I am a late bloomer in the world of cultivating immortals

Clearly, Princess Ooyuan had already discussed this matter with Kencho in advance.

“But what difference does it make to Consort Dayuan whether there is one more or one less ‘Pei Hong’…” Wei Tu’s gaze narrowed slightly as he pondered Consort Dayuan’s motive.

However, regardless of Princess Oobuchi's motives.

The fact that the mother and son went together... at least, was enough to allow them to travel with peace of mind to the 'human treasure land' within the Mirage Realm, without having to worry about threats from other forces within the 'Mirage Realm'.

After all, from the perspective of Consort Dayuan, it was absolutely impossible for her to let her son take too many risks in this 'Illusory Mirage Realm'... at least, there was no need for the mother and son to be dragged down with them.

The only thing to worry about is the risk of this mother and son betraying her.

"That's it! The 'Blood Ghost Soul Split' of the Mist Ghost Clan can bypass the limitations of this 'Blood Pact'?" Suddenly, Wei Tu raised an eyebrow and instantly thought of this.

A thousand years ago, he stole Xue Qiongyu from the Snow Infant Clan's territory, directly cutting off Pei Hong's opportunity and causing him to seize the 'Blood Demon Soul Split' that Pei Hong had raised...

However, over the course of a thousand years, it is not unimaginable that Pei Hong, as the young patriarch of a powerful clan, could use the foundation of the Mist Ghost clan to form a marriage alliance with another clan or cultivate a new furnace or a new 'blood ghost soul' within his own clan.

"But—as a human cultivator, Geng Qiaozi shouldn't be unaware of the secret techniques of the Mist Ghost Clan… Could it be that he also has other plans within the 'Illusory Mirage Realm'?"

Wei Tu frowned secretly. It wasn't hard to understand that Geng Qiaozi also had his own 'ulterior motives' towards him, as evidenced by the fact that he hadn't revealed this information to his 'ally'.

It should be noted that cultivators from minor clans and families who have reached the Nascent Soul stage are usually extremely unaware that the Mist Ghost clan secretly possesses such a secret technique.

"Since Fellow Daoist Gengqiao has agreed, I, Ruan, will not have much objection to this matter."

Wei Tu smiled casually, pretending not to know about the conspiracy behind their actions, and nodded in agreement.

"Then I will summon Hong'er here immediately." Upon hearing this, Consort Dayuan's face lit up with joy. She immediately took out a communication magic shell from her sleeve and sent a divine sense into it.

Her hasty actions didn't seem like she had any ulterior motives; rather, it suggested she was acting as a mother, thinking about her child's future—wanting Pei Hong to gain some advantage and use some clever tricks.

The 'Fox Hill Great Tomb' was not far from where Wei Tu and the other two had gathered. After the transmission spell had been flashing for about half an hour, a streak of black light transformed from Pei Hong swiftly arrived in front of Wei Tu and the other two.

"Senior Ruan..."

After the light of his escape descended, Pei Hong glanced past Geng Qiaozi, a human enemy, and greeted Wei Tu directly with a smile, even lowering his own generation.

Of course, this is also extremely common in the spirit world.

Although "Great Integration Cultivation" and "Early Integration Stage" are at the same level, they are merely in name only, and their magical power and combat strength often differ greatly.

However, under normal circumstances, the practice of referring to oneself as a generation lower usually only occurs among 'elder relatives' or cultivators of significantly different statuses...

At this moment, Pei Hong's self-deprecating attitude towards Wei Tu, this stranger, was undoubtedly an act of flattery and pandering.

This contrast, however, should have been ignored by Wei Tu, who had visited Silver Canopy Island hundreds of years ago...

However, he couldn't help feeling strange when he thought of Pei Hong's high and mighty position in the human realm.

After all, back on Silver Canopy Island, this cultivator addressed him mostly as "Fellow Daoist Lin," far from the current "Senior Ruan."

“That’s true. Hundreds of years have passed. Although Pei Hong’s realm has improved, it is still too slow compared to mine…” Wei Tu’s eyes flashed, and he gradually suppressed the strange feeling in his heart.

This is not Pei Hong being ridiculous.

Hundreds of years later, he had rushed from the 'early stage of Fusion' to the 'late stage of Fusion' in one go, while Pei Hong's realm was still stuck at the 'early stage of Fusion', resulting in a serious mismatch in strength between the two of them.

Therefore, after thinking for a moment, Wei Tu did not deliberately belittle Pei Hong by addressing him as "nephew Pei". He bowed to him with his hands clasped and said "fellow Daoist Pei" with a normal expression.

However, Pei Hong did not back down so easily. Instead, he remained humble and continued to address Wei Tu as "Senior Ruan".

It seemed that only in this way could they win over Wei Tu and create some rift between Wei Tu and Geng Qiaozi.

