Chapter 636: Envy
Indeed, Lin Jin did not expect this to happen.
He was only here to join the fun and to enrich his experience. In regards to the spirit water, he merely thought he would try his luck and see if he would get some.
After hearing so many people praising it, it was only natural for Lin Jin to want to try it out.
He wasn’t aiming for much. Just like Zuo Men, he only wanted a little bit. Never in his wildest dreams did he think the Four Ocean Gourd would be so powerful.
Not only had it successfully drained the spirit pond, but it made him emerge as the absolute champion when it left the other immortals empty-handed.
Even Lin Jin thought this was too much.
Problem was, Lin Jin had no idea how the Four Ocean Gourd managed to suck up all the spirit water.
Apart from initiating the action, it was the gourd itself that decided to take everything for itself.
Sensing gazes from every direction, Lin Jin had a feeling that trouble was afoot. After all, other people couldn’t possibly allow one person to hog the entire spirit pool.
If it could keep them calm, Lin Jin didn’t mind sharing the loot. After all, being the newcomer, it was best to keep a low profile.
What happened earlier was too outrageous.
Sure enough, after the initial shock subsided, the immortals started responding to Lin Jin’s action.
One immortal who was quite clearly envious of Lin Jin stepped forward and asked, “Isn’t this Taoist a little too overbearing?”
He was indirectly accusing Lin Jin of deliberately casting a spell to drain every single drop of spirit water. Only a true expert was capable of achieving such a feat. Had he been alone, the immortal would never have spoken up. Since the majority of the immortals present were upset with Lin Jin, he was emboldened by the current circumstance.
After the immortal had spoken, the Water-Crossing Buddha echoed his sentiment, “Amitabha. I am impressed by the profound ability of our fellow Taoist. Indeed, I am impressed.”
What he said was pure nonsense. In reality, he was incredibly jealous of Lin Jin.
Lin Jin could tell because the Water-Crossing Buddha’s eyes were bloodshot. Since he was expecting a victory from the beginning, it would be strange for him to be okay with all this. After all, he was the one who managed to obtain the most spirit water in the past. The sense of loss and humiliation he suffered was indescribable to those who weren’t in his shoes.
Unsurprisingly, the chubby monk went on to say, “Such profound abilities but much too greedy. Even in the past, I’ve only taken one tank’s worth. After all, I understand that good things must be shared. You shouldn’t be doing this.”
With two people to start the conversation, the others started glaring at Lin Jin and started voicing their dissatisfaction.
“Fellow Taoist, I’ve never seen you before. May I ask your name?” asked a tall immortal with a contemptuous expression.
Since someone was asking, Lin Jin wouldn’t stay quiet. He returned the salute and introduced himself, “My name is Lin Jin. It is nice to meet everyone.”
As he had been through a lot, aside from his initial nervousness, Lin Jin could now carry himself in a respectable manner. At the very least, he wouldn’t show his anxiousness. After all, Lin Jin had some experience in playing the role of Curator, who was a ‘profound expert’ as well.
If he showed cowardice when acting as Curator, wouldn’t he be exposing himself?
For this reason, when it came to maintaining his dignity and appearing esteemed, Lin Jin was a professional. He had no problems with keeping up the act.
Even now, when he was on the receiving end of glares from hostile immortals, Lin Jin was still able to respond confidently.
Any other person would have been thrown off by Lin Jin’s demeanor. Once they became unsure, they would start being apprehensive. At that point, they would try to avoid messing with him.
Lin Jin wanted that sort of outcome.
After all, he was quite nervous. He started pondering the approach he would take to distribute the spirit water to the immortals. He wanted to resolve the crisis in a dignified manner and save everyone some face.
As he spoke, Lin Jin clutched the Four Ocean Gourd. He silently examined it to check the spirit water it had just absorbed.
However, the result made him break out cold sweat.
It was gone.
Lin Jin discreetly invoked a spell and checked again. There was nothing, nil, non-existent.
There were zero traces of the spirit water inside the Four Ocean Gourd.
That was odd.
At that moment, Lin Jin had no idea what he should do next. If it wasn’t in the gourd, then it was impossible for him to fork it out later. The immortals would then think that he was hogging it all for himself.
Forget the strangers, even Zuo Men and Huang Shi Sanren might get upset. It would be inappropriate to refuse to share such a bountiful harvest with one’s friends.
Despite that, Lin Jin couldn’t find it, so how should he share it with them?
‘Gourd, don’t do this to me!’ Lin Jin couldn’t be bothered anymore. He quickly picked up the gourd to examine it carefully.
The other immortals were shocked when Lin Jin suddenly raised the magic treasure that he used to empty the spirit pond. Upon seeing Lin Jin’s solemn expression, they braced themselves. Was he going to attack them?
It wasn’t time for a fallout yet. They hadn’t initiated a fallout, so why was he initiating one after gaining so much?
In any case, this immortal who went by the name ‘Lin Jin’ was a force to be reckoned with. His strength was already proven when he captured the spirit pond’s water using a single magic treasure.
Over the past centuries, no one had ever managed to pull off the feat that he did today.
Many loose immortals now turned to Immortal Du of the Immortal Healing Sect.
“Immortal Du, please say something.”
“That’s right. Everyone used to have a share whenever the spirit pond opens. How could we stand back and allow a newcomer to take everything away from us? This just isn’t right! You must uphold justice for us, Elder Du.”
The crowd started grumbling. Immortal Du was just as irritated because even he intended to procure some spirit water for pelletization.
Had it not been for Lin Jin, given his level of cultivation and ability, it would have been relatively easy for him to obtain spirit water.
This time, he didn’t even get a single drop.
Spirit water was exceptionally important to him since it was an essential component to complete a number of pills he had formulated over the past few decades. If he didn’t get any this time, he would have to wait for another century.
Even for immortals, one century was not an insignificant period. What’s more, due to personal reasons, Immortal Du couldn’t wait that long. That explained his growing anxiety.
After letting out a cough, he stepped forward.
“Taoist Lin, we are impressed by your profound abilities. Although we’ve agreed that this game depends on one’s competence, this is the first time we’ve come across a situation in which the winner takes it all. Taoist Lin, I hope you will listen to me when I say that whoever witnesses the birth of the world’s treasures is entitled to a share of it. Greed is forbidden among us immortals, and greedy people never end well.”
He began preaching again.
This time, he sounded like he was issuing an ultimatum as well.
Lin Jin frowned. Those words didn’t delight him.
Yes, they should be considerate of the young and the elderly, but it all depended on the context. Lin Jin was never the type who sought to become the absolute champion, nor did he enjoy having a monopoly over resources. The problem here was that he couldn’t help it. To make things worse, out of anxiousness, these immortals were issuing threats left and right upon seeing the spirit pond being sucked dry. When Immortal Du spoke up, the way he worded his advice made it sound as if Lin Jin would be met with a tragedy if he refused to share his resources.
Hmph! It was probably true too!
But that was that. If he were in their shoes, he would probably think the same. Says who immortals never get envious?