Chapter 60

"Lin Xian, you go first! After all, although you are not very old, you have outstanding talent. Among these disciples, you were the earliest to be recommended by Elder Lin to join the sect, and your cultivation is the highest among them, making you their little senior sister in a sense."

Seeing the disciples turn their gazes to the young girl, Deputy Sect Leader Xin also spoke.

Seeing Deputy Sect Leader Xin name her, the young girl knew that she had to say something this time. After a moment of thought, she said in a clear voice, "As the elders just said, I also believe that to transport such a large amount of goods without leaving any trace, it would probably require many people. However... however, I also think..."

At this point, the young girl’s face showed hesitation, as if unsure whether she should speak her mind.

"Fian, you can say whatever you want. Even if you make a mistake, Deputy Sect Leader Xin and the elders won’t blame you," the old man in the green robe, who had spoken first, said with a smile, showing a fondness for her.

This old man in the green robe was the young girl’s uncle, and he was the one who had recommended Lin Xian to join the Qingyun Sect years ago.

After the elder finished speaking, the other elders, protectors, and Deputy Sect Leader Xin all nodded, signaling for the young girl to continue.

The young girl paused, organized her thoughts, and then continued, "Actually, I have another idea. This batch of goods weighs several thousand pounds. But if someone has cultivated a top-tier method to enhance strength and also a top-tier light body technique, could they also accomplish something similar? If so, such a person should be able to transport these thousands of pounds of herbs without leaving any trace."

After expressing her thoughts, the young girl looked at the surrounding sect leaders with a worried expression.

The surrounding leaders, after hearing the young girl’s idea, were all taken aback. However, they soon shook their heads with a bitter smile.

From their expressions, it seemed that the situation the young girl had proposed was impossible.

The young girl looked puzzled.

Seeing the puzzled expression on his niece’s face, the old man in the green robe shook his head with a bitter smile. Years ago, he had recommended Lin Xian to join the sect. He had always been very caring towards this niece with outstanding cultivation talent.

However, Lin Xian was still too young and did not fully understand many things about the world.

Seeing the puzzled expression on the young girl’s face, the old man in the green robe began to explain, "Fian, it seems you don’t understand. If someone could move such a large amount of goods without leaving any trace, they would have to have cultivated the most advanced light body technique to the highest level. Even with outstanding talent and a steady supply of medicinal pills, it would take almost a lifetime to reach this level. The advanced techniques for enhancing strength are similar; it would also take a lifetime to cultivate to a high level. It’s impossible for someone to have both such advanced light body skills and such great strength, which is why it couldn’t have been done by one person."

After hearing her uncle’s explanation, Lin Xian finally understood why Deputy Sect Leader Xin and the others had shaken their heads with a bitter smile.

Realizing that her original idea was a basic mistake, the young girl’s face turned red.

After Lin Xian expressed her thoughts, a few other disciples also shared their ideas, but they were all ultimately rejected by the experienced Qingyun Sect leaders.

However, none of them knew that the person who had stolen the herbs was indeed just one person, not a group, as the young girl had suggested.

The real situation was the most unlikely answer they had considered.

After all, none of them could have imagined that Ding Qi had effortlessly taken away more than 5,000 pounds of herbs alone.

"From this, it seems that the only possibility is what Protector Zhong mentioned. The one who stole our herbs must be a group. Even if it is a group, given the circumstances, it would be extremely difficult to transport such a large amount of herbs out of Qixia Mountain in such a short time. It’s likely that the herbs are still hidden somewhere on Qixia Mountain. We must not relax our search around Qixia Mountain," Deputy Sect Leader Xin finally nodded and concluded.

He then added with a sigh, "Unfortunately, when the herbs were stolen, everyone in the sect was knocked out by the解散功散 (Dissolving Power Powder) and could not provide any useful information from Elders Ke and others. Even Protector Wei’s nephew only saw the back of one person, and there were no distinctive marks on him. Otherwise, we could have tried to search based on that. Now, with no clues, we can only use the most basic method and mobilize a large number of people to search."

