Ken questioned Vivienne again after shoving more paralyzing poison into her throat. He already understood that the elders kept track of the babies' bodies because the immortal had to channel their Immortal Qi into them, and if they didn't know its exact structure, they'd fail for sure. By supplying the immortal with the necessary information, they saved the time needed for research.
"Why do you need an immortal to do that? Can't normal ninth-stage elders do it to babies with normal Qi?"
"No. The babies always died when the elders tried doing it. We assume that there's something special in the Immortal Qi that allows the babies to survive, or at least gives them a shot at surviving."
Ken smiled coldly when he heard her saying openly that the sect was experimenting on babies. It proved his point that righteous sects weren't as good as they claimed to be.
"So your sect has four seeds? I thought seeds were difficult to manufacture."
"What do you mean by 'manufacture'? I'm right here, you know? I'm not a tool!"
Vivienne pouted and talked angrily, offended by the way he referred to her. However, Ken wasn't the type to remain politically correct; he used harsher words instead.
"You are, you're just a tool that your sect created. By washing your brain from a young age, they made you loyal and willing to risk your life for them. However, you miss the fact that they sent you to a risky procedure you'd most likely die from just for the chance of having a powerful cultivator to serve under them. In a way, you're a trained hound."
"That's not true! They care about me! The sect seed is one of the most important people in the entire sect!"
She was clearly agitated by Ken's words, showing he got under her skin.
"You are important to the sect because of the value you can return on their investment. Think for yourself of the consequences of being a sect seed; I'm sure you can't become the sect master, you would risk your life for the sect, and you will fight their wars for them. If your life mattered, why did they send you here?"
He just guessed that seeds couldn't become sect masters. This role took a lot of time, and someone in this position couldn't do the sect's dirty work.
"They sent me here because even the most talented cultivator would be useless as a greenhorn, and they believed nothing could threaten me here! I can't become the sect master because it would waste my time!"
"Sure, that's what they explained to you. Well, I don't have time for this debate now but think about it later. Your sect might not be as loving and supportive as you think it is. Next time they tell you something, just consider what they gain from it. Let's move on, does it mean there are four seeds under 75 in your sect and 2 of them are here including you?"
He remembered her mentioning that there were four disciples under 75 in the sixth stage and that other than herself one more entered the secret realm.
"No, only two of us are seeds. The other two are just talented in their own right and managed to advance relatively young. They are still older than us; they are over 70. The other seed is at the same age as me, but he didn't come to the secret realm."
She wanted to return to the former subject and prove to her captivator that he was wrong and that her sect didn't just use her, but there was a knife hovering above her mouth, threatening to impale her if she spoke on the wrong subject.
"I guess that new immortal was talented in Qi manipulation if he killed only two babies."
The woman flinched when she heard Ken's phrasing. No elder ever phrased it like that, it was always 'he saved two babies and ensured their future'.
Ken didn't have time to go through a whole psychological session with her, but he achieved his goal by planting a seed of doubt in her mind. It was easy to see she was heavily affected by his words.
"I can let you live if you want, I don't gain anything by killing you."
"I promise I won't tell anybody I even met you if you don't want me to!"
Ken smiled at her, but somehow his smile only looked vicious in her eyes, despite its owner being a beautiful child. She soon understood her instincts were right; the young boy took a black collar from his storage ring, and she was sure it wasn't just for decoration.
"What is this?"
"That's an item I won here lately. It was very expensive, 80,000 BP. I want to give it to you as a gift."
"Uh, th- thank you, but I don't like black so much. The contrast with my white robes is too visible."
"What are you talking about, all the inner disciples in your sect wear black. It's a great color. Here, let me help you wear it around your neck."
Ken persuaded her of the collar's fashionable appearance as he closed it around her neck. She soon felt as if someone was strangling her, but she couldn't resist because of the paralysis effect of the poison.
"MMM! ARGH!"
"Don't worry, it fits you. You look beautiful."
She tried to shout desperately only to receive more compliments from Ken. She tried to scream that she didn't care about how it looked but to no avail. 5 minutes later, the torture-like experience ended, and she could breathe again.
"Ahhh, huhhh…"
She heaved with relief, but something still felt wrong. Then, Ken spoke and confirmed her doubts.
"Tell me that you're weaker than me."
"What? I'm not weaker- AHHHH!"
She screamed in pain when a terrible headache assaulted her. She could only lay there and scream until the pain passed.
"Just say it and the pain will pass."
"I'm weaker than you!"
"Good, now we know it works."
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A/N: Don't forget to join the Discord server for the novel! (link in the synopsis and my profile), it got an evil sect theme <3
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