After exchanging a few polite words.

Wei Tu set his grandson Wei Changshou down and turned his gaze to Wei Xiuwen, asking, "After all these years, has the Mei Clan produced any new Foundation Establishment cultivators?"

If the Mei Clan had new Foundation Establishment cultivators, then there would be no need for Wei Xiuwen to stay here any longer. What he wanted to say next would be much easier to bring up.

"None." Hearing this, Wei Xiuwen showed a hint of disappointment and shook his head.

He explained, "Before the Mei Clan’s two Foundation Establishment cultivators went off to war, they sold off a large portion of the clan’s resources to purchase defensive artifacts and talismans. Back then… Sun Yu squeezed the Mei Clan dry again. Although you later compensated us somewhat, the Mei Clan… still ended up in debt."

"If it were just a lack of resources, that would be manageable. But it seems like the clan’s fortune has declined. Over the years, very few of our children have been born with mid-grade spiritual roots or higher."

"Even Changshou only has an upper-tier low-grade spiritual root, not even mid-grade."

After speaking, Wei Xiuwen let out a long sigh.

Over twenty years ago, after his father-in-law Mei Yuanfeng passed away, he had taken over as acting clan leader of the Mei Clan.

Yet under his leadership, the Mei Clan of Xiaya Cliff had shown no improvement.

If anything, the decline had only worsened.

Hearing this.

Wei Tu wasn’t surprised.

A child with a mid-grade spiritual root already had the qualifications to become a disciple of a major sect, considered a Foundation Establishment seedling.

The Mei Clan of Xiaya Cliff was just a small Foundation Establishment family. If they could produce one or two children with mid-grade spiritual roots in a century, that would already be considered a prosperous generation.

Failing to produce any over the past hundred years wasn’t unusual at all.

"Is there anyone at Qi Refinement Ninth Layer ready to break through?" Wei Tu asked again.

—If the Mei Clan had no Foundation Establishment cultivators to protect them, it wouldn’t feel right to just forcibly take Wei Xiuwen and Wei Changshou away.

He wanted to handle this with integrity.

After all, the Mei Clan was still his in-laws.

He didn’t have any Foundation Establishment Pills on hand.

But Condensed Foundation Pills and Beast Refining Talismans, the standard tools for helping a cultivator break through to Foundation Establishment, weren’t difficult for him to provide.

"What do you mean by that, Father?" Wei Xiuwen froze for a moment, sensing something unusual in Wei Tu’s words.

Normally, even if his father wanted to support the Mei Clan, he would only offer some resources. It wasn’t like him to urgently push to produce a new Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Unless… there was another reason.

Seeing this, Wei Tu didn’t hide anything. He directly explained that the Heavenly Maiden Sect had placed him on their wanted list, and clearly stated the danger of Wei Xiuwen staying with the Mei Clan.

"This time, whether you’re willing or not, you have to leave the Mei Clan," Wei Tu said firmly.

Wei Xiuwen, being his blood relative, was one of his biggest weaknesses in the face of the Heavenly Maiden Sect’s pursuit.

From a cultivator’s perspective.

Wei Tu couldn’t allow such a fatal weakness to fall into their hands.

Of course, he didn’t regret having children with Xinghua back in his mortal days.

After all, he wasn’t some all-knowing prophet who could have foreseen the Blood Guidance Secret Art, a spell of the cultivation world.

Back when they married, he and Xinghua had always hoped for children.

He couldn’t blame his past actions or curse the heavens just because those children had now become his weakness.

That kind of thinking was no different from being scum.

—Don’t aim too high. Stay grounded. Do what you should do in the present, taking one solid step at a time.

This had always been Wei Tu’s principle, and it had never changed.

Even in the first letter he had written to Wei Xiuwen back in their mortal days, he had mentioned these very words.

Naturally, as a father, he wasn’t about to go against his own teachings and slap himself in the face now.

As for this unexpected crisis.

He would find a way to deal with it, plain and simple.

…

"The Heavenly Maiden Sect is after you?"

Wei Xiuwen was startled.

The Heavenly Maiden Sect was one of the Five Major Demonic Sects, their power far exceeding that of the Three Great Sects of Zheng Kingdom.

The danger his father was in, being hunted by such a force, was unimaginable.

"I’m willing to leave with you, Father." This time, Wei Xiuwen didn’t argue. He agreed immediately.

Back then, when he had chosen the Mei Clan over the Wei Clan, it had been because, as a Foundation Establishment early-stage cultivator, there was almost nothing he could do to help his father.

Whether he stayed by Wei Tu’s side or not didn’t make much of a difference.

But now, it was different.

Between the two choices.

Wei Xiuwen no longer had a choice to make.

—No matter how important the Mei Clan of Xiaya Cliff was, it could not compare to his own father.

