"Whoosh..."
A pale yellow figure swiftly alighted on Li Lin's shoulder. It was Little dragon, affectionately rubbing against Li Lin's cheek after not seeing him for many days.
"Alright, let's go back," Li Lin said softly, and then returned to his residence.
"Brother, what happened to you? Are you injured?" In the residence, Li Xintong, seeing Li Lin covered in blood, was shocked along with Fang Xinqi.
"I'm not injured, just got a bit messy. I'll go take a bath," Li Lin quickly explained, forgetting that he was covered in blood from forging the Blood Soul Mark. He went to his room, washed up, and changed into a clean blue robe.
When Li Lin reappeared, he was clean and tidy. His slender but upright figure, star-like eyes, healthy wheat-colored skin, and well-defined features, including long eyebrows and slightly upturned thin lips, always seemed to carry a faint, mischievous smile.
Seeing the junior brother before her, Fang Xinqi's heart skipped a beat, her face turning slightly red. She didn't understand why her heart suddenly started racing.
"Junior brother, you're out of seclusion? Good timing, there's a big issue," Zhang Mingtao rushed in, anxious to see Li Lin there.
"What happened, senior brother? What's the matter?" Fang Xinqi asked, with Li Lin also waiting for Zhang Mingtao to speak.
"Many disciples are in the main hall, demanding Dan medicine from the three elders," Zhang Mingtao explained.
"I almost forgot about that. But our master and Elder Huang don't have that many Dan medicines," Fang Xinqi's face slightly changed.
"What Dan medicine? What exactly is going on?" Li Lin asked, not having this information in Zhang Mingtao's memories.
"Junior brother, here's the situation..." Zhang Mingtao briefly explained to Li Lin. Every five years, Flying Spirit Gate distributes Dan medicine to its disciples. They had missed the last distribution, leading to the departure of half the disciples. If they fail to distribute again, many more disciples might leave the Sect.
Li Lin, listening to Zhang Mingtao's explanation, was slightly startled. He hadn't expected Flying Spirit Gate to be in such a dire situation. He remembered Elder Bai Mei of Yun Yang Sect saying that new disciples there received a third-grade Dan medicine upon arrival. In contrast, new disciples in Flying Spirit Gate only got a first-grade Dan medicine and a second-grade one after five years. The gap was significant.
"Let's go and see," Fang Xinqi suggested.
The three of them, along with Li Xintong, quickly headed to the main hall. Li Lin was curious to see how the elders would handle this, wondering if they could produce more than a hundred Dan medicines, including those owed from five years ago. Though the amount wasn't much, considering Flying Spirit Gate's current state, it seemed unlikely they could afford it.
However, Li Lin knew that the three elders, being Martial Soul level experts, must have some private funds. It would be enough if they were willing to use their personal resources.
Inside the main hall, when Li Lin and the others arrived, it was already packed with over a hundred people. Almost all ordinary disciples had gathered. At the head of the hall, Elders Huang Haibo, Zhou Yuhou, and Zheng Ying, along with a dozen direct disciples, were present.
"Elder Huang, isn't it time to distribute our Dan medicines?"
"Yes, along with those owed from five years ago, we should receive one second-grade and one first-grade Dan medicine."
...
The hall was noisy with disciples clamoring for their Dan medicines, reminding Li Lin of workers demanding unpaid wages in his previous life.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
"Silence, all of you, what is this commotion?" Elder Huang Haibo frowned deeply and sternly reprimanded the disciples, causing an immediate hush.
"The Sect Leader has just passed away not long ago. Let's delay this matter for now," Huang Haibo softened his tone and addressed the crowd.
"The Sect Leader's death grieves us all. Therefore, we need to strengthen ourselves now more than ever to find and avenge the killer. We need Dan medicines for cultivation, so please, elders, give us our medicines."
A deep voice rang out, causing everyone to turn in surprise to see who was bold enough to openly demand Dan medicines from the elders. The three elders on the dais also looked sternly at the speaker.
Li Lin smiled faintly, realizing he was the one who had spoken. In his heart, however, he was thinking, "Huang Haibo, I can't confront you directly right now, so I'll give you some trouble instead. Let you have a hard time. At the very least, let's make your private vault bleed a little."
