I am a late bloomer in the world of cultivating immortals

"Mother-in-law, let me think about it some more..."

Xue Qiongyu hesitated.

The "dependence" that Granny Tu mentioned was not simply working under Wei Tu. Someone like Wei Tu, a "lone wolf" with no intention of building a power base, had no need for her.

The so-called "dependence" was, to put it more bluntly, asking whether one was willing to become Wei Tu's concubine and serve him with one's looks.

She was... a concubine, not a Daoist partner!

Because, at this point, she was practically worthless compared to Wei Tu.

Granny Tu, with her "sharp eye" as an old cultivator, did not embellish her or deliberately elevate her status because of her closeness to her. Instead, she directly pointed out her true asset—her beauty!
Now, it is she who needs Wei Tu more, not the other way around.

Her beauty, her primordial yin, and her noble status instantly became worthless with Pei Hong's "Death Order for the Cultivation Realm" and the fact that Wei Tu's strength—enough to fight a Nascent Soul expert—was presented before her.

only--

Because it was so real, she felt a sense of "absurdity" and a touch of resistance.

It should be noted that when she was first kidnapped by Wei Tu, Granny Tu was still teaching her to cherish herself and not to be deceived by Wei Tu's false affection, so as not to be deceived by his body and Lingbao.

"Yu'er, although what Grandma said is cruel, it is the best way for you to survive in the cultivation world right now."

"Furthermore, a concubine... is only your minimum expectation, not the status that Wei Tu can give you... Sometimes, pillow talk is more tempting than naked benefits."

Granny Tu sighed softly and continued.

Upon hearing this, Xue Qiongyu still shook her head. As a proud daughter of heaven, she had been arrogant her whole life. Even if she knew she was not good enough, she would not choose to bow her head easily.

……

Half a day later.

The great battle on the sea has finally come to an end.

Gazing at the blood-stained, mangled corpse that had fallen from the sky, its death gruesome, Xue Qiongyu's pupils constricted, and a powerful shock surged through her heart, making it difficult for her to remain calm.

At the same time, the last vestige of "persistence" in her heart began to waver violently.

A being who has achieved the Fusion Realm is already a top-tier powerhouse in the Spirit Realm!

While Wei Tu had the "geographical advantage" of Dinghai Immortal Ruins in this battle, his ability to defeat a Nascent Soul cultivator while only at the Refining Void Realm is still a remarkable achievement that would leave people speechless once it became known.

Compared to her, her "fiancé" Pei Hong was far inferior.

One is to rely on the power of a powerful clan and use the "tiger skin" of a Mahayana immortal to enjoy the admiration of thousands.

The other one, as Granny Tu said, has a certain chance of breaking through to the Mahayana realm in the future.

Contrary to Xue Qiongyu's intention to "socialize"—

After dealing with the middle-aged cultivator and taking his storage artifact, Wei Tu's eyes flashed with a cold light as he looked at Xue Qiongyu, who was pale-faced and healing her injuries in the distance.

He was already pondering how to resolve this "trouble".

It’s different in the past.

In the past, letting Xue Qiongyu go would have been no big deal for him. Even if she revealed his true identity, he would only have faced the pursuit of the Mist Ghost Clan.

This matter can be easily resolved after he breaks through to the Integration Realm and returns to the human race... After all, which of the human race's Integration Realm prodigies hasn't been on the Mist Ghost Clan's kill list?

Moreover, given the "conflict of interest" between this woman and Pei Hong and the Mist Ghost Clan, after she parted ways with him and left Dinghai Immortal Ruins, she would most likely choose a place to live in seclusion temporarily and would not actively reveal his true information.

but now--

That would be quite different.

He has offended the three major powerful clans to the death!

If this woman reveals his "true identity," then no matter how vast or boundless the spirit world is, there will be no place for him to hide.

Therefore, nipping this danger in the bud is the safest approach.

However, this glint of cold light vanished in his eyes in an instant, and he did not deliberately reveal it.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, and after a moment's thought, he instantly appeared in front of Xue Qiongyu with a flick of his sleeve.

"Snow Fairy, we meet again." Wei Tu greeted her in a detached tone.

Without waiting for the woman to exchange pleasantries or return the greeting, he directly stated his planned method for dealing with her.

"Please forgive my ruthlessness."

"In the year since I entered this Immortal Ruins of Dinghai, too many things have happened. These things are extremely important secrets... For some reasons, I cannot reveal the details of these things..."

"But one thing is important and beyond question."

"If Fairy Xue doesn't want to die, she must not leave my side for even a moment until I break through to the Mahayana stage. Furthermore, her life and death must be in my hands..."

In a word.

The choice is between "death" and being imprisoned by him until the day of enlightenment arrives.

This is Wei Tu's choice for Xue Qiongyu.

If his previous actions of kidnapping Xue Qiongyu and then giving her this choice between two options without explaining the details were inhumane...

But now that he has saved Xue Qiongyu in time, giving her a "choice" is already extremely lenient.

After all, he could have easily watched the woman be killed by that powerful being and then taken the opportunity to eliminate this threat.

