You remained chaste on your wedding night, do you really think this holy son is a simp?

On the high platform.

Gu Changyuan's words caused Lin Chen's body to tremble violently.

He bit his lower lip hard, and even though blood dripped down his face along with the wound at the corner of his mouth, he felt no pain.

All that's on his mind right now is a calculation.

A bill about dignity and the future.

"I already knelt down once in the main hall before, completely losing face, before I finally got this spot."

"If I turn around and leave now, what was the point of that kneeling before? A joke? And how much suffering and hardship did I endure to prepare for this competition?"

"If I give up now, what will I do in the future? Continue to be a useless person? Be trampled on in the mud for the rest of my life?"

"No, absolutely not!"

Lin Chen's heart was roaring and howling.

But his once straight spine began to bend little by little in the face of this cruel reality.

He was desperately trying to convince himself otherwise.

Those who achieve great things do not concern themselves with trivial matters.

"Han Xin endured the humiliation of crawling between someone's legs, and Goujian endured hardship and humiliation; if they could endure it, why can't I?"

"As long as I can get the Five Elements Spiritual Fruit, as long as I can become stronger, this humiliation is nothing!"

"When I become powerful, I'll trample Gu Changyuan under my feet. Who will remember this scene today?"

"Yes, endure!"

"We have to endure it!"

Lin Chen repeated these words in his mind over and over again, as if to encourage himself, or as if to numb the last bit of shame he had left.

at last.

Under the watchful eyes of thousands of people in the audience.

Lin Chen's knees, which he had been stubbornly holding on, felt as if someone had removed the bones from them.

"thump."

A muffled thud.

Lin Chen knelt on the arena once again.

This time, he knelt even more thoroughly and more humbly.

He lowered his head, braced his hands on the ground, and slammed his forehead heavily against the cold stone slab as he spoke to Gu Changyuan.

"Please, Holy Son, give us another chance."

Upon hearing this, Gu Changyuan on the high platform couldn't help but let out a cold smile and said.

"This so-called backbone is truly worthless in the face of self-interest."

Just as Gu Changyuan was about to utter a few insults, a mechanical voice rang in his mind.

【Ding! 】

[Detected that Lin Chen, the Chosen One, has once again broken down; his tolerance level has reached a critical point.]

[Congratulations, host, you have successfully plundered destiny.]

[Reward: Coordinates of an Ancient Mystic Realm]

Hearing this commotion, Gu Changyuan was stunned.

He blinked and whispered with a puzzled look on his face.

"What's going on? Another reward is popping up? Didn't we already get a reward for kneeling earlier? Is this the second wave?"

"This kid is a real gem! How long has it been? In just a few minutes, he's broken through my defenses twice."

"And the rewards for breaking through the defenses are always so amazing. This time it's even the coordinates of an ancient secret realm?"

"If this thing were sold, it would be a top-tier resource that could cause a bloodbath throughout the entire cultivation world."

"This Lin Chen is really a bastard. He's so patient. Even after I've trampled him into the mud, he still grits his teeth and kneels down before me."

"His ability to endure humiliation and bear heavy burdens is truly admirable, but..."

"This is a good thing for me. Since he can endure so much, I can't let him die so easily."

"This is practically a sustainable field of exploitative leeks! If we kill it now, it'll be like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs—what a waste!"

"Where will we find such a useful and highly productive 'tool' in the future?"

"We have to keep it."

"Not only should we keep him, but we should also nurture him properly and fatten him up."

"Once he becomes stronger and has more opportunities, we can slowly take him down. The rewards then will definitely be more generous."

After saying that, Gu Changyuan looked at Lin Chen, who was still kowtowing on the ground, and his eyes showed less murderous intent and more kindness.

He didn't speak again, nor did he ask Lin Chen to do anything excessive.

He stood there quietly, accepting Lin Chen's bow.

This silence, in the eyes of others, is a form of tacit approval.

A kind of condescending forgiveness.

Lin Chen knelt on the ground, his forehead pressed against the cold stone slab, his heart pounding with anxiety.

He didn't know if Gu Changyuan would go back on his word, or if he would come up with some new tricks to humiliate him.

Several seconds passed, but Gu Changyuan's vicious voice was still not heard.

I didn't feel that suffocating pressure either.

Lin Chen finally breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that he had survived this ordeal.

Although I lost face and suffered humiliation.

But at least, their qualification to participate was preserved.

He slowly raised his head, his eyes filled with deep resentment, but he dared not show the slightest dissatisfaction on his face.

At this time.

The disciples around them, seeing this scene, began their performances one by one.

In their view, this was entirely the Holy Son showing great mercy and not stooping to Lin Chen's level.

"Oh my, our Holy Son's magnanimity is truly beyond compare."

One of the disciples looked at the high platform with a face full of admiration, as if he were looking at a living Bodhisattva.

"Exactly! If it were me, and someone dared to publicly accuse me of cheating, I would have slapped them to death already. Why would I give them a second chance?"

"Lin Chen is really lucky to have run into such an easy-going master as the Holy Son."

"Tsk tsk tsk, this Lin Chen is really shameless. He only behaves himself after being taught a lesson."

"Weren't you so arrogant just now? Didn't you say it wasn't fair? Now why are you kneeling down faster than anyone else?"

"To put it bluntly, they're shameless; they only feel comfortable when they're on their knees."

"The Holy Son is also benevolent; even after all this, he still allows him to continue participating. Only the Holy Son could tolerate that. Who else could?"

"Lin Chen, you should be secretly happy. If it weren't for the Holy Son's magnanimity, you would have been thrown to feed the dogs by now."

These words, praising Gu Changyuan and belittling Lin Chen, were like countless flies buzzing in Lin Chen's ears.

Nausea.

That's disgusting.

Lin Chen was furious when he heard these words.

He cursed wildly in his mind.

"These blind bastards!"

"Is this what you call benevolence and righteousness? Is this what you call magnanimity?"

"To push someone to this point and then force them to kneel—is that what you call being a good person?"

"Are you blind or stupid? This is a classic case of wanting to be a prostitute while pretending to be virtuous!"

Lin Chen was so angry he gritted his teeth, his hands gripping the ground tightly, wishing he could overturn the arena.

But he dared not.

He doesn't dare utter a single word now.

That kneeling just now had exhausted all his courage and confidence.

Now, he can only lie on the ground like a dog, listening to the group's taunts and sarcastic remarks, and he has to pretend to be grateful.

The feeling of frustration almost made him spit out another mouthful of blood.

"Gu Changyuan, you just wait! I, Lin Chen, will remember this humiliation!"

"You think you've won? You think you can't get back up just because you've trampled me underfoot?"

"dream!"

Lin Chen clenched his fist, feeling the faint but still tenacious blood and qi within his body.

"As long as I live, you'll regret this!"

"Once I obtain the Five Elements Spiritual Fruit and repair my foundation, my cultivation level will definitely skyrocket!"

"At that time, don't even mention the Holy Son; even if the sect leader comes, I'll still trample him!"

"I am the chosen one! I am blessed with great fortune!"

"Even God won't let me lose!"

Although Lin Chen didn't say these thoughts aloud, the intense emotional fluctuations were transmitted without reservation to the ring on his hand.