The demoness was already gone, her figure vanishing without a trace.
But Chu Feng remained standing there, staring in the direction she had disappeared, unable to come back to his senses for a long time.
He had lost. The outcome of this battle was beyond doubt — Chu Feng had been defeated.
And from what Chu Feng had observed, the demoness didn't seem to be that old either. Her age was remarkably close to his own.
In other words, today Chu Feng had not only lost to a peer — he had lost to someone roughly the same age.
True, the demoness wasn't exactly human, but her age was still what it was.
As such, this defeat dealt a blow to Chu Feng's pride.
But the greatest blow was that he had failed to avenge Wang Qiang.
And once the effects of the Immortal Transformation Pill wore off, Chu Feng's true cultivation would only be that of a Fourth Grade Half Ancestor. The gap between him and the demoness was simply too vast.
Of course, Chu Feng could continue cultivating and raise his strength.
But with the demoness's talent, she would absolutely not stop at her current level. Her cultivation would only continue to grow as well.
And given how the demoness had performed today, Chu Feng truly had very little confidence that he could surpass her — at least not anytime soon.
In this moment, Chu Feng felt, for the first time, the threat posed by his peers from beyond this realm.
Sure enough, out there beyond the heavens, there existed monsters on par with Chu Feng — or even more formidable than him.
"Young hero, are you all right?"
After a moment, roughly several dozen figures flew over from the direction those men and women had fled.
They were all elders, their cultivations mostly at the Martial Ancestor realm. The leading elder in particular was a true Martial Ancestor.
Judging by the tokens at their waists and the robes they wore, Chu Feng knew these people must belong to the same faction as those men and women from before.
"Young hero, greetings. I am Guo Shun, Sect Master of the Tingyun Sect."
"Just now, it was you who drove off that demoness, wasn't it?"
The leading Martial Ancestor elder addressed Chu Feng with great courtesy, asking cautiously.
As for the Tingyun Sect's elders, they were even more apprehensive — not one of them dared look Chu Feng in the eye, nor would they dream of showing even the slightest disrespect.
After all, Chu Feng's cultivation at this moment was that of a Martial Ancestor. Regardless of his injuries or combat ability, that level of cultivation spoke for itself.
And beside Chu Feng stood a Sixth Grade Martial Ancestor — even stronger than their own Sect Master. With such power before them, their fear and deference were entirely natural.
"Just now, I was the one fighting that demoness," Chu Feng said honestly. There was no need to hide something like this, and besides, the Tingyun Sect's disciples had all witnessed him battling the demoness with their own eyes.
"Young hero, your strength is truly remarkable. Our Tingyun Sect has been chasing that demoness for a long time, but we've never managed to catch her. She slips away every time, and we've never even had the chance to exchange blows with her."
"And yet you, young hero, having only recently set foot here, were able to intercept that demoness and fight her head-on. Truly impressive," the Tingyun Sect Master said.
"That demoness is very strong. The fact that you couldn't stop her may actually have been for the best. If you had cornered her, none of you would have been her match," Chu Feng said.
"Sigh." At these words, the Tingyun Sect Master let out a deep sigh. Though he said nothing more, a look of embarrassment crept across his aged face.
As for Chu Feng, he didn't press the matter further and prepared to leave.
Whoosh~ However, the moment Chu Feng took a single step, his expression changed drastically. An unbearable pain surged through every part of his body.
Earlier, when he had launched his attack against the demoness, it was the murderous drive for his brother's revenge that had allowed him to temporarily break free from the agony wracking his body.
But now, without that killing intent, he had once again returned to a state where he could barely control his own body.
"Young hero, it seems you're injured. If you don't mind, why not come to our Tingyun Sect to recover?" the Tingyun Sect Master offered.
And his elders, to their credit, were quite perceptive. The moment they saw their Sect Master extend the invitation, they quickly brought out a war chariot, intending to use it to carry Chu Feng.
"Then I'll trouble you."
Chu Feng could see their sincerity, and in his current state, he was indeed extremely weak. Once the Immortal Transformation Pill's effects faded completely, he would be in even worse shape.