Chapter 512: Yan Shaozhe Elder Xuan, You're the Real Traitor!
Clearing his throat, Yan Shaozhe continued, "First of all, the reason I didn't ignite my Life's Flame was because I was ambushed by a mental soul skill. At that moment, my head was spinning, and I couldn't focus enough to ignite my Life's Flame. Otherwise, I would have done exactly as the other elders did and attacked the soul tool barrier."
"As for Feng Ling saving me, I truly had no prior knowledge of it. I haven't had any contact with her for years. And even if we assume for a moment that I were a traitor, why would I leave such an obvious flaw in my actions?"
"As for the soul tool cannons not targeting me, my guess is that it was simply because I was standing next to Feng Ling at the time. The Sun Moon Empire had no reason to attack her as well.
After all, you all know that the Holy Spirit Cult was allowed to send evil soul masters to participate in the Sun Moon Empire's tournament a precedent unheard of in the history of the Continental Soul Master Tournament. This proves that the Holy Spirit Cult and the Sun Moon Empire have a close relationship.
It's entirely possible that they have a deep seated alliance, so the Sun Moon Empire wouldn't see the need to attack a key partner."
Cai Mei'er, Xian Lin'er, and Qian Duoduo hesitated upon hearing this. Yan Shaozhe's words made sense.
But Elder Xuan wasn't convinced.
To him, Yan Shaozhe was merely trying to justify his series of betrayals.
No matter how eloquently he spoke, it didn't change the fact that he had betrayed Shrek Academy.
A traitor had to be dealt with swiftly there was no need to preserve past relationships.
Even if he had to burn all bridges, he would do whatever was necessary for the sake of Shrek Academy!
Elder Xuan snorted coldly and said, "What a slick tongue! Then explain why you spared Feng Ling a second time.
Your Radiant Phoenix martial soul naturally suppresses evil martial souls, and she had already given up resisting. If you had wanted to, you could have killed her on the spot and rid the Douluo Continent of a major threat.
But what did you do? You let her go again!
A Super Douluo level evil soul master being allowed to live will only lead to more deaths in the future.
Evil soul masters are bloodthirsty by nature. Do you really want to see the Douluo Continent drowned in suffering?"
Faced with such a severe accusation, Yan Shaozhe refused to back down.
Angrily, he countered, "Elder Xuan, I let Feng Ling go because I needed to rescue you all as quickly as possible!
Evil soul masters are notoriously cunning just because she didn't resist on the surface doesn't mean she wasn't prepared to counterattack in secret.
If I had engaged her in battle, I would have been trapped, and how would I have been able to help you all escape from the soul tool barrier?
Of course, in the end, I didn't have much to do with the barrier breaking, but my intentions were good. Plans don't always go as expected!"
The more he spoke, the angrier he became.
He was innocent, yet Elder Xuan was relentlessly accusing him, digging up "evidence" to paint him as a traitor.
It was slander, plain and simple.
Being falsely accused was already painful enough.
But to be accused by someone he had trusted for years someone who had watched him grow up felt like a dagger piercing his heart.
The betrayal hurt more than anything else.
His fury erupted.
"If you're going to call me a traitor, Elder Xuan, then I'd say you seem more like one than I do!
Considering all the mistakes you've made in the past, your identity as a traitor seems far more solid than mine!"
Elder Xuan stiffened. His expression darkened instantly.
He had not expected Yan Shaozhe to start dredging up the past.
Yes, he had made many mistakes before, and those mistakes had cost the academy dearly. But he had always blamed himself for them.
Yan Shaozhe's words were like salt on an open wound.
Besides, what did his past mistakes have to do with being a traitor?
Yan Shaozhe was clearly trying to shift the conversation!
"Yan Shaozhe, are you seriously trying to turn this around on me? Accusing me of being a traitor?"
"Accusing you? I'm simply fighting back with reason.
If you can claim I'm a traitor based on so called 'evidence,' why can't I use your past mistakes to prove that you're the traitor instead?"
"That's nonsense! You're just slandering me! Instead of digging up my past, you should be thinking of an excuse to cover up your betrayal!"
"If you hadn't falsely accused me first, would I have even brought up your past? If you hadn't made so many mistakes, would I even have the chance to?
Luo Xuan should never have begged for you to stay outside the Sea God's Pavilion all those years ago!"
Their shouting match filled the Sea God's Pavilion, their powerful voices shaking the walls.
As their argument escalated, their anger grew fiercer, to the point that they were about to come to blows.
Elder Mu sighed, rubbing his temples. "Enough. Stop this bickering."
At his command, both Elder Xuan and Yan Shaozhe fell silent and turned to look at him.
Elder Mu surveyed the two men carefully, replaying their words in his mind. After considering everything, he made his decision.
"Elder Xuan, Yan Shaozhe you are both loyal to Shrek Academy.
There is no traitor between you."
"Especially you, Elder Xuan your so called 'evidence' isn't enough to convict Yan Shaozhe. You've misunderstood him.
And as for you, Yan Shaozhe bringing up Elder Xuan's past mistakes and calling him a traitor was clearly said in the heat of anger."
"You both made mistakes, but Elder Xuan's were more serious.
Elder Xuan, you will be confined within the academy for three months to focus on your training. Stop obsessing over finding a traitor I will assign someone else to handle that.
Yan Shaozhe, you will also be confined within the academy, but only for two months."
"Yes, Elder Mu," Elder Xuan said reluctantly.
"Understood, Teacher," Yan Shaozhe replied, his voice laced with frustration.
Though they obeyed Elder Mu's ruling, the conflict between them was far from over.
A rift had formed between them, one that would not heal easily.
Elder Mu sighed in exhaustion.
He knew his decision was merely a temporary fix, not a true resolution.
From now on, the relationship between Yan Shaozhe and Elder Xuan would only worsen.
But for now, what mattered most was stabilizing the Sea God's Pavilion.
That was in the academy's best interest.
After all, with Elder Lin and Elder Zhuang dead at the hands of the Sun Moon Empire, the Pavilion had already lost two of its senior members.
If Elder Xuan and Yan Shaozhe continued fighting, or worse, clashed physically, it would only further weaken Shrek Academy.
For now, the most pressing issue was ensuring Elder Song and the students returned safely.
His gaze shifted toward Qian Duoduo, Cai Mei'er, and Xian Lin'er.
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