The middle-aged man of the Wang clan, having received the instruction, immediately examined the jade slip with his divine sense, loudly reciting: "The five of us are all direct disciples of the Punishment and Reward Elders of the Heavenly Dao Alliance, entrusted with the vital duty of guarding the treasury... On that day, the demon race suddenly launched a full-scale assault on the city. After the city defenses were breached, our defending cultivators engaged in a chaotic battle with the invading demon cultivators... The situation was unfavorable... Our cultivation level was only at the Mid-Golden Core stage; we were barely fit to be cannon fodder. Master commanded us to hide in this treasury and refrain from engaging in the battle... Several months passed. We have no idea what transpired outside; no news has reached the treasury since... Years have gone by. Eldest Senior Brother surmises that the external teleportation array must have been destroyed. Perhaps the demon cultivators either do not know of this treasury's existence or lacked the means to enter; they never breached this vault."

All the assembled cultivators listened in silence, missing not a single word.

The story itself was quite straightforward.

These five corpses belonged to the Golden Core disciples of the Punishment and Reward Elder of the Heavenly Dao Alliance—the apprentices of that Nascent Soul cultivator who had died in the ruins of the main hall outside the teleportation array.

After the battle, the five discovered the teleportation array was unusable. Despite exhausting every means, they could not escape and were starved to death within this ancient treasury, which was stockpiled with vast quantities of resources. They suspected the external array had been sabotaged.

Apart from these accounts and the final testaments of the five individuals, the most crucial content within the jade slip detailed their responsibilities and provided some insight into the usage of this ancient treasury.

To ensure that any Heavenly Dao Alliance cultivators who entered the treasury in the future would be fully informed, the slip contained an exhaustive record of the vault's extensive data.

This hexagonal underground treasury complex possessed six passages, numbered One through Six. These passages led respectively to the treasuries of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth, as well as the central nexus of the vault. Each section housed immense treasures, including artifacts, elixirs, raw materials, talismans, spirit stones, and ancient texts.

All the resources stored here were designated as rewards for cultivators who had rendered distinguished service during the war between Immortals and Demons.

Passage through these tunnels was regulated by tokens.

There were two types of tokens: Outer Vault Scrip Tokens and Inner Vault Grand Tokens.

Golden Core cultivators who earned minor merits used the Outer Vault Scrip Tokens to claim rewards. These typically consisted of spirit stones, spirit elixirs, flying swords, Dharma artifacts, and texts, which the five Punishment and Reward disciples would retrieve from the outer vaults to distribute to these ancient Golden Core cultivators.

Only Nascent Soul cultivators who achieved merit, or Golden Core cultivators who earned exceptionally significant contributions, qualified for the Punishment Elder to utilize the Inner Vault Grand Token, allowing them to personally enter the inner vault of this treasury to collect treasures as rewards. After all, the contents of the inner vault comprised top-tier items, exceptionally rare indeed.

To prevent theft by the custodians, accessing treasures was subject to stringent restrictions.

The five Punishment and Reward disciples each held a small token granting access to the outer vault. After acquiring every three treasures, they were required to return to the main hall outside to use the corresponding magical apparatus to clear the usage limit of their tokens and record the withdrawal before they could continue retrieving goods.

In essence, unless the treasury's formation restrictions ceased functioning, a token was mandatory to obtain the corresponding quantity of treasures.

The middle-aged Wang recited at a blistering pace, finishing the most vital information in the time it took for one stick of incense to burn.

Ye Qin listened, his brow furrowed with a hint of helplessness. The function of the tokens was originally knowledge he alone possessed; now, everyone else knew. The prospect of effortlessly acquiring the remaining tokens seemed dashed.

Upon hearing the details, the faces of the cultivators transformed, etched with astonishment, shock, and envy.

None of the treasure-seeking cultivators who had arrived at this location were fools. Connecting the dots, it was not difficult to deduce that the five black tokens discovered on the Nascent Soul Punishment Elder outside—the one found among the ruins of the main hall—must be the Inner Vault Grand Tokens. Furthermore, each of these five disciples must also have held a small token!

"Fellow Daoist Ye, truly impressive insight; this Sun Xing admires you! May I ask how you came to know the function of these tokens? Have you perhaps encountered such a token before?"

Sun Xing could not help but glance at Ye Qin, a forced chuckle on his face, though the wariness in his heart deepened considerably.

Ye Qin's immediate seizure of an important Inner Vault Grand Token upon arrival clearly indicated he understood the tokens' purpose and possessed knowledge of this treasury far exceeding his own. Fortunately, remembering the maxim, "If we are to gain, we gain together; if we are to suffer loss, we suffer it together," he had also taken a token. Otherwise, he would have suffered a devastating loss.

"Fellow Daoist Sun, how I came to know of the tokens is irrelevant. There is a far more pressing matter awaiting your attention. There are twenty-three treasure-seeking cultivators here. Five already possess Grand Tokens, leaving eighteen without any. How do you intend to distribute the remaining five small tokens, Fellow Daoist?" Ye Qin noted Sun Xing's insincerity but spoke calmly, unperturbed.

"That... requires careful consideration...!" Sun Xing paused, sinking into contemplation, finding the distribution of the remaining five small tokens an exceptionally thorny issue.

He understood this perfectly well.

