Cao Mi's injuries weren’t healed yet. Without using her Nascent Soul, her current combat power was only at the early Golden Core level.
So after so thought, Wei Tu also suppressed his cultivation to the Golden Core stage, deciding to keep a low profile.
He took out his old first-tier flying boat, the "Huangyan Boat," called for Cao Mi, and together they left the deserted island.
During the trip, the two of them also divided up Master Hong Jing’s belongings evenly—fifty-fifty.
Among all of Master Hong Jing’s possessions, the only truly valuable items were two fourth-tier, lower-grade magic artifacts he had used during combat.
One was a jade hook that could reflect attacks and serve both offensive and defensive purposes.
The other was a treasure mirror that released a binding mystic light.
Since Wei Tu already had the Yuan Gravity Light, he didn’t need another artifact of the sa type, so he naturally chose the jade hook.
Cao Mi didn’t raise any objections to his choice.
First, the two artifacts were about equal in value. No matter which one she got, she wouldn’t be at a loss.
With the Heavenly Moon Wheel for offense, she was better suited to take the mirror with its binding abilities, which would enhance her combat options at the Nascent Soul stage.
Second, in their fight to kill Master Hong Jing, Wei Tu had done most of the work.
Without him, she wouldn’t have been in any position to talk about dividing loot. She would’ve been lucky just to stay alive.
So even if Wei Tu had taken both artifacts, Cao Mi wouldn’t have thought his actions were wrong or unfair.
...
One thing at a ti.
Wei Tu's most pressing matter now was to get the Condensing Soul Pill from Yuānjūn Island and advance to the fourth stage of body refinent.
Only then, with his strength greatly improved, could he think about helping Moon Condensation Palace and possibly rescuing Ancestor Luo, who had "likely" fallen into the hands of the Yin Ghost Sect.
Cao Mi clearly understood the stakes. She didn’t hesitate and chose to side with Wei Tu, following his lead.
After all, given her current strength, no matter how much she sched, she wouldn’t be able to contribute much to the rescue.
Besides, grabbing the Condensing Soul Pill was already the first goal they had agreed on while still in the Great Cang Immortal Realm.
Now, she was simply sticking to their original plan.
As for the route to Yuānjūn Island, Wei Tu had already searched Master Hong Jing’s soul and found the general direction. But the exact location wasn’t clear.
So while steering the flying boat, he deliberately chose a relatively large spirit island along the way, intending to gather so intel there before continuing.
"Junior Sister Cao is stunning, but… being with like this will probably attract so trouble," Wei Tu said before landing, glancing at her face and propping his chin thoughtfully.
Although her looks weren’t as breathtaking as Fu Linglong’s—Liao Prefecture’s top beauty—Cao Mi was still elegant and beautiful, with a cold charm.
That kind of face, paired with her cool aura, was bound to draw attention from lecherous cultivators.
"Looks?" Cao Mi blinked, confused at first.
After all, she’d always shown her bare face and had never stirred up trouble because of it.
But in just a mont, she realized the situation had changed.
She was no longer the lofty palace master of Moon Condensation Palace, but a nobody in the overseas cultivation world.
Here, with no backing and low cultivation, beauty was a liability.
With this face, even if she wanted to stay low-key, it wouldn’t be easy.
"Thank you, Daoist Brother Wei, for the reminder."
Cao Mi was practical. After thanking Wei Tu, she imdiately cast a disguise spell, turning herself into a plain-looking woman with freckles.
Seeing this, Wei Tu nodded in approval, then waved his sleeve and brought the flying boat down.
The island they were headed for was called Qingbie Island.
It was a small spirit island, classified as a second-tier island in the overseas cultivation world.
It belonged to a quasi-Nascent Soul power—the Chen family of ishan Island—who had taken control of the island over three hundred years ago.
At first, the population here was mixed. But after three centuries of growth, most of the mortals and cultivators on the island were now mbers of the Chen clan.
Wei Tu gathered all this information within half a day of arriving.
