Chương 387: Inner disciples gathering

Long Feng waited till the next morning before he went to find Xiao Hu. When he left the cave, his sights were drawn to the rock ape's corpse that was still laying there and he approached it thoughtfully.

"I should take the blood essence out, just in case I might need to use it." He decided before swiftly cutting open the ape's though skin and digging out it's heart. Watching the blood that flowed out endlessly, he quickly gathered as much of it as he could before storing it. He couldn't just let the ordinary blood go to waste, as he could still use it without diluting it with water. After he was done, he safely stored the heart that was nearly the size of his head into a wooden box and hid it in his void ring.

Whenever he needed it, he would easily pull the blood essence out of it. Having done that, he rushed towards Cheng Zhi's cave. Considering the time, Xiao Hu was likely to be there. A while later, Long Feng approached the cave, and from a distance, Xiao Hu's large figure was already waving at him. Long Feng sped up and slowed down with a smile. Xiao Hu and Cheng Zhi also both smiled and waved at him.

But just before any of them said a word, a resounding bell rang, it's sounds echoing through every corner of the inner peak and spreading a dense pressure to enclose the peak for a few seconds. Long Feng's ears rang as he hurriedly blocked the sound with his inner energy while glancing in the direction of the mountain peak, where the sound came from. Both Xiao Hu and Cheng Zhi also looked in the same direction, the former looking confused and the latter looking extremely solemn.

The bell rang two more times, each time louder than the last. The third one especially caused the peak to vibrate and sent Long Feng's blood roiling. An especially stirring silence filled the entire peak for several seconds after the bell rang, and then all of a sudden, auras surged across the entire peak as many figures rushed out of their caves and headed towards the mountain peak.

"What's happening?" Long Feng questioned while suppressing the discomfort in his body.

"It's the Heaven reaching bell. Let's go. I'll explain along the way." Cheng Zhi moved, beckoning to both Long Feng and Xiao Hu as he rushed towards the mountain top as well. Xiao Hu didn't even think about it as he took large strides, covering tens of meters with each step. Long Feng rushed behind them, wondering what could have happened to cause such a commotion. As he followed behind Cheng Zhi, the latter explained.

"The heaven reaching bell is a special artifact in the inner peak. Whenever it rings, it pierces through all barriers and resounds through the entire mountain. It is only used when there is an important information or event that needs to be shared. All inner disciples on the peak must cease everything and gather in the central Hall. Whoever doesn't will face severe consequences." He paused for a few breaths before he added.

"The last time it rang was nearly two years ago." Long Feng now understood, and couldn't help but be curious as to what was so important that the bell had to be ringed after two years. With their speed, it took them about an hour to arrive at the huge Central Hall. Dozens of other disciples streamed into the hall, each of them possessing an extraordinary aura that wasn't inferior to the refined early stage deity realm at the very least. Long Feng couldn't help but sigh as he saw this scene.

The heritage of the supreme heaven sect truly left him dazzled. Such a line up of deities could quite frankly turn the entire continent zone upside down and annihilate just about all the Overlord forces. As Cheng Zhi approached the entrance, all the disciples there actually paused and opened a path for him, leaving Long Feng stunned. This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. Among these disciples, there were some with auras that was superior even to Ren Ji's by far!

Each disciple had an expression of respect, with a more concealed look of fear in their eyes as he walked past. Xiao Hu also strolled directly behind Cheng Zhi without a care in the world, and none of the disciples expressed surprise. It was clear that they all knew of the bond between Xiao Hu and Cheng Zhi. But Long Feng's presence behind them drew several curious gazes as the disciples wondered who he was.

The inner peak test wasn't some famous event, and most disciples didn't even know it happened, so no one knew who Long Feng was. Among so many powerful geniuses, only strength could make one famous and earn their respect and fear. Long Feng's gaze on Cheng Zhi became increasingly intrigued as he wondered how strong he really was to cause such reactions. The inside of the hall was already filled with hundreds of youths, mostly males and much less females.

Each and every single one of them was an impressive genius with unique talents and abilities, and their combined presence caused the hall itself to be overwhelmed.

"Such powerful auras…" Long Feng regulated his breathing while looking around solemnly.

"I am at the bottom of the bottom here… any casual person among them can give me a run for my money." He sighed. Standing at the near top of the outer peak meant absolutely nothing here. Talents? Everyone here had that. Unless it was a peak earth grade talent, then one's talent wouldn't be able to cause any storm here. Cheng Zhi's entrance subtly affected the atmosphere of the hall, and many disciples subconsciously slowed their breathing as they stared at him.

Long Feng noticed this tiny detail and felt more and more curious with each passing second. He suddenly sensed a piercing gaze on his back and turned around abruptly, locking gazes with Zhou Zheng's cold eyes. After staring at the latter for a minute, Long Feng indifferently glanced away and searched through the hundreds of figures. He soon spotted Qiu Yushi, Situ Hong, Fang Feichen and the others. Obviously, none of them had left the sect yet due to their lacking strength.

