Being a Late Bloomer in the Cultivation World

After nine breaths, Chai Ping brought down the hammer, announcing that the Fire Dragon Halberd Talisman Treasure had been won by Old Monster Jia.

—This time, Old Monster Jia's bid on the Talisman Treasure hadn't violated the auction's rules. It was Alchemist Shu who had exposed Old Monster Jia's identity, causing the other cultivators to become wary and stop bidding against him.

She could have reminded the cultivators not to fear Old Monster Jia, but she couldn't intentionally let the treasure go unsold. Otherwise, she would have made a true enemy of the Chisong Jia Family.

It wasn't worth it just for one Talisman Treasure.

...

However, when it was time to auction the second finale treasure,

Old Monster Jia was escorted out by the Hundred Treasures Pavilion's Fake Pill True Monarch for violating the underground auction's "identity rules."

A serious atmosphere immediately settled over the auction.

The cultivators no longer had to worry about Elder Ghost Jia's glares and could bid in peace.

The finale treasures were presented one by one.

The second was a set of three Tier Two Upper Grade Tiger-Shaped Puppets. These three puppets could form an array together, capable of withstanding a Peak of Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

The third was a Spiritual Object that could purify a Foundation Establishment Cultivator's Magical Power—a Celestial Purity Flower.

...

「Half a day later.」

The auction ended, and the cultivators present began to trade freely amongst themselves.

Wei Tu noticed that "Old Monster Jia," who had been escorted out earlier, had now returned to his original seat.

The first person to take the stage to trade was Alchemist Shu.

On the auction stage where Chai Ping had just stood, Alchemist Shu took out several Pill Bottles from his sleeve, placed them on the jade table, and explained the use of the elixirs within each bottle.

Without exception, these were all Tier Two Elixirs, each one incredibly difficult to find in the outside world.

Many of the Foundation Establishment Independent Cultivators were greatly tempted upon seeing the elixirs and swarmed forward to trade.

After Alchemist Shu finished trading his elixirs, a few more cultivators took the stage to trade Spiritual Objects.

Once the crowd of traders began to thin,

Kou Hongying walked onto the auction stage, presented Weii Fei's "One Qi Pouch Making Method," and stated clearly that she would not accept less than a thousand Spirit Stones for it.

The One Qi Pouch Making Method did not cause a stir among the cultivators present; the reaction was lukewarm at best.

Several elder cultivators came forward wanting to trade with Kou Hongying, but their offers were too low. After being rebuffed, they returned to their seats dejectedly.

Neither Wei Tu nor Kou Hongying were very surprised by this outcome.

The One Qi Pouch was not the only magic technique for enhancing one's Spiritual Power in the Qi Refining Realm; some special elixirs could achieve the same effect.

Furthermore, most of the cultivators present were Foundation Establishment Independent Cultivators and had no need for such an item.

In the end, it was Huang Shaoshan, a Family Cultivator from the Hee Mountain Huang Family, who bought the "One Qi Pouch Making Method" from Kou Hongying.

Kou Hongying stepped down from the auction stage.

After a moment of hesitation, to Kou Hongying's surprise, Wei Tu went up onto the stage.

"Fellow Daoists, I wonder if any of you have any Iron Magnetic Spirit Wood? I am willing to purchase it in good faith. If you don't have the Spirit Wood itself, a clue to its whereabouts would also be welcome..."

Wei Tu said in a low voice, his gaze sweeping across the entire room.

'Iron Magnetic Spirit Wood? It seems Uncle Wei has already formed the Geomagnetic Primordial Light in his body.' Upon hearing Wei Tu's words, Kou Hongying had a sudden realization.

Iron Magnetic Spirit Wood wasn't an especially precious Spiritual Object. However, it required a special environment to grow and had always been rare in the Cultivation Realm, which made it valuable.

For Wei Tu, the sole purpose of the Iron Magnetic Spirit Wood was to allow the Geomagnetic Primordial Light in his body to transform and give birth to the Primordial Forbidden.

With the Primordial Forbidden at his disposal, Wei Tu's combat strength would rank him at the forefront of Same-Tier Cultivators.

'Next time I go to the Yaolang Mountain Range, I'll keep an eye out for any information on it,' Kou Hongying thought to herself.

"I happen to know where this Iron Magnetic Spirit Wood can be found."

"I just wonder what price Fellow Daoist Ma is willing to pay for the clue I possess?"

To Wei Tu's surprise, the first cultivator to respond to his offer was none other than his acquaintance, Yu Kui Master.

'That's right. Yu Kui Master is an expert at crafting puppets. It's only natural that he would have a clue about Iron Magnetic Spirit Wood...' Wei Tu thought, the realization putting him at ease.

Wei Tu began to communicate with Yu Kui Master via voice transmission.

Soon, the two agreed on a price for the clue.

After that, a few more cultivators communicated with Wei Tu via voice transmission, revealing other Spiritual Lands where the Iron Magnetic Spirit Wood might be found.

