Chapter 498 496: Paying a Visit

Mu Lin raised his hand and swatted at the Grandmaster as if shooing a fly.

A cloud of black smoke billowed from the Grandmaster's chest, where a massive crater had appeared, boring straight through his torso. He couldn't be more dead.

At that moment, all the Ning Family experts froze like statues, staring at one another in dismay.

Even the three previously confident Grandmasters were drenched in cold sweat, trembling from head to toe.

"You... you... How dare you! But don't get cocky. You're not getting away! We'll show you what true power looks like in a minute!"

One of the Grandmasters, his expression grim, pointed at Mu Lin and roared.

'This is the Ning Family, with experts as numerous as the clouds,' he thought. 'Is it really that hard to find someone to deal with Mu Lin?'

But Mu Lin had no patience for his posturing. With a flick of his finger, a black beam from the Divine Finger shot out.

THUD!

The talkative Grandmaster's eyes bulged as he died instantly, the new hole in his forehead giving him a clear view of what was behind him.

The other two Grandmasters were shaking in their boots, panicked beyond belief. Their bodies were very honestly telling them to run.

'Where the hell did this kid come from?'

'His cultivation is so strong it's unreal!'

'How old can he be? He can already trade blows with Grandmasters—hell, he just killed two of them. I've never seen anything like it!'

"Get out of my way if you want to live. Don't waste my time."

Mu Lin reached for the two Grandmasters. If they didn't move aside, their fate would be grim.

The two Grandmasters scrambled out of his way, no longer daring to stand their ground.

The other experts in the courtyard hurriedly vanished, pretending they had never existed.

TAP, TAP, TAP... The soft sound of footsteps echoed from the depths of the courtyard.

Mu Lin ignored the fleeing experts and turned his attention to the approaching figures.

Elder Ning was well-protected in the center of the group, with Ning Zuoren leading the way.

Ning Zuoren's face was a mask of fury. The moment he saw Mu Lin, he exploded, "You bastard Mu! The nerve of you, coming to the Ning Family estate to cause trouble! You've got a death wish!"

Ning Zuoren's expression was livid. "Didn't I already transfer the money? And you're still not satisfied? Do you think the Ning Family is a pushover?"

Mu Lin's expression was calm. "Who said I came for you? Don't flatter yourself. Step aside."

"Insolent!" Ning Zuoren snapped.

Ning Zuoren was about to curse again but was cut off by Mu Lin. "You must be Elder Ning?"

Mu Lin looked at Elder Ning, a flicker of emotion on his face. He and this Elder Ning were old adversaries indeed. Their conflict dated back to the Hidden Sword Manor incident, and countless of the elder's subordinates had died by his hand.

Elder Ning, being more experienced, was far more composed.

Elder Ning pressed on, "What about Wu Wenbing? Where is he?"

Mu Lin tilted his head. "Dead, of course. I didn't want to kill him, but his skills were lacking."

Elder Ning sighed. "To think that even he couldn't kill you... We all underestimated you."

Now it was Ning Zuoren's turn to be stunned. Wu Wenbing was his grandfather's personal bodyguard, and the old man had invested an incredible amount of resources in him.

He was already halfway to becoming a Martial Arts Celestial Being, with transcendent strength that was second to none.

'Mu Lin actually killed Wu Wenbing? Am I dreaming?'

Mu Lin didn't spare Ning Zuoren a glance; wasting time on him was pointless. He had a more important goal for this visit: to deal with the Immortal backing the Ning Family while the Imperial Martial Bureau's Patrol was present.

This was a rare opportunity, and the future danger would be too great if he didn't eliminate this hidden threat now.

Mu Lin spread his spiritual sense across the Ning estate and asked curiously, "Where's your family's Immortal? I heard they're quite powerful. Don't they make a move whenever someone provokes the Ning Family? I've provoked you this much already; it wouldn't look good if your Immortal didn't even show their face, would it?"

Upon hearing this, Elder Ning's brow furrowed. "What do you want with our old ancestor?"

"To kill him, of course."

Just as Mu Lin spoke, an emotionless voice reverberated across the entire Ning estate.

"An Innate-level ant dares to spout such arrogant nonsense. How laughable! I wasn't even going to bother with you, but you delivered yourself to my doorstep! Are you prepared to die?"

As the words fell, a golden blade of light slashed through the night. A terrifying Saber Qi swept through the world, and the roofs of the Ning estate were battered by the energy, swaying as if in a violent storm.

Mu Lin found it odd. 'Where did that Saber Qi come from?'

"Heh heh, Ning Bai Nian, as a Land Immortal, you dare attack a common Martial Artist? Have you no respect for the law?!"

An unremarkable wisp of Sword Qi transformed into a bolt of light that stretched for hundreds of meters, illuminating the dark night as it met the Saber Qi in a mid-air stalemate.

