Chapter 426: Attracted By His Reputation
This time, Lin Jin had actually witnessed the true strength of a Rank 9 beast. Indeed, its destructive potential was world-shaking. Even with the aid of the Museum of Deadly Beasts, his pet beast was merely at Rank 4. Goldy was on the same rank as well, and Shang’er was the only one who managed to break through to Rank 5 after being pelted by divine lightning.
Even then, Rank 5 was too far behind Rank 9. He wouldn’t be as unnerved had he not learned of such a terrifying existence. Now that he had found himself in such a situation, Lin Jin could not afford to stand around doing anything.
The target of the immortal devouring beast was Buddha, but who knows when it would decide to come for Lin Jin instead?
Nothing else but actual strength and improvement mattered at this point.
Since he was about to leave, Xuan Jue and the abbot obviously wouldn’t stop him. The monks escorted him to the temple’s entrance.
“Masters, please return inside,” Lin Jin said with a salute.
Lin Jin’s original plan was to pick a fight with Daluo Temple, but who would have thought, that after encountering so many coincidences, they would end up as allies?
Fate was a mysterious thing indeed.
Upon recalling something, the abbot slapped his forehead and said, “Curator, before you go, I have to inform you of something. Two days ago, a group of villainous experts came looking for you. They were hostile so I had the rectors calm them down we sent them away. They’ve been waiting at the foot of the mountain since, and not only have they refused to leave but more of them have been gathering at that spot. Besides the villainous experts, I’ve heard that many experts from Jade Dragon Kingdom have gathered there as well.”
Daluo Temple may just be a temple, but their strength was comparable to a premium country, perhaps stronger even. After all, they were not to be taken lightly, seeing how they had a legacy that went back a thousand years.
No, after meeting Buddha himself, Lin Jin now understood that their history did not just stop at just a thousand years.
“I’m sorry to have made you worry, Master Abbot,” Lin Jin replied with a salute. “These people must be here for me, and I shall have them leave at once.”
“That would be great!” The abbot saluted back.
The abbot was no longer putting on airs as he did three days ago. After all, even his Grandmaster Xuan Jue acted politely before the man.
After bidding the two high monks farewell, Lin Jin carried the little fox in his arms and led Goldy down the mountain. Upon reaching the bottom, he saw a large group of people standing in the distance.
This group was made up entirely of experts including Black Crow, Madam Ghost Child, Coffin Man, Old Turtle, and Evil Scholar.
In addition to them, Lin Jin even caught sight of Jade Dragon Kingdom’s guardians, Ye Yuzhou and Chen Ruyuan.
This line-up could have easily overpowered an intermediate country.
However, they were still slightly inept against Daluo Temple. Six of the temple’s rectors were able to block them off at the bottom of the mountain and the stalemate has been maintained for quite some time now.
Upon seeing Lin Jin descend the mountain, Daluo Temple’s rectors hurried over.
“Greetings, Curator!”
Unsurprisingly, the rectors were extremely polite. Aware that Curator was a guest of Buddha and after hearing Grandmaster Xuan Jue refer to him as a ‘friend of Tao’, they knew that this was a man who deserved their utmost respect.
“I apologize for stirring up such trouble. These friends are here for me so allow me to take it from here.” Lin Jin was just as polite.
Right after he said that, the group of uninvited guests.
The villainous experts and friars had already noticed Curator so they hurried over as well.
Upon closer observation, Lin Jin’s eyes widened.
He could understand Black Crow and Madam Ghost Child being there, but he did not expect Old Tian to show up as well. Old Tian’s mutant devilosaurus stuck out like a sore thumb on the horizon since Old Tian had yet to cultivate the Beastmaster Scroll.
Ye Yuzhou and Chen Ruyuan were familiar faces as well.
Besides them, the rest were unfamiliar faces. Lin Jin could even tell that a few of them weren’t human.
They were monsters with substantial cultivation.
Why did monsters show up too?
Lin Jin meant it when he said the monsters had significant cultivation because they were in their human form. In other words, these monsters had already mastered Transmigration, but Lin Jin was certain that he had never met them before.
While Lin Jin was wondering about this, the large group started to approach him.
“Greeting, Curator!”
Their voices weren’t united but it was shockingly loud and overpowering.
Lin Jin’s aura wasn’t half bad either. The cotton robes he donned, the mask on his face, and more importantly the six-tailed fox he carried made him seem all the more mystifying.
Soon, Lin Jin learned what had happened from Black Crow and the others.
Since three days ago, rumors of Curator visiting Daluo Temple had begun to take hold. The news couldn’t be contained because what happened at Daluo Peak was visible to everyone miles away. There were even reports of people sensing the disturbance in the air from hundreds of miles away.
It didn’t take much probing to learn what happened and thanks to Lin Jin’s ear-splitting interrogation of the monks at Daluo Temple, news of Curator charging into Dalou Temple in fury had spread like wildfire.
The villains’ community had their own channels for news updates so Black Crow and the gang caught wind of what happened almost instantly, so they set forth for Daluo Temple as soon as they could. After all, Curator’s sudden absence during the last Visitation Hall opening indicated that something must have happened so they were quick to react.
Ye Yuzhou and Chen Ruyuan were the same. However, they told Lin Jin that they were here on orders from the imperial palace. Lin Jin understood at once.
It was He Qian who sent them here.
Admittedly, He Qian was a decisive man. Even when faced with such a situation, he had the courage to brave the unknown. After all, if things had spiraled out of control, he might just end up offending Daluo Temple who was equal to a premium nation.
It wasn’t easy for He Qian to send his forces into foreign soil, and he had to clarify his stance to his kingdom before such a decision was officially made.
Lin Jin graciously accepted his favor.
As for the monsters, many of the villains couldn’t tell who they represented. They merely assumed it was another group of Lin Jin’s allies, who were here for the same reason as themselves.
There were a handful of experts such as Ye Yuzhou, who understood what was going on. These people attributed the arrival of the monsters to Curator’s extensive sphere of influence, given how he had publicly reproached Daluo Temple for slaying monsters and demons indiscriminately.
His move of speaking out for all monsters naturally attracted many capable monsters to come forth and lend him a hand. If Curator’s name wasn’t widely-known then, he certainly was now. In fact, his name would spread to every corner of the world following this incident at Daluo Temple.
And Lin Jin had never expected any of this to happen.
After explaining the situation, Lin Jin was now wondering how he should get them all to leave. He had to reward them because whether or not they were acquainted, everyone had gathered here to lend him their support. Some had even traveled here from different continents, so to send them off empty-handed was simply not Lin Jin’s way of doing things.
He had ended things with Daluo Temple on friendly terms this time. But if he didn’t, if an all-out battle was to occur with Daluo Temple, these people would be risking their lives for him. It didn’t matter if they were here out of sincerity or false pretense, Lin Jin was not so merciless as to send them back home.
A thought popped up in Lin Jin’s mind. Since these people had come from different parts of the world, maybe it was a good idea to ask them about the whereabouts of White Ape and Zhi Yin.
After all, a shot not fired is a shot missed.
Lin Jin faced the crowd and pressed down on the void before him, unleashing a wave of Beast Deterrence. The place was silenced immediately.
After telling them about White Ape and Zhi Yin’s situation, Lin Jin asked, “You have all come from different parts of the world. Have any of you heard anything that might potentially lead me to them? Even minor hints or traces will do.”