Based on his guess, for Wei Tu to be wanted by the Heavenly Maiden Sect, his cultivation had to be at least at the Foundation Establishment Realm, and very likely at the Golden Core Realm.
If he was a Golden Core cultivator…
Then asking for a Foundation Establishment Pill, although a bit overreaching, might still be possible. With a Golden Core True Lord's wealth, he might really give one to the Yue family.
"Foundation Establishment Pill?" When Wei Tu heard those words, he thought to himself that Yue Changzhong really knew how to ask. A mere basic cultivation manual, and he wanted to trade it for a Foundation Establishment Pill—something even Qi Refinement and Foundation Establishment cultivators rarely obtained.
Foundation Establishment Pills weren't just any ordinary pills. They were strategic resources of top-tier powers and among the rarest treasures—hard to get even with a thousand gold.
In value, they could rival some Tier-Three pills.
Especially since the Zheng Kingdom was currently at war.
A single Foundation Establishment Pill could easily sell for over ten thousand spirit stones.
"Absolutely not." Wei Tu rejected him coldly. He said, "I still have two Condensed Foundation Pills. Although they aren't as effective as a Foundation Establishment Pill, they can still help a Qi Refinement cultivator break through to Foundation Establishment."
Foundation Establishment Pill ingredients were too rare. Even after all his study of alchemy, he'd never refined one.
However, he had made a few substitute pills—Condensed Foundation Pills.
Their market price was about one thousand five hundred spirit stones each.
But their cost was only around two to three hundred spirit stones.
"Condensed Foundation Pills?"
Yue Changzhong had heard of them. He knew that although they had only half the effect of Foundation Establishment Pills, they also couldn't protect the cultivator's heart vessels during breakthrough, making them risky.
Compared to Foundation Establishment Pills, two Condensed Foundation Pills were clearly worth a lot less.
"Thank you for the pills, uncle-ancestor." A trace of disappointment flashed in Yue Changzhong's eyes, but he hid it well. He immediately knelt and thanked Wei Tu respectfully.
Still, that tiny flicker of disappointment didn't escape the experienced eyes of Wei Tu.
'Greedy beyond measure.'
Wei Tu silently shook his head.
Back then, Yue Jing had been clever but was just a humble servant. He hadn't had much scheming in him.
Today's Yue Changzhong seemed honest, but as the head of the Aoki Yue family, he was cunning and deeply calculating—an old fox in the official world.
He wasn't inferior to his ancestor Yue Jing, maybe even better. But this side of him—his deep schemes—left a bad impression on Wei Tu.
After thinking it over, Wei Tu withdrew the Demon Refining Talisman from his hand. He placed a pill bottle on the altar table, then swept his sleeve and flew away.
He left behind a parting sentence:
"From now on, there's no need for the Yue family to worship me or my wife's portrait. Don't bring trouble upon yourselves."
As those words faded, Yue Changzhong and his son Yue Ziguan looked at each other, stunned.
Even before Wei Tu had appeared, the two of them had already discussed quietly removing his portrait, to avoid drawing attention from the Heavenly Maiden Sect.
But there was a big difference between taking it down themselves and Wei Tu personally telling them to.
The latter clearly meant he didn't want any ties or karma with the Yue family anymore.
"Maybe I overstepped, asking for a Foundation Establishment Pill and offended uncle-ancestor."
After a long while, Yue Changzhong finally spoke. He looked dazedly at the pill bottle on the table and forced a bitter smile.
He had known when he made the request that it was a bit too much.
He was well aware of how valuable Foundation Establishment Pills were.
He had just been hoping for a miracle.
Now, even though the Yue family had received two Condensed Foundation Pills from Wei Tu, Yue Changzhong couldn't shake the feeling that they had missed out on something much greater.
Something that might have affected the clan's fate for generations.
"Pass on my order. This ancestral residence is to be preserved. Every generation of the direct line must come here once a year to offer sacrifices..."
Yue Changzhong made the decision firmly.
He was betting—just like their ancestor Yue Jing once did—that today's actions might still benefit their descendants in the future.
…
After leaving the old residence, Wei Tu didn't go far. He landed by a large Chinese mahogany tree at the mouth of a nearby alley.
With a flash of green light from his hand, a bronze token burst out from the earth and landed in his palm.
The token was rusty, engraved with cloud patterns on one side and the words "Martial Fortune" on the other.
It was the same token Elder Xue Du from Martial Luck Pavilion had given him back then when trying to recruit him.
