Chapter 257: Certain Death Within a Century

The sky was gradually darkening. By the time the Big-Eared Cultivator and the young Daoist priest arrived at the street where Wang Lin's shop was located, the sky had completely turned dark. However, on both sides of this street, clusters of lamplight had illuminated.

Xu Tao opened his eyes in a daze. After a moment of confusion, he quickly recognized his surroundings, immediately scrambled to his feet, and upon seeing Wang Lin, instantly knelt down, his face filled with excitement, unable to speak.

Wang Lin's expression was as usual. He didn't even glance at Xu Tao, calmly saying, "I saved your life, settling the Karma of sixteen years of service. You may leave."

Xu Tao hesitated, then kowtowed several times heavily, muttering, "Your great kindness and virtue, Xu Tao will engrave it in his heart!" With that, he took a deep breath, stood up, pushed open the shop door, and was about to step out.

At this moment, Wang Lin frowned and said, "Xu Tao, come back. No need to close the door!"

Xu Tao was startled, quickly retreated, and looked at Wang Lin in confusion.

"Stand aside, we have visitors!" Wang Lin took a sip of the wine in his hand and said calmly.

Xu Tao's expression changed slightly. He quickly stood beside Wang Lin, looking at the shop door, his eyes flickering.

Not long after, a faint sound of footsteps slowly came from outside. Immediately after, a Big-Eared Cultivator walked in from outside the shop, followed by the young Daoist priest whom Wang Lin had let go earlier that day.

Terror instantly appeared in Xu Tao's eyes. He recognized at a glance that the Big-Eared Cultivator was the one who had forced Your Highness the Prince to not dare leave the imperial palace by even half a step. Huge waves immediately surged in his heart, but after looking at Wang Lin, he forcibly stopped his subconscious urge to retreat, remaining silent.

As soon as the young Daoist priest entered the shop, he immediately sneered and shouted, "Master, it's him! He's the one who injured your Disciple!" The young Daoist priest pointed at Wang Lin, but when he turned back, he was surprised to find that his Master wasn't looking at this person, but rather at the wooden carvings around them.

Wang Lin remained silent, merely leisurely drinking his wine. After glancing at the two of them, he withdrew his gaze.

The Big-Eared Cultivator meticulously examined each wooden carving. Suddenly, his gaze sharpened, falling upon two wooden carvings—they were precisely the middle-aged scholar and the old woman from the White Cloud Sect!

The Big-Eared Cultivator watched for a long time, then smiled slightly, as if he didn't consider himself an outsider. He flicked his sleeve and sat down opposite Wang Lin.

"Fellow Daoist, how about letting me have a drink too?" The Big-Eared Cultivator gently took out a cup from his Storage Pouch.

Wang Lin glanced at this person, then tossed his wine pot forward. The Big-Eared Cultivator caught it, filled a cup, and after drinking it in one gulp, his eyes showed a strange light, and he praised, "Excellent taste!"

Wang Lin chuckled and said, "Since you like it, the remaining half pot is yours!"

The Big-Eared Cultivator laughed heartily, not refusing. He poured another cup, drank it, savored it for a long time, then sighed faintly, "Fellow Daoist's Realm is a cut above mine. To achieve Mortal Transformation in the Human Realm, I admire you!"

Wang Lin flipped his right hand, and another wine pot appeared in it. He took a sip and said, "Fellow Daoist uses your Disciple for Mortal Transformation, comprehending the Heavenly Dao through the sentiment of both Master and father. You and I have a similar approach, so why envy others?"

The Big-Eared Cultivator's eyes gleamed as he looked at Wang Lin, nodding and saying, "It seems I was not mistaken after all. Hearing my Disciple's words today, I already had a suspicion that in this capital, there is someone of my same Realm, preparing for Soul Transformation."

Wang Lin smiled without speaking.

"Fellow Daoist, how about we have a competition to see who enters that ethereal Soul Transformation Realm first?" The Big-Eared Cultivator looked at Wang Lin and smiled faintly.

Wang Lin looked at the Big-Eared Cultivator with a half-smile and said, "With a heart for competition, I fear Wang will never achieve Soul Transformation in this life. Fellow Daoist, your words are quite harmful."

The Big-Eared Cultivator laughed heartily, flicked his sleeve, and cupped his fists, saying, "I never expected to meet such a person as Fellow Daoist in this capital. Good! My name is Zhou Wutai, may I ask Fellow Daoist's name?"

"Wang Lin!" He picked up the wine pot, took a sip, and said.

"Fellow Daoist Wang, you will certainly achieve Soul Transformation within a century. Zhou congratulates you in advance today!" The Big-Eared Cultivator Zhou Wutai smiled faintly.

Wang Lin's gaze was calm as he said casually, "Fellow Daoist Zhou speaks too soon. In my opinion, whether Fellow Daoist Zhou can enter Soul Transformation within a century is still debatable, but your Disciple will certainly die within a century!"

Zhou Wutai's eyes flashed, and he fell silent.

The young Daoist priest wanted to glare, but seeing that his Master seemed quite familiar with this person, he suppressed his anger with a soft snort, thinking to himself that this person really didn't know how to appreciate favors. He had never seen his Master speak to anyone like this before, yet this person not only didn't show gratitude but even spoke ill!

Even Xu Tao felt that Wang Lin's words were somewhat hurtful and couldn't help but become extra cautious, fearing that the Big-Eared Cultivator would be enraged.

But what surprised him was that after a brief silence, the Big-Eared Cultivator not only wasn't angry but instead gave a wry smile.

In fact, with the young Daoist priest's cultivation, he naturally couldn't discern the contention in the words of the Big-Eared Cultivator and Wang Lin. As for Xu Tao, being merely a Mortal, he was even less able to perceive the danger within.

