“Third Senior Sister, how is she now?”

“Severely injured. She’ll need at least three months to recover.”

“Outrageous! Absolutely outrageous! Why are the people from Artifact Resonance Peak so arrogant? They slandered and insulted us for no reason, and even dared to attack, injuring Senior Sister Tang so badly!”

“It’s not just Artifact Resonance Peak. People from several other peaks are picking fights too. Those damn bastards! After we made talismans for them, this is how they treat us?”

“Utterly despicable. What difference is there between them and ungrateful wolves? They’re just bullying us because our Master is in seclusion!”

On Ink Scroll Peak, a group of disciples gathered, their voices trembling with indignation.

For the past two days, Peak Master Qin Meran had remained in seclusion. In her absence, Ink Scroll Peak had descended into chaos. The disciples suffered unprecedented humiliation, becoming the pariahs of the Azure Mystic Sacred Land—universally despised villains.

It started with a rumor. Someone claimed that Qin Meran had intercepted an Immortal medicine, the Earth Cloud Sprout, meant for someone else.

Initially, this wasn’t a big deal. Opportunities in the cultivation world belonged to those destined for them. If their Peak Master obtained it, that was her capability. Nothing wrong with that.

But then, the rumors twisted.

They said Qin Meran, faced with the temptation of the Earth Cloud Sprout, succumbed to greed. She wanted to keep it for herself instead of handing it over to the Sect.

Even this wasn’t necessarily damnable. Opportunities obtained personally were personal property. Handing them over was commendable, but keeping them wasn’t a crime.

The final blow, however, was devastating.

A new rumor surfaced: the Earth Cloud Sprout could heal Junior Uncle Jiang Xun’s injured soul and even cure He Mengyun’s separated soul. Supreme Guan Xuelan had personally requested it, but Qin Meran, driven by selfishness, refused to produce it, even denying she had it.

Once this news spread, the situation exploded.

The Earth Cloud Sprout was a soul-healing Immortal medicine. Keeping it from He Mengyun, who had suffered for years, was one thing. But refusing to save the beloved Junior Uncle Jiang Xun?

That was unforgivable selfishness.

The Peak Masters never publicly confirmed these rumors, but as the whispers spread through the Azure Mystic Sacred Land, the disciples turned hostile.

Ink Scroll Peak disciples became unwelcome everywhere. They couldn’t walk a few steps without being pointed at or gossiped about.

Take today, for example.

Tang Bizhu, Qin Meran’s personal disciple, went to deliver a batch of talismans. She ran into a personal disciple from Artifact Resonance Peak delivering weapons.

The two peaks had never gotten along. One called the other stupid brutes; the other called them useless bookworms. Disputes were common, and usually, Ink Scroll Peak’s sharp tongues prevailed.

But this time, Ink Scroll Peak lost.

The other party didn’t argue logic. They simply sneered, mocking Ink Scroll Peak for being selfish hypocrites who stole things and dared not admit it. Tang Bizhu, pushed past her breaking point, attacked.

Ink Scroll Peak excelled at talismans and ranged arts. But against a frontal charge from an Artifact Resonance Peak disciple with an aura as vast as the sea and a physique like a bull?

The result was a massacre.

Tang Bizhu was beaten until she vomited blood, her bones shattered. If other disciples hadn’t arrived in time, she might have been crippled or killed.

“The Enforcement Elder was right there! Why didn’t he intervene? It’s like he wanted to watch Senior Sister Tang die!”

“And the people from Jade Pill Peak are just as bad. I went to beg for a healer, but no one would come. They said we Ink Scroll Peak disciples are hypocrites who preach sage books but are selfish to the bone.”

“Despicable! Too despicable! How can they slander us like this?”

The more they spoke, the deeper their grievance grew. Ink Scroll Peak was known for reason, courtesy, and scholarship. In the blink of an eye, they had become the sect’s villains.

It made them resentful. It made them sad.

But what hurt the most was the seed of doubt planted in their own hearts.

“Do you think…” one disciple whispered, voicing the unthinkable. “Did the Peak Master really… really take the Earth Cloud Sprout and keep it for herself?”

Silence fell over the group.

At first, they had vehemently defended her. Qin Meran couldn’t be that kind of person. But with the entire sect against them, even they began to waiver.

Their Peak Master, their teacher.

Why was she still in seclusion? Why now, of all times?

While Ink Scroll Peak drowned in grievance, the Azure Mystic disciples in Falling Rain Valley were riding high on arrogance.

