I am a Late Bloomer in the Immortal World

The Liu Yu Daoist was strong, but compared to Senior Brother Zhang, he was clearly inferior.

Senior Brother Zhang was only one step away from the late-stage Nascent Soul. Not only that, he had refined a “second Nascent Soul,” making his body host to two infants.

Two against one.

Qi Chengchu never once believed the Liu Yu Daoist could be Senior Brother Zhang’s match.

With that confidence, Qi Chengchu stopped hesitating. Enduring his injuries, he released the Earth Escape Technique, rising from the depths of the ground to face Wei Tu from afar.

"Fellow Liu Yu Daoist, I, Qi, have never wronged you. Why must you pursue me so relentlessly?"

He fought while speaking, hoping to delay for as long as possible.

But to Qi Chengchu’s disappointment, Wei Tu was just like the majority of the old devils—unyielding, ruthless, not arrogant but precise. He ignored the question entirely, not wasting even a moment on words.

"Too strong!"

After just a few exchanges, Qi Chengchu already felt himself faltering, his law body swaying and nearly breaking apart.

If it had been an ordinary Nascent Soul elder—even at mid-stage—he would not have been forced into such a sorry state.

But Wei Tu was nothing like the rest.

Each casual strike from him carried power near the peak of mid-stage Nascent Soul. If he attacked with full force, it could even reach late-stage Nascent Soul levels.

That kind of strength was something a “false Nascent Soul” like Qi Chengchu could not possibly endure.

Every collision left waves of force that tore into his law body again and again.

'What do I do? What do I do?'

Panic surged once more. He could clearly sense that in his current condition, he could last no more than one or two breaths before his death.

But at that moment—

The Five-Element Infant within his body no longer stood with him. The tiny five-colored figure wore a look of urgency. Its delicate white infant hands tore open his dantian, ripping straight out of his abdomen in a spray of blood.

"Qi Chengchu, don’t worry. Senior Brother Zhang will avenge you. You can’t escape death now. Better I run first than for both of us to die together."

Like lightning, the Five-Element Infant shot free. By the time it finished speaking with a chilling laugh, it was already gone without a trace.

"How… could it be… like this…"

In that instant, Qi Chengchu’s mana collapsed. His eyes went blank. He looked down once at the gaping wound in his abdomen, blood pouring endlessly, before falling headfirst into the sea.

Blood instantly dyed the waves red.

Wei Tu had no time to bother with his fate. The moment the Five-Element Infant fled, he cast the Curse Ghost Blood Escape Art, chasing after it at once.

At the same time, he casually opened his spirit beast pouch. Out flew the Wind Cleaving Eagle, long awakened from years of slumber, diving straight toward the gravely injured Qi Chengchu.

To Wei Tu—

Killing the Five-Element Infant was most urgent, but he had no intention of letting Qi Chengchu slip away either.

"Liu Yu Daoist! I’ve already abandoned Qi Chengchu. My Nascent Soul has left my body… with your strength, catching me is nothing more than a fool’s dream."

"When I report this to the ancestor, your death will be certain!"

The Five-Element Infant’s face twisted with venom, its tone wild and arrogant.

Yet before it could even finish—

The fleeing Five-Element Infant froze, its eyes flashing with disbelief.

Because the Wei Tu who should have been behind him, far outpaced, was suddenly right in front of him, blocking his path.

"Impossible!" The Five-Element Infant’s shrill scream pierced the air like a bat’s cry, sharp and grating.

It quickly formed a hand seal to flee in another direction.

But without warning, a haze of gray light appeared all around him, locking him tightly in place.

"Yuan Gravity Light?" The Five-Element Infant’s knowledge was sharp; it recognized the divine ability in an instant.

But recognizing it did nothing to help. He had no way to break free.

In the very next moment—

Wei Tu raised a black banner nearly a zhang long in his hand. With a single sweep, the Five-Element Infant was sucked into the foreign dimension hidden within it.

