Being a Late Bloomer in the Cultivation World

From this moment on, they were separated by life and death, never to meet again.

"Father, you were at Chaning Cliff, in constant danger. How could I bother you with such a small matter?"

After she finished crying her heart out, Wei Yan explained to Wei Tu why she hadn't mentioned in her letters that the Mei Family had been forced to leave Xiaya Ridge.

The grace of giving her life, the grace of raising her, the grace of leading her to Cultivation.

The debt she and her brother owed their father, Wei Tu, was one they could never repay in a lifetime. How could they... distract him on the battlefield over a mere "private matter"?

Hearing this, Wei Tu nodded, a sense of relief washing over him.

Affection is a two-way street.

If Wei Yan and her brother only ever took from him without any consideration for his well-being, then even as their own father, he would eventually grow weary of their relationship.

The father and his two children chatted for a while.

Wei Tu spoke of his experiences guarding Chaning Cliff over the years, as well as the matter of him taking True Monarch Che as his master and joining the Loose Immortal Alliance.

Afterward, Wei Tu brought up Tao Jie and his sister.

"The situation in Zheng Country is perilous. Although the Righteous Alliance has the upper hand for now, it doesn't mean the Demon Dao has weakened. The reason the Demon Dao's invasion of Zheng Country has lessened in recent years is largely because they are still digesting their gains from annexing Jing Country."

"I plan to make a deal with the Hann Mountain Tao Family in exchange for a spot to be smuggled into Kang Country..."

Wei Tu said slowly, his expression grave.

"Father, you mean...?" Wei Yan had guessed Wei Tu's intentions but wasn't entirely sure.

"Exactly what you're thinking."

Wei Tu nodded slightly. "I only recently joined the Loose Immortal Alliance, and my guard duty has just ended... It's not a suitable time for me to be smuggled into Kang Country right now. But it's also not good for you two to keep hiding in Cuiping Valley with the Mei Family..."

Having lost Xiaya Ridge, a Tier Two Spirit Land, Wei Yan and her brother's Cultivation progress had slowed to a crawl.

They were essentially just wasting their Lifespan.

Of course,

Wei Tu could help the Mei Family take back their ancestral land.

However, as an outsider, it wouldn't be entirely proper for him to interfere in the Mei Family's affairs.

Secondly, even if Wei Tu did help,

once he left, the Mei Family, lacking a Foundation Establishment Ancestor of their own, would sooner or later be targeted by others again.

He could help them once, but not forever.

"However, being smuggled to Kang Country will inevitably be dangerous. You two need to think it over carefully."

"Furthermore, Xiuwen..." Wei Tu's gaze fell on Wei Xiuwen. He chose his words carefully before saying in a low voice, "You are now the Mei Family's only remaining Foundation Establishment Master. You need to decide whether you will cut ties with them or... stay with the Mei Family."

'Sending Wei Yan and her brother ahead would solve several problems.

First, it would free me of any lingering worries in Zheng Country.

Second, Wei Yan and her brother could act as my vanguard, establishing a foothold for me in Kang Country.

This would prevent me from arriving in Kang Country lost and unfamiliar with my surroundings.

Third, if Wei Yan and her brother succeeded, it would provide me with an extra layer of security when I eventually made the journey myself.

With my Foundation Establishment descendants already there, the Hann Mountain Tao Family and Nie Wenjing would have to think twice before trying to double-cross me.

After all, even a Golden Core Family would have a hard time dealing with a Foundation Establishment Cultivator bent on revenge.'

As his voice fell, neither Wei Yan nor Wei Xiuwen answered immediately.

"Father, I'll take my leave for now." Wei Xiuwen could see that Wei Yan had something she wanted to ask Wei Tu, and he also needed time to contemplate his own future. He cupped his hands in a salute and excused himself.

A moment later,

only the father and daughter, Wei Tu and Wei Yan, remained in the Cave Mansion's main hall.

"Father, I asked you several times just now... about Brother Fu Lin, but you avoided the topic each time. Is there... some other reason for that?" Wei Yan asked, her voice trembling slightly.

Over a decade ago, Fu Lin had sent a second letter, saying he would either see her again within three years or send a third letter.

But more than ten years had passed.

And still, there had been no word from Fu Lin.

Wei Yan worried... that Fu Lin had already died in the Demonic Realm.