After a brief exchange.

After they had gotten to know each other, Pei Hong turned to look at Consort Dayuan and gave her a nod.

At this moment, Consort Dayuan immediately understood, nodded slightly, and took out a palm-sized magical treasure shaped like a sedan chair from her sleeve.

The next moment, after Consort Dayuan uttered "Hurry," the magical treasure that resembled a sedan chair immediately swelled in the wind and transformed into a magnificent, half-person-high, five-colored sedan chair.

Wei Tu had seen this sedan chair once before when he was on Silver Canopy Island, and knew that it was the carriage that Consort Dayuan usually rode in when she went out.

At this moment, compared to when he first encountered this woman riding in this sedan chair, the only difference was the absence of the dozens of beautiful female attendants accompanying her.

However, after glancing at the Qiankun bag tied to Da Yuanfei's waist, he suddenly realized what it meant.

"Please, Senior Ruan and Fellow Daoist Gengqiao, enter the sedan chair."

Pei Hong extended his hand in a gesture of respect and spoke politely.

"Get into the sedan chair?" Upon hearing this, Wei Tu couldn't help but frown slightly.

This immediately reminded him of the hidden loss he suffered during his trip to the 'Rebirth Realm'.

If he hadn't been tricked into Venerable Huoshi's [Heavenly Mystery Spirit House], he wouldn't have been so easily threatened and forced to go to the 'Rebirth Spirit Realm', almost facing a life-or-death crisis.

At present, although this colorful sedan chair is far inferior to the 'Heavenly Mystery Spirit House' and seems unable to contain a 'Great Cultivator of Integration' like him... its dangers should not be ignored.

“Fellow Daoist Ruan, if you want to deceive the four-armed ape clan and the Howling Sky clan cultivators guarding the ‘Illusory Mirage Realm,’ you will hardly succeed without using this method…”

"Could it be that I should temporarily seal these two fellow Daoists and place them in my Qiankun bag?"

Seeing Wei Tu's hesitant expression, the quick-witted Consort Dayuan could easily guess what he was thinking. She looked displeased and gave a cold snort, seemingly very unhappy that Wei Tu doubted her.

"With the blood pact binding us, even if this woman harbors ulterior motives, she will find it difficult to scheme against us..." Geng Qiaozi secretly transmitted his voice, persuading Wei Tu to agree.

Upon hearing this, Wei Tu's expression did not relax; instead, it became even more tense.

It is true that blood pacts have binding power.

But you should know that he personally witnessed Ancestor Tianhe breaking his oath inside the 'Bao Ri Divine Tower', and then used a high-level talisman to remove the lingering troubles from his body.

Compared to Ancestor Tianhe, Consort Dayuan's strength is far inferior, but her background is in no way inferior to this scoundrel's.

Furthermore, he did not believe that Geng Qiaozi would easily trust Da Yuanfei just because of this 'blood pact'. There was a high probability that the two of them had other leverage over each other to ensure that they would not easily betray each other.

—The unexpected addition of 'Pei Hong' just now was the result of a secret discussion between these two, who excluded him.

Of course, morally speaking, this is understandable, since he joined the alliance as Geng Qiaozi's 'protector' rather than as Geng Qiaozi's helper in exploring the 'treasure land of humanity'.

"I may enter this sedan chair, but you must take this 'poison pill' I have... Furthermore, before we arrive at that 'human treasure land,' you must not leave my side for too long, nor be more than three feet away..."

"Of course, once we successfully reach that 'treasure land of the human race,' I will use my magic to neutralize the 'poison pill' that my wife has taken, thus eliminating this threat."

Wei Tu narrowed his eyes, patted the storage bag at his waist, took out a green pill bottle, and then said these words with a tough attitude.

"This……"

These words were like a thunderclap from a clear sky, instantly turning the faces of Consort Dayuan and her son ugly, their expressions turning cold.

This means that, throughout the journey to that 'treasure land of the human race,' the life of Consort Dayuan was entirely in Wei Tu's hands.

No cultivator would agree to such a harsh condition.

Not to mention Consort Dayuan, who is also a 'Great Cultivation of Integration' and has always lived a life of luxury and held an extraordinary status.

“Senior Ruan, it is only natural for a son to suffer in place of his mother… If Senior Ruan does not trust my son and me, you may simply feed this poison pill to me…”

After a moment of gloom, Pei Hong took a deep breath, breaking the cold silence, and stepped forward.

However, Wei Tu, who already knew that Pei Hong possessed the 'blood demon's split soul,' would not easily believe Pei Hong's nonsense.

His decisiveness at this moment only reinforced his belief that the 'Pei Hong' who had come was more likely just a 'blood demon's divided soul' rather than the original body.

