Confrontation at the Disciplinary Office (Part 2)

However, though he had calculated everything, he had underestimated the resolve and loyalty of certain people.

Just as Caspar was secretly pleased, believing he had once again brought the situation under his control, the doors to the Disciplinary Office were pushed open once more.

Led by Yu Tianheng, Dugu Yan, Shi Mo, Shi Mo, Yu Feng, Osler, and the other members of the Imperial Fighting Team all arrived. Their expressions were resolute as they walked steadily over and stood beside Qin Ming.

"Three Education Committee members, Lord Marquis," Yu Tianheng said loudly as their representative, "we can also testify for our teacher, Qin Ming! After returning last night, he did indeed tell us that he had sensed an unusual fluctuation and gone to investigate. He also told us of his discovery and concerns! We believe in our teacher's character. He would never lie! The aura evidence he preserved must be real!"

"Nonsense! Why did you come here?" Qin Ming was both alarmed and anxious as he rebuked them in a low voice. "Do you know what testifying here means? If you become involved in this matter, no matter the outcome, it could affect your futures! Go back!"

"Teacher!" Yu Tianheng fixed Qin Ming with a burning gaze and asked, "Then what about you? When you stepped forward to testify, weren't you afraid it would affect your own reputation and future?"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Wang Chuan as he gave him a reassuring look. Then, with absolute firmness, he said to Qin Ming and everyone else, "Since you are willing to disregard your own interests for the truth and justice, how could we, as your students, be cowardly people who care only about our futures? The Imperial Fighting Team advances and retreats together! Today, we stand unconditionally behind our teacher and support the truth!"

"Teacher, if you aren't afraid of affecting your own teaching career, what do we have to fear?" Yu Tianheng turned around and looked at Qin Ming with unwavering eyes. "You once taught us that right and wrong are more important than our futures. Wang Chuan is being falsely accused. We can't just watch him be slandered, and we certainly can't let you bear all this alone!"

Ye Lingling, standing nearby, nodded as well and said softly, "Teacher Qin, we know what we're doing. You were right. We should uphold justice and not retreat just because we're afraid of offending someone."

"You all..." Looking at those young yet incomparably resolute faces before him, Qin Ming felt a surge of warmth and pride. He truly had hesitated at first, but after examining Wang Chuan's records, his appreciation for talent and his sense of justice, unwilling to see a pearl buried in dust, had driven him to step forward. He had intended to shoulder all the risks alone, but he had never expected his students to be so loyal. He knew there was no use persuading them now. He understood these children's temperaments all too well.

For a time, the atmosphere in the Disciplinary Office became even more complicated. On one side stood the high-ranking and powerful aggrieved marquis, clutching "physical evidence" that, though destroyed, had once existed, and stubbornly twisting the facts. On the other stood a gifted suspect with a reasonable account, along with an outstanding teacher willing to risk himself to testify and a group of determined students with extraordinary backgrounds. Both sides stood by their claims, and the matter seemed deadlocked.

Just as the tension reached its peak and the impasse seemed impossible to break, an indescribably sharp aura silently enveloped the entire Disciplinary Office. It was not an intentional display of pressure, yet the Soul Power within every Soul Master present stagnated, as though they were being targeted by invisible sword energy.

The next moment, the door opened without a sound.

Dressed in spotless white, Sword Douluo Chen Xin slowly walked in. His expression was calm, his gaze sharp as a sword. After sweeping his eyes over everyone present, he finally looked at his disciple, Wang Chuan, and gave a slight nod to reassure him.

"Your Excellency Sword Douluo!"

Everyone in the room, including the three Education Committee members and Marquis Caspar, turned solemn and bowed in unison. No one dared show the slightest disrespect toward the majesty of a Titled Douluo, especially Sword Douluo, famed for his offensive power.

Chen Xin raised a hand slightly, signaling that they could dispense with the formalities. His voice was calm, yet carried unquestionable authority. "Though I did not witness the entire matter personally, I sensed some disturbance. I also heard roughly what happened while standing outside the door just now."

He looked at Caspar. His gaze was calm and still, yet it made the latter feel a bone-piercing chill. "Caspar, I can tell you this: my disciple, Wang Chuan, is not someone who would take the initiative to commit violence. What he did last night was self-defense born of necessity. Do you have anything else to say?"

Chief Meng Shenji immediately seized the opportunity. His tone turned severe as he looked at the Caspar whose face had gone pale in an instant. "Marquis Caspar! His Excellency Sword Douluo has personally stepped forward to testify. Do you still intend to question his judgment? Or do you believe that His Excellency Sword Douluo would shield his own disciple at the expense of the truth?"

