On the high platform, the second-tier disciples left behind by the great families were buzzing, some of their faces etched with anxiety.

The most anxious were the disciples of the Huyanhua family; one of their elders was already dead, and their current elder had been forced to use the family's secret Blood Man technique, which had a strict time limit. Once that limit expired, even the second-tier disciples could handle this elder.

As time slowly crawled by, their anxiety only intensified.

Also anxious was Long Cheng. He was worried about Zhang Yang.

He desperately wanted to follow and see what was happening, but his cultivation was far too low. In the secular world, he was a wealthy boss, a celebrity, but here, he was just an ordinary first-layer inner-strength disciple.

If even the second-tier disciples couldn't go, there was no way he could.

The fact that he even had a seat here was entirely thanks to Zhang Yang.

The servants of the Long family were also discussing the events, speculating on the outcome.

Today was undoubtedly a feast for them—a day filled with continuous high-level confrontations. Not only had second-tier disciples clashed, but even those at the third and fourth layers had entered the fray.

For them, the third and fourth layers were towering figures of reverence; they rarely witnessed such individuals making a move.

These masters certainly lived up to expectations and did not disappoint. Merely looking at the severely mangled Martial Arts Stage confirmed their immense power; the stage was usually incredibly tough, something they couldn't even damage without specialized tools.

With a sudden, earth-shaking boom, the sound of Zhang Yang breaking through resonated, causing many necks to crane once more.

Not long after, figures finally appeared in the distance. However, only a few people came, just two, and they were carrying something.

As the pair approached, the faces of all the Huyanhua family disciples instantly changed.

Their elder had returned early, along with their clan elder. The difference was that the elder had left standing up; now, he was being carried back horizontally.

The elder's entire body was dark. Just by looking at him, everyone understood that this elder was finished.

The two Huyanhua family elders wasted no words. They summoned all their disciples and immediately departed. The Huyanhua family was undeniably the biggest loser of the Long family Grand Competition today; not only had they lost an elder at the late third layer, but their clan elder had also perished here.

This incident dealt a crushing blow to the Huyanhua family.

Once everyone from the Huyanhua family had withdrawn, the two elders were afraid Zhang Yang might unleash his fury upon them. They needed to leave quickly while Zhang Yang was occupied with his breakthrough and couldn't spare the attention to pursue them.

Aside from their personal weapons, they didn't even stop to retrieve their belongings. The precious materials they had painstakingly gathered in the mountains upon arrival were left behind. Everything they had done up to this point had become utterly pointless.

After the Huyanhua family retreated, other figures slowly reappeared in the distance. The elders of the various families had finally returned.

Except for the Li family elder, who looked somewhat pale, everyone else seemed unharmed. This brought relief to their disciples, who had been holding their breath; as long as their own elders were safe, that was what mattered.

All the elders, including those from the Long family, immediately gathered their people and left.

The Grand Competition was over—or perhaps it had ended much earlier. Staying here served no further purpose.

Everyone followed their respective elders back. Only upon returning did they grasp the full scope of what had occurred, their faces registering shock and terror.

A late third-layer expert had brutally slain the Huyanhua family elder at the mid-fourth layer, and then, on the battlefield, he had broken through to become a top-tier expert at the peak of the fourth layer.

A fourth-layer expert at the age of twenty—this was absolutely unprecedented.

While astonished, many felt a bitter pang in their hearts. Many of them were older than Zhang Yang and usually carried a degree of pride, but measured against Zhang Yang's achievements, they amounted to nothing.

The Long family did have some members younger than Zhang Yang, but their strength lagged far behind; they hadn't even reached the third layer, let alone the fourth, which currently seemed a distant, unthinkable realm.

The astute observers already understood that the established structure of the Four Great Families was about to shift.

The Zhang family, long obscure and sparsely populated, was poised for a resurgence; the birth of a single genius was enough to alter the landscape significantly.

The crowd on the high platform had entirely dispersed. Zhang Yang, having returned mounted on his white horse, glanced back one last time.

Zhang Pinglu had left; he hadn't accompanied him. Zhang Pinglu was accustomed to solitude; unless he chose to follow someone, no one was likely to stay by his side. He only visited the Zhang family occasionally.

His return this time was coincidental, only then learning about Zhang Yang. He had been extremely anxious about the lack of heirs for the Zhang family, even contemplating suggesting Zhang Yuan'an have more children.

Zhang Yang’s emergence was a godsend. Although Zhang Yang was from the maternal line, he still carried the Zhang family blood.

This fact had been verified when Zhang Yang was unconscious; the Zhang family possessed numerous methods to confirm lineage, being the foremost medical lineage.

This led to Zhang Pinglu coming out to observe and track Zhang Yang.

Fortunately, Zhang Pinglu had followed. Otherwise, the Zhang family's most outstanding young disciple might have been bullied at the Long family. However, Zhang Pinglu had already revealed himself, exerting his deterrent influence. If the Long family dared to cross Zhang Yang again, Zhang Pinglu wouldn't hesitate to bring mutual destruction upon them, utterly annihilating the Long family.

The fury of someone at the Great Perfection of the fourth layer was something no one could afford to incur. Old Ghost Long, if he hadn't lost his mind, surely wouldn't risk it.

