Xiantian Realm.
With his current strength, Wei Tu was confident that even if he didn't possess the skill to take an enemy general's head amidst a thousand troops, he could still stand against an entire battalion on his own with ease.
Wei Tu did not believe that other Xiantian martial artists, who had trained longer than he had, or even those so-called immortals, would be weaker than him or possess fewer techniques.
"The so-called immortals of Danqiu Mountain—are they righteous or evil? It's still unclear. If they turn out to be nothing but heretics and demons, rushing in blindly would be no different from throwing myself into a death trap."
"The most reasonable approach is to first consult the Xiantian martial artists in the government and gather some information."
His mind turned over these thoughts while flipping open the Introduction to Talisman Dao. Following the instructions on the immortal talismans, he channeled his Xiantian True Qi, guiding the surrounding spiritual energy to begin drawing talismans.
The Introduction to Talisman Dao was only a fragment of a book, containing records of just three types of immortal talismans.
These were: Water Flow Talisman, Earth Spike Talisman, and Calm Mind Talisman.
The Water Flow Talisman required water-attribute spiritual energy to craft, which Wei Tu lacked, so he turned his attention to the other two.
The Earth Spike Talisman aligned with his attributes, as it required earth-attribute spiritual energy.
Meanwhile, the Calm Mind Talisman could be drawn using any spiritual energy attribute.
After a moment's thought, Wei Tu attempted to draw the Earth Spike Talisman, carefully replicating the strokes described in the book.
Having memorized the patterns over the past few years, he had already practiced them countless times.
However, something unexpected happened.
As soon as he completed the talisman, it spontaneously combusted, igniting in a flash of light.
Seeing this, Wei Tu remained unfazed and continued his attempts to draw the Earth Spike Talisman.
But the results were the same.
Half a month passed.
By then, he had already drawn nearly seventy talismans, but every single one burned to ash the moment it was completed.
"Is it an issue with the talisman paper, vermillion ink, or brush? Or is my technique flawed?"
Wei Tu stroked his chin, pondering the root of his failures.
His best guess was that the talisman paper couldn't withstand the pressure of spiritual energy, which caused it to ignite.
When cultivating his immortal technique, he had sensed how powerful and forceful spiritual energy was. Without the protection of Xiantian True Qi, he would have likely suffered crippling injuries to his meridians.
And that was with his externally tempered Xiantian body—his meridians had already undergone years of refinement.
The same principle applied here.
Spiritual energy was something ordinary martial artists couldn't handle, so it was only natural that ordinary talisman paper couldn't withstand it either.
As for his talisman-drawing technique, he was quite confident there were no significant issues.
Wei Tu focused his consciousness, gazing at the golden brilliance of his Late Bloomer Destiny within his mind.
At that moment—
A new line of text appeared on his destiny inscription.
"Earth Spike Talisman (32/100): Five practices per day, mastery in seven years."
"Thirty-two percent progress—this is already the Minor Accomplishment stage. At this level, I should at least be able to successfully complete a few talismans..."
"After half a month of attempts, not a single one worked. This must be a materials issue."
Wei Tu shook his head.
A few days later.
Another gathering at Xuanhe Tower.
Just as Wei Tu was about to announce his breakthrough into the Xiantian Realm, Fu Zhizhou spoke first, revealing his own advancement.
Wei Tu was momentarily stunned but quickly swallowed his words, waiting for Fu Zhizhou to explain.
Previously, he had believed that Fu Zhizhou might surpass him in breaking through to Xiantian, but that was nine years ago.
Just four months ago, during their martial exchange, Fu Zhizhou had openly admitted that his martial true qi was still accumulating. He estimated that he needed at least one to two more years to fully gather it before he could begin nurturing Xiantian True Qi.
Yet now, in just four months—
His martial true qi hadn't even finished accumulating. How could he possibly have broken through to Xiantian?
Under Wei Tu's scrutinizing gaze, Fu Zhizhou explained, "I managed to break through because I obtained a Blood Food Pellet from Second Brother. With the help of that pellet, I reached the Xiantian Realm."
"Blood Food Pellet?"
Wei Tu furrowed his brows slightly but remained silent.
Everyone had their own choices to make.
The concerns he had about the Blood Food Pellet might not be significant in Fu Zhizhou's eyes.
After all, Fu Zhizhou wasn't like him—if Fu Zhizhou was unlucky, he might never reach Xiantian, not in a few years, not even in his lifetime.
From that perspective, obtaining the Blood Food Pellet and using it to break through was the right choice for him.
When compared to extending one's lifespan and securing future immortal encounters, the potential side effects of the Blood Food Pellet were insignificant.
"Congratulations, Fourth Brother."
Suppressing his inner thoughts, Wei Tu smiled and cupped his hands in congratulation.
The moment he spoke, Kou Liang and Wei Fei also snapped back to reality, following suit in offering their congratulations.
"When I received the Blood Food Pellet, I promised Second Brother that once I broke through to Xiantian, I would help him achieve the same if the opportunity arose…"
"I need to make this clear to all of you now."
"Otherwise…"
"If resentment festers between us in the future, it will not end well."
Fu Zhizhou's voice was calm but firm.
Hearing this, Wei Tu was slightly surprised.
He had not expected Fu Zhizhou to make such a promise to Wei Fei when he accepted the Blood Food Pellet.
But after his initial surprise, Wei Tu's gaze subtly shifted to observe Kou Liang and Wei Fei.
Fu Zhizhou knew about his martial cultivation, so when he spoke about "resentment," it wasn't directed at him—it was clearly aimed at Kou Liang, the most stagnant and least contributing of the four.
Among the four of them—
Wei Fei had provided two immortal cultivation manuals, giving them the chance to even pursue the path of immortality in the first place.
Wei Tu himself had the strongest martial foundation, frequently sharing his cultivation insights, which shortened the others' training time significantly.
Even the idea of sharing their cultivation techniques had originally come from him.
Fu Zhizhou, with his powerful family background and exceptional talent, had provided them with access to key connections—it was thanks to him that the other three had managed to secure official positions as eighth-rank military officers in the prefectural city.
But Kou Liang…
Had neither talent nor connections.
He contributed nothing to the group.
He was the only one who had gained everything without giving anything in return.
…
Under Wei Tu's gaze, Kou Liang's expression darkened, his head slightly lowered, lost in thought.
Meanwhile, Wei Fei was different—even though he tried to suppress his emotions, the joy in his heart was evident for all to see.
After all, this was the promise of a Xiantian Realm martial artist helping him break through—his chances of reaching Xiantian had significantly increased.
Seeing this unfold, Wei Tu hesitated.
Should he step in and salvage their alliance before it fractured?
Among the four of them—
Three had contributed; one had reaped the benefits for free.
Under such circumstances, their alliance was bound to fall apart eventually.
But then—
Wei Tu recalled what Fu Zhizhou had done years ago.
When Fu Zhizhou became an eighth-rank officer ahead of the rest, he hadn't abandoned them. Instead, he had provided them with key intelligence, allowing them to train in secret, prepare their armor, and get ready for future conflicts.
Kou Liang had taken advantage of them, yes—but not out of malice.
It was simply how things had turned out.
If today, they chose to abandon Kou Liang,
Who would be next?