Slurp—
"Here, these are the pills you wanted."
With a casual flick of her wrist, Su Min tossed a heap of pill bottles before the two stunned men.
Though the materials they provided were only enough for one batch of Foundation Establishment Pills, there were plenty of ingredients for Qi-Introduction Pills and Qi-Gathering Pills. The sheer number of pills she had just dumped in front of them left the two men momentarily speechless.
"This… this many?!"
The Prince Yong brothers were utterly dumbfounded. Seeing such mountain of elixirs, thrown at them made their heads spin. Of course, they didn't know that Su Min had kept half for herself. There were dozens of Qi-Inducing Pills and over a dozen Qi-Gathering Pills. The quantity alone made their hearts tremble—this was enough to push over a dozen Body-Forging late-stage cultivators into the Qi-Refining stage! Back in the day, only a handful of people would have even qualified to take them.
But now, they could easily find over a hundred candidates. And the Qi-Gathering Pills? Those could immediately raise a Qi-Refining cultivator's level by one stage—though the best time to take them was during mid-stage Qi-Refining.
And then there was the real heavyweight—three whole Foundation Establishment Pills! These alone could solidify Prince Yong Manor's power. The only pity was that, for now, no one was qualified to take them.
"…Could you… forge a set of armor?" asked Cao Yuanmu, carefully. His eyes glimmered with hope, unable to hide his greed. He still hadn't forgotten the sight of Su Min's radiant glazed armor. It had left him salivating.
"No," Su Min rejected flatly. "There's not enough material. The base of this armor was crafted from a rare beast—its body contained an exceptionally flexible metal. Without that exact material, I can't recreate it."
Her refusal came swift and absolute. Forging armor wasn't a game—it devoured resources like a starving beast. Even though Prince Yong Mansion had amassed decent materials, they didn't come close to what's required for armor of that caliber. There was simply no helping it. Treasure-grade armor was far too valuable. Whether it was the cost in materials or the skill of the smith, the requirements were sky-high.
"Well… no rush, I suppose."
Cao Yuanmu sighed. He knew how difficult it was to craft such armor. He still remembered the naked envy in the eyes of the Flame and Earth Elders when they saw Su Min's armor—whereas they had barely batted an eye at his own weapon. He understood just how precious and powerful armor like that was. Su Min's instant refusal made it clear: if she could make it, she would've negotiated terms rather than outright dismissing the idea.
As for that "special monster," he had heard about it from Hui Ming.
"Senior, about that secret realm you mentioned last time—we've investigated, and the spatial and energy fluctuations there are extremely intense. A high grade secret realm is about to descend. We'd like to invite you to lead an expedition. Of course, all materials found will belong to you, and you'll have first access to any techniques or manuals."
Cao Yuanming brought up another matter—the secret realm.
Since Su Min was the only one who could effectively refine materials into powerful pills, letting her take them all wasn't a loss. After all, a single Foundation Establishment Pill was worth more than a hundred rare herbs combined. As for techniques and manuals, Su Min was alone. Once she read them, she wouldn't have much use for them, and as long as their people contributed, she wouldn't hog everything.
~Edit and rewritten by Rikhi, Reiya_Alberich, ReiNyam~
More importantly, the secret realm is near Prince Yong Manor's territory—which they now controlled. If another rampaging Foundation Establishment-level beast emerged like last time, they'd be in deep trouble. The energy fluctuations this time were even stronger—who knew what kind of dangers lurked inside?
Last time, Hui Ming had to forcibly break through to Foundation Establishment to deal with it. But this time, whatever was inside might be beyond his capabilities. Though Su Min was only at the early Foundation Establishment stage, the two monks had already given them a glimpse of just how terrifying her combat prowess was.
"Fine."
Su Min nodded. The current state of Great Wei was unpredictable, and having reliable allies wouldn't hurt. Unlike weapon-forging materials, medicinal herbs were fragile—if a fight broke out, she'd need backup to secure them. More importantly, she was looking for a specific material—one crucial for killing a certain Demon Queen.
"And maybe I can refine my weapon again while I'm at it…"
Su Min glanced down at her sword. Advancing from Yellow-rank to Mystic-rank was a massive leap, requiring rare and powerful materials—most of which couldn't be found in the wild. If she wanted to upgrade her weapon, the only option was to search ruins like this one.
These so-called ancient mansions might be treacherous for locals, but for a player like her? They were just minor dungeons. The real threats—the ones that made even seasoned players shiver—were the fixed, high-difficulty secret realm. Each one promised unimaginable fortune, but also came with grave peril. So bringing a few locals wouldn't be a problem. Besides, with her treasure-grade armor and the Nanming Lihuo, she could escape almost anything if things turned sour.
"We still have about two weeks. In the meantime, distribute these pills. Boost your men's strength as much as you can. I may not be able to protect everyone once we're inside."
"Understood."
The brothers nodded immediately. They weren't short-sighted. Elixirs were only useful if properly utilized. Letting them sit in storage was meaningless. Even if Cao Yuanmu was still a step short of Foundation Establishment, there was no telling what they might find in the ruin—he might just take that final step.
"Yaaawn… I've been in closed-door cultivation for twenty years. It's time for me to enjoy a good meal."
Su Min stretched lazily, her voice trailing off with a hint of fatigue. She was more than ready to indulge herself. Even though she cultivated the Great Sun Tathagata Scripture, it never imposed strict ascetic rules.
She saw no reason to deny herself food and drink. Eat when hungry, drink when thirsty—and then return to tempering the heart. With just a few flashes of movement, she disappeared without a trace, leaving behind two very excited men in the great hall.
One thing was certain—the strength of Prince Yong Mansion was about to surge once more.