"Buddha fights for a stick of incense, and people fight for a breath of pride."
Right now, she was chasing Wei Tu not just to avenge how he had toyed with her, but also to prove to Ji Zhang that even without him, she could still live well.
Whether she succeeded or failed… it didn't really matter!
Although Fu Linglong wasn't confident she could defeat Wei Tu, as a late Golden Core expert, she was sure she could retreat unscathed. She didn't believe Wei Tu could harm her at all.
"This herb is very important to Fellow Daoist Wei…"
"It concerns his cultivation path."
Fu Linglong calmed her thoughts and casually made up an excuse to brush off Nan Zi.
"Very important?"
Hearing this, Nan Zi was a bit skeptical. But considering her own strength and status were far below Fu Linglong's, she could only swallow her doubts.
…
With a rough idea of Wei Tu's whereabouts, Fu Linglong wasted no time and immediately began her search nearby.
Using her Heart-Reading divine ability, she glimpsed part of Qiu Buchen's thoughts and learned that Wei Tu had obtained a Nascent Soul inheritance from him.
From this, she inferred that Wei Tu was probably hiding somewhere, eager to study that inheritance.
After all, a Nascent Soul inheritance was extremely tempting for Golden Core cultivators, especially rogue ones. It was almost second only to breakthrough pills!
Fu Linglong started a targeted search, checking Golden Core and Foundation Establishment cultivators who had rented second- or third-tier caves in nearby markets since Wei Tu left the Beastmaster Sect.
The search range wasn't large.
Soon, Fu Linglong narrowed it down to a dozen suspicious individuals.
After a deeper background check, only three remained truly suspicious.
"Is Wei Tu really among these three?" Fu Linglong's eyes narrowed slightly. She decided to wait in the shadows for her chance.
However—
Even though her investigation was thorough and had no obvious flaws, she overlooked one thing.
Her actions themselves were suspicious.
"Fellow Daoist Wei, it seems someone is watching you."
Inside the training chamber of his rented cave, just as Wei Tu paused his cultivation of the Koi Dragon Yin Blade, a black ghostly mist slipped inside and turned into Bai Zhi, who whispered her report.
"What?"
"Someone's watching me?"
Wei Tu, sitting cross-legged on his cushion, snapped open his eyes. A terrifying glint flashed in his eyes before calming. His face looked a bit surprised.
All this time, though he had caused trouble and made enemies, in Chu Kingdom he'd always kept a clean record with no criminal history.
Except…
He searched his mind for potential grudges and asked, "Could it be the Guangyuan Yu Clan?"
In Chu Kingdom, his only conflict had been with Yu Jianglong from the Guangyuan Yu Clan.
He had no entanglements with any other factions or cultivators.
"My abilities are limited. I didn't see them directly," Bai Zhi shook her head.
She had sensed someone probing them by using the formation's control rights over the cave's defensive array, not by seeing the intruder herself.
Through this, she detected a subtle spiritual sense repeatedly scanning their cave.
So she couldn't identify who was behind it.
Still, such behavior was a clear sign of something wrong.
In the cultivation world, repeatedly probing another's cave with spiritual sense was a provocation—an unfriendly act.
Normally, no cultivator would risk offending a stranger by doing that, let alone try to hide their probing.
"It probably isn't the Guangyuan Yu Clan." After thinking a moment, Wei Tu made his judgment.
He had already displayed his mid-third-rank Wind Cleaving Eagle and revealed his status as the chief alchemist of the Ying Ding Tribe in front of Yu Jianglong.
Unless Yu Jianglong had lost his mind, he wouldn't keep pursuing him and drag the Guangyuan Yu Clan into a new conflict, especially since Wei Tu had already shown goodwill.
For minor matters, the clan might help Yu Jianglong. But if it threatened the clan's safety, they wouldn't be so foolish.
And Yu Jianglong's strength was nowhere near enough to act alone against him.
"Could it be the She Ri Tribe?" Wei Tu frowned slightly, pondering the possibility.
But after a while, he thought the chances were slim.
Back on Little Cold Mountain or when dealing with Yan Xiaolan, he hadn't exposed his true identity.
Without any clues, how could a She Ri Tribe cultivator know he was the one who stole the Iceheart Spirit Dew?
In the cultivation world, there were usually three ways to identify a criminal:
1. Appearance.
2. Aura.
3. Soul-searching.
He had completely hidden the first two.
Which meant that without forcibly soul-searching him, the She Ri Tribe couldn't possibly prove he stole the Iceheart Spirit Dew and killed Yu Wencheng.
After a moment's thought, Wei Tu made his decision. He took a talisman token from his robe, infused it with mana, and sent it out.
Half a quarter-hour later, a middle-aged cultivator dressed like a merchant entered the cave with a puzzled look.
"I wonder what instructions you have for me, Fellow Daoist?"
The middle-aged cultivator cupped his hands and asked politely.
