Leo Li's face changed, and his fists clenched tight.
The Celestial Emperor took it and played the recording.
Liam Li’s actions were nothing short of brutal.
So young, but when he whipped that beast, he didn’t hold back at all.
He beat the poor thing until flesh and blood were mangled beyond recognition.
Even High Goddess Vivian Lu had to turn away, unable to watch anymore.
Liam Li was scared out of his wits and looked frantically at his father.
"Your Majesty!" Leo Li reacted instantly. "I had no idea it was Liam who released the beast! I didn’t mean to hide it."
The Celestial Emperor’s face was unreadable as he looked at Liam: "So, who burned the city—was it you, or him?"
"Your Majesty, I just thought having a Demon Beast as a follower would look cool, so I wanted to tame it. Why would I burn the town? It was him! He’s a Demon Beast—when he goes wild, he loses all reason! It wasn’t me!"
If you want to know who did it, it’s actually super simple. Your Majesty, why bother asking him?
A flash of light—and suddenly, a man appeared beside the Phoenix Divine Lord.
Tall and lean, jaw-droppingly handsome, with a lazy, wicked air at the corners of his eyes and lips.
It was Lord Noctis.
The Celestial Emperor asked respectfully, “Lord Noctis, you’re finally awake! What did you mean by what you said just now?”
Lord Noctis said, “When a Demon Beast sets fire, the bones turn black. But when Dragonfire burns, all that’s left is ashes. Your Majesty, just send someone to check—is the city full of black bones, or only ashes?”
The Celestial Emperor turned to the reporting Palace Guard: “When you cleaned up, what did you see?”
"Your Majesty, when we cleaned up… we didn’t see any black bones, just ashes."
So, the fire wasn’t set by the Demon Beast," Lord Noctis said. "It was Dragonfire."
The Celestial Emperor’s face darkened. “Liam, are you still not telling the truth? Do I have to use a Divine Crimson Pill or a Soulbinder charm on you?”
Liam Li’s face was ashen. “Your Majesty, I… I didn’t mean to…”
“Didn’t mean to!” The Celestial Emperor slammed the table. “Not only are you merciless, but you refuse to admit your mistakes! I’m truly disappointed in you!”
“Your Majesty…” Liam Li was so scared his face turned white and his eyes filled with tears.
Leo Li clenched his fist, bowed, and said, “Your Majesty, I failed as a father—”
“You really have failed as a father!” The Celestial Emperor cut him off. “These years, the most complaints I’ve received from the mortal realm have come from your Azure Dragon Clan!”
Leo Li and the Azure Dragon Lord both looked utterly defeated.
All the Gods stayed silent.
The Celestial Emperor took a deep breath. “Liam Li! You should get ten strikes of lightning punishment! Since you’re still young, you’ll get three. The remaining seven, Leo Li will take for you!”
Leo Li hung his head, silent.
Liam Li looked pleadingly at the Celestial Empress.
But the Celestial Empress just lowered her gaze, her face expressionless, not even sparing him a glance.
Liam Li shot a hateful look at Lucia Lu and Sean Shaw, bit his lip, lowered his head, and gave in.
The Celestial Emperor continued, “As for this Demon Beast…”
He looked at Lucia Lu. “Lucia, heal his broken leg, then let him go.”
Lucia Lu nodded and led the Demon Beast out of the hall.
The Demon Beast in human form looked at her with complicated eyes and asked, “Divine Lady Lucia, why did you help me?”
Lucia Lu replied, “No special reason—just that I saw you were a victim too, so I wanted to give you justice.”
The man knelt before her. “Thank you, Divine Lady Lucia!”
Lucia Lu shook her head, took his wrist to check his pulse, then handed him a bottle of medicine. “Take one pill a day—your broken leg will heal fast.”