Being a Late Bloomer in the Cultivation World

Inside the gift box was a Tier One Upper-Grade Spiritual Almond, his condolence gift for the funeral.

In the letter, Fu Lin also mourned Xinghua, saying that Third Aunt Xinghua had taken great care of him when she was alive.

"Aunt has passed into immortality, and your nephew is far away, unable to return. I hope Third Uncle will not hold it against me."

Fu Lin ended his letter with this sentence.

"Foolish child."

Wei Tu sighed with emotion after finishing the letter.

Although he had repeatedly told his children to limit their contact with Fu Lin, this—just as with Kou Hongying—was merely to avoid arousing suspicion. It didn’t mean he truly disliked the young man.

He had always admired Fu Lin.

Fu Lin was arguably the most capable of the second generation descended from the four sworn brothers. It was just a shame that he only possessed a Lower-Grade Spirit Root, which made his path in cultivation difficult.

It was already difficult for any single person to pursue the path.

Yet Fu Lin had also raised two younger siblings, a brother and a sister, and had done a fine job of it.

From this alone, it was clear that Fu Lin’s capabilities were beyond the ordinary.

"Before your mother passed, she always wanted to set up Fu Lin with your sister. Although he didn’t specify who this Spiritual Almond is for, I believe it’s more fitting for your sister..."

"Xiuwen, what do you think?"

Wei Tu asked, his gaze turning to Wei Xiuwen.

Although Fu Lin’s eulogy for Xinghua in the letter was moving, Wei Tu knew the truth of his own household—Xinghua had treated Fu Lin no differently than the other children of their generation, simply fulfilling her duty as an elder without granting him any special favors.

Fu Lin had sent a Tier One Upper-Grade Spiritual Almond as a condolence gift.

’This is likely for two reasons.’

’First, I "helped" Fu Lin once in the past. He is grateful and is now repaying the favor with an Upper-Grade Spiritual Almond.’

’Second, he’s honoring the mother for the daughter’s sake.’

’Fu Lin has always had feelings for Wei Yan, his childhood sweetheart.’

’With Wei Yan’s mother having passed away, his condolence gift couldn’t possibly be a paltry one.’

"I have no objection."

Wei Xiuwen nodded and replied, clasping his hands in a fist-and-palm salute.

As her brother, he knew far more about Fu Lin’s one-sided crush on his sister, Wei Yan, than their father did.

He certainly wasn’t going to covet this Spiritual Almond for himself.

Wei Tu carefully observed Wei Xiuwen’s expression as he spoke. He was deeply gratified to see that his son’s face betrayed no hint of resentment.

The thing he was most proud of in his children was their character.

A Tier One Upper-Grade Spiritual Almond.

For a Qi Refining Realm Cultivator, this was a significant treasure.

"One more thing."

"You two need to know."

"Back then, the ten Spirit Stones I lent to Fu Lin... I was lending them on behalf of your Uncle Fu. When you get a chance to see Fu Lin in the future, you need to explain this to him in person."

Wei Tu said solemnly.

At Kou Liang’s funeral, he had thought that Fu Zhizhou and his son had finally resolved their grudge and that Fu Lin had learned the origin of those ten Spirit Stones. But upon reading this letter, he realized Fu Zhizhou had never told Fu Lin the "truth" of the matter.

He wasn’t surprised by this, however.

Like father, like son.

Both Fu Zhizhou and his son were stubborn by nature.

It would be a rare event indeed for the two of them to ever talk things through.

"Yes, Father."

Wei Yan and her brother agreed to this small task.

...

Next, Wei Tu instructed Wei Yan on the right time to consume the Spiritual Almond.

"When you’re breaking through from Middle-Stage Qi Cultivation to the Late Stage, try to avoid taking any Tier-Breaking Pills or even Spirit Fruits."

"Doing so will be beneficial for your foundation."

"Once you reach the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer, you can consume the Spiritual Almond. Use this treasure to push for the Qi Cultivation Eighth Layer,"

he instructed earnestly.

Building a solid foundation before breaking through was common sense in the Cultivation Realm, but few actually did so.

This was because... not everyone who relied on elixirs would end up like Fu Zhizhou, hitting a bottleneck at Middle-Stage Qi Cultivation and stagnating for seven long years.