A few of them were standing behind some famous inner disciples. That was likely how they survived for so long without issues, by hiding under the wings of a powerful disciple. Without doubt, most of them would have turned into servants for those disciples in exchange for their protection. Even Long Feng could be considered to be doing the same thing, only that he was Xiao Hu and Cheng Zhi's younger brother instead of a servant. Each of them saw him as well and had different reactions.

Qiu Yushi, who was standing alone glanced at Long Feng and slightly shook his head disappointedly after seeing him standing behind Cheng Zhi. He naturally assumed the exact same thing Long Feng had, though the latter could care less. The others completely ignored him, each keeping to themselves. Long Feng wouldn't have had it any better. As time passed, more and more disciples arrived and the hall was doing drowned in noise.

No one approached Cheng Zhi's direction though, and most disciples veered away from his side. Very few people in the hall were avoided similarly. All of a sudden, there was an uproar towards the entrance as several youths strolled in.

"Look! The top twenty disciples are here!"

"Twenty? I can only see about a dozen of them?"

"Yeah, the remaining of them should be away from the sect. Oh, there's Cheng Zhi as well… he's over there." Listening to the discussions, Long Feng realized who the new comers were. True to their fame, each of them possessed an awe inspiring presence that completely rewrote the atmosphere in the hall merely by stepping in. None of them emanated even the slightest aura, but Long Feng couldn't help but feel as though there was a weight on his chest that was stifling his breathing merely by staring at them.

There were thirteen youths in total, and four of them were extremely beautiful females. There was a single youth in the lead, and his presence came off on another level compared to the others. He walked in and stood at a corner, and everyone within several meters of him instantly changed locations.

"That's Gui Wu." Cheng Zhi lightly stated.

"He's the current head disciple. At twenty six years of age, he has completed the refinement stages and is a tiny line away from the Dao realm." Long Feng barely suppressed a shudder at those words as he sneaked another glance at the youth called Gui Wu. How strong was he after three refinement stages and returning to the peak deity realm? Long Feng couldn't imagine.

"Of course, that tiny line is an uncrossable ravine to most. The Dao realm can elude him for years, even decades. Or perhaps he can make the breakthrough tomorrow. No one knows." Cheng Zhi added.

"Ah, Cheng Zhi… what a coincidence!" One of the youths exclaimed with a cold smile as he approached Cheng Zhi.

"Hua Zhen. Seventh ranked inner disciple." Cheng Zhi lightly uttered without a change in his expression, barely glancing twice at the youth. Long Feng nodded, recognizing the youth's face.

"Been a while, Cheng Zhi. Still sulking over losing the head disciple position?" Hua Zhen asked as he faced Cheng Zhi.

"I heard that you got depressed and joined the alchemy division to while away your life." Everyone focused their attention here, including the top disciples and even the indifferent head disciple. Cheng Zhi's indifferent eyes focused on Hua Zhen.

"That's right." He replied blandly. Hua Zhen chuckled mockingly.

"What a disappointment. A top inner disciple becoming such a loser… where did that awe inspiring and all powerful you go to?"

"If you utter a single more word, you will meet him once again." A glint flashed through Cheng Zhi's eyes, and his pair of soul shaking pupils sent chills down Hua Zhen's spine. Hua Zhen's confidence abruptly crumbled before that gaze and he unconsciously retreated three steps as a sense of danger filled his heart. It was only a few seconds later that he realized what had happened and was overwhelmed with embarrassment.

"You…!" He began, only to freeze as he recalled Cheng Zhi's words. If he spoke, then he would meet 'him'. Thinking of this, his words remained stuck in his throat and he didn't dare to speak. Cheng Zhi's gaze became indifferent again, showing his utter disregard for Hua Zhen. This huge embarrassment caused Hua Zhen's breathing to turn rough as he glared at Cheng Zhi. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do. But to swallow such a humiliation, in public no less? … He wasn't willing!

His gaze strayed to Long Feng and Xiao Hu who were standing a few meters behind Cheng Zhi. Xiao Hu had a confused expression as he struggled to comprehend everything that was going on. As for Long Feng, his pupils were flickering as he stared blankly at Cheng Zhi and Hua Zhen. A second earlier, Cheng Zhi suddenly emanated an aura that left the entire hall breathless. Even the top disciples suddenly seemed less awesome, and only Gui Wu's aura was still unshaken.

After Hua Zhen had stumbled backwards embarrassingly, that aura vanished as suddenly as it appeared, like it never existed. For that second, Cheng Zhi wasn't the gentle elder brother he was used to. He was an entirely different person… someone who could compare to the head disciple. Long Feng was so engrossed in his thoughts that he failed to control his gaze, continuously staring in shock at Hua Zhen. The next thing he knew, Hua Zhen focused his cold eyes on him and snapped.

"What are you staring at, weakling?"