“Your control over the ‘Sage Seal’ was too weak,” True Monarch White Crane said. “But as long as the power of the other party is lower than yours, they will be influenced by it.”

　　“That’s why I need more practice.” Song Shuhang sighed.

　　However, the mastery of the ‘Sage Seal’ wasn’t something that could be completed in a day or two.

　　If Song Shuhang couldn’t properly control the ‘Sage Seal’, he didn’t plan on going out these days.

　　…Otherwise, every time he went out, he would be like a VIP who went on a tour, and all ordinary people who came across him could form two rows and greet him. That feeling… it was quite sensational. However, it would only be so on the premise that he was Senior Thrice Reckless.

　　“This gives me a headache.” Song Shuhang rubbed his temples. He retrieved the Sage Seal while trying to suppress its aura of dignity. “If I try to restrain the aura of the Sage Seal, what would be the effect?”

　　Little Cai blinked. “T-Tyra… Teacher.”

　　Song Shuhang: “…”

　　Little Cai was still affected to some extent, but she somehow didn’t spell out the entire ‘Tyrannical Song’ name.

　　Shi thought about it, and tried to say it again. “T-Tranny… Song.”

　　It was the same as before—the more she desired to resist the influence of the ‘Sage Seal’, the more she got affected.

　　Song Shuhang sighed. “Is there not a simple and practical way to master the ‘Sage Seal’?”

　　If it really wasn’t possible, he would have to consider taking a long vacation from school, closing up for a period of time, and at least gaining control over the ‘Sage Seal’ first.

　　A vacation to close up and practice… There shouldn’t be anything wrong with that.

　　“I’m just at the Sixth Stage Realm right now, so there’s no use asking me that.” True Monarch White Crane shrugged.

　　Young Master Phoenix Slayer said, “In the entire ‘Nine Provinces Number One Group’, the one who knows the most about the Sage Seal is probably Senior Seventh Cultivator of True Virtue. But, he has already told you everything he knows. Perhaps… you could ask ‘that senior’.”

　　“He has left.” Song Shuhang shook his head.

　　Senior White Two’s whereabouts were erratic, and… he was a powerhouse of the Netherworld. As such, his experiences might not be suitable for Song Shuhang.

　　“Oh, right, I almost forgot her.” Song Shuhang’s eyes suddenly lit up.

　　Although Senior White Two was nowhere to be found, Song Shuhang still had another expert that he could contact at any time, an expert suspected of being a Tribulation Transcender or stronger—Pavilion Master Chu.

　　He reached out, went through his ‘size-reducing purse’, found the Crystal-Clear Water Pavilion token, and poured his true qi into it.

　　After a while, the lazy Pavilion Master Chu replied, “Hello? Who is this?”

　　“Pavilion Master Chu, it’s me, Shuhang,” Song Shuhang said.

　　“What’s the matter?” Pavilion Master Chu yawned. “You aren’t going to ask me to accept that crying old man as a disciple again, are you? There is no way I would do that.”

　　“No, it’s not about the crying old man. I have something to ask the Pavilion Master Chu,” Song Shuhang said.

　　“Go ahead,” Pavilion Master Chu said lazily.

　　“Pavilion Master Chu, do you have any tips for quickly mastering the ‘Sage Seal’?” Song Shuhang asked.

　　“Sage Seal? You’ve just ascended to the Fourth Stage, why are you asking about that thing?” Pavilion Master Chu said curiously––she still remembered that when Song Shuhang talked to her last time, he had just been promoted to the Fourth Stage Realm.

　　“I just condensed the Sage Seal, and since I’m not familiar with it, I can’t control it properly. The ‘dignity’ function of Sage Seal can’t be freely turned on and off, so it’s quite troublesome. As such, I wanted to ask the Pavilion Master Chu for tips on controlling the ‘Sage Seal’,” Song Shuhang said.

　　It was not known if Pavilion Master Chu had just been dead asleep previously, or if the ‘Crystal-Clear Water Pavilion’ she was in was a very special place… but it seemed that whether it was Song Shuhang showing his divinity to the masses or his Profound Sage Speech, she knew nothing about them.

　　Pavilion Master Chu: “…”

　　No sound was transmitted from the Crystal-Clear Water Pavilion token.

　　Then, there was a sound of something falling.

　　At the same time, Pavilion Master Chu transferred a wisp of mental energy through the token to sense Song Shuhang’s state.

　　Song Shuhang didn’t resist, and let the mental energy circle in his body.

　　After a long while.

　　“Tyrannical… Song?” Pavilion Master Chu muttered Song Shuhang’s “Sage Name”.

　　“Mm-hm,” Song Shuhang responded.

　　There was another awkward silence.

　　After a long while, Pavilion Master Chu carefully asked, “Did I oversleep this time, accidentally sleeping for thousands of years?”

　　She remembered that she had slept for a little while, and she had just created a tailor-made ‘tribulation-transcending formation’ for Ye Si.

　　How come that Song Shuhang, who had just ascended to the Fourth Stage before she slept, had now condensed a Sage Seal, and shown divinity to the masses?

　　Or… could she still be dreaming at this moment?

　　“No, you’ve misunderstood, Pavilion Master Chu.” Song Shuhang finally understood, and replied, “I haven’t ascended to the Eighth Stage. I have just ascended to the Fourth Stage a few days ago… To be precise, I’m still just a ‘semi-Fourth Stage’ cultivator. It was only a coincidence that I got the ‘Sage Seal’ in advance. It’s a long story. If you are interested in listening, I will tell you the next time I come to the Crystal-Clear Water Pavilion.”

