As soon as Wei Tu said nothing in response, Yuan Ying swallowed hard, fully convinced of her own guess.
"What's this black talisman?"
She struggled to break free but found her spiritual power completely locked down by the pitch-black talisman on her forehead. She couldn't move even a single wisp of qi.
At this moment, she was no different from an ordinary mortal woman.
"Soul-Sealing Talisman," Wei Tu said flatly.
The reason he hadn't killed Yuan Ying immediately was that he wanted to test the new "Soul-Sealing Talisman" he had just developed.
This talisman came from the Spirit-Binding Sect and was one of their signature creations.
Dozens of years ago, Wei Tu had acquired it from Su Bing'er, who had been marked with one by Liu Moqun. Over the years, he studied it thoroughly, combining it with insights from Sealing Talismans and various other restraining types. Just recently, he had succeeded in crafting his own version.
—With the Late Bloomer destiny, as long as Wei Tu found the right path, he would always find validation through his Golden Purple Destiny.
Of course, his version was still inferior to the original. At its current grade, it could only restrain early Golden Core cultivators, sealing both their soul and spiritual power.
The original could even trap a Nascent Soul cultivator's true soul.
"I still have one last question. I hope Daoist Wei can answer it. After that, I'll die with no regrets."
"On this entire journey, we never met, and I carefully hid my presence and altered my aura… how did Daoist Wei track me down?"
Yuan Ying's face was full of confusion as she asked.
Her eyes sparkled with a misty shimmer, as if pleading.
But she seemed to have forgotten she was currently disguised as a pockmarked female cultivator. Her looks now were far from her true appearance.
Even a lustful man wouldn't be swayed by her plea like this—let alone Wei Tu.
"No need to answer."
Wei Tu sneered, stepped forward, and smashed her skull with a palm, ending her life cleanly.
The whole thing happened so fast that Yuan Ying didn't even have time to react.
"Almost let you get away," Wei Tu muttered as he pried open her soft, pale right hand and took a Minor Shift Talisman from her palm.
The Minor Shift Talisman didn't require spiritual power. Just crush it, and you'd be instantly transported up to twenty li away.
"What a shame." Holding the talisman, Wei Tu could still feel a trace of warmth from Yuan Ying's palm.
Back in the shop, when Yuan Ying lightly stroked his hand with her fingers, trying to seduce him, she never imagined that was the moment he had secretly planted a soul-mark on her clothes—one almost impossible to detect.
If he hadn't been wary of Divine Masters in the Ying Ding Tribe, he would've already ended her in the outskirts of Hujie Immortal City. There'd be no need to follow her all the way to Dingshan Market.
…
After collecting Yuan Ying's storage pouch and destroying her body, Wei Tu turned and flew back toward Hujie Immortal City deep within the grasslands.
The Golden Tent election lasted five days.
So when Wei Tu returned to the Ying Ding Tribe, the results hadn't been announced yet.
The cultivators of the Cangkun Alliance and the local priests and mages didn't question his few days of absence. After all, he had just been ambushed—resting in seclusion to recover made perfect sense.
One hundred li outside Hujie Immortal City, atop the Golden Tent Platform—
A jade platform nearly one hundred zhang tall stood tall.
At its center, Yuan Jie stood clad in loose-sleeved tribal robes, cradling a pill cauldron in his hands.
Beside him stood a thin middle-aged man—Great Mage Qu Bei, the fourth disciple of Divine Master Du Long.
"Gu Sheng Tribe," Qu Bei called out lightly.
From the crowd below, an elder wearing a feathered crown and tribal tattoos stepped up, holding an amber-colored jade slip.
He climbed the platform and placed it into the pill cauldron in Yuan Jie's hands.
At that, a cheer erupted from many members of the Ying Ding Tribe.
"Little brat!"
Behind Yuan Jie, the old Right Virtuous King sat silently. Hearing the cheers, his cloudy eyes narrowed, a cold gleam flickering within.
He hadn't expected Yuan Jie of the Cangkun Alliance to be so popular. Even though he had bribed many of the tribal leaders, Yuan Jie still garnered far more votes than him in the election.
"It's all because of the Divine Masters. What does a greenhorn like him know that makes the tribes love him so much?" the old Right Virtuous King thought with disdain.
Sure, Yuan Jie had prestige. But it wasn't nearly enough to justify such overwhelming support from the tribes to become the next Right Virtuous King.
