Tang Dynasty Demon Suppression Division

The whole thing looks like someone deliberately sabotaged it, with the real purpose of saving Chen Shuo.

Logically speaking, Li Yuan and the others are the most suspicious, but the strangest thing is that if it were him, the first person he should have saved would have been Yu Ling'er.

Thinking back to how Qinglian Demon Saint flirted with Li Yuan right in front of him a few days ago, and how Qinglian showed favoritism towards him during the peace talks, could it be that the two of them had already become lovers?

Mo Lin became increasingly suspicious and turned to head east of the city.

The Azure Lotus Demon Saint disliked crowds and lived a secluded life in a remote courtyard in the east of the city. There was a huge lake there, filled with lotus flowers, which had a sweet fragrance.

He was drinking tea alone in the waterside pavilion, facing the lotus flowers, and seemed unsurprised to see the Demon Emperor Mo Lin.

"Qinglian, let me remind you, no matter what your attitude is towards peace talks, you are still an elder of our Demon Court, and everything should be done with the interests of the demon race first."

The Demon Emperor Molin immediately issued a warning.

The Azure Lotus Demon Saint gave him a cold look: "It's none of your business how I act. I can only tell you that everything I do is for the Demon Court."

"Is that so? I hope what you're saying is true. If something goes wrong, you'll have to explain it to His Majesty yourself."

The Demon Emperor Mo Lin was clearly angry.

"Then you needn't trouble yourself. I will naturally give His Majesty a satisfactory explanation."

The Azure Lotus Demon Saint had almost made his stance clear, but unfortunately, given his status, Mo Lin couldn't do anything about it. He could only snort coldly and leave.

The next day, Li Yuan disguised himself and went to see Chen Shuo. Because of the Iron Feather Demon King incident the day before, Zhou Yuanliang was worried that the investigation would fall on him, so he handed the man over to Manager Zhang.

Manager Zhang placed Chen Shuo in the cellar of a secluded courtyard house, with an isolation array set up outside.

When Li Yuan arrived, Chen Shuo had already woken up. His injuries had been treated with medicine and bandaged, and he looked much better.

"Brother Chen, how are you feeling?"

Li Yuan reached out to examine him and found that Chen Shuo had been tortured and his meridians were damaged, making it impossible for him to recover his cultivation level temporarily.

"He's not going to die yet."

Chen Shuo laughed loudly, "I never imagined that you would have reached the Dao Realm in just a few years. You truly deserve to be the number one genius of our Great Tang Dynasty."

Even after enduring inhuman torture and being imprisoned for five years, Chen Shuo remained cheerful and outgoing.

"Brother Chen, you flatter me."

While Li Yuan used his spiritual power to smooth his meridians, he asked him about his imprisonment. Yesterday, he was in too much of a rush and didn't have time to ask.

"When our negotiations failed, we had no choice but to return the way we came. Halfway there, we encountered the demon bandits, who were actually Mo Lin's men in disguise."

Chen Shuo slammed his fist on the table in front of him with a loud bang. "This guy is a two-faced tiger. On the surface, he is a peace advocate, but in reality, he has been instigating the Zhu Yan Demon Emperor to send troops. He is the one who orchestrated this war."

Just as Li Yuan had guessed, the Zhu Yan Demon Emperor was short-tempered and relatively simple-minded, making him easily swayed by Mo Lin's instigation.

"Mo Lin has been keeping me alive so that he can use me as a hostage during the next peace talks."

Li Yuan frowned: "If that's the case, why didn't they bring you up in this peace negotiation?"

"I don't know either. I overheard some guards chatting and learned that the Tang Dynasty and the Demon Court are negotiating again. Strangely, that old thief doesn't seem to have made any move regarding the plan to use me as a hostage."

Chen Shuo shook his head.

"I spoke with the Azure Lotus Demon Saint before, and he said I shouldn't have come to the Heavenly Demon City."

As Li Yuan spoke, he recounted the story of the Demon Emperor of Langhuan.

