Tang Dynasty Demon Suppression Division

Li Yuan breathed a sigh of relief. Being watched by such a powerful figure was quite stressful. He looked down at the nameless sword in his hand, and Yan Ji's lazy aura emanated from the blade.

"Senior Yanji, how is it? My advancement speed isn't slow, is it?" Li Yuan asked with some pride.

After all, he was the youngest cultivator in the entire history of the Tang Dynasty to reach the Condensation Realm.

After a moment of silence, Yan Ji let out a disdainful snort: "He's just a Qi Condensation Realm cultivator. What's there to be proud of? He's far inferior to my former master."

Now Li Yuan was indignant: "Oh? How old was your former master when he reached the Qi Condensation Realm?"

"He was born with divine bloodlines and possessed the cultivation level of the Dao Realm from birth," Yan Ji said calmly.

Li Yuan: "…………"

He remained silent for a long while before finally managing to say, "Never mind, I didn't ask."

What kind of concept is it to be born with divine bloodline and enter the Dao realm at birth?

That's not just genius, that's a born god. Li Yuan wanted to ask more, but Yan Ji was obviously too lazy to pay attention to him anymore and simply fell silent, no matter how he called out to him, he would not respond.

Li Yuan shook his head helplessly, put away the nameless sword, and walked out of the cave.

Outside the cave, the sunset painted the entire Luoyan Peak a brilliant orange-red, and he realized that his seclusion had actually lasted for several days.

He composed himself, activated the Breath Concealment Technique, and suppressed his cultivation to the late stage of the Core Formation Realm.

His cultivation level at the Condensation Realm was a trump card, and he didn't want to reveal it prematurely unless absolutely necessary.

After determining the direction, Li Yuan used his movement technique and sped towards the foot of Xuefeng Mountain.

The speed of the Condensation Realm is more than twice as fast as that of the Core Formation Realm. The mountains and forests along the way rush past beneath his feet, and the wind whistles in his ears.

Along the way, he encountered some scattered lesser demons, who were probably the remnants of the Black Feather Demon King who had fled from Luoyan Peak after his death.

Li Yuan did not let them go. He needed to consolidate his newly broken-through realm, and the demon cores of these little demons were just the right thing to do to solidify his foundation.

He acted swiftly and decisively, killing all the minor demons he encountered along the way, absorbing their demonic power from their cores, and transforming it into part of his own cultivation.

Arriving at the foot of the mountain, he found the horses left there and headed towards Xuefeng Mountain. Half a day later, he finally reached the outer edge of the valley where the Crowned Demon Emperor was sealed.

Looking into the distance, one could see dark clouds rolling and lightning flashing above the valley, with golden sealing runes appearing and disappearing in the clouds.

A dense demonic aura surged from the valley, colliding violently with the sealing power, producing a deafening roar.

A chilling sense of oppression permeated the air; those with lower cultivation levels probably couldn't even get close.

Li Yuan was startled. It seemed that Lord Lou had already begun the sealing process.

He dismounted and headed towards the valley, when two guards dressed in the uniforms of the Demon Suppression Bureau suddenly appeared and blocked his way.

"Halt! This is a restricted area. Unauthorized personnel are not permitted to approach!"

"Gentlemen, I am Li Yuan, the Golden Badge Demon Slayer of the Chief Commander. I have been ordered by Lord Lou to kill demons and have come to report back."

As Li Yuan spoke, he took out the token that Lou Junbo had given him and handed it over.

After the two guards checked the token and confirmed its authenticity, they quickly clasped their hands in a salute: "So it's Lord Li. I apologize for my rudeness. Lord Lou is in the valley. Please follow me."

Li Yuan followed a guard through layers of sentry posts and arrived inside the valley.

Upon entering the valley, a sense of oppression immediately overwhelms you.

In the center of the valley, a massive sealing formation was slowly operating.

The formation was woven from countless golden rune chains, resembling a giant cage, with a terrifying black figure suppressed beneath it.

