Five days later.
Wei Tu crossed the Black Blood Marsh and returned to the Kang Kingdom.
However, after coming back, he didn't rush back to Ying Ding Tribe. Instead, he shifted his light and made his way to Ancient Sword Mountain—one of the "Two Mountains and One Palace."
Just like Huang Juzhi, Wei Tu also had an old grudge that hadn't been settled yet.
But his was not the grudge of a clan's extermination—it was the grudge of a master being killed.
Wei Tu knew very well that once he returned to Ying Ding Tribe and exposed his current cultivation realm, it would become nearly impossible to avenge his master anytime soon.
The ones who killed Che Gongwei—Yao Chongshan and his wife—weren't fools. Once they knew he had reached the Nascent Soul stage, they definitely wouldn't step foot outside Earth Sword Mountain, much less allow themselves to be slaughtered.
So he went to Ancient Sword Mountain first, planning to find his old friend Situ You to get some information on the movements of Yao Chongshan and his wife.
A few days later, Wei Tu arrived at the gate of Ancient Sword Mountain.
Just like last time, he used a sound-transmission talisman to contact Situ You first before entering the mountain.
A quarter of an hour later, a white-robed, handsome and refined Situ You flew out from within the mountain and landed in front of him.
Compared to a few decades ago, Situ You had shed his worn-out look and now looked refreshed and confident, full of ambition.
Wei Tu could easily guess that Situ You's married life was probably quite happy.
"Situ xiong, I wasn't able to attend your Dao companion ceremony back then due to my identity. But now that I'm here at Ancient Sword Mountain, I figured it's time to make up for it with a proper gift."
Wei Tu smiled lightly and pulled a pill bottle from his sleeve, passing it to Situ You using a wisp of spiritual power.
Back then, Situ You was sidelined by Wei Hua and had a low status at Ancient Sword Mountain. As a branch elder, he had no choice but to come to Wei Tu for Gold Marrow Pills.
Now that he had married Tian Qiuyun and taken over Wei Hua's place, he had become one of the top core elders in the sect. Life was going quite well.
Naturally, that meant he was far less likely to seek Wei Tu's help in the future.
Simply put, times had changed.
So to maintain this connection, Wei Tu had to sweeten the deal.
Not to mention, at this moment, he needed something from Situ You.
Of course, if he revealed that he had reached Nascent Soul stage, it'd be a different matter entirely.
But until Yao Chongshan and his wife were dead, Wei Tu didn't intend to reveal his cultivation—not even to Situ You.
After all, they were only casual friends. Trust was limited.
Besides, Situ You wasn't alone anymore—he now had Tian Qiuyun, which brought an unpredictable variable into play.
"Blood Crane Pill?"
Situ You didn't know what Wei Tu was thinking. He took the bottle, scanned it with divine sense, and saw it was a precious tier-three pill. Instantly, joy and warmth lit up his face.
"My wife's cooking isn't bad. Why don't you come to my place and try some of her dishes?"
Situ You gave a slight bow and invited him warmly.
"I'll gladly accept the hospitality of such a fine couple."
Wei Tu didn't decline. He smiled, cupped his hands in thanks, and followed Situ You into the gates of Ancient Sword Mountain.
But once they arrived at Situ You's cave-dwelling, Wei Tu's expression turned slightly odd.
It was because this very cave-dwelling used to belong to Wei Hua—the same one he had visited decades ago.
'What exactly is Situ You planning? Did he marry Tian Qiuyun just to become Sword Master, or does he truly care for her?'
Wei Tu wondered, full of suspicion.
Originally, he thought Situ You just replaced Wei Hua in terms of status, but he never expected Situ You wouldn't mind the awkwardness and had even taken over Wei Hua's cave-dwelling.
'Maybe Situ You did it on purpose… to lure out Wei Hua's reincarnated soul,' Wei Tu thought to himself.
He hadn't forgotten that in that battle where Situ You killed Wei Hua, Wei Hua's Golden Core had escaped using the Cicada Shedding technique—a fake death, reborn anew.
Not long after…
Wei Tu followed Situ You inside the cave.
"Greetings, Alchemist Wei."
Tian Qiuyun walked out from her quiet chamber and gave a gentle bow.
She looked calm, clearly already aware of the relationship between Wei Tu and Situ You.
"Madam Situ."
Wei Tu remained composed, adjusted his greeting accordingly, and returned her bow.
'Interesting.' While bowing, he glanced at Tian Qiuyun's outfit and couldn't help but think to himself.
Unlike her seductive and revealing clothes from decades ago, her attire now was modest and proper—like a pure girl from the neighborhood.
After Wei Tu and Situ You were seated, Tian Qiuyun brought out spiritual tea and began brewing for them, playing the role of a virtuous wife.
"Alchemist Wei, I truly love Situ from the bottom of my heart. Please don't ever bring up what happened back then… I don't want to upset him."
At that moment, Tian Qiuyun secretly sent him a voice transmission.
'Disgrace?'
Wei Tu couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. Back then, Tian Qiuyun's seduction was anything but forced.
And now, she was shifting all the blame onto Wei Hua? How convenient—after all, the dead can't speak for themselves.
Still, stirring up trouble wasn't worth it. His friendship with Situ You wasn't strong enough to endure that kind of tension.
So, Wei Tu naturally said nothing.
"As long as Madam has her husband's best interest at heart, I won't say a word," Wei Tu smiled faintly and gave a vague reply.