"Yann'er, about that..." Hearing her question, Wei Tu sighed softly. He walked to her side and gently tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

"While I was ambushing a Demon Cultivator, I happened to learn some news about Fu Lin from him."

"I investigated it from multiple sources afterward."

"The Fu Lin you knew... is dead."

Wei Tu looked up, his gaze fixed on the distance as he spoke in a heavy tone.

People change.

Fu Lin was different from Wei Yan. Although they were childhood friends, Fu Lin's path had been far more arduous. After struggling for so long in the Demonic Realm, his feelings were bound to change more drastically than hers... Over time, new emotions would well up in his heart, gradually overpowering the old feelings from a century ago.

Those old feelings would slowly turn into a memory sealed away in the depths of his heart—a beautiful memory, but one meant only to be shelved and forgotten.

Upon hearing this, Wei Yan burst into tears.

She cried out, "Father," then buried her head deep in Wei Tu's chest, sobbing quietly for several hours without another word.

It was not until the damp patch on Wei Tu's robes grew cold that Wei Yan finally lifted her head from his embrace. Her eyes were red, but the tears had stopped, leaving only a look of utter despair on her face.

"Father, I'm alright now."

"I am willing to go to Kang Country."

Wei Yan said decisively.

When Wei Tu had asked her earlier, she hadn't answered immediately because she was worried about Fu Lin, fearing he was in mortal danger in the Demonic Realm.

Now, that old love was gone.

She had no one left to hold her back in Zheng Country, aside from Wei Tu and Wei Xiuwen.

Seeing the resolute look on Wei Yan's face, Wei Tu praised her silently. 'Love and hate are never a Cultivator's weakness. As long as one can distinguish the priority between Cultivation and emotion, one is a qualified Cultivator.'

"Yann'er, Fu Lin didn't betray you. You two simply weren't right for each other. You don't need to hate him for this," Wei Tu consoled her once she had calmed down.

Years ago, Fu Lin had confessed his feelings to Wei Yan, but because of what happened with Xinghua, Wei Yan had resolved never to marry and had gently refused him.

From this perspective alone,

it was perfectly reasonable for Fu Lin to seek out Fairy Leng of the Joyful Sect.

Although Righteous and Demonic Cultivators weren't yet at a point of absolute mutual exclusion in private, compared to a Righteous Cultivator like Wei Yan, a Demonic Cultivator like Fairy Leng was clearly a better match for Fu Lin.

In terms of beauty, talent, potential, and so on,

Fairy Leng far surpassed the unremarkable Wei Yan.

"Father, I understand." Wei Yan hummed softly in agreement, and some of the sorrow faded from her face.

After that, neither the father nor the daughter spoke again.

Wei Yan moved to Wei Tu's side and sat down close to him. She tilted her head slightly to the left, resting it on his right shoulder, her gaze falling on the dark pool inside the Cave Mansion.

It was just like a hundred years ago, when they were a father and daughter living as mortals.

Romantic love might change, but the protective love her own father had for her had never wavered.

...

「A few days later.」

Wei Xiuwen gave Wei Tu his answer regarding the plan to be smuggled out of the country.

"Over thirty years ago, when I achieved Foundation Establishment, I said I was willing to stay and protect... the Mei Family..."

"Now, all of the Xiaya Mei Family's Foundation Establishment Ancestors have died on the front lines. If I were to abandon the Mei Family and leave, even if I succeeded, I'm afraid my heart would never be at ease..."

Wei Xiuwen knelt on the floor and bowed deeply to Wei Tu, who was seated before him.

"I have failed to live up to your nurturing, Father!"

"In this life, I cannot repay you."

Wei Xiuwen remained prostrated on the ground, unable to rise, as tears streamed down his face.

If he could, he would have of course chosen to be smuggled to Kang Country with his sister, Wei Yan, and stop living the life of a fugitive.

But unfortunately,

he had the entire Mei Family behind him.

Back then, he had coveted the Mei Family's wealth and used certain means to marry Mei Zhen, leveraging their resources to get a huge step ahead of other Cultivators of the Same Realm.

But now, the backlash had come.

He was too deeply bound to the Mei Family. Repaying all those debts of gratitude would be far too difficult.

Between being unfilial and being unrighteous,

Wei Xiuwen could only choose to be "unfilial."

His father, Wei Tu, could live perfectly well in the Cultivation Realm without him, but the Mei Family, at this moment, could not.