Prince Yong fell into a heavy silence at Su Min's blunt assessment. The truth was, he had no other real choice. She was the only alchemist he knew of capable of refining such potent, life changing pills, and their miraculous effects were unquestionable, proven by the very experts now standing guard behind him.
"We have not yet confirmed the specific details of those two pieces of information you requested," Prince Yong admitted, his tone pragmatic. "But we do have a preliminary stockpile of Grade 3 medicinal ingredients gathered for you. However, you must understand, these materials are extremely rare. Even for an organization with our reach, gathering them in meaningful quantities takes considerable time and resources. Furthermore, we still have to hand over a significant portion of our findings to the imperial court as tribute."
He clapped his hands twice. On cue, several attendants entered the hall, carrying a collection of ornate sandalwood and jade boxes which they carefully placed on the low table before Su Min. The mention of handing over a portion to the court was an expected reality. After all, the Fuding Merchant Guild was, on official record, under Prince Fu's jurisdiction, so a substantial share of all rare goods had to be given as a political tribute to avoid suspicion.
"Seems you came prepared," Su Min remarked, her eyes critically scanning the unopened boxes as if she could see through the wood. "Though the quantity, frankly, is not exactly impressive."
With a casual flick of her wrist, a soft glow emanated from her ring, and she stored all the ingredients directly into her spatial storage, leaving only the empty boxes behind. Her ring served as the perfect, timeless preservation chamber, so there was no need for her to keep the external containers.
"There is no helping it. Authentic Grade 3 ingredients are scarce across the entire empire." Prince Yong let out a weary sigh, the sound of a man burdened by logistics and politics. "But about the matter of the Qi Inducing Pill…"
"Take it."
Su Min did not refuse or haggle further. It was true, the two specific intelligence reports she wanted were not ready, but the delivery of Grade 3 ingredients was a tangible down payment, and she could always use more high grade materials for her practice. However, just as she was about to hand the small porcelain bottle over, her hand paused in mid air. The sudden hesitation made Prince Yong and everyone in the room tense visibly.
"These ingredients you have provided are worth a small fortune," Su Min said slowly, her gaze shifting from the pill to Prince Yong. "Call the intended recipient over and have them take the pill right here, in front of me. I can at least supervise the initial process and ensure there are no… complications."
"Agreed."
Prince Yong nodded immediately, understanding the prudence of her request. The pill was far too valuable to be handled carelessly. Behind him, his two guards were practically vibrating with suppressed energy, their breathing heavy as they barely restrained their raw greed. Though the prince had privately promised them future pills, this first, available one could not go to mere bodyguards, no matter how loyal. They understood the political necessity, but the sight of the pill so close was a visceral torment.
"Summon Mu'er," Prince Yong commanded a servant at the door. "Tell him to come at once. This is his opportunity."
A trace of complex emotion, a mix of paternal hope and personal regret, flickered in the prince's eyes. He himself was an old man with a fixed, ordinary constitution and no hope of advancing past the Body Refining stage, so the pill was useless to him personally. But his son, his son still had a future. Soon, a young man in his early twenties, with sharp features and an alert demeanor, entered the room and bowed.
"He is not one of the ten candidates I originally selected for the Body Tempering Pills," Su Min noted silently. "But his innate talent is clearly exceptional. He must have entered the Body Refining realm directly through a Heavenly Revelation, a natural awakening. His cultivation is already at the peak of Body Refining. Not bad at all."
The young man was clearly on a different level compared to the two guards behind Prince Yong, his foundation far more solid and his potential far greater, making him infinitely more suited to consume the precious pill.
"Greetings, Father. And to this…"
The youth, bowed respectfully to Prince Yong, then turned, his words trailing off as he finally saw Su Min sitting so casually across from his father, leisurely sipping tea and nibbling on a delicate pastry. Her ethereal beauty, subtly enhanced by her formidable cultivation base and the faint, sacred aura from the Great Sun Tathāgata Sutra, made her an impossible presence to ignore.
