Everyone's attention instantly converged on him.
Zhou Xuan's tone was calm. Abnormally so.
"I am conducting a Public Trial for a criminal who brought calamity upon Central Province. Using what you gave him, he nearly sacrificed hundreds of millions of lives in the Northern Lands."
He paused.
"Did you not know about this, or were you pretending not to know?"
The Pavilion Master's brow twitched, but she said nothing.
Zhou Xuan did not wait for her to answer before continuing.
"You said you were bound by the Eternal Covenant to safeguard the Immortal Court Relics. Fine. Then let me ask you."
"You've had the Supreme One Token for tens of thousands of years. Have you repaired it?"
"The Earth Vein Instrument was under your care, yet someone took it to slaughter people. Did you stop him?"
"When the Grand Hua Old Ancestor took the Myriad Spirit Origin Fetus from you three hundred years ago, did you not know what he intended to do?"
Three questions, each sharper than the last.
Seated in the front row, Liu Heng had gone utterly pale.
The Cultivators in the Square began breathing harder. Some whispered among themselves, their voices growing louder.
"She gave it to Great Hua three hundred years ago? Someone from the Court Guardian Pavilion?"
"Doesn't that make her an accomplice?"
"No wonder Great Hua dared to move against the Northern Lands... So he had something like her backing him."
The murmurs rose like a tide.
At last, the Pavilion Master's expression changed. It was not anger, but the chill of someone who had been offended.
"Insolent."
She spat out the word. Her voice was not loud, yet every murmur instantly vanished.
"A Spirit Transformation junior has no right to question my actions."
Zhou Xuan smiled.
The smile was brief and faint,