lcionline Chapter 171 I Investigate Myself
Chapter 171 I Investigate Myself
Hearing the shouts outside the door, Ding Yi was taken aback. He then wrapped the nightingale around his arm and hid it in his sleeve before walking out of the room.
The servant outside the room seemed a little anxious, but when he saw Ding Yi come out, he breathed a sigh of relief and then led Ding Yi out of the courtyard.
Following the servant, Ding Yi quickly arrived at the entrance of the council hall, where many people were already standing.
One of them was wearing a robe with gold dragon and python patterns and an official hat with carved patterns. Ding Yi recognized this person; he was Fu Lousheng, whom he had met at the Wuji Sect that day.
At this moment, the elders of the Myriad Manifestations Sect surrounded Fu Lousheng, their faces full of flattery. Zhou Ruoxu, in particular, had a smile on his face that was as bright as a blooming chrysanthemum.
As soon as Ding Yi entered the main hall, Zhou Ruoxu noticed him and quickly waved to greet him.
"Local official, come here!"
Upon hearing this, Ding Yi walked over with a normal expression, and then Fu Lousheng also turned his gaze over.
Upon seeing this, Ding Yi felt as if he were being stared at by a fierce tiger.
Before entering the Yuanqiao Realm, Ding Yi had not realized how terrifying Fu Lousheng was, but now that he had entered the Yuanqiao Realm and his synesthetic range had expanded to a distance of one zhang, he realized how truly terrifying this person was.
Even just being stared at made Ding Yi feel pressured; this long-lost sense of dread made his heart sink slightly.
But he suppressed the unease in his heart and, with a calm expression, called out to Zhou Ruoxu:
"Sect Master, what is it you want to call me about now?!"
"My lord, this is Li Baozheng, whom I mentioned last time. He led his men to wipe out that gang of Blood and Flesh Outer Demons!"
Zhou Ruoxu did not answer Ding Yi upon hearing this. Instead, he smiled at Fu Lousheng beside him and pointed to Ding Yi as an introduction.
"Oh, not bad."
Fu Lousheng glanced at Ding Yi, then looked away, as if this kind of loud and boisterous man was not to his liking.
"I've made myself clear. You only have two days to find out the reason."
Fu Lousheng said calmly.
"Yes, yes, sir, I will definitely take care of it."
Zhou Ruoxu quickly agreed.
"I hope you won't let me down."
After saying that, Fu Lousheng hurriedly left the main hall, seemingly not intending to stay any longer.
Zhou Ruoxu watched Fu Lousheng walk out of the main hall, then straightened up and sighed softly.
This is the first time that Fu Lousheng has come directly to the gang to assign tasks.
"It seems this is no small matter."
Zhou Ruoxu frowned, then looked at the elders around him.
"Gentlemen, as you just saw, this is an order personally given by the Director of the Inspection Department. We need to find clues as soon as possible."
Zhou Ruoxu spoke slowly.
"Sect Master, I just arrived and didn't hear anything. What are you doing now?"
Ding Yi asked directly.
"Ah, Lord Li, yesterday some people from Taiping Palace went missing in my Baihe County. Director Fu just came over and said he was investigating this matter."
Zhou Ruoxu glanced at Ding Yi and then continued.
"What! There's actually such a thing!"
Ding Yi feigned surprise, his eyes widening in astonishment.
"Alas, these are troubled times."
The elders standing nearby also shook their heads.
In fact, these matters concerning the worship of gods are beyond the scope of what the Myriad Manifestations Sect can interfere with.
Without a doubt, Fu Lousheng must have sent people from the Supervision Department to investigate as well. The reason he came here again was simply to have more investigation teams and more hope.
"Then, Sect Master, this time, will you personally take action?"
An elder asked.
"Elder Hai and Elder Tong, please stay here. The rest of you elders, come with me to take a look."
Zhou Ruoxu thought for a moment, then continued.
"Yes!"
