I am a Late Bloomer in the Immortal World

Chapter 438: Old Grudges, Yuling Begs for Mercy

Half a day later.Wei Tu and Cao Mi left together and headed toward Yuping Mountain, where Mirror Water Pavilion was located.

Ning Xuefeng had already received the news. She led several senior members of Mirror Water Pavilion to personally welcome them.

"Elder Wei and Palace Master Cao, one after another, both succeeded in forming their Nascent Souls. They’re now the two newest Nascent Soul cultivators in Kang Kingdom. And with their close relationship…"

At the foot of Yuping Mountain, many disciples of Mirror Water Pavilion looked up and saw Wei Tu and Cao Mi flying side by side. The pair looked like a perfect couple. Almost everyone watching had the same envious look on their faces.

You couldn’t really blame them for misunderstanding.

After all, in the past hundred years, only these two had become new Nascent Soul cultivators in the entire Kang Kingdom. On top of that, they made an ideal match for Dao companions.

And this time, Wei Tu had personally come and spent three whole years guarding Cao Mi in Moon Condensation Palace during her breakthrough.

With all that, who could believe there was nothing between them?

But Wei Tu and Cao Mi, the two involved, didn’t seem to notice any of this.

Or rather, as Nascent Soul elders, they followed their hearts when it came to matters of affection. They didn’t deliberately seek it out or worry about gossip. So naturally, small things like this didn’t matter much to them.

Soon, after they landed, the disciples of Mirror Water Pavilion came forward to greet them.

Among all the "Elder Wei" greetings, Kou Hongying’s soft "Uncle Wei" stood out.

"Hongying, your cultivation has been going well."

Wei Tu nodded slightly and looked at Kou Hongying with a pleased expression.

Last time, during his Nascent Soul ceremony, Kou Hongying had missed it because she happened to be at the verge of a breakthrough.

Now that they were meeting again, she had already reached the mid-stage of Golden Core.

Mid Golden Core before turning four hundred might not seem like much in front of Wei Tu, but compared to most ordinary Golden Core cultivators, her progress was fast.

Almost on par with those who had top-grade spiritual roots.

For example, Cao Mi had been over six hundred years old when she broke through to Nascent Soul.

If Kou Hongying kept cultivating steadily, she might also reach the peak of Golden Core by that age.

"Thank you for the praise, Uncle Wei."

Kou Hongying smiled and gave a small bow as she accepted the compliment.

After that, Wei Tu and Cao Mi followed Ning Xuefeng toward Mirror Water Pavilion’s main hall.

The hall wasn’t far from the mountain gate. In no time, they arrived.

Just as Ning Xuefeng was about to dismiss the other disciples—planning to keep only Kou Hongying, who was close to Wei Tu—something unexpected happened.

From among the group, Qin Yuling suddenly stepped forward.

She offered to stay behind and serve Wei Tu and Cao Mi alongside Kou Hongying.

Seeing this, Ning Xuefeng didn’t think much of it. She just assumed that Qin Yuling, Kou Hongying’s master, must have some past connection with Wei Tu, and that’s why she wanted to stay.

So, Ning Xuefeng nodded and approved her request.

But then—something totally unexpected happened.

No sooner had they entered the main hall than Qin Yuling dropped to her knees and bowed deeply to Wei Tu.

"Elder Wei… I was blind back then. I tried to steal your opportunity and even plotted to harm you… Please forgive me…"

Qin Yuling pressed her head to the floor in a formal bow.

More than two hundred years ago, when she learned that Wei Tu had formed his Golden Core, she had already started feeling uneasy about what happened in the past.

But back then, they were both still at the Golden Core stage. Neither could really do anything to the other, so she gradually let it go and stopped thinking about it.

However, a few years ago, when she heard Wei Tu had broken through to Nascent Soul and was holding a Nascent Soul ceremony, she could no longer sleep peacefully.

She’d been worrying this whole time, wondering if Wei Tu might settle the old score later.