With his usual caution, there was no way he'd leave anything that could be used against him.
If Situ You ever found out about today's exchange—or about Tian Qiuyun's true nature—this statement would be enough for him to brush things off.
Hearing this, Tian Qiuyun silently cursed in her heart, 'Old fox.'
"Now that I'm married to Situ, of course I'll look out for him," she said softly, her voice laced with a touch of pleading.
But Wei Tu completely ignored her. He calmly sipped his tea, paying no attention to whatever Tian Qiuyun continued to transmit through voice.
"I still have something important to discuss with Brother Situ. Madam, would you be willing to give us a bit of privacy?"
After the small talk, Wei Tu decided to get to the point. His tone was mild as he looked at the couple and made his request.
As soon as he finished, Tian Qiuyun naturally had no reason to stay. She gave a courteous bow, packed away the tea set, and left the hall.
Once she was gone, Wei Tu didn't delay. He flicked his sleeve and set up a sound-isolation barrier nearby, then spoke directly to Situ You.
"Information on Yao Chongshan and his wife?"
Hearing Wei Tu's intention, Situ You frowned deeply and stayed silent for a while.
After a moment, he finally spoke in a low voice. "Brother Wei, you don't even need to say it. I already understand what you want. You're trying to take revenge on Yao Chongshan and his wife. But if you ask me, you'd be better off letting it go."
"Those two aren't just sword cultivators—they also know a joint combat technique. And they gained opportunities on the battlefield. Over ten years ago, they both broke through to the late Golden Core stage."
"Right now, they're probably just a step away from the Nascent Soul stage. Even powerful late-stage Golden Core cultivators might not dare to face them head-on."
Situ You spoke slowly.
He didn't think much of Wei Tu's strength.
In his estimation, Wei Tu's real cultivation might not be merely mid-stage Golden Core, but already at the late stage.
Even so, going up against Yao Chongshan and his wife… would still be a major risk.
A single mistake, and Wei Tu could end up like his master Che Gongwei—dead and forgotten.
"Working together, they rival a late-stage Golden Core expert…"
Wei Tu frowned slightly, clearly weighing whether or not to abandon his plan.
Seeing this reaction, Situ You felt a bit of relief.
If possible, of course he didn't want a valuable friend like Wei Tu to end up dead.
But in the next moment...
Wei Tu's words made Situ You freeze in shock.
"My cultivation may not be strong, but as a talisman and alchemist, I've built up quite a fortune over the years. With that, hiring a few powerful Golden Core friends to help me kill Yao Chongshan and his wife shouldn't be difficult."
Wei Tu's tone was calm and steady.
Situ You's hand holding the tea trembled slightly. For a moment, he didn't know how to respond.
He suddenly remembered that scene decades ago, when Wei Tu spent tens of thousands of spirit stones to buy Su Bing'er's freedom—like it was nothing.
If he could casually spend tens of thousands of spirit stones back then, then hiring a couple of late-stage Golden Core cultivators to ambush Yao Chongshan and his wife now wasn't far-fetched at all.
After all, he had previously hired Yu Gongshou and two others to escort him home, hadn't he?
Still… to think that the once-proud genius of Earth Sword Mountain might just fall like that—Situ You couldn't help but feel a chill.
Because his own strength was far beneath that of Yao Chongshan and his wife.
'Wei Tu is someone I absolutely must not provoke.'
Situ You forced himself to calm down and gave himself a stern reminder.
This was the first time he had met someone with such an intense thirst for revenge.
"I'll go through everything I've collected about Yao Chongshan and his wife these past few days and hand it over to Brother Wei soon."
Situ You agreed without hesitation.
If Wei Tu really did succeed in killing the couple, it would be a huge win for him as well.
After all, not only were Yao Chongshan and his wife Wei Tu's enemies, they were also major threats to Ancient Sword Mountain.
Just like him, they were also contenders for the Sword Master position of Earth Sword Mountain.
"Thanks, Brother Situ."
Hearing Situ You's words and noting the subtle change in how he addressed him, Wei Tu couldn't help but smile and rise to express his gratitude.
"No need, no need."
Situ You waved his hand repeatedly, signaling that Wei Tu didn't need to stand on ceremony.
...
Once they finished talking about serious matters…
To keep the intelligence up-to-date, Wei Tu didn't leave Ancient Sword Mountain right away. Instead, he accepted Situ You's warm hospitality and stayed at his cave-dwelling for a while.
At first, he didn't think much of it, but after some time living there, Wei Tu started to regret the decision.
It wasn't that the cave-dwelling was bad.
The issue was Tian Qiuyun.
She liked to show up deliberately whenever Situ You was busy with sect affairs.
"As long as Alchemist Wei swears never to reveal anything about my past to Situ, I won't bother you again."
Tian Qiuyun gave a graceful bow and said softly.
"What if I refuse?" Wei Tu sneered coldly, unmoved by her tactics.
He was a full Nascent Soul cultivator. Why would he be afraid of some woman's threats?
"Then I won't be polite anymore."
Tian Qiuyun smiled sweetly, then loosened her outer robe, revealing the sheer white gauze gown underneath.
In the next moment, her curvaceous figure began to faintly show through the translucent fabric.
"If Alchemist Wei won't swear, then I'll just have to use this as leverage."
She stepped toward him with gentle, elegant movements, her breath fragrant and voice soft as she came close.