Chapter 86: Chapter 71: Test Results Announced, Not Guilty

"Since you personally arranged for it, Chief Justice, of course there’s no problem."

She’d been caught by Yu Lan the first time she tried something.

Louisa didn’t dare try anything else.

The rest of the experimental process went as smoothly as flowing water.

Watching the beautiful young female stand before the lab bench, handling the various reagents, the once-noisy and restless audience slowly fell silent.

At the very least, watching this scene, everyone acknowledged Yu Lan’s skill as a researcher.

「Half an hour later.」

With a final GURGLE, the last drop of liquid collected in the transparent test tube. A relaxed smile spread across Yu Lan’s face, and she clapped her hands together lightly.

"Done."

She decisively divided the potion in two. One portion she handed to the Chief Justice’s aide, instructing him to immediately take it to an official testing agency to check for any deceptive P-materials.

The other portion...

...was handed to Shen Zueran before everyone’s watchful eyes.

"Dean Shen, trust me."

Yu Lan looked at Shen Zueran, her gaze intense.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Shen Zueran drank it all in one gulp, right in front of Yu Lan.

Only then did he speak in a measured tone.

"Of course I trust you."

His actions had already proven it before his words.

In the audience stands, the eyes of both Su Xingye and Huo Zhanting darkened simultaneously.

’Damn it, you just had to show off again, didn’t you?’

’This feeling of watching a rival put on a grand performance for the beautiful young female while I can only stand by and watch... It’s the absolute worst.’

Huo Zhanting and Su Xingye crossed their arms in frustration.

Meanwhile, the Chief Justice eagerly had someone bring over a spiritual power collapse detection machine.

"Quick, get a reading on Dean Shen."

This was the moment of truth, the time to verify if Yu Lan’s Hope Potion actually worked.

The Chief Justice wasn’t the only one who was anxious.

Every spectator in the room and every netizen in the livestream chat was on the edge of their seat.

Everyone stopped what they were doing, their gazes intensely fixed on Shen Zueran’s test results.

The live chat feed went completely still. No one dared to post a comment, afraid that the simple act of typing would cause them to miss the result.

Some even enabled their screen recorders, preparing to analyze the outcome frame by frame later.

In this moment, with all eyes upon him, Shen Zueran stood before the spiritual power detection machine in front of everyone.

A deep blue light flashed over his body. A minute later, the machine’s cold, robotic voice announced the results.

"BEEP! Shen Zueran’s spiritual power collapse detected at 66%. Condition: Stable."

"BEEP! Shen Zueran’s spiritual power collapse detected at 66%. Condition: Stable."

Upon reaching adulthood, a male’s spiritual power collapse level was typically above 70%. Without a female’s soothing presence, this level would increase month by month, year by year, until it surpassed 90%. At that point, they would be confined to the Mad Hero Institute to await their deaths.

A spiritual power collapse level of 66% for Shen Zueran wasn’t shocking; it was a normal reading.

But if memory served, his test right before drinking the Hope Potion had clearly shown a spiritual power collapse level of 70%.

’Could regularly taking the Hope Potion actually *lower* one’s spiritual power collapse?’

’If that’s the case, does that mean that one day, all males might not have to worry about their spiritual power collapsing, about losing their minds and dying like beasts?’

The thought of it made everyone’s breath catch in their throats.

A fire ignited in their hearts.

They stared at the young woman on the stand, their gazes burning, a million questions suddenly on the tips of their tongues.

If an ordinary person could grasp the implications, the Chief Justice—a shrewd man in a position of great power—understood far more.

Even the normally dignified Chief Justice couldn’t quite control the expression on his face as he urged them on impatiently,

"Bring in a new machine and test him again."

He was afraid the first machine had malfunctioned.

A staff member on the platform nodded at the command and hurriedly guided Shen Zueran to a new machine. Once again, the deep blue light swept over him.

「One minute later.」

The same cold, robotic voice rang out.

"BEEP! Shen Zueran’s spiritual power collapse detected at 66%. Condition: Stable."

"BEEP! Shen Zueran’s spiritual power collapse detected at 66%. Condition: Stable."

They switched machines three times, and all three produced the same result.

What did this mean?

’Does this mean the Hope Potion can not only soothe males during their mating season in place of a female... but can also lower their spiritual power collapse in general?’

’I must control my excitement,’ the Chief Justice thought, forcing himself to remain calm. ’Can’t be hasty. I have to wait. Wait for the lab results to confirm there are no deceptive P-materials.’

「At this very moment.」

From the spectators in the hall to the billions of netizens watching the livestream... everyone had fallen into a deep silence.

But beneath the quiet, a fervent anticipation surged.

Just then, amidst the crowd’s eager anticipation, the Chief Justice’s aide, who had taken the Hope Potion for analysis, finally returned.

He stood respectfully before the bench and announced:

"Chief Justice, I divided the Hope Potion into ten samples and sent them simultaneously to the Empire’s ten largest testing agencies. I have all the reports right here."

For security, the reports had even been sealed.

Now, in front of billions of viewers, he placed the sealed results on the Chief Justice’s mahogany desk.

CRACK.

It was the sound of a seal being broken.

A sound that seemed to tear through everyone’s hearts.

Everyone watching held their breath. Their hearts pounded in their chests as they watched, unblinking.

They were all waiting for the final result to be announced.

Was she a once-in-a-millennium genius...

...or a vicious and utterly stupid fraud?

This was the moment of judgment.

As if infected by the tense atmosphere, a flicker of nervousness even crossed the Chief Justice’s face.

He slowly pulled the report from its envelope. His pupils contracted sharply as his eyes fell on the first line of bold text.

The Chief Justice was so stunned by the result that he froze, his hand still holding the report.

"What’s the result?"

"What’s the Chief Justice doing? Why hasn’t he announced it?"

"The suspense is killing me! I’m about to jump up there and snatch the report myself."

The sight of the stunned Chief Justice was driving the eager audience mad with anticipation.

A low murmur rippled through the crowd.

But he was a seasoned Chief Justice, and he quickly composed himself.

He faced the crowd and read the results from the report aloud.

"Upon analysis, this potion contains no deceptive P-materials."

After making the announcement, to demonstrate complete fairness, he held up the report for both the audience and the livestream cameras to see.

The aide at his side promptly added:

"The entire transit to the Empire’s ten testing agencies was livestreamed and recorded. We can guarantee with one hundred percent certainty that the samples tested were the Hope Potion developed by Lady Yu Lan. Any viewers with doubts may verify the footage for themselves."

In that brief moment, the aide’s gaze toward Yu Lan once again became respectful.

It was even tinged with a subtle hint of apology and a desire to please.

At the same time, the Chief Justice opened and presented the remaining reports.

Without exception, they all showed the exact same result.

[ANALYSIS: THIS POTION CONTAINS NO DECEPTIVE P-MATERIALS.]

Each report was stamped with a bright red, official seal, signifying its authority and impartiality.

Ten reports, all telling the same story.

Everyone who witnessed this was left completely stunned.

Someone murmured:

"If there’s nothing wrong with the Hope Potion... then doesn’t that mean we... doesn’t that mean..."

They had wrongly accused Yu Lan.