Chen Wei froze.
Either of these two mighty figures of the Three Realms could evaporate the entire Tongtian River, yet now they had come to ask a mere True Immortal like him how to handle a problem?
Wasn't that utter nonsense?
But!
Since the High Immortal had raised the problem, it had to be solved.
As the saying went, follow closely in the High Immortal's footsteps, share his urgency, and anticipate his thoughts.
He had to dissect the problem. If a Daluo Golden Immortal wanted to release some demons, a single word would suffice. Why pass it down to a subordinate?
Yang Jian clearly did not want to release these three demons.
After all, the Justice Heavenly Deity enforced the Heavenly Laws. If he casually let serious offenders be spirited away, where would that leave his dignity?
But the Buddha Patriarch had spoken, and the Victorious Fighting Buddha had personally come to run the errand. An outright refusal would inevitably damage the outward harmony between Buddhism and Daoism.
Under these circumstances, someone had to sing a contrary tune.
Chen Wei's thoughts raced like lightning. He cupped his hands toward Sun Wukong. "Great Sage, regarding your proposal to take the Three Demons away, this humble official considers it highly constructive. From the perspective of Spirit Mountain's compassion, it fully embodies the Buddha Patriarch's grand vision of delivering all living beings."
Sun Wukong blinked without saying a word.
"However," Chen Wei continued, changing tack while still talking in circles, "the Heavenly Court has a rigorous, lengthy, and unskippable procedure for transferring war criminals. As you know, the Azure Lion, White Elephant Spirit, and Golden-Winged Great Peng are no ordinary demons. The historical issues they carry are rather complicated."
"In principle, Great Sage, your request presents absolutely no problem."
"But when it comes