BOOM!

A violent torrent of energy surged in all directions, instantly engulfing the entire surface of the Ning estate.

When the chaotic currents of air finally dissipated, a crazed-looking old man threw his head back and roared at the sky.

"Wen Lianggong!"

The Ning Family's Immortal sounded utterly incredulous. "You've actually made a full recovery?!"

Wen Lianggong landed on the roof's eaves. Without even answering the Ning Family Immortal, he glanced at Mu Lin with a smile and said graciously, "Mu Xiaoyou, looks like I made it just in time. See how punctual I am!"

Mu Lin asked with a smile, "Elder Wen, what wind blew you here?"

Wen Lianggong chuckled. "Take a guess who sent me! I promised to lend you my sword three times, and today certainly counts as one. Otherwise, all this effort would be for nothing."

Mu Lin just smiled and said nothing. He hadn't helped Wen Lianggong in the past expecting anything in return; the promise of three sword strikes was a favor Wen Lianggong himself had insisted on.

The fact that Wen Lianggong remembered showed his integrity. If he had forgotten, that would have been perfectly normal, too.

Mu Lin wasn't counting on Wen Lianggong to save his skin. He had come here fully prepared to make a safe retreat on his own.

Wen Lianggong's intervention, if anything, just dragged things out and made them more complicated.

The Ning Family Immortal stood on the eaves, saber in hand, with the two men occupying opposite corners of the roof.

Elder Ning and the others quickly bowed to the Ning Family Immortal in salute. Even they rarely had the chance to see the family's foundational pillar.

The Ning Family Immortal gave a simple nod in return, then fixed his gaze on Mu Lin with a contemptuous sneer. "If Wen Lianggong hadn't stopped me today, I would have killed you without a doubt."

Mu Lin retorted, "If he hadn't gotten in the way, you'd already be dead!"

Wen Lianggong's expression flickered, but he remained silent. Protecting Mu Lin wasn't just a task from Tai Weiguo; it was also his way of repaying a personal debt.

'Mu Lin really talks big,' Wen Lianggong thought. 'But so what?'

'As long as I'm here, this Ning Bai Nian can forget about harming a single hair on Mu Lin's head.'

Ning Bai Nian's gaze toward Mu Lin was dripping with killing intent. 'To think an ant like this would attempt to shake a great tree.'

But that killing intent meant nothing to Mu Lin. Plenty of people had wanted to kill him over the years.

Wen Lianggong said coolly, "Ning Bai Nian, I know I can't stop you forever. You can make your move whenever you like. But if so much as a single hair on Mu Xiaoyou's head is harmed, I will report this to the Imperial Martial Bureau's Patrol."

"Let's see how you explain yourself to the Patrol then!"

Ning Bai Nian was seething. The killing intent in his eyes intensified.

'Who could have predicted that this damned Wen Lianggong would actually recover?'

'Otherwise, if I killed Mu Lin tonight, who would dare to say a word?'

"Hmph. Consider him lucky! He can keep that head on his shoulders for a few more days!"

But Mu Lin wasn't satisfied. He wanted a proper resolution.

"You've sent assassins after me more than once, and tonight you blatantly disrupted my cultivation. Are we just going to let that slide?"

He gathered a surge of Inner Strength, sinking his qi into his Dantian before projecting it outward.

Mu Lin stood like a heaven-supporting giant, his voice thundering across the entire Ning estate!

"Laughable!" A single, short word.

Yet it produced a terrifying effect, shaking the members of the Ning Family so hard that blood streamed from their orifices. Their vision went black, and they collapsed to their knees, stunned and unable to move.

Wen Lianggong looked on in shock. "The Buddhist Sect's Eight-Section Golden Dragon Roar? When did he learn that?"

'The power behind it is immense; how else could it have had such a devastating effect?'

The sound wave expanded rapidly, about to envelop Elder Ning in less than a breath.

Elder Ning wasn't strong, but he was a crucial figure. Without him, the Ning Family would lose its backbone.

"HAH!"

Ning Bai Nian was forced to flash to Elder Ning's side. With a furious roar, he shattered Mu Lin's sonic attack, his proud eyes filled with rage.

"Brat, do you know what you're doing?! You've got a death wish!"

Wen Lianggong raised his sword and glared. "Ning Bai Nian! Have you no shame!"

Ning Bai Nian couldn't tolerate the accusation. His pride was more important, so he could only swallow his anger.

'Once the Imperial Martial Bureau's Patrol leaves, I'll come back, grab Mu Lin, and tear him limb from limb!'

"Brat, what do you want?"

Mu Lin ignored Ning Bai Nian and walked over to Elder Ning.

"Elder Ning, see? After all this trouble, you still have to pay to make this go away. Was it all really necessary?"

Elder Ning was miserable. "I'm willing to pay to settle this! Is ten billion enough?"