After all, harboring a blade in one’s heart led to a murderous will. With Wei Tu’s strength, taking revenge for that past grudge would be nothing to him. Killing her would be like snapping a chicken’s neck.

Besides, the fearsome name "Old Demon Wei" had been making waves across Kang Kingdom’s cultivation world lately.

Qin Yuling didn’t believe she was any more valuable than Yao Chongshan, who’d been tortured to death by Wei Tu.

The only reason she might be spared was because she was Kou Hongying’s master. If not for that, Wei Tu probably wouldn’t even hesitate to kill her.

But even when it came to Kou Hongying...

Qin Yuling didn’t dare be too hopeful.

As far as relationships went, she doubted her role as “Master” meant more to the girl than Wei Tu’s identity as “Uncle Wei.”

That was why—today—Qin Yuling took advantage of Wei Tu’s visit to Mirror Water Pavilion and knelt in apology, hoping he’d forgive her and let go of their old grudge.

She just wanted peace of mind.

…

“Plotted against Senior Wei?”

Inside the main hall, when Ning Xuefeng heard Qin Yuling’s words, her head began to ache badly.

Because of the whole Shen Yunqiu affair, Mirror Water Pavilion had already ended up entangled in an unresolvable feud with Wei Tu, the newly ascended Nascent Soul cultivator.

If Shen Yunqiu hadn’t “died suddenly” decades ago, easing some of the tension…

Wei Tu might not have even come to visit the Pavilion today.

But now, Qin Yuling was bringing up yet another grudge from the past.

This made Ning Xuefeng feel like any chance of fixing Mirror Water Pavilion’s relationship with Wei Tu was slipping further and further away.

Fortunately, she was relieved by the fact that Qin Yuling, unlike Shen Yunqiu, wasn’t the impulsive type who ignored the bigger picture. That she was willing to speak up and try to resolve things on her own meant something.

“Murder attempt on Wei Tu?”

On the side, sitting beside Wei Tu at the main seats, Cao Mi’s eyes lit up with curiosity the moment she heard that.

She had always assumed that Qin Yuling’s lineage had a good relationship with Wei Tu.

Turns out...

That connection had only ever existed because of Kou Hongying.

Qin Yuling herself had only ever racked up negative points in Wei Tu’s book.

‘I wonder how this grudge started and how it was hidden for so many years?’ Cao Mi thought silently.

With her intelligence, it wasn’t hard to pick up on the implication in Qin Yuling’s words—this feud likely dated back to when Wei Tu was still at the Foundation Establishment stage.

Which meant...

It had to be at least 200 to 300 years ago.

Still, there was no need for her or Ning Xuefeng to speculate too much.

Soon enough, with Qin Yuling recounting the events herself, the two quickly understood the origin and progression of the grudge.

Just as Cao Mi had guessed, the feud dated back almost 300 years—to when Wei Tu had just established his Foundation and was still in Zheng Kingdom.

The cause was pretty simple: Qin Yuling had suspected that Wei Tu had acquired a valuable treasure after leaving the Yunze Secret Realm. She planned to wait until she reached Golden Core, then kill him and steal it.

But things didn’t go her way.

She ended up falling into Shen Yunqiu’s trap, damaging her soul and losing 30 years of memories from just before and after forming her Golden Core.

Because of that, Wei Tu slipped through her fingers.

‘If she weren’t Kou Hongying’s master, she’d already be a corpse by now.’

Cao Mi narrowed her almond-shaped eyes and glanced at Qin Yuling with a trace of pity.

Unlike others, she’d worked closely with Wei Tu and understood his personality well.

He wasn’t petty by nature, but if revenge came at little cost, he wouldn’t hesitate to strike.

Just like what happened with Shen Yunqiu and Yao Chongshan.

Clearly, Qin Yuling had already met the conditions for Wei Tu to take action.

That he hadn’t yet likely had less to do with patience and more to do with Kou Hongying—he didn’t want to be too ruthless and directly kill her master.

After all, Qin Yuling had treated her disciple reasonably well.

Killing her might completely destroy his relationship with Kou Hongying.