"Since you are already here, there is no need to hide." Su Min's voice cut through the mountain silence, calm and clear. "An alchemist must use their spiritual sense to control the flames. My perception is far beyond the ordinary. Your pitiful attempts at concealment are useless against me."
As she spoke, she slowly rose to her feet. Her steps were light and graceful, each movement effortless as a butterfly fluttering across the surface of a still pond.
Before the echo of her words had even faded—
Pfft!
A sharp, wet sound tore through the air. In the blink of an eye, Su Min had vanished and reappeared, striking down a dark figure lurking atop a nearby rocky outcrop.
By the time a cultivator reaches the Qi Refining stage, they are no longer truly human. Even those at the peak of Body Refining could still be overwhelmed by sheer numbers or mortal persistence. But once one steps into Qi Refining, the gap becomes an insurmountable chasm. The spiritual energy a Qi Refining cultivator can command is dozens of times greater. They can shield themselves with layers of intangible aura; physical attacks without spiritual reinforcement are as useless as striking a mountain. Their speed and power are elevated to a level that defies mortal understanding.
The man she killed had clearly underestimated her, convinced her warning was an empty boast. But since these intruders had come with hostile intent, she would show no mercy. Their fatal mistake was their arrogance. One of them had arrogantly dismissed her and paid the ultimate price. His head was severed from his shoulders before his mind could even register the threat.
Thud.
The headless body collapsed onto the stony ground, rolling a short distance before coming to a gruesome stop. On the corpse's rigid, frozen face, one could clearly see strange, emerald-green patterns snaking across the skin like vile tattoos.
"A poison soldier?" Su Min muttered, her eyes narrowing as she examined both the corpse and its distinctive uniform. Understanding dawned immediately.
This was the unmistakable handiwork of the Demon Queen, a notorious technique for creating living weapons whose very bodies were saturated with virulent toxins. Every drop of their blood and every movement they made was a potential death sentence. Even defeating them in combat carried the risk of fatal contamination.
Sect Master Zhao had nearly been driven mad dealing with these creatures. As for why they were targeting her now, it was simple. The old saying was true, fame brought trouble just as a fattened pig invited slaughter. Even someone living deep in the mountains would eventually find unwelcome "guests" knocking on their door.
Clearly, they had learned that an alchemist named Su Min could refine a pill capable of neutralizing their toxins, and they had followed that trail straight to her home.
"I am the Captain of Heaven-Rank Team Three, under the Demon-Slaying Division of the Great Wei Empire," one of the remaining intruders announced, his voice as cold as iron. "By decree of His Majesty, we have come to invite you to the capital."
With one of their comrades already dead, the others saw no point in hiding. They stepped out from behind trees and boulders, forming a loose circle around her. Each one wielded a menacing hooked chain that gleamed with a ghostly blue light, clearly coated in a lethal poison.
Su Min glanced around at their formation and offered a faint, dismissive smile. "It seems I was mistaken earlier. Not a single one of you has advanced through proper cultivation."
She had initially been surprised by the level of their strength. But now, up close, the truth was clear. Every one of them had been forcibly elevated to the late stages of Body Refining using forbidden arts. Their auras were unsteady and hollow, like drums filled with rotten wood. Their foundation was a sham, but what they lacked in genuine power, they made up for with their ever present, lethal poisons.
"No need for the invitation," Su Min said, her tone turning icy. "I am quite comfortable where I am. You can all piss off."
She did not doubt that the so called Dog Emperor was genuinely interested in recruiting her. A skilled alchemist was a priceless treasure. But Su Min had no intention of becoming anyone's pawn or pet. Settling her own score with that particular emperor was a matter for another day.
"Hmph. It seems you lack a sense of occasion," the Captain sneered, his expression darkening. "You are surrounded. Escape is impossible."
Su Min tilted her head slightly and let out a soft laugh, the sound as light and clear as jade bells. "You are right about one thing. This is an encirclement. But you have it backwards." Her smile vanished, replaced by a look of utter contempt. "You are the ones surrounded by me. All of you are just ants."
Swoosh!
The moment her words fell, a flash of white light, ethereal and predatory, streaked across the small clearing. Another man was devoured in an instant.
It was the Tiger Spirit.
Although it could not stray far from Su Min, within a range of several dozen meters it was a deadly hunter. These poison soldiers, their senses dulled and corrupted by the very arts that empowered them, stood no chance. Silently, the Tiger Spirit had crept behind one of the late stage Body Refining puppets and struck, killing him in a single, brutal blow.
Her intention was simple and final. Since they had come, none would leave alive.
This mountain was far removed from the Great Wei Empire's core territories. Even if she slaughtered them all, the imperial court would need at least a year, perhaps even three to five, to investigate and send new forces. By then, it would be far too late. It reminded her of ancient tales where major sects besieged a distant mountain. A nearby sect might respond quickly, but for those from the far corners of the land, a single journey could take years.
"!!!"
The Captain was the first to react to the new threat. Pure horror twisted his features as he spun on his heel to flee.
He knew now that he had kicked an iron plate. Though his own strength was artificially boosted, he was not a complete fool, and that was enough to recognize the terrifying truth. The delicate looking woman before him, with her slender figure and quiet presence, was a true monster in disguise.
But it was far too late for regrets. The chasm between Body Refining and Qi Refining was absolute. Moreover, he was no real cultivator, just a cripple raised by forbidden arts.
Thud!
The squad leader's head hit the ground a fraction of a second before his body did. Toxic blood sprayed in a wide arc, but Su Min was utterly unfazed. A single, powerful kick sent the headless corpse flying into another operative, and she used the momentum to blitz through the remaining men.
Slash! Slash! Slash!
In less than thirty seconds, the brief, one sided battle was over.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The last of the corpses collapsed into a heap on the ground.
"Interesting toxins," Su Min remarked, examining the black green blood sizzling on the edge of her spiritual blade. The corrosive fumes hissed, trying to eat into the energy of the weapon. "A cultivator of the same level could easily be caught off guard and poisoned."
But against a genuine Qi Refining practitioner? It was useless.
She simply blew lightly across the blade, a whisper of pure spiritual energy dispersing the vile substance into nothingness.
"It seems the court will not let things rest so easily," she said softly, her gaze turning toward the distant horizon where the capital lay. "But the birth of the treasured gourd is not far off. I must finish refining the Tiger Bone Ring before then."
After casually incinerating the corpses with a flick of her wrist, leaving only piles of ash, Su Min turned her focus back to her craft. But just then, a strange sensation coursed through her, a palpable shift in her own spiritual makeup. Her body trembled slightly as a new understanding unfolded within her.
"The Path of Slaughter..."
Having slain multiple poison puppets, her connection to this violent path had deepened and advanced. Among all cultivation paths, this one offered the fastest growth and the most immediate power, a seductive and dangerous shortcut. But it also carried the highest risk of losing one's self to the bloodlust.
A new line of text glowed in her mind's eye.
[Four Symbols Slaughter—Tiger:]
① Can summon a Tiger Spirit in battle (if dispersed, cannot be resummoned for a period).
② Tiger Spirit Possession: Temporarily enhances speed and attack power.]
"A strengthening secret art, huh," Su Min murmured to herself. A faint, dangerous smile, finally tugged at the corners of her lips. It was a power born of necessity, and she would wield it without hesitation.