Long before Qiao Yihong appeared before the Zhao family camp in the Northwest, Zhao Lei and Du Xugang withdrew from the crowd and headed straight for the rear of the Zhao family's encampment.

"Brother Du, be careful of Long Jiang."

Just as they were about to reach the tent where Long Jiang was staying, Zhao Lei suddenly whispered to Du Xugang.

Du Xugang stopped abruptly, wondering why Zhao Lei had said that. Zhao Lei gave a cold laugh and continued in a low voice, "No matter what, Long Jiang is a traitor to the Long family, so we can't believe everything he says. Who knows if he’s just using us to snatch the Ten Thousand Year Peach? The reason I invited Brother Du and Brother Liu to be involved in this matter was to guard against Long Jiang, but alas, Brother Liu he…"

"Brother Zhao, no need to say more. I understand the implications. Since I chose to join forces with Brother Zhao, I naturally harbor no ill intentions."

Du Xugang quickly replied. While Zhao Lei spoke of guarding against Long Jiang, he was simultaneously warning Du Xugang not to harbor any deceitful thoughts himself.

At this time, they were unaware that in front of the Zhao family camp, the enraged group of Sect Masters and Clan Leaders were being held in check by Qiao Yihong alone, preventing them from rushing towards the Long family.

"Brother Zhao, Brother Du!"

Long Jiang, hiding behind the Zhao family camp, heard the shouts from the front of the camp. He knew that the major event he had planned was succeeding. He couldn't help but step out of the tent and saw Zhao Lei and Du Xugang rushing towards him.

"Brother Long, the deed is done. It's time for you to lead us to the location of the Ten Thousand Year Peach!"

Zhao Lei and Du Xugang stopped and looked at Long Jiang.

Long Jiang laughed heartily and immediately nodded, "My great vengeance depends on both of you; how could I go back on my promise? Please, follow me."

With that, Long Jiang turned and sprinted in one direction. Zhao Lei and Du Xugang exchanged a look and followed closely behind.

The three of them left the rear of the Zhao family camp. Long Jiang led the way, but the direction they were heading was not towards the Long family plains.

"Brother Long, isn't the Long family plains the closest place to where the Ten Thousand Year Peach grows?"

Zhao Lei followed behind Long Jiang and asked in confusion. He had initially assumed Long Jiang would lead them stealthily across the Long family plains, but the current direction seemed to be towards the largest expanse of rubble mounds in the Kunlun Mountains.

"Brother Zhao, don't fret. The place where the Ten Thousand Year Peach grows is within a grove surrounded by a Mirrored Illusion Array. This grove is bordered by mountains on two sides and connects to the Long family plains on the third. The final side lies just beyond those rubble mounds ahead."

As he spoke, Long Jiang had already led Zhao Lei and Du Xugang to the front of the Kunlun Mountain rubble mounds.

Looking at the labyrinthine rubble mounds before them, Du Xugang suddenly understood. Only now did he realize why the Long family hadn't found Long Jiang—he had been hiding here all along.

"Let's go!"

Long Jiang smiled faintly and continued to lead the way. He was intimately familiar with the terrain of these rubble mounds and easily guided Zhao Lei and Du Xugang through them and into the dense forest. Even the Mirrored Illusion Array within the woods could not stop Long Jiang.

After all, he had spent so long within the Xuanyuan Long family. Since Long Jiang was one of the few within the Long family who knew about the impending appearance of the Ten Thousand Year Peach, he naturally possessed the method to break the Mirrored Illusion Array here.

However, the only difficulty was that after entering the forest, Long Jiang only knew the Ten Thousand Year Peach was deep within the woods; he did not know its exact location.

The three searched the forest for a long time but found no trace of the Ten Thousand Year Peach. Instead, they discovered many other rare celestial treasures. These treasures were brimming with spiritual energy, clearly thriving in this forest. This confirmed that the Ten Thousand Year Peach must be growing nearby; otherwise, these treasures would not be so imbued with vitality.

Under normal circumstances, finding just one or two of these rare treasures would have excited Zhao Lei and Du Xugang for days, but with the unparalleled magnificence of the Ten Thousand Year Peach ahead, they paid no heed to these lesser treasures.

The three wandered through the forest like headless flies, wasting a significant amount of time.

Meanwhile, inside the Long family palace, Zhang Yang was not at all worried that Zhao Lei and Du Xugang had infiltrated the grove where the Ten Thousand Year Peach was located. He still needed to wait for his maternal grandfather, Zhao Daofeng, to refine the necessary spiritual medicine before returning underground.

"Oh, Sect Master, many sects and noble families outside the Long family plains have not yet left. They hope to enter the Long family plains to pay their respects to the Long family and our Medical Saint Martial Sect."

