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Chapter 93: Signs of Disruption

The Cat Daughter Girl turned her head, but her gaze didn’t land on Ling Feng, the one who asked the question. Instead, it swept past Someone Priestess and she shook her head slightly.

“This matter is complex; you can indeed understand it as a type of injury. In fact, for certain reasons, I cannot exert my full power in the outside world. The stronger the force used, the more likely it is to trigger a terrifying backlash.”

“So unless absolutely necessary, I’ll try to avoid engaging directly. Although you don’t need to protect me, it’s better not to include me in your main combat strength.”

“Terrifying backlash? What does that mean…?”

Curious Miss Bai’er wanted to press further, but Ling Feng raised her hand to stop her.

If the other party was willing to explain, they would have already done so, so forcing the issue would only make things uncomfortable for both sides.

“Understood. Then, Miss Xiao Kong, please take us to see Saint Peach Blossom next.”

“Uh-huh, you’re a smart person… Follow me.”

Xiao Kong’s spatial teleportation had evidently crossed thousands of meters over mountain paths and Peach Blossom Peak, bringing everyone directly to just above the sea of clouds near the peak.

Though the altitude here was approaching ten thousand meters, it didn’t seem particularly cold. Compared to the chilling, biting air deliberately created on the mountain path, this place could almost be described as warm and spring-like, with a pleasant climate well-suited for living beings.

Clearly, this also violated the usual climatic rules of winter in high mountains; perhaps it was the result of an enchantment covering this peak.

Even here, Peach Blossoms were still everywhere, and since they had reached near the peak, with no further mountain paths to go up, the peach trees spread out, forming a beautiful scene reminiscent of a peach forest.

As they walked, Xiao Kong in the lead suddenly paused, frowning as she gazed towards a certain direction, seemingly murmuring to herself.

“Have we already missed it? But how could the defenses here have become so weak? Where have the Peach Blossom Guards gone…?”

“What’s wrong?”

Hearing her voice, Bai’er, who walked beside her, instinctively placed her hand on the hilt of her sword. But Xiao Kong just shook her head and suddenly started running!

“Keep up, this way!”

Everyone hurried to quicken their pace and follow her, bypassing several lush peach groves, and the surroundings began to change.

There were obvious signs of invasion.

Many branches of peach trees had been snapped and fallen to the ground, delicate flowers trampled mercilessly, becoming broken and dirty. Some smaller peach wood had even been completely knocked down or twisted open, resulting in a scene of devastation and misery.

Moreover, for some reason, the land here was churned up as if it had been plowed, prompting the naive Little Mole to involuntarily exclaim softly.

“My goodness…”

As they went further, the evidence of destruction in the peach grove became increasingly obvious, gradually evolving from sheer brute force into cuts and scorches left by weapons during battle.

Eventually, Xiao Kong’s footsteps stopped by a few particularly delicate but already broken and fallen peach trees.

These trees exuded a spirit distinct from ordinary trees, but it was now quite weak.

“They’re the Peach Blossom Demons, or rather the Peach Blossom Guards. In the battle against Taotie years ago, the Peach Blossom Demons under the Saint also participated. This is the form revealed after they were severely wounded or died.”

Seeing Murong Yun solemnly bent down to examine the situation, Xiao Kong nodded as well, crouching down to place her hand on one of the charred branches of the peach tree. A slight glow flickered, seemingly infusing some sort of special energy.

Soon, the peach tree was enveloped in light, gradually transforming into a lightly clothed pink-haired girl.

“Cough cough… W-who is it?”

“It’s me.”

The Peach Blossom Demon, who had returned to human form with Xiao Kong’s help, coughed continuously, instinctively laying her head on Xiao Kong’s thigh, her weak beautiful eyes looking up at Someone Priestess. But she immediately jumped up like she had encountered some horror!

“Void Palace?! How come you are here? Could it be that the Saint…?”