Wei Tu traded for each piece of information.

The clues weren't very expensive; in total, Wei Tu spent just under a hundred Spirit Stones.

...

After the free-trade session ended,

Wei Tu and Kou Hongying, one after the other, paid their Spirit Stones and completed their transactions with the Hundred Treasures Pavilion.

As they left Canglong Mountain, the two remained vigilant. They were even more cautious than on their way there, ready to activate their Magical Artifacts at a moment's notice to fend off any ambushing Tribulation Cultivators.

They traveled for several dozen li.

Neither Wei Tu nor his companion encountered any danger.

"It's probably because Elder Ghost Jia showed his face at the underground auction. The Tribulation Cultivators are holding back for fear of provoking him, so they don't dare to make a move..."

After reaching a mortal city, Wei Tu and Kou Hongying met up at a tavern. Kou Hongying removed her disguise and spoke with a smile.

Compared to Wei Tu's low-profile disguise, her reputation as the "Jade Demoness" undoubtedly made her a much more likely target for Tribulation Cultivators.

"That must be it."

Wei Tu nodded.

Old Monster Jia had disrupted the bidding for the Fire Dragon Halberd Talisman Treasure, but in turn, he had also reduced the chances of cultivators like them being ambushed by Tribulation Cultivators.

After all, with a Fake Pill Master nearby,

which of the Tribulation Cultivators would dare to be the first to stick their neck out?

...

「Several days later.」

The pair returned to the Bai Shihu Marketplace.

Kou Hongying handed the one thousand Spirit Stones she had received from selling the One Qi Pouch Making Method to Weii Fei.

She also returned the other two Middle-Grade Magical Artifacts to Weii Fei.

It had been her first time attending the underground auction, and she hadn't known beforehand that Tier One Middle-Grade Magical Artifacts were considered so subpar there.

"Thank you, Hongying." Weii Fei's eyes filled with tears of excitement as the thousand Spirit Stones landed in his hand.

With these thousand Spirit Stones, plus the ones he already had, a Foundation Condensation Pill was basically within his grasp.

Kou Hongying could read the room. She excused herself, saying she had other matters to attend to, and left the private room to give Weii Fei and Wei Tu some time alone.

Once Weii Fei had calmed down,

Wei Tu asked about his plans—whether he would enter seclusion to attempt his breakthrough immediately, or wait until he was approaching the Age of Double Armors.

"Well..."

Weii Fei gave an awkward smile. "I haven't thought that far ahead. I just saw Fourth Brother go into seclusion for his breakthrough and got a little anxious, so I started preparing early."

Hearing this, Wei Tu thought to himself, 'I knew it.'

Among the four brothers, Weii Fei had always had the weakest Dao heart. How could he possibly have Fu Zhizhou's burn-the-boats determination to break through to Foundation Establishment?

"I plan to head to the Divine Capital in a few days to marry and have children," Weii Fei said, revealing his plans.

"I still have fifteen years, which is enough time to raise a child." A hint of desolation appeared on Weii Fei's face. "I also know that this time... the chances of my body and soul perishing during my attempt at Foundation Establishment are very high..."

Before setting foot on the Immortal Path, he had insisted on not marrying and having children like Wei Tu and the others, wanting to avoid the pain of watching his family grow old, get sick, and die.

Weii Fei believed that, from beginning to end, he had not been wrong in this decision.

Where he believed he went wrong was in giving up on himself because the Immortal Path was difficult. He had wasted his best years, resulting in failure in both cultivation and family life.

"Third Brother, I'm so envious of you," Weii Fei said with a sigh. "Of the four of us, you're the only one who has managed to take care of his family without letting it hinder his cultivation."

"I couldn't do it. I failed at both family and cultivation, while Fourth Brother focused only on his cultivation and neglected his family..."

As he spoke, Weii Fei's eyes turned red, and two streams of tears rolled down his cheeks.

"Starting a family."

"I can't... I can't lose to him in this, too. There has to be one thing, just one thing, where I win, where I surpass him!"

Weii Fei said through gritted teeth.

From the day they formed their alliance in the Yee Society, not losing to Fu Zhizhou had become an obsession for him.

This time, neither he nor Fu Zhizhou had a Foundation Establishment Pill to aid their breakthrough to Foundation Establishment, but... anyone could see that Fu Zhizhou's chances of success were far greater than his.

As for him—

there was a high probability he would end up with his body destroyed and his Dao extinguished.

"Weii Fei... 'Fake' Fei. I always feel... that it's this name that has dragged me down..."

"So much so that even when an opportunity lands in my hands, I can't grasp it. And yet... I was the one among the four of us with the greatest Immortal Fate."

Weii Fei gave a self-deprecating laugh and wiped away his tears. "When I have a son, I'll give him a good name. He can't end up a failure on the path of cultivation like me..."