Tang Dynasty Demon Suppression Division

"Haha, it's been a long time indeed. Brother Li Yuan is truly a young hero."

Hu Cheng strode forward, grabbed Li Yuan's arm, squeezed it tightly, and looked pleased.

Li Yuan glanced at him. Compared to two years ago, Hu Cheng looked much more haggard, with gray hair at his temples, but his fierce and courageous spirit remained undiminished.

"When I heard from Lao Zhao that you were coming to Shule, I thought you were joking. I didn't expect it to really be you."

"You must be tired from your journey. Come on in and rest for a while. I'll treat you to a welcome feast."

Li Yuan quickly waved his hand: "No need for a welcoming feast, General Hu, please tell me about the situation here first."

Upon hearing this, Hu Cheng's smile faded slightly, and he led Li Yuan toward the command post in the city center, explaining as they walked.

"I'm not exaggerating, Shule is on the verge of collapse."

Hu Cheng said in a heavy tone, "Three days ago, Mengchi fell, and the demons rushed straight into the heart of Longyou Road. Shule was not spared either."

"The one sitting opposite is the White Ape Demon Saint, who is an iron-willed ally of the Zhu Yan Demon Emperor and is extremely ruthless."

Li Yuan's brow twitched slightly: "It's actually the White Ape Demon Saint."

He knew the name all too well. Back then, this white ape infiltrated the capital, intending to set a trap to hunt down Mr. Mo and kill him as well, but in the end, it returned empty-handed.

Later, during the Battle of Tiger Wolf Gorge, this old man lured Mr. Mo out of the city, intending to trap him in the snowy mountains, but unexpectedly, he was the one who was seriously injured.

According to what Mr. Mo later told him, the White Ape Demon Saint was seriously injured that time, and his cultivation level dropped to at most half a step demon saint.

It seems this demon's ferocity remains unchanged. It has even joined forces with the Zhu Yan Demon Emperor to invade the territory of the Tang Dynasty, most likely to plunder blood and food to replenish its cultivation.

"The formation of Shule City has long been out of service, and it is now being held up by manpower alone. I am worried that if reinforcements do not arrive soon, the city will not be able to be defended."

Li Yuan smiled faintly: "Don't worry, if it really is just the White Ape Demon Saint alone, Shule City cannot be breached."

After his last battle with Lü Ming, Li Yuan felt more confident. He might not be a match for a true demon saint, but the White Ape Demon Saint was at most only half a step in cultivation.

There was an even more favorable condition: after Mr. Mo returned to the academy, he was worried that Li Yuan might encounter the White Ape Demon Saint in the future, so he told him in detail about the other party's cultivation characteristics and the hidden injuries he had suffered.

Therefore, Li Yuan was very confident that he could defeat his opponent, or at the very least, they would be evenly matched, and he would never let him cause further harm to Shule City.

Seeing that he didn't care at all, Hu Cheng was secretly alarmed, but his confidence grew a bit more.

"Besides the White Ape Demon Saint, there are also three Demon Kings on the other side, all of whom are at the late stage of Demon King cultivation and each command a demon army."

"The original garrison of Shule had five thousand men, but now, less than two thousand are still capable of fighting. The cultivators of the Demon Suppression Division have also suffered more than half casualties, and there are less than eight cultivators above the Condensation Realm left."

At this point, he looked worried and pointed towards the city wall: "They launched another attack today, and we barely managed to repel it."

Li Yuan patted him on the shoulder: "General Hu, rest assured, now that I'm here, I won't let Shule fall."

"Waaaaah—!"

Just then, a deafening bugle call rang out from the city wall.

The horn sounded low and desolate, followed by a slight tremor in the ground and a rumbling sound in the distance.

"Quickly! Enemy attack!"

"Everyone, get to the city wall!"

At the shouts, the soldiers, who had just looked exhausted, immediately perked up, grabbed their weapons, and rushed towards the city wall.

Hu Cheng's expression changed.

"here we go again!"

"These beasts attacked three times in one day; they're determined to take Shule!"

