*Fwish*

A well-crafted knife came flying out from the crowd, directly aimed at Yu Jin's temple!

Yu Jin was an expert whose cultivation was close to that of a Law Emperor's, and he very easily dealt with that knife that was flying at him.

His expression went placid. There were plenty of people below the stage, and Yu Jin did not manage to make out just who had sneak-attacked him just now.

"You all are trying to cause a riot! Who threw this knife at me?!" Yu Jin bellowed out loudly with his stern face.

Those troublemakers below on the stage were of exceptional backgrounds, so why would any of them care to show Yu Jin any face. The moment they heard him shout, they each began jumping out.

"I was the one who threw it!"

"Oi, it's yours truly!"

"You ducked that one quickly. Let's see if you can evade the next one?"

*Fwish whip whoosh*

The items that were being thrown turned from a knife to an apple, a wine glass, and a half-eaten orange. There was even a shoe!

Order was lost now that the situation had spiraled out of control. Yu Jin instantly became the target of everyone, and he received the curses and beating of these troublemakers.

Mu Qianling was a Law Enforcement Board representative, and his eyesight was far better than Yu Jin. He had already noticed that these people were mostly the scions from White Horse Constellation; even Mu Fuping and Zanian Feng were among them.

Yu Jin flew into a rage as he instantly wanted to call his men to apprehend these hooligans. This was when Mu Qianling quickly pulled him to the side and told him in a low voice, "The Yu family can't afford to provoke these scions. I think that it's best if you just leave this matter to rest."

Yu Jin was stunned, and he hurriedly asked, "What made Vice-president Mu say this?"

Mu Qianling swept his gaze below the stage once before saying, "They are part of the princeling clique of the White Horse Constellation. Those there are from the Cruelwolf Clan, and there are some from my Withered Mu Clan, too. Look, even the young master of Dragon Ascension's Feng family is here. Ask yourself: Can you afford to offend any of these people? Forget you, even this old man here will have to show them face."

Yu Jin was mortified. Not even in his wildest dream did he imagine that a perfectly normal inauguration ceremony for the patriarch would devolve into this.

Nodding, Yu Jin left the stage while fuming. He had already aggravated those troublemaking scions, meaning that it was no longer appropriate for him to continue hosting this inauguration ceremony.

"Yeah, leave!"

"Haha! The heartless ingrate has run off!"

Yu Jin's departure only caused these scions to act even more brazenly than before. The sound of their laughter and taunts rang out everywhere, and even Mu Qianling had trouble keeping order.

This was when Zanian suddenly stepped out of the group and said, "Brothers, you're all here to observe the ceremony, not cause trouble. Best if you all behave yourselves a little in other people's turf."

He did not speak too loudly, but it was enough for everyone present to hear him.

Zanian's prestige preceded him, and nobody from this gang of troublemakers was unaware of him. Thus, all of them obediently behaved, no longer outwardly causing any more of a din, though they were still softly throwing snide remarks, their faces all smirking.

Up on the stage, the other elder of the Yu family, Yu Zhiyuan gave a grateful look toward Zanian. Had it not been for the young master of the Feng family stepping forward, there was really no way he would have been able to hold down this rowdy crowd all by himself.

"Zanian, you should've let those lads continue with their disturbance; why be bothered about it? It's not like we are here today to join them," Shunye somewhat unhappily commented.

Zanian shook his head. "We're looking to act as the situation calls for, and right now, the opportunity has yet to present itself. Just bear with it for now. If these people really attempt to frame Xia Fei, then we'll surely show them our true colors."

"Okay!" Shunye burst into laughter, holding a steady gaze at Zanian. The Gigawolf felt that the wicked young master of the Feng family had returned!

...

Yu Jin made his way off the stage, furrowing his brows as he hurried over to Yu Hua's side.

Yu Hua was in high spirits today. He was wearing a snowy-white long robe, dressing himself regally while exuding grace, looking very relaxed with a placid smile on his face.

"I have no idea where those little b*st*rds came from. Looks like this inauguration ceremony won't be smooth sailing," Yu Jin said harshly.

Yu Hua was unperturbed. "I've already guessed something like what happened outside would transpire. I already knew that Wolf Shunye and Zanian Feng were up to no good when they came."

"Then what should we do? We can't possibly let them continue on this debacle, right?" Yu Jin asked with a bitter expression on his face.

