When it came to Shen Yunqiu, Wei Tu leaned toward striking first. He wanted to destroy Shen Yunqiu's path and prevent him from reaching Nascent Soul.
After all, he'd already dealt with one crazy woman.
He wasn't interested in meeting another one.
He had no intention of becoming the next Ji Zhang.
Over a decade ago, Wei Tu received a letter from Qiu Buchen, who was in the Chu Kingdom. The letter stated that Ji Zhang had failed in his attempt to form a Nascent Soul.
Qiu Buchen, being a Beastmaster Sect cultivator, had little contact with the Qingyu Sect, so it was hard for him to get the exact details of Ji Zhang's failure.
But for Wei Tu, it was different…
Years ago, he'd already heard the full plan from Fu Linglong on how she intended to deal with Ji Zhang.
So in Wei Tu's view, there was a good chance it was Fu Linglong who had sabotaged Ji Zhang's breakthrough.
She was the one who ruined Ji Zhang's cultivation path.
"Just keep waiting for the right moment."
"When the time comes, I'll make the move."
Wei Tu stayed calm and continued his closed-door cultivation in Lark Residence. He wasn't in a rush.
As an old fox, if he didn't strike, fine. But if he did, the enemy had to die.
Simple.
A biting dog doesn't bark.
"Fellow Daoist Wei, Fairy Shuang of Moon Condensation Palace has arrived."
That day, Bai Zhi, who was guarding outside, turned into a wisp of ghostly aura and walked into the chamber. She gave Wei Tu a bow and informed him.
"Fairy Shuang?"
Wei Tu's eyes flickered as he opened them, golden light flashing within as he looked outside.
He saw Fairy Shuang in a flowing white dress floating just outside the entrance to Lark Residence. Her long dress trailed down, and she was bowing toward the gate like she'd just arrived.
"Looks like the time is ripe."
Seeing this, a smile spread across Wei Tu's face, and he laughed out loud.
Though Fairy Shuang wasn't the direct disciple of Palace Master Cao Mi, she was a close junior relative and someone Cao Mi had mentioned in her letters as trustworthy.
Now that Fairy Shuang was here, it was almost certainly because of the matter with Shen Yunqiu.
After all, if it weren't for something secret, Cao Mi wouldn't have sent her in person. A letter would have been enough.
Moments later, Wei Tu stopped circulating his qi. With a wave of his sleeve, the cave's doors opened, and he went out to greet her personally.
"Alchemist Wei."
Fairy Shuang gave a respectful bow. Her manner was noticeably restrained—no longer the equal standing she'd shown him in the past.
Even among Golden Core cultivators, there were levels.
This time, after learning from Cao Mi about her secret dealings with Wei Tu, Fairy Shuang was shocked. But what really left her speechless was Wei Tu's actual cultivation.
She had never imagined that Wei Tu was already in the late stage of the Golden Core Realm, not mid-stage as she'd assumed.
Though it seemed like just a small jump, the difference was huge.
The early and mid-Golden Core levels were mostly filled with young cultivators from various major powers. Around 70% of them belonged to the younger generation.
The remaining 30% were Golden Core True Lords who had reached their limits.
But late-stage Golden Core? Almost without exception, those were the veteran elites of the great sects.
Shen Yunqiu, Cao Mi—they were all in that category.
So it was no wonder that Fairy Shuang was so shaken after learning the truth about Wei Tu's level.
Of course, what truly made her adopt the posture of a junior was the fact that Cao Mi and Wei Tu spoke as peers. That meant she had to lower herself too, to avoid upsetting the balance of seniority.
"Fairy Shuang, please come inside so we can talk in detail."
Wei Tu gave a slight bow and extended an invitation.
"Thank you, Alchemist Wei…"
Fairy Shuang nodded lightly, returned the bow, and stepped inside.
Once the two were seated, she got straight to the point.
As Wei Tu had expected, she was here to say that the time had come to act against Shen Yunqiu.
"According to my Martial Aunt Cao, seven days ago, Ancestor Luo and Master Hongjing from our sect suddenly came upon an opportunity for advancement. They agreed to leave together and headed off to the Dead Sea of Zhaoming in the Xiao Kingdom..."
"Ancestor Luo said personally that the trip would take at least half a year, possibly several years."
Fairy Shuang spoke slowly.
"Half a year?" Wei Tu's eyes brightened at the news.
Master Hongjing was the only Nascent Soul elder still active in Mirror Water Pavilion.
As long as she was gone, even if the matter of stripping Shen Yunqiu's true spirit got exposed, it wouldn't be a big deal for Wei Tu and Cao Mi.
After all, Golden Core cultivators had limited means. They would find it hard to detect the hidden spiritual gate of Jade Screen Mountain or discover the Moon Condensation Palace's "Body Reshaping Soul Return Array."
