I am a Late Bloomer in the Immortal World

"Hongying Meizi."

Wei Yan stepped forward to greet her.

In the immortal cultivation world, strength dictates status.

Lower-realm cultivators must address those of higher realms as senior, but that only applies to unfamiliar relationships.

She and Kou Hongying had known each other since childhood, so calling her Hongying Meizi was perfectly natural.

Not to mention, her father, Wei Tu, was now a Foundation Establishment True Person.

Kou Hongying, after presenting her offering, came back to her senses. She glanced at Wei Yan, who was dressed in mourning, sighed softly, and said, "My condolences."

She had experienced the pain of losing parents before and knew the grief all too well.

"Some time ago, I went to the Demon Wolf Mountain Range and wasn't able to return in time. I hope Uncle Wei doesn't blame me…"

Approaching the cottage, Kou Hongying bowed slightly to Wei Tu, explaining her absence from the funeral.

After she finished speaking, she patted her storage pouch, took out a spiritual item, and placed it down as a belated offering for the funeral.

"Cultivators are not like ordinary people. Time flows differently in the mountains, missing the timing is no great matter."

Wei Tu shook his head, expressing his understanding.

Unlike during the Qi Refinement Realm, after Kou Hongying advanced to Foundation Establishment, she found herself even busier than before.

These past ten-plus years, Kou Hongying had been constantly on the move—not just to repay the debts owed to him and Fu Zhizhou but also for her own cultivation path.

Without a specialized skill, Foundation Establishment cultivators who belonged to a sect had no choice but to complete sect missions to acquire additional resources.

Her situation was quite similar to Fu Zhizhou, the sword-for-hire cultivator—always busy, with little time for rest.

After exchanging a few casual remarks, Wei Tu invited Kou Hongying into the cottage to sit.

Standing to the side, Wei Yan took the initiative to heat water and brew tea, then poured a cup for both Wei Tu and Kou Hongying.

Before long, their conversation shifted to the Heshan Huang Clan.

"Uncle Wei's choice of the Heshan Huang Clan is a good one. They have a Golden Core Patriarch who is a third-rank formation master, making them the safest place in Zheng Kingdom aside from the three great sects."

Kou Hongying nodded approvingly.

What she admired most about Wei Tu was his steady, cautious nature—never rushing blindly forward.

For a Foundation Establishment rogue cultivator, choosing the wrong family to join could impact their entire cultivation path for the rest of their life.

The fact that Wei Tu could resist the temptation of immediate benefits and make a clear-headed decision already put him ahead of most cultivators.

Halfway through their conversation, Kou Hongying learned that Wei Tu had met Zhao Qingluo half a year ago. A thought suddenly struck her, and she brought up another topic.

"Uncle Wei, when you spoke with Zhao Qingluo that time, did she mention who the Foundation Establishment cultivator was that saved her back then?"

Her voice carried a trace of urgency.

Over thirty years ago, Kou Liang had died, and she had locked her vengeance onto Blood Demon Elder, the one who controlled the Qingye Snake.

Not long after, she heard that Blood Demon Elder had been slain by a Foundation Establishment cultivator, who had also saved Zhao Qingluo.

When she learned this, she immediately wrote to Zhao Qingluo, asking for details about that incident, hoping to find the benefactor who had avenged her father.

But to her disappointment, Zhao Qingluo knew little. She only confirmed that her savior was a Foundation Establishment cultivator but did not know their name, origin, or identity.

Now, more than thirty years had passed.

It was possible that Zhao Qingluo had found new clues.

Hearing Kou Hongying bring this up, Wei Tu suddenly became alert, realizing a mistake he had unknowingly made.

He and Kou Liang were sworn brothers. If he truly cared, he should have asked about the benefactor just as eagerly as Kou Hongying.

Instead, he had completely ignored the matter, not mentioning it at all.

"That's true. Back then, after seeing Zhao Qingluo's disgraceful state, how could I bring up such a topic in front of her?"

Wei Tu sighed inwardly.

He hadn't expected that one day he would experience "The net of heaven is vast, yet no one slips through."

After considering for a moment, Wei Tu decided to reveal the long-buried secret from that year.

—He was worried that if he didn't say anything, Kou Hongying might go directly to Zhao Qingluo for answers, which could lead to her noticing something suspicious about him.

If that happened, anything he said later would be far less convincing.

Besides, things were different now.

Now that he had reached Foundation Establishment, this secret was no longer life-threatening to him. Kou Hongying was also someone he could trust.

Revealing the truth earlier would be beneficial for everyone.

"Hongying, the one who killed the Qingye Snake and saved Zhao Qingluo was none other than me."

As soon as he spoke these words, Kou Hongying and Wei Yan, who were sitting inside the cottage, were instantly stunned.

They sat frozen for a long time, too shocked to react.

Their first instinct was disbelief—Wei Tu had only been at mid-stage Qi Refinement back then, so how could he have slain a powerful Demonic Cultivator—something only a Foundation Establishment cultivator could do?

But after thinking carefully, they found the claim entirely plausible.

