Tang Dynasty Demon Suppression Division

"They are merely illusions conjured by my memories; you need not concern yourself with them." The Serpent King's voice faded into the distance. "Do not cling to illusions. Your path still lies ahead."

Before he finished speaking, the Serpent King's enormous phantom transformed into a dazzling stream of seven-colored light, instantly shooting into Li Yuan's brow.

"Buzz—!"

The bronze palace, which had been silent for a long time, finally emitted a deafening hum at this moment.

The entire sea of ​​consciousness was violently shaking, and the ancient palace gates opened a crack once more.

The next moment, the world spun around.

Li Yuan felt as if he had been swept into a huge vortex, his body falling uncontrollably downwards.

As he fell, he saw Lock Dragon City rapidly fading and dissipating.

All the familiar faces quickly blurred and then turned into specks of light.

Those comrades who fought side by side, the familiar streets, the kind Grandpa Mu, the lovely Rong'er... all disappeared like bubbles.

Is this really just an illusion? Why does it feel so real?

Li Yuan closed his eyes. Perhaps, without realizing it, he had already integrated into Lock Dragon City and was no longer an observer.

……

Suddenly, Li Yuan landed on solid ground and opened his eyes abruptly. All around him were ruins, and Chu Yunhe and the others also looked around blankly.

"Captain, we're back!"

Yu Ling'er shouted excitedly, "This is the Lesser Mystic Realm!"

"I'm back!"

"Haha...we're finally back!"

Chu Yunhe brandished his sword and laughed loudly, and even the usually taciturn Shen Lian couldn't help but smile.

Li Yuan turned to look at Ji Fanghua and noticed that her eyes were slightly red. He was taken aback. This junior sister was so strong that people forgot she was only a sixteen-year-old girl.

"Do you think... Dragon Lock City is really just an illusion?"

Everything that had happened before seemed so vivid in her mind. Yu Ling'er and Rong'er had spent every day together and had already developed feelings for each other. At this moment, she was extremely sad.

"Whether it's an illusion or not, as long as we remember them, they existed."

Li Yuan's words shocked everyone. Yes, as long as they remembered, Locked Dragon City was real.

At this moment, a rapid whooshing sound came from the direction of the entrance to the secret realm, and several powerful auras were rapidly approaching.

These past few days, the academy has been closely monitoring the movements within the secret realm. Their appearance immediately triggered the formation.

"The matter of Locking Dragon City is of utmost importance; please do not speak of it lightly."

Li Yuan and the others exchanged glances and quickly reached a tacit understanding, nodding in agreement. Lock Dragon City was a secret unique to their Divine Martial Squad.

"Li Yuan, Chu Yunhe... is it really you?"

Several streaks of light landed, and the first one was Liu Hongyan. She excitedly looked at the five people, and only breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that everyone was safe and sound.

"Instructor Liu, we're alright."

Yu Ling'er beamed with joy and ran towards her, throwing herself into her arms.

It's been more than a year since we last met, and I couldn't contain my excitement when I suddenly saw someone I knew.

Liu Hongyan's body stiffened, then she turned around and hugged her, gently stroking her hair.

"Silly child, it's good that you're back."

A faculty member couldn't help but press, "You've been missing for so long, what exactly happened?"

Liu Hongyan glanced at him with some displeasure: "Let's go back first and talk about it then!"

After saying that, he led the five people and ran towards the exit. The others saw this and didn't dare to ask any more questions, so they could only follow silently.

Back at the academy, the five of them took a shower and changed clothes, had a hearty meal, and underwent a doctor's examination to confirm that they had not suffered any injuries.

"They only suffered severe damage to their spiritual energy, without any other injuries. Moreover, their cultivation levels have all improved, so they must have had some fortuitous encounters."

The doctor concluded that everyone should receive a bottle of Rejuvenation Pill to restore their mental energy.

"It's not a big problem, just need some rest these few days."

After the doctor left, Liu Hongyan's expression turned serious: "Where have you all been for the past month?"

What?! One month!

The five people looked at each other in shock.

They had been in Dragon Lock City for over a year, but outside... only a month had passed?

Does this prove that Locked Dragon City was truly just a dream, yet their cultivation level has genuinely improved, leaving no room for faking it?

"Instructor Liu, we were teleported to an ancient underground palace in the East City..."

Li Yuan was the first to calm down. As the team leader, he briefly recounted what the group had experienced in the underground palace.

The subsequent experience in Locked Dragon City was only described as entering another illusion array. After finally breaking out of the array, they were directly teleported to a secret realm.

"There are also some ancient martial arts techniques on the murals, which we have all memorized." Yu Ling'er had studied ancient scripts and was preparing to translate the martial arts techniques they had learned in Lock Dragon City.

"Very good, it seems that this Serpent King has no ill intentions towards you, and has even bestowed upon you a great fortune."

Liu Hongyan nodded thoughtfully.

"Don't talk about these things anymore. If anyone asks, just say you were trapped in a formation and only managed to break free with great difficulty."

"Understood, instructor."

The five of them agreed in unison.

"Your disappearance in the Four Colleges League has drawn criticism from the college, and the final results were not ranked, so the matter was left unresolved."

Liu Hongyan sighed, "For this reason, Dean Su went to the palace to apologize, and he hasn't returned yet."

Hearing that the consequences of their actions were so severe, the group exchanged bewildered glances.

"So when you come back this time, the college will definitely make a big fuss about it. In order to avoid disturbing you, the college has decided to give you a five-day holiday first, so that you can go home and reunite with your families."

When talking about their family members, Chu Yunhe and Yu Ling'er both became emotional. Li Yuan was all alone, and Ji Fanghua always seemed to be a loner. Shen Lian's family was all at the border.

Liu Hongyan had obviously thought of this as well, and looked at the three of them: "These next few days, Mr. Mo will be busy as the acting dean, so you should stay with him for a while."

"yes!"

The three of them breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.

Soon, news of the Divine Martial Squad's survival from the secret realm spread throughout Chang'an City, causing a great uproar.

After disappearing for a month without a trace, even the Imperial Advisor couldn't predict what would happen to them. Just when everyone thought they had perished, they not only returned safely but also made great progress in their cultivation, which was truly a miracle.

Countless people flocked to inquire about the news, but they could not see the people in person. The academy gave only a uniform and vague answer in an official tone.

After a while of excitement, people realized they wouldn't get any information out of them and gradually lost their curiosity. However, many legends began to circulate, some saying they went to another secret realm, and others saying they were kidnapped by a great demon.

However, none of the five cared. After leaving the quiet room, Chu Yunhe called out to Li Yuan.

"Brother Li, my father just sent me a message, asking you to come see him together."

The fact that Li Yuan joined the Demon Suppression Division was top secret; apart from a few high-ranking members of the academy, no one else knew about it.

Therefore, Chu Yunhe's expression was strange after receiving the message.

As a subordinate of the Demon Suppression Division, his disappearance this time not only needs to be reported to the academy, but also needs to be explained to the Demon Suppression Division.

Let's go!

Li Yuan nodded.