In the end, Yuan Jie was just replacing him as a new puppet for the Three Divine Masters.
At that moment, Wei Tu had already slipped into the crowd and made his way to the bottom of the platform, quietly watching the Ying Ding Tribe's grand event.
"This Golden Tent election is now concluded. Yuan Jie has received a total of one hundred thirty-four jade slips in his cauldron and is elected the next Right Virtuous King of the Ying Ding Tribe..."
Great Mage Qu Bei announced the result.
As his voice fell, a gray-skinned elder and a middle-aged man in a feathered robe descended from the clouds and hovered above the Golden Tent Platform.
"Yuan Jie, you've won the hearts of the people. From today on, you are our tribe's Right Virtuous King."
Divine Master Du Long smiled faintly. He pulled out a golden seal tied with a purple ribbon from his sleeve and handed it to Yuan Jie, who was kneeling on one knee at the center of the platform.
"Right Virtuous King! Right Virtuous King!"
"Salute to the Right Virtuous King!"
The priests and mages of the tribes cheered loudly.
"Thank you, Divine Master." Yuan Jie respectfully took the golden seal with both hands and bowed in gratitude.
With that, the Golden Tent election came to an end.
Wei Tu, along with Fairy Baohua and others, flew up to offer congratulations.
But unlike before, now that Yuan Jie had become the Right Virtuous King, many more Golden Core cultivators had gathered around him.
In the crowd, Wei Tu was no longer eye-catching.
Some mages and priests offering congratulations even pushed ahead for position, leaving Wei Tu to the side.
Fortunately, Wei Tu was a familiar face and had shared combat experience with Yuan Jie, so he wasn't completely ignored.
"Thank you, Daoist Wei, for saving me this time. If your Wind Cleaving Eagle hadn't arrived in time, I probably wouldn't have survived."
Yuan Jie cupped his hands in thanks.
Although he had first sent True Lord Qianyue to assist Wei Tu, in the end, it turned out that Qianyue's support didn't influence the battle much. He only helped Fairy Baohua and the Wind Cleaving Eagle finish off Granny Ma.
Wei Tu's support was different.
If not for the eagle's near-late Golden Core flight speed and that timely screech that frightened the assassins away, Yuan Jie might have died on the spot.
"You're too kind, Right Virtuous King."
Wei Tu responded humbly without putting on airs.
"Just call me Daoist Yuan. No need for titles."
Yuan Jie waved his hand, signaling that there was no need for excessive formality.
The title of Right Virtuous King was indeed lofty, but it didn't warrant acting high and mighty before fellow Golden Core cultivators.
In terms of status, he was like a sect master or patriarch in the cultivation world. The name just sounded grander.
In this sense, the Golden Core cultivators of the Ying Ding Tribe were like his fellow disciples. Though he had authority, decisions were mostly made through discussion. He couldn't just command everything.
"Understood, Daoist Yuan."
Wei Tu smiled lightly and adjusted his address.
Even if they weren't close, there was nothing strange about calling a Right Virtuous King "Daoist." He had the qualifications.
With his skills, no matter where he went, he'd be treated as an honored guest.
…
Once the congratulatory ceremony ended, Yuan Jie led the Cangkun Alliance cultivators back to Hujie Immortal City, where he held a celebratory spiritual banquet at their headquarters.
After the banquet, Yuan Jie officially declared Wei Tu the chief alchemist of the Right Virtuous King's estate.
He also handed temporary control of the Cangkun Alliance over to Wei Tu.
Wei Tu accepted the former title but politely declined the latter.
He had no interest in managing a Golden Core-level organization.
Being the head of the Cangkun Alliance might sound impressive, but it wasn't really his. It still belonged to Yuan Jie. He'd just be a temporary caretaker.
And once trouble came, it could easily turn into a situation like what happened with Yuan Ying—everything falling apart.
This was different from accepting control of the Hanshan Tao Clan.
Put simply, there was no cohesion.
In the world of cultivation, clans tended to be more united than sects.
With the Tao Clan, all Wei Tu needed to do was manage a few key figures, and the whole clan would follow him loyally.
But the Cangkun Alliance was different. It was a loose coalition that only answered to Yuan Jie.
As an outsider trying to manage it, Wei Tu would only end up doing thankless work.