"But the Dead Sea of Zhaoming… what opportunity could it hold?"
Wei Tu raised an eyebrow, puzzled.
Decades ago, on his way from Kang Kingdom to the Xiao Kingdom, he had passed through that very place. It was a dead zone with no spiritual energy. At the time, he hadn't noticed anything unusual about it.
It seemed no different from any other spiritual dead zone.
'Maybe I just didn't look carefully enough.'
Wei Tu shook his head and pushed that curiosity aside. He figured that once he reached the Nascent Soul stage, if he had the chance, he'd return and investigate it properly.
"I understand. I'll be heading to Moon Condensation Palace soon to assist Palace Master Cao."
That was the reply Wei Tu gave.
"…Soon?"
Fairy Shuang frowned slightly at his words.
This was a matter of great urgency. Since Wei Tu already knew the situation, he should be heading there with her immediately, not putting it off.
Still, considering his cultivation level and the fact that Cao Mi currently needed his help, Fairy Shuang had no choice but to suppress her dissatisfaction.
After a bit more small talk, she gave a polite bow and took her leave.
Once Fairy Shuang left, Wei Tu shut his cave door again. He flipped his palm and took out a hexagonal array disk, just the size of his palm.
Then he activated it with several hand seals.
In an instant, the array disk floated into the air, drawing out a complex formation that projected a golden-yellow portal in the air.
If Ji Zhang had been there, he would've immediately recognized this item as the "Instant Teleportation Array" he was once forced to hand over to Wei Tu.
Since returning to Ying Ding Tribe, Wei Tu had long taken time to send Bai Zhi out beyond Hujie Immortal City and secretly set up the exit gate for the array.
Now, by using the Instant Teleportation Array, he could leave Ying Ding Tribe quietly. Even if things went south after dealing with Shen Yunqiu, no one would suspect Wei Tu, who had supposedly been in closed-door seclusion the whole time.
After confirming that the teleportation pathway had stabilized, Wei Tu didn't hesitate. He stepped into the golden-yellow gate and vanished.
The next moment, he reappeared in a hidden underground chamber, about 100 miles outside of Hujie Immortal City.
He flicked his sleeve and changed his appearance to that of a yellow-faced man, then flew off toward the Moon Condensation Palace.
…
Seven days later, Fairy Shuang returned to Moon Condensation Palace in a rush. She was planning to report to Cao Mi that Wei Tu had delayed his arrival…
But before she could speak, her eyes widened in shock.
She saw Wei Tu already seated in Cao Mi's chamber, calmly chatting with her as if he'd been there the whole time.
'Same route… how did he get here ahead of me?' she thought, baffled. She'd taken the shortest possible path. It was unlikely Wei Tu had gone a longer route just to get ahead of her.
After all, what Golden Core True Lord had the time to pull something that childish?
'Could it be… he overtook me, and I didn't notice?'
That thought made her heart skip a beat. If Wei Tu was that elusive, then if he ever wanted her dead, he could probably do it without lifting a finger.
Wei Tu, however, didn't care about her petty suspicions. He'd simply used the Instant Teleportation Array to arrive first—not some stealthy or supernatural skill.
Still, she wasn't wrong about one thing—if Wei Tu wanted her dead, it wouldn't take much effort.
"As long as Palace Master Cao agrees to lend me one Mortal Shedding Pill after it's done…"
"I will give this my full support."
Wei Tu bowed sincerely as he made his request.
"Mortal Shedding Pill?"
Hearing that, Cao Mi's face showed a hint of displeasure.
After all, they'd already signed a soul oath regarding Shen Yunqiu. The terms were sealed in the Heaven's Nether True Page.
Now Wei Tu was raising the price in advance, which frankly came off as going back on his word.
"Please don't worry, Palace Master Cao. I'm only borrowing it. I'll return it within 100 years. If you still doubt me, I'm willing to offer this as collateral."
Seeing her displeased expression, Wei Tu smiled apologetically. If it weren't for the sake of his only son's future, he wouldn't have resorted to this.
As he spoke, he flipped his palm and took out the "Talisman Heart Tablet" from his sleeve.
This item was a treasure to any talisman master—its value wasn't any less than a Mortal Shedding Pill.
It had once belonged to a Nascent Soul elder, Master Shentu.
Seeing this, Cao Mi's expression finally softened. She gave a slight nod, agreeing to his condition.
She had already looked into Wei Tu's credibility before. She knew he wasn't the type to break promises.
And now, even though she could guess his reasons for raising the price last-minute, being directly involved still left her somewhat unhappy.
"Thank you, Palace Master Cao, for your support."
Wei Tu let out a sigh of relief and bowed again in thanks.
He had lost a bit of face by raising the price on the spot, but for Wei Xiuwen, it was a way to clear the path for his future.
He had no regrets.