The Big-Eared Cultivator, despite his gentle demeanor since entering the shop, had always harbored malicious intent. Every word and phrase was subtly laced with hidden meaning.

He initially tried to provoke Wang Lin's desire for rivalry and comparison. If successful, Wang Lin would no longer be a concern to him, because to achieve Soul Transformation, one must first undergo Mortal Transformation. This Mortal Transformation involves comprehending the Heavenly Dao, with a primary focus on a peaceful state of mind. Once a competitive spirit arises, Wang Lin would very likely develop a mental obstacle in this life, making it impossible for him to successfully achieve Soul Transformation.

Even if he eventually overcame the mental obstacle, it would be many years later. From this, one can see the insidious malice of the Big-Eared Cultivator.

Although Wang Lin exposed him, this person remained unresigned and continued to use the guise of congratulations to set a hundred-year deadline. This was another malicious statement.

The old man had also said these words back then, but because his cultivation was quite high and Wang Lin had not reached his current Realm, it was harmless and instead served as a hint to strengthen his confidence.

However, now, these words spoken by the Big-Eared Cultivator, though the words were the same, their meaning was vastly different.

If Wang Lin truly took it to heart, within a century, as time passed, if he failed to achieve Soul Transformation, he would forever lose the opportunity in this life, unless he could once again achieve great enlightenment and break free from this century-long curse.

Given the other party's repeated malicious words, Wang Lin finally began to counterattack!

He first used the phrase about whether the other party could achieve Soul Transformation within a century, slightly modifying their own method and returning it to them, having a similar effect to their words about achieving Soul Transformation within a century.

However, this was not the main point of Wang Lin's counterattack. His last sentence was the true counterattack!

Within a century, that young Daoist priest would certainly die! These words had already pointed out the crucial aspect of the Big-Eared Cultivator and the young Daoist priest's relationship, which was both Master and father.

The Big-Eared Cultivator Zhou Wutai's Mortal Transformation Realm was achieved by comprehending the sentiment between Master and Disciple, moving his thoughts with intent, taking a Disciple with thought, nurturing a child with emotion, bestowing kindness with grace, forming love with heart, and entering the divine with sorrow. Every action he took was to fully immerse himself in this Master-Disciple relationship.

When he finally comprehended his Concept and was about to reach Soul Transformation, that would be the day he would kill his own Disciple, personally killing the Disciple whom he had poured his entire heart and soul into, who was both his child and Disciple, thereby bringing the ultimate sorrow in his heart to the final step of entering the divine with sorrow!

Seemingly emotional, yet actually emotionless, but within this emotionlessness, there was profound emotion and true nature. This kind of Mortal Transformation Realm was something ordinary people could never comprehend; at the very least, Wang Lin couldn't do it.

Therefore, his last sentence could become the true counterattack: the Disciple would certainly die within a century. First, it contradictorily set a hundred-year promise, then used this to provoke the Big-Eared Cultivator's true emotionlessness and future sorrowful thoughts, and at the same time, left a faint, indistinct trace in the young Daoist priest's heart.

The Big-Eared Cultivator Zhou Wutai gave a wry smile. He looked deeply at Wang Lin, then suddenly stood up, cupped his fists slightly, pondered for a moment, and looked at Xu Tao, saying, "Tell your Your Highness that the Rain Cauldron must be sent to the Daoist temple within three days. I will no longer pursue this matter!" With that, he looked deeply at Wang Lin again, then turned and left.

The young Daoist priest was completely stunned and quickly followed. He always felt that today's events had a strange air about them; his Master was quite uncharacteristically not avenging him as before.

At the same time, Wang Lin's words involuntarily came to his mind: he would certainly die within a century. As he thought about it, he couldn't help but shiver. When he looked up, he saw his Master looking at him with a gentle gaze, and his heart immediately warmed.

"Fu'er, don't think so much. Why did you put away the sugar figurine? Why aren't you eating it?" The Big-Eared Cultivator's voice was filled with kindness as he said softly.

The young Daoist priest's eyes were slightly red as he whispered, "Disciple plans to keep it forever."

The Big-Eared Cultivator smiled faintly, stroked the young Daoist priest's head, and smiled without speaking, leading him slowly out of the street. However, though he smiled, his heart grew gloomy. His Divine Sense swept deeply over Wang Lin's shop, and in his heart, he had already regarded this person as his greatest rival in life.

Wang Lin sat in the shop, lost in thought. After a long while, he laughed wryly, no longer considering the matter, so as not to affect his Mortal Transformation Realm, which was nearing its completion.

Xu Tao was completely stunned at this moment. He had only previously thought Wang Lin was an expert, otherwise, how could merely making wooden carvings shock the two immortal elders of the Prince's Estate so much?

Afterwards, he observed carefully and found that Wang Lin's shop had not changed at all. On the contrary, those two immortal elders had become reserved, never mentioning the wooden carvings again.

Even Your Highness the Prince had told him to visit on holidays, and this had remained unchanged for over ten years. That was why he thought of seeking Wang Lin for help when disaster struck.

But he never imagined that Wang Lin was so formidable that the Big-Eared Cultivator, who had forced the Prince to not show his face, forced the various immortal elders to keep their distance, and forced Your Highness the Prince to hide in the imperial palace, would abandon the pursuit after just a few words.

One must know that many days ago, Your Highness the Prince had dreamed of handing over the Rain Cauldron to save his life.

——

I originally planned for three updates today to continue asking for votes and widen the gap with the sixth place, but because I need to revise the opening plot of the first 100,000 words of renegade immortal, the three updates will be postponed until tomorrow. I ask all Fellow Daoists not to be stingy with your Magic Treasure and throw them my way!