Apart from the Outer Sect members, Chu Feng's gaze also naturally drifted toward the people of Qingmu Mountain.
The first person to catch his eye among them was a middle-aged man.
His features were unremarkable, his stature neither tall nor imposing, and he dressed plainly in simple cloth garments.
Yet this man brimmed with authority and carried an air of transcendent refinement — one look was enough to tell he was no ordinary person, but a figure of tremendous stature.
At this moment, he stood at the very forefront of the Qingmu Mountain contingent, exuding such a commanding presence that a single glance was enough to inspire awe.
"That must be Qingmu Mountain's Sect Master — Dugu Xingfeng," Sima Ying spoke up. Despite her deeply unfavorable impression of Qingmu Mountain, genuine respect showed on her face when she beheld that man.
"The Qingmu Mountain Sect Master is known as Perfected Dugu — a legendary figure. Among the nine current Sect Masters of the Nine Powers, all have reached the peak of the Half-Emperor realm, but if one were to rank them, first place would undoubtedly go to him," Lin Yezhou added.
The perpetually untamable and conceited Lin Yezhou actually showed such reverence toward Dugu Xingfeng, even personally admitting that Dugu Xingfeng was stronger than his own Spirit World Alliance's Master.
Although Chu Feng had already suspected that this middle-aged man might be the Qingmu Mountain Sect Master, hearing Lin Yezhou and the others speak only further solidified his certainty.
What Chu Feng hadn't expected was that the Qingmu Mountain Sect Master would be so renowned — even the Spirit World Alliance's disciples held him in such high regard.
Flanking Dugu Xingfeng, the Qingmu Mountain Sect Master, on either side were two familiar figures. One was the White Ape Half-Emperor, and the other was the man Chu Feng despised to the bone — Tuoba Shakuang.
The White Ape Half-Emperor was, as always, both warm and dignified — thoroughly amiable.
Tuoba Shakuang lived up to his name. Beneath his fierce exterior radiated a thick aura of killing intent.
But seeing Tuoba Shakuang again now, Chu Feng no longer feared him the way he once had.
With his Mental Power having grown stronger, Tuoba Shakuang's and the White Ape Half-Emperor's cultivation levels were no longer as unfathomable and impenetrable as they had been in the past.
Even with their deliberate concealment, Chu Feng could discern their true cultivation at a single glance.
Both the White Ape Half-Emperor and Tuoba Shakuang were at the seventh-grade Half-Emperor realm. Though this level of cultivation was already formidable, it remained a considerable distance from the peak of the Half-Emperor realm.
Knowing that none of the powerhouses standing before him could hide their cultivation from him any longer, Chu Feng realized that although his time away from Qingmu Mountain had not been long, he had truly grown a great deal.
"Fellow Sect Masters, it has been three years — I trust you have all been well."
The warship had by now descended. The Spirit World Alliance's Master led Miao Renlong and the other elders as they flew down together to exchange greetings with the various Sect Masters.
The disciples followed closely behind in silence. In a gathering of this caliber, they had no standing to speak.
Though they couldn't speak, that did nothing to stop the Nine Powers' disciples from sizing each other up. They all wanted to see what level their opponents truly were this time around.
"Look! That person — why is he wearing Qingmu Mountain's disciple robes?"
A startled cry rang out, and soon after, similar exclamations erupted one after another.
Chu Feng, clad in Qingmu Mountain disciple attire and standing among the Spirit World Alliance's disciples, was impossible to overlook.
"Chu Feng — why is he mixed in with the Spirit World Alliance people?" A Qingmu Mountain disciple couldn't contain himself and blurted out his astonishment on the spot.
"Oh?" The moment those words left his mouth, the prominent figures who had been conversing among themselves all turned their gazes toward Chu Feng. Upon seeing him, a trace of surprise surfaced on each of their faces.