The Empress's First Running Dog

Chapter 652 This Time, You Can't Escape (Seeking Monthly Tickets at the End of the Month)
Zhang Yanyi is here!

At this moment, both the soldiers on the city wall, including Gongsun, and the group led by Zhao Du'an below the city wall were pleasantly surprised to see a large expanse of blue clouds spreading from the south.

The azure cloud started as a tiny speck, but it rapidly expanded in the blink of an eye, eventually occupying half the sky and rivaling the red cloud.

Above the clouds, a tall figure stood with his hands behind his back, exuding an imposing aura without anger; he was none other than the current Celestial Master.

The "Great Laba" in the crimson clouds seemed like enemies meeting with intense hatred. With a roar, it swept towards the Old Celestial Master like a storm, carrying with it a sky full of crimson clouds.

Zhang Yanyi merely snorted coldly and said indifferently:
"Evil spirits should be exterminated."

The jade slips of heavenly scripture hanging from his waist flew up on their own, each inscription of the Great Dao stirring the azure clouds and rising upwards.

However, this time, the forces of both sides were reversed and returned to the territory of Yu Kingdom. The old celestial master, who had recovered his full cultivation, faced the suppressed Da Laba. The outcome was a foregone conclusion.

Under the watchful eyes of countless people, the azure cloud and the red cloud collided, and the latter only lasted for a few breaths before being swallowed up and covered by the vast azure cloud.

“Zhang…Master Zhang?!” Zhao Shixiong, holding the Soul-Severing Blade, was stunned and speechless.

"Master!"

The three priests also breathed a sigh of relief, their faces showing the ease of surviving a disaster.

Then, Yu Xiu suddenly turned her head, stared at Zhao Du'an, and asked suspiciously:
"You knew beforehand that Master would be able to come? How did you know?"

Zhao Du'an smiled and said:

"Didn't I say before that once we reach the border town, the Celestial Master will come looking for us?"

That makes sense, but what a coincidence... Yu Xiu felt something was amiss.

But just as I was about to ask, the brief confrontation in the sky had already ended. Da Laba struggled for a while, but was helplessly swallowed up by the blue clouds and disappeared without a trace.

Meanwhile, the countless Liaoren army on the ground suffered a "backlash," all turning pale and breaking free from their sacrificial state.

"Zhang! Yan! Yi!"

Po Yun was enraged as black flames erupted from his body. He looked up at the figure in the sky, and suddenly golden liquid flowed from his eyes.

He roared furiously, suddenly leaping up from the ground and attacking the old Celestial Master with unparalleled power.

This move seemed reckless, but it came at just the right moment when Zhang Yanyi had just suppressed Da Laba.

The so-called "old power exhausted and new power not yet generated" is theoretically a point where the Old Celestial Master is relatively weak.

However, Zhang Yanyi merely glanced coldly downwards, without even retracting the Heavenly Book, and simply raised his finger and pressed it down!
"Boom!"

The entire world felt a jolt in everyone's eardrums and a skipped heartbeat.

"puff!"

The menacing Po Yun was bleeding from every pore of his body. He coughed up pale golden blood, and then the skin between his eyebrows cracked open. The cracks quickly spread all over his body, and soon his flesh collapsed and shrank piece by piece.

This first warrior of the Liao people, a powerful figure who was only one step away from becoming a celestial being, was reduced to a "blood gourd" without any resistance. He died halfway through the flight, and his body fell to the ground like a kite with a broken string.

died.

Po Yun was actually killed by Zhang Yan with a single raised hand.

This scene not only shocked all the Liao people, but even Zhao Du'an was stunned.

How come... he killed him even more easily than when Old Zhang crushed "Barbarian Bone"? Is this the power of the fully-formed Zhang Tianshi?
How far has he progressed in the Celestial Realm? Is he only one step away from becoming a "Human Immortal"?
Before he could think any further, Zhao Du'an noticed a familiar figure rapidly moving away.

That's Qi Yuchun!
Zhao Du'an shouted, "Stop him!"