To avoid trouble, Wei Tu had simply buried it beneath this very tree after receiving it.
"After over two hundred years, it's still here."
A melancholy look spread across Wei Tu's face.
The old sights and objects remained, but this was only one small corner of Qingshan County. In the wider world, everything had already changed drastically.
He had already swept the area with his divine sense. The old Li family estate and Huang family residence were long gone—flattened and rebuilt into new homes.
Still, now that he'd returned to his hometown, Wei Tu didn't feel too much regret.
He wouldn't end up like High Priest Mu Feng, who clung bitterly to his hometown even at death.
'Who knows who will get this stroke of fortune.'
Wei Tu infused the bronze token with a bit of spiritual power. The rusty surface instantly turned as good as new and faintly glowed.
Then he used the token like a jade slip and inscribed the cultivation technique he had practiced in the past—Lesser Spring and Autumn Art—into it.
After that, he buried the token once again at the base of the big mahogany tree.
Lesser Spring and Autumn Art was a Tier-Two technique. It could be cultivated all the way to the peak of Foundation Establishment.
For most Qi Refinement loose cultivators, it would be a rare stroke of good fortune.
…
A few days later, on his way to the Southern Desolate Ancient Plain, Wei Tu made a detour to Cuiping Valley.
Cuiping Valley was a Tier-One spirit land governed by the Changling Huo family. Over a hundred years ago, it had been lent to their relatives—the Meis of Xiaya Cliff.
This time, he was visiting the Xiaya Mei family out of concern. He feared the Heavenly Maiden Sect might retaliate against them because of his actions.
—The Xiaya Mei family was, after all, his in-laws.
But once he arrived at Cuiping Valley, he realized everything had changed.
Over fifty years ago, after he and Wei Xiuwen's family left the Zheng Kingdom, thanks to the Condensed Foundation Pills and Demon Refining Talismans he left behind, two people from the Xiaya Mei family succeeded in reaching the Foundation Establishment Realm one after another, turning the clan into a Foundation Establishment family.
Later, the Xiaya Mei family left Cuiping Valley and relocated to Yunhe Mountain, joining the Heshan Ni family as vassals under this Golden Core family.
The Heshan Ni family was a branch of the Heavenly Maiden Sect's Ni family—also a Golden Core family.
Because of this, the Xiaya Mei family avoided the Heavenly Maiden Sect's purge and instead grew more prosperous.
"Ni Shihuang of the Ni family…" Wei Tu recalled this familiar yet distant Golden Core cultivator of the Heavenly Maiden Sect.
She was familiar because he had encountered her twice in the past—once when Kou Hongying went to the Hongyan Mountain marketplace and Ni Shihuang, together with the Blood God Son, attacked the righteous cultivator market.
The second time was more than fifty years ago, when he was fleeing from the Great Void Realm. He happened to run into Ni Shihuang investigating Bai Zhi's disappearance.
But she was also a stranger—both times, he spotted her first and kept his distance. She had never seen him.
'One clan falls, another rises. Who would've thought the old Heshan Huang family would become today's Heshan Ni family?'
Wei Tu sighed. Then he prepared to leave the area near Cuiping Valley.
Back when he left the Zheng Kingdom, he had already predicted that if the Xiaya Mei family wanted to survive, it was only a matter of time before they aligned with a demonic faction.
Still, he hadn't expected that the very clan and region they submitted to would be so closely tied to him.
Just as he was about to leave Cuiping Valley, a female Foundation Establishment cultivator suddenly flew out of the valley entrance on a crimson flying sword, shouting loudly, "Granduncle!"
"Huang Fang?" Wei Tu was surprised when he saw the woman's face.
Though she now looked like a middle-aged woman, her features still faintly resembled the young Huang Fang he remembered.
This was indeed the same Huang Fang—sister of Huang Chengfu, whom Wei Tu had once taken in as servants when he joined the Heshan Huang family as a retainer.
The siblings, Huang Chengfu and Huang Fang, were descendants of his second aunt Wei Hong. He had given them some help back then.
Later, when his relationship with the Huang family soured, the siblings had chosen to follow him away from Yunhe Mountain.
At Baishi Lake marketplace, his daughter Wei Yan had even accepted Huang Fang as a disciple, teaching her some talisman techniques.
But later, seeing the siblings had poor talent, Wei Tu stopped paying much attention to them after a few attempts to support them didn't bear fruit.
