Lin Jin grinned from ear to ear, but that did not matter since his face was hidden behind a mask anyway. He then started cackling away maniacally. Due to it being forced, Lin Jin’s laughter sounded creepy and bizarre.
Sit?
Lin Jin would never sit.
The old Taoist was trying to put up his mysterious act but Lin Jin didn’t have time to play with him.
Lin Jin patted the fox in his arms. Prior to this, he had already studied the area for any traps that his enemy might have laid down.
He had to be extra careful.
It went without saying that Lin Jin would refrain from drinking the tea prepared by his enemy because there were no guarantees that it was not laced with something nasty.
Lin Jin knew that it was best not to go along with the enemy right now.
The old Taoist poured a cup of tea and handed it to Lin Jin, but instead of receiving it, the man pointed to White Ape, “This monkey here is a grand disciple of mine and I’m very fond of him. It isn’t appropriate for you to take what belongs to someone else now is it?”
As he spoke, he extended his arm and clenched his fist. As if he was being lifted by a pair of invisible arms, White Ape started floating in Lin Jin’s direction.
“Hm?”
After the old Taoist frowned, the rope around White Ape’s neck emitted a golden glow, and it tugged him back from Lin Jin.
For a moment there, two forces clashed.
Lin Jin was, of course, no master of Object Manipulation. He was just faking it while Shang’er was the one orchestrating the rescue mission. Shang’er’s mastery of the skill was exceptional but she held back her strength because White Ape’s eyes had now rolled back from being asphyxiated by the rope.
In such a situation, if either one of them made a substantial move, White Ape would end up being choked to death. And so, they had to choose whether to continue in this pointless game of tug of war or to let go and try something else.
Lin Jin scoffed. “I do not wish to waste my words on the undesirable. If you harm White Ape, I will kill you.”
There had been no need for such words but Lin Jin didn’t say it to threaten the man, it was actually just a diversion.
As he spoke, Lin Jin had launched a Thunderfire Needle at the old Taoist from point-blank range.
Lin Jin did not even hesitate when he initiated the attack. Since the enemy had put on a show by waiting for him with a warm cup of tea, there must be a trap laid somewhere around here. If Lin Jin were to foolishly sit down and converse with him, he would have been gradually led to the guillotine, no doubt.
The enemy was an expert so the right tactic was to strike first, and strike hard.
Sure enough, the old Taoist did not expect Lin Jin to strike without even giving him a heads up. He immediately flared up in anger, but the next instant, he started sweating profusely.
The Thunderfire Needle was too overpowering that before the old Taoist could speak, a ball of light exploded on his body. Followed by the cries of crickets, there was a loud sizzle as sparks were sent flying everywhere, shattering rocks and incinerating the single tree on the peak.
With a whip of Shang’er’s tail, Zhi Yin was swept aside so he wouldn’t get caught in the crossfire. In addition, she exerted more force on her Object Manipulation skill. Since White Ape couldn’t break free from that glowing rope and the rope was tied to a tree, Shang’er simply uprooted the tree that appeared to weigh at least a couple thousand pounds.
This was no part of their original plan, but now, they should have nothing to fear anymore. The rope may be controlled by the old Taoist, but he couldn’t stop Shang’er from taking the anchor.
This was the equivalent of cracking a nut with a sledgehammer.
The old Taoist clearly did not anticipate this either. He was parrying the Thunderfire Needle with the golden glow that he generated with his body. When he realized his artifact was being taken away, his composure fell apart.
“Do you know how shameless you are! How despicable!” the old Taoist berated Lin Jin. He was in this much agony, precisely because the ‘immortal binding rope’ was the greatest artifact in his possession.
He had inherited it from his grandmaster, and what made the rope so special was the fact that it could bind anything in this world be it humans, monsters, immortals, ghosts, or demons.
In other words, that was his most prized possession.
The old Taoist didn’t have time to hesitate. If he continued binding White Ape, his artifact would be pocketed by his enemy so he immediately cast a new spell. The next instant, like a snake that had woken up from its slumber, the rope released White Ape and swiftly wriggled back into the old Taoist’s sleeve.
Lin Jin lamented on the inside for having lost such a unique item. When Shang’er used this technique earlier, Lin Jin knew her aim wasn’t just to save White Ape but also to confiscate the enemy’s artifact.
It was a pity the plan fell through.
Though, to their relief, White Ape was saved.
Now that White Ape was no longer suppressed by the rope, his monster energy exploded and in seconds, he grew to a towering size. With bloodshot eyes, he let out a mad roar before charging the old Taoist.
It was evident that White Ape must have been tortured by the old Taoist while being held captive. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have gotten this angry.
“Old geezer, I’ll crush you with my bare hands!” Without the artifact to subjugate him, White Ape’s monster energy went over the roof and he regained his ability to speak. The ape raised his fist, ready to smash down like a sledgehammer.
This fist of his could probably shatter the ground beneath their feet effortlessly.
The old Taoist frowned and expressed his anger. “You’re nothing but a mere brute! Watch your tongue, I say!”
As he spoke, the golden light around him grew stronger and countless black bugs began buzzing over from all directions, and their target was White Ape’s raised arm. The black bugs started gnawing at him, causing White Ape to yelp in pain.
Seeing this, Lin Jin quickly shot out a wave of Dragonfire at White Ape, saving him from the crisis.
“White Ape, stand down!”
Lin Jin knew how capable the old Taoist was, especially with his ability of insect manipulation. While White Ape was plenty strong, he still could not match up to the old Taoist if the fight really got serious.
His ability to subjugate White Ape and Daluo Temple’s Zhi Yin showed just how unusual the old Taoist was. Forget White Ape, even Lin Jin had to be extra diligent.
Despite his burning anger, White Ape was no fool. While his skin was thick and rough, the bites he received from the insect swarm caused excruciating pain. If Lin Jin hadn’t unleashed his Dragonfire to chase those bugs away, White Ape’s entire arm would have been gone by now. Hence, upon hearing Lin Jin’s command, White Ape quickly retreated from the frontline.
He jumped to the base of the peak, all while reverting to his usual size. Coincidentally, he caught glimpse of Goldy foraging for bugs amidst the thick jungle foliage.
White Ape was elated. “Goldy? You came too?”
Goldy and White Ape were pretty close buddies. At the sight of White Ape, Goldy clucked a few times and flapped his wings. It was the rooster’s way of greeting his pal.
“Boy am I glad to bump into you here. You’ve got to avenge me! See how they bullied me!” Since White Ape was instructed to stand down before he could even vent his frustration out on the enemy, his only hope of exacting revenge was through Goldy, to whom he described his experience of living under captivity. As the cherry on top of the cake, White Ape made sure to snivel as he told his story.
Sure enough, Goldy was so enraged by his story that his comb burst into flames.
“Cluck cluck cluck!”
“You’re asking me who it was? It’s that old Taoist on top of the hill! He’s very powerful and he’s a master of all poisonous bugs! There was this rope that immobilized me once it wound around my neck.”
“Cluck cluck!”
“You’ll avenge me? Why thank you! If you really avenge me, I’ll call you my big brother from now on!” White Ape said in a dead-serious tone.
One rooster and one white ape were having a great time talking to each other.
Then, Goldy crowed a few times before flapping his wings, which signaled the start of his charge up the mountain.