"Never thought killing Qi Chengchu and the Five-Element Infant would be this easy."

Seeing the Five-Element Infant trapped, Wei Tu raised his brow in surprise. He had expected tonight to be a bitter fight, like when he faced the Liu Yu Daoist.

But instead, it had been a crushing battle, sweeping aside all resistance.

Qi Chengchu and the Five-Element Infant—one man, one infant—were pitifully weak.

Just then, Wei Tu sensed the Nascent Soul evil spirits sealed within the Soul-Refining Banner stirring with greed, their hunger directed at the Five-Element Infant.

—They wanted to devour it as blood food.

After all, Ancestor Chìlóng had vanished nearly 500 years ago. In those 500 years, they had received no nourishment, and their hunger had turned their eyes green.

"Once the Evil Spirit Control Law is mastered and I’ve searched the Five-Element Infant’s memories… only then may you devour it."

Wei Tu shook his head, calming the spirits within the banner as its master.

After that, he did not linger. With a flick of his sleeve, he sped back toward the battlefield.

At the same time, he began discussing matters with Ancestor Chìlóng.

First, how to handle the aftermath of Qi Chengchu’s death.

Second, the marriage of Wang Sutai.

The aftermath was simple enough.

As long as Madam Jin and her daughter remained inside the Myriad Yin Sect, even if Ancestor Tianxie himself came, he could not touch them.

All that was needed was for Wei Tu to leave a letter warning them of the danger.

Neither Wei Tu nor Ancestor Chìlóng believed Madam Jin and her daughter would be foolish enough to leave the sect and walk into a trap.

If they truly did so, then as Ancestor Chìlóng stated—it would be their own death, and not even immortals could save them.

Unlike the righteous path, Ancestor Chìlóng was not softhearted. He would never waste thought on fools.

But the second matter—Wang Sutai’s marriage—was far trickier.

Wei Tu could not say outright that he planned to take all the benefits and then renege, refusing to marry her.

After all, Ancestor Chìlóng had just given him both the Soul-Refining Banner and the Evil Spirit Banner Control Law. To betray him immediately would be improper.

Some courtesy was required…

"I’ll remain in Myriad Yin Sect for another two years. If the Seventh Young Lady and I are not suited… then it will end there."

Wei Tu had already calculated the time he needed to refine the Fourth-Tier Tai Sui Stone and used that as a polite excuse.

Hearing this, Ancestor Chìlóng agreed without hesitation. He knew well that a melon forced from the vine would never be sweet.

Forcing Wei Tu into marriage with Wang Sutai would only breed resentment, and that would be disastrous for him.

Just then, the Wind Cleaving Eagle returned, swooping straight toward Wei Tu.

It first reported its success in finishing off Qi Chengchu.

Then it opened its beak and spat out a jade slip, passing it to Wei Tu.

"From Qi Chengchu?"

Wei Tu froze. He could sense Qi Chengchu’s mana still lingering on it.

That meant this was a freshly made slip, left behind only moments ago.

"As expected… once I released the Wind Cleaving Eagle, there was no way he wouldn’t see through my identity."

Taking the jade slip, Wei Tu saw the name "Wei Tu" written clearly inside. He shook his head slightly.

At that moment, he had faced a choice—either kill Qi Chengchu first before chasing the Five-Element Infant, or ignore him entirely and pursue the infant.

The choice had not been difficult.

The second path was clearly better.

It gave him the best chance to kill both man and infant quickly.

Even though his escape speed was far greater than the Five-Element Infant’s, wasting time would have given it enough distance to make capture nearly impossible.

So sending the Wind Cleaving Eagle to strike Qi Chengchu had been the only option.

In the end, Qi Chengchu had seen through his true identity, but it hardly mattered.

Qi Chengchu was now dead, his soul returned to the underworld.

"But why… before his death… would he leave this letter for me?"

Wei Tu frowned deeply, puzzled.