The Medical Cultivators from East King Valley were at a loss, standing there with the injured man in their arms. But they knew full well who called the shots on River Viewing Terrace, so they could only cast a questioning look at the chief referee on site.
Jiang Wang looked at Ji Jinglu, his gaze naturally calm.
Ji Jinglu hurriedly explained, "Demon Sweeping Heavenly Lord, I have sufficient reason to take the stage!"
"What reason could justify the dignified King of Dai Mountain barging into a competition arena for young prodigies and mounting this All-Under-Heaven Platform?" Jiang Wang asked.
Ji Jinglu's voice rang out like a drum, growing ever more impassioned. "It concerns the death of Chen Suan, Taiyi Immortal of our state; the massacre of two prefectures in Wei State; the fairness of this Yellow River Assembly! It concerns... the innocence of central Great Jing!"
The entire venue fell solemnly silent.
Bao Xuanjing's gaze passed from melancholy to remembrance, then to surprise and amusement, before he quietly withdrew every trace of emotion. He silently stepped back three paces, placing the River-Subduing True Lord before him protectively.
Jiang Wang withdrew his gaze from Ji Jinglu and raised a hand. Gong Weizhang and Zhuge Zuo, not far away, stopped in their tracks as they were about to mount the platform—they did not care what was happening onstage, only the referee's orders.
Jiang Wang had said that he had failed to protect the contestants, yet his attitude and actions had already won the young people's support and trust.
Jing Kingdom needed to clear itself of suspicion and uncover the truth. The Yellow River Assembly, too, needed to give an account to everyone following the competition.
Thus, although Jiang Wang was eager to bring this Yellow River Assembly to a close; although only