The golden light grew even more intense as eight figures clad in golden robes strode through the air, each step landing on a void node, Buddhist runes blooming beneath their feet to form golden lotuses. Their auras were as deep and profound as an abyss; they were none other than the first-rate beings of Buddhism—eight great Buddhas in the early stages of the Dao Integration Realm.
The leading Buddha statue had a majestic face. Its gaze fell on Lin Zhou, and it clasped its hands together, chanting a Buddhist prayer: "Amitabha. Benefactor, please stop."
His voice was calm, yet carried an undeniable tone of admonition: "When will this cycle of revenge end? You have already injured several high-ranking members of our Buddhist sect. Continuing this fight will only increase bloodshed and will benefit neither you nor the other side."
The other seven large Buddha statues also spoke, their tones ranging from compassionate to solemn:
“Benefactor, your cultivation is extraordinary; you should know the weight of the word ‘compassion.’ Why would you, a mere scholar, become an enemy of Buddhism?”
"Although the scholar was offended, he has also been tempered. Let's just let it go. Our Buddhist sect is willing to offer a precious treasure as an apology."
"All living beings rely on Buddhism for their spiritual support. If Buddhism is in turmoil, the entire world will be in chaos. Can you bear to see people suffer?"
They spoke back and forth, their words all about "persuading for peace," yet every word revolved around "murder," "the common people," and "the greater good of Buddhism." Clearly, they still wanted to use "morality" and "the common people" as shackles to force Lin Zhou to stop.
Su She stood behind Lin Zhou, his anger rising. These so-called Buddhas were clearly afraid of their master, yet they insisted on using "compassion" and "all living beings" as a pretext, making them even more hypocritical than the previous true Buddhas and ancient Buddhas.
Lin Zhou's face remained expressionless; he merely glanced at the eight Buddha statues and lightly tapped the air with his fingertip.
"Buzz—!"
An invisible barrier spread out from the mountain peak, instantly enveloping the entire Wanfo Mountain! Pale blue runes flowed on the barrier, which was the "domain" set up by Lin Zhou with his own spiritual power. It not only sealed off the space, but also isolated the internal and external auras - let alone a person, even a bird could not escape from this world.
"You..." The leader's expression changed drastically. He did not expect Lin Zhou to be so resolute, not even bothering to say anything more, and directly blocking all escape routes.
Lin Zhou patted Su She on the shoulder, signaling him to step back, while he himself stepped forward, his white robe fluttering in the Buddhist light, his tone as indifferent as ice: "When you wanted to kill my disciple, why didn't you say 'murder'?"
The eight large Buddha statues all paused for a moment.
Yes, when they surrounded and killed Su She, they didn't utter a single word of "compassion." Now that they see they can't win, they suddenly think of "slaughter."
A flicker of panic crossed the eyes of the leading Buddha, but he quickly regained his composure: "You misunderstand, benefactor. We do not intend to kill that scholar, we merely wish to..."
"You just want to kill him on the mountaintop and eliminate any future trouble, right?" Lin Zhou interrupted him, a mocking smile playing on his lips. "I know exactly what you're thinking."
He knew these people's tactics all too well—first, they would intimidate people with righteous indignation; if that failed, they would release their aura to scare them away; if they did scare them away, they would boast to the outside world that they had "powerfully defeated an unparalleled villain to protect the common people"; if they still couldn't scare them away, they would actually take action, but before doing so, they would first position themselves as "victims" and "fighting for the common people".
Unfortunately, they encountered Lin Zhou.
A person who is fiercely protective of their own will never care about the greater good or the fate of the people. Anyone who dares to harm their disciple will pay the price.
"There's no point in arguing anymore." Lin Zhou was too lazy to argue with them any further. His spiritual energy slowly rose around him, seemingly calm, yet it made the eight Buddhas feel a chilling cold at the same time. "Since you want to make a move, then I'll play along with you."
"You!" The leading Buddha was both shocked and furious. They hadn't intended to actually fight—how terrifying was the aura of someone in the early stages of the Dao Integration Realm? They had only planned to release their aura to scare Lin Zhou away, and even if they couldn't, they could still gain the upper hand. Who would have thought that their opponent wouldn't play by the rules at all, directly sealing off the heavens and earth, clearly intending to fight head-on!
The eight Buddha statues exchanged a glance, each seeing helplessness and regret in the other's eyes.
They regretted allowing their men to surround and kill the scholar, regretted trying to use "reason" to control this ruthless man, and regretted underestimating the other party's protectiveness—if they had known that this white-robed man was so unreasonable, they would never have let things escalate to this point!
But now, there is nowhere to retreat.
"Very well." The leading Buddha took a deep breath, the last trace of hesitation in his eyes disappearing. "If you insist on this, don't blame us for being impolite!"
As soon as the words were spoken, the eight Buddha statues simultaneously released their auras!
The pressure of the early stage of Dao Integration erupted like a tsunami, and Buddhist patterns soared into the sky, weaving into a huge Buddhist net covering the mountain peak. Countless Buddhist figures could be vaguely seen roaring within the net. The spiritual energy between heaven and earth was stirred up into a violent frenzy by this pressure, and the believers at the foot of the mountain had already been crushed unconscious.
They thought that such a terrifying aura would make even a late-stage Dao Integration cultivator wary, or at least temporarily avoid its sharp edge.
Lin Zhou simply stood with his hands behind his back, his white robe motionless, as if the oppressive aura that could make even those in the early stages of the Dao Integration Realm tremble was merely a gentle breeze.
"Is that all you've got?" Lin Zhou said calmly, his voice piercing through the oppressive aura and clearly reaching the ears of the eight Buddhas. "Not good enough."
Before he finished speaking, his figure blurred, leaving only an afterimage in place, and his true form appeared in front of the leading Buddha, throwing a punch!
This punch was unpretentious, and did not even use spiritual power. It was purely physical strength, yet it carried a savage force that could "break all laws." Before the punch even arrived, the Buddhist pattern barrier in front of the leading Buddha was already shattered inch by inch!
"Not good!" The leading Buddha was shocked and hastily summoned his natal magic weapon—a golden shield engraved with swastikas—to block in front of him.
"Bang!"
The fist collided with the shield, and the golden shield let out a mournful cry of being unable to bear the weight. The Buddhist patterns on its surface dimmed instantly, and it was sent flying backward by the punch, crashing heavily into the seven great Buddhas behind it!
The eight Buddha statues, like dominoes struck by a boulder, staggered back dozens of steps before regaining their balance. Their faces were all pale, and golden blood trickled from the corners of their mouths.
One move!
With just one move, the eight great Buddhas at the early stage of the Dao Integration Realm were forced to retreat in a sorry state!
"This...how is this possible?!" A giant Buddha exclaimed in disbelief, his eyes filled with astonishment. Even if the eight of them joined forces, they could hold their own for a while, let alone withstand a single punch from their opponent?
Lin Zhou stood still, cracking his knuckles, his tone slightly impatient: "What are you dawdling for? Didn't you want to make a move? Come at me all at once."
His gaze swept over the eight large Buddha statues as if he were looking at eight disobedient children—he had originally intended to play with them, but now it seemed that these so-called "Buddhas" were even weaker than he had imagined.
Seeing Lin Zhou's calm and collected demeanor, the last shred of hope in the hearts of the eight Buddha statues vanished.
They finally understood that the white-robed man before them was a truly ruthless character capable of killing them with a single slap. Their so-called "Buddhist majesty" and "Taoist strength" were probably utterly insignificant in his eyes.
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