With the hot search pushes from major media giants, the incident of the Zen Master from Great Brightness Temple extracting human hearts and livers quickly exploded online.
Everyone was shocked speechless by that scene in the video.
Countless believers were woken up by their own children before dawn and became stupefied by the content in the video.
As day broke.
The discussion of this matter online already surpassed a billion in engagement.
"Wait, is this person really from Great Brightness Temple? Great Brightness Temple is an Upper Buddhism Sect, a place of purity. How could there be such a Demon Monk?"
"I also feel this matter is unreliable. Could it be someone deliberately smearing the Buddhist Sect?"
"Smearing? Smearing my ass! When I went to Great Brightness Temple to offer incense, I saw this Monk. He’s an Elder of the Guangming Temple Du generation!"
"Hold on, is this the high monk who debated with the Observatory Master from Qingfeng Temple during the day and got completely shut up?"
"Damn, lost the debate during the day and wants to destroy their temple at night? That’s such a small-minded thing to do!"
"I say everyone, focus on the key point. Isn’t the crux of this matter that this Monk from Great Brightness Temple is an evil demon extracting human hearts and livers?"
"This is truly unbelievable, beyond comprehension. I always thought Buddhist Sect monks were compassionate, but now there’s this happening..."
"Family, who can understand this? Just last month, I went to Great Brightness Temple to pray for a child, and now this happens? Does this mean my wish won’t come true?"
"You should be grateful that your heart wasn’t extracted. Stop worrying about whether your wish will come true or not."
"Oh my God, Zen Master Du’e is a Divine Monk in my mind. How could he do something like this..."
"Great Brightness Temple, the world has such faith in you. Shouldn’t you give everyone an explanation?"
"That’s right!"
...
The scene of Du’e extracting Kong Xing’s heart and liver and eating it was simply explosive, leaving countless netizens stunned and inciting them to condemn the Great Brightness Temple.
Meanwhile, at the Great Brightness Temple.
Inside the Buddhist Hall.
The Abbot and the chief seats were also collectively furious.
"Damn it, this mess has dragged our temple into such a public outrage. Du’e should be sent to the Eighteen Layers of Hell to vent our anger!"
"In recent years, the conduct of monks everywhere has already caused the public to have doubts about our Buddhist Sect, and now such a scandal happens. What should we do?"
"And that Daoist, he actually knows the Golden Light Spell and Five Thunders Righteous Method. Hasn’t Dragon and Tiger Mountain been struggling recently? How can such a person still come down the mountain?"
"Who is in charge of Zen Spirit Temple? A Daoist like that emerges locally, why wasn’t this reported earlier?"
"I always knew Du’e had issues. With his capability, he shouldn’t have been able to enter the Profound Communication Realm in his lifetime, yet he entered it before me. Turns out he took the path of evil!"
"Abbot, the whole network is waiting for our response. If this matter isn’t handled well, our position in the Upper Sect might not be secure..."
The chief seats and Elders present were anxious like ants on a hot pan.
This public outrage, if mishandled, might bring Great Brightness Temple down into the dust.
The Abbot wore a solemn expression, pondered deeply, and then instructed:
"Great Brightness Temple’s management is negligent for failing to detect any evil within the temple; the main fault lies with me."
"Immediately issue a statement, I will step down and offer an apology to the entire internet!"
What?
These words shocked the Buddhist Hall.
All the chief seats and Elders stood up: "Abbot, how can this be? You are the pillar of Great Brightness Temple, how can you step down?"
Abbot Shi Shen calmly said: "This matter concerns the reputation of the Buddhist Sect. If I don’t step down, it’s hard to quell public anger. Besides, this is just a nominal position. I can still handle temple affairs from behind the scenes, can’t I?"
Upon hearing this, everyone exchanged glances, their eyes filled with a complex expression.
Clearly, the Abbot’s intention was obvious. Stepping down is just to calm the public, but the temple’s affairs would still be in his hands.
"Then, Abbot, who will be appointed as your successor?" someone curiously asked.
The Abbot turned his gaze to the head of the Law Enforcement Hall: "Shi Wu, you will take over."
The head of the Law Enforcement Hall, Shi Wu, was stunned: "Ah, me?"
His cultivation is deep, but he is straightforward with a far lesser strategy compared to the other chief seats. He considers the position of Abbot beyond his reach.
Yet now, the Abbot is designating him as the successor. This was too unexpected, leaving him momentarily dumbfounded.
In contrast, the other chief seats and Elders were well aware.
Clearly, the Abbot is worried about being marginalized by the new Abbot after stepping down, hence he chose Shi Wu as his successor.
Shi Wu is straightforward, with shallow scheming. He poses no threat to the Abbot.
"This arrangement is excellent."
Understanding the Abbot’s motives, some chief seats had regrets, but still showed their approval.
Only Shi Wu remained in confusion.
The Abbot continued: "Also, instruct temples nationwide to restrain themselves and conduct self-inspections. Any misconduct, we will directly remove their Buddhist status. Announce this to the entire network, letting the world know of our Sect’s remorse!"
Everyone nodded: "Indeed it should be so."
"As for Zen Spirit Temple, inform them that monks at the upper levels must collectively step down and report to the Upper Sect for punishment!"
Everyone agreed.
"Based on the information, this Daoist from Chang City has been outstanding for some time. Zen Spirit Temple failed to resolve this and did not report it. This deserves severe punishment!"
The Buddhist Sect always remembers not to let even a spark have a presence.
Temples everywhere are responsible for monitoring local Daoist Temples.
Whenever a Daoist Temple shows signs of reversing Daoism’s reputation, it must be swiftly squashed.
Yet Zen Spirit Temple actually allows this Daoist to become so renowned online!
This crime must not be lightly pardoned!
At this, everyone showed worried expressions.
"Abbot, what about that Daoist?" someone asked.
"Of course, we must eliminate him. He damages our Sect’s reputation; how can we spare his life?" someone said with a fierce expression.
"Ridiculous, at this point, if anything happens to that Daoist, everyone online will know it’s our Sect doing it. How can we act now?" someone scolded.
"Then should we just ignore it? Haven’t you seen the trend online? How many believers has he garnered?" someone was indignant.
At once, everyone argued endlessly over how to handle the Daoist.
Until the Abbot intervened.
"Enough."
They quickly quieted, waiting for further instructions.
The Abbot finally spoke slowly: "The person must be eliminated, but not now."
"He currently enjoys great fame. If something happens, it will certainly anger the masses."
"Therefore, to deal with him, his reputation must first be ruined."
"By then, his death will be in line with public sentiment!"