134. The Great Philanthropist Yuan

Yuan Chen was helpless, because the journey had been incredibly smooth so far, at least for the first part. Although there were some disagreements, there were no conflicts. Most of the time, it was the Hextech Craftsmen and Yuentar Scholars proving their excellence to each other.

Yuan Chen wholeheartedly approves of this behavior of defeating the opponent by being better. However, what should have been a perfect ending has to be ended in a cruel way.

Looking at the group of people in front of him, Yuan Chen focused his gaze on Caitlyn and Vi.

Feeling Yuan Chen's gaze, Caitlyn felt a chill run down her spine. She knew that not only her life, but the lives of everyone present were in the hands of this man before her.

To be honest, Yuan Chen didn't leave a bad impression on Caitlyn —well, not considering Yuan Chen's comment about "mediocrities" at the meeting.

This statement earned her the hostility of almost Piltover.

The news reached Zaun and garnered considerable cheers.

But aside from that, Caitlyn sensed that Yuan Chen was mostly a gentle person. And given her prestigious background, Caitlyn could somewhat guess that the phrase "mediocrities" Ixialia to incite the fighting spirit of all the scholars in Piltover.

After realizing this, Caitlyn understood Yuan Chen's actions. However, Caitlyn now clearly felt that her understanding of Yuan Chen was too one-sided.

His gentleness stemmed not from incompetence or temperament, but from a special kind of... compassion?

Caitlyn didn't know how to evaluate it either, because summarizing it in a single word would be too simplistic for anyone.

As Caitlyn was still nervously thinking, she suddenly felt a warm hand on hers. Turning around, she saw Vi, standing beside her, holding her hand.

This time, Vi didn't choose to wear the Atlas Gauntlets. Perhaps this was also her way of expressing her dissatisfaction... But being from Zaun, she had no right to criticize her superiors, and could only resort to this self-deceptive way of resisting.

Although she didn't say much, and Wei didn't even look at her, she only gave her a profile and a warm palm.

But for some reason, this simple action made Caitlyn feel incredibly at ease.

Feeling relaxed, Caitlyn simply stood there, quietly awaiting her trial.

Yuan Chen waved his hand in response. "Take him aside."

Upon hearing this, Caitlyn was taken aback at first, and then nodded hesitantly. However, the bridge was only so big, and the passage below was severely damaged, so after hesitating for a moment, Caitlyn could only lead the Piltover Enforcers officers back a few meters away.

"Not enough, continue."

Upon hearing this, Caitlyn nodded and continued to lead the law enforcement officers backward.

"Not enough, continue."

Although somewhat helpless, neither Caitlyn nor Vi, nor the other law enforcement officers, complained—if humiliating themselves a few times could appease the other party, they would have no objections.

After retreating about a hundred meters, Yuan Chen nodded. Then he turned his gaze to the core members of the four major families.

He mainly looked at Stevan Ferros. Staring at the old man standing on the gate bridge, Yuan Chen narrowed his eyes.

If I remember correctly, this guy should be paralyzed from the waist down. Yet here he is, standing perfectly fine... Hmm, is it because of Noxus?

Yuan Chen glanced at Stevan's lower limbs. As a master of Spirit Theory, Yuan Chen could clearly sense the subtle disharmony between Stevan's spirit and body...

This disharmony reached its peak—even to an appalling degree—when Falis awakened Styraatu.

However, the timeline he was in had been altered, and Styraatu had severed Falis's means of maintaining her self-awareness at its root. The end result was that Stevan was now living in a precarious state.

Ordinary people naturally cannot sense it, but once they encounter Blood Magic or someone like Yuan Chen who has some understanding of Spirit Theory, they can sense the problems in his body.

After thinking for a moment, Yuan Chen asked, "Is this your decision, or Ferros's decision?"

Upon hearing Yuan Chen's question, Stevan felt a jolt, and then, flustered and fearful, he stammered, "It's... it's me! I was wrong! I'm guilty! I shouldn't have imprisoned my sister!"

"My sister told me this was wrong, but I didn't listen... I hope you can understand me, a poor person who was born physically weak."

Stevan Ferros, tears streaming down his face, said, "My legs are crippled, and I'm so ashamed I don't even dare leave my house... These Noxus bastards are using my family to blackmail me and tempting me with the promise of healing. I know I'm guilty, but I beg you, for my sister's sake, please let me go..."

