I Want to Prove My Innocence

Ye Chuan glared and shouted angrily, "I didn’t provoke you, yet you dare to attack me privately, ignoring the rules of the Super Martial Assembly?!"

"Where is justice? Where is fairness?"

"Where is your decency?!"

Lei Hao, the young master of the Lei Family, lay on the ground clutching his face, dumbfounded as he stared at Ye Chuan’s exaggerated display of righteous indignation.

Wait a minute—there’s still a slap mark on my face.

Damn, he had never seen such a shameless man before—hitting someone and then playing the victim first.

"Wasn’t this you who hit me?!" Lei Hao stood up, pointing at the red handprint on his cheek.

"Tsk, what nonsense." Ye Chuan clasped his hands behind his back and glanced sideways. "Since you insist on framing me, I’ll prove my innocence."

Slap!

With that, Ye Chuan struck Lei Hao again in front of everyone, the crisp sound resonating as if it had landed on the faces of all the Lei Family disciples.

"The slap marks are completely different. This is the shape of my slap—now apologize!" Ye Chuan pointed at Lei Hao’s swollen face, now resembling a pig’s head.

"Are you kidding me?! You hit me with your left hand earlier, now you’re using your right—of course the marks are different!"

Ye Chuan replied coolly,

"And how can you be so sure my left-hand slap looks like that?"

"I’m just proving my innocence."

The words triggered Lei Hao, who clenched his fist, lightning flickering around it.

"I’ll fight you to the death!" With a furious roar, Lei Hao lunged forward.

But in the next second, his body twisted unnaturally, and his fist smashed into the face of another Lei Family young master instead.

A scream erupted.

Lei Hao staggered back in disbelief. "Huh?!"

"Brother Hao, why did you hit me?!" The other young master was stunned, his speech slurred from the blow that had shattered seven or eight of his teeth.

"I—I didn’t mean to hit you! My fist just… curved on its own!" Lei Hao finally snapped out of his daze and glared at Ye Chuan. "You did this?!"

"I, Huang Haotian, have always acted with integrity—I never resort to underhanded tricks." Ye Chuan stood with his hands behind his back, his robes fluttering despite the absence of wind.

Of course, he had secretly used his spiritual energy to redirect Lei Hao’s punch.

"Fine! What a great Huang Haotian you are!"

Lei Hao’s face, already swollen from Ye Chuan’s slaps, turned even redder with rage, making him look even more like a pig’s head. "In the Super Martial Assembly’s arena, life and death are decided by fate. Pray that the Lei Family doesn’t draw the Wang Family in the matches."

"Huang Haotian, I’ll remember you!"

Hearing this, Ye Chuan casually raised his hand, and the group flinched before scrambling away in panic.

Hmm…

Ye Chuan still wanted to play with them a little longer.

Should he drag them back?

As he pondered, Wang Yanran, who had witnessed the scene, stepped forward to thank him. "Thank you, Ye Chuan. Those guys have always been arrogant—our Wang Family’s younger generation couldn’t handle them."

"It’s nothing." Ye Chuan waved it off.

"Ye Chuan, when did you change your name to Huang Haotian?" Bai Qianshuang asked curiously from the side.

Since these opponents were too weak, Bai Qianshuang hadn’t even bothered to intervene—Ye Chuan had just been toying with them.

"The name Huang Haotian has a nice ring to it," Ye Chuan said.

Back on the Tianxuan Continent, he’d often used this alias when stirring up trouble.

"I see." Bai Qianshuang seemed to understand.

When traveling incognito, it was wise to avoid using one’s real name.

During her own days being hunted, Bai Qianshuang had once disguised herself as a man under the alias Black Deepflame—yet the Qingyun Sect still tracked her down.

Only later did she realize they had planted a soul mark on her, making it impossible to hide no matter what name she used.

All that effort for nothing.

After resting in their rooms for a while, Wang Yanran led Ye Chuan and the others to the Super Martial Assembly’s opening.

"Ye Chuan, it’s time to go," Wang Yanran said.

"Alright, let’s move."

……

Inside the grand hall of the mountain estate, a massive arena loomed like a slumbering beast. The circular platform, dozens of meters in diameter, was paved with polished granite slabs, their cold, unyielding surface gleaming under the light.

The edges of the arena were carved with intricate patterns of fierce beasts, their grooves and patina revealing years of history.

A treasure at first glance.

The spectator stands were packed with members of two dozen prominent Super Martial Families, their expressions solemn.

The elders of each family stood at the forefront, dressed in ornate robes embroidered with rare gems—each detail a testament to their lineage’s prestige. Their eyes burned with intensity as they fixed their gazes on the arena.

This was the battleground where the Super Martial Alliance would determine each family’s resource allocation—a matter that would shape their future for years to come.

The younger generation stood tall behind them, excitement flickering in their eyes as they watched in silence. The air was thick with tension, breaths held in anticipation of the coming clashes.

Soon, an elderly man appeared at the center of the arena. His voice, though calm, carried effortlessly to every corner.

"Everyone’s here, I presume? I doubt any family would be late on such an important occasion."

Wang Yanran whispered to Ye Chuan, "That’s Elder Xu, one of the Super Martial Alliance’s leaders and the referee for this assembly."

"Oh?" Ye Chuan glanced at him, but seeing that the man wasn’t even at the Foundation Establishment level, he quickly lost interest.

Elder Xu continued, "No need for lengthy introductions. Twenty-four Super Martial Families will compete in a tournament format. Each family will send three young warriors under the age of thirty-five."

"The first match begins now."

"Xu Family, Hu Family!"

The named families tensed, swiftly sending their chosen fighters to the stage.

"Xu Nian’an!"

"Hu Shan!"

Both were second-tier Super Martial Artists—roughly equivalent to early-stage Qi Condensation cultivators, just beginning to grasp supernatural techniques.

"Xu Nian’an is the Xu Family’s youngest genius. Rumor has it he’s already half a step into the third tier at just twenty-four, specializing in speed," Wang Yanran explained.

"Hu Shan is no slouch either. The Hu Family excels in physical strength—at lower tiers, their raw power overwhelms most peers."

Bai Qianshuang, however, remarked flatly,

"They’re weak."

Ye Chuan nodded. "True. You’re right, Qianshuang."

Wang Yanran: "…"

Well…

Of course they couldn’t compare to you two.

Wang Yanran hadn’t even reached the second tier herself—to her, Xu Nian’an and Hu Shan were already formidable.