I am a late bloomer in the world of cultivating immortals

Previously, his understanding of the 'Black Cloud Minor World' came from the 'soul search' he obtained from the Nascent Soul Transformation of the Feather Saint Sect.

Their intelligence is unlikely to be wrong.

However... similarly, limited by their perspective and realm, even a junior Nascent Soul cultivator like this would find it difficult to know some of the secrets of this world.

If he could obtain a legitimate route to the Heavenly Demon Realm besides the 'Blood Refining Land', then participating in this 'Five Races Auction' would be a worthwhile gain for him.

……

Although the Five Races Auction is approaching, there are still two or three months before the actual event.

It had been almost half a year since Wei Tu left the Lushan Dojo, so after calculating the time, Wei Tu returned to the Lushan Dojo without hesitation.

His 'flesh-and-blood phantom' is no longer the 'blood demon soul fragment' that could be controlled across realms back then. It can still be used to deceive the middle-aged beauty's temporary examination... but it is still extremely difficult to use it to replace his original body and live a normal life.

"Ruan Shui'er's apprenticeship ceremony?"

Upon returning to his cave dwelling, Wei Tu noticed an invitation that had appeared at the entrance.

It should be noted that he was a loner, and in the years since he moved into the Deer Mountain Cave, no other fellow cultivators had ever invited him.

Now that Ruan Shui'er has suddenly sent this invitation, he is naturally quite surprised.

In a sense, he was an 'eccentric' within the Lushan Dojo.

"So this cultivator has taken Ruan Shui'er as his personal disciple? Ruan Shui'er's fortune is quite good." After reading the invitation, Wei Tu raised an eyebrow and thought to himself.

Although he had never seen the cultivator who took Ruan Shui'er as his disciple in person, he had seen this cultivator countless times in the portrait in the intelligence jade slip when he went to 'Liu Clan Immortal City' to inquire about information.

That's right! Ruan Shui'er's master is a member of the 'Nine Serpents Liu Clan', the third person in the clan after the two combined-stage ancestors—the patriarch of the Nine Serpents Liu Clan!

A powerful expert at the late stage of the Void Refinement realm.

From this perspective, his previous suspicions have undoubtedly been proven true.

The Feather Saint Sect and the Nine Serpents Liu Clan do indeed have a close relationship, with deep entanglements, to the point that they can 'gift disciples' to each other.

However, it seems that this was done to conceal the identity of the Liu clan patriarch from these 'bloodline cultivators'.

The invitation only specified the elder position held by this cultivator within the Feather Saint Sect, without mentioning anything about the 'Nine Serpents Liu Clan'.

"I wonder if Ruan Shui'er knows about her master's background?" Wei Tu wondered.

Judging from the fact that the Feather Saint Sect and the Nine Serpents Liu Clan concealed the identity of the Liu Clan Chief, their purpose was probably to protect their disciple, Ruan Shui'er, and to keep a low profile...

Now, this woman's high-profile actions, including holding a "master-apprentice ceremony," undoubtedly contradict this.

However, when Wei Tu accepted the invitation and attended the grand event half a month later, he learned that things were not quite as he had imagined.

It's true that this woman held a ceremony to celebrate becoming an apprentice, but the number of people she invited was much smaller than he had imagined; even including him, there were fewer than a handful.

It was more like a private gathering among fellow students.

"Was it her guidance to Ruan Shui'er?" Upon entering Ruan Shui'er's cave, Wei Tu immediately sensed a Nascent Soul cultivator peering into the area.

This divine consciousness belonged to the middle-aged beauty whom Zhong Yi called 'Junior Sister Liu'.

His gaze swept across the crowd, and upon seeing that the other 'bloodline cultivators' participating in the celebration were all elites who had distinguished themselves in the past few years, he instantly understood the situation.

Such a thing was beyond the comprehension of Ruan Shui'er, a young girl who had just entered the world and was not even a hundred years old—but this middle-aged beauty, as her elder, had long ago planned for her future.

Inviting these people to the 'apprenticeship ceremony' is a pretense; the real purpose is to recruit them as future 'wings'.

And he, as the person whose qualifications were second only to Ruan Shui'er, also became a target of this middle-aged beauty.

In fact, this 'apprenticeship ceremony' was specially prepared for him by the middle-aged beauty Ruan Shui'er.

Sure enough, the next moment, the middle-aged beauty's secret telepathic communication with Ruan Shui'er confirmed Wei Tu's guess.

Times have changed —

After the Liu clan chief took Ruan Shui'er as his apprentice, a middle-aged beauty from the same clan as the Liu clan chief... took the clan's perspective and began to plan Ruan Shui'er's future, ignoring Zhong Yi's 'admonition' before he left.

She intended to bind him to Ruan Shui'er as a future protector or important companion.

“Aunt Liu, Senior Brother Fu is aloof and has never been close to us fellow disciples… I really don’t have the confidence to befriend him…” Ruan Shui’er, hiding in the inner room of the cave, said timidly.

