Long Haotian’s words made the Wudang Sect Master instinctively lower his head. That battle was indeed the pride of Wudang; although Wudang suffered heavy losses, they managed to repel the Demonic Sect's advance, preventing them from fully recovering for over five hundred years. It was the proudest moment in Wudang’s history. Five centuries passed, and everything began to fade again. The current Wudang remembered the glory of that time, but the deep-seated hatred for the Demonic Sect had lessened. Otherwise, they certainly wouldn't be standing together like this now. However, having Long Haotian air these matters out in public made them all deeply uncomfortable.

"Stop!"

The Demonic Sect Leader, Di Ao, suddenly shouted. His voice was booming, startling many of the younger disciples. Among the five leaders, only the Demonic Sect Leader possessed Fourth Layer strength; the others were all late Third Layer cultivators.

Unlike other sects or families, the Demonic Sect’s elders did not possess the same authority as the Sect Leader. The position of Sect Leader was for life, usually reserved only for the most outstanding disciples within the sect. Di Ao was not yet sixty, yet he already possessed the cultivation base of the mid-Fourth Layer, a level he had reached several years prior.

"Long Haotian, you only speak of events from centuries ago. Why not mention what has happened in the last hundred years? Esteemed colleagues, does anyone here not know the contributions the Demonic Sect and the Zhou family made during the War of Resistance? Back then, how many of you so-called righteous path practitioners did we save?"

Di Ao spoke coldly, and everyone present raised their heads again, fixing their gaze directly on Long Haotian.

Di Ao was right. Since a century or so ago, when resisting foreign aggression, both the Demonic Sect and the Zhou family had continuously dispatched forces to defend the nation, sending out even more personnel than the Righteous Path factions. During the War of Resistance, they mobilized large forces, fighting desperately against the martial artists allied with the invading powers, thereby saving a great number of Inner Strength cultivators. At that time, the Demonic Sect had cooperated with the major sects and families of the Righteous Path. It must be noted that at that time, the Demonic Sect was still located in the Southern Borderlands. The invading forces had not even reached the Southern Borderlands yet, yet they proactively attacked, making tremendous sacrifices.

"Sect Leader Di speaks correctly. Over the years, although the Dao lineages of the Righteous and Demonic Paths differ, on matters of great right and wrong, they have always been perfectly unified!" Li Wenruo nodded, adding his endorsement. This served as an excellent justification for their past cooperation with the Demonic Sect.

"Matters of great right and wrong? Are the fact that so many of you have arrived uninvited, blockading the gates of my Long Family estate, and coveting my Long Family's wealth while we are in peril, considered matters of great right and wrong?" Long Haotian sneered, his eyes shifting to Li Wenruo and the Zhou Family Patriarch, Zhou Wen. Wudang could perhaps be understood; the Long Family merely cooperated with them, and that cooperation was self-serving at the time—the situation demanded that the Inner Strength families and sects unite to repel the Demonic Sect’s assault, or none of them would have survived. But the Li and Hua families were different; the Long Family had shown kindness to them. Yet, here they were, brazenly forcing their way in—truly detestable.

Zhou Family Patriarch Zhou Wen raised his head and declared loudly, "Words are useless. Long Haotian, we present three demands. If you agree to them, we will let your Long Family members leave today!"

"Let our Long Family members leave? Hah! You brute Zhou Wen, just state what these three demands are, and let me hear exactly what you bandits desire!" Long Haotian laughed loudly, causing Zhou Wen’s face to flush an ashen green. Long Haotian had utterly torn off any pretense of civility. Then again, when enemies arrive at one's doorstep threatening violence and death, how could one be expected to maintain a pleasant façade? Suppressing his fury, Zhou Wen slowly spoke, "First, surrender all your Long Family treasures. Second, surrender all your Long Family secret manuals, including those passed down orally. Third, surrender all disciples under the age of thirty who possess cultivation at or above the late Second Layer of Inner Strength. Everyone else may leave and choose a place to live freely!"

As soon as Zhou Wen finished stating the three points, all the Long Family disciples standing above on the gatehouse and at the main entrance widened their eyes, glaring at him furiously. All the treasures—this meant leaving behind the Long Family’s entire fortune. Surrendering all their secret manuals? Then what would the Long Family be? Those manuals were the foundation of the Long Family's standing, much like the Zhang Family's exclusive medicinal formulas. As for the third point, that was even more impossible to agree to. Disciples under thirty with cultivation at or above the late Second Layer of Inner Strength were the hope for the future. While the current elders possessed strength, they were not at the Great Perfection stage; in a few short years, they would be in their graves. Without this replacement generation, if they all left, the Long Family would be utterly ruined. This was vicious, utterly ruthless. These demands were designed to completely annihilate the Long Family.

"Shameless!" Long Zheng, standing beside Long Haotian, clenched his teeth hard. If Long Haotian hadn't restrained him, he would have jumped down right then to challenge Zhou Wen to a duel and kill him.