The words fell.

Xue Qiongyu was taken aback at first, and then her expression changed slightly.

She thought this "chance encounter" was a scene from a play or novel, where a hero saves a damsel in distress.

Unexpectedly, after saving her, Wei Tu did not show the expected "warmth". Instead, he gave her two "choices" that were extremely difficult to choose from.

He would either die or be imprisoned for life until Wei Tu broke through to the Mahayana realm...

Admittedly, she felt that what Granny Tu said made sense, and she also acknowledged that Wei Tu had a considerable chance of breaking through to the Mahayana realm.

But... this period of time will probably last for tens of thousands of years.

The thought of being unable to leave Wei Tu's side for tens of thousands of years, or even longer, was suffocating.

"Only death or imprisonment for life... This child is truly domineering." Hearing this, Granny Tu smiled bitterly to herself. She hadn't expected that Xue Qiongyu would fall into the wolf's den after escaping from the tiger's mouth.

Although Xue Qiongyu had no choice but to leave Wei Tu and live alone under Pei Hong's "Death Order for the Cultivation Realm"... going to "become attached" and being "imprisoned" by him are completely different things.

"At least, he's still willing to give me this option."

Xue Qiongyu sighed inwardly, the feeling of being eaten by humans was truly unbearable, but after Pei Hong's ruthless pursuit, Wei Tu's choice undoubtedly became much more "refined".

……

"I am willing to serve as your concubine."

"I hope Fellow Daoist Wei will agree."

After a few breaths, under Wei Tu's indifferent gaze, Xue Qiongyu finally gritted her teeth and gave her answer.

Previously, she felt that being a concubine was a "grievance" against her, so she hesitated and did not want to follow Granny Tu's advice.

But now, compared to the seemingly endless "life of imprisonment," choosing to submit to Wei Tu and become his "concubine" has become quite cost-effective.

"A concubine?" Wei Tu was slightly taken aback, not expecting Xue Qiongyu to give this answer. Although she had been quite obedient to him after he abducted her, she had never thought of getting close to him.

"Snow Fairy, you don't need to wrong yourself. Once we've confirmed your safety, we might be able to set you free sooner..."

Wei Tu paused for a moment, then softened his tone.

Having cultivated immortality for many years and tasted the "flesh" of love, his threshold for beautiful female cultivators has become very high, and he will not easily seduce them.

Imprison this woman, but release her later.

However, if one were to take her as a "concubine," one would inevitably be entangled in interests in the future, and would also need to plan for her path to immortality.

After all, this woman was willing to humble herself, just like his concubine "Yan Xiaolan" in the mortal realm, hoping that he would take care of her on her future path to immortality.

He was unwilling to go through such trouble for the sake of mere beauty.

Upon hearing this, Xue Qiongyu, who had been hesitant about whether to become Wei Tu's concubine, was immediately taken aback and felt a deep sense of defeat.

It turns out she was overthinking things from the beginning.

She held no allure whatsoever for Wei Tu.

No wonder, after Wei Tu kidnapped her, he remained virtuous and did not behave disrespectfully towards her.

“Most cultivators who ascend from the lower realms have already enjoyed all the riches and power in the cultivation world. Ordinary female cultivators are naturally not worthy of their attention…” Granny Tu sighed softly and offered Xue Qiongyu a few words of comfort.

Ultimately, in the eyes of high-level cultivators, there is no essential difference between a "national beauty" at the Foundation Establishment stage and a "national beauty" at the Void Refinement stage.

As for Wei Tu...

His terrifying speed of advancement also made it unnecessary for him to be as fond of female cultivators' yin essence as Pei Hong.

In fact.

Just as Granny Tu had thought.

Having already obtained the "ticket" to break through to the seventh level of body refinement after killing Prince Qing, Wei Tu was naturally not interested in Xue Qiongyu's primordial yin after entering the Dinghai Immortal Ruins.

"Compared to beauty, sometimes male cultivators care more about the other identity behind a female cultivator... Moreover, your primordial yin is also extraordinary..."

Granny Tu's lips moved slightly as she emerged from Xue Qiongyu's sea of ​​consciousness and began to communicate with Wei Tu telepathically.

A moment later, Wei Tu, who had just been reluctant, showed a hint of interest on his face.

"Whether she is Pei Hong's fiancée or not is of no concern to me. Pei Hong was defeated by me in the mortal realm. In the spirit realm, he was also far inferior to me... I have no need to accept Xue Qiongyu because of this..."

"But if her primordial yin truly offers me the opportunity to cultivate that secret technique of the Mist Ghost Clan... I might agree to it."

Wei Tu raised an eyebrow slightly and replied frankly.

"My wife and I are already prisoners of Fellow Daoist Wei, so how could we deceive you about this matter?"

Granny Tu shook her head with a sincere expression and said, "Yu'er's primordial yin is of great benefit to Pei Hong in repairing his soul injury. But for that alone, Pei Hong would not go to great lengths to send all sorts of gifts to please Yu'er."

