After Situ You left, Wei Tu called over Yan Yu and asked her to help him get in touch with the rogue cultivators he knew in the Ancient Sword Mountain region to investigate Situ You's background there.
Yan Yu hesitated and said, "My status is low, and True Lord Ma and True Lord Li have always been proud and aloof. I'm worried I might delay High Priest's important business..."
Inside the Ying Ding Tribe, because she had Wei Tu's protection, rogue cultivators like True Lord Ma and True Lord Li—who came to ask for pills—would give Wei Tu some face and treat her politely. But outside, it might not be the same.
"You just take the Wind-Cleaving Eagle with you," Wei Tu reassured her.
When she heard that, Yan Yu's face lit up and she happily thanked him before heading off to the beast stable in the back courtyard to get ready to fly to Ancient Sword Mountain on the Wind-Cleaving Eagle.
The Wind-Cleaving Eagle was a third-tier demon bird, pretty strong, and also Wei Tu's spirit beast. Its status was higher than most Golden Core True Lords. With the Wind-Cleaving Eagle as her ride, it was basically like Wei Tu himself had shown up. Most Golden Core True Lords would show her respect.
"You've basically finished your Foundation Establishment Realm training. Your essence, qi, and spirit are all at peak condition. Once we get back to the Ying Ding Tribe, I'll open the furnace and refine a Biyan Pill for you. Then you can try to break through to the Golden Core Realm and become a real Golden Core True Lord," Wei Tu promised.
The Biyan Pill is a substitute for the Mortal Shedding Pill, but it's only half as effective. Still, the main ingredient for this pill isn't as rare as the Mortal Shedding Pill—you just need a third-tier demon core.
A few years ago, Alchemist Shu tried to break through to the Golden Core Realm and used the Biyan Pill, but the breakthrough failed and she ended up as a false Golden Core cultivator.
Wei Tu did have a Foundation Establishment spiritual item for refining the Mortal Shedding Pill, but he only had one. He wasn't confident he'd succeed, and he'd rather exchange it for a Mortal Shedding Pill from an immortal sect.
And the one Mortal Shedding Pill Wei Tu planned to get was saved for Wei Yan—no way would he use it on Yan Yu.
So, giving Yan Yu a Biyan Pill was already because of the late High Priest Mu Feng, Yan Yu's old master. Letting Yan Yu break through to the Golden Core Realm was kind of like fulfilling Mu Feng's last, unspoken wish.
"Thank you, High Priest, for nurturing me." Yan Yu was so moved that her voice choked a bit. Other than her late master Mu Feng, Wei Tu was the only cultivator who'd ever been this good to her.
"Yu'er is willing to serve High Priest for life." Yan Yu looked up, cheeks blushing slightly, her eyes full of resolve.
Honestly, one Biyan Pill wasn't enough for her to pledge her whole life, but she understood what kind of person Wei Tu was. That's why she could say something as wholehearted as the Tao family's vows of loyalty.
She actually had a little hope in her heart. Back when Mu Feng was alive, he wanted to marry her off to Wei Tu and make them Dao companions. But Wei Tu was never interested in women, so Mu Feng's plans fell through.
"Yan Yu, you're Mu Feng's disciple. You don't need to copy the Tao family and swear loyalty," Wei Tu saw what Yan Yu was thinking and chose his words carefully to reassure her.
The Han Mountain Tao family is basically a subordinate branch of the Wei family. They aren't officially master and servant, but it's basically the same behind the scenes.
But Yan Yu's different. Wei Tu still owed Mu Feng a huge favor. Without Mu Feng, he wouldn't have dealt with Liu Moqun so easily, and wouldn't have gotten the intel from the Soul Capture Sect by soul-searching him. Because of that intel, Wei Tu was able to handle Hu Shan and the others with such ease later on.
"Yes, High Priest," Yan Yu nodded softly, feeling a little sad. She was happy that Wei Tu valued old friendships, but disappointed that that was all she meant to him. On one hand, it meant her master's efforts weren't wasted. On the other, her own feelings had never been accepted.
'Maybe things will change once I break through to the Golden Core Realm. Once my status is different, maybe the High Priest will accept me,' Yan Yu thought to herself.