Upon hearing Stevan's words, Yuan Chen was slightly taken aback, then looked at the old man and said with a strange expression:

"You... you imprisoned Camille?"

"Yes... I am guilty! I confess! I am willing to atone, but please give me a chance, I beg you..."

Stevan lay on the ground in agony, sobbing, as if he would die at any moment.

In response, Yuan Chen looked at Stevan with a strange expression—this guy was no good.

In the original storyline, in order to stand up again and overcome the fear of aging, he personally plotted to kill Camille, thereby extracting Camille's Hextech Heart, gaining immortality, and becoming stronger.

And now... a guy who knows nothing about the outside world, lacks foresight, and is plagued by inferiority and fear for years.

They claimed to have imprisoned the family's chief spy, one of Piltover's most legendary figures, a mysterious and elusive spies who single-handedly suppressed the spies of the other three major families...

What, you think you're the main character behind the scenes?

Thinking it over, Yuan Chen shook his head, and after a brief moment of thought, said:

"Take your men and leave. When you return to Bluewind Court, don't forget to give Camille a few words for me."

"Okay! Okay! I'll definitely bring it!"

Upon hearing Yuan Chen's words, Stevan felt as if he had been granted a pardon. His face flushed with excitement, he led his trusted followers towards Piltover.

He was naturally excited because he had survived, while the other three families had suffered heavy losses!

If he could return safely, the Ferros Family could take advantage of the weakness of the other three major families and rise to power in one fell swoop! Thinking this, Stevan's face flushed, as if he could already see his boundless glory as the chief councilor of Piltover.

Seeing that Yuan Chen had actually pardoned Stevan, the members of the three major families breathed a sigh of relief, thinking – at least the other party was not blinded by murderous intent.

As well as...

Indeed, no matter how powerful they are, they're still just political animals.

That's true. Ixialia came here to seek the greatest benefit. Under such circumstances, even if they destroyed the Sun Gate, the power of the three major families would remain deeply entrenched.

How to manage relations with other city-states, how to conduct trade, how to act as a transit point, the different regions between the two continents, the customs and unspoken rules of the city-states... these are all things they excel at.

It's nothing more than the weaker party getting a larger share of the profits.

But as long as Piltover is still around, I will still be able to live!

Thinking this, Jia Gu's face showed a hint of relief—yes, her son, Jarl Mirdal, seemed to have some connection with this Ionia master!

If Stevan's Ferros Family members can get extra forgiveness by relying on Yuan Chen and Camille's relationship, then he can also try to reach out to them!

While Jia Gu was still thinking, Yuan Chen showed no intention of speaking.

On the contrary, Yuan Chen looked at the group of people in front of him with some sadness.

Then he raised his palm and gently lowered it.

Seeing Yuan Chen's actions, Jia Gu and the others were somewhat puzzled. But they quickly understood what it meant—

The next moment, the sky darkened. To be precise, it was Malphite who raised his arm to shield the rising sun and let it fall on them without hesitation.

Pfft!!!

Human flesh and blood exploded one after another, and before the other survivors could scream in terror, Malphite swept his arm across the bridge like erasing a blackboard.

Sizzle sizzle sizzle!!

There were no traces of corpses. About eighty core members from the three major families, including many level five mages and warriors, died on the spot in Malphite's seemingly playful act.

Meanwhile, Caitlyn, who had retreated over a hundred meters, suddenly collapsed onto the bridge, her legs giving way beneath her.

The brutal scene broke many law enforcement officers on the spot. The sounds of vomiting and collapsing were deafening. Even the usually strong Wei couldn't help but tremble slightly, her face pale and her eyes filled with terror.

Because in the end, Malphite's palm was less than ten meters away from them—with just a little more force, they would have become one of them.

Stevan felt an intense fear and suffocation.

When Malphite withdrew his arm, the once slightly crowded ramp had become incredibly wide.

There was no trace of a corpse or severed limbs. The brass-colored alloy gate bridge was simply dyed a clear, deep crimson, like a master's splash of ink. Apart from the dazzling color and the spiritual shock, there were no superfluous spots or patches of color...

"I know."

Yuan Chen spoke with a touch of sadness, like a pastor offering a prayer of blessing to the deceased at a funeral.

"Changing your mindset... is too difficult."

"I had no choice but to resort to this tactic."