Chapter 215: Each Side Holds Its Own Viewpoint

Zu An knew, without even looking, that the newcomer was Shi Kun's protector, Shi Lezhi. His system dashboard had already registered the incoming rage points.

Rage points from Shi Lezhi +444!

For a moment, he could barely breathe. An eighth-rank expert was far beyond his current ability to contend with; the gap between them was simply immense. He wanted to retaliate, but under the opponent's pressure, even wiggling a finger was difficult. He wanted to dodge, but having charged forward too impulsively, he had no leverage to maneuver. Gritting his teeth, he activated the Primordial Chaos Scripture, preparing to use his body's resilience to withstand the blow.

Just then, a white shadow flashed past.

If anyone in the arena knew Zu An was about to act first, it was Chu Chuyan. She understood that he was stepping in to avenge her. Previously in the secret realm, Shi Kun had pushed her to the point of completely severed meridians. Even with the Illusory Lotus of No Trace, she had barely clung to life. If not for a stroke of luck later on, she would now be a cripple. What's more, Shi Kun had harbored malicious intentions towards her body, even knowing she was on the brink of death. In fact, even if Zu An hadn't acted, she had already intended to settle the score with Shi Kun. So, seeing him make his move, she focused and prepared, knowing Shi Lezhi must be nearby.

Bang!

A loud thud echoed. Shi Lezhi stood unmoving, shielding Shi Kun, while Chu Chuyan pulled Zu An, flying backward, sliding over a dozen yards before finally regaining their footing.

Chu Chuyan's body trembled, and a trickle of blood escaped the corner of her lips. Although she was nearing the seventh rank, there was still a significant cultivation gap between her and Shi Lezhi.

Zu An quickly asked, "Are you alright?" What if, after just healing her, she became severely injured and near death again? Hmm, then wouldn't I legitimately be able to do embarrassing things with her... *cough cough*, I mean, legitimately heal her again?

Chu Chuyan shook her head. "It's nothing, just a minor scrape."

"Oh~" Zu An immediately looked disappointed.

This left Chu Chuyan puzzled. What was wrong with this guy? He was unhappy because her injury was light?

At this point, the people around them also reacted, whispering among themselves:

"As expected of the academy's strongest, to be able to directly confront an eighth-rank cultivator!"

"Clearly, that Shi family expert held back. Otherwise, an eighth-rank cultivator could slaughter a sixth-rank like butchering a chicken. How could Miss Chu, being sixth-rank, withstand that?"

"That's right, it seems the Shi family indeed held back."

At this, other indignant voices remarked, "As if the Shi family would dare to harm Miss Chu! This is Brightmoon City, after all. If the Shi family harmed Miss Chu, would they expect to leave alive? Not only would Duke Brightmoon not allow it, but the academy wouldn't stand idly by either."

While others buzzed with discussion, only Shi Lezhi remained deeply unsettled. He had not held back in his attempt to kill Zu An, yet Chu Chuyan had taken his palm strike and only sustained minor injuries. Was she truly just a fifth-rank cultivator? Why did it feel like she was close to the seventh rank?

"What are you doing?"

Just then, a cold voice rang out.

"Principal Jiang!"

The academy's teachers and students bowed in unison. Even Bai Susu and Lu De showed great respect, evidently relieved to see Jiang Luofu appear.

Zu An's first reaction was to gaze at her legs, which were truly long and perfectly straight, without the slightest flaw. Today, she wore no stockings, yet her skin gleamed, even more dazzling than when she wore them. Zu An secretly sighed in relief, glad he wasn't a stocking fetishist like Wei Suo, who needed to see stockings to be satisfied. Seeing beautiful, well-proportioned legs still left him feeling invigorated.

At this point, Shi Lezhi spoke up. "Responding to Principal Jiang, I had no intention of causing trouble. It's just that this fellow, as soon as he saw our young master, immediately tried to kill him. It's truly despicable. To my knowledge, attempting to kill a fellow student in the academy is also a capital offense, isn't it?"

Jiang Luofu hummed in acknowledgment. "Indeed, it is a capital offense. Zu An, do you have anything to say for yourself?"

Seeing that Principal Jiang was angry, the other students began to whisper among themselves:

"Zu An is really getting ahead of himself, daring to try and kill Young Master Shi!"

"Exactly, what is Young Master Shi's status, and what is his? He has no self-awareness."

"So what if he's 'big' there? Men are ultimately judged by their overall strength."

Many male students nodded in agreement, thinking, *You've only managed to conquer a few naive young girls with your extraordinary talent. Can you really conquer the mature Principal Jiang?*

Seeing the stream of rage points accumulating in his system, Zu An felt speechless. *Logically, shouldn't someone like Shi Kun, a rich, handsome, and powerful man, be the object of your envy? Why are you all envious of me instead?* Of course, it was just a fleeting thought; he was still quite pleased, as more rage points were always better for him.

Gathering his thoughts, he replied:

"Responding to Principal Jiang, I also fully agree that attempting to kill a fellow student should incur a death penalty."

Jiang Luofu let out a cold snort. "So, you admit your guilt?"

Hearing her icy tone, Ji Xiaoxi, Qiao Xueying, and others secretly grew anxious. Only Zu An knew that while Principal Jiang appeared to be reprimanding him, she was actually leaving him room to explain. If she genuinely intended to punish him, she would have directly condemned him without asking any questions.