"You're right, senior brother. We need Dan medicine. We must work hard in cultivation to avenge the Sect Leader."
"We want Dan medicine…"
Seeing that it was the senior brother who had spoken, everyone suddenly felt emboldened and began to shout loudly.
Huang Haibo, Zhou Yuhou, and Zheng Ying looked at each other, understanding the gravity of the situation. Flying Spirit Gate was now nothing but a shell, devoid of any Dan medicine.
"Everyone, calm down. Honestly, we all know the situation of Flying Spirit Gate. We really don't have any Dan medicine right now. But I believe if we work hard, things will get better, and even third-grade Dan medicines won’t be a problem in the future," Zheng Ying said, furrowing her brows.
"Zheng Elder's words make sense. However, third-grade Dan medicines are for the future. We need Dan medicine now to enhance our strength so that Flying Spirit Gate can become stronger and grow. Therefore, we need Dan medicine now," Li Lin added, stirring the pot once more.
Following Li Lin's words, Huang Haibo and Zhou Yuhou glared at him with anger, and even Elder Zheng Ying shot him a stern look.
"We want Dan medicine now, and if we don't get it, we'll leave Flying Spirit Gate."
"Always putting us off, year after year. We're done. We want to leave Flying Spirit Gate."
"If there’s no Dan medicine, we'll leave Flying Spirit Gate."
Someone started the chant, and the mood in the crowd quickly grew heated, with many agreeing to leave Flying Spirit Gate if no Dan medicine was provided.
Li Lin smiled wickedly, thinking that now it was time for the elders to worry. If everyone left, Flying Spirit Gate would cease to exist.
The three elders of Flying Spirit Gate indeed felt a headache brewing. Five years ago, when they failed to distribute Dan medicine, more than half of their 300 disciples left, leaving only about a hundred. If these remaining disciples also left, Flying Spirit Gate would collapse without any external attack, a dishonor to its ancestors.
"Please, be patient," Zhou Yuhou said loudly, his voice mixed with true Qi and echoing in everyone's ears.
The crowd gradually quieted down, but the atmosphere remained charged, as if they would indeed leave Flying Spirit Gate today if they didn't receive Dan medicine.
"How about this? Let's delay the matter of Dan medicine for now. This decision needs to be made by the Sect Leader. As elders, we can't decide. Let’s elect a new Sect Leader first. What do you all think?" Zhou Yuhou suggested, eyeing the crowd.
"Electing a Sect Leader?" The crowd was momentarily stunned, but then this idea captivated everyone's attention.
"Senior brother, according to Flying Spirit Gate's rules, only the one who obtains the Sect Leader's token is the rightful Sect Leader," Zheng Ying reminded Zhou Yuhou, unaware of this plan to elect a Sect Leader.
"Sister, rules are made by people, aren't they? If someone kills the Sect Leader and takes the token, should we accept them as our Sect Leader?" Huang Haibo said calmly.
"We need to elect a new Sect Leader for Flying Spirit Gate now. The Sect can't be without a leader for too long. It's detrimental to our development," Zhou Yuhou added.
"These two are singing in harmony, seemingly plotting to take over as Sect Leader, as if it was all prearranged. Using this opportunity to elect a new leader," Li Lin thought, guessing that Zhou Yuhou and Huang Haibo had premeditated this plan to ascend to the Sect Leader's position.
"But..." Zheng Ying seemed worried, but before she could finish, Huang Haibo interrupted her.
"Fellow disciples, after we elect a new Sect Leader today, let's ask the new leader to distribute the Dan medicine," Huang Haibo announced loudly.
"Good, let's elect a new Sect Leader."
Hearing that there might be Dan medicine, the disciples in the hall were focused on that. As for who became the Sect Leader, it was not their concern, so they naturally had no objections.
"So be it, then. As for the new Sect Leader, I think they must have significant prestige in the Sect and also be among the top in strength. No objections, right?" Zhou Yuhou said, looking around at everyone.
"Old fox, just trying to swing it towards you three elders," Li Lin thought to himself. This election for Sect Leader was just a show. Whoever became the Sect Leader was probably already decided by Huang Haibo and Zhou Yuhou. It was just an opportunity for them to rise to power, similar to the political 'freedom' in some countries in his previous life where elections were predetermined, with the real decision-making not in the hands of the people.