Being a Late Bloomer in the Cultivation World

"My lady is truly wise, a great helpmeet to our Zhuu Family." Hearing Madam Zhuu’s incisive analysis, Zhuu Ruishan was overjoyed. He couldn’t help but pull Madam Zhuu into his arms and kiss her several times.

Held by Zhuu Ruishan, Madam Zhuu’s face flushed red, and she felt a stir of emotion. After being occupied by Jiao Qizhi, she had rarely been intimate with her husband, Zhuu Ruishan.

A moment later, the two disrobed.

...

Zhuu’s Medicine Shop.

Knowing Zhuu Ruishan’s true situation, Wei Tu applied some verbal pressure, and Zhuu Ruishan obediently handed over the three Jade Scrolls he had gotten from Madam Zhuu.

Wei Tu knew when to quit while he was ahead and didn’t continue to demand the Zhuu Family’s Tier Two Pharmacist Inheritance from Zhuu Ruishan.

He still had Alchemist Shu’s Tier Three Alchemist Inheritance, which he had yet to study.

Compared to Alchemist Shu’s Alchemist Inheritance, the Zhuu Family’s Tier Two Pharmacist Inheritance was of limited value.

The two then signed a Spirit Contract.

Zhuu Ruishan watched Wei Tu’s every move, terrified that Wei Tu would play some trick while signing the Spirit Contract.

However, Zhuu Ruishan’s Cultivation was ultimately too low.

He couldn’t see through Wei Tu’s scheme.

Wei Tu had long been prepared for signing the Spirit Contract. During the interval when Zhuu Ruishan had stepped away, Wei Tu had secretly placed Lü Yuanli’s Essence Blood on his fingertip. Therefore, when it came time for the "Naming," Wei Tu used Lü Yuanli’s Essence Blood.

In the last ambush, Wei Tu had used Shadow Silk to sever one of Lü Yuanli’s legs. During his retreat, Wei Tu hadn’t discarded the severed leg; instead, he had stored it in his Storage Bag.

—In the Cultivation Realm, there were methods to trace a Cultivator’s whereabouts using their blood relatives. Wei Tu had made this preparation as a precaution against the Demon Slaughter Sect’s Golden Core True Monarch, Lü Xiuxian.

As it happened,

Lü Yuanli’s Essence Blood now came in handy.

"I shall take my leave!" After signing the Spirit Contract, Wei Tu stood up, clasped his hands in a farewell salute to Zhuu Ruishan, and prepared to depart.

From the three Jade Scrolls, Wei Tu had more or less confirmed that Madam Zhuu was a descendant of Immortal Master Wuk’s ex-wife.

In his last testament, Immortal Master Wuk had instructed Weii Fei to avenge him after reaching Foundation Establishment, to kill that adulterous pair and resolve his lingering hatred.

The last time he met and spoke with Weii Fei at the Xiaya Mei Family’s estate, Wei Tu had learned of this matter but had no intention of helping Immortal Master Wuk get his revenge. After all, his relationship with Immortal Master Wuk wasn’t that deep.

But now, he had stumbled upon the matter himself.

Wei Tu certainly wasn’t going to aid a villain by actually agreeing to Zhuu Ruishan’s proposal to "drive away" Jiao Qizhi.

Do the job you’re paid for.

That’s a matter of personal integrity.

However, the three Jade Scrolls in Madam Zhuu’s possession were originally the inheritance of Immortal Master Wuk, a descendant of the Hongri Sect.

They could be considered items that Weii Fei should have inherited.

The fact that Wei Tu hadn’t killed Madam Zhuu on Immortal Master Wuk’s behalf over this old grudge was already a stroke of luck for the Zhuu Family.

Secondly, Zhuu Ruishan hadn’t been truthful. His goal in seeking him out wasn’t to drive away Jiao Qizhi, but part of a different scheme. Wei Tu certainly wasn’t going to be a fool and act as a chess piece for the Zhuu Family.

"Allow me to see you out, Elder Guu." With a face full of smiles, Zhuu Ruishan escorted Wei Tu out of Zhuu’s Medicine Shop.

After Wei Tu left,

Zhuu Ruishan’s expression instantly turned cold. He beckoned the shopkeeper over. "Have you sent someone to inform Jiao Qizhi?"

This shopkeeper was his paternal cousin.

He was also his trusted confidant.

"Third Brother, he’s been notified." The shopkeeper nodded, a wide grin on his face. "When Jiao Qizhi heard that Guu Jing was spouting arrogant nonsense about bypassing him to seize the Zhuu Family’s foundation, he was furious. He’s planning to find this Guu Jing right now, teach him a lesson, and run him out of Suixing City."

"And it’s all thanks to Guu Jing, who was spouting off in the medicine shop’s main hall... saying he wasn’t afraid of the Profound Charm Sect."

"Otherwise, it wouldn’t have been so easy to provoke Jiao Qizhi’s anger," the shopkeeper said slowly.

However—

What Zhuu Ruishan and the shopkeeper had been hoping for did not happen.

By the time Jiao Qizhi, the Profound Charm Sect Elder, arrived looking for Wei Tu, Wei Tu had already long since left Suixing City and was on his way back to Chaning Cliff.

However,

Wei Tu’s appearance

did give the Zhuu Family some breathing room.

No sooner had Wei Tu left than Madam Zhuu, along with her two daughters, disguised themselves as Slave Cultivators and secretly fled Suixing City.

Notably,

because Wei Tu and Madam Zhuu were taking roughly the same route, Madam Zhuu didn’t encounter any significant danger along the way.

Any dangers that did exist had been eliminated by Wei Tu beforehand as he earned battle merits.

Halfway through his journey, Wei Tu discovered this coincidence, but seeing as Madam Zhuu was a widow with orphans, he didn’t pay it much mind or act to wipe them out.

After all, he personally had no deep-seated hatred for Madam Zhuu and her family.

If he didn’t consider Immortal Master Wuk’s "old grudge," his deception of the Zhuu Family this time would seem somewhat dishonorable. But in the Cultivation Realm, deceit and backstabbing were the norm.

If he had actually kept his promise, he would have been trapped by Zhuu Ruishan, making it difficult to leave Suixing City.

As for the treasures Madam Zhuu carried,

Wei Tu wasn’t concerned.

He wasn’t a Tribulation Cultivator who killed for treasure.

Besides, given his wealth, he didn’t need the few valuables Madam Zhuu was carrying.

Wei Tu paid Madam Zhuu no mind.

But Madam Zhuu took notice of Wei Tu, the Foundation Establishment Elder who was "Clearing the Way."

When she set out from Suixing City, Madam Zhuu didn’t know Wei Tu’s whereabouts. It was only on the road that she inadvertently learned that a Righteous Dao Elder was ahead of her, slaying Demon Cultivators. Only then did she begin to closely follow in Wei Tu’s direction.

In fact, to keep up with Wei Tu’s pace,

Madam Zhuu didn’t hesitate to use her family’s reserves, expending several Tier Two "Godspeed Talismans."