"Very well, three points. It seems you all don't intend to wipe my Long Family out completely!" Long Haotian laughed again, but his laughter was laced with a profound sense of desolation and indignation. Agreeing to these three terms would leave them barely better off than total annihilation.

"Long Feng, looking at their demands, it seems they intend to keep you," Zhang Yang suddenly smiled and whispered to Long Feng beside him. He was under thirty and cultivated at the mid-Third Layer—definitely on the list of those to be kept, likely the very first one. Long Feng nodded helplessly. Right now, boundless anger surged within him, yet he found no outlet for it.

"It’s fine, let them keep us. If they dare try to keep us, we won't go!" Zhang Yang chuckled sinisterly, a cold glint flashing suddenly in his eyes. It was one thing for these people to target only the Long Family, but aiming to keep Long Feng? The fate awaiting the excellent young disciples of the Long Family if they were left behind was obvious to anyone. Even if Long Haotian agreed to these three points, Zhang Yang could never consent. Long Feng nodded again without speaking, while Zhang Yang straightened up, a smile fixed on his face, standing perfectly still.

On the five wooden platforms, the ten eyes of the five leaders were now focused on a single person. Naturally, these five were watching Zhang Yang. Their energy probing failed to detect any Great Perfection aura from him, but looking at him directly, they could sense that he was different. A Great Perfection aura could be concealed, but when standing face-to-face, it was easily discovered. It was with his eyes that Zhang Pingluo had seen the change in Zhang Yang before. Hua Feitian was correct; Zhang Yang had indeed advanced to the Great Perfection stage.

"Long Haotian, we are doing this for your own good. Agree to these three points, and you can leave the Long Family Plain and at least save your lives!" Zhou Wen spoke again. Long Haotian and the others remained standing on the gate tower, looking down at the five leaders. A faint smile still lingered at the corner of Long Haotian’s mouth: "Zhou Wen, you yourself said this is my Long Family Plain; we are the masters here. I think it is you who should be leaving, not us. Leave now, and I can graciously let you go. Wait any longer, and I can't guarantee the outcome!"

"You—very well! Today, we shall slay your entire clan, leaving not even the dogs and chickens alive!" Fury reappeared on Zhou Wen’s face. Li Wenruo, Di Ao, and the others all retreated slightly, returning to their respective positions. From the front of the five major factions, another person from each stepped forward. These were all Fourth Layer experts. The five glanced at each other and then simultaneously unleashed their Inner Strength. Five streams of powerful Inner Strength surged toward the gate tower.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!" With several loud concussions, the five streams of Inner Strength were discharged, but they struck nothing. It seemed a transparent barrier intercepted their force mid-air.

Zhang Yang looked up, a hint of surprise in his eyes. He had distinctly sensed the fluctuation of a formation just now. The Long Family Great Formation was fully activated. This Long Family Great Formation truly lived up to its reputation; it could even block the attacks of Fourth Layer experts, making it far superior to the formations of other families. This sight filled the various factions below with intense envy.

"So there is a turtle shell. But do you think relying on this shell can protect you?" Di Ao snorted coldly. Another expert from each of the major factions stepped forward; these were also Fourth Layer masters. Since the Hua Family had only sent one Fourth Layer elder, Wudang this time sent two. Ten people in total—ten Fourth Layer experts. They simultaneously directed powerful Inner Strength attacks toward the gate tower. In an instant, continuous explosive sounds filled the air, and a visible wave of energy began to manifest in the sky. Those seated within the five wooden platforms finally shifted their attention from Zhang Yang to these energy ripples. This was true Heaven and Earth energy. No wonder the Long Family Great Formation was so renowned—it could actually harness the power of Heaven and Earth energy. Such a formation was genuinely difficult to break under normal circumstances. The ten experts continued their bombardment. People from the Li and Zhou families also stepped out to watch closely, consulting their own formation masters to see if they could decipher the Long Family's Great Formation.

On the gate tower, Zhang Yang was also observing continuously. Being inside, he possessed the deepest comprehension of formations. This was an extremely complex, large-scale formation, one he was currently incapable of setting up. The person who laid this formation down must have been a true successor of the Qimen Dunjia school, and a master at that. This formation encompassed many elements, the most peculiar being its ability to utilize the formation's configuration to draw upon Heaven and Earth energy, leveraging that power to protect those within the array. Currently, the attacks they were launching were hitting only the first layer of energy shielding. This single layer successfully withstood the combined assault of ten Fourth Layer Inner Strength experts. This formation was extraordinary; it was no wonder they were confident they could trap even a Great Perfection cultivator.

"Patriarch, Great Elder, the Third Elder reports that maintaining this is highly draining. The first layer of defense likely won't last much longer!" A disciple ran quickly from the rear, arriving at the gate tower, and whispered this to Long Haotian and the Great Elder, Long Yi. This was indeed a genuine Qimen formation, but maintaining it consumed vast amounts of energy. The outer energy shield could certainly repel attacks from Fourth Layer experts, but not indefinitely. Even an energy shield summoned by a Great Perfection cultivator could not withstand relentless assaults from ten Fourth Layer experts. It was only a matter of time before the first layer shattered.