Most people who regularly interacted with Su Min were either steadfast cultivators like Hui Ming, seasoned and calculating nobles, or those she had thoroughly traumatized in battle. They had all learned to keep their composure around her. But this young man was still in his hormonal prime, his life sheltered within palace walls. His breath hitched audibly, his eyes widened in stunned admiration, and for a long, awkward moment, he completely forgot how to speak.
"Mu'er!" Prince Yong barked, his face flushing with a mix of anger and embarrassment as he noticed Su Min's slightly twitching eyebrow. "Mind your manners! Pay your proper respects to your elder!"
The sharp paternal reprimand acted like a splash of cold water, snapping the youth back to reality.
"T-This junior greets Senior Su!" he stammered, bowing so deeply his forehead nearly touched the floor.
"Take it."
Su Min did not waste another second. With a deft flick of her fingers, she sent the glowing Qi Inducing Pill sailing toward him. Infused with a wisp of her spiritual energy, the pill did not fall but hovered serenely in mid air directly before the young man. The moment its rich, spiritually charged fragrance reached his nostrils, he felt the stubborn barrier within his dantian, the one he had been pounding against for months, tremble and weaken.
"Consume it now, Mu'er," Prince Yong urged, his voice tight with anticipation. "Do not delay. This pill cost your father a great deal to obtain from Senior Su."
"Yes, Father!"
Without a moment's hesitation, the young prince snatched the hovering pill and swallowed it whole. He then immediately dropped into a cross legged sitting position right there on the reception hall floor, his spiritual aura beginning to surge and churn violently around him. He was breaking through right then and there.
Gulp.
The two guards behind Prince Yong swallowed hard again, the sound loud in the suddenly tense silence. Their eyes burned with naked envy. All three of them were at the very peak of Body Refining, and watching someone else, especially someone younger, advance right before their eyes to the realm they desperately coveted was a special kind of agony.
"Do not fret," Prince Yong said without turning around, sensing their turmoil. "I gave you my word. I will secure a pill for each of you in time."
But his attention was already fully returned to his son. The world had fundamentally changed. Those without genuine cultivation would accomplish nothing of significance in the coming era. Among all his children, this son was the most talented, blessed with the strongest natural Heavenly Revelation. He was being meticulously groomed as the next heir, the future Prince Yong, for the prince himself was just an ordinary old man with a fixed mortal path. But his son, his son had genuinely stepped onto the immortal path. Greater strength, a vastly extended lifespan, and the power to shoulder the burdens of a turbulent future, it all hinged on moments like this.
"His talent really is quite impressive," Su Min mused, watching the spiritual vortex forming around the youth with clinical interest.
In truth, his natural aptitude even surpassed her own. Not that Su Min was weak, but a player's physiology was unique, a blank slate. No innate spiritual roots, no fixed elemental attributes, and most importantly, no truly impassable bottlenecks, only requirements to be met. Still, her raw cultivation speed was not exceptionally fast. Even now, with all her advantages, she was only at the mid stage of Qi Refining, though she was confident she could reach the late stage with a few more opportunities and resources.
"Didn't the game lore mention that players have a 'Chaos Constitution'?" she wondered idly to herself. "Is it something like the 'Chaos Body' from those xianxia novels, formless and able to encompass all?"
She quickly dismissed the philosophical tangent. Whatever her constitution was labeled, she would forge her own path regardless. She lacked nothing she truly needed, least of all time.
BOOM!
A deafening, internal explosion of spiritual energy erupted from the seated youth, a silent shockwave that was felt rather than heard. It sent everyone in the hall except for Su Min staggering back a step. The attendants gasped. Then, a new, stable, and overwhelmingly powerful presence filled the room, a realm of energy beyond Body Refining, one that even Su Min had to acknowledge as legitimate and solid.
Qi Refining.
The youth opened his eyes, which now gleamed with a sharp, clear light. He had done it. He had crossed the true threshold of immortality, and with it, gained the beginning of an extended longevity.