Chapter 80 - 76: Investigation and Speculation [Second Update, Please Subscribe]_2

Chapter 80: Chapter 76: Investigation and Speculation [Second Update, Please Subscribe]_2

Zhou Chun and Zhou Jiahe were truly exhausted in body and mind and, upon hearing the words, immediately returned to their residence on Baozhi Peak to rest.

After resting for half a day, Zhou Chun got out of bed with a heavy heart.

The disappearance of Zhou Jiahui at this critical juncture was exceedingly delicate.

Currently, Spirit Beast Restaurant had just revived its business with the big sales of “Touch of Despair”. If at this time the production of “Touch of Despair” encountered any issues, that would be a serious problem.

Moreover, Zhou Chun was even more concerned about another issue: if Zhou Jiahui had truly met with an accident, could the location of the underground river possibly become known to outsiders?

With such a heavy heart, he couldn’t sit still and went to Hundred Medicines Peak.

“Though the formula for ‘Touch of Despair’ powder is complex, this powder, after all, is not an Elixir and doesn’t present any Alchemy technical difficulties. If there were a Cultivator skilled in pharmacology who knew all the ingredients and conducted a meticulous analysis, I wouldn’t dare to guarantee that the formula couldn’t be reverse-engineered!”

“Therefore, if we do not want this poison to be replicated by outsiders, we must strictly control the leakage of the Poison Thorn Fish’s mucus. Without this mucus, even if outsiders could reverse-engineer the powder formula, it would be useless!”

Atop Hundred Medicines Peak, facing Zhou Chun’s inquiry, Zhou Jiawei spoke frankly about his own view.

This response inevitably made Zhou Chun’s mood even heavier.

What the third Family Elder, Zhou Daoquan, said upon returning from outside made the few Zhou Family members who were in the know look even worse.

“I ran around four times with the Heart-Linking Grub’s mother grub, changing routes each time, and didn’t get even the slightest response. From this, it can be concluded that the Heart-Linking Grub’s offspring on Jiahui’s person is either dead or has been taken far away!”

In the “Central Peace Hall,” several informed Zhou Family Clans Members gathered to listen to Family Elder Zhou Daoquan recount his recent outside experiences.

The Heart-Linking Grub is a special insect bred by the Zhou Family, capable of sensing and pinpointing the location of its offspring even over a hundred miles away.

Therefore, every core Clan Member of the Zhou Family, as well as some Elite Clan Members who receive special attention, carry with them the offspring of a Heart-Linking Grub, hidden in their shoe soles or trouser pockets.

In this way, should they encounter life-threatening danger while outside, they can allow the Heart-Linking Grub’s offspring to burrow deep underground, enabling the family to later find the location of their demise and pursue the culprits for retribution.

Hearing that Zhou Daoquan had gone out several times with the Heart-Linking Grub’s mother grub and failed to locate the offspring carried by Zhou Jiahui, all the Zhou Family Cultivators present recognized the seriousness of the situation.

Simultaneously, the gazes of Zhou Chun and others turned towards the Clan Leader Zhou Daoyi, waiting for his statement.

“The Heart-Linking Grub is a special Spirit Insect that our Zhou Family bred anew after establishing roots in Jiufeng Ridge. Its existence is unknown even to the ordinary Clan Members of our Zhou Family. It also does not possess any Mana, making it unlikely to be discovered by enemies!”

“And even if Jiahui were captured alive, she would know to leave the Heart-Linking Grub behind for the family to locate her; she wouldn’t be foolish enough to let the enemy take her away along with the Heart-Linking Grub!”

“So we have reason to believe that Jiahui has not only been killed but that the Heart-Linking Grub she was carrying might have been discovered and destroyed by someone!”

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Zhou Daoyi slowly expressed his view.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Daoquan immediately raised his eyebrows and said in a heavy tone, “Does the Clan Leader believe there is someone in our family who disclosed the existence of the Heart-Linking Grub? Someone colluded with outsiders to harm Jiahui?”

“We cannot dismiss this possibility!”

Zhou Daoyi nodded with a somber expression.

“The nineteenth sister was out collecting Poison Thorn Fish mucus when she was harmed. If outsiders harmed her, it must have been for the sake of the Poison Thorn Fish’s mucus. In this case, doesn’t that make Spirit Beast Manor the most suspicious?”

Zhou Jiahe said this through gritted teeth, “That would make sense. Only they would be most likely to learn of the existence of the Heart-Linking Grub from the traitors within our family!”

