Heaven-Dominating Martial Emperor

The atmosphere quietly grew tense.

Master Minghui's gaze turned intrigued.

Master Jielan, however, was sizing up Ye Chen with a scrutinizing gaze, a hint of annoyance in his heart. He seemed angry that the Buddha's Son had hidden these things from him.

The Buddha's Son went completely stiff, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

The one thing he feared most had happened after all!

Facing Pure Buddha's gentle gaze, he felt as if he were sitting on pins and needles. "I greet you, Lord Pure Buddha!" he managed to say.

Then, choosing his words carefully, he said, one by one, "Lord Pure Buddha, please do not blame him. This Daoist friend of mine is not actually from Jingkong Temple."

"Oh?"

No one had expected the Buddha's Son to confess so quickly.

Pure Buddha asked with great interest, "Then why did he impersonate a successor of my Jingkong Temple in front of so many people tonight?"

"It was a last resort!"

The Buddha's Son sighed and explained in a low voice, "If the four great families hadn't been pressing us so hard, I wouldn't have had to use Jingkong Temple's name to help my friend escape."

"I see. So, you were simply trying to help your friend get away?"

Pure Buddha nodded, a smile gracing his handsome, gentle face. "That's no matter. We are all on the same side. I won't fuss over such things."

Hearing this, the Buddha's Son breathed a secret sigh of relief. He never would have imagined that Pure Buddha—one of the thirty-five Buddhas of Jingkong Temple—would be so easygoing!

"However..."

But in the next moment, Pure Buddha's tone shifted, growing much colder. "Since you used the name of my Jingkong Temple, you can at least reveal a thing or two about your friend's identity, can't you?"

"Otherwise, this will be rather difficult to justify."

The Buddha's Son's heart skipped a beat. 'This is bad,' he thought.

"Disciple, you'd best not hide anything from Lord Pure Buddha."

Master Jielan gave Ye Chen a deep look. "No disguise can fool Lord Pure Buddha. You just need to tell the truth."

His words were pointed.

In fact, ever since Pure Buddha had appeared, Ye Chen had felt a faint, mysterious power lingering around him, as if trying to probe for something.

This was, of course, the work of Pure Buddha!

Faced with this tense situation, Ye Chen remained silent, simply waiting for the Buddha's Son to explain.

Soaked in a cold sweat, the Buddha's Son hesitated for a long time before finally saying cautiously, "Lord Pure Buddha, my friend... he has never liked revealing his identity to outsiders. Please forgive him."

Master Jielan was taken aback, and Master Minghui's brows furrowed tightly.

Even the few Saint Monks who had followed along looked displeased, as if angered that the Buddha's Son could be so tactless.

If they angered this major figure who had come all the way from Jingkong Temple, the entire Saint Temple would be unable to withstand his wrath!

"Disciple, you..." Master Jielan was about to admonish him, but Pure Buddha stopped him.

"If he is unwilling to say, then let it be."

"We are all on the same side. I can't be bothered to dig too deeply into it," Pure Buddha said, shaking his head, his expression calm.

The Buddha's Son's heart trembled.

'Pure Buddha is letting this go so easily?'

He felt that things weren't so simple, but since Pure Buddha had already spoken, he immediately said, "Then I will take my leave now."

"There are still preparations to be made for tomorrow's Peach Blossom Banquet, so this disciple will return to rest early tonight," the Buddha's Son said to Master Jielan.

Master Jielan's expression was complicated. "Go on."

'Since Pure Buddha doesn't intend to pursue this, he must have his own considerations.'

As the abbot of the Saint Temple, he certainly wouldn't overstep his bounds.

With that, the Buddha's Son left with Ye Chen.

Watching the two figures recede into the distance, Master Minghui was still puzzled. "Lord Pure Buddha, this person dared to impersonate a successor of Jingkong Temple. Are we really just going to let him go so easily?"

A Saint Monk at his side snorted coldly as well. "To think the Buddha's Son would help an outsider hide his identity. He has truly failed our teachings and expectations!"

Pure Buddha smiled faintly. "Have none of you noticed?"

"That mysterious person most likely has some kind of hold on the Buddha's Son."

"What?" At these words, Master Jielan and the others were startled.

"The reason I didn't press the matter is because I have already confirmed that fellow is definitely not from my Jingkong Temple."

Pure Buddha clasped his hands behind his back, his demeanor extraordinary, a picture of calm and strategic control. "The city is full of all sorts of characters right now. I don't intend to make a big move here and attract unnecessary trouble."

"Wait for the Peach Blossom Banquet to begin tomorrow. Everyone's attention will be drawn to it. At that time, I will properly investigate his identity."

"Your Lordship is wise!" Master Minghui and the others said respectfully.

What they didn't understand, however, was that with Pure Buddha's status, even if he did cause a major stir in Dongxuan Province, neither the four great families nor the Dongxuan Prefecture would dare to say a word against it.

After all, Jingkong Temple was the number one powerhouse in the southern part of the dynasty. Even the top factions from the Central Province didn't dare to underestimate it in the slightest!

What exactly was Pure Buddha wary of?

Could it be that there was someone in Dongxuan City with a background even more formidable than Jingkong Temple?

A storm of thoughts raged in their minds. They all felt that the situation in Dongxuan City was murkier than they had imagined.

...

After they had walked far enough that they could no longer sense the auras of Pure Buddha and his group, the Buddha's Son seemed to completely deflate, nearly collapsing to the ground.

"Do you have to be so dramatic?" Ye Chen glanced at the Buddha's Son, whose face was pale and drenched in sweat, and couldn't help but frown slightly.

"What do you know?!" the Buddha's Son said, both anxious and angry. "That's a major figure from Jingkong Temple! If he decided to pursue this, not only would you die, but our Saint Temple would be implicated as well!"

"Is that so?" Ye Chen smiled. "Then I'll just take care of him for you."

"You're going to take care of him? You're going to take care of that major figure from Jingkong Temple?!" The Buddha's Son's eyes went wide, hardly able to believe his ears.

Although he already knew Ye Chen was a fearless daredevil, it was still a rare sight to see him maintain such a relaxed attitude even when facing a powerhouse like Jingkong Temple.

"Do you really think Jingkong Temple is some ordinary faction? It's a behemoth capable of crushing the entirety of Dongxuan City!" The Buddha's Son, thinking Ye Chen didn't understand, couldn't help but add.

"That may be true, but don't you want to see me clash with Jingkong Temple?"

"Only if Jingkong Temple suppresses me can you escape my control, isn't that right?" Ye Chen said with a careless smile.

The Buddha's Son immediately fell silent.

"Don't worry. He's already on to me."

"If nothing unexpected happens, he and I will have to fight soon!"

Ye Chen shook his head, his tone placid.