Chapter 297: Heavenly Emperor Nine Steps—Five Steps to Make the Buddha Kneel!
As the voice faded, a figure stepped into the grand hall of the Qiao Mansion.
He was tall and slender, dressed in simple casual clothes, with a faint smile on his face.
Upon seeing Lin Mu, Qiao Zishan’s expression changed drastically. "It’s you!"
Qiao Zishan’s lips trembled, his heart pounding with alarm. "Master Lin, you..."
It really is Lin Wudi! It’s truly him!
Qiao Zishan felt a pang of pain, finding it difficult to accept this reality. "Why?"
In his subconscious, he couldn’t recall ever having any contact with Lin Mu. After personally witnessing the battle on the Bolan River, he had come to revere Lin Mu as a Heavenly God. How could he possibly dare to offend him?
"What’s wrong? Surprised?" Lin Mu chuckled. "Didn’t you invite me to visit your home? Well, now I’m here."
His words were calm, but Qiao Zishan could feel a bone-chilling murderous intent.
Lin Wudi wants to kill me!
After confirming that this man was indeed Lin Wudi, Qiao Tianhao surprisingly grew less tense. "You must be... Master Lin, correct?"
The unknown was the most terrifying. Now that the visitor’s identity was confirmed, Qiao Tianhao managed to calm down. He had seen his fair share of storms. Even when facing a Grandmaster, he could quickly regain his composure.
"Master Lin, I wonder how my unworthy son might have offended you. I hope you will enlighten me."
Qiao Tianhao’s demeanor was impeccable as he gestured toward the dining table in the hall. The table was laden with exquisite delicacies, emitting an enticing aroma.
He chuckled. "Master Lin, regardless of whether my son is at fault, I had some food prepared as soon as I heard you were visiting today. Please, allow me to offer my apologies."
Seeing Zishan still standing there dazed, Qiao Tianhao rebuked him in dissatisfaction. "Zishan, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and invite Master Lin to take a seat! Pour him a drink and apologize!"
"Oh! Oh!" Qiao Zishan snapped back to his senses and hastily said, "Master Lin, please, take a seat! Please!"
Qiao Tianhao smiled. "We didn’t know your preferences, Master Lin, so we just prepared a simple meal. I hope you don’t mind."
Qiao Tianhao was meticulous with his words and actions. He had made countless preparations in secret, but on the surface, he had simply prepared a meal, hoping to resolve the enmity between them. Although, even now, he was still confused about how his son had offended Lin Mu.
But as the saying goes, one does not slap a smiling face. He felt he had done all he could. Surely Lin Mu wouldn’t cause a scene, right?
Lin Mu chuckled and glanced at the dining table, then shook his head. "I came today for only one thing." He pointed a finger at Qiao Zishan. "To take his life!"
Qiao Tianhao’s expression changed. He hadn’t expected Lin Mu to refuse his courtesy. His voice became grave. "Master Lin, you... my son holds no grudge or grievance against you. Why do you insist on taking his life? Even a Grandmaster can’t just kill people at will, can they?"
Qiao Zishan’s voice was tinged with tears. "Yes, Master Lin! The first time I ever saw you was during your fight with Yun Xu. I admit I was disrespectful then, but I already apologized, and you accepted it! Why do you want to kill me now?"
Lin Mu shook his head. "It seems you’ve forgotten what you did."
When he was reborn, he witnessed the original owner of this body having his limbs broken by Qiao Zishan’s men before being left for dead in the wilderness. If not for the overwhelming resentment emanating from the original owner, he never would have found such a suitable vessel. He swore an oath back then to avenge the original Lin Mu. That is why he came today. His Foundation Establishment is imminent, and Lin Mu will not allow any flaws in his Dao foundation.
"What did I do?" Qiao Zishan cried out, feigning innocence. In truth, he had done so many evil deeds he couldn’t recall them all at once.
"Master Lin, even if you want to kill my son, shouldn’t you at least let him know why?" Qiao Tianhao snorted. "I may only be a businessman, and my son may have his flaws, but I will not tolerate someone slandering him! Even if that person is a Grandmaster!"
His words were firm and authoritative, clearly intended to pressure Lin Mu with an appeal to propriety.
Master Chixiao snorted, his gaze fixed on Lin Mu with ill intent. "Hmph, Master Qiao, why waste your breath on him? Since he came here to kill your son, then allow me to eliminate him first!"
Lin Mu’s earlier words had been disrespectful to the Buddha, making Master Chixiao eager to teach him a lesson. "I don’t care if you’re some ’Master Lin.’ You disrespected my Buddha, and for that, you must be punished!"
As soon as Master Chixiao finished speaking, a golden Buddha light erupted from his body. The light spread out, coalescing behind Master Chixiao into the form of a Buddha statue. The statue seemed to be cast from molten gold, its hands joined in prayer, exuding the awe-inspiring majesty of the Buddhist Door.
Qiao Tianhao and his son scrambled back, their faces ashen with fright.
"Kneel!" Master Chixiao thrust a palm toward Lin Mu.
The Buddha statue behind him mirrored the motion, its own massive hand striking down toward Lin Mu.
"Heh. In my life, I have knelt to neither heaven nor earth. You think a sham Buddha like you, one who only deceives the world, can make me kneel?"
With his hands clasped behind his back, Lin Mu took a single step forward.
"Heavenly Emperor Nine Steps—Five Steps to Make the Buddha Kneel!"
A majestic, boundless aura surged from Lin Mu, like that of the Heavenly Emperor on an imperial tour. Heaven and earth trembled, and the four seas were stunned into silence.
CRACK!
With a sharp, crisp sound, the Buddha statue’s outstretched hand began to shatter inch by inch. It wasn’t just the hand; the entire statue began to fracture.
BOOM!
With a muffled explosion, the Buddha statue shattered, dissolving into flecks of golden light before vanishing completely.
As the statue shattered, Master Chixiao suffered a backlash. His face turned deathly pale, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.
Master Chixiao staggered back several steps before catching his balance, his eyes wide with horror as he stared at Lin Mu. "You... How is this possible?!"
"Even the Buddha himself must kneel before me, to say nothing of a mere incarnation like this!" Lin Mu’s expression was one of absolute pride, and he exuded an aura of being the sole supreme existence in all the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.
In the past, during his campaign across the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, he had battled the Buddha of the Buddhist Door. Lin Mu had taken only five steps, and the Buddha, whose understanding of the Buddha Dharma was said to be supreme, had nearly lost his Golden Body, ultimately forced to kneel in submission. Even though his current cultivation level was less than one ten-thousandth of what it once was, he didn’t need to lift a finger to deal with a mere disciple of the Buddhist Door.
The force of Lin Mu’s words seemed to strike him physically, and Master Chixiao spat out another mouthful of blood.
"Fine, Lin Wudi! Today, I have truly experienced your power!"
Master Chixiao’s expression grew solemn. He instantly sat down cross-legged, brought his hands together, and began silently chanting the Buddha Dharma.
OM... OM... OM...
The sound of Buddhist chants resonated as swastika-shaped Dharma Seals flew from Master Chixiao’s mouth, gathering in the air around him.
"Lin Wudi, no matter how profound your cultivation level, how could you possibly comprehend the vastness of the Buddha Dharma!" A strange smile played on Master Chixiao’s lips, one that was neither a grin nor a grimace, but his eyes blazed with intense killing intent. "Do you dare face this next technique of mine?!"
The Buddhist light converged as the swastika-shaped Dharma Seals danced wildly throughout the hall, yet they did not harm a single physical object.
Lin Mu laughed heartily and took a step forward. "And why would I not dare?!"