Upon hearing this, Wei Tu nodded secretly. He had attended Xue Qiongyu's breakthrough ceremony and witnessed how generous Pei Hong was with the gifts.

If this reason is included, then all of this undoubtedly becomes quite reasonable.

The primordial yin does not require Xue Qiongyu's deliberate protection.

But the cultivation of that secret technique requires...!
While this secret technique wasn't particularly valuable to him, only making his methods more varied... but with Xue Qiongyu's "primordial yin," the status of a concubine became irrelevant.

"This humble servant greets my husband..."

A moment later, upon hearing the "good news," Xue Qiongyu awkwardly stepped forward, bowed to Wei Tu, and acknowledged her status as a concubine.

If before.

This hard-won identity was inevitably humiliating for her.

But nowadays, when faced with two evils, choose the lesser one.

After Pei Hong blocked all her paths, being able to become Wei Tu's concubine was already considered a pretty good "ending".

“Snow Fairy…” Wei Tu nodded slightly, stretched out his hand, and then put his arm around Xue Qiongyu’s slender waist to show his intimacy.

Upon seeing this unexpected action, Xue Qiongyu, who was still a virgin and had little contact with male cultivators, was so frightened that she cried out and almost used her escape technique to flee from Wei Tu's embrace.

However, with her quick reflexes, she soon suppressed this subconscious action, enduring her inner discomfort, and letting Wei Tu's large hands roam over her body.

"This can be considered revenge against Pei Hong." Pei Hong's handsome face appeared in her mind, and her body stiffened slightly before she thought to herself.

Even though she understood that regardless of whether Pei Hong issued a kill order against her in the cultivation world, her current "ending" was already predetermined—Wei Tu, who had offended a certain powerful figure, still could not let her leave.

But... she was bound to follow her husband wherever he went, so taking her anger out on Pei Hong naturally became her only option.

Besides, while the enemy was indeed "hateful," Wei Tu was still more pleasing to the eye compared to her fiancé's relentless pursuit.

Of course, she wouldn't admit that she secretly admired Wei Tu's strength, and that becoming a concubine of the future Mahayana monk was far better than being the wife of a "useless" man.

……

After cleaning up the battlefield traces.

Without hesitation, Wei Tu used the [Boundary-Severing Stone] to tear open a "spatial passage" to the outside world, and left the "Dinghai Immortal Ruins" with Xue Qiongyu.

At this time, only a little over a year had passed since he entered Dinghai Immortal Ruins, leaving him with eight more years to "stay" and search for other treasures.

But he knows when to stop while he's ahead.

Of course, with the [Boundary-Severing Stone] by his side, as long as he's careful, even if he encounters Lei Bao, the Great Princess, and others, he can escape immediately...

However, the risk and the reward are not proportional!
A cultivator is not afraid of greed, but of excessive greed.

With Zou Yueshan and Princess Wangyuan present, the information that he possesses the [Boundary-Severing Stone] has most likely already been known to the cultivators of both races. Therefore, if the cultivators of the Feather Dragon Clan and the Ghost Phoenix Clan were to pursue him, they would certainly be prepared for this move... At that time, if he wanted to achieve a surprise victory, it wouldn't be too easy for him.

The spatial passage between the two realms is very long.

After taking out two sixth-tier healing pills and having Xue Qiongyu use them to heal her injuries, Wei Tu immediately diverted his attention to examine the storage artifact of the "Fusion Stage Great Power" he had killed.

What a pleasant surprise.

This cultivator was actually much wealthier than "Prince Qing".

Aside from lacking the "seventh-tier spiritual treasure" that is standard for Nascent Soul cultivators, its resources in the Void Refinement Realm are quite abundant!

Cultivation elixirs, weapon-refining materials, and top-grade spirit crystals are all available.

Inside, there were even two near-seventh-tier sea beast corpses.

With the enormous monster hides of these two sea beasts, he should have no shortage of talismans for a short time.

"The Cultivation Realm's Killing Order..." After sorting through his gains, Wei Tu suddenly noticed a blood-red jade slip. He scanned it with his divine sense, glanced at it a few times, and then a look of great interest appeared on his face.

Only then did he finally understand why Xue Qiongyu had suddenly changed her attitude towards him.

"This information wasn't even mentioned. Was it forgotten, or was it intentional? Is it something you don't want to mention? Oh well, it's not important to me."

Wei Tu shook his head, suppressing this distracting thought.

Concubines are not "Daoist partners," but merely companions in the cultivation of immortality who mutually benefit from each other's needs.

Qi Feng and Yan Xiaolan in their early years belonged to this category.

He took care of these people, but that was all; he didn't cultivate them at any cost like he did with Luqiu Qingfeng.

"It's been almost six hundred years." Thinking of this, Wei Tu calculated the time and became slightly lost in thought.

The Palace of the Supreme King is a secret realm that opens once every six hundred years.

The second six hundred years, or twelve hundred years later, will be the day he and Luqiu Qingfeng agreed to meet at the Zunwang Palace.

However… if Lüqiu Qingfeng breaks through his cultivation level and ascends ahead of schedule, then things will be hard to say. (End of Chapter)