The Processing Bureau, on the other hand, intended to use this incident to weaken or even shatter the tight-knit group of Recommended Students, thereby diminishing the influence of the powerful families over the academy.

But the prerequisite for achieving this was, naturally, to protect Chen Chuan and establish the legitimacy of his actions. Otherwise, nothing else could even be considered.

As for the numerous powerful families, their goal was the exact opposite. If they allowed the man who killed their children to be acquitted and walk away without consequence, it would not only be a great loss of face but also a tangible decline in their power. It would mean they could no longer maintain the old order.

In the future, they might even turn on each other to survive, and more and more people would join the ranks of those looking to tear them apart and devour them.

They had made thorough preparations this time. First, they persuaded a large number of Advisory Council members to side with them, which in turn influenced the Administrative Affairs Hall. This allowed them to exert pressure from the top down on the Patrol, Esoteric Buddhism, and Processing Bureaus.

However, although these council members had myriad connections to the powerful factions and appeared to have the upper hand, it wasn’t actually that simple.

The Esoteric Buddhism, Processing, and Patrol Bureaus were the three administrative departments with their own independent armed forces and the most deterrent power at the local level. Since the local government did not control the military, the Administrative Affairs Hall had to consider the opinions of these departments.

Therefore, to suppress this matter and achieve their goals, they needed at least a publicly justifiable cause and reason that complied with the laws of the Dashun Republic. Using brute force to crush it would not only fail but also create even more conflict, and they could forget about ever getting these departments to cooperate in the future.

Considering the various Cult members, resistance organizations, and armed groups currently at large, not only was the cooperation of these powerful departments essential, but it was also sometimes a matter of life and death for the families themselves. They couldn’t afford to be reckless.

So, due process was a must.

At this point, both the respondent and the complainant had finished their lengthy opening statements. Next, the families of the deceased took the stand to give their statements. The people who appeared were the elders and women of these families.

They recounted warm, moving, and heart-wrenching stories about the "victims." Each and every memory, down to the smallest detail, was told with sincere and heartfelt emotion. At the most moving parts, they couldn’t help but break down into mournful sobs, which stirred the emotions of many in the audience. Soft weeping could be heard from the gallery.

Judge Shen watched silently from the bench. When their statements concluded, he turned to Chen Chuan and, as was customary, asked the first question: "Respondent Chen Chuan, the complainants accuse you of killing thirty-seven students on the night of the twentieth at the Li’an Machinery Old Factory in Xigang District. Do you admit to this?"

This was merely a formality. Normally, the respondent would deny the actions, and then the Litigation Masters for both sides would appear and begin their arguments in court. Considering the complexity of the case and the number of factions involved, it was expected to be a very long process.

However, he never expected that after he asked this question, Chen Chuan would look at him calmly and say, "I did kill them. I killed all thirty-seven of those people that night."

Judge Shen was a little surprised, not expecting Chen Chuan to admit to it so readily. But that wasn’t the main point. The act itself was difficult to deny; the key was the reason for the killing.

He continued, "Then, before and during the killings, were you under duress from any party, or were you being manipulated by an Esoteric Ritual, causing you to commit these acts?"

Chen Chuan said calmly, "No. I killed those people entirely of my own free will. I was not under any duress, nor was I influenced by any Esoteric Ritual."

As soon as he said this, the gallery erupted in an uproar.

"Murderer!"

"Murderer!"

Finally, one person couldn’t contain their emotions and shot to their feet, shrieking, "My child was well-behaved and honest! He was always so good to his parents! He was just a child, just a child... Why did you kill him? Why?!"

Chen Chuan turned to look at them. "Because he deserved to die."

The person trembled involuntarily under his gaze. "You... you..."

Chen Chuan’s gaze swept over the gallery, looking at every single person seated there as he said sincerely, "Every one of them deserved to die. They intended to use an Esoteric Ritual to control me, but they failed. Afterward, they shot at me. To protect myself, I had no choice but to kill them all."

"Intended? How did you determine their intent?"

An angry and self-righteous accusation came from the gallery, "Even if they shot at you, that’s no reason to slaughter them! You don’t have that right, you murderer!"

"Actually..." Chen Chuan looked at the accuser. "I do have that right."

As he spoke, he raised a hand and reached into his pocket. The motion made everyone tense up. Some even felt the urge to shout for security.

Judge Shen grew nervous as well. He knew Chen Chuan was a Fighter who had single-handedly killed dozens of armed Wuyi Students and security guards. If he went berserk right here, it would be extremely dangerous for him, being so close, even with security present.

He quickly said, "Chen, what are you doing? If you need to retrieve something, our personnel can get it for you."

Chen Chuan said slowly, "I’m just showing you my right." He slowly pulled out his hand, which now held a card. He raised it for all to see.

It was a cyan-black Jade Card, marked with crimson patterns like blooming cinnabar, closely resembling streaks of fresh blood.

Due to the distance, some people couldn’t see what it was clearly. But those in the front rows got a perfect view, and someone who recognized it couldn’t help but exclaim:

"An Unlimited Defense Certificate?!"

Judge Shen stared intently. He adjusted his glasses, looked at Chen Chuan, and muttered, "And it’s a B Certificate..."

Chen Chuan’s steady and powerful voice rang out through the court:

"You ask if I have the right. I’m telling you, I do. This is the right of legitimate self-defense, granted to me by the Dashun Republic Government. The moment I perceive that someone is attempting to harm me, or I feel my life is in danger, I gain the right of unlimited defense. Therefore... I eliminated every potential threat within my line of sight, leaving none behind!"

The hall below the judge’s bench fell deathly silent. Only the echo of his final words lingered in the air.

Many stared at Chen Chuan in shock and terror, some with hands trembling slightly. They couldn’t tell if it was because of this revelation, or for some other reason.

"An Unlimited Defense Certificate? How could he possibly have one?! It’s fake! It must be fake!" Someone in the gallery immediately voiced their doubt, and a clamor instantly erupted.

Judge Shen picked up his gavel and struck it once. BANG! The sound immediately silenced the uproar from the gallery. He looked at Chen Chuan and said, "Chen, for the sake of fairness and justice, please allow me to inspect the Defense Certificate in your hand."

Chen Chuan nodded. "Of course."

The judge stepped down from the bench, took the card from Chen Chuan’s hand, and inspected it. "It’s authentic," he announced. "The material, the serial number, and the name all match. And... it is a B Certificate."

After he spoke these words, a dead silence fell over the gallery. Many of the powerful family members in attendance turned pale, slumping weakly in their seats. They knew that with this certificate, unless he was caught red-handed or the evidence was overwhelmingly against him, it was nearly impossible for him to be convicted.

Wei Hang involuntarily closed his eyes, knowing their worst-case scenario had just come to pass.

They had, in fact, considered this possibility before. Although the probability was extremely low, they could never have stopped their pursuit based on such a guess—were they supposed to just voluntarily give up on holding him accountable?

So even if Chen Chuan really did have an Unlimited Defense Certificate, this step had been a necessary one to take.

But now, it was impossible for them to use official channels to have Chen Chuan executed. However, he still had another option—an option that, once taken, was a point of no return.

He looked at the young man sitting beside him, who gave him a slight nod. Leaning on his cane, Wei Hang stood up. "Judge Shen, and everyone present, I have something to say."

...

...