Michelle pulled away from Zhang Yang's embrace, her face flushed, and turned to the old man, Zhang Pinglu, saying, "I'll go reheat the food. Old Master, should I pour you a bowl too?"

"Heh heh," Zhang Pinglu chuckled lightly seeing Michelle’s blushing face, then waved his hand and said, "I've already eaten, no need to trouble yourself."

"That won't do. You barely ate dinner, and you've been busy outside all day. I’ll heat up some food for you," Michelle insisted, suddenly agitated.

"Alright, alright, you two young married folks, stop blocking the doorway," Zhang Pinglu finally said casually, unable to watch them any longer.

Only then did Michelle realize that both Zhang Yang and the Old Master were still standing outside the door. She quickly took a panicked step back, repeated, "I'll go heat the food," and fled with a blush.

A wave of sweetness washed over Zhang Yang. He smiled faintly and followed Old Master Zhang Pinglu into the house.

In the main hall, everyone stood up, watching Zhang Yang and Zhang Pinglu enter.

Zhang Pinglu frowned slightly upon seeing three unfamiliar faces in the house. However, the Old Master’s gaze lingered on Qiao Hu, seeming to pick up on a clue.

"Hello, Grandpa."

Yan Liangfei didn't know the Old Master, but he couldn't suppress his curiosity. He jogged over to Zhang Yang, greeted Zhang Pinglu, and then whispered a string of questions: "Master, what exactly happened? Who were those ninjas? And who are these two people you brought back?"

"Yangyang, who is this?" The Old Master paused when he saw Yan Liangfei, asking doubtfully.

"This is my newly accepted disciple, Yan Liangfei," Zhang Yang suddenly remembered he hadn't mentioned taking Yan Liangfei on to the Old Master.

"Wait, Yangyang!"

The Old Master suddenly interrupted Zhang Yang, fixing his eyes on Yan Liangfei for a close inspection.

Yan Liangfei glanced at Zhang Pinglu, unsure of what the old man was planning, and a sudden apprehension gripped him.

"Boy, how old are you?" Zhang Pinglu suddenly asked.

"I am nineteen this year."

Yan Liangfei answered truthfully.

"Good lad. So young. Keep up your cultivation, and you must break through to the third layer of Inner Strength before you turn thirty-five, bringing glory to our Medical Martial Sect."

Zhang Pinglu revealed a slight smile, nodded, and his eyes held a new warmth towards Yan Liangfei. It seemed the Old Master had also discerned Yan Liangfei’s unique cultivation physique.

"Thank you, Grandpa," Yan Liangfei was inwardly delighted by the Old Master’s words and quickly replied politely.

"Alright, don't rush. I will certainly tell everyone," Zhang Yang glanced at Yan Liangfei, signaling him to settle down. He then turned back to the others, only to find everyone now staring at him.

It turned out that after Qiao Yihong returned to the villa with Qu Meilan and Yan Liangfei, he hadn't explained what had occurred, so everyone was still in the dark.

"Oh, Yangyang, where is your uncle?" The Old Master looked around, settled onto the sofa, and then asked.

"The Long family is currently in a period of extensive rebuilding, so Uncle worried that Great-Grandpa would be too busy, so he went to help the Long family," Zhang Yang said with a wry smile.

"Mhm, that makes sense. If those two young men were here, I wouldn't have needed to make this trip myself today," Zhang Pinglu nodded after hearing Zhang Yang’s words.

Indeed, the Old Master's encounter with that hidden ninja was no accident; he had specifically gone to confront the assassin.

Once Zhang Yang understood, he recounted everything that happened that day in the rear garden of the Jingyang Four Flowers Hotel, and incidentally revealed the purpose of Jin Xianchen and Ishino Kotaro's visit to Huaxia.

Qiao Yihong knew the truth of Zhang Yang's account, so he remained silent. However, the Old Master frowned upon hearing it, displeased. "A pack of petty criminals, daring to covet the spiritual beasts and divine weapons of my Huaxia! Do they think there is no one left here?"

Yan Liangfei and Qu Meilan exchanged a glance, both showing expressions of anger.

Just then, Michelle entered carrying the food. After placing it on the coffee table, she noticed the tense atmosphere in the living room and asked confusingly, "What's wrong with everyone?"

"It's nothing, Michelle. It’s getting late, and the Old Master, Little Yan, and I have things to discuss. Don't bother with the food; go get some sleep," Zhang Yang said, looking at Michelle with doting affection. He had no intention of letting Michelle in on these matters, especially since knowing would only add to her worries without any benefit.

Michelle could tell Zhang Yang was deliberately sending her away, but she understood his intention—he didn't want her to worry. So, she obediently nodded, only making one final request: "Then eat quickly. I’m going to bed. And Old Master," she added with a sweet smile towards the Old Master, "please eat well too, and taste my cooking."