Fu Zhizhou was merely one of that unlucky minority.

Most people harbored a gambler’s mentality, believing that the "Pill Poison" and "unstable foundation" resulting from excessive elixir consumption would never happen to them.

"A temporary slowdown isn’t a true setback."

"Accumulating deeply to release powerfully—that is the true path."

Wei Tu shared his cultivation experience with his son and daughter.

Wei Yan and her brother seemed to reach an understanding.

Unlike other cultivators, they had personally witnessed the decades-long divergence in the cultivation paths of their father, Wei Tu, and their Fourth Uncle, Fu Zhizhou.

Now, their father had reached Foundation Establishment.

Meanwhile, their Fourth Uncle Fu Zhizhou was still stuck in the Qi Refining Realm.

It was clear at a glance who was superior and who was inferior.

...

The remaining six-plus months of the mourning period passed quickly.

Wei Fei, Kou Hongying, and others who had been absent from the funeral rites all came one by one to Xinghua’s grave to offer flowers and pay their respects.

This time, Wei Fei lacked the composure he had shown at Kou Liang’s funeral.

When he came to the thatched cottage to talk with Wei Tu, he was at first listless and dispirited. Then, he suddenly burst into tears and began to wail loudly.

Wei Tu knew what Wei Fei was crying about.

Though he and Wei Fei were brothers who had faced life and death together, Wei Fei’s friendship with Xinghua had not been particularly deep.

Wei Fei was crying for himself.

Like Xinghua, Wei Fei was three years older than Wei Tu.

This meant that Wei Fei had just reached the age of one hundred—half the lifespan of a Qi Refining Realm Cultivator.

Dying at a hundred, as Xinghua had, would be considered a great blessing among mortals.

But Wei Fei was different...

At one hundred years old and only at the Qi Cultivation Eighth Layer, he now belonged to that class of cultivators whose hopes for Foundation Establishment were vanishingly slim.

Once a cultivator reached the "Age of Two Armors," their chances of a successful Foundation Establishment became minuscule, even with the aid of a Foundation Establishment Pill.

For Wei Fei to maximize his chances of breaking through to Foundation Establishment now, he would have to meet two requirements.

Within twenty years.

He had to reach Qi Cultivation Perfection.

And he had to acquire a "Foundation Condensation Pill" to aid his breakthrough.

Neither of these requirements was particularly harsh on its own. The difficulty lay in accomplishing both simultaneously!

...

"Third Brother, I regret it so much."

"I regret not choosing to settle on Danqiu Mountain to focus on cultivation, just like you and Fourth Brother did."

Tears streamed down Wei Fei’s face.

If he had made the same choice as Wei Tu and Fu Zhizhou back then, if he hadn’t been greedy for a moment’s pleasure, he could have saved himself at least ten years of cultivation time.

With an extra ten years—

he could have easily met both requirements.

But no, he had been afraid of the hardship. He had backed out, choosing not to settle on Danqiu Mountain and instead retreating to the mortal world to live a life of leisure.

It could be said that he had personally destroyed his own path to the Dao.

Hearing Wei Fei’s regretful words, Wei Tu sighed to himself. ’As far back as a dozen years ago, at Kou Hongying’s Foundation Establishment celebration, I already foresaw this outcome.’

’He made no "investments."’

’He didn’t put in the effort to cultivate.’

’It was inevitable that Wei Fei would end up in this predicament.’

’Looking back over the last century...’

’...aside from myself, Wei Fei was the one among the four brothers with the greatest Immortal Fate.’

’Two Immortal Martial Arts techniques.’

’The Blood Food Pill.’

’The favor of Immortal Master Wu and the Inheritance he bestowed.’

’And the income from the One Qi Pouch Making Method.’

’These four strokes of "Immortal Fate" had lifted Wei Fei from the mortal world into the Cultivation Realm and pushed his cultivation all the way to the Qi Cultivation Eighth Layer...’

’But unfortunately, they were only minor opportunities, not the kind that could defy the heavens and rewrite his destiny.’

’Wei Fei appeared to have seized all four opportunities.’

’But in reality, he let each one slip away.’

’In contrast, the rest of us, despite lacking such blessings, seized our opportunities time and again, fought our way upstream, and left Wei Fei far behind.’

