Tang Dynasty Demon Suppression Division

Something's happened.

Li Yuan raised an eyebrow, grabbed the hostage, and darted out of the cave.

Leng Ningshuang pursed her lips and silently followed, watching his back with a complicated expression.

Li Yuan is truly unfathomable. He pursues power, yet he is passionate and warm-hearted; he protects those around him, yet he also has his own principles.

Just after the two left the underground cave, the turbulent flow of spiritual energy inside gradually subsided, and the previously blurry scene became clear again.

On the stage, the light screen re-reflected the scene inside the grotto, and the entire audience fell silent for a moment before bursting into exclamations of amazement.

The grottoes, which they had thought had been razed to the ground, were actually in much better condition than they had imagined, despite the mess they had left behind.

The spirit pool had dried up, but the cave had not collapsed. The ground was covered with rubble and branches, and it was completely empty.

"Huh? Where did everyone go?"

"Oh no! Could it be...?"

The audience stood up one after another, their faces filled with regret. Li Yuan and Leng Ningshuang were the two most talented disciples of this year. It would be such a pity if they were to perish like this.

"Wait, look! Isn't that Li Yuan?"

Someone pointed to the scene next to them and exclaimed in surprise.

"It really is Li Yuanyuan, and Leng Ningshuang."

"My God! Are they alright?"

"Wait, Li Yuan, it seems he's broken through... to the Breakthrough Realm?"

"How is that possible? That was a vine demon self-destructing! It's incredibly lucky they didn't die."

Li Yuan was leading the hostage through the forest. He had just broken through to the next level, and his aura was still unstable, so it was easy to spot.

"Oh my god, it's true!"

"Monsters! They're all monsters!"

Amidst the gasps of the crowd, the judges on the high platform were also shaken, their expressions filled with disbelief.

"This child... truly possesses exceptional fortune, talent, and temperament," the female instructor from Taixu couldn't help but sigh softly.

"After this battle, Shenwu Academy will likely be far ahead in this league." Wanxiang's teachers shook their heads and smiled bitterly.

Only the instructor of Tian Ce looked extremely unpleasant.

……

Ancient tomb ruins, a rocky hillside.

The violent shockwave caused by the vine demon's self-destruction shook the entire ancient tomb, causing rubble to fall in a flurry.

Both sides, who were engaged in fierce fighting, turned their heads in shock and their expressions changed slightly.

The fox demon's charming face suddenly stiffened. She was always very perceptive, and at this moment she could clearly feel that the vine demon's powerful aura was rapidly dissipating and eventually disappearing completely.

"Vine Lord... he actually perished?"

A storm raged in her heart. She simply couldn't believe it. That thousand-year-old vine was incredibly powerful, a veritable overlord in this misty forest. Even if it couldn't defeat it, it should have been able to protect itself and escape without any problem. How could it have ended up like this?

Relying on those two teams of human kids? How is that possible?

A chill ran through him; there were likely secrets he didn't know about. In any case, with the vine demon dead, the remaining ghost cultivators and he would probably face an even worse fate...

escape!

We must escape immediately!

No token, no reward, is more important than my life.

In a flash of thought, a resolute glint appeared in the fox demon's eyes. She pretended to be forced back by Zhao Lingyun's spear, her body staggering, and her control over Zhou Tong's movements also slowed down slightly.

Zhao Lingyun, frustrated by his prolonged and unsuccessful attack, saw an opening in her defense and seized the opportunity. With a fierce shout, he thrust his spear straight at the fox demon's heart, yelling at Leng Yue, "Quickly, save Zhou Tong!"

Leng Yue understood, abandoned her longsword, and went straight for Zhou Tong with her bare hands, attempting to subdue him.

Seeing Zhao Lingyun's spear thrusting towards her, the fox demon, seemingly unable to dodge in time, screamed, "Stop! If you kill me, your fellow disciple will never wake up again!"

"If I die, his soul will be scattered to the winds!"

Zhao Lingyun's spear tip stopped abruptly in front of the fox demon's chest. The force of the blow caused the fox demon's red robes to flutter wildly. His eyes were fierce as he growled, "Demon, what do you want?"

