For the next month, Wei spent his days training and learning under Madam Yue. Beyond sharpening his observation skills through their daily acting lessons, he also devoted himself to mastering the finer usage of soul power.
Chu Yue proved to be a veritable well of knowledge. Though she could not wield her soul offensively like some ancient experts, her proficiency in subtler applications was nothing short of alarming. She could mask intent so well that even sharp senses were dulled, cloak objects in silence, and conceal them entirely unless the opponent possessed a soul far stronger than hers. With patient explanations, she guided Wei into this delicate realm, teaching him that power was not always about the grand or the violent, but often in the unseen.
When they weren't practicing, she spoke freely of her years wandering the region. Stories of her soul power experiments, her countless trials with herbs, and the peculiar fighters she encountered along the road all found their way into their conversations. Yet among all of them, one tale struck Wei like lightning.
The most surprising story to him was how Chu Yue once killed a Dou Ling—who had set his eyes on her, coveting her beauty when she was still young.
Her expression shifted as she recalled it. The calmness in her voice carried a heavy weight, as though the memory itself was etched into her bones.
"He was one tier above me, a Five-Star Dou Ling," she began, her eyes narrowing faintly. "At the time, I was only a Peak Fighting Grandmaster. His Dou Qi was vast, refined… oppressive. Each of his attacks tore at the earth and sky, while my defenses were nothing more than fragile paper. My armor cracked with every blow, and even standing upright felt like resisting a mountain."
Her tone lowered.
"I knew I could not overcome him by strength alone. But I had something he did not expect. Among the treasures left to me by the venerable, there was a pill known as the Overdraw Pill. A dangerous thing, one that forcefully pulls upon a cultivator's hidden potential. In desperation, I swallowed it. Instantly, my veins burned as if molten fire coursed through them. My bones screamed, my meridians split under the strain… but for that fleeting time, my strength rivaled his."
Wei's eyes widened slightly as she continued, the image vivid in his mind.
"The surge stunned him. No longer did he see me as a nuisance, but as a true threat. I pressed forward with every ounce of borrowed strength, strike after strike. My Dou Qi roared, forcing him on the defensive. And yet… his foundation was deeper, more stable. Even with my sudden growth, I could feel my body beginning to collapse. If I had continued head-on, I would have destroyed myself long before I destroyed him."
Here, a faint glint flickered in her gaze.
"That is when I turned to my soul. Hidden within my sleeve was a single poisoned needle. I wrapped it in my spirit, cloaking it so deeply that even a Dou Ling could not sense it. The key was patience. All I needed… was the right moment."
Her voice grew softer.
"It came during my final strike. I poured every shred of the Overdraw Pill's fury into one reckless blow. Wide open. Suicidal. Impossible to ignore. He focused everything he had on blocking me—every thread of his power gathered to resist that desperate attack. His eyes never wavered from me. And in that perfect instant… the needle struck. Straight into the back of his neck."
She exhaled slowly, as if still reliving the moment.
"He never realized it. The poison spread instantly, disrupting his Dou Qi from within. His body trembled, his meridians collapsed, and his eyes widened in disbelief before he finally fell. A Five-Star Dou Ling… ended by a single hidden needle."
Silence lingered for a moment. Then she added, her tone heavy,
"The cost of that victory nearly destroyed me. The pill shattered my meridians. I spent weeks barely able to move, and the scars it left inside my body haunted me for years. But I survived. He did not. That was the only difference."
Wei could not help but sigh in amazement. His eyes carried genuine astonishment. The gap between a Peak Fighting Grandmaster and a Dou Ling was not something that could be bridged by Pills alone. The man had likely possessed cultivation techniques no weaker than hers, greater experience, and rawer physical strength. That she emerged alive, much less victorious, was almost inconceivable.
'To call it luck would not be wrong,' he thought. 'Had his poison resistance been stronger, had the needle been spotted, had he struck first instead of underestimating her… the outcome would have been entirely different.'
When Wei asked about the repercussions of killing a Dou Ling, Chu Yue only smiled faintly. She explained that the poison she used originated from the Izumo Empire, while the man himself had been part of the Jia Ma Empire's army. His position there was tenuous at best, with no true background to shield him.
"Afterward," she said, "I released a cloud of poison gas—weak enough not to kill a Grandmaster, but enough to mask the truth of the scene. Then I erased my tracks and took several detours before returning. No one traced it back to me."
Her words struck Wei deeply. Even with the backing of his grandfather and the potential aid of Yao Chen, he realized the wisdom in her actions. It was not enough to win a battle—what mattered was ensuring that blame never fell upon oneself. To shift suspicion elsewhere, to erase evidence, to anticipate others' reactions—this was survival.
Madam Yue's gaze softened. "It wasn't without consequence, what I did. That battle crippled my foundation. I could not break through to the Dou Spirit Realm and have remained stuck at my level for over 10 years. So, I retired. I became a healer, tended to herbs, and guided this village. Cleanliness to reduce disease, order to reduce injuries—it all came from what I learned on the road. My strength was the highest in this place, so my words carried weight."
She shared with Wei the fruits of her years of quiet labor: her research into soul power's countless uses, her experiments with herbs, and the applications she had tested with her own hands. Along with her teachings, she gifted him a trove of books, including one inheritance that stretched to the fifth tier—another remnant of the venerable's legacy. This, alongside a handful of rare herbs, proved invaluable to Wei's grandfather's ongoing research into Dou Qi.
Wei's progress shocked her beyond words. Not only did he master every soul trick she demonstrated, but he also memorized every page she gave him with flawless precision. With his strong soul and natural aptitude, he already possessed the qualifications to refine first-tier pills.
'What a monstrous genius,' she thought in awe. 'One that I helped shape. One day, this child will shake the world.' Yet a trace of regret lingered—he was not her own grandson, and their bond was businesslike at its core. Still, she found solace that she had guided him before his name spread across the Northwest… no, across the entire Dou Qi Continent. Even in the Central Plains, he would not remain nameless.
Before he departed, she cautioned him about openly displaying the puppet. "Let it wear robes, a mask, and gloves," she advised. "Have it trail behind you as a silent bodyguard. With your soul power masking it as a Peak Fighting Grandmaster, and yourself as a Five-Star Fighting Master, no one will think to look deeper. Beyond that, you must study each opponent closely to judge how far you can go."
Wei later relayed much of what he learned to his grandfather. They spoke at length of remnant souls: Yao Chen's tragic history, the chance his master's soul lingered in the river of time, the legends of the Demon Saint and Pure Lotus Saint, and even whispers of the Xiao clan ancestor. For now, though, they chose not to dwell too deeply on these peak figures. Instead, they focused on analyzing Yao Chen's life, devising strategies to win his cooperation.
His grandfather was clear—Wei would be the one to get Yao Chen into the Alchemy Realm, but how he achieved it was his choice. The rest would be left to him. Wei was hesitant, but did not argue.
Wei had not neglected his own cultivation either. Yet his grandfather urged caution. "Do not rush into Spirit Stage," he warned. "Consolidate your foundation. If Yao Chen joins us, we may craft a pill to shorten the path safely."
By then, Wei had gained all he could from Madam Yue. With three hundred thousand gold coins secured in the form of a purple card, his preparations were complete. Soon, it would be time to leave.