Once she reached Golden Core, outsiders would see her as more than just a maid by Wei Tu's side.
…
More than ten days later, Yan Yu returned to the Ying Ding Tribe, riding the Wind-Cleaving Eagle from the Ancient Sword Mountain region.
"High Priest, here's what I found out about Situ You," she said as she entered the shop, pulling out a blue jade slip from her sleeve and handing it over.
Wei Tu took the jade slip and, after reading it, let out a quiet sigh of relief. What Situ You said about his old enemy "Wei Hua" wasn't a lie—Wei Hua was a real person, and an important one. He belonged to the Swordmaster line in Ancient Sword Mountain, which meant he had much more power in the sect than someone like Situ You, who was just a regular Golden Core elder.
The Swordmaster was what Ancient Sword Mountain and Earth Sword Mountain called their sect leaders. Each one held a fourth-tier ancestral spirit sword. With these swords, the sect leader could show strength that matched even Nascent Soul cultivators, despite being at the Golden Core Realm.
As for how Situ You and Wei Hua became enemies, it was kind of dramatic. They were cousins in the mortal world and both tested as having outstanding spiritual roots. They joined Ancient Sword Mountain together as outer disciples. For a while, they supported each other, advancing side by side on the immortal path.
But things changed when they both met a female cultivator in the sect named Tian Qiuyun. She was the legitimate daughter of Ancient Sword Mountain's Third Elder, so she had a noble background and decent talent.
At first, Tian Qiuyun liked Situ You. They both had feelings for each other and were about to get engaged. But then, by chance, Tian Qiuyun was attacked outside Ancient Sword Mountain. Wei Hua happened to be there and rescued her.
If that was all, it wouldn't have been a big deal. But after this ordeal, Tian Qiuyun ended up losing her virginity to Wei Hua. After she made it back to the sect, she married Wei Hua within three days and cut all ties with her old flame, Situ You.
From then on, Situ You and Wei Hua—once cousins and close friends—became mortal enemies. Their rivalry and fighting became famous both inside and outside the sect.
"Pretty cliché, but it's common," Wei Tu commented.
There are a lot of ways grudges start, but when two male cultivators from the same sect become mortal enemies, there are only a few likely reasons. Fighting over a Dao companion is the most common source of drama and conflict in the cultivation world. Everyone has desires—it just depends on how strong they are.
"Wei Hua is a Golden Core True Lord of the Swordmaster line in Ancient Sword Mountain and has high status, but that only matters in Ancient Sword Mountain. It doesn't really affect me," Wei Tu weighed the pros and cons and decided to take on Situ You's request and help him refine the Golden Marrow Pill. Compared to the benefits, the risk of offending Wei Hua was nothing. He was already enemies with two major tribes. Another one made no difference. 'If you've got a lot of lice, what's one more itch?' He did this background check not because he was afraid of trouble, but because he didn't want to walk into problems he knew nothing about. Plus, Situ You was careful and kept a low profile—Wei Hua, all the way out in Ancient Sword Mountain, might not even find out about this.
"Invite Situ You in," Wei Tu said after making up his mind, glancing at Yan Yu.
Soon, Situ You, who had been waiting in a rented cave dwelling, arrived at the Wei Clan Pill and Talisman Hall.
"Alchemist Wei, you've probably finished investigating me. What's your decision?" Situ You's tone was a little cold. Having his painful past dragged up for others to see wasn't a good feeling.
"I'll help you refine the pill, Fellow Daoist Situ, but we need to discuss the payment," Wei Tu tapped the table. Situ You wasn't like the others who asked him for pills. Helping him meant extra risk in the cultivation world and basically rejecting all of Wei Hua's friends and potential clients. So, the price had to be different. Simply put, it would cost more.
Wei Tu flicked his sleeve and put two pill-refining spirit contracts on the table. The first contract raised the starting price from seven thousand spirit stones to fifteen thousand. The second kept the price at seven thousand, but added a clause: payment included one Golden Marrow Pill.