Just like the old Huang family of Heshan—
Large cultivation families ran like miniature societies, with shops and all kinds of low-level craftsn, fully self-sufficient.
But since Qingbie Island wasn’t the Chen family’s core territory, it was still open to outsiders.
"Qiyan Island? So that wasteland is called Qiyan Island."
In the market district on Qingbie Island, inside a general store, Wei Tu held a sea chart and stared at a small yellow dot in the southwest corner, muttering to himself.
The "Qiyan Island" he ntioned was the sa deserted island that housed the spatial tunnel—a midway point connecting two major cultivation realms.
After getting the chart, he couldn’t wait to figure out where he currently was and match it to the location and na of the deserted island.
Just as he’d expected, in the eyes of the overseas cultivators, Qiyan Island was just another barren, spiritual energy–lacking rock. It was no different from the countless other uninhabited islands scattered across the sea.
"But… why aren’t Yuānjūn Island and Wàngxī Island on this chart?"
Wei Tu furrowed his brow, lost in thought.
He didn’t believe that Master Hong Jing’s soul had the power to deceive him with fake information.
The more likely explanation was that Yuānjūn Island and Wàngxī Island were simply beyond the scope of this map.
Master Hong Jing had said it himself—Yuānjūn Island was the capital of the Eastern Hua Demon Kingdom.
Based on that detail, Wei Tu believed there was little chance that Master Hong Jing had lied.
Wei Tu closed the sea chart in his hand, walked to the counter, and asked, "Shopkeeper, do you have a chart that covers a wider area? Hmm… a complete map of the Red Algae Sea Region?"
"A complete map of the Red Algae Sea Region?"
The shopkeeper looked surprised and gave Wei Tu a quick glance. "Fellow Daoist, a full map of the Red Algae Sea Region isn’t sothing a small store like mine would carry. Even the main family might not have one."
He sounded surprised but didn’t overthink it. Wei Tu looked young, so he assud he was just a rookie who’d just stepped into the cultivation world. Though rare, people like Wei Tu did show up every now and then.
Wei Tu wasn’t shocked by that answer. As soone who had clawed his way up from the bottom, he’d encountered this kind of situation back when he had a low cultivation.
Just like in the Great Cang Immortal Realm, low-level cultivators had no access or opportunity to understand the full scope of their world. It was a kind of information cocoon deliberately created by higher-level cultivators to keep the weak in the dark.
Take the Zunwang Palace secret realm, for instance. If he hadn’t "stumbled upon" the Dragon Glaze Pearl, he probably wouldn’t have known about such a high-level secret realm until he reached the late Nascent Soul stage—if he even made it that far.
Still, he didn’t leave the store right away. After a short pause, he beca intrigued by the words "main family."
He figured that the "main family" the shopkeeper ntioned referred to the core lineage of the ishan Chen Clan.
What stood out was that the shopkeeper said the main family might not have the full map—but not that they definitely didn’t. That left room for possibility.
While not having the chart wouldn’t completely stop him in his tracks, getting it would definitely be helpful for future plans.
The ishan Chen Clan, being a Golden Core family, had a decent chance of getting access to common knowledge at the Nascent Soul level of the cultivation world.
Still, it was obvious that a full regional sea chart would be considered a precious item by the Chen Clan—sothing they wouldn’t just hand over to outsiders.
Of course, if Wei Tu revealed his true cultivation level, it wouldn’t be too hard to get the map from them.
But here was the problem—
He and Cao Mi had just arrived in the overseas cultivation world. Cao Mi was seriously injured. In this situation, they couldn’t afford to draw too much attention.
Just as Wei Tu was considering his next move, a rough voice suddenly rang out behind him.
"Old Man An, your cultivation’s already crippled. Why are you still holding onto that third-tier sea beast demon core? You might as well sell it to and get yourself so spirit stones to spend."
"I hear your grandson’s at the late Qi Refinent stage and about to hit Foundation Establishnt. No Foundation Establishnt Pill? Let’s see how he breaks through."
