Above the void...
Celestial Pivot Half-Venerable took in every subtle shift in expression among the people below. Beneath his obscure gaze, no small movement could escape notice.
He did not expose them at once. His expression remained indifferent as he continued speaking unhurriedly, his cool voice spreading in every direction.
"At this moment, I shall give you one chance to confess and mend your ways."
"You have one quarter of an hour. Any who privately concealed or substituted military-prepared Spirit Materials—
—if you voluntarily hand over the Spirit Materials you have hidden, and willingly forfeit five thousand battle merits, you shall be spared punishment this time. The past will not be held against you."
As his words fell, Celestial Pivot Half-Venerable shifted slightly and sat cross-legged in midair. Spirit Light flowed over his knees as his eyes slowly closed. The aura around him settled into stillness, and he quietly waited for their choice.
Though the Half-Venerable powerhouse sat silently in the void, the intangible pressure did not lessen in the slightest, heavily blanketing the entire plaza.
Although none of the several hundred Mortal Cultivators below dared openly whisper among themselves, beneath their sleeves and within their Divine Senses, secret exchanges had already quietly spread.
Faint ripples of Divine Sense drifted silently through the gaps in the crowd.
"Fellow Daoist, while setting up this formation, did you privately conceal or substitute any Spirit Materials?"
A white-haired Artifact Refiner lowered his Divine Sense and quietly asked the companion beside him.
"Absolutely not!
I have always abided by the rules. How would I dare touch the association's bottom line?"
The other swiftly sent back a Divine Sense message, then asked in return, "What about you? Have you done anything?"
The white-haired Artifact Refiner's eyes flickered, a trace of conflict in their depths. His