A second-tier spirit land—

It was the most important asset of any Foundation Establishment family.

The main distinction between a solitary Foundation Establishment cultivator and a Foundation Establishment family lay precisely in whether they held a second-tier spirit land.

Now that the Mei Clan of Fragrant Cliff had abandoned theirs, the forces and cultivators eyeing their inheritance no longer needed to go all out to destroy them.

After all, only the clan’s ancestor had died—not the entire clan. They still had some strength left to resist Foundation Establishment-level enemies. Picking a fight to the death with the Mei Clan wouldn’t necessarily end well.

“Other clans might be taking a risk doing this, but with Yan’er and Xiuwen secretly guarding them, the Mei Clan doesn’t need to worry,” Wei Tu thought.

Giving up a second-tier spirit land could ease some of the pressure from hostile forces, but that didn’t mean all greed would vanish.

A Foundation Establishment clan’s accumulated wealth over many years wasn’t something to scoff at.

But with Wei Yan and Wei Xiuwen guarding the clan from the shadows, there was little to worry about.

Right now, the hidden power behind the Mei Clan was even stronger than the overt strength they had back when Mei Lang was still alive.

In fact, with the strength the Wei siblings had now, they could publicly defend the Mei Clan if they chose to.

But since they’d formed their foundations in secret, they were considered “unregistered” in the eyes of the Immortal sects. Once exposed, the drawbacks would far outweigh the benefits.

...

After gathering intelligence from the Jiu Yun Merchant Guild, Wei Tu summoned his Huangyan Boat and headed directly toward Cui Ping Valley, the first-tier spirit land where the Mei Clan had resettled.

Cui Ping Valley was over a thousand li away from Fragrant Cliff. It belonged to the Huo Clan of Changling, a Foundation Establishment family affiliated with the Mei Clan.

The two clans had been intermarrying for generations.

Mei Yuanfeng’s Dao companion was from the Huo Clan, and even Mei Zhen’s older brother had married a Huo Clan cultivator.

If Wei Xiuwen hadn’t intervened back then, Mei Zhen would likely have married into the Huo Clan too, becoming one of their own.

...

The next morning—

Wei Tu had traveled more than halfway and was now just a few dozen li away from Cui Ping Valley.

Suddenly, two streaks of green light came flying toward him from the northwest, pursued closely by a burly man in a purple robe at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment.

Wei Tu calmly flicked his sleeve and moved to the side, giving them wide berth and staying well away from the path of the two green lights.

From what he could see, the figures within the green lights were strangers—both were Qi Refinement cultivators.

As for the purple-robed man chasing them, Wei Tu recognized him.

He had seen this man before at an underground auction—Shang Ming, a notorious rogue cultivator from the Zheng Kingdom. A known “brute.”

Naturally, Wei Tu wanted nothing to do with this mess. He wasn’t the type to throw himself into trouble in the name of “justice.”

After all, overpowering the weak wasn’t necessarily evil.

“Senior Wei, this junior is Tao Jie, a cultivator of the Tao Clan from Hanshan. That man chasing me is Shang Ming—he's after us for our treasures! Please, Senior, help us just this once! The Tao Clan will reward you handsomely!”

Unexpectedly, the two green lights didn’t fly off as expected but instead curved around and stopped in front of Wei Tu.

The man at the front was a young noble in fancy robes, with a proud bearing.

The woman behind him looked to be in her early twenties, delicate and gentle. Her features bore a strong resemblance to Tao Jie—most likely his younger sister.

Seeing Wei Tu, Tao Jie looked like he had just grabbed a lifeline. He bowed deeply and spoke with urgency.

Times had changed.

Now that Wei Tu had completed the assignment from the Immortal sect and become a free agent again, he no longer needed to hide his identity while traveling through the Zheng Kingdom.

In fact, showing his true face was now safer than staying disguised.

Tao Jie had recognized Wei Tu at first glance—

He was the renowned “Talisman Master Wei” of the Zheng Kingdom’s cultivation world.

Seeing that the Tao siblings had the audacity to bring trouble to his doorstep, Wei Tu frowned slightly, his mood souring.

Whether they’d done it intentionally or not, pushing their danger onto him was not something he appreciated.

Still, now wasn’t the time to lecture them.

Wei Tu raised his head and looked directly at the approaching Shang Ming.

—If he had been in disguise today, Wei Tu would’ve simply fled the scene and ignored the Tao siblings. After all, he had no relationship with the Tao Clan.

But with his true face exposed, turning and running might damage his reputation and potentially draw trouble later.

The Tao Clan of Hanshan wasn’t just any family—they were a Golden Core clan, on par with the Heshan Huang Clan.

“Fellow Daoist Shang, may I ask why you're pursuing these two juniors from the Tao Clan so relentlessly? Could there be some misunderstanding?”

Wei Tu raised his hand in greeting, his tone polite and calm as he addressed the now-hovering Shang Ming.

“I was just passing through. I don’t know the details of your dispute with the Tao siblings,” he said aloud.

At the same time, he transmitted a soundless message to Shang Ming, emphasizing the word “passing.”

Wei Tu's message was clear—

Once he left, Shang Ming could resume the chase.

Backing off for now would be seen as doing Wei Tu a favor.

“Wei Tu?” Shang Ming stopped in his tracks. He looked closely at Wei Tu’s face, frowning deeply.