Besides, over the years, he had almost fully repaid the Mei Clan for their kindness.

Leaving now came with no psychological burden.

"What’s more…" Wei Xiuwen glanced at his wife Mei Zhen, his eyes filled with tenderness.

A century ago, Mei Yuanfeng and his daughter had taken care of him, offering help and resources.

Now, by leaving with his wife and child, it could be considered the best repayment to Mei Yuanfeng’s bloodline.

—Mei Yuanfeng had only one daughter, Mei Zhen.

"Father, I can leave… but what about Mei Zhen?" Wei Xiuwen asked quickly.

If they were leaving because of the Blood Guidance Secret Art, Wei Tu would certainly take his son Wei Changshou with them.

But Mei Zhen’s situation wasn’t as certain.

Wei Xiuwen knew full well how difficult it was to smuggle into another country these days.

Even using the old Tao Clan’s channels, bringing one more person like Mei Zhen would add a significant cost.

Abandoning the mother but keeping the child.

This wasn’t uncommon in the cultivation world. It happened all the time in aristocratic families.

"One more Mei Zhen isn’t a problem," Wei Tu shook his head and replied.

When he had escorted the Qiu siblings through the secret route to Kang Kingdom, he could only protect one person at a time because the Qiu siblings were ordinary mortals.

But it was different for Wei Xiuwen and Mei Zhen.

Both were cultivators.

They could use artifacts and talismans to protect themselves to some extent.

Even the young Wei Changshou was already at Qi Refinement Second Layer.

"I have no objections anymore," Wei Xiuwen finally let out a breath of relief.

Mei Zhen, standing off to the side, felt her heart settle at last.

Just moments ago, she had truly feared that when faced with this life-and-death decision, Wei Tu and his son would leave her behind.

…

What followed.

Wei Tu and Wei Xiuwen sat down together to settle the Mei Clan’s future.

The Mei Clan currently had thirteen cultivators at Qi Refinement Ninth Layer.

After removing those who were too old or had poor potential, only four cultivators remained who were suitable to attempt a breakthrough to Foundation Establishment.

After some discussion.

Wei Xiuwen decided to select the two youngest to attempt breaking through at a later date.

Seeing this, Wei Tu gifted four premium Beast Refining Talismans and one thousand spirit stones to the Mei Clan.

Years ago, when he had fled from the sect draft, Sun Yu had extorted a great deal from the Mei Clan.

Though Wei Tu had compensated them somewhat afterward, he hadn’t fully made up for it.

Over thirty years ago, he had killed Sun Yu and taken a lot of valuables from him.

Now, giving these resources to the Mei Clan could finally be considered settling that old debt.

In addition to Wei Tu’s contribution.

Wei Xiuwen and Mei Zhen also offered one thousand spirit stones from their personal savings as their final contribution to the Mei Clan.

A single Condensed Foundation Pill was worth one thousand five hundred spirit stones.

Their combined gift only totaled two thousand spirit stones, still one thousand short.

But neither Wei Tu nor Wei Xiuwen gave more.

After Wei Xiuwen and his family left, there wouldn’t be much left tying the Wei Clan and the Mei Clan together. Continuing to offer support wasn’t realistic.

Given the Mei Clan’s current financial state, scraping together one thousand more spirit stones by tightening their belts wasn’t impossible.

If they weren’t even willing to do that, then the Mei Clan had no right to exist as a cultivation family anymore.

As for actually purchasing the Condensed Foundation Pills…

Wei Tu sent a letter to Kou Hongying, asking her to help the Mei Clan buy two pills through Mirror Water Pavilion.

During wartime, breakthrough pills were hard to acquire since they were regulated.

But for someone like Kou Hongying, getting two pills wasn’t difficult.

It was a trivial matter.

…

After settling everything.

Wei Xiuwen and his family boarded the Huangyan Boat, leaving with Wei Tu for the Southern Desolate Wastes.

Breaking through to Foundation Establishment wasn’t something that could be done in a short time. Naturally, Wei Tu and Wei Xiuwen’s family wouldn’t stick around waiting for the Mei Clan’s breakthrough attempt.

Two Condensed Foundation Pills and four premium Beast Refining Talismans.

If the Mei Clan still failed to produce a Foundation Establishment cultivator, it would only prove that their destiny had run its course.

The Wei Clan had already done all it could.

"Mei Clan, Wei Clan…" Sitting cross-legged on the Huangyan Boat, Mei Zhen looked back at the shrinking Cuiping Valley, holding her son Wei Changshou tightly, and let out a faint sigh.

Compared to the Mei Clan, she cared far more about her own small family.

The Mei Clan’s cultivators only shared her surname. But Wei Changshou was her flesh and blood.

"Changshou, do you want to see our new home?" Mei Zhen forced a smile as she teased the boy in her arms.