Wei Tu blinked at the voice, then spread out his divine sense and scanned the street. He quickly locked onto the elderly man called "Old Man An" and understood what was going on.
Apparently, Old Man An had suffered so injury that knocked his cultivation from Golden Core down to Foundation Establishnt. Now, he was being pushed around by so familiar faces trying to strong-arm him into selling his things.
Normally, this kind of drama wasn’t sothing Wei Tu would care about. But this ti was different.
He happened to need a Golden Core-level guide.
Even so, Wei Tu didn’t rush to step in. Instead, he pretended to be browsing other wares in the shop while keeping a close eye on what was happening outside.
...
Out in the street—
Faced with the aggressive demands of several old acquaintances, Old Man An stood his ground without budging.
He gave a few cold laughs and snapped back, "I still have a few minor connections with the main family. Normally, I don’t rely on them. They won’t waste resources just to help recover my cultivation."
"But if you lot try to snatch my demon core by force, they’d have every reason to intervene and support . Getting justice for wouldn’t be a problem."
"And while they’re at it, they could pocket a few spirit stones for their trouble."
That shut them up fast.
The n threatening him exchanged awkward glances and fell silent. They weren’t stupid—they knew what Old Man An said was probably true.
After all, who wouldn’t take an easy win with fa and profit both?
"Get lost!"
Seeing them cowed, Old Man An relaxed a little. Then his expression turned icy as he said those two words slowly and clearly.
As soon as the words left his mouth, the n scattered like frightened birds, fleeing the street in a panic.
"That was close. Good thing they didn’t know I’m not actually on good terms with those Chen bastards."
Old Man An returned ho, shut the courtyard gate behind him, then leaned against the doorfra. A bitter smile crept onto his face as he sighed to himself.
What he’d said earlier wasn’t wrong, but he knew that if he really went to the "friends" he had on ishan Island for help, they’d probably just mock him instead.
As for sharing profits...
A few Foundation Establishnt cultivators’ worth of spirit stones wasn’t even worth a Golden Core True Lord’s attention.
Worst-case scenario, those thugs were still mbers of the Chen family and had blood ties to the main branch on ishan Island. Why would they face serious punishnt?
Luckily, those guys lacked insight. A little bluff was enough to scare them off—for now.
"But things can’t go on like this," he muttered. "Those guys might not dare make another move, but if soone from the main bloodline shows up..."
"And to be fair, they weren’t wrong. Jiuyuan really is reaching the point where he needs to advance to Foundation Establishnt."
Old Man An furrowed his brow.
He could scare off a few collateral family Foundation Establishnt cultivators by na-dropping Golden Core elders, but that wouldn’t work against soone from the main bloodline.
After all, ‘an innocent man gets blad just for carrying treasure.’
Even though the sea beast demon core in his hands wasn’t incredibly valuable, it was still enough to make a core-lineage Foundation Establishnt cultivator co knocking.
Just as Old Man An was pondering how to sell the demon core without attracting greedy eyes, a calm and gentle male voice drifted into his ears.
"Looks like you’re not as confident as you made yourself out to be on the street just now."
"Who? Who’s there?!"
His expression changed instantly. Alert and wary, Old Man An scanned the courtyard.
Though this place couldn’t compare to the cave residences he used to live in at his peak, the formations here were still above second-tier. They were more than enough to keep out ordinary Foundation Establishnt or even Golden Core cultivators.
At the very least, no ordinary Golden Core could speak to him like that without being noticed.
As he looked around, his hand quietly moved to the storage pouch on his waist.
"No need to panic, Fellow Daoist An. I'm just a passing guest. I an you no harm."
"Besides, even if you wanted to do sothing to , with your current strength, you'd stand no chance."
The gentle voice ca again. But this ti, it wasn’t just a voice.
In a previously empty corner of the courtyard, a green-robed man appeared silently. He stood with a faint smile on his face, calmly watching the stunned Old Man An.
"You?" Old Man An recognized Wei Tu imdiately.
