Winter gave way to spring, yet within Su Min's small courtyard, the flames in her furnace had burned day and night without rest. As she had suspected, forging the Tiger Bone Ring proved exceptionally difficult and excruciatingly slow. Just refining the tiger skull alone had taken her more than three months—and still, it wasn't yet complete. Though she had stepped into the Qi Refining stage, it wasn't as if she could forge without end.
"Haaah..."
After what felt like an eternity, Su Min finally exhaled softly, extinguishing the furnace flame before carefully retrieving the tiger skull from within. The bone, once the size of a full-grown beast's head, had now been condensed to about the size of a basketball. Though the smaller it became, the more arduous the refining, she had, at last, completed seventy to eighty percent of the process.
"In the game, forging a single artifact might casually take two or three years of in-game time," Su Min mused.
Back then, refining in the game was merely watching a progress bar fill before skipping forward in time. Players hardly felt the passage. But this was no mere game—it was a real grind, every second dragging out the torment. Fortunately, her alchemy skills had seen notable improvement. Thanks to the assistance of her furnace and accumulated experience, her speed in pill refining had vastly increased. She could now complete a batch of Detoxification Pills in just half a day.
This past winter had been particularly brutal. Several nearby villages suffered heavy losses, with many succumbing to the cold. The mountain folk, long accustomed to tropical climes, were ill-prepared for such harsh winters. The young and healthy fared better, but the elderly, the sick, and the frail fell in droves. Even if Su Min had lived among them, she might not have been able to save them all.
The devastation wrought by General Winter was beyond words.
The only silver lining was that the mountains were rich in timber. Although the local chieftains ruled harshly, the territories they controlled were sparse and the population precious. Thus, they did attempt remedial measures. Still, most who perished were the old and infirm. Compared to the mountains, the situation in Great Wei was far grimmer.
Take, for instance, Lan Ningsheng, who was currently seated across from Su Min, casually chatting. He was the same envoy from the Fuding Merchant Guild who had visited last time. With the mountain paths finally reopened, he had returned, bringing a large shipment of medicinal herbs.
Among the goods were not only the materials Su Min had ordered for her pills but also a bounty of rare, high-grade spirit herbs the merchants themselves barely understood. These were offered as compensation—for, in all the lands, she alone remained the only true alchemist.
"Fairy Su, your Black Jade Bone-Mending Ointment sold out instantly. As for the Detoxification Pills—" Lan Ningsheng shook his head in awe. "They were snatched away by nobles who traded treasures far beyond mere gold. The Prince Fu was so pleased that he emptied his entire medicinal stockpile. We handpicked every herb, ore, and spirit wood with any hint of spiritual energy and brought them here. This time, we hope Fairy Su might refine several more batches of Detoxification Pills."
"Very well," Su Min replied simply.
Flipping through the materials he had brought, she noted that beyond spiritual herbs, there were ores and spirit woods she would likely need in the future.
~Edit and rewritten by Rikhi, Reiya_Alberich, ReiNyam~
Such things were beyond the reach of mere money—clearly, this was the accumulation of many years from a princely household. This time, Su Min didn't bother hiding her abilities. With a casual wave of her hand, the mountain of supplies disappeared into thin air.
"What—what is this?!" Lan Ningsheng leapt to his feet, staring in disbelief.
Though he had seen much in his travels, never had he witnessed such a spectacle.
"A spatial ring. Interested?" Su Min said lightly. "Since you brought me so many fine things this time, I can craft one for you."
Su Min had chosen not to conceal her storage ring because—well, she couldn't keep it hidden forever. There was no point in hiding it anymore. Spatial rings required rare materials; refining them was far easier compared to the Tiger Bone Ring. With the current shipment, she could make seven or eight—though their capacity would pale in comparison to her system-granted ring. (Roughly 1.5m × 1.5m × 1.5m.)
"Then... my deepest gratitude." Lan Ningsheng said at once, hardly bothering to conceal his joy.
"By the way, how fares Sect Master Zhao these days?" Su Min asked.
At her words, Lan Ningsheng's expression grew heavy, and he let out a long sigh.
"This year's snows sealed off the mountains, and Great Wei fared no better. Even before the disaster in Minshan had settled, refugees were flooding the lands. The great cold, ironically, solved that problem for the officials. Over ninety percent of the refugees perished, and countless farmers along with them. Now, Great Wei is strewn with corpses. Nightfall is livelier than the day."
Tch.
Su Min clicked her tongue but said no more.
"To deal with the chaos, the Emperor of Great Wei formed the Demon-Slaying Division. Though in name they hunt demons, in truth their duty is to monitor the provinces and crush any sign of rebellion. Sect Master Zhao ventured into the capital last month, employing every means to uncover a critical truth."
"What truth?" Su Min asked, her voice calm.
"The Demon Queen... she cannot stray too far from the Emperor, and the Emperor dares not leave the safety of the palace. Thus, unrest grows unchecked in the provinces. As for the Demon-Slaying Division—" At this, Lan Ningsheng grimaced in disgust. It was a long moment before he forced out the words:
"They are composed almost entirely of abominations—monstrous beings that Sect Master Zhao once slew in droves. Alas, after confirming this intelligence, Sect Master Zhao himself fell. Without his banner, the martial world is scattered, unable to unite."
"It seems," Su Min mused, "the fall of Great Wei has yet to reach its destined end."
After pondering briefly, Su Min said no more. She signaled for Lan Ningsheng to take his leave; she needed time to refine both the pills and his spatial ring. As for the so-called Demon-Slaying Division, she knew of it.
Compared to demons, it was humans who posed the greater threat to emperors. Demons had little interest in human thrones. But humans... humans would stop at nothing for power and crown. Thus, emperors always struck hardest at their own kind. For Su Min, crafting these items would take no more than a week.
She quickly sent Lan Ningsheng on his way. After all, spirit herbs still needed time to grow, and the world had yet to reach the age of abundant spiritual medicine. As for the profit they might make later—Su Min couldn't care less. Among the materials they gave her was even a rare spirit herb she needed for her own cultivation breakthrough. Not that she was in a hurry. Her foundation still required further tempering before she could advance.
However—
Just as she was peacefully cultivating today, a few unfamiliar auras invaded the mountain. Their foulness made her skin crawl, and they were heading directly toward her courtyard.
"Filthy pests," she muttered coldly. "And their strength isn't bad either. Had I still been stuck at the peak of the Body Tempering stage, I would've been in real danger."
Narrowing her eyes, Su Min slowly rose to her feet, senses sharp as blades. Two enemies at the peak of Body Refining. Three at the mid-stage.
Back in the early days, facing them would have been a death sentence. After all, as a transmigrated player, she had barely begun to form her own cultivation system—divine abilities, martial skills, magical treasures... everything was still in its infancy.