Chapter 47: Congratulations, Michael! This is definitely the night of your career!

The suspense of this game was virtually put to rest halfway through the third quarter!

With five minutes remaining in the third, Jordan first drew Payton's sixth foul, sending this absent-minded and formidable rival straight to the bench. He then calmly sank both free throws, notching his 50th point of the night!

Simultaneously, those two free throws widened the gap to a commanding 27 points!

Immediately afterward, Jackson called a timeout and swiftly subbed out Jordan, Rodman, and Pippen!

Tonight's game had long since strayed from normalcy!

As the SuperSonics fell further and further behind, having already suffered such a humiliating beating in the first half, who could say whether they might resort to dirty tactics out of sheer desperation?

Should either Jordan or Pippen sustain an injury in a match where the outcome was already sealed, the loss would far outweigh any gain!

Therefore, despite the crowd screaming Jordan's name like madmen, pleading for him to return and chase 60 or even 70 points, both Jordan and Phil Jackson remained completely unfazed, turning a deaf ear to the roar.

Jordan willingly abandoned the chance to set a new career-high in scoring. At his stage of life, he had long since lost interest in such empty records!

Finally, the final buzzer sounded.

The Bulls coasted to a 109-80 blowout victory, crushing the SuperSonics by 29 points, snapping their opponents' 15-game winning streak, and exacting sweet revenge for the defeat a month prior!

More importantly, with a flawless performance of 50 points in three quarters and forcing Payton out on six fouls, Jordan completely crushed Payton, who had boasted loudly before the game about not fearing him!

Suppressed by both Jordan and Lin Tian throughout the match, Payton shot a dismal 4-of-17, managing only 11 points, 7 assists, and 4 turnovers—a truly disastrous drop from his usual standards!

Who was the undisputed top guard of the league, and who reigned as its supreme force? This game provided everyone with the definitive answer!

The greatest on the basketball court was Jordan; the greatest in a fight was Lin Tian!

Lin Tian's flawless 1-v-3 KO of three men within 20 seconds was captured crystal-clear by the cameras.

His combat skills, split-second reactions, and instantaneous tactical positioning were nothing short of perfection!

Following this brawl, the name Lin Tian would, for the very first time, be officially etched into the memories of countless fans across America!

After all, for ordinary sports fans, a player scoring 30 or even 40 points was nothing special; plenty of players could achieve that.

However, when a single man knocked out three hulking brutes in 20 seconds without suffering a single scratch, countless people would inevitably become curious, eager to discover how he pulled it off!

Of course, not everyone viewed Lin Tian in a positive light.

Numerous media outlets and commentators voiced their dissatisfaction with Lin Tian after the match. Rumors even surfaced that the Bulls' early-season locker room discord had been caused by Lin Tian throwing punches!

Many had already begun labeling Lin Tian as a locker room time bomb and the league's new generation of supervillains!

Faced with all these accusations, Jordan stepped up once again during the post-game press conference!

Facing the reporters' questions, Jordan dodged nothing, choosing instead to speak with brutal frankness!

"I know what you want me to say, and I know what I'm supposed to say! But I refuse to do that! Today, I only want to talk about what I saw!"

"I saw Payton bullying Lin with an endless stream of trash talk. I saw Gary trying to run Lin into the ground and completely failing, and I saw him completely lose his mind and throw punches after Lin shut him down using the cleanest, smartest defense possible!"

"And my guy, my teammate, Lin—what did he do in that moment? He merely defended himself! The most reasonable self-defense imaginable! Payton pushed Lin first, forcing him to retaliate! Kemp and Johnson charged at Lin, and only then did he fight back! I even noticed that when Kemp rushed him, Lin's very first reaction was to dodge, to back away!"

"And what about the SuperSonics? They ran their mouths incessantly, spewing trash talk so vile it makes you sick to your stomach. They were so relentless they chased Lin down trying to assault him! I want everyone to consider this: tonight, the one being attacked was Lin, who happens to hold his own. What if it had been someone else? What if it had been a player who isn't skilled at fighting? Would they have been pinned to the floor and beaten by the SuperSonics? Would they have been battered until they couldn't even stand?"

"Lin is only 22 years old. He was just a bit impulsive, and he simply refused to take a beating lying down. What did he do wrong? What wrong did he commit?"

"I believe everyone has the exact same answer as I do! So, finally, let me say this: severely punish those trashy instigators who actively pick fights! Don't let them commit violence against others on the court and then waltz around playing basketball with smug satisfaction!"

"I hope—no, I demand—that the league thoroughly investigate this matter! They must give everyone a plausible explanation and statement! We, the players of Chicago, will never swallow this kind of humiliation!"

Jordan's words were sonorous, powerful, and impeccably delivered! He twisted the narrative masterfully, actually painting Lin Tian as the victim!

And the image of Jordan as the flawless leader was once again firmly established in the eyes of the public!

Having delivered his thoughts, Jordan felt a surge of lingering excitement!

Surely this time, that little punk Lin would thank him and express heartfelt gratitude!

After all, he hadn't asked for anything in return; he had spoken up purely to vent Lin Tian's frustration!

Though Jordan himself couldn't quite fathom why he cared so much about Lin Tian's feelings!

Yet, what Jordan never expected was... the moment he stepped into the locker room, he was greeted by a massive bucket of ice!

A massive tub of ice dumped right over his head, soaking down into his underwear and filling his shoes!

Jordan was frozen thoroughly to the core by that cascade of ice cascading from his crown!

"Congratulations! Congratulations, Michael! Congratulations on dropping 50 points in three quarters! Congratulations, this is definitely your career-night! Do you like the gift I prepared for you?"

"FUXX! Lin, I'm going to kill you! My underwear is full of ice cubes!" Jordan's previous excitement vanished instantly, replaced by an overwhelming urge to murder Lin Tian. "Besides, it's just 50 points! Damn it, it's just 50 points! What is there to celebrate? I've dropped 50 points a hundred times! This isn't worth celebrating at all!"

"Is that so?" Lin Tian hopped down from his stool and looked at Jordan. "But this was 50 points in three quarters. Have you ever done that?"

"At least thirty times!"

"Then next time you score 60, I'll prepare an ice bucket for you again."

"No! I don't want any damn ice buckets!"

"What about 70 points?"

"No!"

"80 points?"

"If you dare prepare another ice bucket for me, I'll kill you, you bastard! In tomorrow's practice, I'm going to beat you to a pulp!" Jordan could no longer contain his fury, flipping Lin Tian a vicious middle finger!