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"Actually, this half of a Demon Seed came into my hands like this." Sword Venerable Mei Xi briefly recounted how he had drawn his sword to help someone in trouble and, after a series of twists and turns, come away with an unexpected prize.

Tang Ji's brow twitched. "So Heavenly Secrets Pavilion really is connected to this."

"Almost certainly. Sorry to leave you with the trouble, Senior Brother."

Bah. Being sect master means a lifetime of headaches. Tang Ji cast his junior brother Mei a jealous glance. If he could, he would have liked to be the sect's mascot too. And speaking of mascots... "That young martial uncle from Yonglu Mountain—are you sure he crushed a Demon Seed with his bare hands? Tell that to a three-year-old and even they wouldn't believe you. But I know you wouldn't lie about this."

"It's true. Every word." Sword Venerable Mei Xi added, "And the Demon Seed didn't affect him. Before I left, I tested him while giving him a lightning talisman. Clear qi surrounded him, without the slightest sign that he'd fallen to demonic influence." Because he cultivated lightning arts, his spiritual power inevitably carried a trace of purple lightning. A Qi Refining Stage cultivator could never have disguised himself in front of him. That was why he had left without hesitation.

Tang Ji looked up slowly. "If you'd told me someone else was this unusual, I might have doubted it. But that boy... he's rather like you were back then."

Shen Yue looked surprised. "How?" He certainly hadn't been as good-looking as that boy.

"He was struck by the Heaven-Shattering Sword Light too."

"What? Then why didn't you..." Sword Venerable Mei Xi suddenly remembered that this promising young cultivator was the Dragon Venerable's disciple. Oh. No wonder. His senior brother might