With that said, regardless of whether they were the adopted children or blood heirs, their expressions turned lively.

“Second Brother is right. All the nine great cultivation families do this. If the Shen family operates too honestly and hands over all the cultivation resources to the Supernatural Tower, it would be foolish. We would be selling them for so cheap!”

“No matter how bitter the situation is, we cannot let our children suffer. We cannot allow the descendants of the Shen family to lose at the starting line!”

“The competition in the future is ultimately a competition of talent reserves. Isn’t the Lu family, which is dominating Sky Pillar Corporation, doing everything they can to plunder resources and throw them at their own people?

“Looking at how the Lu family is now well-armed and full of talent, even Lu Siya, who has betrayed the Lu family, can stir up trouble and create such a grand array. If the Shen family doesn’t hang on to its cultivation resources, how can we fight the Lu family?”

“Father, the inside story of the black market transaction is indeed complicated. Second Brother may be wrong, but his motives are definitely for the good of the Shen family. He is loyal to you, the Shen family, and Universe Corporation!”

Everyone chimed in.

Shen Yuanbao’s frown deepened.

“Enough!”

Shen Yuanbao extended his finger and pointed at his successors. “You bunch of useless humans. Don’t I know the importance of nurturing my descendants? Have I ever mistreated you and deducted your cultivation resources?

“However, in private, you have to do your best and prevent things from getting so ugly, at least on the surface!

“I understand. Our family’s pharmaceutical factory only sends ten thousand to twenty thousand units, or even less, to the official direct store under the Supernatural Tower. It can only satisfy thirty to fifty units. At most, it can satisfy the needs of a hundred or so consumers. Most of the consumers have waited in line for a day, but they are unable to buy any genetic medicine. As time passes, how can there not be a huge commotion?

“Look at the big picture, and don’t put all your eggs in one basket. The image of a company may sound illusory, but at times, it’s more important than anything else.

“Don’t be petty, don’t be unwilling, and don’t be a stingy person. When it’s time for us to pay, don’t even blink!

“Let’s say that the cheap gene reagents we send to the Supernatural Tower for sale can satisfy 20% to 30% of the consumers’ needs. Then, we can create a lottery. Even if we can’t buy cultivation resources, we can only blame our bad luck. How can the consumers vent their grievances on us if they don’t win the lottery?

“Think about how your father made his fortune back then. If I had been as stingy as all of you back then, would the Shen family still be where it is today?”?

“You bunch of short-sighted and insatiable idiots. Don’t you understand such simple logic?”

“This…”

Many of the successors looked at each other and retreated in embarrassment.

“Father, it’s not that we haven’t thought of increasing affordable supplies in the Supernatural Tower at an equal price. However, there is a limit to ‘bloodletting.'”

Shen Yuhe remained calm as he patiently explained, “Do you know what the biggest difference between the issue of providing genetic medicine at an equal price and the issue you had back then is?

“The biggest difference is that there are too many superhumans now. Their realms are too high, and it has even made dying difficult!”

“Oh?”

Shen Yuanbao was slightly taken aback as he narrowed his eyes and said, “What’s the logic behind this?”

“To protect the cultivation rights of all superhumans, the prices of many cultivation resources, including genetic medicine, have not risen since the Supernatural Tower’s establishment. Decades have passed, and the increase in the official prices is at most 200%. On average, it does not exceed 150%. One could say that if the official retail prices are strictly enforced, all the pharmaceutical manufacturers and cultivation resource providers will be making a loss.”

Shen Yuhe said, “When you were showcasing your skills, the Supernatural Tower was just established. It was also the most intense and dangerous era of the Monster War.

“At that time, the entire Dragon City was in a life-and-death situation. Everyone was trying their best to become stronger. They were trying their best to awaken and cultivate.

“First of all, in that situation, the raw materials for genetic potions, namely monster flesh, bones, spinal cords, and brain matter, were relatively easy to obtain.

“Second of all, the cost of labor was relatively low. Many Reapers were willing to work day and night when they had food to eat. Even if they were infected by monster venom, resulting in injuries or even death at work, most of them would admit that they were unlucky and simply pay the price.

“Third of all, the number of superhumans wasn’t very high. Most superhumans were in a similar situation. The genetic vaccine that they had to consume every day, regardless of quantity or quality, did not have high requirements. Very few Heaven and Deity Realm powerhouses were active in the most dangerous front lines for a long time. The mortality rate was extremely high.

“That meant the major pharmaceutical manufacturers only needed to provide limited gene reagents at a fair price.

“We were making a loss. However, for the image of our company and Dragon City’s survival, we could afford to make a loss.

“But the situation now is completely different.

“As the spirit energy training system is being perfected, all kinds of training equipment are being upgraded, and bizarre training techniques are emerging one after another. Both the absolute number of superhumans and the proportion of superhuman individuals in the population are much higher than when the Supernatural Tower was first established.

“A One-star Spirit Tattoo superhuman, who started with consuming relatively little cultivation resources, has gradually upgraded to Two-star, Three-star, or even the Heaven Realm. The daily cultivation resources required has exponentially increased.

“The end of the Monster War meant most of the dangers that threatened the lives of superhumans ceased to exist. In the past year, the survival rate of superhumans skyrocketed, soaring into the sky and walking up in a steep straight line—except for a few unlucky people who became deranged, exploded, and fell into a trap when they were cleaning up the monster remnants, most of the superhumans survived and became increasingly strong.

“With the addition of various factors, compared with when the Supernatural Tower was first established, the demand for cultivation resources on the market has increased by a hundredfold.

“Plus, with economic development, the entire industrial chain has become more formal and welfare-oriented. The annual high-risk industry insurance premium paid to employees alone makes for an astronomical figure.

“Thanks to the rapid urbanization of the wilderness, the monsters’ habitat is shrinking, increasing the cost of labor and the difficulty of obtaining monster materials.

“If we still insist that all the major pharmaceutical manufacturers provide cheap gene drugs unconditionally and without limit as they did decades ago, it will not merely be a loss-making proposition. Instead, we will have to drain our blood and die from excessive blood loss!”