It was always her fellow disciples who flattered her.

Faced with Wei Tu, a cold and aloof person who was unyielding and had a withdrawn personality, she really had no confidence that she could get close to him.

"Dragonborn cultivators are often restless and lewd due to the influence of their bloodline. This man surnamed Fu is different... but in my opinion, he has simply suppressed this trait for the sake of cultivation..."

"And your Moon Fox bloodline is most adept at bewitching others. Every smile and frown can captivate hearts. Just give him a little sweetness... let him know that only by becoming your Daoist partner can he possibly reach the Nascent Soul and Void Refinement realms. With this boy's mind, there is a considerable possibility that he will become a loyal servant who will dedicate himself to you." Upon hearing this, the middle-aged beauty named Aunt Liu immediately snorted coldly.

Upon hearing this, Ruan Shui'er's pretty face clearly showed a hint of hesitation.

Such methods of manipulating other people's thoughts were still somewhat difficult for her, a cultivator who had only been cultivating for a hundred years, to accept.

Even so, she understood that it was essential for beautiful female cultivators in the cultivation world to master and become accustomed to such methods.

At this moment, Aunt Liu's urging her was not because Wei Tu had become so important that she and the Nine Serpents Liu family behind him had to win him over... but because Wei Tu was a 'test stone' for her to take this first step!
In a word.

A weak personality won't get you anywhere in the cultivation world, even if she possesses top-grade Moon Fox bloodline.

"Shui'er... I understand." After hesitating for a moment, Ruan Shui'er gritted her teeth and agreed.

In this respect, she did not have the right to be willful, after all, she was just a disciple, not the legitimate daughter and heir of the Nine Serpents Liu Clan.

Having overheard this, Wei Tu's eyes turned cold, but at the same time, he couldn't help but find it amusing.

A thousand years ago, he might have held a grudge against these schemes, but now, as a powerful being who has reached an ancient age, he is undoubtedly more tolerant of these trivial matters.

Of course, this is also largely due to Ruan Shui'er's hesitation. In this matter, she yielded more to the ways of the world than to her own willingness.

As a rogue cultivator who came from humble beginnings, he also followed this path step by step back then.

He gradually became adept at scheming.

"If it weren't for this apprenticeship ceremony, I probably wouldn't have had the chance to see Senior Brother Fu this time..."

A moment later, Ruan Shui'er, having been reprimanded, walked out of the inner room of the cave and into the living room. After greeting several old friends, she walked lightly to Wei Tu, bowed to him, and said this with a smile.

"Junior Sister Ruan, you're too kind."

Wei Tu nodded slightly, maintaining a neutral demeanor, still appearing unmoved by the woman.

At this point, Ruan Shui'er, who was already taciturn and simple-minded, quickly ran out of things to say and became somewhat speechless.

After all, she didn't have much interaction with Wei Tu; she had only met him once or twice when they were in Xiaoluhu Prefecture.

Wei Tu maintained a cold expression throughout, showing no intention of continuing the conversation.

However, with the advice of the middle-aged beauty, the woman quickly realized what was going on and, as instructed, asked Wei Tu about his ambitions.

"Senior Brother Fu, have you ever thought about what level you want to reach in the future?" Ruan Shui'er asked with a look of inquiry in her eyes.

Wei Tu had already prepared a response, and casually uttered a realm befitting his status.

—The Realm of Divine Transformation.

For dragon-born cultivators with superior bloodlines, the limit is almost always becoming a Nascent Soul cultivator.

Upon hearing this, Ruan Shui'er then casually mentioned how highly her master valued her, believing that she had a good chance of breaking through to the Nascent Soul realm in the future.

"If... Senior Brother Fu doesn't mind, I would like to become friends with you and help each other in our cultivation in the future... Speaking of which, my master is also a pill master. Perhaps I can get some benefits from you in the future when it comes to pills."

Ruan Shui'er pursed her lips and uttered these words, which she had been taught by the middle-aged woman and had carefully considered for a long time.

These words seem ordinary, but the 'temptation' they contain is something that almost no low-level cultivator can resist.

No one would refuse a friend request from a beautiful, charming, and promising junior female disciple!
"If Junior Sister Ruan has this intention, I, Fu, am naturally delighted." Upon hearing this, Wei Tu did not explicitly refuse, but casually agreed with a faint smile.

Anyway, these things can be excused by the excuse of cultivation.

There's no need for that; it would be beneath Ruan Shui'er's dignity in this setting.

Just as the middle-aged beauty said, even the most reclusive and single-minded cultivator would find it hard to resist such readily available temptations.

Put yourself in his shoes—if he were truly at the 'Golden Core Realm' now, even knowing that Ruan Shui'er was using him, he would still readily agree to this temptation.

"So smoothly?" Seeing this, Ruan Shui'er was also secretly surprised. She thought that the process would be much more difficult, after all, Wei Tu was known for his cold personality.

