“Of course. The sect has stipulated that only core disciples at level 4 of the Sky Human stage or below may participate in this Grand Competition. In other words, disciples with cultivation bases above level 4 may not participate,” Shui Yan said.

“He he! Level 4 of the Sky Human stage. That makes sense. However, the gap between a disciple with 1 Lightning Tribulation and a disciple with 4 Lightning Tribulations is still not something that can be traversed,” Chen Feng said with a chuckle.

“Not necessarily. Take Brother Chen for example. You have yet to overcome Lightning Tribulation, but can already fight against those who have overcome Lightning Tribulation. Isn’t this a good example?” Shui Yan said with a grin.

“We have many geniuses in our sect. Some peerless geniuses can overcome two Lightning Tribulations or more in a row. If these monsters come out to participate in the Grand Competition, I fear there will truly be no hope for us,” Luo Kong said with a wry smile.

Chen Feng continued chatting with them and heard from them that there were also Sky-tier medicinal pills and Sacred artefacts as part of the rewards. Hearing that, Chen Feng became secretly shocked. He didn’t even hear about the other top-grade Prized artefacts. He didn’t think that the sect would offer such valuable treasures out as rewards.

However, the specific details of the rewards were unclear. The specifics of the rewards would depend on the performance and rankings acquired during the Grand Competition.

After leaving the Core Hall, Chen Feng asked Tower, “Is the Heart of Seven Apertures really so wonderful?”

“Wonderful? He he! It can’t exactly be considered that. However, in this world, it can be considered as a decent existence. It is only useful for some low-level cultivators. The higher a cultivator’s level, the weaker that item becomes to the cultivator. If a Human Immortal refines it, heh! It is practically of no use!”

“For some cultivators, the Heart of Seven Apertures is not as valuable as one Sky-tier medicinal pill. For you, however, it will be somewhat useful. Do not forget, you have opened up the Seven Aperture acupoints. After you refine the Heart of Seven Apertures, the rate at which you can absorb and regulate worldly spiritual energy won’t just rise by 700 %. It’ll be far higher than that!”

“That is why you need to find a way to obtain the Heart of Seven Apertures. That way, you can increase your future rate of cultivation,” Tower said.

“Obtain the Heart of Seven Apertures? Easier said than done. I will need to win first place in the Grand Competition for that. If I have already cultivated up to the Sky Human stage, I might still have a chance. Right now, however, that is probably out of the question.” Chen Feng shook his head. He knew his limits. He was presently just at level 7 of the Concealed stage. There was too big of a difference between him and those with 4 Lightning Tribulations under their belts. Not to mention, after his confrontation with Chi Lianfeng earlier, Chen Feng had understood that there were many other powerful figures within Extreme Celestial Sect.

While he could utilize his Sacred artefact during the battle, other participants will also be bringing out their own Sacred artefacts. Not to mention, he was still incapable of unleashing the Demon Sealing Sword’s full power.

“A pity, there is not enough time. If you can cultivate up to level 8 of the Concealed stage, you will have a chance. Right now, though, if you want to win one of the top places within the Grand Competition, you’ll need to resort to some special means,” Tower said.

“Tower, are you planning on taking action?” said Chen Feng, who was shocked to hear that.

“He he! That’ll depend on the situation. If some other disciple obtains the Heart of Seven Apertures, you can still try to purchase it. Either that or use something else to exchange for it. At any rate, amongst the ranks of spiritual objects, the Heart of Seven Apertures is something with a price tag,” Tower said with a chuckle.

“Exchange it with something else? Although I possess a considerable number of cultivation materials, they don’t seem up to scratch if I want to exchange them with the Heart of Seven Apertures,” Chen Feng replied with a frown.

“Surely I won’t have to bring out the Demon Sealing Sword for it?” Chen Feng said with a self-deprecating smile.

“Forget it! Thinking so much about it is pointless. I should make use of this time to focus on cultivation. Maybe I can advance to the next level before the Grand Competition,” Chen Feng finally said, a smile on his face.

“That works too. Come into the Longevity Tower. I will give you special training,” Tower said with a cackle.

After returning to his mountain residence, Chen Feng informed Lu Ta about his promotion. Then, they packed their items and the things on their present mountain before moving to the core disciples’ zone.

As expected, the mountains in the core disciples’ zone were higher, more magnificent, more rugged and steep. Additionally, the spiritual energy there was also thicker and more plentiful.

After taking a breath, Lu Ta said with a pleasantly surprised voice, “The spiritual energy here is not just plentiful. I can sense something else within them.”

“This is the place where our sect’s core disciples cultivate. Naturally, the other zones cannot hope to match it. Magic experts have utilized their magic powers to set up high-grade spiritual energy gathering arrays. The arrays are placed deep into the world, linking up with various essences and spiritual energies. If ordinary people come live here, they can live to over a hundred years despite not cultivating themselves,” Chen Feng said smilingly.

“I didn’t think I could be so lucky. If not for your brilliant aura, I am probably still in the inner disciples’ zone. After cultivating here for a while, I will probably be unwilling to go elsewhere,” Lu Ta said with a grin.

“Brother Lu, you should be close to condensing your Soulflame, right?” Chen Feng asked with a smile.

“It will not take more than half a year,” Lu Ta said confidently.

“In that case, I will congratulate you first. After condensing your Soulflame, you will be able to rise to the rank of heir disciple. Then, you can be considered a character of importance within the sect,” Chen Feng said.