The pressure of a towering wave crashed down upon Marquis Caspar in an instant. Before the absolute authority and strength of a Titled Douluo, all his schemes, performance, and influence seemed so pale and laughable.

Caspar opened his mouth, wanting to defend himself, but under Chen Xin's cold gaze, he could not utter a single word. He knew clearly that since Sword Douluo had stepped forward to testify, there was no way he could bring down Wang Chuan today. If he continued to press the matter, not only would he offend Sword Douluo, he would also be branded with false accusation. By then, forget "avenging" his son—his entire family might be implicated.

At that thought, Caspar could only clench his fists unwillingly and slowly lower his head. In a low voice, he said, "...I was confused for a moment. I believed someone else's words and misunderstood Student Wang Chuan. Let this matter end here. I... I am willing to apologize to Student Wang Chuan."

The moment Caspar's apology ended, Chen Xin spoke again. His voice was calm and emotionless, yet like a frigid wind in the depths of winter, it chilled people to the marrow. "Now that this matter has reached a conclusion, should you not pay a price for deliberately falsely accusing my disciple and damaging my sect's reputation?"

The moment those words were spoken, the air in the Disciplinary Office froze. Caspar's body stiffened violently, cold sweat beading on his forehead. He lowered his already bowed head even further, and his voice trembled almost imperceptibly. "Your Excellency Sword Douluo, I was foolish. I was blinded by greed when I falsely accused Student Wang Chuan... Whatever punishment you decide upon, I will accept it!" He understood Sword Douluo's temperament too well. If he dared offer even the slightest excuse now, he might not even keep his life.

Chen Xin's fingers shifted slightly around the sword hilt. His gaze fell upon Caspar's intact right leg, and his tone remained too calm to reveal any emotion. "The last time my disciple fought you, he only crippled your right arm. That was already mercy. Yet today, you came seeking trouble again. I will not make things difficult for you. I shall take your right leg as punishment. How does that sound?"

"Th-thank you, Your Excellency, for your mercy!" Caspar hurriedly agreed, with a hint of relief in his voice. Compared to losing his life, losing one leg was already an immense "kindness." He clenched his teeth tightly, not daring to resist in the slightest. He only felt a piercing chill spread through his right leg, as though invisible sword energy were circling around the bone.

The next second, a faint silver gleam flashed from Chen Xin's sleeve, so fast that no one could make out its trajectory. Everyone heard only a soft whoosh. When they looked at Caspar again, his right leg had already been severed cleanly at the knee. The cut was smooth and even, not a single drop of blood spilling. Only the Soul Power fluctuations at the wound proved what had just happened. The severed right leg had vanished without a trace, as though it had never existed.

"Get lost." Chen Xin waved a hand, his tone filled with impatience, as though he had not dealt with a count, but an eyesore of an ant.

Caspar trembled from head to toe in pain, cold sweat from his forehead soaking his collar, yet he did not dare let out even a groan. Supporting himself with his remaining left leg, he crawled miserably toward the door. He nearly fell several times along the way, but did not dare pause for even a moment, afraid Chen Xin might change his mind. Only after his figure disappeared beyond the doors of the Disciplinary Office did that suffocating pressure ease slightly.

Chen Xin turned and looked at Wang Chuan. The frost-like coldness on his face finally gave way, and a faint but genuine smile rose at the corner of his lips. There was a trace of satisfaction in his eyes. "Xiao Chuan, while I was outside just now, I noticed that the Soul Power fluctuations around you were much denser than usual. You must have broken through to level twenty, correct?"

Wang Chuan nodded. "Yes, Master. I broke through last night."

"Good, very good." Chen Xin patted his shoulder, his voice full of praise. "Since your Soul Power has reached its bottleneck, don't waste any time. Come. Master will take you to the Star Dou Forest to hunt a Soul Ring for you, so that your Seven Kill Saber Technique can truly be unleashed."

Excitement flashed through Wang Chuan's eyes, and he hurriedly bowed. "Thank you, Master!"

Seeing the matter resolved satisfactorily, the three Education Committee members also breathed sighs of relief. Meng Shenji said with a smile, "With His Excellency Sword Douluo personally accompanying him, Student Wang Chuan will surely hunt a suitable Soul Beast. We shall first wish Student Wang Chuan a smooth breakthrough and hope that he becomes a pillar of the Douluo Continent in the future."

Chen Xin nodded slightly in acknowledgment, then turned and led Wang Chuan outside.