The withered wood Daoist's expression flickered several times, and he finally made up his mind, kneeling directly towards Lin Xiaotian without hesitation.
In his heart, he hated the person who orchestrated this to the extreme. Even if Lin Xiaotian didn't deal with him later, he would definitely dismember that guy a thousand times over.
This was simply disregarding his reputation.
Lin Xiaotian said with a half-smile, "Old Daoist, doing this is a bit much. I just wanted to talk to you, but it seems you didn't hear me. I asked how you should be treated. Should I change my attitude?"
"You just knelt down to me. You're already so old, and suddenly kneeling to me, isn't that clearly trying to shorten my lifespan?"
Upon hearing this, the withered wood Daoist quickly shook his head, his mind racing with countless thoughts. He hastily said, "Mr. Lin, please don't misunderstand."
"I already have an idea about how we should treat you from now on, as you said before."
"From now on, anyone from our Tianluodiwang here who sees you must kneel and pay their respects. Anyone who dares to overstep this courtesy, I will make them pay the price they deserve."
"Including myself."
Now, as long as he could quell Lin Xiaotian's anger, he was willing to do anything. Otherwise, if Lin Xiaotian really killed him, he would have died in vain.
Lin Xiaotian said with a half-smile, "This tactic of yours, advancing by retreating, is quite clever. You only kneel when you see me, and then you go back to doing whatever you were doing."
"Wouldn't that make me very unhappy?"
"You've caused me trouble twice or thrice, and this time you've gone further, even trying to attack me directly. We had clearly stated our cooperative intentions, yet Tianluodiwang still pulled a stunt like this."
"How can I trust you people?"
Hearing this, the withered wood Daoist quickly shook his head like a rattle drum, "Mr. Lin, you are absolutely mistaken. We absolutely did not mean that."
"It's all the people below who don't understand the specific situation."
"I even suspect that someone deliberately impersonated our Tianluodiwang to try and sow discord between us. If that's the case, I will investigate this matter thoroughly."
Lin Xiaotian smiled and said nothing more. Instead, he leaned back on the sofa, lit a cigarette, and slowly smoked.
The leader of the group, however, was already trembling with fear. Whether or not they were truly from Tianluodiwang, they knew in their hearts. This seemingly powerful old man was likely a high-ranking official of Tianluodiwang.
And yet, in front of Lin Xiaotian, he had knelt without hesitation. Just a few words from Lin Xiaotian had elicited such a humble reaction.
They couldn't understand who Lin Xiaotian was. What they feared even more now was how Lin Xiaotian would deal with them later.
Lin Xiaotian looked at those few individuals with a smile and said lightly, "Weren't you guys very arrogant just now? Why aren't you speaking now? Continue to show your arrogant demeanor."
"If you don't trust me, I absolutely won't retaliate, and there's still an old man here waiting for you to deal with."
The leader trembled and shook his head, "Mr. Lin, I'm sorry, it was our fault. We had no idea you had such a close relationship with their old man."
"If we had known this earlier, even if we were given a hundred times the courage, we would never have dared to overstep. We wouldn't have dared to come even if we were beaten to death."
His voice was already choked with tears. If this was truly a high-ranking official from Tianluodiwang, he wouldn't know how he died. Let alone him, even his boss behind him would have to face the wrath of those above.
And they couldn't withstand that wrath.
Lin Xiaotian let out a cold laugh and said impatiently, "Didn't you want to call your boss earlier? Why aren't you calling now?"
"I've already said that my patience is very limited. I'll give you ten minutes. If your boss doesn't show up by then, I won't mind teaching you a profound lesson that you'll never forget in your lifetime."
"And you, old Daoist, won't escape this either. If you make me unhappy, I'll make all of you unhappy."
The withered wood Daoist couldn't help but shiver. His eyes were filled with extreme terror, because he knew Lin Xiaotian would definitely keep his word and would not compromise with them. This person in front of him was someone that even their top experts had to treat with extreme caution.
"Mr. Lin, I was completely wronged in this matter. It has nothing to do with me. Please give me a chance. I promise that after I go back this time, I will re-examine everyone and absolutely prevent them from doing such foolish things again."
Lin Xiaotian coldly laughed, "I've given you chances again and again, but each time you've disappointed me immensely."
"Let's not even talk about the Medicine King Cauldron. You can say you were tricked and brought a fake Medicine King Cauldron. I can forgive your mistake, after all, no one is perfect."
"But look at your current state. How many chances have I given you, and yet, haven't you disappointed me every single time?"
"Stop with the useless nonsense. If you can't give me a satisfactory explanation this time, think about the consequences yourself!"
The withered wood Daoist felt completely overwhelmed. His eyes were filled with murderous intent, and he turned to the leader, his teeth almost grinding to dust.
"What are you standing there for? Didn't you call your boss earlier? Why aren't you calling now?"
The leader's voice trembled, "I had already called, but my boss hung up directly. He only sent me a text message saying he had something very important to do and didn't have time to take my call, and that I could handle things myself if I had any."
The withered wood Daoist laughed in anger, "Even if his own father died, he must take my call. Tell him I am the withered wood Daoist, and tell him to answer the phone immediately. Send him the message. If he dares to delay for even a second, I will twist his head off."
At this point, the leader dared not hesitate any longer and quickly sent the message.
The aura emanating from this old man was terrifying. They felt like ants in front of this old man, who could crush them at any moment.