Yet now, Huang Fang had actually succeeded in reaching the Foundation Establishment Realm… Even if it was only the early stage, it still surprised Wei Tu.
"Huang Fang, how did you know I was here?"
Wei Tu walked up to her. As he revealed his presence, his brows furrowed.
He had been traveling disguised and very discreetly. There was no reason she should have been able to find him.
"With my cultivation, of course I couldn't sense your presence, Granduncle. But who else would be asking about the old Xiaya Mei family?"
"So when I heard that someone had inquired, I thought I'd take a chance and wait here. Maybe I'd run into you."
Huang Fang lowered her eyes as she spoke.
"So it was just a coincidence." Wei Tu's tense expression eased.
He had thought his concealment method had a flaw, allowing her to track him.
Turned out it wasn't that at all—it was his actions that gave something away.
Still, it wasn't a real leak. If he hadn't wanted to show himself, even if she suspected, she wouldn't have been able to find the slightest trace.
"Cuiping Valley's Liu family, they're…?"
Wei Tu had a guess. He'd just spoken to a cultivator from the Liu family earlier.
"My husband's family," Huang Fang answered with a firm nod.
Before he could ask more, she started telling her story on her own.
Back then, because of Wei Tu's support, she and her brother Huang Chengfu had lived comfortably in Cuiping Valley. The Mei family had treated them well.
But after the Zheng Kingdom fully fell and the Xiaya Mei family turned to the Heshan Ni family, everything changed.
The Mei family feared the siblings' connection to Wei Tu. So right after joining the Heshan Ni family, they kicked the two of them out.
Some Mei family cultivators even tried to kill them to prove their loyalty to the Ni family.
During the pursuit, Huang Chengfu was killed. Huang Fang barely escaped with her life.
Then by chance, Huang Fang found out the whereabouts of Zheng Xiong, a cultivator wanted by the Myriad Spirits Sect.
Zheng Xiong was a core descendant of the Zheng family from Snow Ridge—once one of the seven great cultivation clans of the Zheng Kingdom.
When the demonic invasion came, the Snow Ridge Zheng clan was destroyed. But before their fall, Zheng Xiong had escaped with part of the family's resources.
Huang Fang guessed that Zheng Xiong must have Foundation Establishment Pills from the Zheng clan.
So she made a ruthless decision. She used all the talismans she'd saved over the years to create a trap and killed Zheng Xiong.
Fortune favors the bold.
After that, she finally had enough resources to break through. Over twenty years ago, she succeeded in entering the Foundation Establishment Realm.
Since then, she hid her identity and returned to Cuiping Valley, marrying Liu Dongming, head of the cultivator Liu family that had moved there.
If she hadn't guessed that Wei Tu would return, she wouldn't have revealed herself.
"I know with my strength, I'll never be able to avenge my brother. So I could only stay here, waiting for the day you might come back, Granduncle."
Huang Fang's eyes turned red, tears falling down her face.
She had reached Foundation Establishment too late. Her path likely ended there.
With only Foundation Establishment strength, she knew she would never be able to get revenge for Huang Chengfu in this lifetime.
"That damn Xiaya Mei family!"
Wei Tu's face immediately turned cold upon hearing her story.
Wei Tu could understand the Xiaya Mei family driving out the Huang siblings. After all, their blood tie to him was like a ticking time bomb for the clan. But sending people to hunt them down afterward—that he couldn't forgive.
That was pure betrayal.
They didn't just kill Huang Chengfu; they also disgraced the Wei family.
If it hadn't been for Wei Xiuwen managing the Mei family for nearly a hundred years, the clan would've fallen apart long ago. If not for his later help, there was no way the Mei family could've produced even two Foundation Establishment cultivators.
"But now, it shouldn't even be called the Xiaya Mei family anymore—it's the Hanye Mei family now."
Wei Tu shook his head.
The main branch of the Xiaya Mei family had come through his daughter-in-law Mei Zhen. After she was gone, the family was now led by a side branch, so it couldn't be considered the original Xiaya Mei family.
Their clan land had also moved from Xiaya Ridge to Hanye Valley near Yunhe Mountain.
"Was it an order from the Hanye Mei family, or just a personal act?" Wei Tu asked.
If it had been a full clan decision, then he'd have to settle accounts with the whole family.
"I looked into it afterward," Huang Fang quickly replied. "A lot of Mei clan members objected when the order to hunt us down was issued. The main one pushing it was a Foundation Establishment cultivator named Mei Longgui."