"Xia Fei forged a friendship with Zanian Feng when he attended the Dragon Ascension Conclave, and he later met Wolf Shunye through him. I already knew about all these, though I did not expect them to actually be willing to speak up on behalf of Xia Fei, even leading all those hooligans here to my turf," a cold glimmer twinkled in Yu Hua's eyes as he said this.

"However, none of that matters. They are only mad that I got Xia Fei included in the list of suspects. Let them continue with their racket. Since this is a matter where there are no living witnesses, they can't pin us without any evidence."

Yu Jin let out a sigh. "You really shouldn't have let Xia Fei run off back then."

Yu Hua could feel his ears hurt when he heard this statement. It was hardly him letting Xia Fei go but that they were completely incapable of stopping him from escaping!

"You don't know what happened then, anyway, so there's no use explaining things to you." Yu Hua rolled his eyes at Yu Jin.

...

Yu Zhiyuan learned from Yu Jin's lesson and spoke hardly a few lines before he invited Yu Hua to the stage, most likely his attempt at concluding this preposterous fiasco as soon as possible.

Yu Hua walked toward the stage with a smile. Unexpectedly, no one actually jeered at him, and all the troublemakers were very quiet. Each of them turned their heads toward Zanian and Shunye, and seeing that neither gave any indication whatsoever, they had no choice but to suppress their temper and wait. The two men were considered their forebears, and without their say so, none of these young hoodlums would dare to create a commotion.

Yu Hua did a simple greeting to the distinguished guests as he swiftly began to shower former patriarch Yu Jiang praises, vaunting about how the old man had been the most outstanding representative of the Yu family and how his conscientious and cautiousness had allowed their clan to thrive. He then changed the subject and spoke of the divine beast, Green Dawn, how it had demonstrated admirable loyalty when it passed away alongside the old patriarch while defending the clan.

It was evident that Yu Hua had already come prepared, and he knew just what words he needed to say to pull at the audience's heartstrings.

Plenty of the disciples and juniors, who had been the recipient of the old patriarch's kindness, were all led by Yu Hua to reminisce about their past, each of them tearing up as the atmosphere turned heavy and morose. Even some of the troublemakers felt that it was inappropriate to be impertinent, so all they could do was glumly fidget in the crowd.

Yu Hua said with great vehemence, "I will surely avenge the old patriarch! We, the Yu family, have to pull ourselves together as well! Please, may the ladies and gentlemen gathered here today believe that I, Yu Hua, am stepping up to be the family patriarch, solely for the purpose of seeking redress over the old patriarch's death and to appease his spirit! Once the murderer is caught, I'll immediately step away from the post and let the clan convene again to select a more suitable individual to be the patriarch in my stead!"

The righteousness of his words was awe-inspiring, but Yu Hua already had his own plans toward this end. Having painstakingly usurped this post from the former family patriarch, Yu Hua was of course not going to really give it up just like that.

He had already discussed it with the person backing him; the moment he took the position as the family patriarch, he would immediately make a big show of investigating the cause of Yu Jiang's death, and this person backing him had already prepared the scapegoat and the evidence necessary to make everything convincing. By the time Yu Hua apprehended this scapegoat, he would have immediately identified Xia Fei as an accomplice. The scapegoat would then commit suicide out of fear of the punishment, so Xia Fei would be left to take all the blame!

This way, it would be impossible for Xia Fei to even wash himself clean from the sin. Even if he held proof in hand, that mysterious and powerful backer of his had also thought up countermeasures toward such an end. Xia Fei was just a small fry in the Law Realm, so there was no way he could create enough of a stir that such a powerful individual could not quell!

Honestly, Yu Hua had offered that one-million-grade-4-Origin-Crystal bounty for Xia Fei's head precisely because of his fear that the latter would speak out. His disappearance had created this numbing effect, which made Yu Hua think that Xia Fei had decided to flee because he had no evidence at hand. After all, Xia Fei had been quite grievously wounded during that fight, and his war armor was also partially damaged. It was unknown if his video recording module was still functional.

It was a pity that Yu Hua did not have a clue about how diabolical Xia Fei was; evidence was the most effective when it was presented at the most critical juncture!

It was an impassioned speech!

Yu Hua's face turned red as he described the blueprints of the Yu family's future, causing everyone to get excited. Cheers erupted from both inside and outside the Ancestral Hall, believing that Yu Hua was indeed an outstanding leader.

Suddenly!

Just when Yu Hua was at his most triumphant, Xia Fei's long-awaited plan of retaliation sprang up!