The black figure charged wildly under the seal, each impact causing the entire valley to tremble. The golden rune chains creaked under the strain, as if they were about to break at any moment.

This is the Crowned Demon Emperor.

At both ends of the sealing formation, two old men sat cross-legged, their hands forming hand seals, doing their best to maintain the stability of the formation.

The man on the left, dressed in a blue Taoist robe and with a slender face, is Lu Guangling, a leading figure in the cultivation world of Jiangnan.

The old man on the right, wearing an apricot-yellow Taoist robe and a lotus crown, is Daojing Tianshi of the Celestial Master's Mansion.

Both of them looked solemn at this moment, clearly indicating that maintaining this sealing formation was also quite taxing on them.

Outside the sealing formation, Lou Junbo led dozens of elite cultivators in a standoff with four demon kings.

These four demon kings had different forms. The one in the lead had a tiger's head and a human body, was clad in heavy armor, and held a huge mountain-splitting axe. He was very imposing.

Behind him stood a slender demon king covered in blue scales, resembling a giant python standing upright with a scarlet forked tongue flicking from its mouth.

The third demon king was as fat as a mountain, with grayish-brown skin, resembling a giant crocodile standing upright, and holding a thick bone club in his hand.

There was another demon king whose figure was elusive, like a black mist that would gather and disperse at times, making it impossible to discern its exact form.

The four demon kings each occupied a position, their demonic aura soaring to the sky, forming a standoff with the grand formation presided over by Lou Junbo.

Lou Junbo stood at the center of the formation, holding an ancient longsword in his hand, the blade shimmering with a blue light.

His face was somewhat pale, and his gaze was fixed on the four demon kings, not giving them any opportunity to take advantage.

The two sides had clearly been locked in a standoff for quite some time, and the air was thick with tension, as if a conflict could erupt at any moment.

"Li Yuan?" Lou Junbo noticed his arrival, smiled and nodded. "You're back. How's it going with the Black Feather Demon King?"

Li Yuan stepped forward, took something out of his pocket, and respectfully presented it with both hands. It was a jet-black feather, about a foot long, which was the Black Feather Demon King's natal feather.

"The Black Feather Demon King has been slain by my subordinates. This is its natal feather. Please take a look, Lord Lou."

Lou Junbo took the feather, examined it for a moment, and a hint of approval appeared in his eyes: "Good!"

"As expected, it was the Black Feather Demon King's natal feather. You took care of it all by yourself, eliminating a major threat for me. Well done!"

His voice clearly echoed throughout the valley. Upon hearing the news that the Black Feather Demon King had been killed, the four demon kings' expressions changed simultaneously, and their gazes toward Li Yuan held a hint of apprehension.

This kid is only at the Core Formation Realm, how could he possibly kill a demon king? But Black Feather's natal feather is right in front of him, and there's no room for faking it.

Just as they were filled with doubt and uncertainty, a series of hurried footsteps came from the entrance of the valley. A captain from the Demon Suppression Division, covered in blood, stumbled in and knelt down in front of Lou Junbo with a thud.

"Lord Lou! Something terrible has happened! An accident has occurred in Yongzhou City!"

Lou Junbo's face darkened: "Explain yourself."

The captain, panting heavily, reported intermittently: "A demon king suddenly appeared in Yongzhou City. It devoured the people on a large scale. The city's garrison and the branch of the Demon Suppression Bureau did their best to stop it... but the casualties were heavy."

"I fought my way out and am begging Lord Lou to send troops to support me."

"Which demon king is it?"

"The Mongoose Demon King".

Upon hearing this name, the other four demon kings all showed joy. With trouble in Yongzhou City, Lou Junbo had no choice but to divert some of his forces to provide support.

Then, on the Xuefeng Mountain side, they had a chance to rescue them.

Lou Junbo frowned deeply. Yongzhou was only a hundred miles away from Xuefeng Mountain. If the demon king was allowed to run rampant in the city, the consequences would be unimaginable.