The Grand Sect Competition was approaching, and the atmosphere on the Azure Cloud peaks
was electric with tension. Disciples sharpened their swords, brewed volatile potions, and formed
alliances that would likely shatter the moment a Spirit Stone was dropped on the ground.
For Li Wei, the competition meant one thing: Logistics.
He sat in the small work shed behind Su Mei's palace, grinding Iron-Bone Bear claws into a fine
powder. The System interface floated before him, displaying a list of materials required for Su
Mei's breakthrough to the peak of Foundation Establishment.
[Recipe: Pill of the Frost Monarch]
● Required: Iron-Bone Powder (Acquired)
● Required: Tears of a Banshee (Acquired)
● Required: Crimson Vein Spirit Flower (Missing)
"System," Li Wei muttered, wiping sweat from his brow. "Where do we find the Crimson Vein
Spirit Flower?"
[Location: The Verdant Valley, East of the Sect. Currently occupied by a group of itinerant
cultivators known as the 'White Tiger Mercenaries'.]
Li Wei sighed. It was never easy. He packed the powder into a jade vial and walked out to find
Su Mei.
She was in the training courtyard, practicing a sword art. The air was filled with thousands of
tiny ice shards, swirling like a blizzard contained within an invisible sphere.
"Mei'er," Li Wei called out, standing well outside the kill zone.
The blizzard vanished instantly. Su Mei sheathed her sword. She didn't sweat. She didn't pant.
She simply stood there, pristine and terrifying.
"Is the powder ready?" she asked.
"Yes," Li Wei handed her the vial. "But we are missing the main ingredient. The Crimson Vein
Spirit Flower. It's in the Verdant Valley."
Su Mei's eyes narrowed. "The Verdant Valley? That is neutral territory. We can go now."
"I checked," Li Wei said cautiously. "The White Tiger Mercenaries are there. They are strong.
Their leader is a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator."
"So?" Su Mei asked. The question was genuine. She wasn't being arrogant; she simply didn't
understand why that was an obstacle.
"We should negotiate," Li Wei suggested. "I have saved up some spirit stones. Maybe we can
buy it."
Su Mei looked at him for a long moment, then shrugged. "We can try. But prepare the carriage. I
don't want to waste Qi flying if we are going to 'negotiate'."
The Verdant Valley was lush and overgrown, a sharp contrast to the frozen austerity of Su Mei's
peak. The air was thick with the scent of medicinal herbs and damp earth.
Li Wei drove the carriage—a newer model he had reinforced with System-bought ironwood—to
the edge of the mercenary camp.
A group of rough-looking men sat around a fire, roasting a spirit boar. They saw the carriage
and the delicate woman stepping out of it, and their eyes lit up with predatory gleams.
"Well, well," the leader, a scarred man with a massive axe, stood up. "What brings a fairy to our
humble fire?"
Su Mei didn't smile. She didn't bow. "I need the Crimson Vein Spirit Flower you harvested this The leader laughed, looking at his men. "Direct, aren't you? We do have it. But it's expensive."
Li Wei stepped forward, holding a pouch of spirit stones. He adopted his best merchant
smile—the smile that used to charm old ladies in Cloud Sparrow City.
"We are willing to pay a fair market price," Li Wei said, bowing slightly. "Here are five hundred
low-grade spirit stones. That is twenty percent above the auction price."
The leader looked at Li Wei, then spat on the ground near Li Wei's boots.
"A mortal speaking?" The leader sneered. "And offering stones? Little fairy, in this valley, we
don't trade for stones. We trade for... other things."
He leered at Su Mei. "Spend a night with us, and you can have the flower."
Li Wei felt a cold rage burn in his chest. He reached for the defensive talisman in his sleeve.
"Watch your tongue. She is a core disciple of the Azure Cloud Sect."
"The Azure Cloud Sect is far away," the leader mocked. "And out here, accidents happen."
He signaled his men. Seven of them stood up, weapons drawn. They were all mid-stage
Foundation Establishment. A formidable force.
"Li Wei," Su Mei said softly. "Step back."
"We can leave," Li Wei whispered urgently. "We can find another flower. We don't have to fight
them all."
"Leave?" Su Mei looked at him, confused. "Why? They have what I need."
She took a step forward. The temperature in the valley plummeted. The lush green leaves
turned brittle and white instantly.
"I offered to trade," Su Mei said to the leader. "My husband offered you money. You chose
insults."
"Get her!" the leader roared, swinging his axe.
Su Mei didn't draw her sword. She simply raised her right hand, palm open.
Art of the Frozen Heavens: Glacial Coffin.
The air didn't just get cold; it stopped moving. A massive block of blue ice materialized around
the seven charging men. They froze in mid-step, their expressions of aggression preserved
perfectly in the crystal.
Only the leader was left, his axe raised, trembling as the frost crept up his legs.
"You... you are a monster!" he screamed, trying to retreat.
"I am a cultivator," Su Mei corrected.
She closed her hand into a fist.
Shatter.
The block of ice behind her exploded. Seven men disintegrated into red mist and ice shards.
There were no bodies left to bury. Just pink slush on the green grass.
Li Wei gagged, turning away. He had seen her kill before, but that was self-defense against the
gang. This... this was an execution. It was effortless. It was industrial.
Su Mei walked up to the terrified leader. She reached into his pocket and pulled out a wooden
box. She opened it. Inside lay a pulsating red flower.
"Good quality," she murmured.
She looked at the leader. "Thank you for the donation."
She tapped his forehead. His eyes rolled back, and he fell over, his brain frozen instantly inside
his skull.
Su Mei turned back to the carriage. She stepped over the bloody slush without looking down.
Her white boots remained spotless.
"Husband," she called out. "We have the flower. We can go back now."
Li Wei stood there, staring at the carnage. The smell of iron and pine was overwhelming.
"Su Mei," he said, his voice trembling. "They... they were rude. But did you have to kill them all? We could have just crippled them. Or left."
Su Mei paused near the carriage door. She looked back at him, her expression devoid of cruelty,
but also devoid of empathy.
"Li Wei," she said, as if explaining that water is wet. "The Dao is a fight against Heaven.
Resources are finite. If I leave them alive, they might grow stronger. They might come for
revenge. They might tell others I have the flower."
She gestured to the bloody ground. "Weeds must be pulled by the roots. If I don't take it, others
will. If I show mercy, I am leaving a knife behind my back."
"But they were people," Li Wei whispered.
"They were obstacles," she replied. "Get in the carriage, husband. I need to refine this before its
potency fades."
Li Wei looked at her. The sun was setting, casting long shadows across the valley. The woman
standing there looked like Su Mei. She sounded like Su Mei. But her logic was alien. It was the
logic of a sword, not a human.
He climbed into the driver's seat. He didn't look at the bodies. He snapped the reins, and the
carriage rolled away, leaving death in its wake.
[System Alert: Beneficiary Alignment Shift.] [Current Alignment: Neutral Evil
(Self-Serving).] [Note: Host is advised to stop applying Mortal Morality to Immortal
Conflicts. It causes unnecessary stress.]
"Shut up," Li Wei hissed at the screen. "Just shut up."