"So, they intentionally lured you to the Heavenly Demon City. The peace talks were only one aspect; their biggest target was you."

Chen Shuo had been imprisoned here for several years, so he was out of touch with the news and couldn't figure out why for a while.

"Could it still be related to what the Demon Emperor of the Stars spoke of back then?"

"No, you can't stay here any longer. The negotiations are pointless. Who knows what those old scoundrels are up to?"

Upon realizing that Mo Lin Demon Emperor's goal was Li Yuan, Chen Shuo couldn't sit still and immediately urged Li Yuan to return to the Tang Dynasty.

"Don't worry, I'll go back. You stay here and recover. Once things calm down in a few days, I'll send you away."

Chen Shuo's cultivation had not yet recovered, and he knew he couldn't be a burden to Li Yuan, so he immediately nodded in agreement.

After returning to the post station, Li Yuan convened everyone again for discussion.

"The negotiations are currently at a standstill, and staying would be futile. I plan to return as soon as possible. What are your opinions?"

"I agree. We didn't have high hopes for this negotiation. The main purpose was to give the Tang army a buffer period to rest and recuperate and gather supplies."

Liu Hongyan nodded in agreement. The demon race is fickle; what good is a signed contract if they can break it at any time?

Now that their strategic objective has been achieved, they have completed their mission, not to mention that they also rescued Chen Shuo.

"Are you taking Senior Sister Yu with you before you leave?"

Chu Yunhe asked.

"Don't worry about Senior Sister Yu, I have my own arrangements. Now let's discuss how we should escape."

Since the Demon Emperor Molin deliberately tricked Li Yuan into coming here, he wouldn't let him go so easily.

"This might be a bit troublesome. I think those old guys are just stalling for time and have no sincerity whatsoever."

Wu Yu scratched his head. "Why don't we just slip away and run away? Why bother with all that?"

"It's easier for the few of us to leave, but Lord Wang's side has many civil officials, so it's impossible for us to sneak away."

Li Yuan shook his head.

"That guy was never a good person to begin with. He's dead, so what's the big deal?"

Wu Yu was well aware of the complicated history between the Wang family and Li Yuan. He had no good feelings towards Wang Shu and immediately rolled his eyes.

"You can't say that. If we encounter danger and really can't protect them, that's understandable."

Liu Hongyan explained, "But if we deliberately leave them here, once the news gets back, it will be very difficult for Li Yuan to regain his footing in the court."

"These people are just a burden; they can't help at all and only hold us back."

Wu Yu slammed his fist on the table in frustration, cursing, "I don't know what those old guys in the court are thinking, they don't do anything right."

"That's how things are in the court. Those old guys don't care about other people's lives or deaths; they only think about fighting for power and profit."

Chu Yunhe shook his head. Chu Jinghong held a high position, and he had been exposed to many things in the court.

"I have an idea. We'll say that the negotiations have encountered difficulties and that we need to send someone back to ask His Majesty for instructions. We'll have Tianyao City release Wang Shu and his party first, and I'll stay here and find an opportunity to slip away later."

Before Li Yuan could finish speaking, Shen Lian interrupted him sharply: "No! Mo Lin is here specifically for you. Aren't you just putting yourself in danger?"

Shen Lian usually never speaks at meetings, but this time his attitude was very firm, and most of the people opposed him.

"So what do you suggest we do?"

Li Yuan remained calm, smiled slightly, and threw the question back at him.

The group looked at each other, none of them able to come up with a feasible solution.

"If it really comes to it, a few of us will stay with you."

Shen Lian's gaze was firm. He was a stubborn person, and once he made up his mind, nothing could change it.

"I'll stay too."

"And me!"

Wu Yu and others expressed their opinions.

"If they all stay behind, who will escort them? Besides, having more people will only make it harder for them to escape."

Li Yuan looked at Liu Hongyan, "Teacher, I would also like to ask you to take them back. Senior Sister Leng and Shen Lian will stay with me."