Chapter 763: Casting Swords into Plows (9)

According to Da Hao's reasoning, he finally concluded that the suspect recognized Gu Yun and had a strong purpose, stealing only Gu Yun among the many swords in the armory.

But in other words, aside from the few participants in the sword‑gift ceremony, no one else had a chance to handle the sword.

"Could it be that the Envoy Corps or Yin Zhi stole the sword?" Xing guessed.

"Um… if they wanted to steal it, why would the Envoy Corps return the sword to Xianzhou?"

"Perhaps the Envoy Corps regretted it."

"Hmm, you're not without reason. The situation then was that under the lead of that Pure‑beauty Knight, the Envoy Corps handed the sword over to Gong Zao Si. The craftsman in charge of the transfer testified that they took nothing from the armory. As for that Pure‑beauty Knight—aside, it was that knight who, after arriving at Ka Le Wa La, identified the sword's origin and escorted it all the way to Xianzhou. In other words, he single‑handedly made the sword's return possible."

"Like the Envoy Corps, if he wanted to steal the sword, why wait until after it was delivered to Luo Fu to take it?"

In Da Hao's view, the Envoy Corps and Yin Zhi have no motive at all; even if they were to commit a crime, there's no need to go to Luo Fu.

Xing posed the final question: "Could it be that I stole the sword?"

"Then… did you steal it?"

"I didn't steal it."

"Then stop causing trouble!"

——

Kaito Kid.

"A locked‑room theft?"

On the rooftop of Jianggutian High School, Qingzi was originally staring fiercely at her childhood friend who had magically made the sausage in her lunchbox disappear, when the locked‑room case on the Xianzhou screen suddenly caught her eye.

"Since the doors and windows weren't broken, how did the culprit get in? Feels like a repeat offender… just like Kaito Kid's method!"

Kaito nearly choked on the sausage, patted his chest and coughed twice, his gaze drifting unconsciously elsewhere: "Ahem… how can Kid compare with a cross‑world case? But then again, ruling out the Envoy Corps and Yin Zhi… isn't that conclusion a bit hasty?"

"The steward makes a good point," Qingzi said seriously, looking at the screen, "Yin Zhi and the Envoy Corps have no reason to steal—if Yin Zhi really wanted that demon sword, she could just snatch it midway; why escort it to Xianzhou and cause extra trouble?"

"Interesting…" Kaito stroked his chin, a slight upward curve at his mouth, "a classic closed setting with limited suspects… this steward really knows how to create drama and investigative pressure."

"Kaito, who do you think it is?" Qingzi asked curiously.

"Me?" Kaito blinked, putting on that carefree grin again, "I'm no detective. But… well, based on my extensive… uh, experience watching mystery dramas and novels, the ones first ruled out are often the most suspicious."

Qingzi gave him a withering look: "Saying that is the same as saying nothing!"

"Actually, Qingzi, think about it: although the Envoy Corps and Yin Zhi seem to have no motive, before arriving at Xianzhou they only knew the sword came from Xianzhou and didn't know the sword's true nature as a demon sword, right?"

"Seems like it…"

"So, 'no motive in theory' could be the best cover. The real magician… no, the real criminal often exploits people's mental patterns. The Envoy Corps stealing the sword looks most unlikely, so if they succeed, suspicion is minimal."

Qingzi nodded thoughtfully: "Like Kid sometimes pretends to be a police officer or staff, blending into the crowd?"

"…Qingzi, you really know Kid well."

"Of course! Dad keeps rambling about it, it's hard not to remember!"

Qingzi redirected her gaze to the Gong Zao Si craftsmen present, "Kaito, could it be that someone inside Gong Zao Si stole it themselves? Like Master Gongxu… after all, how could a sword be taken in a single night? That's absurd! It's like a thief scouting the Gong Zao Si armory, casually pocketing the demon sword without leaving a trace; Gong Zao Si's guards couldn't possibly be that lax."

"That possibility can't be ruled out; insider crimes are always the hardest to guard against. They know security loopholes—like the most secure, least monitored line in Gong Zao Si, which they could prep in advance, even alter logs and disrupt Di Heng Si's investigation. If it were Master Gongxu… the case would get messy."

Qingzi watched Kaito's serious side‑profile analysis and suddenly thought the guy was occasionally reliable—if you ignore the pranks.

Kaito stretched lazily, then slipped back into his laid‑back demeanor: "Alright, the deduction game is over! Lunch break's ending soon, Qingzi, does the bento have any other dishes? I'm hungry~"

"Black‑feather Kaito! You still dare talk about the bento! Give me back my sausage!"

——

"I can prove that Xing left Gong Zao Si and came to me, with no suspicion of stealing the sword," General Huai Yan first vouched for Xing.

Da Hao continued his reasoning: "Simply put, not everyone who has seen the sword has been to Gong Zao Si, and not everyone who wants the sword has seen it… after this elimination, only Miss Yun Li remains as a suspect."

Yun Li couldn't help but say, "Very reasonable."

"Then…"

"I didn't steal the sword."

Da Hao might have been logical, but Yun Li didn't care about his reasoning and bluntly denied it.

Da Hao still stuck to his view: "Ah, after eliminating all other possibilities, only one remains, and that is the 'truth.'"

"I feel we still have a blind spot in our thinking."

"Xing, if you want to refute me, you'll need to produce solid evidence."

General Huai Yan pulled Xing aside; he also believed Yun Li didn't steal the sword, yet he knew her straightforward nature could easily cause trouble, and if she were the thief, he wouldn't show any bias.

"What's the procedure for safeguarding the sword?" Xing suddenly asked curiously.

General Huai Yan recalled: "After the sword‑gift ceremony, the Pure‑beauty Knight Yin Zhi carries the sword case, together with the Envoy Corps, escorted by the Cloud Cavalry to Gong Zao Si, where the Gong Zao Si chief engineer verifies the sword's entry into storage."

Xing had no further questions, turned to look for Master Gongxu, to see if he had any clues or evidence.

Master Gongxu was clueless about the theft. But as Gong Zao Si's chief engineer, he still wanted to say something fair: "Although the sword was stolen, our Gong Zao Si is still very safe!"

"No, I just remembered, my beloved golden statue was also smashed! Ah!"