Her speculation was indeed logical and plausible.

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But as the Clan Leader, Zhou Daoyi couldn’t just make such a definitive assertion based on mere speculation.

He quickly waved his hand and said, “We can’t make hasty decisions like that. Perhaps there is no traitor, and Jiahui simply encountered a powerful enemy who ambushed her without giving her any chance to prepare, resulting in her being killed or captured!”

Having said that, he spoke in a more serious tone, “The most urgent task now is to find the actual location where Jiahui ran into trouble. By investigating the scene of the incident, we can determine the truth of what happened!”

However, just as he finished speaking and was about to arrange for people to thoroughly search for the location of Zhou Jiahui’s incident, Zhou Chun, who had been silent up to this point, suddenly spoke up.

“Suppose, and I mean just suppose, if Thirteen’s speculation is correct and the enemy who harmed Nineteen did so for the sake of the Poison Thorn Fish’s mucus, shouldn’t he have waited for Nineteen to lure out the Poison Thorn Fish at the pool before making a move?”

“If Nineteen wasn’t targeted for the mucus of the Poison Thorn Fish, what kind of powerful enemy would leave her unable to even leave behind a Heart-Linking Grub? Why would such a powerful enemy target Nineteen?”

Zhou Chun reached this point and, upon seeing that he had captured everyone’s attention, continued to say:

“If it’s the former, since there are no traces of Nineteen near the pool, it indicates that she met with misfortune on the way there. It also suggests that she had discovered the enemy tracking her in advance and had ample time to leave a Heart-Linking Grub.”

“And if the enemy knew she was in charge of collecting the mucus and was able to track her accurately, yet she detected them, and afterwards they even managed to destroy the Heart-Linking Grub, then there must be a leak from within the family!”

“If it’s the latter, we need to consider what benefits such a powerful enemy would derive from harming Nineteen? What gain is there in doing so?”

Compared to Zhou Jiahe’s conjectures, which were mixed with personal grudges, Zhou Chun’s analysis was much more logical and reasonable, and it was devoid of personal bias and preference.

As such, it garnered more attention from Zhou Daoyi, the Clan Leader, and Zhou Daoquan, the Elder.

Zhou Daoyi pondered briefly before looking up and saying, “Let’s discuss the latter possibility that Zhengchun mentioned. If it’s the latter, then the person who harmed Jiahui has only one motive—to create confusion and to make us direct our hatred towards Spirit Beast Manor.”

“But with just this, we have no evidence, and the Zhou Family definitely wouldn’t cause trouble with Spirit Beast Manor. If he wants to incite the Zhou Family to fight against Spirit Beast Manor, he will certainly continue to stoke the fires with other means!”

Having reached this point, his expression turned slightly colder as he said in a low voice, “If that’s the case, we should remain unchanging in the face of myriad changes and wait for the murderer who harmed Jiahui to reveal himself again.”

But he also knew that this was unlikely.

Therefore, his expression soon changed again, and he spoke with sadness, “If it’s the former, then it’s truly a misfortune for our family!”

After listening to his analysis, everyone felt that the actual circumstances were likely one of these two scenarios.

So Elder Zhou Daoquan also quickly spoke up, “Then we proceed on both fronts. First, we keep Jiahui’s disappearance a secret and avoid causing any commotion to see if there’s really a mastermind behind this.”

“On the other hand, we should closely monitor and investigate those Clan Members who are aware of the Heart-Linking Grub to see if we can identify the traitor!”

This statement was supposed to come from Zhou Daoyi, the Clan Leader, but Zhou Daoquan, as a Family Elder, was not out of line in saying it—it was simply a little inappropriate at most.

But Zhou Daoyi was clearly not concerned about this detail.

He nodded in agreement and responded, “Right, we’ll do it that way. As for Jiahui’s spouse and children, I will make sure they are properly instructed.”

After finishing, his gaze swept over those present in the hall before finally resting on Zhou Chun.

He spoke, “Zhengchun, you need not return to the Marketplace just yet. I will arrange for someone else to take your place. For now, you will stay in the family and assist me with investigating the traitor within the clan.”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Daoquan’s gaze slightly sharpened as if deep in thought.

Zhou Jiahe showed no particular reaction, still consumed by sorrow.

As for Zhou Chun, he was startled at first, but then quickly replied, “Yes, junior follows your command.”

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