Seth narrowed his eyes for a bit and unintentionally leaked some killing intent. No one could feel it, since it was impossible to find an individual powerful enough to sense his intentions, at the outer-court of the Blazing Phoenix Sect.
"Seems I'll have some cleaning duties to do. They won't be expecting the gift that I'll prepare for them." Seth said in a low voice, kind of analyzing the situation.
Suddenly...
"You should just focus on your mission and stop with all this unnecessary stuff. We will probably not find a single interesting thing around here!" A melodious voice, complaining and reminding Seth that he should focus on his real objectives in this sect, sounded inside his own mind.
"You should help me in my relationship with Chun Meiyi instead of reminding me about the hard parts. Sigh... Are you a "system" or something? Always popping-up to interrupt me and tell me about the tedious jobs. I've read some books where people acquired "noisy systems" like that..."
"Noisy "system"? Who is a "system"? Are you trying to anger me? Your mother is a "system"!" The same melodious voice resounded in a complaining tone.
"Call me Lexi! Like I had previously requested! And I'm not a system, I am a spirit! A very graceful spirit. One so beautiful, that you should be thankful that I am part of your boring life now. Hmph!"
"Lexi... Then, could you remind me of my mission? I may have already forgotten such a boring task."
"You clearly know it well. It is for that woman, that you traveled all the way here afer all. Hmph! You seem to get dumb when it is about a woman. Look at where you brought us to! Then again, I can't totally blame you for this... She is partially at fault too. Bet her appearance alone bewitched you!"
"Hey, don't talk about her like that. I know she is most likely abusing of me, while making me go on these kinds of missions and making me search for top-class secret information in a foreign territory, but in the end, I was the one who accepted the task."
"You! See... You're practically a slave!" Lexi replied instantly.
"Sigh... At least it is not a one-sided unrequited relationship, ok!? And it's not like I had any choice, this task is indeed important, concerns the life and death of someone and it matters a lot for me too."
"You're an idiot!
"Ah... Let's move on. Tell me the latest information already..." Seth sight and then he calmly asked. He knew he would never win a discussion against Lexi.
"Hmmm... I was trying to feel the aura around here, to see if I could find any hints, but... I guess you won't be able to find the thing you need so easily. Our best shot is to approach from inside." Lexi said disheartened.
"Well... I guess it is inevitable. I'll have to reveal a bit of strength and show them my worth. I'm currently suppressed to the Qi Gathering Realm Initial Stage, but it doesn't matter. However, I don't like this stifling feeling though, it's really annoying." Seth unconsciously touched the bracelet that was suppressing his level of cultivation.
He was limited to a "normal" cultivation level at the eyes of the society. However, in reality, the cultivation level he was now, was considered still too low. Because of that, people have been calling him a trash.
Lexi pondered for a bit and said: "There is nothing we can do about it for now. It is easier to enter the sect through normal means than through force. That's why in order to avoid further suspicions and inspections on us, we have to suppress your strength and even your Darkness attribute together with the Shadow Demon bloodline you possess."
Seth raised a hand and tried to use a darkness-based skill, but he felt kind of tied. While he could channel the attribute outside his body and even control it to do some offensive moves, he felt that the amount he could control, would barely reach ten percent of his true capabilities.
"You know, I heard that dark attribute techniques, are closely associated with demons and the people in this human territory don't see them in any good light. So, if you end up revealing you have this power, it might get harder for you to do what you want." Lexi was already warning him of the complications.
"Don't worry, I'll be careful." Seth was leisurely heading towards his destination, not passing a single bit of confidence to Lexi.
"Better if I check it one last time." Lexi started scanning Seth's body with her spiritual perception, not letting a single point stay unchecked.
After making sure every single thing was right, and checking even more thoroughly a certain "Seed" planted inside his body, Lexi exhaled in relief.
"Seth... Are you really sure you are eighteen years old this year?" Lexi had the same doubt every time she scanned his body.
"What's up with this question? How can a handsome twelve years old like me, get such a treatment from you?" Seth couldn't bring himself to believe she was trying to call him old, in a strange way.
"Twelve years old? How can you lie with such a straight face?" Lexi got amazed by his thick skin.
"Of course I'm twelve! Don't you see how supple my skin is?"
"Thick! You meant thick, right?!" She couldn't handle him anymore so she decided to continue, not giving him time for a response. "I can detect you are eighteen years old from your aura and your bone structure, but something is not right... It may be the seed." Lexi said, but she wasn't hundred percent sure. Actually, she felt like something really ancient came from within his body, but it was almost undetectable.
Seth got really serious and apprehensive when she brought up that topic. It was some kind of inheritance that enhanced his strength and thoroughly modified his body structure, going even down to his cells. But there wasn't a free lunch in this world. Things like acquiring power for free were rarer than rare. Like a parasite, that "seed" had tried to take control over him many times already.
It would overload his cells with such a tyrant Qi, that when it flared up, even a moment of relaxation would make him lose control of the situation and it would modify his cells forcefully. Whenever that happened, a great amount of energy entered his body and made him stronger, but the pressure was so intense, that he would feel like his body was not his own anymore, or even worse, there was the risk of self-implosion.
There are no informations about that "seed's" origin. It appears it came from some ancient inheritance, since it had an ancient and overbearing aura. However, no one had even heard about something like this, what made Seth and Lexi walk alone on a dark road with no answers, when the topic was about that power.
