Being a Late Bloomer in the Cultivation World

In terms of value, the market for Calm Heart Talismans was worth far more than these three Talisman Making Techniques.

Otherwise, Tong Peipei would not have agreed to the trade so easily.

He stood up, took out the blank book with "Talisman Master Maoo’s" name in it, and added Tong Peipei’s name. Then he hung it by his bedside as a constant reminder to stay vigilant.

「Half a month later.」

Wei Tu finished tanning the Demon Beast Hide, cut it into pieces, and obtained thirty-four sheets of Tier One Talisman Paper.

Next, Wei Tu began to practice painting the Level 1 Talisman, the "Rock Shield Talisman."

「Over a month passed.」

He successfully achieved a rudimentary grasp of the Rock Shield Talisman.

[Rock Shield Talisman (1/100): With three practices a day, it will be perfected in fourteen years.]

Painting the Rock Shield Talisman was not as easy for Wei Tu as painting Basic Talismans. He would often feel dizzy after painting just two or three of them.

’One can only develop a Guardian Map Divine Sense during Middle-Stage Qi Cultivation. Painting Tier One Talismans will be much easier then...’

’The Cultivation of Tier One Talisman Masters is usually at the Middle-Stage Qi Cultivation or higher.’

’Cultivation is the true path!’

Wei Tu firmed up his resolve. He began to slow down his practice of Tier One Talismans and dedicated more energy to raising his Cultivation.

「Six months later.」

With the help of the Earth Essence Pill, Wei Tu’s progress in forming the Thick Earth Body increased from 32% to 57%.

’He broke through again?’

That day, inside his shack, Wei Tu once again felt the fluctuations of Spiritual Power from Fu Zhizhou breaking through to a new Realm.

’If I’m not mistaken, that’s the fourth Earth Essence Pill Zhizhou has taken.’

’Being an Assassin really is profitable.’

Wei Tu mused aloud.

As a Talisman Master, the Spirit Stones he had painstakingly saved up were only enough to buy one and a half Earth Essence Pills.

But Fu Zhizhou had become an Assassin, and in just over three years, he had already earned enough for three Earth Essence Pills.

The disparity between them was immense.

Of course, this didn’t take into account the High-Quality Earth Spike Talismans Wei Tu had secretly been accumulating.

If he sold the High-Quality Earth Spike Talismans in his possession, the Spirit Stones he’d earn would far surpass what Fu Zhizhou had made.

’No need to be envious. Zhizhou is risking his life for his future. The slightest misstep will result in his utter demise...’

Wei Tu shook his head, suddenly recalling the sight of Fu Zhizhou returning to Danqiu Mountain a year ago.

That day, Fu Zhizhou had returned to Danqiu Mountain wrapped in layer after layer of bandages, which were seeping with crimson blood.

If not for the two High-Quality Earth Spike Talismans Wei Tu had given him as a trump card, he likely would have perished in that battle.

’Maybe I should change my plan...’

’Sell the High-Quality Earth Spike Talismans I have and exchange them for resources...’

Wei Tu’s resolve wavered slightly.

His original plan had been to wait until he became a Tier One Talisman Master before gradually selling off his High-Quality Earth Spike Talismans for Spirit Stones.

But now, with Fu Zhizhou’s Cultivation progress surpassing his own, he couldn’t help but feel a little anxious.

’For the sake of a long Immortal Path...’

’I absolutely cannot be impatient right now!’

Quickly, Wei Tu shook his head again, rejecting the idea he had just entertained.

It was true that a High-Quality Earth Spike Talisman was as valuable as a Level 1 Talisman.

But unlike the regular Earth Spike Talisman, there were too many other talismans of the same tier that could replace the high-quality version, so there was basically no market for it.

Even if he tried to sell them, he could at most sell two or three.

Furthermore, Helian Xiong and the other Assassins knew that Fu Zhizhou had used a High-Quality Earth Spike Talisman to save his life.

A Talisman Master like him, living in the slums... occasionally managing to paint one or two High-Quality Earth Spike Talismans was still within the realm of what other Cultivators could believe.

But any more than that would inevitably arouse suspicion.

On Danqiu Mountain, if he wanted to improve his status and Cultivation step by step as a Talisman Master, he couldn’t afford to be hasty.

A moment of impatience could ruin a grand plan!

Rising from the bottom, one step at a time, was the best way to avoid attracting the attention of those with ill intentions.