"Second Brother, this is the Demon Soul Foundation Establishment Technique I obtained from Helian Xiong..."

"I can help you with the required High-Quality Demon Refining Talisman and Demon Beast Essence Soul... but the rest will be up to you."

After Wei Fei finished crying, Wei Tu pondered for a moment before taking a Jade Scroll from his sleeve and handing it to him.

Wei Tu had always remembered Wei Fei’s trust in him on their cultivation journey.

However, limited by his own resources, Wei Tu couldn’t offer Wei Fei too much help.

The cost of his own breakthrough to Foundation Establishment... had basically wiped out the entire fortune he had amassed during the Qi Refining Realm.

Of course, even if he had the resources, Wei Tu wouldn’t go all out to support Wei Fei. All he could do was what he did for Kou Liang all those years ago.

Give Wei Fei a hand at a critical juncture.

After that, whether he succeeded or failed would be up to Wei Fei himself.

"The Demon Soul Foundation Establishment Technique?" Wei Fei was stunned for a moment when he heard Wei Tu’s words.

He pressed the Jade Scroll to his forehead and scanned its contents.

After reading through this Abnormal Foundation Establishment Technique,

Wei Fei’s dejection vanished instantly, replaced by a look of pure excitement.

The Demon Soul Foundation Establishment Technique could increase the chances of a successful breakthrough by twenty percent.

Although this was less of a boost than a Foundation Establishment Pill provided,

it was still significantly better than a Foundation Condensation Pill.

With this abnormal technique, even if he failed to obtain a Foundation Condensation Pill in the next twenty years, he wouldn’t be left with absolutely no chance of reaching Foundation Establishment.

Wei Tu’s promise to provide the High-Quality Demon Refining Talisman and a prepared Demon Beast Essence Soul was practically the same as giving him a Foundation Condensation Pill.

"Second Brother, you are already a hundred years old, with less than twenty years until the Age of Two Armors. You cannot afford to be lax in your cultivation during this time. Otherwise, I can help you once, but I can’t help you for a lifetime."

"Although the Demon Soul Foundation Establishment Technique can take the place of a Foundation Condensation Pill, it’s best to have a pill ready when you attempt your breakthrough, just to be safe..."

Seeing Wei Fei’s flighty expression return, Wei Tu frowned to himself and added a word of caution.

"Third Brother, don’t worry."

"For the next twenty years, I will work hard at my cultivation. I will not disappoint the expectations you have for me..."

Wei Fei vowed, patting his chest.

"And what about Fellow Daoist Yao?"

Wei Tu raised an eyebrow.

For decades, whenever Wei Fei came to visit him, he would inevitably make a trip to Fellow Daoist Yao’s place to "exchange pointers" on dual cultivation techniques.

Sometimes, he wasn’t sure if Wei Fei came to see him, or if he just came to Danqiu Mountain for pleasure and dropped by as an afterthought...

"Three years... no, five years..."

"I swear I won’t go to Fellow Daoist Yao’s for five years..."

Wei Fei swore, gritting his teeth.

Hearing this, Wei Tu thought for a moment before reminding him, "A cultivator’s Primordial Yang is also beneficial for Foundation Establishment; it can slightly increase your chances. Though you are no longer a virgin, Second Brother, Nourishing the Root and Strengthening the Essence over the next twenty years... will still be a great help to your breakthrough..."

"Fine! I’ll listen to you, Third Brother..."

"For the next twenty years, I’ll stay away from women..."

Wei Fei immediately declared.

He hadn’t initially taken Wei Tu’s admonishment to heart, not really believing that consorting with women could affect his breakthrough. He considered such a minor boost to be insignificant.

But when he saw the faint look of disappointment on Wei Tu’s face, any lingering reluctance or disregard he felt melted away, replaced by that solemn promise.

He could not let Wei Tu be disappointed in him.

...

「Not long after Wei Fei departed.」

Kou Hongying arrived, flying through the air. She landed gracefully before the thatched cottage, her dress fluttering. She stood beside the lonely grave, her face as fair as snow, free of any makeup. With her slender waist and elegant hair, her skirt swaying in the gentle breeze, she looked like a transcendent Fairy, detached from the mortal world.