“You trash! We told you to scout the path, not dawdle around looking for your own opportunities. Can you bear the responsibility for delaying us?”

“All this time and you’ve only gathered this little bit of spiritual herbs? Worthless junk! Trash will always be trash!”

“What is this rubbish? How does this broken thing deserve the title ‘heavenly material’? Idiot, don’t bother presenting such dregs. I feel dirty just holding it.”

“Country bumpkins with no vision. No wonder your Sect hasn’t progressed in five hundred years. With your discernment, stagnation is inevitable.”

An Azure Mystic disciple squatted on the ground, poking through a pile of spiritual herbs with a look of utter disdain.

Opposite him, several disciples from other sects stood with grim expressions, enduring the mockery.

It had been three days since they entered Falling Rain Valley. The group had penetrated deep into the interior. Naturally, they found spiritual herbs and treasures along the way.

In previous years, finders were keepers.

But this year was different.

The Azure Mystic Sacred Land had demanded an “alliance,” which included a convenient clause: all gains must be handed over for “unified collection.”

They claimed it wasn’t robbery. Oh no, the Azure Mystic Sacred Land was a respectable sect. They reasoned that the herbs could be used to map the valley’s conditions. Furthermore, pooling resources prevented infighting over “worthless trinkets.”

Therefore, everything obtained in Falling Rain Valley had to be “temporarily deposited” with Azure Mystic. They were a Sacred Land with vast resources; they wouldn’t covet your petty treasures. They would register them and return them upon exit.

Naturally.

Nobody believed a word of it.

But when Bian Yifei produced the Void Refining jade slip three days ago, the message was clear.

“Alliance” was just a polite word for slavery.

The Azure Mystic disciples not only demanded the materials but forbade hiding anything. The penalty for hoarding was death.

At first, they showed some restraint. But after three days of zero resistance, their true colors shone through.

Now, they didn’t just take the items; they mocked the givers. They picked through the “temporarily deposited” loot like picky shoppers, insulting the quality and the people who found it.

And the victims? Even as they burned with shame, even as they knew they would never see their treasures again, a tiny, pathetic hope remained.

What if?

In this world, “what if” was a dangerous drug.

After dismissing the other disciples, the Azure Mystic disciple swept the pile of herbs into his own spatial ring.

He returned to his group, greeted by eager smiles.

“Senior Brother Jiang, quite the haul this time! I saw several third-grade herbs in there. Valuable stuff!”

“Yeah, you hit the jackpot. I didn’t get nearly as much yesterday.”

“My turn next, right? Hehehe, I hope these idiots have good luck today.”

“Senior Brother Bian is a genius. We don’t have to lift a finger, just wave the jade slip and collect the loot. Those fools actually think they’ll get it back! Hahaha!”

The Azure Mystic disciples laughed, their faces flushed with greed. In just three days, their harvest surpassed what previous disciples had gathered in half a month.

“Since I said we would take all the opportunities in Falling Rain Valley, I won’t go back on my word,” Bian Yifei said calmly, his voice cutting through the laughter. “But remember, don’t get carried away. Reaching the core is the priority. Don’t lose the big for the small.”

The disciples sobered up and nodded.

Bian Yifei turned his gaze to the side, where “Ding Daoan” sat cross-legged, meditating.

“Junior Brother Ding, how are you?”

“Thank you for your concern, Senior Brother Bian,” Ding Daoan replied, his voice weak. “My injuries are severe. I fear I won’t be able to act for the next few days.”

Bian Yifei frowned. “Is that Feng Bugui really so powerful? To injure you like this?”

“I blame myself for underestimating the enemy,” Ding Daoan sighed, his tone heavy with regret. “If I hadn’t been careless, I wouldn’t have been ambushed. I wouldn’t be in this state, dragging you down.”

His words were so sincere, so full of self-reproach, that no one could possibly imagine the truth.

The man sitting before them wasn’t Ding Daoan.

He was Feng Bugui.

“Don’t talk like that. Just focus on recovering. We won’t need you to fight for a while anyway.”

“Senior Brother Bian, I have a question.”

“What is it?”

“Ding Daoan” looked up, his expression earnest. “Aren’t you afraid that openly robbing disciples from other sects will damage Azure Mystic’s reputation?”

“Damage?” Bian Yifei smiled, shaking his head. “Junior Brother Ding, you read too many sage books. Sometimes, you miss the obvious.”

His eyes went cold.

“If they return alive to expose us, yes, it would damage our reputation.”

“But if they all die here…”

“Then the impact… naturally ceases to exist.”