Dozens of screens silently appeared, and even the large projector screen outside the Ancestral Hall got hijacked.

The scene depicted was now the catastrophe on Snake Isle that day!

Everyone watched as Xia Fei and old patriarch Yu Jiang fought the enemies, hand in hand. The Divine Beast Green Dawn's tragic demise caused the people watching to feel an intense heartache that shook their very core!

Everyone was stupefied. Nobody had expected that they would receive first-hand information of what had happened that day, on the day of Yu Hua's inauguration ceremony!

Mu Fuping could feel her nose sour, and the fair maiden looked like she would cry at any time. Xia Fei had a very important spot in her heart, and seeing how desperately he tried to protect the old patriarch before ultimately becoming framed as an accomplice was heartbreaking.

Wolf Shunye practically lost his temper right there and then, letting out a thunderous bellow, "I told you all; Brother Xia Fei has been maligned! The Yu family is far too sinister!"

Zanian Feng's eyes were filled with shock. When Xia Fei exploded, the combat strength he unleashed was many times greater than what he had shown during the Dragon Ascension Conclave. A thought instantly came to him, as he contemplated on taking this recording back and showing it to his father.

The people of the Yu family were all wailing. The battle shown on several screens was simply too cruel, and seeing how the Divine Beast Green Dawn had sacrificed itself in order to help Xia Fei and the old patriarch Yu Jiang escape proved its deep loyalty to the clan. Xia Fei and the others fought despite their numerical inferiority, taking on foes who were far stronger than themselves, and the sight of this made all the blood in the warriors of the Yu family boil. They felt angry that they were not there when it happened, that they were unable to protect their patriarch, and that they had no way of fighting alongside Xia Fei.

In the end, the entire Ancestral Hall of the Yu family was in turmoil after this video was aired!

It was clear to all that the one who had betrayed the old patriarch was not Xia Fei. Who else could it be then?

The footage shown had already been edited, and from the beginning, Xia Fei, Yu Jiang, Yu Guding, and the Divine Beast Green Dawn could only be seen having a tough time fending off the opponents, but they had not seen even a lick of the enemies' shadows. They could occasionally see men who were completely covered in black appear, but they could not make out their faces.

Just as everyone was nursing questions in their heads, the scene suddenly changed!

They saw Xia Fei wearily crawling out from a crater, his gaze smouldering with great intensity as he spat out half an ear. The young man growled, "Even if I can't kill you, I'll bite you to death!"

The perspective of the footage changed once again, this time showing Yu Hua clutching on his ear, a look of shame all over his face as he appeared before everyone, and behind him was that group of men dressed in black, the murderers of the Patriarch Yu Jiang!

The situation could not be any more obvious! The one who had plotted to kill the old patriarch, Yu Jiang, was none other than Yu Hua! The person who was about to succeed the post as the next patriarch for the Yu family!

This was a great insult!

The real perpetrator who had had the Yu family's patriarch murdered was unanimously elected to become the new patriarch, and Xia Fei, who had tried everything he could to protect and save the patriarch, had been painted as the accomplice!

This had been a flawless execution of the perfect con! Turning black into white!

Countless rage-filled eyes shot toward the stage, but why would Yu Hua still be standing around? The moment he saw that the situation had gone awry, he had already fled!

"G*DD*MN HIM! I'M INFURIATED! LADS, GET HIM! TURN THE ENTIRE YU FAMILY UPSIDE DOWN AND HELP BROTHER XIA FEI EXACT RETRIBUTION!" Wolf Shunye yelled at the top of his lungs.

The gang of hooligans had already been holding their temper in check this entire time, so they immediately began searching for any traces of the real culprit, Yu Hua.

Mu Fuping was also clenching her fists tightly as she made her way to Shunye and Zanian's side. "The truth is already out. Just where exactly is Big Brother Xia Fei?"

Zanian's expression was grim as he shook his head. "It's not that simple. This footage has been edited, which means that Xia Fei clearly still has his reservations, intentionally hiding those figures shown in the video. Why would he do something like that?"

The others shook their heads, expressing their cluelessness.

"Make a big ruckus! That's right! Make a big noise out of this thing!" It was as if Zanian had suddenly thought of something, for he somewhat anxiously spoke. "I understand now. Xia Fei is making his last stand! He's not looking for us to help him clear his name but rather for us to spread the news! Otherwise, there's no use even if the truth gets out! Those people won't let him continue to live!"