Seeing this, Situ You's expression changed. He cursed Wei Tu's greed in his heart. A Golden Marrow Pill was incredibly valuable. He'd spent a full one hundred years gathering the herbs for this batch. Now, Wei Tu wanted one just for himself with a wave of his hand? Ridiculous.
But when he read the clause stating "three pills per batch," Situ You relaxed a little. At most, you could get five pills from one batch, but most alchemists only managed two. Getting three was already considered lucky. He'd only expected two himself. If Wei Tu managed three and wanted one as payment, that was fair.
"I'll take the second contract," Situ You decided. The first contract was just a regular price increase, nothing special. The second one was more of a gamble. If they only got two pills, he'd make out big and Wei Tu would lose out. If they got three, Wei Tu would profit and he'd lose. You couldn't buy a Golden Marrow Pill for eight thousand spirit stones.
They both signed the contract. Situ You then followed tradition and asked to watch the pill refining. The Golden Marrow Pill was special. One batch of these herbs was worth between sixty thousand and seventy thousand spirit stones—very expensive. Wei Tu had no problem agreeing. The shop had a third-tier defensive formation set up by Bai Zhi. He wasn't worried about a client like Situ You causing trouble during the process. Granny Ke had already proved the system worked.
Wei Tu didn't rush. After getting the herbs and the recipe from Situ You, he spent four or five days studying everything carefully before even starting to heat up the cauldron. This professional attitude immediately won Situ You's approval. He started to feel more confident that Wei Tu would succeed.
Seven days passed in a flash. The day the pills were finished, the lid of the cauldron was lifted by a surge of spiritual mist, and three dragon-eye-sized, shining golden pills floated into Wei Tu's palm.
"Fellow Daoist Situ, I've lived up to my promise. This batch yielded three pills," Wei Tu said with a smile. He'd gotten lucky this time and performed above his usual standard. He'd never made Golden Marrow Pills before—at best, he could usually get two per batch. Getting three depended on luck.
"Congratulations to both of us," Situ You was happy, but also a little heartbroken. With a little rounding, he'd just lost a whole pill. Still, he quickly got over it. He realized that if he hadn't chosen the second contract, Wei Tu probably wouldn't have tried as hard and maybe would've only gotten two pills. In that light, he'd actually made out okay. He paid the regular price and still walked away with two Golden Marrow Pills.
With the transaction complete, Situ You prepared to leave.
"Fellow Daoist Situ, do you happen to have any more Golden Marrow Pill herbs left?" Wei Tu asked, stopping him. Logically, Situ You couldn't have gathered exactly one batch of each herb—he must have extras. If Wei Tu could buy them, it would save him a lot of time when he tried to make another batch.
"I have a few," Situ You immediately understood what Wei Tu meant. He gladly opened his storage pouch and handed over the leftover herbs. In reality, it'd be a long time before he could gather enough for another full batch. Rather than let these extras rot in his pouch, he might as well sell them to Wei Tu and get some of his money back.
Also, just like with Wei Tu taking Vajra Fruit, body refining treasures can easily create resistance in the body. The more you use them, the less effective they become. In other words, after taking these two Golden Marrow Pills, if he tried to gather more for another dose, the results wouldn't be worth it.
"These herbs aren't exactly rare, but they're still hard to find... I spent a little over six thousand spirit stones collecting them," Situ You said. "If you want them, Alchemist Wei, just give me three thousand spirit stones. We'll call it a friendly deal."
Situ You was happy to offer a discount. He understood the difference between one big meal and eating well all the time. Even if he couldn't refine another batch of Golden Marrow Pills, that didn't mean he wouldn't need Wei Tu's help as a third-tier alchemist someday. For a Golden Core True Lord like him, having a trustworthy, skilled, and non-overlapping circle third-tier alchemist as a friend was really valuable.
"Thank you, Brother Situ," Wei Tu cupped his hands and even changed how he addressed him.
"Brother Wei." Situ You was surprised at first, then smiled and laughed heartily. Those little changes in how they addressed each other meant their relationship had shifted from client and alchemist to friends. After all, who wouldn't want another alchemist as a friend?
