Lu Mingye hadn't exactly been trying to help Jiang Chen take down Young Master Sui Chen. He was just running his mouth as usual, and happened to want to take a jab at the Eternal Sacred Land while he was at it.
He hadn't expected that his casual remark would end up doing Jiang Chen a massive favor — sparing them from having to argue their case at all.
No argument was ever more convincing than one delivered by the opposition.
The Great Sovereign's expression turned stiff in an instant, his face darkening as he fixed Sui Chen with a hard stare. As for Sui Chen himself, he wished the ground would open up and swallow him whole.
He never could have imagined that Lu Mingye — the very person who had snatched his Trial Orbs — would rub salt in the wound with such biting commentary. And as if that weren't bad enough, Lu Mingye just so happened to be passing through the area at precisely the wrong moment.
Young Master Wei Yong, upon hearing this, was also thoroughly exasperated. He shot Sui Chen a reproachful look. "Senior Brother Sui Chen, you told us the Trial Orbs were taken by those two saintesses. I didn't doubt your word at the time. But now it seems you simply didn't want to return our share — you planned to hoard all the Trial Orbs for yourself. Isn't that right?"
Sui Chen flushed with shame and anger, still trying to wriggle his way out. "The ones Lu Mingye stole were all ones I obtained later! What he took wasn't the same batch!"
The implication was clear: the Trial Orbs their squad had accumulated before that point had all been snatched away by the two saintesses.
But this excuse was so flimsy that not only did it fail to convince anyone — even Wei Yong and the others — it could barely convince Sui Chen himself.
Ziche Min let out a soft sigh. He, too, was deeply disappointed in Sui Chen. The boy's talent was, in truth, quite remarkable.
Unfortunately, when it came to character and magnanimity, there remained glaring deficiencies. Those shortcomings had always kept him from rising to the ranks of the top-tier geniuses among the Ten Great Sacred Lands of Myriad Abyss Island.
It was clear now that the Eternal Sacred Land's initial reservations about Sui Chen had been entirely justified. Fortunately, they had brought in Jiang Chen — wresting him from the Yan Family's grasp at the last moment.
Without that coup, the Five Young Masters of the Eternal Sacred Land would have been utterly outclassed in this Grand Genius Tournament.
As a collective, the Five Young Masters were, at best, a middle-of-the-pack force among the younger generation of the Ten Great Sacred Lands. Only Jiang Chen was the pearl atop the crown — the one who had elevated the Eternal Sacred Land's young generation to a position of true prominence.
The Great Sovereign stared coldly at Sui Chen for a long, suffocating moment before speaking in an icy tone. "Sui Chen. I will ask you one final time. Who exactly took your Trial Orbs?"
Under the Great Sovereign's piercing gaze, every lie Sui Chen had prepared dissolved on his tongue. He knew that if he continued spouting nonsense, his comfortable life within the Eternal Sacred Land might well come to an end.
Yet admitting that Lu Mingye had taken them was something his pride simply wouldn't allow. He kept his head down, jaw clenched, and said nothing.
His silence, however, spoke volumes.
The Great Sovereign was profoundly disappointed. Sui Chen was still Sui Chen — forever the Sui Chen who would never amount to anything of consequence. If Sui Chen had at that moment owned up to his mistake with genuine conviction, showing even a shred of willingness to reform, the Great Sovereign would still have been prepared to smooth things over and give him a chance to start anew.
But Sui Chen couldn't even muster the courage to admit his fault — and that, above all else, was what disappointed the Great Sovereign most. A genius who lacked accountability once, twice, three times over — no matter how great his talent, such a person could never be relied upon.
After all, the future of a sacred land ultimately rested on the shoulders of those who were willing to shoulder responsibility. A young genius who couldn't even carry that burden — how could he possibly bear the weight of an entire sacred land?
"All right, Great Sovereign — let the matter rest here. Their scores will register as zero, which is punishment enough. Perhaps we should let this be? If further discipline is warranted, it can wait until we return to the sacred land." The Great Sovereign offered this suggestion in a measured tone.