The Problem is Not Scarcity but Inequality

Wu Ren's gloomy gaze swept over the cultivators who had survived and walked out of the secret realm one by one.

The disciples immediately fell silent, trembling like cicadas in winter, feeling as if they were being stared down by an ancient apex predator.

Xiu Jun said angrily, "Wu Ren, you had better restrain yourself."

Wu Ren's expression remained solemn, strands of killing intent flickering in his eyes. His voice was as cold as thousand-year-old ice as he spoke.

"Among these survivors, there is definitely the one who killed my grandson. If you do not allow me to inspect their storage bags and block me from finding the culprit, then I will have no choice but to kill them all."

"I would rather mistakenly slaughter a thousand than let my grandson's killer escape!"

Hearing this, Fairy Illusionary Feather sneered.

"Wu Ren, you can certainly try. Do you truly believe that your mid-stage Golden Core cultivation makes you invincible under the heavens?"

The atmosphere grew increasingly heavy and biting as killing intent permeated the area. A massive battle seemed ready to erupt at any moment.

Yet, Wu Ren suddenly chose to back down. "As long as I am permitted to check the storage bag of every surviving disciple, I will provide compensation."

Hearing this, the eyes of Xiang Qi, Fairy Illusionary Feather, and Xiu Jun all lit up.

Immediately, the four began to discuss the terms of compensation in low voices. As for their earlier declarations about absolutely refusing to let Wu Ren search the disciples, none of the three mentioned it again, acting exactly as if those words had never been spoken.

A moment later, the four concluded their bargaining. Feeling a twinge of heartache, Wu Ren reluctantly drew several spiritual materials from his storage ring and distributed them among the three.

Xiang Qi, Fairy Illusionary Feather, and Xiu Jun then issued orders for their respective sect disciples to gather in an open clearing.

"The gains from this secret realm expedition will be inventoried by the Corpse Demon Sect's Golden Core cultivator, Wu Ren. You are all to cooperate fully."

The reactions of the three sects' disciples to the commands of their Golden Core patriarchs varied.

The disciples of the Corpse Demon Sect raised no objections.

After all, upon exiting the secret realm, the sect would naturally check each disciple's storage bag anyway. The only difference this year was that a Golden Core patriarch was conducting the search instead of a Foundation Establishment Elder.

The disciples of the Crimson Blood Sect and the Profound Yin Cult, however, murmured under their breaths. Having their storage bags searched by an elder of an outside sect felt like a blow to their own sects' prestige.

Yet, intimidated by the overwhelming pressure of the four Golden Core cultivators present, no one dared to show the slightest hint of dissatisfaction.

Wu Ren began his inspection with the Corpse Demon Sect. A total of nine disciples from the Corpse Demon Sect had walked out of the secret realm alive: three at the mid-stage of Qi Refining, and six at the late-stage of Qi Refining.

A Corpse Demon Sect disciple handed his storage bag over to Wu Ren. After counting out every single spiritual herb harvested from the secret realm, Wu Ren swept his Divine Sense across the disciple's body several times. Only after confirming there were no hidden storage bags did he allow the disciple to pass.

Watching this, Song Wen remained completely unbothered.

Just moments ago, Wu Ren's Divine Sense had thoroughly scanned his body and found nothing. This greatly bolstered Song Wen's confidence in his physical body's ability to conceal its secrets. Furthermore, his storage bag held nothing but standard pills, talismans, and a few spiritual herbs from the secret realm. It was impossible for Wu Ren to detect anything unusual.

Just as Song Wen expected, he soon passed Wu Ren's inspection without a hitch. The handful of spiritual herbs he produced to satisfy the sect were neither precious nor entirely worthless, perfectly matching the capabilities of a cultivator at the fifth layer of Qi Refining.

Failing to find any clues among the nine Corpse Demon Sect disciples, Wu Ren looked rather disappointed.

However, the person most displeased was Xiang Qi.

He discovered that not a single one of these disciples had managed to obtain the most precious spiritual herbs within the Withered Blood Secret Realm: the Heavenly Spirit Fruit and the Jade Marrow Mushroom.

Xiang Qi's face grew incredibly dark, looking as though it might drip water.

"Hehe, Xiang Qi, you old zombie, your Corpse Demon Sect's harvest seems rather poor," Xiu Jun mocked from the side, his tone laced with sarcasm.