Although he hadn’t gone into the shop earlier, he had seen Wei Tu standing by the counter from the street.
And a cultivator’s mory far surpassed that of an ordinary person.
Even a single glance was enough—he hadn’t forgotten Wei Tu’s face.
'Where’s that woman in white?' He grew cautious. He rembered there had been an average-looking female Foundation Establishnt cultivator standing next to Wei Tu.
If she suddenly showed up and ambushed him, he’d probably die on the spot.
But the next instant, that thought vanished entirely.
The reason was simple—Wei Tu released his Nascent Soul pressure.
Under that oppressive might, how could Old Man An entertain such absurd thoughts? A Nascent Soul cultivator could wipe him out with a flick of the finger.
In fact, along with the panic, a hint of secret joy crept into his heart.
He considered this chance eting with Wei Tu a rare stroke of luck—a possible turning point for him.
After all, judging by Wei Tu’s deanor and aura, he didn’t seem like a bloodthirsty cultivator from a demonic sect.
"Senior, what are your orders?"
"If there's anything I can do, I’ll gladly oblige!"
Old Man An collected himself and offered a respectful salute, imdiately expressing his willingness.
"I’ve co from another sea region. This is my first ti in the Red Algae Sea Region, and I urgently need a complete sea chart. If you can provide it, I’ll reward you handsoly."
Wei Tu smiled and said casually.
He understood that the odds of Old Man An—a fallen Golden Core cultivator—having the full map were low.
Still, as soone in the superior position, it was enough to just ask. Whether or not Old Man An could fulfill the request was secondary.
There was no need to split the task—first looking for leads on the chart, then trying to obtain it.
"Another sea region?" Old Man An was slightly suspicious of Wei Tu’s origins. But since he couldn’t figure out why he wanted the map so badly, he didn’t dwell on it.
"Senior… I must be honest… I don’t have the full map of this sea region."
Old Man An wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and spoke the truth.
Wei Tu wasn’t surprised.
He gave Old Man An a brief glance and said flatly, "You may not have it, but do you have a way to get it? If you do, I don’t mind healing your injuries."
That wasn’t an empty promise.
Wei Tu had already scanned Old Man An’s injuries with his divine sense back in the shop.
Though serious, the damage hadn’t affected his Golden Core foundation. With his Nascent Soul-level skill, treating it wouldn’t be difficult.
If he hadn’t been confident…
Then he wouldn’t have approached Old Man An with a fair trade. He’d have gone straight to using hypnosis or soul-searching to extract the information.
When necessary, he wasn’t the type to be soft.
"What? You can heal my injuries?"
Old Man An’s eyes lit up instantly. If he could return to the Golden Core stage, all the humiliation and troubles he faced now would be nothing.
"But… who would have that kind of map?"
He hesitated.
Before, he had only been at the early Golden Core stage. As an outsider in the ishan Chen Clan, his position had never been high. It was nearly impossible for him to get his hands on such high-level intelligence.
Seeing him deep in thought, Wei Tu didn’t press. He stood quietly to the side, waiting patiently.
Compared to hypnosis, fair trade had its advantages.
It let a cultivator think actively, make connections, and pull together useful information on their own.
After all, the mory of an elderly cultivator was vast. Trying to piece together useful clues through soul-searching alone wasn’t easy at all.
About half an hour passed.
Finally, Old Man An recalled a possible way to get the Red Algae Sea Region’s full map.
"Back in the day, I once went out to sea with True Lord Tu Xuan to hunt sea beasts. At the ti, he led us deep into the far western sea."
"That area is rarely explored by cultivators from the Luojing Archipelago. But True Lord Tu Xuan found the sea beasts' locations without getting lost… I believe he must have a complete map."
Old Man An bowed deeply and spoke with sincere respect.
The Luojing Archipelago was a collective na for several islands like Qiyan Island, Qingbie Island, and ishan Island.
It covered a smaller area than the Red Algae Sea Region and belonged to it.
Wei Tu had already learned that when he entered Qingbie Island.
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