146: Chapter 146 "Scapegoat"

These few words from the warriors of the Huaxi Hall of Heroic Spirits undoubtedly dropped another depth charge onto the scene.

Arrest? Murderer? Mastermind? Impersonation?

All eyes shifted from the three vast phenomena in the sky and suddenly focused on the young man at the periphery of the crowd, whose arm was being held by Jiang Luoli.

Su Chen.

This name had already caused several waves today.

Now, seeing Su Chen accused once again.

The young warriors present who were at odds with Su Chen showed even more sneering expressions.

If Su Chen were to be wanted by the Hall of Valor.

Not to mention Great Xia, there would likely be no place left for him even on Planet Blue.

Su Chen himself was also momentarily stunned.

Arrest? Murderer? Mastermind?

The string of utterly absurd accusations left him somewhat dazed.

He instinctively took half a step forward, slightly shielding Jiang Luoli, who was leaning against him, behind his back.

His gaze calmly met those of the official warriors.

"Seniors, is there some misunderstanding?"

"I, Su Chen, although participating in the Heroic Spirit Contract Ceremony for the first time, have always acted uprightly and have never violated the laws of Great Xia, much less have anything to do with serial murders or attacks on the ceremony."

"As for the plane crash, a senior from the Hall of Valor came to the rescue back then; she can prove that I was also a victim. How can there be any talk of responsibility?"

Leading them was a middle-aged man with slightly graying temples; judging by his epaulettes, his rank was not low.

He sized Su Chen up, unmoved by his defense. Instead, he snorted coldly, took out a Recording Stone from his robes, and activated it in public.

"Su Chen, a member of the Huayu Association."

"Since you are from the Huayu Association, I assume you know about this series of serial murders committed by a mysterious warrior."

Light and shadow projected, revealing scenes from the previous murder cases.

—A female celebrity who suffocated to death with a thick face mask on, a boss who died suddenly while watching VR, an employee curled up in a pile of money, and that hotpot restaurant owner who collapsed by a red oil pot and bit off his own tongue.

The scene shifted, unexpectedly showing a figure whose profile could vaguely be identified as Su Chen's.

He appeared near these crime scenes, and the timing coincided quite well.

"Upon investigation, traces of your presence were found near the scenes before and after all four murders."

"While our chain of evidence isn't ironclad, its direction is clear."

"Based on investigation and speculation, these highly ritualistic murder scenes should originate from a cult organization."

"You happen to have sufficient motive. According to our investigation, you once suffered from a terminal illness and came from a poor family. To treat your vegetative sister, you didn't hesitate to join a cult. It's highly likely you were deluded by cult ideologies or participated to obtain some kind of 'reward'."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the warriors Su Chen had knocked down, who were now groaning on the ground.

Then he looked at Su Chen's name sitting high at the top of the leaderboard.

He continued.

"As for the attack on this Heroic Spirit Contract Ceremony, which caused heavy casualties and the fall of countless children of noble families like Jiang Fengyu..."

"Su Chen, your points are at the top of the list; you are the one who benefited the most."

"We have reason to suspect that you colluded secretly with those men in black robes, using the attack as an opportunity to eliminate competitors and ensure you take the lead."

"It's even possible that you are the planner or a key participant in this attack."

Su Chen's brow furrowed.

The other party's logic was extremely chaotic.

He himself had also been hunted down, and he even seemed to be the primary target of those men in black robes.

Yet the other young warriors who had witnessed everything had no intention of testifying for Su Chen; instead, they all sneered inwardly.

"There are other facts that can prove your guilt."

The official warrior continued.

"The HJ7301 flight you were on deviated from its course and crashed into the Snowy Plateau."

"Upon investigation, the flight path was manually tampered with, and the only fingerprints left on the aircraft's control wheel were yours."

"Although you also 'encountered danger,' when you were found, you appeared alone outside the aircraft."

"This could entirely be a ruse of self-injury to clear yourself of suspicion."

"The plane's black box also proves this; you were the one operating the aircraft until it crashed!"

Su Chen's heart tightened.

If he remembered correctly, the person who hijacked the plane back then had indeed made very thorough preparations.

If the other surveillance facilities on the plane were destroyed, the only one who could testify for him was indeed Jiang Luoli.

"Seniors, your accusations are completely baseless."

"The strength of those men in black robes far exceeds mine. I nearly lost my life here; how could I command them?"

"As for eliminating opponents, if I, Su Chen, want to compete for the top spot, I will do so with the sword in my hand. Why would I need such lowly methods?"

"The plane crash is even more nonsensical. I was also in grave danger; if not for..."

"Enough!"

The man sharply interrupted him.

His gaze swept around, lingering especially on the faces of the descendants of the families of the dead and injured, his voice rising an octave.

"Everyone, the wounds on your bodies also prove that this boy is malicious and will use any means to achieve his goals."

"What's even more appalling is that his father was the number one criminal of Great Xia's High Martial Era."

"Although he has been executed, his sins are monstrous! If this weren't an era of the rule of law where sins are not visited upon the children, a wretch like this wouldn't even have the right to live."

"Now he is following in his father's footsteps, committing such evil deeds again. Heaven will not tolerate this!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire crowd was incensed.

Cries to arrest or even kill Su Chen rose one after another.

A fleeting look of smugness flashed through the middle-aged man's eyes.

These accusations, half-true and half-false, combined with the "original sin" of his father's bloodline, were enough to nail Su Chen to a pillar of shame.

For now, whether these "evidences" could hold up wasn't important.

Too many children of noble families had died at the hands of the men in black robes during the Heroic Spirit Contract Ceremony.

If they didn't drag someone out to give these families an explanation, the threshold of the Huaxi Hall of Heroic Spirits would likely be trampled flat the next day.

After excluding the other descendants of noble families, Su Chen, a rogue cultivator with no background at all, was the most suitable to be dealt with.

More importantly, the families of several high-ranking officials from the Huaxi Hall of Heroic Spirits who had come this time also had nephews or sons who were killed or seriously injured in the attack just now.

They already hated Su Chen, the "biggest beneficiary," to the core.

They didn't care if the evidence was entirely conclusive.

They only wanted to capture him as quickly as possible, or even "accidentally" kill him, to vent their hatred.

Su Chen also realized this.

He understood; this wasn't a misunderstanding.

Using the attack by those men in black robes, the officials had manufactured a carefully planned frame-up.

The other party's goal was clear: they wanted him dead.

Defense was useless, because the other party didn't need the truth at all; they only needed a target to vent their anger and divert attention.

To appease the emotions of the victims' families.

It was incompetent, but it worked.