As Wei Tu's niece and daughter, Kou Hongying and Wei Yan knew him far too well.

Wei Tu was always steady and reliable—never one to boast or exaggerate.

If he said something, it had to be true.

"The benefactor… was Uncle Wei all along…?"

After regaining her composure, Kou Hongying's expression was complicated. Her tone carried both surprise and a sense of relief.

She didn't think Wei Tu was lying to her.

After all, there was no benefit for him to deceive her at this moment.

If he had wanted to lie, doing so before he reached Foundation Establishment would have been far more advantageous.

Now that they were both Foundation Establishment True Persons, there wasn't much she could offer him in return.

"Father actually killed Blood Demon Elder while still in Qi Refinement? He accomplished something only a Foundation Establishment cultivator could do?"

Wei Yan, standing to the side, was equally shocked.

It was as if she was seeing a completely different side of her father, one that was unlike his usual self.

Once the two of them had calmed down, Wei Tu coughed lightly and recounted the details of how he had "killed" Blood Demon Elder all those years ago.

However, he did not take credit for the feat. Instead, he openly admitted the truth—Blood Demon Elder had been poisoned by Geng Wen, not slain in battle.

After explaining everything, Wei Tu took out the corpse of the Qingye Snake, which he had kept in his storage pouch for over thirty years.

"Since Blood Demon Elder and Geng Wen conspired to ambush Zhao Qingluo, they wouldn't have caused additional trouble by injuring my father…"

"Father must have been severely wounded by the Qingye Snake when it acted on instinct."

Kou Hongying analyzed the situation layer by layer.

Although the Qingye Snake had been Blood Demon Elder's spirit beast, she didn't believe Blood Demon Elder had been the one to personally attack Kou Liang.

If Blood Demon Elder had truly set out to kill Kou Liang, he wouldn't have escaped to Baishi Lake, only to die from his wounds in the marketplace, leaving behind an intact body.

Previously, the only reason she had been fixated on avenging her father by targeting Blood Demon Elder was because she had needed a clear target for her revenge.

Simply killing a Qingye Snake wouldn't have satisfied her.

However, that didn't mean the Qingye Snake's death was insignificant.

"Uncle Wei truly was the benefactor who avenged my father… Please, do not refuse this acknowledgment."

Kou Hongying stood up and gave Wei Tu a deep bow, her attitude sincere.

Back then, when Kou Liang had died, it was Wei Tu who had suggested opening the coffin to extract blood, using the poisoned blood to track down the culprit.

Considering what had happened afterward—Wei Tu's encounters with Blood Demon Elder and Geng Wen—it was clear that everything he had done was not merely for appearances.

He had genuinely sought revenge for her father.

That alone was reason enough for her to be grateful.

Let alone the fact that Wei Tu had later killed both Geng Wen and the Qingye Snake, truly avenging Kou Liang.

"Very well." Hearing Kou Hongying's words, Wei Tu sighed softly and finally accepted the "debt of gratitude."

More than thirty years ago, when he had slain the Qingye Snake, he had not expected Kou Hongying to repay him—he had simply acted out of brotherhood, avenging Kou Liang's death.

Thus, he had never considered himself someone who was owed gratitude.

Even now, if Kou Hongying hadn't brought up this matter and forced him to correct his oversight, he wouldn't have mentioned it.

"Zhao Qingluo, the aphrodisiac incident…"

Unlike Kou Hongying, Wei Yan's focus wasn't on avenging Kou Liang.

Instead, she was far more interested in what had happened after Zhao Qingluo was drugged.

As a daughter, she was naturally more curious about her father's romantic history.

"If someone saved me, touched me… and that person wasn't bad, I'd probably offer myself in return…"

Wei Yan mused privately.

Even though Zhao Qingluo was a prodigy from an immortal clan, she didn't think her father was beneath her.

After all, both were Foundation Establishment cultivators, and Zhao Qingluo wasn't guaranteed to advance to Golden Core.

—Most prodigies from Golden Core families would ultimately peak at Foundation Establishment. Without a great opportunity, they had no chance of reaching the Golden Core realm.

"It seems there's a chance Zhao Qingluo could become our second mother in the future."

Wei Yan thought to herself.

Now that her mother had passed away, she did not resent the idea of Wei Tu finding someone new, nor did she hold any bitterness toward it.

As a husband, her father had already done everything possible—

All these years, he had never forgotten his wife, had never taken concubines or remarried. Even after her death, he had observed mourning for an entire year, despite his status as a Foundation Establishment True Person.

Wei Tu had no idea what Wei Yan was thinking.

He had never harbored romantic feelings for Zhao Qingluo.

Even if he did, even if Zhao Qingluo were willing to marry him, her arrogance and ignorance of the real world would make him retreat without hesitation.

Of course, when it came to remarrying, Wei Tu did not deliberately avoid the idea.

Everyone had emotions.

On the long road of immortal cultivation, if he found someone with whom he could share his burdens, remarrying was not out of the question.

Over eighty years ago, when First Madam Li Tongshi arranged for him to marry Xinghua, he had already awakened his Late Bloomer destiny.

