Tang Dynasty Demon Suppression Division

"Pfft!"

Ignoring his obstruction, the eagle claw gripped Li Yuan's shoulder tightly, its sharp claws instantly piercing through his protective aura and embedding themselves deep into his flesh and bone.

A sharp pain struck, and Li Yuan's vision went black. He couldn't help but smile bitterly to himself; the difference in their cultivation levels was simply too great, like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

The Eagle Claw struck successfully and did not linger. It instantly withdrew, taking Li Yuan and the Silver Wolf strategist, who was clinging tightly to his legs, out of the formation.

"cracking!"

The Blue-Eyed Eagle King let out a triumphant shriek, its wings flapping sharply, instantly soaring into the sky.

"Put him down!"

Like a madman, Chen Shuo disregarded his own safety, forcefully activated his movement technique, and his speed increased dramatically. He lunged forward and slashed at the Green-Eyed Eagle King with his sword.

"Get out of here!"

The Blue-Eyed Eagle King impatiently flapped its wings, creating a gust of wind, and slammed into Chen Shuo.

"Bang!"

Chen Shuo spat out blood and flew backward, crashing heavily onto the ramparts of the gate.

In that brief delay, the Azure-Eyed Eagle King vanished completely, leaving only a fleeting afterimage.

"You bastard!"

Chen Shuo roared to the sky, but could only watch helplessly, his eyes bloodshot with hatred, and he spat out another mouthful of blood with a "poof".

Seeing that the Azure-Eyed Eagle King had succeeded, the monsters attacking the city immediately scattered. Xu Sheng hurriedly helped Chen Shuo up, and the two looked at each other, their faces turning ashen.

Losing Li Yuan would be impossible for the two of them to explain, but at this moment, they couldn't abandon Tiger Wolf Gorge, so they could only wait for reinforcements to arrive.

Li Yuan was held tightly by the Azure-Eyed Eagle King, unable to move. Its speed was astonishing, and each flap of its wings produced a deep sonic boom.

The excruciating pain blurred his consciousness, and all he could hear was the howling wind. The silver wolf beneath him had injected some kind of toxin into his body, making him weak all over and unable to muster any strength.

I don't know how long we flew, but the landscape below gradually changed from barren desert to rolling, majestic mountains.

Finally, the Blue-Eyed Eagle King swooped down, piercing through layers of mist, and landed in a deep valley.

Deep in the valley, beneath the cliff, lies a huge cave. A little demon guards the entrance, and upon seeing the Green-Eyed Eagle King, it immediately greets him with a beaming smile.

The Azure-Eyed Eagle King slammed the two men to the ground with a thud, his expression arrogant. "Lock these two in the dungeon and await His Majesty's judgment."

At this moment, a silver light flew out from Zhao Lingyun's body and flew into the cave, indicating that the Silver Wolf strategist had already left.

The little demons immediately dragged Li Yuan and the other person into the cave.

The cave passage twists and turns downwards, the light is dim, and torches are stuck in the stone walls. After turning more than a dozen forks in the path, a crude dungeon appears before you.

Without any hesitation, the little demon threw the two of them into the cage like trash. The metal bars clattered down, runes lit up, and two jet-black chains extended from the bars, instantly wrapping around the wrists and ankles of the two people, the ends of the chains disappearing into the stone wall.

Li Yuan was horrified to discover that the chains were actually absorbing the remaining true energy in his body.

"Look closely, this was captured personally by the Eagle King. If anything goes wrong, you'll be held accountable!"

The little demon gave instructions to the two bear demons guarding the cave entrance, and the two demons hurriedly bowed and agreed.

"Since it's the Eagle King's order, I guarantee I'll keep a close eye on them and there will be no mishaps!"

The two bear demons let out a low growl and stood guard outside the cage, one on the left and one on the right, their large, copper-bell-sized eyes fixed on Li Yuan and his companion.

Li Yuan groaned and slammed into the cold stone wall, reopening the wound on his shoulder and staining his clothes with blood. He struggled to sit up, leaning against the wall, and quickly checked himself over.

