Chapter 383: Applying Pressure

The people of Mingfo Temple were furious with the current situation.

If this dragged on any longer, they'd all be dead once Lu Ye came into his power!

But the Bodhisattva was their top priority.

Maybe kill a few to scare Lu Ye into trading the Bodhisattva back in exchange for the Tianmen members?

Then, while ensuring the Bodhisattva's safety, go all-out hunting him down?

This was a feasible plan, but the key issue was that Lu Ye had not shown any intention of exchanging the Bodhisattva, which left Mingfo Temple fuming.

After intense discussions, they finally settled on giving Lu Ye an ultimatum.

It was at this moment that a message from the Sixth Heaven arrived.

"Amitabha, what are you doing now?"

A raspy, ancient voice crackled from the shriveled golden statue.

"Elder, the Bodhisattva has been captured by Lu Ye. He couldn’t care less about Tianmen’s people. We are considering killing some to make Lu Ye realize the severity of the situation and force him to exchange the Bodhisattva!" Fa Hui hurriedly explained.

From within the golden statue came a weary sigh.

"Too slow. You’re moving like snails!"

"I told you before—everything must be done quickly, quickly! How much time has passed now?" The voice from the golden statue hissed.

"But... he captured the Bodhisattva..."

"Who cares who he’s got?! Do I need to know such details? All I know now is that you must immediately cease all actions against Tianmen and release every single Tianmen member! Release them all!"

The aged voice from the golden statue thundered.

Fa Hui went white.

"What about Lu Ye?"

"If you have the ability, capture Lu Ye! But you cannot use Tianmen members to threaten him!"

"We can’t find him..."

"Then there’s nothing I can do!"

"Now, release the Tianmen members immediately! This instant!"

Fa Hui wanted to say more, but then a stranger’s voice cut in from the golden statue.

"And don’t skimp on reparations!"

Fa Hui’s blood ran cold.

Elder... the Elder’s...?

Was the Sixth Heaven’s temple fallen?

Or the Seventh—hell, the Eighth Heaven?!

The statue’s light flickered out—the link was dead.

Fa Hui and his group looked downright furious. What the hell was happening now? Their superiors had sent them to nab Lu Ye, to make him aid the Bodhisattva's growth.

But they’d come up empty, and now the superiors were demanding they release the Tianmen people.

Their whole plan hinged on using the Tianmen prisoners to threaten Lu Ye into appearing. They’d tried everything—tracking his karma, scent, even fate itself—but Lu Ye might as well have vanished.

Yet Lu Ye remained utterly unfindable.

If they truly released the Tianmen people now, what would await them?

A viper in the dark—one that was not only deadly but growing wildly, poised at any moment to explode into a world-eating monstrosity.

And this thing had Mingfo Temple in its crosshairs...

“We absolutely cannot release the Tianmen people! This is the only leverage we have against Lu Ye. If we let them go, Mingfo Temple will be left at the mercy of others. The Tianmen people must not be freed—I refuse!” a beefy monk bellowed.

"Exactly, we must not release them! No way in hell!"

"Only if Lu Ye shows his face and swears off vengeance with Mingfo Temple once and for all. Only then can we consider it!"

"But... Tianmen outguns the Sixth Heaven!"

"Amitabha, and we are no match for Lu Ye either!"

Nearly all the monks opposed releasing the Tianmen people just like that.

Fa Hui’s gut churned with frustration.

Nothing—absolutely nothing—had gone to plan.

He’d bet everything on that mind trick working—yet it had no effect on him.

He had thought they could locate Lu Ye—yet they had found nothing.

He had assumed capturing Tianmen members would force Lu Ye to submit—then Lu Ye flipped the script by snatching the Bodhisattva right from under them. The course of events had deviated entirely from his expectations.

And now, matters had dragged on to this point.

Fa Hui’s face twisted as he weighed his options.

Part of him wanted to cut them loose... after all, they had not killed a single Tianmen member.

But after so many backfires, Fa Hui realized: his gut instinct was clearly cursed—time to do the exact opposite!

Because following his instincts had only led to worsening outcomes.

Fa Hui yanked out the Sound Transmission Stone.

"Lu Ye! Last chance—hand over the Bodhisattva or else."

Silence.

"So that’s how it is? Fine!"

"Then don’t say I didn’t warn you. You’ve got fifteen minutes. Then a Tianmen prisoner dies!"

"If you don't respond in ten quarter-hours, I will kill ten of your Tianmen disciples!"

"I'll see just how long your indifference lasts!"

"Bring Guanzhi Taoist to me!"

Lu Ye, who had been cultivating, opened his eyes, revealing an expression of extreme coldness.

"Sect Master Luan, are you occupied at the moment?" Lu Ye's heavenly sigils flickered faintly.

Luan Xin, the sect master of Tianmen in the Seventh Heaven, was a cyan luan bird. Not all within Tianmen necessarily...