The Emperor in the capital knew his own limitations. Directly confronting that woman was a fight he was unwilling to pick. Moreover, her strength was likely at the mid to late Qi Refining stage. He simply had no one capable of dealing with such a foe. Even with the empire's secret techniques and resources, a genuine mid to late Qi Refining expert was not something that could be mass produced.
And even if he managed to nurture one such fighter through immense cost, there was no guarantee they could actually defeat her. As for sending a Foundation Establishment cultivator, that was even more impossible. Reaching that stage required the original cultivator to be at least at the peak of late Qi Refining. Anyone who achieved that was far too valuable, a strategic asset to be preserved, not thrown away as cannon fodder in a risky political squabble.
Thus, he could only sit on his throne and pin his hopes on those two old men from the grasslands.
Training Grounds
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The sharp, percussive sound of spiritual metal clashing echoed without pause across the training grounds. The onlookers, a mix of powerful sect leaders and seasoned experts who were only a single pill away from breaking through to Qi Refining themselves, watched the battle with wide, disbelieving eyes.
At the center of the field, Su Min was fighting one against four, facing off against the prince's son and his three Qi Refining companions simultaneously. Not only was she not at a disadvantage, but she was also clearly holding back. Her formidable new sword remained sheathed at her hip. The scorching Vermilion Bird flames capable of melting steel had yet to make an appearance. And these were only the abilities they knew about. Who could say what other secrets she held?
"No matter how good your weapons are," she stated calmly, her voice cutting through the din of combat, "if your speed and perception cannot keep up, they are useless."
Seeing the four struggling to maintain their coordinated assault, Su Min decided not to drag the fight out any longer. She feinted high, then swept low, seizing an opening to kick one of the spearmen squarely in the chest, sending him flying backward. With one corner of their formation broken, the remaining three quickly fell one by one under her precise, overwhelming strikes.
The outcome was never in doubt. After all, she was a genuine late Qi Refining cultivator, and the three techniques she practiced were all rare, high grade arts. Fighting one against three was not even a challenge for her. This time, however, she merely used blunt force to send them stumbling back, not inflicting the same brutal, bruising injuries as before.
The reason was simple. She was just using them to test and calibrate her current strength and control.
"Report!" A messenger sprinted onto the field, his voice urgent. "Prince Yong has summoned everyone for an emergency meeting! The enemy's vanguard has been sighted. They are only thirty kilometers from Yongzhou City!"
"Hmm?"
Not just Su Min, but everyone on the training grounds was momentarily stunned into silence.
For many, resisting this foreign invasion was not just about the rewards Prince Yong had offered. Reputation and honor mattered a great deal. With the world undergoing such drastic changes, heroes and ambitious figures were emerging everywhere. This war was a prime opportunity for them to make a name for themselves and their sects.
Though they understood most of them would only serve as supporting roles, the true core of this battle, the linchpin upon which everything depended, was the mysterious and overwhelmingly powerful woman standing calmly in the center of the field. They still had not seen her full strength. Four Qi Refining experts, figures they once viewed as untouchable masters, could not even force her to get serious. No one believed that someone capable of forging such terrifying spiritual artifacts lacked other, deadlier hidden cards. The higher ups, in particular, had a vague idea of the sheer volume of materials Su Min had consumed. They could not even fathom what kind of power those resources had been converted into. Yet, even knowing the infamous reputation of the Flame and Earth Elders, they did not sense much overt concern from her.
"They are coming, huh?" Su Min murmured to herself, ignoring the stares. "This time, I will likely be facing an opponent with Foundation Establishment level power. At the start of the battle, I must find a way to kill or at least cripple one of them immediately."
Her thoughts turned to the two elders' infamous trump card, a secret technique that allowed them to merge their powers into a single, monstrous entity. If two late Qi Refining cultivators fused, their combined strength would undoubtedly brush against the early Foundation Establishment stage. Even for her, that would be a daunting challenge. The best strategy, then, was a blitz. She had to go all out against one of them from the very first moment, before they had a chance to combine. If she could kill or seriously injure one, the remaining elder would not pose much of a threat on his own.
"With my new armor, my Golden Bell Shield, and my late stage cultivation as a foundation, those two will not easily break through my defenses," she calculated. "If things go south, I can always retreat. Worst case scenario, I will just lose some face. Besides, I already have three of the elemental treasures I need. That is enough to meet the minimum requirements for Earthly Foundation Establishment if I have to settle for that."
With a plan firmly in mind, Su Min said nothing more to the gathered crowd. If she truly wanted to escape a battle, those two old men would not be able to stop her. As for the rest? She would do her best, and leave the outcome to fate.
Soon, a group of them stood atop the high walls of Yongzhou City, gazing out at the distant horizon where the desert met the grasslands. A massive, roiling dust cloud stained the sky, and a low, constant tremor in the earth announced the approach of a colossal force. For a moment, an invisible, suffocating weight seemed to press down on every heart.
Yongzhou City was not just a major settlement. It was the most critical stronghold in the north, the final gateway protecting the Eight Prefectures and the heartland of Great Wei beyond. Prince Yong, as a feudal lord and not the emperor himself, did not command an overwhelmingly large imperial army. Every soldier, every guardsman he had was stationed here. If Yongzhou fell, the entire northwest of Great Wei would be torn open, and the consequences for its people would be a living hell.
Yet, after the initial shock, their eyes unconsciously turned toward the lone figure standing perfectly calm and still atop the main gate tower. The sight of that tall, composed silhouette, her robes stirring slightly in the breeze, somehow eased the tight knot of tension in their chests.
"This is just their vanguard, about ten thousand troops," Prince Yong reported, his voice low and cautious as he stood beside Su Min. "The main force of two hundred thousand is still a day or two behind them. The grasslands tribes have brought everything they have. It seems they do not plan on leaving, or on having a path for retreat."
This invasion was unprecedented in its scale and commitment. Counting the noncombatants, the elderly, the children, and the vast herds of livestock trailing the army, the total number of beings surging south easily surpassed a million. These people had abandoned their ancestral pastures, bringing their entire world with them to support the two hundred thousand strong army. Only the absolute authority of the Flame and Earth Elders could have mobilized the fiercely independent grasslands tribes to such an extreme, unified extent.
And if they breached the city, the consequences would be catastrophic. Though the Eight Prefectures under Prince Yong's rule were vast, the pressure of accommodating and feeding over a million invaders was no joke. To secure enough resources for their own survival, the grassland army would undoubtedly carry out systematic, brutal massacres across the prefectures, slaughtering the Wei people to seize their homes, their farmland, and their stored grain, trying to put down new roots in conquered soil.
This kind of all-or-nothing strategy was something even Su Min, with her knowledge from another world, found shocking. In gaming terms, it could be summed up in two words: a base trade.
But games were just games. In reality, who would ever dare to employ such a desperate, brutal tactic?
If their army was stalled at the walls of Yongzhou City for even half a year, the entire invasion force would collapse from within. Without sufficient grazing land, their livestock would die in droves outside the gates. And the people? Starvation, cannibalism, and rampant plague would soon follow.
"Those two old freaks…" Su Min muttered, her gaze fixed on the approaching dust cloud. "Are they completely insane, or just lethally overconfident? Do they really think I do not know about their little fusion trick?"