"Of course it's true!"
Wei Fei said firmly.
"However…" He glanced at Kou Liang and Fu Zhizhou before pausing briefly and continuing, "Immortal cultivation techniques are too valuable and involve matters of longevity. I hope that before my three brothers see this manual, they will swear an oath—never to spread it beyond our circle."
Although he trusted Kou Liang and Fu Zhizhou to be cautious, he still had to guard against any potential mishaps.
Even if they wouldn't reveal the secret intentionally, there was always the possibility that they might share it with close relatives out of love and care.
If that happened, and the secret got out, as the ones who had shared the Immortal technique, they would be the first to face calamity.
This was not something to be taken lightly.
With an oath in place, at least there would be a psychological barrier.
Hearing this, Wei Tu immediately raised his right hand and swore, "I, Wei Tu, vow that if I leak this Immortal cultivation technique without discussing it with my sworn brothers, may I suffer a terrible fate."
After swearing his oath, Wei Tu spoke with conviction, "Big Brother, Fourth Brother, if we succeed in cultivating this technique and become true Immortals, we won't need to worry about revealing the secret and bringing trouble upon our loved ones."
"On the other hand, if none of us can successfully cultivate it, then passing it to others would be meaningless—they likely wouldn't succeed either."
After a brief exchange of glances, Kou Liang and Fu Zhizhou nodded. They no longer hesitated and followed Wei Tu's example, swearing their own oaths.
"This cultivation technique, like the matter of the Martial Luck Pavilion, is not something to be taken lightly. If it is leaked, and a Xiantian Realm master uses spiritual means to track it, even our families may not be spared…"
After making his oath, Fu Zhizhou sighed deeply.
Hearing this, Wei Tu and Wei Fei nodded.
Their willingness to share the Immortal cultivation technique was largely based on the trust established during their previous ordeal with the Martial Luck Pavilion.
Each of them had proven their intelligence and foresight in handling serious matters. They were not short-sighted fools.
At this point, Wei Fei no longer hesitated. He retrieved three booklets from his sleeve and placed them on the Eight Immortals Table.
Among the three, one had yellowed pages, while the other two were freshly copied.
"The yellowed booklet is the original. The other two are copies that Third Brother and I transcribed."
"Big Brother, Fourth Brother, take a look."
Wei Fei pushed the booklets toward Kou Liang and Fu Zhizhou.
"Alright."
Without further words, Kou Liang and Fu Zhizhou each picked up a copy and began reading attentively.
An hour passed.
As the sun neared the horizon, the two of them finally set the booklets down reluctantly.
"My Fu family has a secret internal energy cultivation technique passed down for generations. This manual is indeed different from those techniques… There is a high chance that Third Brother's judgment is correct—this is an Immortal technique."
Fu Zhizhou pondered for a moment before sharing his thoughts on the Five Yuan Spirit Body Manual.
Kou Liang, on the other hand, remained silent.
Although his family was relatively well-off, they were only wealthy commoners. He had struggled to afford external martial arts training—he had never even had the opportunity to see a true internal energy cultivation manual, let alone compare it to this one.
Seeing their reactions, Wei Tu seized the opportunity and asked, "This Immortal technique was obtained from a Martial Luck Pavilion martial artist named Xie Qing. Fourth Brother, since you participated in the campaign to eliminate the Martial Luck Pavilion's headquarters, do you know anything more about this matter?"
One of the reasons he had convinced Wei Fei to share the Immortal technique with their sworn brothers was because of Fu Zhizhou's higher official rank.
Since he had participated in the elimination of the Martial Luck Pavilion's headquarters, he likely had access to more inside information.
Exchanging information with him was certainly a worthwhile trade.
The name of the Iron Hammer Giant had already been learned when Wei Tu and the others interrogated the captured martial artists from Liu Family Fortress in Si Yang Town.
"Xie Qing?" Fu Zhizhou furrowed his brows upon hearing the name. He pondered for a moment before saying, "The headquarters of the Martial Luck Pavilion was led by a chief pavilion master, two deputy pavilion masters, twelve elders, and seven division heads."
"Among them, there were three high-ranking members with the surname Xie—one deputy pavilion master and two elders."
"If my guess is correct, this Xie Qing from the Si Yang Town division is likely related to them—either as a direct family member or a close affiliate."
The day before the assault on the headquarters, the Grand Governor of Southern Mountain Dao, Wang, had issued intelligence reports on the high-ranking members of the Martial Luck Pavilion, requiring all his elite guards to memorize them.
Now, that information proved useful.
"So, in other words, the rest of this Immortal cultivation technique might still exist with the three individuals you mentioned."
Kou Liang considered for a moment and drew a conclusion.
"Are they still alive?" He quickly followed up.
"They are dead." Fu Zhizhou shook his head, "Once Grand Governor Wang gave the order, the army swiftly besieged the Martial Luck Pavilion. No matter how skilled those three were, they had no chance of escape."
"Moreover, to ensure success, Grand Governor Wang specially invited three Xiantian Realm masters to participate in the operation."
Fu Zhizhou revealed this crucial piece of information.
Hearing this, Wei Tu and the others sighed inwardly.
If they had been able to track down those three high-ranking members of the Xie family, they might have had a chance to complete the Five Yuan Spirit Body Manual.
But with the news of their deaths, that hope was shattered.
At this point, Fu Zhizhou looked toward Wei Tu and said thoughtfully, "Most of the high-ranking members of the Martial Luck Pavilion were eliminated by those three Xiantian Realm masters. If Third Brother can reach the Xiantian Realm himself, we might have a chance to track them down and even gain access to other Immortal techniques."
He suspected that those three Xiantian Realm masters might also possess techniques similar to the Five Yuan Spirit Body Manual.
"Xiantian Realm?"
Wei Tu's heart stirred with excitement.
According to his Late Bloomer Destiny, if he trained in the Marrow Refining Sutra fifteen times a day, he would eventually achieve perfection in the technique and step into the Xiantian Realm.
Thirty years.
It was a long time, but not entirely unacceptable.
Furthermore, once he became a Xiantian Realm master, he would have a lifespan of two hundred years.
Subtracting the time it would take him to achieve that level, he would still have at least one hundred and fifty years to explore the path of Immortality.
In addition, although he had not yet made progress in cultivating the Earth Yuan Body of the Five Yuan Spirit Body Manual, that did not mean he would remain stuck for the next thirty years.
After this discussion, the four of them continued refining their approach to cultivating this Immortal technique and established three official oaths to bind them together.
Every June 13, the four of them would reunite at Xuanhe Tower to share insights on their cultivation progress.
This exchange would not be limited to the Immortal technique but would include all martial and strategic advancements.
If someone made a breakthrough, they wouldn't need to wait until June 13—they were to send word immediately to the others.
In addition to training in the Immortal technique, each of them would use their positions to gather intelligence on Immortal legends.
They would document their findings and share them with the group, ensuring they were all well-informed.
If any of the four were to die unexpectedly without revealing the Immortal technique, the remaining three would be responsible for caring for the deceased's descendants.
Furthermore, if any of their descendants proved to be worthy, they could be accepted into their sworn brotherhood and taught the Immortal technique.
After finalizing these three oaths, the four of them exchanged glances and laughed before raising their cups in a toast.
They all understood that while their last gathering at Xuanhe Tower had solidified their trust, today's meeting, where they shared an Immortal technique, had truly cemented their brotherhood.
From now on, they were no longer just brothers in name, but brothers in fate.