Being a Late Bloomer in the Cultivation World

Wei Tu knew that while Weii Fei had seemed open-minded in his younger years, he was actually sensitive and fragile on the inside.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have had such a hard time getting along with Fu Zhizhou back when they were mortals.

"I just got here, just got here. Not long ago," Weii Fei said, waving his hand with a forced smile.

Hearing this, Wei Tu felt a pang of sorrow. From the lingering traces of Weii Fei’s aura, he could tell that his friend had been waiting here for at least seven or eight days.

Years ago, he and Weii Fei had been fellow Military Officers, eating, drinking, and talking about everything under the sun at Cuiyun Tower. When they’d had their fill of wine, they would sleep in the same bed.

Now, a century later, his brother of old had come to find him but didn’t even dare to knock, waiting only... by the entrance.

After talking with Weii Fei for a moment, Wei Tu invited him into his Cave Mansion to have a seat.

"A few years ago, Third Brother sent a letter asking me about the Hongri Sect. I was going through our master’s relics and found some clues."

"My master wasn’t always alone. Before he took me as his disciple, he had a Dao Companion. It’s possible that my... Master’s wife has a copy of the Hongri Sect’s Cultivation Technique."

After a few cups of Spirit Wine, Weii Fei’s expression became a little less stiff. He set down his wine cup, took out a Jade Scroll, and handed it to Wei Tu.

’Master’s wife?’ Wei Tu was taken aback for a moment.

His friendship with Immortal Master Wu had been quite good, yet he had never heard the man mention anything about a "Dao Companion."

Wei Tu figured there must be some hidden secret behind this.

He took the Jade Scroll from Weii Fei, swept it with his Guardian Map Divine Sense, and instantly understood the reason why.

This Jade Scroll was a "last letter" that Immortal Master Wu had written to Weii Fei.

Immortal Master Wu’s Dao Companion was named "Ye Hong." In their early years, they had been a loving couple, but Ye Hong later had a change of heart. She found a better catch, forced Immortal Master Wu to agree to a separation, and then married a young Early-Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

In this last letter, Immortal Master Wu told Weii Fei that if he ever had the power, he must avenge this great enmity and resolve this lingering regret for him.

"It’s a sad story, really," Weii Fei said with a sigh. "Master placed a Restriction inside this Jade Scroll. If my strength was insufficient, I could only see the first letter."

"But if my strength was great enough, I would be able to see the second letter."

"Our master probably never expected that I would... fail to break through to Foundation Establishment, yet reach the Qi Refining Tenth Layer and unlock the Restriction," Weii Fei lamented.

The Qi Refining Tenth Layer—stuck in the middle.

He was qualified to see the second letter, but he lacked the power to avenge his master.

"Thank you, Second Brother." Wei Tu accepted the Jade Scroll and offered his thanks.

He didn’t promise Weii Fei that he would kill Ye Hong to avenge Immortal Master Wu.

After all, he didn’t owe Immortal Master Wu that great of a favor.

Two hundred years had passed. As long as that Early-Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator from back then hadn’t perished, he would be a Late-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator by now, at the very least.

He owed Weii Fei a debt of gratitude, not Immortal Master Wu. It wasn’t worth making an enemy of a Late-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator for this.

Besides—

After two hundred years, Ye Hong might have already died of old age, just like Immortal Master Wu.

And if so, there would be no revenge to be had.

"Aside from the matter of the Hongri Sect, I also came this time hoping to use Spirit Stones to buy the Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object you have, Third Brother, and make another attempt at Foundation Establishment."

As he spoke, Weii Fei took a Spirit Stone Bag from his Storage Bag and handed it to Wei Tu.

"Third Brother, you can count them. It’s exactly two thousand five hundred Spirit Stones," Weii Fei said.

"What?"

"He managed to gather two thousand five hundred Spirit Stones?"

Wei Tu was utterly astonished.

Although he didn’t say these words out loud, the shock in his heart lingered.

’With Weii Fei’s abilities, it would have been impressive enough for him to gather a thousand Spirit Stones in the last ten years. How could he possibly have come up with two thousand five hundred?’

However, Wei Tu didn’t voice these thoughts, nor did he pry into how Weii Fei had managed to gather all those Spirit Stones.

Wei Tu accepted the Spirit Stone Bag, took out a jade box, and handed it to Weii Fei.

"Inside this jade box is the Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object I obtained in the Secret Realm,"

he said.

"Thank you, Third Brother." Seeing the Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object inside the jade box, Weii Fei’s eyes instantly filled with hot tears. All his life’s hopes were pinned on this single item.

Foundation Establishment Spiritual Objects had a price but no market.

If he weren’t Wei Tu’s brother, with his level of strength, he probably would never have come across a single Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object in his entire life, let alone buy one at a low price.

Although Wei Tu didn’t ask where the "two thousand five hundred Spirit Stones" had come from, he did inquire about Weii Fei’s plans for the Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object.

Acquiring this first Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object was one thing, but getting a second one would be much harder.

It took two Foundation Establishment Spiritual Objects to trade for a single Foundation Establishment Pill from one of the Three Immortal Sects.

"Alchemist Songg of the Loose Immortal Alliance has experience refining Foundation Establishment Pills. With one Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object and some Spirit Stones, you can trade for a Foundation Establishment Pill from him,"

Weii Fei explained.

Hearing this, Wei Tu finally understood. No wonder Weii Fei had been moved to tears of joy after getting just one Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object.

He was the well-fed man who didn’t know the hunger of the starving.

In fact, his own plan to trade two Foundation Establishment Spiritual Objects for a "Foundation Establishment Pill" at an Immortal Sect was considered a rather extravagant act among Independent Cultivators.

Most Independent Cultivators looking to get a Foundation Establishment Pill would find a Pill Master they knew and pool their resources for the alchemy process.

Of course, extravagance had its advantages.

For one, trading with an Immortal Sect meant you didn’t have to wait for a Pill Master to fire up their furnace; you could get a ready-made Foundation Establishment Pill on the spot.

For another, the Foundation Establishment Pills produced by the Immortal Sects were generally a grade higher than those refined by Independent Refiners.

It was a sure thing.

But with crowdfunding, if the Pill Master’s furnace yielded few Elixirs, you could very well end up with nothing.