Fortunately, Seth had Lexi. An existence that came out of nowhere.
From the very first day Seth awakened his Qi energy, she had awoken as well. Like she was connected with his Qi, connected with his lifeline. Strangely enough, it was right after the seed took root inside his body.
When the seed was "acquired", its oppressive energy took control over his body. Lexi was the one who temporally softened the effects his body suffered by that foreign invasion, until he could pass through that ordeal, spending all he innate energy she had in the process of stabilizing his condition.
"How's the seal situation?" There was a total of nine seals binding the seed and they came together with it, like it was a safe measure its owner left behind. Seth have already released the first one. Actually, the very moment he got the seed the first seal was undone. It actually changed his constitution so deeply, that from a nobody, his talents spiked to a degree so high it was practically a miracle. His innate instincts have gotten sharper, strength and agility have gone up a tier as well.
The problem was that it was far from a safe situation. A wrong step and he would go berserk, attacking anything that came near and barely maintaining some reason. Those seals were like dormant challenges, just waiting the right time to explode. They would take his emotions as a catalyst, even Qi and power could fuel them.
"I've been keeping the situation in control lately, but It's always better to prevent any mishaps. It seems dormant right now, so don't get too agitated, alright? Anyways, there is no need to bother with it right now."
Seth started thinking about a lot of things inside his mind.
"Sigh... Only if this power wasn't so tyrannical... Thank you Lexi, I would have lost control a long time ago, if not for your help." He always felt dispirited as he wasn't in control about his own situation. However, he didn't know how o properly feel about this strange power. Was it a blessing or a doom?
"Fufufu, I know I'm awesome right!" Sticking her nose up in a haughty pose while saying that, made it seem really funny. Unfortunately, Seth couldn't see it.
Seth ignored her comment and headed straight to a dark spot near some buildings nearby and with almost no sound, he disappeared, merging with them as if they were his mantle.
It was one of the Shadow Demon bloodline techniques, Shadow Walk. It was possible to partially stealth in the shadows. It would be easily detected if any enemy with higher Qi Realm cultivation that him, were to scan the area, though the same thing can't be said for those with same or lower cultivation Realm as the user.
In his current situation, he could barely maintain it for some minutes before he had to stop.
Some minutes later Seth was already waiting at the entrance of a forest, located at the easter part of the outer-court training grounds.
"Phew. It consumes a lot of Qi just to maintain the Shadow Walk active. This bracelet sealing powers are no joke at all." Seth actually got amazed by the item effectiveness.
Three minutes later Chun Meiyi appeared and got a bit stunned when she saw him there waiting already.
"Seth?! How did you get here faster than me? I came running straight from where we were before. Are you a ghost?" She couldn't believe he was able to get there so fast.
"Hahaha... Stop joking Meiyi, there are no such things as ghosts or spirits. I was just so eager to train that I ended up getting a shortcut and sprinted all the way here."
Lexi narrowed her eyebrows while hearing his phrase, but she didn't comment on that.
For some reason Chun Meiyi couldn't bring herself to believe his words.
Seth had his own reasons for letting her come alone, so giving a lame excuse and adding a question right after to change the topic, he avoided her question.
"How's your elemental control lately?"
It was something very strange, how the elements worked inside her body. Like Tao Yong, Chun Meiyi was one of the three outer-court disciples at Qi Gathering Middle Stage Realm, but even though she's a talented individual in her cultivation, she just can't bring any elemental power out. It was like she had no elemental affinity at all.
However, she had a good affinity with fire and water, but every time she channeled her Qi, combining it with her elements, smoke would come out. Her elements were clearly interfering with each other, at least it was what Seth and Lexi initially thought was happening.
Usually, two opposite elements would repel each other, damaging the individual in various and different ways. It was even possible to become a cripple, due to that chain repelling reaction. Fortunately for her, fire and water aren't rioting inside her body, they just didn't work separately. If she could control them, she would be a dual element practitioner.
But because of such circumstances she couldn't bring out any destructive power in her techniques and that was the trigger that made people disdain her abilities, calling her a "failure".
Seth had even asked for Lexi to use her spiritual sense on her, so he could come up with a solution, but as soon as she tried to use her fire arts, it would automatically turn into smoke.
Everyone got away from the said "failure", while Seth, the "trash" disciple that didn't mistreat her, got closer soon after. He had no ulterior motives on doing so and their friendship bloomed naturally. However, she didn't know she was actually befriending a beast.
Right now, she's the only person he is friends with. He even actually started to like her naive character and decided to protect it at all cost.
"..." She got a bit unresponsive about his question and it appeared she was a bit disappointed with herself. Would all her efforts be to no avail? She was super diligent on her studies and trainings, but alas, it resulted in nothing. Seth though, created some techniques for her, but when her elemental offensive abilities were chanelled, it would result in the same "failures".
"Anyway, let's go train, we are going to do something else today." Seth decided on changing the way they would train her abilities.
"Is that real?" Chun Meiyi got all worked up and started anxiously pulling him inside the forest, heading straight to their secret training place.
While they were entering further inside the forest, four distinct auras could be felt approaching from far. It seems they had followed Meiyi till there.
While both of them disappeared between the trees, the corners of Seth's mouth inclined slightly, showing an unusual and misterious density.
The fish has bitten the bait.