The divine statue standing before the enormous bronze cauldron had a red face, fire serpents coiled around its arms, and a fire turtle beneath its feet. In its hand was a wooden puppet painted with gold lacquer, with a red dot between its brows.
It naturally represented Duke Xuannan's will. As it placed the puppet into the bronze cauldron, it said, "This person is far too stubborn. I fear he cannot be tamed. If he becomes Mara Kana, he may bring calamity in the future."
At this moment, Duke Xuannan no longer seemed as mild-tempered as he had when speaking with Tiger Taisui. Though his voice was soft, it carried a weighty majesty.
Night Bodhisattva said casually, "How old is he now? How many years has he lived in The Present World? How many relatives and friends does he have over there? Once he puts down roots here, raises children and grandchildren, and time rolls on through months and years, his understanding of himself will naturally change."
"Feelings are not born from nothing. They arise through time spent together."
"We must believe in the power of time."
"And you may place even greater faith in the power of Black Lotus Temple."
The red-faced divine statue had been about to say more, but upon hearing that last sentence, it fell silent.
Indeed, time was enough to smooth away everything. The feelings of living beings could only erode so much. And if Black Lotus Temple wished to completely control a Bear Three Thoughts, it had no shortage of methods. Some of those methods could not even be overcome by will.
For example, if Tiger Taisui had simply wished to destroy Bear Three Thoughts' will, Bear Three Thoughts would not be much better off than Ling Xihua now. It was precisely because Tiger