Tang Dynasty Demon Suppression Division

Li Zhan was stunned for a moment. He had heard of Li Yuan's name before. Li Yuan was the chief disciple of Shenwu Academy. He had made great contributions in the Northwest and was personally rewarded by the emperor. Recently, he had rescued Leng Ning Shuang in the secret realm of Taixu Academy.

But he never expected that this legendary genius would be so young and so powerful.

He nodded, said nothing more, and led the Demon Suppression Division guards behind him to turn and charge at the group of lesser demons.

Li Yuan then turned back to face the Mongoose King, his gaze calm as still water.

Enraged by his nonchalant attitude, the Meerkat King roared, and its massive body suddenly swelled up, making its already mountain-like size even more terrifying.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

It took heavy steps, each step leaving a deep footprint on the ground, charging towards Li Yuan like a heavy chariot.

"Kid, let me show you what real power is!"

Li Yuan did not dodge. He suddenly poured the power of the stars into the nameless sword, and the blade shone with a dazzling silver-white light. Facing the charging Mongoose Demon King, he took a step forward and slashed out with his sword!

This strike carried an indomitable and resolute momentum!

The blade collided with the giant horn on the head of the Meerkat King.

"boom--!

The enormous impact nearly shattered the sky, and silvery starlight and black demonic energy burst forth in all directions, distorting and twisting the surrounding air.

The meerkat demon king felt a tremendous force coming from above, and its massive body was forced to a stop by the blade, sliding backward several feet.

Its four hooves plowed deep furrows into the bluestone pavement before it could barely steady itself.

It raised its head, and in its gaze toward Li Yuan, there was finally a hint of genuine seriousness.

Something's wrong with this human.

Li Yuan gave it no chance to breathe. With a swift movement, he transformed into a streak of light and launched an attack.

His swordsmanship was swift and efficient, each strike aimed at the Meerkat King's vital points—eyes, throat, joints, abdomen—forcing the Meerkat King to panic and retreat repeatedly.

"Awooo!"

The meerkat king was thoroughly enraged, letting out a deafening roar. Its body swelled up again, and dark red lines appeared on its skin, like lava flowing beneath it.

It opened its blood-red maw, and a stream of black flames spewed out, carrying an intense heat that could burn everything, sweeping towards Li Yuan.

Li Yuan retreated rapidly, simultaneously unleashing a slash with his sword, a silver-white blade aura meeting the black flames.

"laugh--!"

The blade energy collided with the black flames, producing a piercing corrosive sound. Although Li Yuan's blade energy cleaved open a gash in the black flames, the flames were extremely hot, and even most of the blade energy was burned away.

The remaining flames fell to the ground, instantly burning a large hole in the bluestone slab, the edges of which showed a molten, glassy appearance.

Li Yuan felt a chill run down his spine. The black flames of the Mongoose Demon King were incredibly powerful. If he were hit head-on, even if he was at the Condensation Realm, he would probably be injured.

Seeing Li Yuan forced back by his flames, the Mongoose Demon King laughed triumphantly: "Hahaha... Boy, now you know how powerful I am, right? Kneel down and beg for mercy, and I might consider leaving you with a whole corpse!"

Li Yuan ignored its provocations and calmly observed its attack patterns.

He noticed that after the Meerkat King used the black flames, its breathing became more rapid, and the dark red patterns on its body would dim briefly. Clearly, this powerful attack was quite taxing on it.

He immediately made up his mind.

In the ensuing battle, Li Yuan changed his strategy. He no longer confronted the Mongoose King head-on, but instead made full use of his speed advantage, constantly attacking the Mongoose King from all sides.

He would sometimes appear to the left of the Meerkat King, slashing at its ribs; sometimes he would appear behind it, thrusting at its hind leg joints; and sometimes he would leap into the air, chopping at its head.

The meerkats were too large and lacked agility. They were getting annoyed by Li Yuan's guerrilla tactics. Although they had thick skin and strong defense, Li Yuan's swordsmanship was too tricky. Every strike was precisely aimed at their weak points.

Although each cut is small, they add up and cause pain, eventually leading to significant wear and tear.

It tried several times to force Li Yuan back with its black flames, but Li Yuan was too agile and dodged each time just as it was about to breathe fire, causing its flames to miss and wasting its demonic power.

The battle lasted for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. The meerkats had more than a dozen knife wounds of varying depths on its body. Black blood flowed down the wounds and dripped onto the ground, making a "sizzling" corrosive sound.

Its breathing became heavy, and its movements began to slow down.

Although Li Yuan was also a little out of breath, his momentum remained fierce.

Just then, in the distance, the shadow of a floating boat appeared in the clouds; the reinforcements from the Demon Suppression Division had finally arrived.

Upon seeing the floating vessel, the Meerkat Demon King felt a chill run down its spine. It knew that if it delayed any longer, by the time all the reinforcements from the Demon Suppression Division arrived, it would be too late to leave.

Thinking of this, it glared fiercely at Li Yuan and let out a resentful roar: "Boy! You're lucky today! I'll come back another day to challenge you!"

Having said that, it suddenly spewed out a large mouthful of black flames, forming a wall of fire that blocked Li Yuan's pursuit route, and then turned and ran wildly out of the city.

When the demon king ran away, the lesser demons scattered like birds and beasts, fleeing in all directions.

Li Yuan did not pursue it. His mission was to hold off the Mongoose King and protect the people of Yongzhou City, not to kill it.

Since it has already escaped, we shouldn't pursue a desperate enemy; preserving our strength is more important.

He sheathed his sword, turned around, and looked at the scene on the long street.

Li Zhan was leading the guards of the Demon Suppression Division to clear out the remaining lesser demons and rescue the injured people.

The survivors wept bitterly, some knelt on the ground to thank God, and others were busy searching for their lost relatives. Although the city was in ruins and the casualties were heavy, at least most people were still alive.

Li Zhan walked up to Li Yuan, clasped his hands in a salute, and said in a hoarse voice, "Lord Li, I am deeply grateful. If you hadn't arrived in time today, Yongzhou City would probably already be..."

Li Yuan supported his arm and shook his head: "Captain Li, you're too kind. We're colleagues in the Demon Suppression Division, and helping each other is only our duty."

"You and your people are the true heroes. You used your flesh and blood to block the demon king's attack and bought time for the people."

Li Zhan gave a wry smile, shook his head, and said nothing more.

The airship slowly landed on the city square, and a team of fully armed demon-hunting guards filed out to assist Yongzhou City in clearing the battlefield, treating the wounded, and restoring order.

Standing on the long street, Li Yuan looked at the devastated city under the setting sun, but felt no sense of relief.

Although the Mongoose Demon King has retreated, the seal on Snow Peak Mountain continues to loosen, and the four Demon Kings are still alive. The Crowned Demon Emperor could break free at any time.

Night fell over Yongzhou City amidst mournful cries.

Although the daytime battle has ended, the wounds left on the city are far from healed.

The long street was filled with collapsed houses, shattered tiles, and dried bloodstains on the bluestone slabs—a truly shocking sight.