"I have a few things to ask Yu Jianglong. Please, Manager Yu, help pass on the message."
Wei Tu didn't waste words. He glanced over the middle-aged cultivator, then flicked his sleeve and released his Golden Core pressure, his tone calm and indifferent.
The man before him wasn't just anyone; he was the steward in charge of renting caves in this market.
Although the Guangyuan Yu Clan had gifted Shengyang Mountain, a fourth-tier spiritual land, to the Beastmaster Sect, they had kept control of the markets nearby.
You could say that ninety percent of the commercial assets around the Beastmaster Sect still belonged to the Guangyuan Yu Clan.
Likewise, nearly all the cultivators running these businesses were members of the Yu Clan.
"What? Inform Elder Jianglong?"
The middle-aged cultivator was startled. After all, Yu Jianglong was a famous prodigy and Golden Core master within the clan. With his low status, he normally had no chance to even see someone like that, much less deliver a message.
But when he sensed Wei Tu's Golden Core pressure, he suddenly understood why this person dared speak so boldly.
So Wei Tu was also a Golden Core True Lord.
"This junior will immediately report to the clan and ask Elder Jianglong to come," the cultivator said respectfully with a bow.
This was Yu Clan territory.
The fact that Wei Tu dared ask Yu Jianglong to come to him instead of going himself showed he had extraordinary strength or status to back up his confidence.
About half an hour later, a streak of swift light fell into the market, heading straight for Wei Tu's rented cave.
"I thought Alchemist Wei had already left the Beastmaster Sect. I didn't expect you'd be staying in our clan's spiritual estate for a while…"
When Yu Jianglong stepped into the cave's sitting room and saw Wei Tu waiting to greet him, he laughed heartily. His tone was open and cheerful, as if he'd forgotten how Wei Tu had taught him a lesson not long ago.
"Forgive the trouble, Elder Yu."
"I came across a new technique right before leaving and got impatient to practice it, so I stayed nearby for a bit," Wei Tu replied with a light smile, inviting Yu Jianglong to sit.
The two exchanged a few pleasantries.
After that, Wei Tu got to the point, telling Yu Jianglong about someone spying on his cave.
"If I didn't trust Elder Yu's character, I'd almost suspect you had someone watching me," Wei Tu said with a hint of meaning.
As soon as those words landed, Yu Jianglong's face changed slightly.
They had already reconciled, so Wei Tu's comment implied he thought Yu Jianglong had broken their agreement.
The unspoken meaning was clear: if the Yu Clan called off whoever was spying, they could keep the peace—otherwise, things could turn ugly.
"Alchemist Wei, that person is definitely not one of mine. It must be someone else!" Yu Jianglong hurriedly clarified.
"Not the Yu Clan?"
Wei Tu frowned, his face puzzled. "I've always gotten along with others, don't cause trouble, and I'm no good at fighting. How could I attract enemies for no reason?"
"Elder Yu, have you heard of anyone recently asking about me around the Yu Clan or Beastmaster Sect?"
Wei Tu asked the question at just the right time.
He had already figured the Yu Clan likely wasn't behind this.
So he'd approached Yu Jianglong mainly to use his connections in the Yu Clan and the Beastmaster Sect to track down the real culprit.
In an unfamiliar place, finding such leads alone would be nearly impossible. But with Yu Jianglong's help, it would be much easier.
Hearing this, Yu Jianglong looked relieved and let out a quiet breath.
He didn't doubt Wei Tu's words.
In his eyes, Wei Tu was speaking honestly.
After all, if Wei Tu was the kind to provoke enemies, the two of them would already be bitter enemies instead of sitting together now.
Yu Jianglong guessed the spy was likely someone who'd learned of Wei Tu's alchemy skills and wanted to kidnap him or worse.
In the cultivation world, plenty of shady cultivators tried to rob, extort, or imprison alchemists.
"Two months ago, after you revealed your identity, there were many cultivators trying to find out your whereabouts. But most of them were just seeking pills…"
Yu Jianglong paused for a moment, then answered carefully.
He wanted to clear his name, but he also couldn't afford to throw around baseless accusations that might offend others.
"I'll mobilize the clan's resources and put together a list for you as soon as possible," Yu Jianglong promised sincerely.
"Thank you, Elder Yu," Wei Tu said with a nod, his tense expression relaxing a little.
Not wasting time, Yu Jianglong didn't linger. He bowed and quickly flew away.
Half a day later, Yu Jianglong returned to Wei Tu's cave holding a jade slip.
"These are the cultivators who asked about you over the past two months," he said as he sat down.
Wei Tu nodded slightly, thanked Yu Jianglong, and took the jade slip.
There were quite a few names recorded—over one hundred in total. Among them were eighteen Golden Core True Lords, with the rest being mostly lower-ranked Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Wei Tu swept his divine sense over the jade slip, and his eyes quickly landed on a familiar name—"Fu Linglong."