　　Pavilion Master Chu asked, “A Fourth Stage cultivator condensed Sage Seal by coincidence?”

　　Was she crazy? Or had the world gone crazy?

　　“It’s not just me. There are also three seniors who are just like me, and condensed their sage seal before reaching the Eighth Stage,” Song Shuhang said. “This is also the reason I don’t have enough control over the ‘Sage Seal’. Pavilion Master Chu, do you have any tips on how to quickly master it?”

　　“Yes,” said Pavilion Master Chu.

　　“What do I have to do?” Song Shuhang’s eyes lit up.

　　“A good sleep. When you wake up, the Sage Seal will be fully in your control,” Pavilion Master Chu replied.

　　Song Shuhang: “…”

　　Pavilion Master Chu added, “The Sage Seal itself is part of the power of an Eighth Stage Profound Sage. When a Profound Sage condenses their Sage Seal, they will be able to freely use its various abilities. But your situation is too special, and no one in the world can give you any tips. If you really want me to give you an opinion… try to beat ‘it’ up and see what happens.”

　　“Beat whom?” Song Shuhang said.

　　“Beat up your ‘Sage Seal’. Uncontrollable things become obedient after a good beating. This method has been tried and tested throughout the ages,” Pavilion Master Chu replied.

　　Are you messing with me?

　　“Alright, I’ve already told you the way. If you want to be stubborn, then that’s on you.” Pavilion Master Chu yawned, and said, “Also, about the cultivation technique that Ye Si brought back, I already let that little girl called Li Yinzhu begin practicing it. Have you already prepared the medicinal pill to use alongside the cultivation technique?”

　　“I don’t know yet, but I should know this week,” Song Shuhang replied. During his visit to the forbidden area, the Great Northern Emperor said that he would contact him within 10 days and try to prepare the materials necessary for the Ice Soul Pill. Calculating the time, he would contact him in a week at most.

　　…If he’d keep his word.

　　“Then, I’ll wait for your news… If there’s nothing else, don’t bother me anymore. I haven’t been able to sleep well ever since I have met you. Your voice feels as annoying as an alarm clock…” Pavilion Master Chu’s voice was getting softer and softer, and she gradually fell asleep.

　　Song Shuhang: “…”

　　He silently put away the Crystal-Clear Water Pavilion token.

　　Then, he turned to look at True Monarch White Crane, who had the highest cultivation among them. “Senior White Crane, what do you think?”

　　True Monarch White Crane said, “Maybe try beating it?”

　　Young Master Phoenix Slayer sneered. “Have you two gone crazy? The Sage Seal is not a pet, and it doesn’t have intelligence. It is equivalent to a personal magical treasure. What do you want to achieve by ‘beating it up’?”

　　“That’s not the case,” True Monarch White Crane said. “I feel that beating it up might really be useful… It’s like when I watched TV in the past: whenever the screen became messy, I would just go up to the TV and hit it a few times, and sometimes, it would start working again.”

　　True Monarch White Crane had a point.

　　Su Clan’s Sixteen remarked, “Anyway, just try it out. If it doesn’t work, then you can take a vacation to close up and practice. I’ll prepare the leave of absence for you.”

　　Since even Su Clan’s Sixteen had spoken… he should probably just give it a try.

　　Song Shuhang summoned the ‘Sage Seal’ with a thought.

　　The Sage Seal hovered right beside Song Shuhang, and it automatically applied layers of dignity to its host. Did it especially like this ability?

　　Song Shuhang stretched out his hand, and after thinking about it, he used his hand like a knife to cut down on the ‘Sage Seal’.

　　This scene… why does it give me such a familiar vibe? It even feels like something similar happened not too long ago?

　　Oh… I remember now.

　　A similar thing really did happen.

　　When he hatched the ‘invisible saber insect’, he had to use the ‘Spirit Beast Seal’ to beat up the body of invisible saber insect.

　　At that time, it took Song Shuhang a total of 1111 hits to allow the invisible saber insect to successfully complete its evolution, resulting in 1111 saber patterns forming on its saber body, laying the strongest foundation for its future evolution.

　　Only a few days ago, I finished beating up my weapon-pet, and now I’m beating up my ‘Sage Seal’. My style has been completely distorted; it seems like there’s no more going back.

　　“Bang!”

　　A powerful chop fell on the ‘Sage Seal’, and the Sage Seal sank.

　　“Temporarily turn off the dignity function,” Song Shuhang ordered.

　　The Sage Seal jerked a little, and then it happily applied ‘dignity’ all over Song Shuhang’s body.

　　“It had the opposite effect, Senior Brother T-T-T-Tranny… Song.” Loli Shi trembled, and said, “The pressure has become heavier and harder to bear.”

　　“There was an effect! Song Shuhang, slap it again and see what happens. I feel that this change is a good thing,” True Monarch White Crane said. “If there is a change, it means that the process of ‘beating up’ the Sage Seal could be effective.”

　　“What Fellow Daoist White Crane said makes sense,” said Young Master Phoenix Slayer.

　　So, Song Shuhang stretched out his hand and brought down another hit onto his ‘Sage Seal’.

　　However, as before, the Sage Seal seemed to have instead been encouraged, and gladly applied more dignity to its host.

　　Song Shuhang’s aura of dignity grew stronger.

　　This time, even Young Master Phoenix Slayer, who had already reached the Fifth Stage Realm, felt uncomfortable.

　　❄️❄️❄️

　　Meanwhile, a demonic hamster shook open the door to Medicine Master’s building with a confident face, holding a toothpick-sized sword in its hand.