"Hmph!" Xiang Qi snorted coldly. He turned to look at the nine disciples who had survived a narrow escape from death, his expression icy as he muttered a curse in a low voice.

"A bunch of useless trash!"

Next was the Crimson Blood Sect. Their surviving numbers were even lower than the Corpse Demon Sect's dismal showing-only seven had made it out: two at the mid-stage of Qi Refining, and five at the late-stage of Qi Refining.

After Wu Ren inspected them one by one, he still came up empty-handed.

Fairy Illusionary Feather's face turned frighteningly grim as well. None of the Crimson Blood Sect disciples had obtained a Heavenly Spirit Fruit or a Jade Marrow Mushroom either.

Seeing this, Xiu Jun grew even more smug.

"It appears that my Profound Yin Cult is the sole victor of this journey into the Withered Blood Secret Realm."

A total of thirteen disciples from the Profound Yin Cult had survived. Among them, six were at the ninth layer of Qi Refining, making them the strongest contingent among the three sects. Reasonably, their harvest should also be the greatest.

The thirteen Profound Yin Cult disciples lined up in order, and Wu Ren checked them one by one. To avenge his grandson, he inspected them with meticulous care, refusing to overlook the smallest detail.

As the inspection proceeded, however, the face of the Profound Yin Cult's Golden Core patriarch, Xiu Jun, gradually began to darken.

Wu Ren had already checked twelve of the disciples, yet not a single one had obtained a Heavenly Spirit Fruit or a Jade Marrow Mushroom.

Conversely, Fairy Illusionary Feather and Xiang Qi now looked much better than they had moments ago.

The problem was not scarcity, but inequality!

To refine a batch of Foundation Establishment Pills, an experienced alchemist required one of each of the three primary ingredients-the Heavenly Spirit Fruit, the Jade Marrow Mushroom, and the Seven-Star Grass-along with over twenty auxiliary herbs. A successful refinement would yield three to five pills.

In other words, gathering the three primary ingredients meant a sect could potentially gain up to five new Foundation Establishment cultivators.

It was not terrifying if one's own sect failed to obtain the precious fruits and mushrooms; what was truly terrifying was if an adversary obtained too many.

Should that happen, the balance of power would shift, which would be disastrous for a sect's long-term development.

Now that no one had obtained the key ingredients, the existing equilibrium was maintained.

At this point, only the final Profound Yin Cult disciple remained unchecked. She was an ordinary-looking female cultivator at the ninth layer of Qi Refining.

The female cultivator produced all the storage bags in her possession-four in total. Aside from her own, the other three had been plundered inside the secret realm.

Seeing the four storage bags, the onlookers did not react strongly. Cultivators slaughtering one another for treasure inside a secret realm was an everyday occurrence.

She was not the only one holding multiple bags; several of the previously inspected cultivators had carried multiple pouches, with one individual possessing as many as ten.

Most importantly, during previous secret realm expeditions, older generations had never intervened to seek revenge for the deaths of the younger disciples.

Consequently, the slaughter among the disciples of the three sects during the expedition had been entirely unrestrained, with life and death determined solely by individual capability. Many had never even considered the need to cover their tracks.

Wu Ren's eyes suddenly narrowed. He recognized one of the storage bags-it belonged to his grandson, Wu Sui.

Without any visible movement on his part, the storage bag floated into the air and flew directly into his hand.

Wu Ren extended his Divine Sense into it and immediately discovered the shattered chain Magical Artifact within.

His gaze turned cold and sharp as a blade, piercing straight through the female cultivator.

The female cultivator's previously calm expression warped into pure terror. The razor-sharp killing intent erupting from Wu Ren made her feel as though she were plummeting into an abyss.

"Speak! How did this storage bag end up in your hands?" Wu Ren demanded fiercely.

The female cultivator's legs gave out, and she fell directly to her knees.

"Reporting to Senior, I merely found this storage bag near the exit of the secret realm! I have no idea who it originally belonged to!"

"Hmph! Utter nonsense!"

A powerful aura erupted from Wu Ren, pressing down upon the female cultivator like an immense mountain.

The female cultivator's face contorted in agony as her bones creaked loudly, as though Wu Ren's terrifying pressure might crush her into a puddle of flesh and bone at any moment.

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