At this moment, Qiao Yihong suddenly remembered the requests from Xin Tianfeng of the Xin family in the Northeast and Abbess Juechen of the South Sea Putuo Sect. He turned to Zhang Yang and asked softly.

"The Ten Thousand Year Peach has not yet ripened, and Yangyang, you have not recovered your strength, nor have I fully healed from my severe injuries. If those Sect Masters and Clan Leaders bring their people into the Long family plains and learn of this situation, it could easily lead to trouble. Therefore, before we obtain the mature, appearing Ten Thousand Year Peach, it's best not to let them in yet," said the Old Master Zhang Pinglu, who had remained silent until now, addressing Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang nodded, but he paused to consider. The sects still remaining in the Kunlun Mountains, such as the Xin family from the Northeast and the South Sea Putuo Sect, were second only to the few super noble families and sects in the cultivation world of Huaxia. If they sincerely came to pay a visit, refusing them all would be inappropriate.

"How about this: we can send someone later to inform them to remain patient. If they are unwilling to leave the Kunlun Mountains and insist on visiting the Long family and my Medical Saint Martial Sect, then they can wait just outside the Long family plains for a while."

Zhang Yang finished speaking to Long Haotian and Qiao Yihong, then looked at the Old Master and asked softly, "Old Master, is this arrangement acceptable?"

"None of that matters; Yangyang, you decide," the Old Master replied, showing no objection. In his daze, he only felt that Zhang Yang had grown up, and now his words and actions held the bearing of a Sect Master of a super sect. He was deeply gratified.

"Brother Zhang, Brother Zhang!"

Just then, Long Feng burst into the council room where Zhang Yang and the others were meeting in a flurry.

"Feng'er, why are you so reckless? What happened?"

"Ah, Father! Oh, Abbot Shi Cheng and Elder Ouyang are here too..."

Only then did Long Feng notice that not only his father was present, but also Abbot Shi Cheng of Shaolin Temple and Ouyang Jiankang, the Clan Leader of the Ouyang family.

"Long Feng, what happened?"

Zhang Yang stood up and looked at Long Feng. Ever since inviting his maternal grandfather, Zhao Daofeng, back to the Long family, Long Feng had stayed by his side, assisting him. His sudden appearance suggested something significant had occurred.

"Ah, right, it’s like this: Elder Zhang Daofeng asked me to invite all of you over. He has finished refining the spiritual medicine you required, Brother Zhang."

Long Feng had come to relay Zhao Daofeng's message, conveying the good news that the spiritual medicine Zhang Yang needed was ready.

"Really!"

Zhang Yang was instantly delighted; this was certainly good news. The medicine they needed to refine this time was the Fetus-Protecting Elixir, designed to preserve the fetal energy of the Three-Eyed Beast before the Ten Thousand Year Peach ripened. Although the method for refining the elixir was simple, and the required medicinal ingredients were not all rare treasures, the time needed to refine it was extremely long, thus consuming a great deal of the refiner's mental focus and internal energy.

Since the Old Master's injuries were not healed and Zhang Yang himself had not recovered his strength, the task of refining the Fetus-Protecting Elixir fell to Zhao Daofeng. However, unexpectedly, his uncle Zhang Yun'an also rushed back. With both of them present, the refining speed of the elixir accelerated significantly. Zhang Yang had initially expected it wouldn't be ready until evening, but he never imagined it would be successfully refined in just a few hours.

With this protective medicine, even if it couldn't guarantee the smooth delivery of the golden Three-Eyed Beast, it could at least mitigate the adverse effects it had previously suffered and allow it to be moved from underground to the Long family plains, which was far safer than its current location.

"Let's go!"

The Old Master and the others also stood up, preparing to follow Long Feng to the alchemy room where Zhao Daofeng was.

"Grand Elder!"

Long Haotian suddenly knelt down at this moment!

"What are you doing!"

Long Haotian's sudden action confused Zhang Yang and the Old Master, leaving them unsure of his intentions. Even Long Feng hurried over to help Long Haotian up.

"Long family Clan Leader Long Haotian implores the Grand Elder to allow me to accompany you to the underground this time. I, Long Haotian, must personally capture the traitor of my Long family, Long Jiang. I beg the Grand Elder to grant my request!"

Long Haotian remained unmoved, still kneeling, his head bowed, shouting loudly.

Long Feng was stunned. He had not known that the Long family traitor had colluded with the Du family of the Central Plains from the Northwest and headed toward the forest where the Ten Thousand Year Peach was located.

Zhang Yang glanced at Long Haotian and nodded.

"Very well, you shall accompany me then."