Once his status was higher, it would be considered reasonable for a Cultivator to have a few Opportunities. At that point, his minor "transgressions" wouldn’t carry as much risk.

’However, selling one High-Quality Earth Spike Talisman every two years shouldn’t arouse suspicion...’ Wei Tu thought to himself.

...

「Four years later.」

Following his step-by-step plan, Wei Tu’s progress on his Thick Earth Body reached 78%. He was just one Earth Essence Pill away from fully forming it and breaking through to the Qi Cultivation Fourth Layer.

’Eight years have already passed...’

That day, Wei Tu did a quick mental calculation and realized he had been on Danqiu Mountain for eight long years, which made him sigh with emotion.

In those eight years, he had left the mountain three times to visit his family in Jade Dragon Prefecture.

During that time, Weii Fei had also visited Danqiu Mountain a few times, bringing him letters from home.

Therefore, he was well aware of the situation with Xinghua and his two children, Wei Yan and Wei Xiuwen.

A few years ago, Wei Yan had entered the Qi Sensing Realm with the help of the Inner Family True Skill.

Wei Xiuwen was not far behind, entering the Qi Sensing Realm through External Pile Training just one year after Wei Yan.

As for Xinghua, under the nourishment of Wei Tu’s Spiritual Qi, her body was healthy, and she had the potential to live to be eighty or ninety.

’In two more months, once I paint another Rock Shield Talisman, I’ll have multiple life-saving trump cards. Then I’ll leave Danqiu Mountain and make a trip to the mortal world...’

Wei Tu considered.

He had practiced the Rock Shield Talisman a great deal over the past four years, and as a result, he had coincidentally painted a successful Rock Shield Talisman six months ago.

This meant he had advanced to become a Tier One Talisman Master.

However, Wei Tu did not announce this achievement.

He planned to wait until he entered the Qi Cultivation Fourth Layer before slowly releasing this news.

「Five days later.」

Fu Zhizhou returned from a Demon Beast hunt.

Wei Tu asked Fu Zhizhou if he was willing to go home with him to visit their families.

In the past eight years, Fu Zhizhou had only returned to the mortal world with him once.

And that was five years ago.

"I’m not going back."

Fu Zhizhou said, shaking his head.

He said, "I don’t have any extra Spirit Stones to support my descendants. To avoid them becoming enemies, it’s better that we don’t meet."

At this point, Fu Zhizhou offered a piece of advice to Wei Tu. "Third Brother, your children have their own paths to walk. Even if you support them until they reach the Innate Realm, what then?"

"Are you going to help them every step of the way?"

Although he earned a lot of Spirit Stones as an Assassin, it was only enough for his daily Cultivation needs. He had no Residual Power to also cultivate a descendant to set foot on the Immortal Path.

After saying this, Fu Zhizhou felt he had misspoken. He stopped talking, looked at Wei Tu, and waited for his reply.

—He knew that of the four sworn brothers, Wei Tu was the one who valued relationships the most.

Especially his own family.

He reflected that if he were as successful and wealthy as Wei Tu, he would find it hard to marry a handmaiden he’d known since childhood as his wife.

However, to Fu Zhizhou’s surprise, Wei Tu didn’t refute his words but instead nodded in agreement.

"What you say is reasonable, Fourth Brother. Our children all have their own paths to walk. We can’t help them forever..."

Wei Tu replied with a faint smile.

A person’s strength is finite.

Fu Zhizhou had no Residual Power to help his children reach the Innate Realm.

So he had given up on his children.

He thought the same as Fu Zhizhou and wouldn’t help his descendants forever either.

The only difference was, his financial resources were far greater than Fu Zhizhou’s—without affecting his own Cultivation, he could support his two children, Wei Yan and Wei Xiuwen, until they reached the Innate Realm.

Of course, once they reached the Innate Realm, he would no longer have the ability to help his two children continue on the Immortal Path; everything after that would depend on Wei Yan and Wei Xiuwen themselves.

He would help, but he would only help this one time.

...

...

PS: Let me just say, I won’t write the protagonist as someone who, after ascending the Immortal Path, has a great epiphany and immediately severs all mortal ties to pursue his own path. That would betray the character’s initial setup.

The protagonist’s character is designed to be loyal and value his relationships, but he also acts with restraint. Therefore, when it comes to his children’s cultivation, he will only give them a helping hand to reach the Innate Realm. After that, the protagonist won’t meddle further. A situation where he helps his son and then has to help his grandson will definitely not happen.