"How about we make a deal?" The fox demon looked at Zhao Lingyun with feigned composure. "Let me go, and I'll immediately release him from my control and hand over the hostage to you."

Zhao Lingyun's eyes flickered as he looked at Zhou Tong, who was staring blankly, and then at the fox demon, quickly weighing his options in his mind.

Continuing the fight might not be enough to quickly subdue this cunning fox demon, and Zhou Tong could also be in danger.

It seems that Shenwu has already succeeded. If they arrive, it's hard to say who will ultimately win this point. It's better to secure it as soon as possible.

"How do I know you'll keep your word?" Zhao Lingyun said coldly.

"I swear by my natal demon soul that if I break this oath, may my cultivation be completely destroyed and I be condemned to eternal damnation!"

Seeing that he had given in, the fox demon immediately swore an oath. The oath of the demon soul had a very strong binding force on the demon race, leaving him no choice but to believe it.

"Fine." Zhao Lingyun gritted his teeth, holstered his gun, and stepped back. "Release the control and hand over the hostages."

The fox demon dared not be negligent. She muttered incantations and pointed at Zhou Tong from afar. Zhou Tong shuddered, the pink light in his eyes quickly faded, revealing a look of pain. He collapsed softly and was caught by Leng Yue.

"The hostages are deep inside the tomb, in the interlayer of the third stone coffin in the burial pit." She tossed a scroll to the ground. "Here's a map."

Before he finished speaking, his figure had already turned into a wisp of red smoke and instantly disappeared into the tomb passage, vanishing without a trace.

Zhao Lingyun glanced at the unconscious Zhou Tong, then at Wan Xiang who was still fighting hard, and a calculating glint flashed in his eyes.

"You all retreat immediately, find a place to hide and heal your wounds, I'm going to rescue people."

"Captain, what's happening in Wanxiang..." Leng Yue frowned.

"Why should we care about them?" Zhao Lingyun sneered. "Our mission is complete. Wen Ruoxu himself agreed to deal with the ghost cultivators. It's his own incompetence that's to blame."

"Hurry up!"

Leng Yue sighed inwardly, but military orders were absolute, so she could only help Zhou Tong up, while the other carried Sun Miao on his back, and quickly retreated back the way they came.

Zhao Lingyun flashed forward, following the markings on the scroll, and sped towards the depths of the ancient tomb.

"Zhao Lingyun!"

Seeing Zhao Lingyun suddenly rushing towards the depths of the tomb passage, and seeing the others from Tian Ce hurriedly retreating, Wen Ruoxu immediately guessed what was going on and couldn't help but shout angrily.

"Brother Wen, I'm sorry, but this point is mine, Tian Ce. You can play with this ghost for a while! Haha..." Zhao Lingyun laughed wildly, his figure already disappearing into the darkness.

"Despicable scoundrel!"

"Zhao Lingyun! You are shameless!"

The Wanxiang team members were so angry that they cursed loudly. They were already exhausted, and now Zhao Lingyun had deserted the battle, leaving them to face the ghost cultivator alone. The pressure increased dramatically, and they were in grave danger.

Wen Ruoxu's face turned ashen. He suppressed his anger and said in a deep voice, "There's no need to curse. Cooperation requires mutual consent. Since he has no sincerity, forcing it will be of no use."

"Shrink our formation and focus on defense. Without the fox demon's support, we might still have a chance to win against this ghost cultivator."

He secretly resented Zhao Lingyun for his betrayal, but with a powerful enemy at his side, as the captain, he had to remain calm.

The five members of Wanxiang immediately changed their formation, switching to full-scale defense, seeking no merit but avoiding mistakes.

Seeing the fox demon flee and Tian Ce retreat, the ghost cultivator cackled and stabbed the soul-summoning banner in his hand into the ground, chanting obscure incantations.

In an instant, the yin energy inside the ancient tomb surged, and countless yin spirits poured out from the ground. The walls of the ancient tomb also began to move slowly. The ghost cultivator had actually activated the mechanism array inside the tomb, trying to completely trap Wanxiang here.