"Greetings, Lord!"
After a moment of stunned silence, all of those disciples dropped to their knees in unison. Some broke into cold sweats, while others trembled so badly they could barely keep their heads up.
The person who had appeared before them was the eldest among the Eight Immortals of Star Fall.
Though the disciples couldn't actually tell which of the Eight Immortals was which, the Eight Immortals of Star Fall were famous throughout the land — there were few in the Great Thousand Upper Realm who hadn't heard of them. Any single one of them could move mountains and seas. Simply put, for the forces these disciples belonged to, any one of the Eight Immortals could destroy them with a sneeze. How could they not be terrified?
"Rise. It's not like I'm going to eat you."
Elder Xingyi, the eldest of the Eight Immortals, was rather easygoing. Even though these disciples were nothing more than ants in his eyes, he didn't put on any airs.
Then Elder Xingyi turned to Chu Feng and said with a smile, "Young friend Chu Feng, why are you hiding your face?"
Hearing this, Chu Feng felt a bit embarrassed. His disguise could fool most people, but it was clearly no match for Elder Xingyi's perception.
Since he'd already been exposed, there was no point continuing the charade. He dropped the disguise and revealed his true face.
"Oh my heavens — he really is Chu Feng?!"
The moment they saw Chu Feng's true face, every disciple — male and female — was struck dumb. Their expressions and their frozen postures said everything about the shock churning inside them.
But it was only shock. They were simply astonished to have actually laid eyes on the person they so admired in this very place.
And when they recalled how they had just been mocking the disguised Chu Feng, they couldn't help but feel a bit sheepish.
However, compared to the others — who had been showering Chu Feng with nothing but praise moments ago — the pockmarked man who had been belittling Chu Feng was in far worse shape.
His face had gone white as paper. Sweat poured down him in sheets, and his entire body was shaking so badly he could barely stay on his feet.
He was terrified. Deeply, deathly terrified that Chu Feng would take revenge.
Chu Feng had dared to kill Yuwen Tingyi. For a nobody like him to have offended Chu Feng — that was no different from waiting to die.
And yet, Chu Feng didn't give any of them a hard time. He simply offered them a faint smile, then cupped his fists and bowed to Elder Xingyi.
"Chu Feng greets the senior."
"Young friend Chu Feng, we're practically old acquaintances — no need for such formality. You've come here as well, I take it, for the Void Divine Tree?" Elder Xingyi asked.
"That's right. I heard this was a sacred site for cultivation, so I came to have a look," Chu Feng said.
"That was nothing but rumor. We've all been deceived. Every major power here is now hunting down the person who spread those rumors. If they're caught, they'll pay the price — they managed to fool quite a few people," Elder Xingyi said.
"Then again, it's possible he wasn't lying at all. Perhaps... what he saw, we simply haven't been able to see," Chu Feng said.
"What others couldn't see — they simply declared it to be false. Called it a lie."
"And yet young friend Chu Feng still sees it differently. That speaks well of your broad-mindedness. To possess such a generous heart at your age — this old man is impressed," Elder Xingyi said.
"Elder Xingyi flatters me. It's nothing more than a personal guess. As for what the truth actually is, even I don't know," Chu Feng said.
"Mm, there's wisdom in that. But then, young friend Chu Feng, what are your plans now?" Elder Xingyi asked.
"I'd like to observe a little longer. If I still can't find anything, I'll leave," Chu Feng said.
"Well, since you're already here, don't make the trip a waste. Our Saintess and Holy Son are hosting a gathering with some peers. In addition to them, Jian Wuqing of the Dao Palace, Ren Xiaoyao of the Blissful Valley, and the Ghost-Eyed Boy of the Ghost Sect Hall are all in attendance."