Guests shouted and ran madly towards the outside.
Only the unlucky ones who were hit by the beams either cried out in despair while clutching their broken legs or had already lost their lives.
Lin Ji's face suddenly turned ugly.
In the hall on the first floor, after the middle-aged Taoist appeared, holding a whisk, he pointed directly at the female monster.
"Bold monster, dare to transform into human form and deceive in the city! Today, meeting this old Taoist, I will make your soul scatter!"
As the words fell, the Taoist lightly leaped over a distance of tens of meters and arrived in front of the female monster.
The whisk, accompanied by a strong wind, fell without any regard for the young master Zheng who was beside the female monster.
"Be careful!"
The female monster instinctively pushed away young master Zheng, then looked in horror as the whisk grew larger in her eyes.
It was too late to dodge.
Just then, the sound of Buddhist chants rang out.
"Amitabha."
Master Xingchi appeared between the Taoist and the female monster, clasping his hands together, allowing the whisk to fall on his head.
Clang!
A crisp sound, with a lingering resonance.
The collision between the whisk and the iron head stirred up a cloud of dust, and an invisible wave of energy surged towards the surroundings.
Master Xingchi had a smile on his face, standing still without moving.
On the other hand, the Taoist's expression changed slightly as he took two steps back.
"You bald monk, I, as a Taoist, am here to eliminate monsters and demons. What concern is it of yours?"
"Whether it's a monster or not, human or monster, they are all living beings in this world," Master Xingchi said softly. "If the monster does evil, this monk will not only not stop you, but will also help you eliminate the monster. But she has only taken human form for a few days, and has not done any evil in her many years of cultivation. Why take her life unnecessarily?"
"Humans and monsters cannot coexist, this has been the truth since ancient times!"
"All beings are equal, whether they are monsters, demons, ghosts, or humans, it's just a label."
The Taoist's eyebrows were raised in anger as he waved the whisk directly towards Master Xingchi.
"You, monster monk, your words are deceiving the public, you must be punished!"
"Your hostility is a bit too strong, benefactor."
After a brief exchange, Master Xingchi maintained a posture of clasping his hands together throughout the confrontation. No matter how the Taoist attacked, he used his shiny bald head to receive the blows.
In just a few breaths, the monk and the Taoist had exchanged dozens of moves. The Taoist was clearly losing his breath, while Master Xingchi remained calm with a gentle smile.
The Taoist seemed to realize that with this monk present, he couldn't eliminate the monster today.
"Enough! You bald donkey, you are truly despicable!"
Seeing that Master Xingchi ignored him, the Taoist turned to the female monster and young master Zheng who had hidden to the side.
"Young man, the woman next to you is a monster in disguise. She wants to seduce you to absorb your yang energy and plot against your life! Knowing this, do you still want to be with her?"
Upon hearing this, young master Zheng was taken aback.
He broke free from the female monster's embrace, looking at her with fear.
"No, it's not like that," the female monster hurriedly shook her head, no longer telling stories at this point, and said in a hurry, "Young master, do you remember the swan you saw by the lake a few days ago? I am the swan transformed into a woman."
"You are truly a monster!" Young master Zheng's voice trembled.
"I am a monster, but I came to repay a debt," the female monster explained. "Young master, you once said that if I transformed into a woman, you would be willing to grow old with me and be together for life."
"Perhaps you said it unintentionally, but it helped me transform, which is a great favor. Therefore, I was prepared to spend my life with you to repay this favor. After your life ends, I will return to the mountains to cultivate."
"Ah, you are a monster!" Young master Zheng exclaimed.
For a moment, the female monster was speechless.
The Taoist, on the other hand, burst into laughter.
"Bald donkey, do you see? Humans and monsters cannot coexist, this has been the truth since ancient times!"
"Amitabha."
Master Xingchi turned to look at the sorrowful female monster and then at the trembling young master Zheng.
After a moment of silence, he shook his head helplessly and sighed, "If fate has not arrived, then fate has not arrived."
"Given the current situation, do you still want to stop me from eliminating the monster?" The Taoist became more excited.
However, Master Xingchi ignored him and turned to the female monster, asking, "Female monster, are you willing to follow me in practicing Buddhist teachings?"
"Bald donkey, how dare you!" The Taoist's face changed abruptly.
The female monster hesitated, seemingly finding it hard to believe.
"I, a mere monster, are you willing to accept me, Master?"
"Monsters and humans are no different, just living beings under the sky. If your heart turns towards the Buddha, you can cultivate the Buddha way."
Upon hearing this, the female monster bit her lip, then suddenly knelt down.
But it was young master Zheng who knelt down.
"Young master Zheng, the female monster cannot repay your kindness, so she can only repay you with this one kneel."
Seeing this scene, young master Zheng felt strange.
Aren't monsters supposed to harm people? Why does this one in front of him seem no different from a human?
Seemingly even purer than humans?
After the female monster stood up, she stood behind Master Xingchi and paid her respects as a disciple.
Seeing this, the Taoist was furious, stomping his feet and pointing the whisk at Master Xingchi.
"Alright, you bald donkey, I will remember today's events! Our paths will cross again, and I will have my revenge!"
With that, the Taoist leaped up, ready to leave.
But just as he was a few meters off the ground, his body suddenly lost control in mid-air and fell heavily to the ground.
A sense of pressure enveloped everyone present at that moment.
On the second floor, Lin Ji sat in a chair, lips pursed and brows furrowed.
Beside her, Song Er was already lying on the ground, looking bitter.
"Boss, is this the skill of Master Xingchi? Are cultivators this powerful?"
"Heh, ordinary cultivators are not this powerful, but this Master Xingchi is indeed extraordinary," Lin Ji couldn't quite gauge the depth of this monk. She tried to pick up a teacup nearby, but as soon as she lifted it, the cup shattered.
Shaking her head helplessly, Lin Ji looked at the Taoist downstairs with an unpleasant expression.
"This Taoist is finished."
Downstairs, the pressure dissipated.
The Taoist struggled to get up, his face filled with fear.
Previously, he thought the bald monk was just stubborn, but who would have thought...
"Bald donkey, I won't kill that female monster anymore, why do you stop me from leaving?"
"Amitabha," Master Xingchi asked, "Monsters harming people should be eliminated, but what about humans harming people?"
"There are laws to handle that! Why are you asking me this?" The Taoist was puzzled.
Master Xingchi said expressionlessly, "The karma of those common people who were killed or injured by the beams should fall on you, right?"
Upon hearing this, the Taoist quickly turned around.
Indeed, most of the guests hit by the beams had already lost their lives, and the few who were still struggling were on the verge of death.
"I am here to eliminate monsters and demons! Monsters harm countless people, and a few ordinary people die in exchange for the lives of monsters, this account is not a loss, and I have no regrets," the Taoist justified.
"All beings are equal, you have no right to decide the fate of those ordinary people. They never agreed to sacrifice their lives to help you eliminate monsters and demons."
"Bald donkey, are you going to stop me for a few ordinary people?"
"Benefactor, you have fallen into delusion." With that, Master Xingchi's figure suddenly disappeared.
Among the people present, only the Taoist realized what had happened.
He quickly tried to retreat, but it was too late.
A golden palm print appeared in front of him.
With a single palm strike, the Taoist fell to the ground.
No flashy moves, just a simple palm strike.
Master Xingchi's figure reappeared.
"Impartial Buddha."
"Lin, come down and take this person away."
(End of this chapter)