But he had still chosen to go through with the marriage.

His reason for marrying Xinghua was simple—they had grown up together.

She had always taken care of him, and she was the person he was closest to in the world.

He was not someone with a cold, heartless nature.

Beyond that, there was another reason.

He did not believe in chasing unrealistic dreams.

To him, the right path was to focus on the present, to make the best of each stage of life.

That was the true way forward.

Time passed swiftly.

Another year had gone by.

Wei Tu completed his one-year mourning period.

"This place shall serve as the ancestral land of the Wei family. From now on, all future descendants of the Wei clan shall be buried here."

"Under the Nine Springs, your mother will be at ease, seeing her descendants flourish."

Standing in front of the gravestone, Wei Tu took a final look at the inscription before turning his gaze to the two figures standing behind him—Wei Yan and Wei Xiuwen. He solemnly gave them instructions.

"I understand, Father."

Wei Xiuwen stood respectfully, his face filled with remorse.

His mother, Xinghua, had once dreamed of witnessing a flourishing household—three generations together, then four, then five… watching the Wei family grow strong, spreading its branches far and wide.

But sadly, he had failed to fulfill that wish.

Decades had passed since he married Mei Zhen, yet he had not fathered a single child.

It wasn't because he was incapable.

Rather, as a cultivator, if Mei Zhen were to bear children, it would deplete her vitality and severely hinder her chances of advancing to Foundation Establishment.

Thus, he had postponed the matter time and time again.

There was also another reason.

Back when he had married Mei Zhen, the daughter of the Xia Ya Mei Clan, he had entered the Mei family as a son-in-law, rather than bringing Mei Zhen into the Wei family.

Any child he fathered would bear the Mei surname, not Wei.

"If Senior Wei is willing to join the Xia Ya Mei Clan as an honored guest elder, and allows Xiuwen to take a concubine, then perhaps… this issue could be resolved."

"Even his official status as a son-in-law could be reconsidered."

Standing nearby, Mei Yuanfeng, who had come to bid farewell to Wei Tu, suddenly saw an opportunity. He spoke up, carefully broaching the topic.

Times had changed.

Now that Wei Tu had achieved Foundation Establishment, the Wei family, despite lacking spiritual land, could still be considered a Foundation Establishment lineage.

Because of this, the Mei Clan's stance toward Wei Xiuwen had gradually shifted.

Some of the Mei family elders had already decided to allow Wei Xiuwen to choose the surname of his children—whether they would be Mei or Wei was now up to him.

If Wei Tu were to formally join the Mei Clan as an honored guest, Mei Yuanfeng was certain that his family would offer even greater concessions.

"I have already pledged myself to the Heshan Huang Clan as an elder."

"That will not change."

Wei Tu smiled slightly and shook his head.

His children would pave their own paths.

Wei Xiuwen had made the conscious choice to enter the Mei Clan and become a son-in-law. That had been his own decision.

Wei Tu would not interfere, nor would he sacrifice his own future for it.

Besides, even if he did not join the Xia Ya Mei Clan, his current status would allow him, at a reasonable price, to have his grandchildren bear the Wei surname if he wished.

There was no need to tie himself down to a declining clan.

"Mei Daoist, poaching a Heshan Huang Clan elder right in front of me—don't you think that's a little inappropriate?"

At that moment, a voice rang out.

Huang Changkong suddenly appeared, stepping in front of Mei Yuanfeng. He wore an amused smile.

"Heshan Huang Clan's Elder Huang Changkong?"

The moment Mei Yuanfeng laid eyes on this red-faced old cultivator, his expression changed dramatically, his heart pounding in alarm.

Among the seven great cultivation clans of Zheng Kingdom, the Heshan Huang Clan was a well-established force. Their Foundation Establishment elders were well known throughout the land.

Mei Yuanfeng had never expected that Huang Changkong would personally intervene just to ensure Wei Tu's loyalty.

To have gone to such lengths…

And to have been caught red-handed while attempting to recruit Wei Tu right in front of him.

Cold sweat dripped down Mei Yuanfeng's forehead.

"Huang Daoist, Mei Daoist is my in-law. There's no need to take this matter too seriously…"

Seeing the tension, Wei Tu took a step forward, attempting to diffuse the situation.

"Since Wei Daoist has spoken, I will let the matter slide."

Huang Changkong cast a sidelong glance at Mei Yuanfeng, his tone indifferent. With a flick of his sleeve, he withdrew the pressure of his spiritual aura.

"So this is the presence of a Foundation Establishment cultivator…"

Standing behind Mei Yuanfeng, Mei Zhen turned pale.

Before this moment, she had never fully grasped the significance of Wei Tu's advancement.

But today, she finally understood what it meant to be a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Her father, Mei Yuanfeng, a highly respected top-grade first-tier artifact refiner, trembled before a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

It was an undeniable hierarchical gap.

"From now on… I should start treating Xiuwen with more respect."

Mei Zhen thought to herself.

Though she was not overly domineering by nature, she had always relied on her Mei Clan's backing to exert her authority in her marriage.