Just as Zhang Yang and the others retrieved the Fetus-Protecting Elixir and were preparing to rush to the forest where the Ten Thousand Year Peach was, Long Jiang, leading Zhao Lei and Du Xugang, had already been wandering the woods for half a day with no clue as to its location.

"Brother Long, how much longer until we find where the Ten Thousand Year Peach grows?"

Zhao Lei was growing impatient. He never trusted Long Jiang, and now, unable to locate the peach, his tone was quite sharp.

"Don't rush. How could the growth location of such a rare celestial treasure be easily found? The deeper we go into the forest, the denser the trees become; that area is more likely to house the Ten Thousand Year Peach."

Long Jiang glanced around. A sliver of coldness flashed in his eyes, but it was hidden well enough that Zhao Lei and Du Xugang didn't notice. However, the failure to find the peach also made him anxious.

"What is that!"

Du Xugang looked around restlessly and suddenly exclaimed, startling both Zhao Lei and Long Jiang.

"What's wrong?"

Long Jiang and Zhao Lei followed the direction Du Xugang pointed and saw a spiritual monkey. Its agile silhouette flashed past, running far away toward the edge of the woods.

"Follow it!"

Long Jiang was overjoyed. That spiritual monkey was clearly no ordinary spirit beast, and its appearance here, showing disdain for the surrounding celestial treasures, could only mean it was after the Ten Thousand Year Peach.

While finding the Ten Thousand Year Peach was difficult for ordinary people, it was not so hard for spirit beasts. Long Jiang was certain that following this monkey would lead them to their goal. For spirit beasts, the Ten Thousand Year Peach emitted a far stronger sensation than it did for humans, and the appearance of this monkey filled Long Jiang with immense joy.

"Hahahaha, Brother Zhao, Brother Du! That spiritual monkey is at least a Third Level Spirit Beast. If we follow the direction it fled from, we are certain to find the location of the Ten Thousand Year Peach!"

Long Jiang strode forward, moving in the opposite direction from where the monkey had fled.

"Brother Long, could there be a problem? If that spiritual monkey was after the Ten Thousand Year Peach, why did it run away?" Du Xugang asked cautiously, following behind.

"We're already here. No matter what, we have to go look!"

Zhao Lei gritted his teeth and quickened his pace, staying close to Long Jiang's side. He stated firmly; it seemed he had now staked everything on obtaining the Ten Thousand Year Peach this time.

"Exactly. Last night, several Great Perfection masters were severely injured here. Although the five major powers—the Zhou family, Hua family, Li family, Wudang, and the Demonic Gate—have left, the Shaolin and Zhang family members haven't departed at all; instead, they’ve allied. This indicates they fear someone taking the Ten Thousand Year Peach opportunistically, and isn't that precisely our chance!"

Long Jiang, running swiftly at the front, didn't forget to tell Zhao Lei and Du Xugang this.

Before long, Long Jiang, leading the group, discovered an area with incredibly strange trees. The spacing between each tree was minuscule, making the forest extremely dense at this point. Most bizarrely, within this dense thicket, there was a clearly man-made passage, with trees leaning crookedly on either side.

"Look there!"

Long Jiang pointed at the passage as if he had discovered a new continent, his excitement palpable. Zhao Lei and Du Xugang also felt a jolt throughout their bodies!

Passing through this dense wood via the narrow tunnel, the three finally arrived at the clearing where the subterranean opening was located.

Zhao Lei and Du Xugang hesitated, neither daring to jump down first, ultimately looking toward Long Jiang.

Seeing their expressions, Long Jiang understood. Without another word, he walked over and entered the sinkhole directly. Zhao Lei and Du Xugang then followed closely behind.

The passage leading down into the sinkhole was not particularly long, but the three proceeded cautiously, which significantly slowed their descent. However, the deeper they went, the more concentrated the spiritual energy and heavenly essence became, suggesting they were likely nearing the growth location of the Ten Thousand Year Peach.

"We're here!"

Long Jiang was the first to spot an opening at the end of the tunnel. He jumped down into a vast underground hall. Zhao Lei and Du Xugang followed close behind.

In this subterranean chamber resembling a great hall, though the three were not at the Great Perfection level, they were at least Fourth Level experts. After adapting to the dim light, the darkness no longer affected them.

"Look there!"

The three hadn't walked far underground when Zhao Lei suddenly raised a finger and pointed into the distance. What he indicated was the Ten Thousand Year Peach tree, growing inverted above an underground lake.

"Hahahaha, the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind! Who would have guessed that the 'oriole' who ultimately obtains this Ten Thousand Year Peach would be us!"

Seeing the Ten Thousand Year Peach, Long Jiang was overcome with excitement and burst into a triumphant, arrogant roar!