That was why Zhang Pinglu left, departing with peace of mind. As long as the Long family Ancestor didn't intervene, the general populace here couldn't hope to defeat Zhang Yang.

Today, Zhang Yang had learned a tremendous amount of information from Zhang Pinglu, which caused him to sigh deeply.

Before, he only focused on reaching the fourth layer of inner strength quickly, naive enough to think that once there, he could conquer the world. Now, he understood how childish that view had been.

Leaving aside the fifth-layer masters and spirit beasts, even experts at the Great Perfection of the fourth layer could easily dispatch ordinary fourth-layer experts like them.

The Li family elder was the clearest example, repelled by Zhang Pinglu's single move without daring to utter a complaint.

Glancing at the Martial Arts Stage he had destroyed, Zhang Yang quieted his mind. Mounting Zhui Feng, he directed the horse straight back to his residence.

In reality, the place wasn't entirely empty; some Long family servants remained, waiting to clean the area, but none dared approach Zhang Yang.

They didn't know what happened afterward, but they had personally witnessed Zhang Yang displaying his immense might: repelling Hua Tian of the Hua family with one strike, slaying Huyanhua Peng, and fighting the Huyanhua family elder.

In their eyes, Zhang Yang was equivalent to a top-tier fourth-layer expert—a being they usually couldn't even hope to look up to. How could they dare approach casually?

"Clip-clop!"

Zhui Feng walked steadily forward, a hint of satisfaction on its face.

Before Zhang Pinglu left, he had slipped the horse some kind of delicious pill. Regardless of what it was, Zhui Feng found it exquisite. Not only were its previous injuries completely healed, but its entire body felt incredibly comfortable.

Lightning and Shadow, the two youngsters, had also received rewards and were currently sleeping soundly.

If it hadn't been necessary to carry Zhang Yang back, Zhui Feng likely would have collapsed right there to sleep. Now, its greatest desire was to lie down and rest well, digesting the pill it had just consumed.

Zhui Feng walked slowly, and Zhang Yang soon reached the gate of his courtyard villa.

"Zhang Yang, you're back!"

Two figures were waiting at the entrance. Seeing Zhang Yang arrive, they immediately hurried forward.

Standing there were naturally Long Feng and Long Cheng. Long Cheng was worried about Zhang Yang, while Long Feng had been dispatched by the family.

The Long family understood that their previous actions had been dishonorable. But since it was done, regret was useless; now they could only try to make amends. Fortunately, the Long family still had Long Feng, the person closest to Zhang Yang.

"Why are you both standing out here? Let's talk inside!"

Zhang Yang smiled slightly, dismounted. Zhui Feng snorted softly a few times, paid no mind to Long Feng or Long Cheng, and immediately walked inside on its own, finding his spot with the comfortable quilt and collapsing there to sleep.

"Zhang Yang, I, I am here representing the family to apologize to you!"

Long Feng’s face was still somewhat pale, and his expression was more complex. Everything his family had done today made him feel utterly disgraced, but this was his home, and he was helpless.

As he spoke, Long Feng attempted to bow, but his body wouldn't bend; Zhang Yang's hand was already resting on his shoulder.

"Go back and tell the Long Clan Leader: if the Long family sends you to apologize, I will never forgive you!"

Zhang Yang said softly, a faint smile on his face.

Long Feng raised his head in shock, his eyes wide. His expression grew even more intricate, mixed with a bit of gratitude and a touch of worry.

He understood Zhang Yang’s implication.

Zhang Yang was distinguishing between him and the Long family; he was him, and the Long family was the Long family. He would not accept an apology delivered by Long Feng; if the Long family was sincere, they needed to send someone else.

He felt gratitude because Zhang Yang wasn't holding the family's actions against him personally. Additionally, he worried for the Long family, fearing they wouldn't mend relations with Zhang Yang, thus leaving Long Feng caught awkwardly in the middle.

"Let's go inside, have a couple of drinks. Today is a great occasion as we both achieved breakthroughs!"

Zhang Yang laughed again and patted him on the shoulder. The three walked inside together.

The Monkey Wine sent by Elder Li Feng was still there. Zhang Yang took out a jar, opened it, laid out some small snacks, and they began to drink.

Speaking of wine, the Monkey Wine was the best they had ever tasted. After drinking it, all other wines tasted bland.

After a few cups, the knot in Long Feng's heart began to loosen slightly.

This incident was the Long family's fault, not his. The Long family deserved to offer some compensation. He had already resolved to help Zhang Yang secure as many benefits as he could within reason.

The Long family would definitely come to apologize; Long Haotian had made this clear earlier, which was why he had been sent over first.

The Long family Ancestor was awaiting Zhang Pinglu's Longevity Pills. Without those pills, it wouldn't take twenty years for the Ancestor's lifespan to expire.

And to obtain those Longevity Pills, they needed Zhang Yang's forgiveness—this was what Zhang Pinglu had stated earlier.

With this prerequisite in place, how could the Long family afford to take it lightly? Long Gao and Long Jiang had already accepted their punishment and were undergoing a month of hardship under Long Yi’s supervision. Long Haotian hadn't yet gone into solitary contemplation because he still had matters to resolve; once those were settled, he too would face the same penance. (To be continued)RQ