"I see."
Wei Tu nodded slightly.
Right after he said this, he casually gave Huang Fang a bottle of second-tier pills, then flicked his sleeve and vanished into the sky, flying southwest—toward Yunhe Mountain.
Conveniently, that was also the same direction as the Southern Desolate Ancient Plain, so he didn't need to take a detour.
…
Hanye Valley was a second-tier spirit land under the jurisdiction of the third-tier Yunhe Mountain.
Wei Tu used to serve the Heshan Huang family, so he was very familiar with the terrain. It didn't take him long to locate the Hanye Mei family's new settlement.
After several decades, the Hanye Mei family seemed to be doing well. Many of the younger cultivators had surpassed the previous generation.
In the clan's affairs hall at Hanye Valley…
As the Mei clan members finished their business and filed out, a look of satisfaction flashed across the face of Foundation Establishment elder Mei Longgui. He smiled contentedly.
"Ever since we joined the Heshan Ni family, our Mei clan has flourished. It's nothing like the decline we suffered under Wei Xiuwen's management."
He chuckled to himself.
"Hmph! How could a family grow under outsiders? Wei Xiuwen and his wife were greedy, always dipping into our foundation. If not for them, how else would that man's father have become a Golden Core cultivator?"
Another man in scholar's robes stood up nearby. Stroking the three strands of beard on his chin, he spoke with clear irritation.
This was Mei Zongdian, another Foundation Establishment elder of the Mei clan.
"Well, at least the Wei family had some decency. Before they left, they gave us two Condensed Foundation Pills. Without those, our Mei family might have lost everything."
Mei Zongdian sighed.
"By the way, Brother Longgui—any news on Huang Fang? She might still have a Demon Refining Talisman from the Wei family."
"Without that, and just the Condensed Foundation Pills, the odds of reaching Foundation Establishment are way too low."
Mei Zongdian paused, then asked.
The Mei clan's pursuit of Huang Fang wasn't just about showing loyalty to the Heavenly Maiden Sect. More importantly, they wanted to seize the inheritance of the Demon Refining Talisman.
With that, their clan could produce Foundation Establishment cultivators endlessly, ensuring they'd never decline.
"No luck," Mei Longgui shook his head. "I sent people to check all the nearby markets—nothing. Honestly, this is your fault for being too soft back then."
"If we'd acted sooner, with both of us in the Foundation Establishment Realm, catching that woman wouldn't have been a problem."
At that, Mei Zongdian immediately shot back:
"She's still family to Wei Tu. If he were still in the Zheng Kingdom and caught wind of this, our clan would've been finished."
"One of us has to play the nice guy, the other plays tough. That's how you survive—straddling both lines." Mei Zongdian looked proud of himself.
"Fair point. Makes sense."
Just then, a new voice rang out in the hall—completely different in tone from either Mei Longgui or Mei Zongdian.
As soon as they heard it, both men froze and quickly released their divine senses to search for the source.
At the same time, they cursed themselves for letting their guard down and speaking their true thoughts aloud.
Neither noticed the two transparent moths perched on their shoulders. The edges of the moths' mouths still shimmered with traces of the colorful hallucinogenic mist they'd released.
It was this rainbow mist that had made the two elders spill everything without realizing it.
"Back then, it was I who gave you the chance to reach Foundation Establishment. Today, I ask for nothing in return—only to reclaim the cultivation I gave you."
The moment the words fell, Wei Tu stepped out from thin air. With a cold face, he reached out and struck both of them in the dantian.
With a soft "pop," the two elders deflated like punctured sacks. Their spiritual power rushed out, and their cultivation dropped from Foundation Establishment all the way down to the Qi Refinement Realm.
"My cultivation—?!"
Both Mei Longgui and Mei Zongdian looked horrified. It was only now that they realized—the Wei Tu they had feared all this time was already standing right in front of them.
"True Lord Wei, I was talking nonsense! I didn't mean it! Please spare me…"
The two men dropped to their knees, begging for mercy.
But without their Foundation Establishment cultivation, they were basically crippled. And once the news spread, the Mei family's so-called prosperity would be swallowed up by rival clans in no time.
When that happened, neither of them, nor the entire Hanye Mei family, would have any hope of recovery.
"The Wei family never owed anything to the Mei clan. Especially not to side branches like yours."
Wei Tu gave them a cold glance, called back the two colorful moths from their shoulders, then turned and left.