"Mu'er, take these two to the rear hall."
With a brief glance at the jade bottle in his hand, Prince Yong passed it to his son. Under the grateful gazes of the two men, he signaled for them to follow. They were to take the pills elsewhere, especially since Su Min was still seated nearby. It would be unwise to let her see too much.
Moments later, a wave of powerful spiritual pressure surged from the back of the hall. Only then did Prince Yong allow himself a relieved sigh. Three true Qi Refining cultivators now stood under his command. They weren't the useless so-called cultivators who had been casually slaughtered by Su Min earlier, but genuine warriors on the path.
With this new strength, his faction had taken a major step forward. Turning back to Su Min, he shifted the conversation to more urgent matters.
"Lady Su, the two items you seek... I'm afraid they are not within the borders of Great Wei. Otherwise, there would have been word long ago."
"Not in Great Wei?"
Su Min's brow twitched. A vague unease crept into her heart.
"They're likely in the northern plains. Even our reach can barely extend into that region. However, I did receive a report, though it hasn't been confirmed."
"What kind of report?" Her expression tightened further.
The territories of Great Wei were vast, yet its dominion did not encompass all. They had firm control over the most prosperous lands, but the south was guarded by rugged mountain ranges, the west by a sea of shifting dunes, and the north... the endless grasslands. These outer realms were unsuitable for farming, and so Great Wei had little hold over them.
"In the past decade, two top masters have emerged on the grasslands. They've spent ten years conquering the scattered tribes, and now… they're close to unifying the entire steppe." Prince Yong's expression darkened. "This is not good news for us."
"Two of them?" Su Min's stomach sank. She was starting to remember something.
"Yes. They are known as the Twin Elders of Flame and Earth. Over a year ago, they ventured deep into the heart of the plains. No one knows exactly what transpired, but they returned each wielding a powerful artifact attuned to their elemental affinities."
"Damn it. That's troublesome."
Su Min didn't doubt him for a moment. In the game world she remembered, those two were infamous mid-stage bosses. They appeared in a side quest most players avoided unless they wandered into the northern grasslands.
Avoiding them, however, came with consequences. Ignoring that quest led to an eventual invasion by the steppe tribes. Even with the Demon Queen defending the borders, Great Wei wouldn't fall outright, but huge territories would be lost. The fate of the civilians left behind was easy to imagine. One only needed to recall the chaos of the Five Barbarians and Sixteen Kingdoms era to know what that meant.
In the end, those two old monsters would be subdued by the Demon Queen and turned into late-game enemies. If intercepted early, though, they were still in the late Qi Refining stage. Once taken under her control, they would evolve further, eventually stepping into the Golden Core realm.
Even worse, their cultivation techniques allowed them to temporarily fuse their powers, forming a monstrous dual-force entity. Against that fusion, even a cultivator of equal level would struggle to survive.
Su Min had never planned to provoke them, but if the two Foundation Establishment materials she needed were truly in their possession, she couldn't afford to delay. Should they reach the Foundation Establishment stage first, seizing those items would become nearly impossible.
As for their origins, they were similar to the Demon Queen herself—ancient beings once sealed away. Their clans had been weak, and their seals incomplete, which allowed them to awaken decades earlier than expected.
Even so, after all these years, they had not advanced beyond late-stage Qi Refining. Their combat strength, however, was formidable. Their combined technique was particularly terrifying, enough to make even Su Min cautious.
"A pity," she murmured. "It seems battle is inevitable. They have no path to Foundation Establishment unless the Demon Queen aids them directly. That being the case, striking first is the best course."
Su Min fell into deep thought, weighing her options.
"Lady Su? Lady Su?"
Prince Yong's voice drew her back. He had a favor to ask. With the steppe tribes close to unification, their ancient instinct to march south would soon awaken. Yongzhou City, guarding the frontier between grassland and desert, would be the first to face the assault.
Even with three Qi Refining cultivators under his command, he felt no confidence. Too many reports hinted that the two elders had already reached the peak of Qi Refining.
Unless the Demon Queen herself took action, there was no one in Great Wei capable of stopping them—except for the woman sitting before him.
"War is coming, isn't it?" Su Min asked quietly.
"You've sensed it too, then."
"I understand what you're asking. The Twin Elders of Flame and Earth... fine, I'll handle them. But don't misunderstand, those two aren't beneath me in cultivation. Don't rely on your three new subordinates, and don't expect aid from the palace."
She wasn't exaggerating. Expecting that useless emperor to produce a Foundation Establishment cultivator in time was foolish. As for the Demon Queen, that was even less likely. Which meant the task would fall entirely on her shoulders.
She could walk away, but doing so would push the Heavenly Path of Foundation Establishment further out of reach. Those rare materials were true world treasures, the kind that appeared once in decades. Missing this opportunity could mean waiting another century. By then, the Demon Queen would be unstoppable. If Su Min remained in the Qi Refining stage, she wouldn't stand a chance.
Worse still, if she abandoned Yongzhou now, the three neighboring provinces would likely fall into chaos and slaughter. For her own sake, and for the sake of countless others, she had to act.
"Then I thank Lady Su for your aid," Prince Yong said solemnly.
"Don't thank me yet." Her tone turned cold. "Before I act, I must remain hidden. They must not learn of my power. In the meantime, spare no cost in gathering information on those two. If I am to face them alone, I need every possible edge."
She already knew much about their abilities from the game, but this wasn't a game anymore. Reality could change. In the original timeline, the Twin Elders never left their stronghold in pursuit of treasures, but perhaps this time, the lure of Foundation Establishment materials had drawn them out.
Besides, those items weren't just useful for cultivation. Even unrefined, they were valuable enough to serve as top-grade spiritual artifacts. Naturally, she wanted as much information as possible before acting.
In that old game world, weapon forgers were even rarer than alchemists. Many cultivators had been like Hui Ming of the desert—strong, yet poorly equipped. Su Min, however, wore full spiritual armor. Her odds weren't bad.
Even so...
"I'll have to be careful."