“If Lady Dayuan does not agree… I, Ruan, will not easily ride in this precious sedan chair…” Wei Tu snorted coldly, and directly used his powerful divine sense to spread his realm pressure, rushing towards Pei Hong, Geng Qiaozi, and Lady Dayuan in front of him.

"His aura is so powerful?"

Just how powerful is this cultivator's magical ability?

In an instant, apart from Geng Qiaozi, Pei Hong and his mother, Da Yuanfei, all changed their expressions.

There are also differences in strength between cultivators at the Fusion Stage!

Among these, the most easily quantifiable is undoubtedly the total amount of mana of each of the major Nascent Soul cultivators.

On the contrary, Wei Tu, who has mastered the "True Technique of Immortal Refining" and is skilled in both physical and magical cultivation, is in no way afraid of any cultivator who has achieved the Body Integration Realm.

Although he has only recently advanced to the late stage of the Integration Realm, he is confident that in terms of 'total mana,' he is comparable to any 'Grand Integration Realm cultivator,' or even rivals a higher-level half-step Mahayana expert.

In the cultivation world, those who possess such magical power as "Great Cultivators of Integration" are all seasoned cultivators like "Geng Qiaozi" who have accumulated years of experience!

Within the cultivation world, the longer one lives, the stronger one's strength is not necessarily. However, without exception, 'veteran cultivators' of the same realm are all formidable beings in this realm.

From a seventh-tier alchemist who could be recruited to a powerful figure whom they urgently needed to be wary of... how could Pei Hong and his mother, Da Yuanfei, not be extremely apprehensive about this?

"Fellow Daoist Gengqiao, the matter of the poison pill is too harsh. Please forgive me, but I absolutely cannot agree to it." Consort Dayuan's gaze sharpened as she looked at the 'Gengqiaozi' hanging high, directly forcing him to make a statement.

However, Wei Tu seemed to have anticipated this all along.

Before Consort Da Yuan could finish speaking, she coldly added, "Does Madam think I am someone to be bullied, that she won't even give me this much protection?"

"Or is it that this 'blood pact' is not enough to restrain Ruan?" Wei Tu said, uttering these words that seemed to pierce the heart.

The meaning is very simple.

If one believes in the bond of their blood pact, this small poison pill is undoubtedly only a temporary matter and will not cause any real harm.

Conversely, if one does not believe in the binding force of this 'blood pact'...

Instantly, Geng Qiaozi understood Wei Tu's 'implied meaning', and his expression changed as he stared intently at Wei Tu.

With his intelligence, it wasn't hard for him to understand that Wei Tu's words weren't an accusation that Da Yuanfei didn't believe in the 'blood pact' binding her, but rather an indication that he himself didn't have complete trust in this so-called 'blood pact' binding her.

"Is it caution, or has he guessed something?"

Geng Qiaozi narrowed his eyes, feeling rather troubled by the fierce spirit he had 'unintentionally' invited.

However, now that the 'three-party blood pact' has been signed, he cannot afford to lose his temper and cause this hard-won 'alliance' to fall apart.

Similarly, the price of breaking this blood oath is not something he can easily bear.

While Wei Tu's demands were not 'reasonable,' they were also within reason... and even within the framework of the 'blood pact.'

After all, it wasn't that he refused to go to that 'treasure land of the human race,' but rather that the actions and whereabouts of the Great Abyss Consort made it difficult for him to trust her... The blood pact didn't have any mandatory agreement, yet he still allowed Wei Tu, an ally, to go on the risk knowing the danger!

In short, this is not about taking a 'poison pill', but about Wei Tu having the right to 'check and balance' the 'Da Yuan Fei', a 'source of danger'.

Unless he can resolve this fundamental contradiction.

"Trouble! Trouble! This cultivator is too shrewd, too clever, and too powerful." Geng Qiaozi rubbed his temples, secretly regretting his misjudgment.

“Madam Dayuan, a blood pact is no small matter. Unless absolutely necessary… I doubt Fellow Daoist Ruan would break his oath…”

"Moreover, if Fellow Daoist Ruan really breaks his oath, I will not let him off the hook. At that time, I will definitely join forces with my wife and son to force Fellow Daoist Ruan to take out the poison pill."

"Furthermore, Madam should know that I am also a seventh-level alchemist. Even if Fellow Daoist Ruan breaks the contract, with my abilities, removing the threat of the poison pill... is not difficult..."

Geng Qiaozi paused for a moment, then quickly weighed the options in his mind. Instead of following Da Yuanfei's words and forcing Wei Tu, he followed Wei Tu's words and forced Da Yuanfei to agree to the matter.

Simply put, compared to Wei Tu's 'coercion,' forcing Consort Dayuan to agree to this matter would be significantly more likely. (End of Chapter)