"Brother Situ, I have something I want to ask you for help with. If you can handle it, I'll owe you a favor—and give you a generous reward," Wei Tu said, taking out a few rubbings of demonic script and handing them over. Situ You wasn't a sectmate he fully trusted, but his conflict with Wei Hua and his standing in the sect made Wei Tu comfortable enough to ask. It was the same logic as Situ You choosing Wei Tu for pill refining—he didn't trust his own sectmates.
For Wei Tu, it was the same. He could safely ask Situ You to investigate the source and origin of the demonic script in Ancient Sword Mountain.
"Mysterious writing?" Situ You looked at the rubbings with surprise. But he didn't think too much of it. In the cultivation world, plenty of cultivators go digging up ruins, hoping to find ancient techniques or secret arts and get rich overnight. Most of them are rogue cultivators short on techniques and resources. With Wei Tu's current realm, it was unlikely he was short on techniques. Still, that didn't mean these mysterious characters were valuable enough to obsess over. For a Golden Core True Lord from a major sect like Situ You, the last thing he lacked was cultivation techniques. The techniques in Ancient Sword Mountain went all the way up to the peak of Nascent Soul. Compared to that, some broken ancient scripture was just a chicken rib—tasteless, but a waste to throw away.
"I can check for you after I get back to my sect," Situ You promised.
...
Besides Situ You, over the last ten years or so in the Kang Kingdom, Wei Tu had contacted various other cultivators to investigate the demonic script on the iron plate. But among everyone he'd met, Situ You from Ancient Sword Mountain had the highest cultivation and status. Wei Tu had high hopes for him. Unlike Mirror Water Pavilion, Ancient Sword Mountain was the oldest sect in the Kang Kingdom—even Moon Condensation Palace and Earth Sword Mountain were founded later.
Time passed.
Three years went by with no news from Situ You. At first, Wei Tu was full of hope, but over time, he started to feel disappointed. Then, in the fourth year, just as he was planning to head to Xiao Kingdom and use Zhao Qingluo's identity to investigate the secrets of the demonic script at Shengya Mountain, news from Situ You finally arrived.
"Chiming Script?"
In Lark Residence, Wei Tu stared at the black jade slip in his hand, deep in thought. This black jade slip was a record that Situ You had copied from the "Divine Law Pavilion" in Ancient Sword Mountain, all about the demonic script.
To be precise, this script wasn't called "demonic script." Its real name was "Chiming Script." Chiming Script came from an ancient race with two wings growing from their ribs and three eyes—the San Tong Tribe. "Tribe" here didn't mean something like Kang people versus Cangnan people. It was a race separate from the human race altogether. Back in ancient times, after the foreign races were driven out, the Great Cang cultivation world gradually split into righteous and demonic paths and began fighting each other.
'No wonder... If something was left in a Nascent Soul ancestor's cave from Stone Demon Sect, it couldn't be ordinary,' Wei Tu thought, barely containing his excitement. He took out the iron plate from his storage pouch and began carefully translating the strange lines of text according to what was recorded in the black jade slip about Chiming Script.
Chiming Script was deep and mysterious, not easy to translate. It took him a month or two before Wei Tu finally managed to decode the text on the iron plate.
"Dao Immortal Source Scripture?" Wei Tu muttered softly. That was the name of the technique on the iron plate. There was no way to know the exact grade of this scripture, but from what it said—once mastered, you could forge a Dao Immortal Source—Wei Tu guessed the technique had to be at least Deification level or higher.
And this technique wasn't for Qi refinement. It was a body refining scripture.
"Golden skeleton?" Wei Tu immediately thought that the golden skeleton he found was probably the remains of a cultivator who had trained in the Dao Immortal Source Scripture.
"It's a pity, though. There's only the first part of the scripture—the most critical back half is missing," Wei Tu sighed. Even so, the first part alone was enough to let him cultivate to the peak of Nascent Soul, maybe even break through to Deification.
Body refining techniques are even rarer and more precious than Qi refinement techniques of the same grade. Even if you searched the entire Great Cang cultivation world, top fourth-tier body refining techniques were nearly impossible to find. That's why Old Demon Jiuchuan was so fixated on Stone Demon Sect's Deification scripture.