Chapter 46: Stunning the Entire Hall, the Stingy Elder!

"Sss… Who's so powerful that they can even slay a royal Asura?"

"Look, there's a faint dark‑red hue on that bone spur; it truly was taken from the royal Asura's body, indicating the Asura's life thread. When the bone spur falls off, it either becomes a great Asura or dies."

"But where is the one who killed the royal Asura? Is it Senior Sister Long Xuan? She truly is terrifying; no wonder she has held first place on the Mountain River Ranking for three consecutive terms!"

A few disciples heading toward the hall's exit heard the three Elders gasp in shock, halted their steps, and turned back to stare at the Asura bone spur on the long table.

Immediately, they looked at Long Xuan with eyes full of awe and admiration.

As for Chen Zheng behind her, the few simply ignored him.

With such a handsome appearance, one would immediately think he is Long Xuan's consort.

But they soon realized they were wrong.

The three Elders simultaneously glanced at Chen Zheng, scanning him back and forth.

The long‑bearded Elder, eyes scrutinizing, asked Chen Zheng: "What is your name, how long have you been initiated, and how did you kill the royal Asura? Did you use a mid‑grade spirit tool or a high‑grade spirit tool?"

Chen Zheng remained composed, glanced at the three Elders, and said calmly, "My name is Chen Zheng, I've been initiated for a little over six days. As for killing the Asura, I seized the moment when it was unprepared, struck its vital weak point with two fingers, and it died."

As he spoke, he extended two fingers and made a motion as if poking an eye.

"What did you say?"

"You killed a royal Asura just by poking it with two fingers?"

Hearing Chen Zheng's reply, the three Elders' eyes showed disbelief and suspicion.

Long Xuan also furrowed her delicate brows.

She had originally assumed Chen Zheng could slay an Asura only by using a mid‑ or high‑grade spirit tool, and was surprised by his words.

The few disciples on the threshold rolled their eyes at Chen Zheng.

"What a joke!"

"The Asura's power is so great; are its eyes really that easy to poke?"

"Even if we take a generous view, even if you luckily hit the eyes, at most you'd blind the Asura; how could that cause its death?"

"Moreover, a hurt Asura erupts in rage, its ferocity exploding, and a single punch could kill you outright."

"How could you, Chen Zheng, possibly withstand that?"

"Especially since you've only been initiated for six days."

"Six days!"

"The few of us have been initiated for over ten years, and only with a spirit tool have we barely managed to slay a few Sky‑Soaring Yakshas, earning the qualification for the inner‑sect assessment."

"And you, after six days, can slay an Asura?"

"A royal Asura, no less."

"That's utterly absurd!"

"So, is killing an Asura really that hard?" Seeing the crowd's disbelief, Chen Zheng's eyes showed a hint of impatience.

"I merely killed a single Asura; why make such a fuss?"

As soon as he said that, the three Elders fell silent again.

"Hmph, attention‑seeking clowns!"

The few disciples on the threshold couldn't help but shake their heads, constantly scheming about Chen Zheng in their minds.

Chen Zheng's breezy, nonchalant demeanor while speaking was utterly pretentious.

If not for the three Elders and Long Xuan being present, they would have forced Chen Zheng to kill an Asura right now for them to try.

But at that moment, a massive surge of aura erupted like a boiling volcano suddenly erupting, causing the great hall to tremble slightly.

It also forced the few disciples who were scheming about Chen Zheng to kneel, faces down, like dogs eating excrement.

The source of that aura was naturally Chen Zheng. He was too lazy to waste words with the crowd, and let his strength speak.

"What a powerful aura."

"Judging by this aura, it should be equivalent to the strength of thirteen or fourteen Mysterious Yellow Fiery Horses. This youth truly is a Heavenly Talent not inferior to the top ten of the Mountain River Ranking!"

"Ahem, youngster, temper your aura; we believe you can slay the royal Asura."

The three Elders' gazes at Chen Zheng changed, first shocked, then burning, as if admiring a priceless treasure.

Long Xuan's eyes grew a few degrees more solemn.

"You can grant me the qualification to assess inner‑sect disciples, right?" Chen Zheng reined in his aura, stepped forward, and extended his hand to the three Elders.

One Elder smiled and nodded, "Of course. Take this jade badge, rest for three days, then go to the Sky Courtyard to enter the Heavenly Demon Battlefield for the assessment."

"Furthermore, the sect has long established a rule: if a disciple kills an Asura, it's a great merit, rewarding one Jingyuan Pill and one Pigu Pill each. Since you slew a royal Asura, I, as the elder, will grant you ten of each."

While speaking, the elder handed Chen Zheng two small vials and a jade badge.

"This novel you to"

"What a piece of trash."

Chen Zheng casually took the three items, his expression unchanged, but couldn't help muttering a curse under his breath.

The stinginess of these three Elders almost made him laugh out of anger.

The Essence Pill and Fasting Pill—one is merely a low‑grade human‑level mid‑tier, the other is an even lower human‑level grade.

Compared with the human‑level superior White Sun Pill and the human‑level supreme Nascent Soul Pill, they are not even worth calling trash.

This Elder even licked his face while speaking of the reward.

"I reward you…!"

"Forget it."

Some members of the Feathered Ascension Gate are just like that.

When I become strong enough, I'll have to drain the entire treasure stock of the Feathered Ascension Gate.

Chen Zheng shook his head, casually thanked the so‑called Elders, and then headed out of the hall on his own.

"Thank you, Senior Sister Long, for leading the way." When passing by Long Xuan's side, he gave a slight bow.

Long Xuan smiled and waved her hand: "No need for formalities, Junior Brother Chen, be careful. Our Feather Ascension Gate's inner‑gate assessment differs from the outer gate; every year tens of thousands of disciples receive assessment slots, but only a few hundred actually pass. Since you were able to slay an Asura, passing the inner‑gate test won't be hard. In the future you'll surely be listed on the Mountain River Ranking, and then we may even become rivals. I'll keep an eye on you."

"The Mountain River Ranking?"

Chen Zheng nodded, said "Until we meet again," and headed toward the hall's exit. Passing the few outer‑gate disciples who were just trying to get up, he stomped hard on their faces, crushing several of their teeth.

He then swaggered away.

As for the Mountain River Ranking Long Xuan mentioned, he knew it well: it is a sect‑organized ranking tournament open to inner‑gate disciples, and achieving a certain placement grants generous rewards.

After the competition, the list also ranks the top ten most outstanding inner‑gate disciples.

Long Xuan was the first‑place winner of the previous Mountain River Ranking.

However, Chen Zheng had no interest at all; he was about to ascend to Shen Tong, and entering the Mountain River Ranking would violate the rules and was merely bullying.

He recalled that soon the sect would issue a quest to obtain the Yin‑Yang Ten Thousand Longevity Pill.

It is a Heaven‑level pill, forged by gathering 3,681 kinds of celestial medicines into the Dao instrument Cloud‑Thunder Heavenly‑Wind Furnace, then personally refined by Headmaster Feng Baiyu.

Whoever ingests it can increase ten cycles of longevity yuan, helping one enter the Divine Tongue Secret Classic, and even low‑level cultivators will see a great boost in magical power.

Chen Zheng was very interested.

(End of chapter)