"Let's go take a look."

Without saying a word, Li Yuan turned around and walked towards the city wall.

Climbing the city wall, one can see a dark, surging tide of demonic soldiers rolling across the Gobi Desert.

These demon soldiers came in many different kinds: some had wolf heads and human bodies, some looked like lizards, some were giant bear demons over ten feet tall, and some were eagle demons circling in the air. They were densely packed and covered the sky. At a rough glance, there were at least two or three thousand of them.

In the very center of the procession, a giant white ape, standing two zhang tall, strode toward Shule City, carrying a thick black iron rod on its shoulder.

It exuded a powerful aura, and even from more than a mile away, the soldiers on the city wall could feel that suffocating pressure.

White Ape Demon Saint.

Li Yuan's gaze was fixed on it. Although he had been in danger because of it several times, this was the first time he had seen its true form.

"Wu Yu, you lead your men to assist General Hu in defending the city. I'll take care of this old ape."

With Li Yuan holding back the Demon Saint, Hu Cheng's pressure was greatly reduced, and the remaining minor characters made defending the city no problem.

"Okay! Be careful!"

He gave a stern instruction and then turned to make arrangements.

"Teams A and B guard the west gate, teams C and D guard the north gate, the reserve team prepares rolling stones and logs, archers take their positions..."

Having fought against the demon race for many years, Hu Cheng was highly experienced. He issued orders in an orderly manner, and the soldiers quickly took their positions. Everything was in perfect order.

The demon soldiers are getting closer and closer.

Five hundred feet.

Three hundred feet.

One hundred zhang.

"Release the arrows!"

Hu Cheng gave the order.

Thousands of arrows flew out like locusts, falling into the ranks of demon soldiers. The first few dozen demon soldiers were immediately shot down, while the demon soldiers behind them continued to charge over the corpses of their comrades, their speed undiminished.

Fifty feet.

Thirty zhang (approximately 33 meters).

"Rolling stones! Logs!"

Hu Cheng gave another order.

Huge stones and logs were pushed down from the city wall, crashing down on the demon soldiers with a thunderous roar. In an instant, many more demon soldiers were smashed into a bloody pulp, their screams echoing everywhere.

But the demon soldiers' charge did not stop.

Finally, the first batch of demon soldiers had reached the city walls.

They howled and swarmed forward, using their massive bodies to ram the city gate. More demon soldiers stretched out their claws and frantically climbed upwards.

On the city wall, the defenders brandished their weapons, hacking and slashing wildly. Blood flowed down the wall, staining the moat red.

Li Yuan did not participate in the defense; his gaze remained fixed on the White Ape Demon Saint.

The white ape stopped a few dozen feet from the city wall, slammed its black iron rod into the ground, crossed its arms, raised its head, and looked over the city wall, its gaze landing directly on Li Yuan.

It grinned, revealing its gleaming white fangs, and let out a low, mocking laugh.

"Ha, Li Yuan, it's you."

Li Yuan stood on the city wall, looking down at it, and said calmly, "You know me?"

"Hahaha!"

The White Ape Demon Saint let out a deafening laugh, "I know you, of course I know you, I'd recognize you even if you turned to ashes."

"Now that Old Mo is no longer protecting you, kid, prepare to die!"

Its scarlet eyes were fixed on Li Yuan, its gaze filled with murderous intent.

Having suffered several crushing defeats in his encounters with Mo Wentian, he was seething with hatred and wished he could skin him alive. Unfortunately, he was simply outmatched and no match for him.

Now, they have unexpectedly encountered the person Mr. Mo cares about most. It is a godsend. As long as Li Yuan is killed, it will be like tearing out Mo Wentian's heart.

Just thinking about it made the White Ape Demon Saint feel great, and he wished he could capture Li Yuan immediately and torture him to the point of wishing for death, so as to vent his hatred.

"You want to kill me?"

Li Yuan slowly raised the nameless sword, its tip pointing defiantly at the White Ape Demon Saint, his tone provocative, "Then come on!"