Xiao Kong shook her head.

“Peach Mu hasn’t run into any trouble, at least not for now. I have come down the mountain for another reason, and you needn’t worry about that. Tell me exactly what happened; why are there only a few of you guarding here, and where have the other Peach Blossom Guards gone?”

“Another reason? B-but…”

The pink-haired girl, seemingly belonging to the Peach Blossom Guards, sat on the ground in astonishment, her gaze subtly shifting toward the group behind Xiao Kong, appearing hesitant.

Understanding her hesitation, Someone Priestess said nonchalantly.

“They’re all on our side; don’t you trust me?”

“Uh… Since you’ve said so, Void Palace… fine.”

The Peach Blossom Demon turned to look at the other companions who had also reverted to their original forms, her expression gradually turning grave.

“It was an attack. We were jointly attacked by humans and demons. The enemy appeared very suddenly, avoiding the outer sentries and peach blossom formations to directly show up inside. Plus, during this time, the main force of the Peach Blossom Guards was dispatched by the Saint, leaving us outnumbered…”

“Dispatched?”

Xiao Kong frowned.

“At a crucial time like this, where did Peach Mu send the Peach Blossom Guards? Is there a task more important than guarding Peach Blossom Peak?”

“Void Palace, I heard… that there’s been another issue inside.”

Hearing the implication in the Peach Blossom Guard girl’s tone, Xiao Kong quickly realized what it meant.

“The Chaotic Secret Realm?”

“Probably… yes.”

After a moment of silence, Someone Priestess nodded slightly.

“I understand now. How many enemies attacked you?”

“At least hundreds, and among them are certainly capable fighters. Based on the way they commanded the demons to fight, my sisters suspect they are probably disciples of the Demon-Suppressing Sect. They have breached our inner defense line and are heading straight for the Saint.”

“…Mm, don’t worry; just rest well.”

Nodding again, Xiao Kong stood up, and Bai’er along with Murong Yun also understood, stepping forward to help the weak Peach Blossom Demon leave, while they also checked and treated the other severely injured Peach Blossom Guards who had turned back to their original forms.

While they took a moment, Vilyric and Ling Feng had already reached Someone Priestess’s side. In the latter’s thoughtful expression, she spoke up.

“It seems exactly as we envisioned.”

“Yeah, I didn’t expect the Chaotic Secret Realm to have issues as well. It’s been quite a troublesome season lately; perhaps that’s why they seized this opportunity… but I don’t quite understand how they suddenly appeared inside the peach grove. The spatial teleportation blocking outsiders should have been set up already on Peach Blossom Peak.”

Soon, Ling Feng provided an answer.

“Perhaps they dug their way in.”

“What?”

The gray-haired girl pointed to the ground beneath them, pondering.

“On the way here, we saw several places where the soil had been dug out with big holes, and peach trees uprooted. But theoretically, they wouldn’t have a reason to do that intentionally.”

“They likely used the burrowing abilities of earth-dwelling demons to excavate passages from below, gradually advancing while avoiding the chilling obstacles on the mountain path, taking everyone by surprise and ultimately appearing in the top peach grove to achieve this ambush.”

“Miao Miao was most likely being chased for discovering their movements and had to flee to the mountain path for refuge.”

She exchanged glances with Vilyric, and they nodded in tacit understanding.

“Now, it seems pretty clear that the Demon-Suppressing Sect specifically targeted the Ground Mouse Gang to facilitate this.”

“Yeah, that aligns perfectly with what Elder Tian Er conveyed.”

Xiao Kong, being quite clever, immediately caught on after hearing the two girls, her expression turning astonished.

“There’s actually such a straightforward method of smuggling? But it makes a certain sense… Mouse Demons, huh…”

Seemingly realizing something, this mysterious girl didn’t say more, simply turning her gaze back toward the depths of the peach grove.

“Let’s move quickly; Peach Mu has probably already encountered the enemy.”