Zu An calmly replied, "The reason I acted in anger just now is because, in the Yaoguang secret realm, Shi Kun dispatched his family warriors to relentlessly hunt me down, leaving me on the brink of death countless times."

"Nonsense! Only students from Brightmoon Academy are qualified to enter the secret realm, and Principal Jiang personally oversees it. How could any family's warriors sneak in? Are you questioning Principal Jiang's integrity?"

Before anyone from the Shi family could respond, Wu Qing spoke up. For some reason, she found this fellow particularly irritating, whether it was because he was Chu Chuyan's husband or because he had previously provoked her. Wu Qing usually had a bad temper and wasn't very popular, but her argument was reasonable, and many people nodded in agreement.

Zu An replied, "Of course, I don't doubt the Principal's fairness. But what if the Shi family had bribed academy students in advance? Most of those who attacked me in the secret realm were students from the Earth-rank class, and during the fights, they clearly followed orders from the same person."

"Is that so?" Jiang Luofu frowned. Earlier, academy staff had rushed to report that the number of students who had exited was incorrect; many were missing, and the losses were greater than in any previous expedition. Jiang Luofu's brows furrowed further. Such devastating losses were unprecedented in a century, qualifying as a very serious incident. Afterward, she would certainly have to explain it to the Ministry of Ceremonies.

Wu Qing fell silent. Coming from a prominent family, she naturally knew some insider details. Not only the Shi family, but even the Wu family had informants within the academy. After all, poor students without power or influence were relatively easy to bribe.

Shi Kun, recovering from his initial shock, seized the opportunity to say, "Pure fabrication. Our Shi family has never done such a thing. In my opinion, it's more likely that you and those students simultaneously discovered some rare treasure in the secret realm, grew greedy, and then ambushed the others, then tried to pin the blame on me."

Many who were usually close to the Shi family chimed in with agreement. Except for Xie Xiu and Pei Mianman, who had guessed the truth, and Zheng Dan, who knew the inside story, the others silently nodded. Indeed, what Shi Kun said seemed plausible. Furthermore, comparing Shi Kun's usual gentle and refined demeanor with Zu An's thuggish appearance, people subconsciously were more inclined to believe Shi Kun.

Zu An frowned. There was indeed no evidence for what happened in the secret realm; after all, the participants were dead. Shi Kun had likely anticipated this, which was why he dared to act so brazenly in the secret realm. Qiao Xueying, standing nearby, opened her mouth as if to speak, but Zu An stopped her. Although he didn't know how the Shi family controlled Qiao Xueying, he knew they wouldn't leave her without some leverage. Thus, he didn't want to put her in a difficult position. Moreover, even if Qiao Xueying spoke, it would be useless; Shi Kun could simply deny everything. Now, there was no one left alive to corroborate.

Noticing that Qiao Xueying was still alive, a hint of gloom flashed in Shi Kun's eyes. However, he knew this wasn't the time to confront her, so he continued to challenge Zu An: "If you hadn't launched a sneak attack, how could you, a mere third-rank, have possibly harmed those fourth-rank senior students from the Earth-rank class?"

Zu An chuckled. "If you brought up anything else, I might genuinely be at a loss for a quick response, but on this topic, I'm wide awake! If I recall correctly, you're fifth-rank, right? If your lackey hadn't intervened just now, you'd probably have been butchered by my sword like a chicken."

"You!" Shi Kun's face instantly flushed crimson. He still hadn't processed what had happened in that brief moment, and the thought of being cornered to such an extent in front of everyone was a profound humiliation.

Rage points from Shi Kun +888!

Shi Lezhi's face twitched even harder upon hearing the word "lackey." Although he knew he was indeed a servant of the Shi family, he was an eighth-rank expert. Even the Shi family usually showed him respect and saved his face, yet this fellow had directly used such an insulting term.

"You insolent brat, you're asking for death!" he snarled, making to lunge forward.

Rage points from Shi Lezhi +999!

Jiang Luofu casually stepped forward, blocking the space between them. Although she said nothing, her meaning was clear: no outsider had the right to punish anyone from the academy, regardless of the circumstances. Shi Lezhi's breath caught. An eighth-rank expert with no potential for advancement like him was clearly no match for someone as brilliant and promising as Jiang Luofu. He dared not offend this mysterious woman and could only retreat resentfully. No wonder everyone in the academy widely rumored that Zu An was a kept man, always having women protect him! Of course, this was just his own internal grumbling; he didn't genuinely believe Zu An could become the kept man of someone as formidable as Jiang Luofu.

At this point, Chu Chuyan also spoke up. "I can also testify about what happened in the secret realm. Although I didn't personally see how those people hunted Zu An, I was indeed present for Shi Kun's subsequent pursuit of both of us."

Zu An, standing nearby, secretly lamented how overly honest his "silly wife" was. What difference would it have made if she had simply claimed to have seen it? Given her usual popularity and reputation, would anyone have doubted her?

At this, the scene erupted in an uproar. If the previous spat between Shi Kun and Zu An was merely a spectacle for everyone, hearing that even Chu Chuyan had been in danger instantly inflamed a group of people with righteous indignation. "How dare he lay a hand on our goddess? What good is his handsome face now?"

Xie Xiu unfolded the fan in his hand and suddenly stepped out from the crowd. "Miss Chu, to my knowledge, Young Master Shi's cultivation, though impressive, should be slightly inferior to yours. Even with a few companions, it would be impossible for him to hunt you down, wouldn't it?"

This was also the confusion of many present. Hearing him, they all nodded and looked at her questioningly.