He had thought he would be questioned. Neither the Ten-Thousand-Li Illumination Talisman nor the Golden Light Divine Talisman that had protected his life was something a mere Qi Refining cultivator like him could explain away in a few words.
And never mind questioning.
Even coercion, demands, and torture would have been nothing unusual.
Thus, when Sima Lingzhen half invited, half forced him into the Purple Plain Eight-Directions Palace, Chen Heng had actually prepared himself.
But after summoning the Cavern Mystery Refiners, Sima Lingzhen said little beyond giving them a fierce dressing-down...
He rebuked them for failing to safeguard their territory and neglecting their duty to patrol and eliminate evil. They had actually let an Evil Hatred Yin Victory Demon live so freely beneath their very noses for so long, destroying countless lives. Their shamelessness knew no bounds.
The Cavern Mystery Refiners, normally so lofty and untouchable, were left utterly disgraced by Sima Lingzhen's scorn, without a shred of dignity.
Even Xie Tan of the Flower God Manor and the Refinement Master from the Five Radiances Sect merely stood silently with lowered heads, not daring to utter a word in their defense, much less the Cavern Mystery elders from smaller sects and the Rogue Cultivators.
This scolding and interrogation continued for several cups of tea before finally pausing.
Lastly, Sima Lingzhen ordered the cultivators to patrol rigorously in the coming days and eradicate any Heavenly Demon threats that might remain. Only then did he wave impatiently, driving them all out like flies and mosquitoes.
His manner was contemptuous and arrogant in the extreme. He treated the cultivators like household servants, summoned and dismissed at will, laughing, mocking, raging, and cursing without restraint.
Yet none of the Refinement Masters dared show the slightest insolence. They merely listened respectfully, hands lowered.
Even the