"Mhm, I understand. You go on to sleep," the Old Master nodded, growing more and more fond of the girl.

Only after Michelle left did the Old Master resume, asking, "Yangyang, how do you plan to handle this matter?"

"Currently, Ishino Kotaro, Jin Xianchen, and the others are all dead at the Jingyang Four Flowers Hotel. The next period will certainly be chaotic. The Koreans and Japanese won't be able to find any evidence. Therefore, no matter what happens next, the Sino-Foreign Medical Exchange event will definitely be postponed publicly; it will be absolutely safe at least for now. However, having suffered such a major loss, the Koreans and Japanese surely won't let this go. I estimate that the next people sent by Japan and Korea will definitely be masters."

Zhang Yang shared his thoughts after careful consideration.

Although Zhang Yang didn't explicitly state his deepest concern, the Old Master perceived it. He chuckled and waved his hand at Zhang Yang. "Don't worry. Even if those foreigners come to our Huaxia under the guise of the Sino-Foreign Medical Exchange, they certainly won't be experts above the fifth layer."

"Old Master, do you know something?" Zhang Yang's eyes lit up upon hearing this. His primary worry was if foreign experts at the fifth layer managed to infiltrate Huaxia; he truly might not be able to manage everything.

"Heh heh. Fifth-layer cultivators—their movements affect the whole structure. How would they dare risk danger by easily stepping onto our Huaxia territory again?"

"A fifth-layer expert is like the perfect guardian of a great lineage, even more so, a fifth-layer cultivator is equivalent to a nation's protector. If it weren't for the fact that Huaxia hasn't seen a new fifth-layer cultivator in a century, leading those foreigners to underestimate us, how would they have dared trample our Huaxia soil for a hundred years before the liberation?"

The Old Master paused at this point, then frowned slightly before immediately changing his tone. "It’s inconvenient for me to tell you some of these things right now, but I can guarantee you that those foreigners absolutely dare not send their fifth-layer Inner Strength experts to Huaxia."

"The appearance of that hidden ninja already surprised me. However, that ninja could only barely qualify as a fully realized expert by relying on a treasure blade like the Demon Blade Muramasa."

Zhang Yang looked at the Old Master with doubt. The Old Master's words implied that foreigners dared not deploy their fifth-layer experts to Huaxia, and even fully realized experts dared not easily set foot on Huaxia soil. There must be some other reason for this, but since the Old Master was unwilling to speak now, Zhang Yang did not press further.

As long as no Inner Strength fifth-layer experts came from abroad, Zhang Yang was absolutely confident he could handle whatever happened next. If those foreigners really dared to cause trouble in Huaxia, Zhang Yang would certainly ensure they never returned!

"Yangyang, when you cultivate to the fifth layer of Inner Strength, that will be the moment our Huaxia rises again!" Zhang Pinglu looked at Zhang Yang, his eyes full of relief and pride, reaching out to pat Zhang Yang's shoulder, declaring proudly.

After saying this, Zhang Pinglu could already envision the scene of Huaxia rising once more after Zhang Yang became a fifth-layer powerhouse! How could he not be proud of having such a genius among the younger generation of the Zhang family? If the timing wasn't inappropriate, Zhang Pinglu would certainly have poured and downed three large bowls of wine to celebrate!

Hearing the Old Master’s words, Qiao Yihong, who had been standing nearby, felt a turbulent mix of emotions. Zhang Yang was indeed so young yet capable of breaking through to the fifth layer, becoming the first fifth-layer expert in Huaxia in several hundred years—his potential was limitless. He let out a soft sigh. He himself, after cultivating diligently for over thirty years, was only at the third layer of Inner Strength... Qiao Yihong held his nephew, Qiao Hu, who had fallen asleep in his arms. Little Qiao Hu couldn't understand the conversation at all and had long since dozed off nestled against Qiao Yihong. Qiao Yihong quickly pushed the bitter thoughts from his mind; all he wanted now was for Qiao Hu to grow up healthy; he wouldn't dwell on anything else.

As for Qu Meilan and Yan Liangfei, their faces held only boundless pride. When their Master was praised, they, as disciples, naturally shared in the honor. Meanwhile, Yan Yefei and Li Juan exchanged glances, strengthening their resolve to become Zhang Yang’s disciples.

Ishino Kotaro’s subordinates, realizing their Young Master Ishino had not returned, finally lost patience and went to the Jingyang Four Flowers Hotel to demand information. Without Jin Xianchen's orders, the staff at the hotel dared not let Ishino Kotaro’s men storm in directly. Out of options, they sent someone ahead to report the situation first.

Moments later, a piercing scream suddenly erupted from the rear garden of the Jingyang Four Flowers Hotel! When everyone rushed into the garden, the scene at the pavilion in the rear garden became the lifelong nightmare of those Koreans and Japanese!