luo Lin did not dodge the fireballs. A layer of purple-gold light flickered over his skin, and the fireballs shattered against him without causing a scratch. As he charged through the flames, he encountered the water vortex, but with a light tap of his toe, he skirted the very edge of the torrent with impossible precision.

Before Trishi’s horrified eyes, Luo Lin delivered a punch imbued with violent fire-attribute battle aura. It pierced through the flame armor as if it were paper and slammed into Trishi’s stomach.

*Boom!* A dull thud echoed as Trishi was sent flying, crashing heavily to the ground as the crowd watched in utter disbelief.