“He he! Don’t joke around here. We entered Extreme Celestial Sect together, but you are already a core disciple. I can’t catch up to you no matter how hard I try,” said Lu Ta, who revealed a wry smile.

“After the Grand Competition is over, we should go to Pot Mountain. It is time to bring the Pot Brothers here. It will be able to increase their rate of cultivation,” Chen Feng said.

After having settled his affairs, Chen Feng entered the Longevity Tower and began undergoing Tower’s special training.

“Kid, careful now.” After Tower said that, Chen Feng felt a formidable pressure acting on every part of his body, forcing his knees to bend as a result. He nearly fell to the ground.

“Ha ha ha! 100 times the force of gravity! Enjoy!” Tower cackled.

“You-” Chen Feng gritted his teeth, labouring to open his mouth.

“There is still a great deal of buried potential within you. Additionally, there are also many energy reserves stored within you that you have yet to refine. Now, I will help you. Maybe you can open up a few of your Eight Trigram acupoints before the Grand Competition,” Tower said with a chuckle.

“Hah!” Chen Feng slammed both his fists together, causing the robes he wore to flutter noisily. His eyes flared brightly and a maddening will to fight radiated out from his body.

As the date of the Grand Competition drew closer, the entire Extreme Celestial Mountain grew livelier. Countless cultivators rushed back to the sect in order to participate in this Grand Competition.

“This time, not only did the travelling disciples return. Even those who prefer entering cultivation retreat have emerged!”

“Heh! It is all for the sake of this Grand Competition’s rewards!”

“Yes. The rewards for this time’s Grand Competition are simply too tempting. After hearing about it, my saliva nearly flowed out!”

“You? Forget it! You probably won’t even make it pass the preliminaries!”

“I wonder who will obtain that Heart of Seven Apertures?”

“If you ask me, it will definitely be an expert from Extreme Celestial Hall.”

“Not necessarily. There are more experts in the Sky Human Hall, no?”

Everywhere in Extreme Celestial Mountain, disciples discussed the competition. Although most of them knew that there was no hope for them, their love for gossiping burned.

…

Somewhere within the core disciples’ zone was a massive and majestic mountain enveloped by thick spiritual energy. The peak of the mountain was covered with countless incomparably sharp sword light. Due to the sword light, the peak of the mountain had become utterly bare. The surface of the hard ground was filled with criss-crossing sword marks.

No questions were needed to know that there was a formidable sword cultivator living there.

Sou!

A beam of light came from a faraway place and pierced the dense array of sword light there. Finally, the beam of light landed on the hand of a cultivator in white who was seated at the topmost position of the mountain.

The beam of light was a small flying sword.

Gripping the flying sword, the cultivator could clearly sense the thoughts left within the flying sword.

“The Heart of Seven Apertures? Tsk, tsk. That is a good item. Looks like I will have to make an exception for this time’s Grand Competition and participate.” The cultivator in white revealed a smile.

…

In another place within the core disciples’ zone…

Within a lush mountain was a courtyard built entirely using precious stones and materials. The spiritual energy within the courtyard was so plentiful, it was practically oppressive. A closer look revealed that the pavilions, plant stands, seats and even the trails there were built using spirit stones.

“Senior Brother Ming, will you be participating in this time’s Grand Competition? The rewards for this time’s Grand Competition are very generous!”

There were several people sitting inside the courtyard. One of them was displaying an ingratiating expression as he faced a cultivator in blue attire. The cultivator in blue was seated on a chair carved entirely from a spirit stone.

“Naturally, I must participate. However, I am not participating for those rewards. I hear that many fellows have jumped out for this time’s Grand Competition. I’ll make use of this opportunity to meet up with them. At the same time, I can check and see if there are any new guys,” Senior Brother Ming, the one in blue attire, said with a smile.

This Senior Brother Ming possessed a tall and lean figure and a handsome face. His eyes shone with alertness and his skin was so white it would cause even women to feel envious. That was especially true of his white and slender fingers. It simply did not look like the fingers of a cultivator.

Senior Brother Ming was an absurdly handsome young cultivator.

“Naturally! Senior Brother Ming’s wealth is comparable to that of an empire and you possess various secret treasures. Why would you care about those things?”

“However, that Heart of Seven Apertures is quite good. Since Senior Brother Ming has decided to participate, that reward will surely be yours!”

Several of the cultivators seated beside him spoke up to compliment him.

Seven Kills Club, Heavenly Origin Club, Astral Thunder Club, Fairbright Club and the other groups grew livelier as well. The various experts from the clubs gathered together with their respective Club Leaders as they discussed the upcoming Grand Competition.

Only the top four groups like Extreme Celestial Hall did not make their move. It seemed as though this time’s Grand Competition was insufficient to move them.

However, that was only on the surface. Secretly, the four groups had issued the orders to ensure that the rewards end up with their respective groups.

At any rate, the rewards this time were very generous. Just obtaining one was enough to increase a cultivator’s cultivation base to the next level. Every one of the groups wanted to increase their strength. Thus, this Grand Competition was an opportunity. None was willing to let the rewards slip away from them.

Chen Feng was still training himself within the Longevity Tower. By now, he had unleashed his domain power. Although it was still very vague, his domain had indeed taken shape.

Although Chen Feng had yet to fully open his Eight Trigram acupoints, Chen Feng could already sense them all. The eight acupoints were already faintly discernible, seemingly on the verge of opening up at any moment. After that, Chen Feng’s domain will become even more condensed.