Heaven's Mandate Sect.
The elders sat cross-legged atop meditation cushions.
Zong Huatian, the Heaven's Mandate Sect's master, sat in the center. His white hair and beard drifted about him, making him look like an immortal.
His skin was as smooth as an infant's, his breath long and steady. Not a trace of expression showed on his face, while a faint watery gleam rippled in his eyes, utterly unlike ordinary people.
"How has the investigation into Tianji's matter gone?" Zong Huatian asked.
"Reporting to Senior Brother Sect Master, you know everything Chief Tianji said in the Demon-Suppressing Pagoda. As for saying that child Tianji harbors ulterior motives, I do not think that is the case. After all, he grew up in the sect and received your instruction. Still, differences in ideals are inevitable. Judging from all the signs, that child Tianji was not making things difficult for the sect so much as trying to prove himself. He merely wanted to prove that our Heaven's Mandate Sect could resist demons and eradicate devils better than Li Qingxian. Could that be wrong? I do not think so."
"Indeed. Young people, who has never taken a crooked road? Once he bangs his head until it is bloody, he will know to turn back."
"I also believe Chief Tianji is merely young and full of fire, his heart boiling with passion until he disregards the larger picture. It is no great matter."
"Senior Brother Sect Master, you are both teacher and father to Tianji, so you are a little stricter with him. In truth, what Tianji has done has also strengthened the prestige of our Heaven's Mandate Sect."
"Besides, barring mishap, Duan Tianji is already the master of the Demon-Suppressing Pagoda. The meat has only rotted in our own pot, has it not?"
"You know