"It's her?" Wei Tu raised his brows slightly, thinking, 'Could this woman have figured out I'm actually Yi Yun?'
After all, during his dealings with the Fu siblings, he hadn't been as "flawless" as he was on Xiaohan Mountain. There were some gaps.
If Fu Linglong picked up on those gaps, there was a decent chance she could guess he was Yi Yun.
But unlike with the She Ri Tribe, Wei Tu wasn't as wary of the Fu siblings.
The Fu siblings had a dirty background, so it'd be hard for them to find a legitimate reason to get a Nascent Soul ancestor involved against him.
And without a Nascent Soul joining the fray, with his cultivation, Wei Tu wasn't afraid of them at all.
"But I need to watch out for Ji Zhang!"
Just then, Wei Tu remembered Ji Zhang, the leader of the Six Desires Sect bandits, who was close with Fu Linglong.
If Fu Linglong had traveled all the way to Chu Kingdom to kill him, it was probably not alone but together with Fu Dalu, Ji Zhang, or other Six Desires Sect bandits.
"In that case, it's best to settle this problem right here near the Beastmaster Sect…"
Wei Tu narrowed his eyes in thought.
Fu Linglong wasn't an ordinary opponent; she was a Golden Core expert with the "Heart-Reading" divine ability. Trying to escape under her nose wouldn't be easy at all.
With "Heart-Reading," his disguise techniques would be useless.
After all, Fu Linglong only needed to sense who was resisting her "Heart-Reading" to deduce his identity.
Thinking of this, Wei Tu set down the jade slip and looked at Yu Jianglong sitting beside him.
"Elder Yu, it seems I've attracted the attention of some bandit cultivators. For them to target me, their strength must be considerable…"
"And I'm alone out here with no support…"
Wei Tu sighed softly.
Hearing this, Yu Jianglong immediately understood—Wei Tu was hoping the Guangyuan Yu Clan could act as his bodyguards.
Yu Jianglong wasn't surprised.
In fact, the moment he came a second time, he had already expected Wei Tu would probably ask either the Beastmaster Sect or the Yu Clan for protection on his journey.
Wei Tu's combat power was impressive—but only relative to him.
Against ruthless bandits, being alone was a real disadvantage.
Besides, as the saying goes, "A nobleman doesn't sit in a collapsing hall."
No matter how strong Wei Tu was, there was no need to charge in recklessly to fight a gang of bandits head-on.
Hiring local forces as bodyguards was the smart, sensible choice.
"Alchemist Wei, our Guangyuan Yu Clan can agree to your request, but we have a condition… if you accept it, we will do our utmost to protect you," Yu Jianglong said with a small smile. He flipped his hand, pulling out a spirit contract and used his mana to send it over.
A Third-Tier Alchemist's goodwill wasn't rare for a Nascent Soul clan like theirs.
What they lacked was solid, practical benefits!
"A condition?" Wei Tu's face showed a thoughtful look as he beckoned the contract into his hand.
He read it briefly and nodded inwardly, thinking the Yu Clan wasn't taking advantage of his situation.
This contract didn't place any personal restrictions on him. It only required that once his alchemy reached third-tier upper-grade, he would, within 100 years, refine 10 batches of third-tier pills for the Yu Clan.
Of course, those 10 batches had to be successful, finished pills—not failures.
Also, the contract set some limits on his failure rate. If he produced too many defective pills, he'd have to compensate.
As for payment…
It was about 30% lower than the usual market price.
But Wei Tu understood the Yu Clan's fair offer wasn't out of kindness.
There were two reasons:
First, his status wasn't low—if they demanded too much, it could easily backfire. They'd lose more than they gained.
Second, it was about their competitive relationship with the Beastmaster Sect.
If the Yu Clan's price was too steep, Wei Tu could simply ask the Beastmaster Sect instead.
…
"I accept these terms," Wei Tu said without hesitation. He signed his name on the contract and infused it with a strand of his aura.
"Alchemist Wei, you are decisive indeed!"
Yu Jianglong broke into a bright smile. He stood up, took the contract, and bowed politely.
Next, Wei Tu and Yu Jianglong discussed the specifics of the Yu Clan's escort force.
During the conversation, Wei Tu mentioned that if necessary, the Yu Clan's Nascent Soul ancestor might need to get involved.
Yu Jianglong didn't mind at all. He chuckled and agreed.
He didn't believe a mere group of bandits could force their Nascent Soul ancestor to act.
Although the Yu Clan's Nascent Soul cultivator was aging, at the Golden Core level, they were still on par with the other six great Nascent Soul clans.
With a team of 1 peak Golden Core and 2 late Golden Core cultivators, the escort would be more than enough to keep Wei Tu safe on his way to Kang Kingdom.
"Thank you, Brother Yu," Wei Tu said as he personally saw Yu Jianglong off, changing his address from "Elder Yu" to "Brother Yu" as a gesture of goodwill.