"Then, inform everyone to increase their efforts and thoroughly investigate the forces that have been active in this area recently. The people who stole our important herbs must be among these groups," Deputy Sect Leader Xin instructed the people below.

"Yes," several people responded.

Subsequently, four or five responsible individuals immediately began to organize the many Qingyun Sect disciples present according to Deputy Sect Leader Xin’s requirements.

Seeing that the people below immediately took action upon his command, Deputy Sect Leader Xin nodded in satisfaction.

However, they did not realize that they had been heading in the wrong direction from the start of their investigation.

Just from this aspect, it was destined that they would not be able to find Ding Qi.

"Unfortunately, the sect has just gone through the turmoil of the succession for the position of sect leader and cannot spare more manpower. Otherwise, we could have dispatched more people, which would have made the investigation faster," Elder Mu sighed as he watched everyone take action.

Hearing Elder Mu’s words, the old man in the green robe also sighed and said, "There’s no other way. The sect has just gone through the turmoil of the succession, and we need people inside to stabilize the sect. We can’t mobilize everyone for the investigation. If it weren’t for Sect Leader Zuo reappointing elders like Elder Guan and Protector Jing, who were originally on Deputy Sect Leader Sha’s side, to stabilize the sect, we would have even fewer people available for the investigation."

"However, I wonder if Sect Leader Zuo’s reappointment of Protector Jing, Elder Guan, and others is really a good thing. If...," the white-bearded elder frowned and muttered.

"Elder Di’s concerns are valid. The people Sect Leader Zuo has reappointed, except for a few, are not a big issue. But Elder Guan and a few others, especially Elder Guan himself... During the struggle for the position of sect leader, Deputy Sect Leader Sha’s side used various devious and cunning schemes, all of which were personally planned by this person. Such a person... I fear...," someone hesitated but ultimately agreed.

Originally, a group of high-ranking officials in the sect, including Elder Guan, were loyal to Deputy Sect Leader Sha. After Sect Leader Zuo successfully took over the position, most of these people were removed from important positions or reassigned to positions with no real power.

After several years, following the struggle for the position of sect leader, the Qingyun Sect finally stabilized. Sect Leader Zuo, despite opposition, decided to reappoint a group of people who were most proficient in sect affairs, restoring their positions.

Many people were worried that these former supporters of Deputy Sect Leader Sha would harbor resentment towards Sect Leader Zuo and, upon returning to their original positions, would do things detrimental to the current Sect Leader Zuo, affecting the stability of the sect.

Especially Elder Guan, who, in the minds of many, was even more dangerous than Deputy Sect Leader Sha. After all, several years ago, during the struggle for the position of sect leader, it was this person who had been plotting behind Deputy Sect Leader Sha, nearly causing Sect Leader Zuo and his supporters to fall into irreparable situations and almost lose the struggle for the position of sect leader.

In the eyes of many, this person was extremely dangerous.

The current sect leaders, including Deputy Sect Leader Xin, were all supporters of Sect Leader Zuo. They naturally had concerns about Sect Leader Zuo’s decision.

After this topic was brought up, the others around also voiced their agreement.

However, Deputy Sect Leader Xin eventually stopped the discussion, "I know you all have concerns. However, when you return to the sect, do not mention this topic again. It could create discord within the sect and waste Sect Leader Zuo’s efforts. After all, although Elder Guan was Deputy Sect Leader Sha’s confidant, he has also made great contributions to the sect over the past few decades, having established great merits. Sect Leader Zuo, without personal bias, appoints people based on their abilities, placing the interests of the entire sect above all else, which is a blessing for us in the Qingyun Sect."

Hearing Deputy Sect Leader Xin’s words, the surrounding Qingyun Sect leaders all showed thoughtful expressions.

"Sect Leader Zuo is indeed a great fortune for us in the Qingyun Sect," one of them muttered.

These elders genuinely admired Sect Leader Zuo for his magnanimity and lack of grudges.