Everyone reluctantly agreed, except for Ding Yi, who stood at the back, watching the scene before him, a faint smile appearing on his lips.
After a stick of incense had burned, the group had already ridden out of Baihe City and were rushing towards the Qingsha River ferry.
This time, almost all of the Wanxiang Sect's top leaders came out, including the sect leader Zhou Ruoxu, totaling five people.
Throughout the journey, the group remained silent, all understanding the difficulty and seriousness of the mission.
After about three or four hours, they finally arrived at Feiyun Ferry, a ferry crossing on the Qingsha River.
Feiyun Ferry was actually a city built around a ferry crossing.
Holding official orders specially issued by the Yin-Yang Palace, the group rode into the city and arrived at the ferry crossing at the very back of the city.
At this moment, many boats of all sizes were moored at the ferry crossing, and a large number of boatmen and porters were gathered here, making it particularly lively.
"Elder Huang, you are an expert in investigating cases, what do we do now?"
Everyone dismounted, and then Zhou Ruoxu turned his gaze to Huang Changxiu beside him.
Huang Changxiu was a middle-aged man, around forty or fifty years old. He glanced at the surroundings briefly, then said:
"According to the people from the Censorate, if the people from Taiping Palace went missing by water, it's unlikely that it happened after they landed. I think we should find a boat and go upstream along this river; we might be able to find some clues."
Zhou Ruoxu nodded upon hearing this, then called over a waiter to store all the horses at the restaurant, and then led everyone to the ferry.
The ferry crossing was filled with boats. Zhou Ruoxu rented three small boats and then had the boatmen take them upstream along the Qingsha River.
Ding Yi and Tong Guchun shared a boat. Tong Guchun, on the other hand, had reached the Great Perfection of Blood Transformation and could be considered a veteran expert of the Myriad Manifestations Sect.
On the way, the boatman on Ding Yi's small boat asked with some curiosity:
"I see you are all dressed very elegantly. I wonder if you are also from Baihe City?"
Before Ding Yi could speak, Elder Tong, who was standing nearby, immediately asked:
"Old man, what do you mean? Have you seen any other people from Baihe City?"
The boatman chuckled and said:
“Of course I have seen them. Not long before you arrived, seven or eight people also rented a large boat and went upstream. They said they were from Baihe City.”
"It seems to be from the Inspection Department."
Elder Tong was slightly taken aback, then became somewhat annoyed and spat out a curse:
"These people in the Inspection Department clearly don't trust us!"
"They're all a bunch of idiots!"
Ding Yi echoed this sentiment.
"You and I can keep these words to ourselves, but please don't say them outside."
Tong Guchun was startled by Ding Yi's loud voice, and then quickly said something.
"I wonder if we'll be able to find any clues this time. Sigh."
After Tong Guchun finished speaking, he sighed again.
"Don't worry, with me here, there's bound to be a clue!"
Ding Yi chuckled and patted his chest loudly.
"I hope so."
Tong Guchun thought Ding Yi was joking, so he just smiled and didn't say anything more. Instead, he looked at the lake in front of him, lost in thought.
Several more hours passed, and it was now noon. The winter sun wasn't too strong, but the wind on the lake was biting, which made fewer boats willing to come out.
Ding Yi looked up, then suddenly raised an eyebrow and pointed to a black object on the shore not far away, shouting:
"Elder Tong, what is that?!"
Tong Guchun followed Ding Yi's gaze and immediately noticed a huge rectangular wooden plank floating on the water's surface by the shore, bobbing up and down with the ripples of the lake.
The plank was mixed in with the water plants on the shore, and it would be hard to spot unless you looked closely.
This is why the people on the two boats ahead didn't notice.
"It's ship planks!!"
Tong Guchun's heart skipped a beat, and he couldn't help but shout:
"Old man! Quick, come closer!"
At the same time, Tong Guchun took out a short flute, put it in his mouth, and started blowing it.
In an instant, a melodious flute sound carried far and wide, and the ships sailing ahead all stopped.