Chapter 44: I Had No Choice Back Then…

No one could have anticipated just how many times this matter would twist and turn.

The scene erupted into chaos.

“What the hell, there’s a master in the mix?”
“Brilliant… absolutely brilliant.”
“Isn’t he part of the Luo family too? How can he publicly accuse his own Young Master like this?”

The crowd’s exclamations rose one after another, but Luo Yan’s expression remained calm, as if he had long since prepared for this moment.

He reached into his chest and pulled out a circular jade ring, speaking indifferently:
“This device, once activated, can detect each other’s position. The closer the two are, the stronger the reaction.”

With that, he casually tossed the jade ring toward Luo Chen.

Everyone instinctively followed its flight. When the jade ring approached Luo Chen, it suddenly trembled violently and began to emit a low hum.

“Before the secret realm was opened, Young Master Luo personally handed one of these jade rings to every Luo family disciple except for Luo Jiutian,” Luo Yan’s voice was flat and steady as he looked at Luo Chen. “The purpose was for us to gather early in the secret realm, so we could unite and take down Luo Jiutian… settling personal grudges.”

He paused briefly, then continued:
“But it doesn’t end there. He also handed these rings to the Su family, gaining their trust only to eventually lead them into the trap, causing all of them to perish.”

His words sent shockwaves through the crowd.

“No way… the Luo family’s own man just handed over concrete proof?”
“How can anyone spin this now? There’s evidence, and everything aligns perfectly…”
“No wonder Luo Chen was so desperate to defend himself earlier… he really is guilty!”
“The Su family’s luck is just miserable, being duped like this.”

Voices surged wildly, and the scene nearly spiraled out of control.

Even those who had been skeptical moments ago fell silent.

Luo Jiutian had first presented the Memory Stone, and now Luo Yan publicly testified while producing the jade ring as proof. Who was right and who was wrong had become undeniably clear.

【Ding! The host has successfully caused the Child of Fate “Luo Chen” to lose reputation.
Fate Points are automatically being converted…】
【Current Blue Star return countdown: 275 years and 6 months.】
【6 years deducted; remaining time: 269 years and 6 months.】

Su Huaizhang stared darkly at Luo Changqing.
“Head of the Luo family, our Su family’s prodigies all fell by your son’s hand. Isn’t an explanation owed to us?”

Luo Changqing’s face turned iron-blue, and he remained silent for a long while. At this moment, with both human and material evidence present, even if he wanted to shield Luo Chen, there was no way to do so.

Yet still, he stubbornly declared:
“Matter between juniors must be resolved by juniors. How could we always interfere? If today’s rules are broken, how will we command respect in the future?”

At that moment, Li Yunzheng slowly stepped forward.

“Old Luo, I can’t agree with you there.” He looked at Luo Changqing coldly. “For all these years, the unspoken rule was fair competition—no regard for life or death. But what your son did… how can that still be called normal competition?”

Though his face appeared stern and angry, he was secretly delighted.

Let this get as loud as possible. This time, the Luo family not only lost several prodigies, but their Young Master was publicly shamed, his reputation utterly destroyed. If Luo Changqing wanted to cover this up to save face, he’d have to empty all his resources.

The atmosphere grew heavier by the second.

Xiao Qiankun, seeing no connection to the Xiao family, simply stepped aside with Xiao Yan and the others to continue their gossip.

Elsewhere, Luo Yuanshan glared furiously at Luo Yan.
“Skinny Ghost, why would you do such a thing? How can you stand against the Young Master?!”

Luo Yan didn’t flinch. Instead, he quietly said:
“I’m sorry… I had no choice back then. Now I just want to be a good man.”

He finished, then turned his gaze toward Luo Chen, sincerity in his eyes.
“Young Master, you should just admit it. It’s better for everyone this way. Dragging it out will only make things worse.”

“Admit what the hell!” Luo Yuanshan rolled up his sleeves and was about to rush forward. “You traitor, acting like a good person now? I’ll clean up your mess for the Young Master right now!”

But Luo Chen raised his hand to stop him, shaking his head.

“Young Master…” Luo Yuanshan called softly, as if trying to argue further.

Luo Chen looked at his brother’s expression—full of righteous anger, determined to seek justice on his behalf.

And he felt… unexpectedly touched.

At this moment, with everyone turning against him, even his own father unable to protect him, Luo Yuanshan still stood by his side. A surge of shame welled up as he recalled the times he had doubted him.

Luo Jiutian saw the expression on Luo Chen’s face and, of course, knew exactly what he was thinking. After all, the script was written by him.

Though in practice, he hadn’t expected it to be quite so hard to pull off. Still, relying on his strong acting skills, he quickly stabilized his emotions and changed his expression into one of deep pain, sighing:

“Luo Chen, you’re truly foolish! Brother Zimo and the others aren’t just my fiancée’s relatives, they’re my closest confidants! Surely you can’t be so jealous of Wan’er’s relationship with me that you’d act so irrationally?”

At those words, a vein throbbed visibly on Luo Chen’s forehead.

Unbelievable… this guy really just says whatever comes to mind?!

“Closest confidants”… if he hadn’t known the truth, he almost would have believed it. But there was no way to refute it.

Su Wan’er’s eyes lit up excitedly.
“Brother Jiutian, do you admit I’m your fiancée?”

Her words almost sent Luo Chen into a daze.
Is that… the point?!

Luo Jiutian didn’t respond, simply patting her head once again.
“Good girl. Adults are talking; little children should stay quiet.”

“Hey~” Su Wan’er pouted in dissatisfaction, as if protesting.

Luo Jiutian looked into her eyes with warmth.
“Be obedient, alright?”

Su Wan’er merely twisted her lips but said no more, continuing to rub against Luo Jiutian like a docile kitten.

Luo Chen observed this scene in full… but this time, he remained completely numb. He was already too desensitized.

Yet, others had no intention of letting him off so easily.

“Luo Chen!” Li Daming suddenly spoke, his words heavy with accusation. “You slandered our Li family and caused my brothers to be injured. If you don’t compensate us today, don’t expect this to just end!”

Seeing their leader speak, the rest of the Li family quickly chimed in:
“The boss is right! Our brothers are badly injured, and we won’t take this lying down!”
“Compensation! Must compensate!”
“You dared bully us like this! If this just goes unpunished, how does the Li family maintain face?!”

The Li family’s fury was directed entirely at Luo Chen.

But Luo Chen remained undeterred, his voice cold:
“You Li family stole the Essence Tempering Persimmon, and now you have the nerve to ask for compensation?”

At his words, the scene instantly fell into silence.

Even Luo Changqing and Li Yunzheng turned to look at him, their eyes full of astonishment.

Su Huaizhang smiled ambiguously.
“So you’re saying… there were Essence Tempering Persimmons in the Qingyun Secret Realm?”

Luo Chen nodded expressionlessly.
“That’s right, and there were quite a number of them. In the end, the Li and Xiao families divided them equally.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Xiao Qiankun and Xiao Yan, who had been casually snacking, froze in place and frowned as they turned to look at him.

Li Daming was momentarily stunned, then angrily pointed at Luo Chen:
“You’re full of lies! Our Li family never got a single persimmon. It was clearly Luo Jiutian who—”

Halfway through his sentence, realization dawned.

Damn… I seemed to have just said the wrong thing.