Tang Dynasty Demon Suppression Division

Deep within his sea of ​​consciousness, the serpentine runes on the gate of the bronze palace suddenly lit up.

A vast and icy will, like a deity descending from the heavens, instantly enveloped Li Yuan's entire sea of ​​consciousness.

The crimson rune that flew towards Li Yuan's brow melted away silently the moment it came into contact with that will.

Immediately afterwards, a detached and authoritative voice resounded in Li Yuan's mind: "Hmph, a mere blood pact dares to presume to bind my host?"

"In this world, no one has yet been able to form a contract with the master of the Myriad Realms Palace."

That was Li's voice.

Li Yuan was both surprised and delighted. He hadn't expected that the guardian spirit of the Myriad Realms Palace would take the initiative to intervene and easily neutralize the blood pact power of the Chen Su Demon Emperor.

He could even sense that the power of the contract that Li had taken away was now sealed in a corner of the bronze palace, completely cut off from the outside world.

However, the Demon Emperor of the Stars was completely unaware of this. Seeing the blood-red rune disappear into Li Yuan's brow, he assumed that the blood pact had been established and nodded in satisfaction.

"Very good, then our agreement is now established."

He took out a fist-sized crystal from his sleeve. It was a deep, earthy yellow color, and its surface seemed to have patterns of mountains and rivers flowing around it.

"This is the core of earth spirit, formed from the essence of the earth. If I'm not mistaken, your sword should need this."

Li Yuan's heart skipped a beat.

The nameless blade had just absorbed the essence of the Golden Vein Earth Beast and gained the power of the metal element. Before that, it had successively absorbed the power of the wood, water, and fire elements, but it was lacking the power of earth.

If it can absorb the core of earth essence, the Nameless Blade will gather the power of the five elements, and its power will surely rise to another level, and it will truly awaken.

But the question is, how could the Star Demon Emperor know so much?

Warning bells rang in Li Yuan's mind, but he remained outwardly calm, accepting the Earth Spirit Core and bowing, saying, "Thank you."

He does need this Earth Essence Core, but Yan Ji is still asleep and hasn't even fully refined the power of the Golden Vein Earth Beast. He probably won't be able to absorb any new power in the short term.

We can only consider fusing the Earth Essence Core after it has fully digested.

Seeing that the three had all signed the agreement, the Demon Emperor Chen Su achieved his goal and a satisfied look appeared on his face.

"Very good. From today onwards, I will continue to monitor the growth of the three of you, but I will not interfere with any of your decisions. Even if you die in the future, I will not come to your rescue."

"I only hope that, whichever of you three is truly destined for this calamity, you will remember the agreement we signed today and keep your promises."

Li Yuan sneered inwardly, still not believing that the Demon Emperor Chen Su's purpose was so simple.

If it's just for a vague prophecy, for an uncertain future agreement, why would he go to such lengths?

From the Star Stone at Tiger Wolf Pass to the plan to gather the three of them in this secret realm, and now to his personal appearance today to sign the agreement, every step has been meticulously planned.

What he's plotting is far more complex than it appears on the surface.

The sacred land of the demon race is probably plotting something far-reaching.

But Li Yuan did not show any doubt. Instead, he and the other two solemnly promised not to break their promise.

"Demon Emperor, please rest assured, we will definitely keep our promise."

The Demon Emperor Chen Su laughed heartily. As he laughed, his figure began to become transparent, fading away rapidly like a reflection in water, and finally disappearing completely into the air.

As he disappeared, the surrounding gloomy space receded rapidly like the tide, and sunlight shone again. Not far away, Han Kuo and the others were still sitting in the same spot resting, as if nothing had happened.

Time has passed in the blink of an eye.

The three were shocked and exchanged a glance, each seeing the same complex emotions in the other's eyes. But none of them spoke of it, tacitly burying the matter deep in their hearts.

At this moment, Lei Lie stood up, looked at the distant horizon, and a hint of joy appeared on his face: "Look, it's the academy's signal! The reinforcements are almost here!"

Everyone stood up and looked towards the exit. On the distant mountaintop, a blue signal smoke was rising slowly.

Half an hour later, the Taixu Academy's support team arrived. The leader was an elderly man with white hair. He was so moved to tears when he saw that Leng Ningshuang was safe and sound.

"It's alright, it's alright!"

Immediately afterwards, the people from the Jiangnan Road Demon Suppression Division also arrived. The leader was Liu Huang, the head of the Tanzhou branch, who looked to be in his early forties and had a kind face.

Li Yuan was taken aback, never expecting that the person in charge of the Jiangnan Road branch would personally come to meet them.

It wasn't until they reunited with the outside world that Li Yuan and the others realized that what felt like only a few days in the secret realm had actually been a full month in the outside world.

During this month, both the Demon Suppression Bureau and the Taixu Academy dispatched a large number of people to search for their whereabouts, but to no avail.

Just when everyone thought they were doomed, they walked out on their own.

After leaving the secret realm, everyone said their goodbyes. Leng Ning Shuang followed the elders of Tai Xu Academy back to the academy to report. Before leaving, she glanced at Li Yuan, as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she did not speak. She just nodded slightly and turned to leave.

Li Yuan followed Liu Huang and his group to Tanzhou to report back to the Demon Suppression Division.

The Tanzhou Demon Suppression Office is located in the south of Tanzhou City. It is a three-courtyard complex with blue bricks and gray tiles. Two stone lions stand in front of the gate, making it look quite imposing.

Liu Huang welcomed the group into the main hall and ordered tea and refreshments to be served, treating them with great courtesy.

"Lord Li is young and promising. It is truly a cause for celebration that you have returned safely this time," Liu Huang said with a smile. "Commander Ye has already sent word that you should rest in Tanzhou for a few days and there is no need to rush back to the capital."

"Thank you, Lord Liu." Li Yuan bowed in thanks, then asked, "Lord Liu, during our month-long disappearance, have any major events occurred in the court or in various regions?"

Liu Huang's smile faded slightly, and he sighed, "There have been quite a few major events. Since the war started in the Northwest, the activities of the demon race in various places have become more and more frequent."

"The situation in Jiangnan is no exception, especially in the Xuefeng Mountain area. Recently, many high-level demon cultivators have appeared, and several villages have been attacked, resulting in considerable casualties."

"We sent several groups of people to investigate, but they all returned empty-handed and lost several people."

"Xuefeng Mountain?" Li Yuan frowned slightly.

"Yes," Liu Huang nodded. "This matter is suspicious; our several attempts to encircle and annihilate them have all failed. If you gentlemen are interested, why not stay in Tanzhou for a few more days and offer your advice?"

Li Yuan and Han Kuo exchanged a glance and nodded: "Okay."

The group rested for two days in the guest rooms of the Tanzhou Town branch office. Liu Huang then sent someone to invite them, saying that he had important matters to discuss.

When Li Yuan arrived at the council hall, Ji Fanghua and Han Kuo were already there, sitting on the side seats drinking tea. Liu Huang sat in the main seat, with a map spread out in front of him, his expression solemn.

"Lord Han, Lord Li, Miss Ji, please have a seat." Liu Huang gestured for them to sit down and got straight to the point, "I just received an urgent official document from the General Headquarters. There are some things I need to explain to you."