"Shui'er, strike while the iron is hot." At this moment, the middle-aged beauty suddenly transmitted her voice to Ruan Shui'er.

Upon hearing this, Ruan Shui'er seemed to realize something and quickly said to Wei Tu, "Senior Brother Fu, do you know the distribution of power in the cultivation world... The Feather Saint Sect, which we belong to, is not the only major power in this cultivation world."

"What does Junior Sister Ruan mean?" Upon seeing this, Wei Tu couldn't help but frown slightly, wondering what the middle-aged beauty's purpose was in suddenly having Ruan Shui'er bring up this matter.

"I'm only saying this to give Senior Brother Fu a chance," Ruan Shui'er said in an extremely mysterious tone.

Then, they continued with the previous topic.

"Senior Brother Fu, do you know that Xiaolu Lake Prefecture, where we were before, is merely a corner of this Black Cloud Realm? We are like frogs in a well, unable to comprehend the vastness of the cultivation world..."

"Within the Black Cloud Realm, there are not only the Feather Saint Sect, but also various other families and sects such as the 'Nine Serpents Liu Clan' and the 'Mountain Bear Wu Clan'..."

"The Deer Mountain Dojo is a property of the 'Nine Serpents Liu Clan,' and Aunt Liu and Elder Liu, who are in charge of overseeing the dojo, also belong to the 'Nine Serpents Liu Clan'..."

"And my younger sister's master is the patriarch of the 'Nine Serpents Willow Clan,' whose status is comparable to that of the sect leader of the Feather Saint Sect."

"Of course, I'm not saying this to show off to Senior Brother Fu. It's just that soon, the 'Five Clans Auction' will be held by the 'Nine Serpents Liu Clan'... Aunt Liu is qualified to be a family disciple of the 'Nine Serpents Liu Clan' and take us cultivators from the Deer Mountain Dojo to broaden our horizons."

"If Senior Brother Fu is willing to go with me, then perhaps some cultivators from the Liu family will take a liking to him... and accept him as their personal disciple..."

Ruan Shui'er said, word by word.

"Attending the Five Clans Auction? What a coincidence!"

"Just... take me as your disciple?"

Upon hearing this, Wei Tu frowned slightly. With his experience, how could he not see the deception in this?

His aptitude wasn't good enough to be coveted by the "Nine Serpents Liu Clan".

Feather Saint Sect cultivators like Ruan Shui'er, who were accepted as personal disciples by the Liu clan leader, were special cases, not just ordinary ones...

It is impossible for the Feather Saint Sect to allow the 'Nine Serpents Willow Clan' to arbitrarily accept cultivators as disciples.

Now, the "opportunity" that Ruan Shui'er mentioned is probably more about showing him a lesson.

Knowing how vast and profound the outside world is.

This would shatter the pride of a 'humble scholar' like him, and then we could proceed with a plan to win him over and subdue him.

“This woman seems unaware of the schemes involved, truly believing this is a good thing for me…” Wei Tu’s eyes flickered slightly as he carefully examined Ruan Shui’er. Seeing that she seemed genuine, he immediately softened the coldness in his eyes.

This is different from the previous simple attempts to win them over.

This move truly harbors malicious intent and is quite malicious!
Even a native cultivator from Xiaoluhu Prefecture, with a strong mindset, how could he not lose his composure after 'accidentally entering the Heavenly Family'?
“That won’t be necessary. I’m close to a breakthrough and have no time to travel.” Wei Tu said calmly, offering this impeccable reason for his polite refusal.

Furthermore, regardless of his thoughts, as a fully-fledged powerful being who is already qualified to participate in the 'Five Clans Auction,' it would be difficult for him to create a second clone to participate in this auction.

Even if Ruan Shui'er had a thousand things to say, she could no longer continue under this reason.

After all, breaking through to a higher realm is the most important thing for a cultivator.

"Then I wish Senior Brother Fu a great success and a speedy breakthrough to the late Golden Core stage," Ruan Shui'er said with a gentle smile.

"Is this child about to break through? Perhaps... his aptitude is higher than I imagined? Or is it just because of his arduous cultivation?" The middle-aged woman in the adjacent cave was also greatly surprised to hear this.

The Golden Core stage is the final stage of the 'Lower Three Realms'. Breaking through to this stage is no easy feat, even in the Upper Realm.

After arriving at the Lushan Dojo, Wei Tu seized the opportunity to break through his cultivation level in just a few years, which can be described as extremely fast.

"Very well, he's just a junior after all. The reason we've recruited this cultivator is not only because he has some value, but more importantly, to use him as a test of Shui'er's courage..."

A moment later, the middle-aged woman's surprise vanished, and she returned to normal.

Then, she shook her head, withdrew her divine sense from probing Ruan Shui'er's cave, and stopped paying attention to Wei Tu. (End of Chapter)