His injuries were severe, and the flow of his internal energy was sluggish. Enduring the excruciating pain, Li Yuan tried to communicate with the bronze palace in his sea of ​​consciousness. The palace remained suspended, its radiance flowing. He felt slightly reassured; as long as the bronze palace was still responsive, there was still a glimmer of hope.

At this moment, Zhao Lingyun, who was standing next to him, stirred twice, opened his eyes, and looked at Li Yuan with guilt.

"Brother Chen, I'm so sorry... It was my carelessness that led me astray from that wolf demon, and I've dragged you into this mess..."

His voice was somewhat stiff, and his face was pale. It turned out that his consciousness had been trapped in his sea of ​​consciousness all the way, but he had remained clear-headed and had seen everything, only unable to move.

"Brother Zhao, there's no need to blame yourself too much. The demon race is cunning and hard to guard against." Li Yuan glanced at him indifferently. He didn't blame Zhao Lingyun, but their relationship wasn't exactly close.

Zhao Lingyun gave a wry smile. "Brother Chen is magnanimous, but... this time, falling into the demon's lair, I'm afraid his chances of survival are slim."

"It's a pity that I, Zhao Lingyun, who was arrogant all my life, ended up like this, and even dragged others down with me."

Zhao Lingyun leaned against the stone wall, panting, his gaze fixed on Li Yuan with a complex expression. "Looking at Brother Chen reminds me of an old friend..."

Li Yuan's heart skipped a beat. Zhao Lingyun had indeed recognized him, or perhaps he was just testing him. He remained calm and said, "Oh? I wonder which old friend Brother Zhao has come to mind?"

Zhao Lingyun leaned against the wall, looked up at the cave ceiling, and remained silent for a moment, as if recalling something. After a long while, he slowly said, "That old friend, like Brother Chen, remained calm in the face of danger and was always able to find a glimmer of hope in desperate situations."

He paused, then turned to look at Li Yuan, "We were originally competitors, but I have to admire his mind and ability. He should be a role model for us."

Their eyes met, and Li Yuan saw the guilt in his eyes. At that moment, he was finally certain that Zhao Lingyun had indeed recognized him, but had no intention of revealing his identity.

He recalled their first meeting, when Zhao Lingyun came over with a wine glass, looking so smug and arrogant. A smile appeared in his eyes.

"I have long admired Zhao Lingyun of Tian Ce Academy. Meeting him today, I can confirm his extraordinary demeanor."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Lingyun's body trembled violently. This was the first thing he said to Li Yuan when he met him at the Star-Picking Tower, except that Li Yuan had switched their identities.

"As expected..." Zhao Lingyun looked at him quietly for a while, smiled knowingly at him, and lowered his voice, "Brother Chen, you flatter me."

At this moment, in a corner of the dungeon, a pair of eyes darted around, seemingly listening to the conversation between the two.

Their eyes met, and no further words were needed. In this demon prison, one was a divine martial prodigy, and the other was a rising star of the Heavenly Strategy, yet they recognized each other again in such a strange way and reached a tacit understanding.

Li Yuan nodded to him, closed his eyes, and focused his mind into his sea of ​​consciousness. He began to try to communicate with the bronze palace. His true energy was depleted, and he exerted all his strength to barely activate the power of the palace.

A faint trace of true energy flowed out from within, and Li Yuan carefully wrapped it around the chain to prevent it from continuing to erode his body.

He dared not make too much noise, lest the demon guards discover it and it backfire.

As time passed, the power stored within his body increased, slowly repairing his injuries and expelling the toxins little by little. However, he dared not treat the wound on his shoulder, lest it be discovered.

He didn't know how much time had passed, but just when Li Yuan's injuries had mostly healed, he heard footsteps coming from inside the cave. He quickly stopped, circulated his internal energy, and pretended to be weak.

The two snake demons opened the cage and roughly dragged Li Yuan and Zhao Lingyun out.

"Go! His Majesty the Demon Emperor wants to see you!"

Demon Emperor?

There really is a demon emperor here!