Ten years ago, Wei Tu had already made quite a name for himself in the Zheng Kingdom’s cultivation world.

Among talisman masters, he was particularly well-known.

With Shang Ming’s current strength, facing off against Wei Tu, a second-tier high-grade talisman master, he didn’t like his odds.

In other words, Wei Tu was the kind of Foundation Establishment cultivator who had the right to make him back down.

“Wasn’t Talisman Master Wei drafted by the Immortal sects and sent to the frontlines?” Shang Ming asked cautiously, trying to probe.

If Wei Tu had deserted the battlefield and was being hunted by the sects, he wouldn’t need to fear Wei Tu. In fact, it would be Wei Tu who should avoid him.

“It’s been ten years. My stationing period is over, and now I’m a free man,” Wei Tu replied with a light smile, completely unconcerned.

“Your term is over?” At those words, Shang Ming’s heart skipped a beat.

Any rogue cultivator who had survived their full stationing period and made it back to the Zheng Kingdom alive was no ordinary person.

Wei Tu might see him as a brute, but in Shang Ming’s eyes, Wei Tu was the real dangerous one—not someone to mess with.

“These two juniors from the Tao Clan and I have personal grievances. It’s not something I can share. But… out of respect for Fellow Daoist Wei, I’ll let this matter go for now.”

Shang Ming gave Wei Tu a respectful bow, said “farewell,” and turned into a streak of light, vanishing toward the horizon.

But as he left, Wei Tu noticed—

Shang Ming had secretly planted a tracking method on the Tao siblings.

Still, Wei Tu chose not to say anything. He simply ignored it.

“You two may leave,” Wei Tu said, glancing at Tao Jie and waving him off.

He had no interest in the feud or hidden matters between Shang Ming and the Tao siblings.

And based on Shang Ming’s earlier withdrawal, it was clear that whatever treasure they were carrying wasn’t valuable enough to be worth further concern.

“Senior Wei, please wait!”

Tao Jie was a sharp one. He knew that the danger was only temporarily gone. Once Wei Tu left, Shang Ming would definitely return to finish the job.

But even as he called out, Wei Tu didn’t stop. His escape light flashed, already stretching far into the distance.

Tao Jie stared blankly. This was the first time he’d encountered a senior cultivator like Wei Tu—so difficult to deal with.

“Senior, wait! I have a secret to share. One that will absolutely be of value to you!” Tao Jie gritted his teeth, burned a bit of his blood essence, and used Blood Escape to chase after Wei Tu, calling out to him from afar.

Hearing that, Wei Tu raised a brow, his interest slightly piqued. His light twisted mid-air and returned to stand before Tao Jie.

“What secret?” Wei Tu glanced at the pale-faced Tao Jie, then casually tossed over a first-tier medicinal pill.

After swallowing the pill, color returned to Tao Jie’s face. He took a few deep breaths and said, “Senior Wei, have you ever heard of the Nanhua Sect?”

Nanhua Sect?

Wei Tu’s heart trembled slightly.

He was more than just familiar with that name. The Nanhua Sect’s spiritual treasure, the Heaven-Mending Bowl, was currently in his possession.

In the Zheng Kingdom, the Nanhua Sect was a legendary ancient Immortal sect. Many tales about it circulated throughout the cultivation world.

So, whatever secret Tao Jie had to share about the Nanhua Sect might not be anything new.

Still, with his years of cultivation, Wei Tu was good at hiding his emotions. He looked at Tao Jie without any change in expression and said coolly, “That ancient Immortal sect? What secret of theirs do you claim to know?”

“As long as Senior Wei safely escorts my sister and me back to the Tao Clan in Hanshan, I will gladly…”

But before Tao Jie could finish, he was cut off by Wei Tu’s cold snort.

“Young man, do you really think I’m less than Shang Ming? That I’m afraid of you two?” Wei Tu’s tone turned frosty.

Now that he had become a disciple of True Lord Che and stood behind the Loose Immortal Alliance, there was nothing about the “Tao Clan of Hanshan” that intimidated him.

In fact, to be blunt—

Compared to the Loose Immortal Alliance, the Tao Clan was a minor force. Not even worth mentioning.

Earlier, when he saw the Tao siblings being pursued and dragged their troubles to him, he helped simply to avoid further entanglement.

It wasn’t because he feared the Tao Clan or felt obligated to intervene.

“My apologies, Senior. I was out of line,” Tao Jie’s expression shifted. He quickly bowed and apologized to Wei Tu.

Tao Jie now deeply regretted misjudging the situation. Not only had he failed to win an ally, but he’d offended a Foundation Establishment senior.

If things went badly from here…

Wei Tu would be much harder to deal with than Shang Ming.

“What I said earlier… it was just an invitation to host you at our estate in Hanshan…” Tao Jie offered an awkward smile, trying to smooth things over.

“As for that Nanhua Sect secret—”

“If Senior Wei wishes to hear it, I’ll tell you now,” he added quickly.

“Speak,” Wei Tu said curtly, casting him a cold glance.

“I accidentally overheard it from my grandfather. It’s said that the Nanhua Sect once built four great hidden medicinal gardens…”

“Each one is filled with countless spiritual herbs. Any faction that finds one would rise instantly.”

Tao Jie spoke in earnest, his voice steady and sincere.