Sigh…
Su Min exhaled a long, deep breath, a stream of scorching air hissing between her lips. Her room was a shambles. Every potted plant had withered into a crisp, blackened husk under the intense, sustained heat. Parts of the wooden furniture and the few decorations she had were carbonized, their surfaces covered in a fine, gray ash.
The cause of the destruction hovered serenely in the air before her.
[Vermilion Bird's Flameblade / Nanming Lihuo Sword (High Yellow-tier) (Upgradable)]
Effects:
① Flame Resonance – Perfectly harmonized with the Vermilion Bird's flames, drastically amplifying their destructive power.
② Armor Piercer – Attacks gain enhanced penetration against spiritual defenses.
"It even has a name now, and the effects are fully manifested," she observed, a note of satisfaction in her voice. She reached out and took hold of the slender, crimson hued sword. It was warm and hummed gently in her grip. "It must be because I refined all the materials using my Nanming Lihuo."
The two effects were a perfect complement to her divine abilities. She knew most people's "Heavenly Revelations" granted them powerful cultivation techniques or unique combat skills. Hers, however, had been different from the start. They granted direct access to divine abilities themselves. While her current acquired abilities could not yet compare to true innate divine powers, she knew that with enough time and cultivation, they would eventually surpass them. Her chosen path was one of exponential growth, though the early stages were grueling and left her combat prowess feeling incomplete for a long time.
Outside her room, a small crowd had gathered, drawn by the phenomenal heat.
"Good heavens, how hot is it in there?!" one of the three young cultivators whispered, wiping sweat from his brow.
"Remember, senior fought us barehanded," another replied, his voice full of awe. "She did not use a weapon, and she certainly did not unleash her flames on us."
"Do not even mention it," the third chimed in, gesturing to the guards stationed farther down the hall who were drenched in sweat. "Look at them. It is not even a warm day, yet they look like they are standing in a sauna."
"What is she forging in there to cause such a commotion?"
"Whatever it is," a middle aged voice, that of Sect Leader Mo, abruptly cut through their chatter, "it is good news for us." He silenced the youngsters, though a thread of tension laced his own words. "Those two old monsters from the grasslands are far beyond our capabilities to handle."
Inside the ruined room, Su Min murmured to herself, "Seems everyone is gathered. My final preparations are complete."
A high grade Yellow tier weapon was the absolute best she could obtain at her current stage, and it would have to suffice for the foreseeable future. Now, all that remained was to wait for the storm of war to break.
"Ah, right." She blinked, as if waking from a trance. "I almost forgot his weapon."
She had been so utterly engrossed in refining her own blade that she had nearly neglected her promise to Sect Leader Mo. The man was probably growing impatient outside her door. She strode toward it, the new sword held loosely in her hand.
"This is the weapon I promised you," she began, pulling the door open. "Take it and—"
Crack!
Before she could finish her sentence, the heavy wooden doors, already weakened and dried out by the prolonged, intense heat, gave way. They splintered at the hinges and collapsed inward with a groaning crash.
An awkward silence fell over the crowd in the corridor. But Sect Leader Mo hardly noticed the minor disaster. His eyes were locked onto the other sword in Su Min's hand, the one she had just crafted for him. Even before touching it, he was completely entranced, his expression that of a man beholding a priceless, legendary treasure.
Su Min shot him a sidelong glance of mild disgust. "Hmph. Men and their weapons," she muttered under her breath.
Then it happened.
A shiver, cold and unmistakable, coursed through her spiritual core, entirely separate from the room's heat.
"The Heavenly Dao Insight is activating again!"
Without another word of explanation, she all but shoved the Thunderbrand Sword into Sect Leader Mo's hands and shooed everyone away with an impatient wave. She then retreated back into her heat scorched room, ignoring the collapsed doorway. This was unexpected. Her divine ability had been dormant lately, not for lack of trying, but because her comprehension had reached a temporary limit. Any more insights risked overwhelming her mind. She knew that once she reached Foundation Establishment, the dam would break and the backlog of understanding would flood in. But this sudden activation...
"It is the Path of Longevity!"
Cross legged on her simple bed, Su Min closed her eyes as a stream of profound knowledge surged into her mind. Only a revelation related to this specific, life extending path could trigger it now.
[Changchun Gong – First Layer]
Inhale…
She had not anticipated her Changchun Gong advancing at this very moment.
"Changchun Gong… the art of longevity," she whispered, tasting the concept.
As she meditated on the technique's spiritual flow, its fundamental nature became clear to her. It was gentle. Profoundly, fundamentally gentle, unlike the volatile, powerful fusion of fire and wood that characterized her main cultivation method. Its hallmark was endurance: it drastically reduced spiritual energy consumption and accelerated its recovery. It was a pleasant and incredibly timely surprise.
"My sustainability in battle just doubled."
With this, her Vermilion Bird Possession could now last twice as long. As for the Tiger Soul Possession? The cost for that was always lower, as it was not the true White Tiger's power, merely its precursor among the Four Symbols. With no outward physical changes required, she could now maintain it almost indefinitely in her late Qi Refining stage.
"Now, all that is left is the battle itself."
Her eyes narrowed with focused intent. Those two hundred thousand troops had to be nearing readiness. Once she slew those two elders and seized their fire and earth elemental treasures, she could finally begin her Heavenly Foundation Establishment. But that path was long and arduous, and she would need prolonged, undisturbed seclusion to see it through.
"Once I reach Foundation Establishment, even if the Demon Queen emerges early, they will not be able to kill me." A steely resolve settled in her heart. "I might even start preparing my countermeasures against her."
As the first major boss in the grand scheme of things, Su Min knew the Demon Queen's abilities and weaknesses intimately. But knowledge alone was not enough. At the Qi Refining stage, she simply lacked the power to act on that knowledge. At Foundation Establishment? The real, tangible preparations could finally begin.
Meanwhile, in the Great Wei capital, a very different conversation was taking place.
"Your Majesty, this is Prince Yong's official plea for aid." A minister presented a scroll with a deep bow.
The Emperor glanced at it, then waved a dismissive hand. "Let Yong handle his own problems."
A cold smirk played on his lips as the minister retreated.
"Let the grasslands and Yong tear each other apart. It saves us the trouble."
He picked up another intelligence report, his eyes glowering as he read the confirmation. "And that alchemist is holed up in Yong's estate, is she not? If those two old bastards can kill her, all the better."
That woman was a persistent thorn in his side. Even after suffering such a public humiliation at her hands, neither he nor the Demon Queen had dared to press the issue further. A master alchemist of her caliber was a resource beyond price. At the height of her power, even the Demon Queen would have sought to recruit such a person, not make an enemy of her. Driving such a figure into outright, permanent opposition was unthinkable, especially now when they genuinely lacked the manpower to safely eliminate her.
So for now, he could do nothing.
He could only sit, wait, and pray that those two grassland elders were up to the task.
===
"Yu Yu, after dealing with the branch of contract she is now penniless. Move to another town, and get a new job, she stumbled into a new game "Eternal Darkness". With how weird and dangerous the Earth become, and how she was able to use the spell on real world, is there any connection between them? Is this really an ordinary game? Why does "anomaly" in the Earth same as with anomaly on "Alen Peninsula"? what decision was finally taken by Yu? In which side she finally in???"
-Games Invade Reality-