This group of treasure-seekers had assembled purely for this expedition; there was virtually no foundation of mutual trust. If handled properly, with everyone receiving a benefit, all would be well. But if uneven distribution sparked discontent among the cultivators, it would likely result in immediate fragmentation, leading to factions forming for conflict, inevitably triggering a bloody battle whose final outcome was unpredictable. His own strength might not guarantee a favorable outcome in such a scenario.

"Indeed, Fellow Daoist Sun, you are the leader. How do you plan to divide these tokens?"

"We hope Fellow Daoist Sun will handle this impartially! If the division is unequal, we will not agree!"

The cultivators who held no tokens began to murmur, their gazes complex. They calculated how to obtain a token while simultaneously guarding against the surrounding seekers, prepared to draw weapons if negotiations failed. The atmosphere in the hall abruptly grew tense.

Previously, since no one knew the tokens' significance, Ye Qin, Sun Xing, and the others taking a Grand Token each had elicited no strong reaction. But now, knowing the truth, they were absolutely unwilling to yield easily.

Ye Qin glanced at Jiang Ling and Zheng Chenghui, his lips moving slightly.

Hearing Ye Qin’s sound transmission, Jiang Ling and Zheng Chenghui started, exchanged a look, and then silently nodded.

After transmitting his message, Ye Qin fell silent again. Among those present, besides Bing'er, only Jiang Ling and the other one were cultivators with whom he shared a bond, requiring his caution. As for the fates of the others, they held no bearing on him. The Wang uncle and nephew, in particular, were too weak; they were destined to be cannon fodder wherever they went. Their survival relied entirely on their own fortune. Ye Qin had rescued them several times, but he could not coincidentally save them from peril every time.

"Ahem!"

Sun Xing coughed, quieting the murmuring cultivators, and said gravely, "Perhaps we should first open the storage bags of these deceased individuals to see what is inside before making a decision! Fellow Daoist Wang Junior, open all the storage bags!" He gestured toward the middle-aged Wang.

The middle-aged Wang cultivator immediately activated his spiritual power to open all the storage bags. With a shake, a clatter erupted as a pile of various artifacts, spirit stones, and other items scattered onto the floor. Most were items used by Mid to Late Golden Core cultivators; nothing appeared particularly outstanding.

Indeed, five dull black tokens were among them.

These five tokens were identical in appearance to those Ye Qin, Sun Xing, and the others held earlier: black material, inscribed with the characters "Small Token One" through "Small Token Five," though they were significantly smaller.

The gazes of the cultivators, however, converged solely on the five black small tokens, completely ignoring everything else.

"Uh, five small tokens..."

Sun Xing was now truly troubled, unsure how to distribute them. Handing the tokens to anyone would instantly create a massive headache. His personal prestige was far from sufficient to command absolute authority among the group. If disputes arose, he doubted he could suppress them.

"Fellow Daoist Sun, wait a moment!"

Jiang Ling suddenly spoke, cupping his hands toward the assembled cultivators before stating, "Fellow Daoists, Fellow Daoist Zheng and I have relatively low cultivation levels and recognize our insufficient strength. We are willing to withdraw from the competition for the tokens. We only ask for a few relics from these ancient cultivators; what do the rest of you think?"

"Our uncle and nephew are also willing to do so." The elder Wang quickly added from the side.

He was no fool; with so many cultivators staring intently while Sun Xing deliberated on distributing the tokens, there was no way their uncle and nephew stood a chance! The treasures in this ancient vault were already beyond their reach; the piles of artifacts and spirit stones before them were far more tangible. While nothing was exceptionally unique, there were several Primordial Spirit artifacts among them—items they had longed for over many years.

"Since that is the case, the four of you may proceed. If anyone else does not wish to contend for the tokens, you may voluntarily withdraw and take a few items from this trove of wealth!"

Sun Xing was naturally beaming. Jiang Ling and Zheng Chenghui, along with the two Wangs, withdrawing voluntarily set an excellent precedent, saving him considerable trouble. The other cultivators were not overly interested in these collections of Mid/Late Golden Core materials, and the arrangement—exchanging relinquishment for these goods—was reasonable, so no one voiced an objection.

"Many thanks!"

Jiang Ling and Zheng Chenghui thanked the group, waved their hands, and swiftly collected several valuable items from the piles of goods into their storage bags, carefully avoiding the black small tokens. They then quietly moved to the side of the hall, standing apart, clearly signaling their non-involvement in the cultivators’ token distribution matters.

The Wang uncle and nephew, spirits lifted, also selected more than a dozen items, including two Primordial Spirit artifacts, and moved to the corner beside Jiang Ling and Zheng Chenghui, immediately starting the process of refining them.

Strangely, Cultivator Fan, who was at the Eighth Layer of the Golden Core stage and fully qualified to participate in the token distribution, also smiled, bowed slightly, picked up a few decent artifacts and some wealth, and then retired to the side to meditate. Ye Qin was slightly puzzled; he didn't have much impression of Cultivator Fan and didn't wish to pry further.

Although the others found it slightly odd, having one less competitor was not a disadvantage. After casting a few glances at Cultivator Fan, they redirected their attention to the remaining five black small tokens.

With five individuals voluntarily stepping aside, the remaining thirteen Mid and Late Golden Core cultivators still found that five small tokens were far from sufficient for equitable distribution. Those remaining were, naturally, the cultivators absolutely unwilling to abandon the tokens.