Chapter 290 192: Smuggling Channel
"It's rumored that the Yunze Secret Realm, controlled by the Hee Mountain Huang Family, is one of the Nanhua Sect's four great secret medicine gardens."
"Unfortunately, my Hann Mountain Tao Family isn't particularly close with the Hee Mountain Huang Family, and none of our members have ever entered the Yunze Secret Realm. Otherwise... we could have obtained more accurate information."
As he said this, Tao Jie subconsciously glanced at Wei Tu.
As far as he knew, Wei Tu had once been a Tributor for the Hee Mountain Huang Family and had entered the Yunze Secret Realm on one occasion.
It was that journey into the Secret Realm that marked the beginning of Wei Tu's fame in the Zheng Country Cultivation Realm.
"Four great secret medicine gardens? Is Shang Ming hunting you because you know the location of another Nanhua Sect secret medicine garden?"
Wei Tu pressed urgently.
"What?" Tao Jie, caught off guard by the interruption, looked stunned, as if he hadn't expected Wei Tu to question him so sharply. A flicker of panic crossed his face, and he hurriedly replied, "Yes! Elder Wei, that beast Shang Ming is hunting my sister and me precisely for the location of a Nanhua Sect secret medicine garden."
"How would the two of you know the location of a secret medicine garden?"
"And how did Shang Ming find out?"
Wei Tu asked again.
"It's…" Tao Jie faltered, his mind racing to find a suitable answer.
However, just then.
The young woman who had been standing silently behind Tao Jie suddenly stepped forward and spoke to Wei Tu, interrupting her brother's train of thought.
"My brother spoke nonsense, trying to deceive you, Elder Wei. Please… forgive him, Elder Wei, and don't hold it against him," the young woman apologized, offering a graceful curtsy.
As soon as she finished speaking.
Tao Jie's expression changed drastically. He quickly looked up, and when he saw that Wei Tu's serious expression had shifted to a faint, knowing smile, he instantly understood that his little ploy had been seen through by this old veteran of the Cultivation Realm.
'In truth, I had also been hoping I might discover another of the Nanhua Sect's secret medicine gardens, not just the Yunze Secret Realm. But unfortunately, Tao Jie's acting was too clumsy; I saw through the lie with just a few questions. The lie was just too big, making it hard for me to believe. A "Nanhua Sect secret medicine garden" on par with the Yunze Secret Realm… That wasn't a treasure a mere family like the Hann Mountain Tao Family could possibly control. Besides, even if the Hann Mountain Tao Family did possess such a secret, a Family Cultivator like Tao Jie would never dare to blurt it out so casually.'
"Please forgive me, Elder Wei." Tao Jie lifted the hem of his robes, knelt on the ground, and spoke with great trepidation.
'Deceiving a Foundation Establishment Cultivator… the crime could be seen as either major or minor. Normally, with my status as a direct heir of the Hann Mountain Tao Family, such a matter could be easily brushed aside, and no one would give me trouble. But things are different now. Out here in the desolate wilderness, Wei Tu could kill me as easily as killing a chicken, without the slightest effort. Even if the Hann Mountain Tao Family would avenge me after my death, I could never get my life back.'
"Get up."
Wei Tu's expression was indifferent. With a flick of his sleeve, he used his Magical Power to lift the kneeling Tao Jie to his feet.
'I am not one to kill indiscriminately; I have my own principles. How could I punish someone, let alone kill them, simply for what they said?'
'Besides, Tao Jie is no nobody. Killing him and his sister wouldn't do me any good.'
"Since the two of you are unwilling to explain… why Fellow Daoist Shang is pursuing you, then I shall take my leave." Wei Tu intended to depart, planning to stick to his original idea of leaving the siblings for Shang Ming, who was trailing them, and letting him deal with the trouble.
'Just because I don't kill people doesn't mean I'm eager to save them.'
'Especially not "evil people" like these, who lie and try to drag me into their mess.'
"Elder Wei, please wait." This time, it wasn't Tao Jie who stopped Wei Tu, but his sister, the young woman.
"Since Elder Wei is asking in earnest, I will tell you the real reason Shang Ming is hunting us."
The young woman spoke quickly, afraid that Wei Tu would be offended, refuse to listen to her explanation, and leave on the spot.
'Although she didn't know if Shang Ming had placed some kind of tracking mark on her and her brother, she was certain that his retreat was only temporary.'
'The moment Wei Tu left…'
'…Shang Ming would surely come after them again.'
"Shang Ming is hunting my brother and me because he found out from one of our clan uncles that our mother originally came from Kang Country... One of the cultivators guarding Chishui Pass on the Kang border, a man named Nie Wenjing, is her third older brother."
"So, Shang Ming wants to take us hostage and use Chishui Pass to escape Zheng Country."
The young woman revealed the true reason they were being hunted.
'A way to leave Zheng Country and get to Kang Country?'
Hearing this, Wei Tu felt a surge of excitement.
'After all, the chaos in Zheng Country over the past few years has caused me, an Independent Cultivator, a great deal of hardship. If I could leave Zheng Country for a safer place, it would be a huge boon for me.'
'But I just became True Monarch Che's disciple…' This thought gave Wei Tu pause.
'After all, I've only recently begun to experience the benefits of joining a Major Influence. By staying in the Loose Immortal Alliance, I'm safe for the time being, especially since I just completed my garrison duty. I won't be sent to the front lines anytime soon. But if I leave the Loose Immortal Alliance and go to Kang Country, it will be no easy task for an Independent Cultivator like me to find another Tier Three Spiritual Land suitable for Core Formation.'
'No need to rush.' Wei Tu shook his head, composing himself.
'Using Nie Wenjing to get to Kang Country is a feasible idea, but it's still just a theory. No one has actually put it into practice, and the risks are considerable. If the borders between countries were really that easy to sneak across, the cultivators of Zheng and Jing would have fled long ago. Why would they be foolish enough to remain on the Righteous Demon Frontline, holding back the Demon Cultivator armies?'
"Sneaking into Kang Country isn't easy. Our family has tried to contact our third uncle through my mother many times, but he always politely refused."
Hearing his sister reveal the truth, Tao Jie, who was standing nearby, immediately shot her a secret glare before adding this clarification.
'Compared to the lie, this truth is far more likely to get us killed.'
"If what the two of you say is true, then I can protect you this one time."
Wei Tu said after a moment's thought.
'If what the Tao siblings said is true, then it would confirm that Shang Ming is a Tribulation Cultivator. In that case, it would be perfectly reasonable for me to intervene, and it wouldn't go against my principles. Of course, the bigger reason for helping the Tao siblings… is that I, like Shang Ming, want to gain control of this smuggling route into Kang Country, just to be prepared. Unlike Shang Ming, however, I have no intention of taking hostages. Instead, I plan to make an offer and negotiate directly with the Hann Mountain Tao Family. Compared to a niece and nephew he hasn't seen in years, Spirit Stones and Cultivation Resources would obviously be a more tempting offer for Nie Wenjing. —Shang Ming doesn't do things this way because he's an Independent Cultivator, and a poor one at that. He can only resort to the methods of a Tribulation Cultivator to satisfy his desires.'
"Thank you, Elder." Hearing his words, the Tao siblings felt a surge of joy and thanked him.
Once they finished speaking, an Escape Light materialized at Wei Tu's feet, and he flew off in the direction Shang Ming had gone.
Just now, Shang Ming had left a tracking mark on the Tao siblings. But Wei Tu had done the same—not only had he marked the siblings, but he had also placed a tracking mark on Shang Ming, a Cultivator of the Same Realm.