Zhang Yan glanced down and noticed Qi Yuchun fleeing at top speed.

Qi Yuchun fled in terror, trying to replicate his escape from Yan Suo Lake. Unfortunately, he hadn't gone far when he felt the entire world "squeezing" him in.

"The Celestial Sorcerer used the power of heaven and earth to suppress and kill... It really is true."

Qi Yuchun murmured to himself. He stopped, holding his spear, and turned around, realizing that he had lost all hope of escaping.

Today, he will be captured alive, his cultivation destroyed, and sent to the capital to be publicly beheaded, just like Ren Kun was back then.

He suddenly laughed, looked at Zhao Du'an, and roared:

"No one can judge me!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the former commander of the Imperial Guards suddenly gripped the spear tip with both hands and slammed it into his own heart.

"puff!"

The spear pierced Qi Yuchun, and his body slowly fell to the ground.

The last master of the Kuangfu Society has now perished.

Xu Jianwen has disappeared!

Suddenly, the sharp-eyed Han Zhao exclaimed, pointing to the center of the Liao army:

"He was standing there a moment ago, when did he disappear?"

Xu Jianwen ran away?
Zhao Shixiong was startled and looked up, but Xu Jianwen was nowhere to be seen.

“Governor…” He subconsciously looked at Zhao Du’an, then was shocked to find that the “Governor” beside him was also gone.

Zhao Du'an had already rushed eastward, and only his voice returned:
"He can't get away."

With the Dragon Soul in hand, as long as the distance between the two sides is not too far, Zhao Du'an can accurately pinpoint Jian Wen's location.

"Owner--"

Without hesitation, Tuoba Weizhi instinctively chased after him.

……

……

East of the border town, in a mountain forest far from the battlefield.

Xu Jianwen ran hurriedly, discarding his cumbersome cloak and wearing a luxurious short shirt, darting through the mountains and forests with a slightly panicked expression.

The moment Zhang Yan arrived from the south on his azure cloud, he secretly infiltrated the army, decisively crushed the teleportation orb, and escaped.

After escaping, he turned around and witnessed a scene of blue clouds covering the distant sky.

"Zhang Yanyi!!"

Xu Jianwen's eyes were red, his teeth were clenched tightly, and his temples bulged slightly.

He didn't understand why Zhang Yanyi would join the battle.

"Doesn't he know that forcibly interfering in the royal family's struggles will damage his cultivation?"

"Does he not know that the royal family bears the destiny of the nation, and is something he, as a cultivator of the Heavenly Dao, cannot touch?"

"Doesn't he want to try to become a Human Immortal?"

Xu Jianwen couldn't understand it!
Why did the Celestial Master's Mansion, which had remained neutral until now, suddenly intervene? Was it because of the Mysterious Seal? No… if it were merely a conflict with Buddhism, Zhang Yan should have gone to Xiping Road or the Western Regions, and there's no reason for him to come to Yunfu…

Xu Jianwen knew that his plan to reclaim the throne was likely to fail again, and that today's siege was unlikely to succeed.

At this moment, he was unaware that Zhang Yan had killed Po Yun and Qi Yuchun with a wave of his hand; otherwise, he would have understood that his plan to take advantage of the Liaoren army to advance north had completely failed.

He still harbored a sliver of hope, guessing that Zhang Yan would only target Da Laba.

If that's the case, the Liao army can at most retreat temporarily, and then fight again.

As Xu Jianwen was pondering these things, a familiar sense of crisis suddenly welled up in his heart, as if something terrifying was rapidly approaching from behind him.

"Zhao Du'an!"

Xu Jianwen's pupils contracted. He was no stranger to similar fears; he had also been chased by Zhao Du'an back in Huting.

The opponent possesses the Dragon Soul, which allows them to pinpoint their location.

"They caught up so quickly? What was that idiot Qi Yuchun doing? Why didn't he stop him?"

Xu Jianwen was both shocked and furious, and had no choice but to flee for his life once again.

Unfortunately, his cultivation level was not high. Even though he escaped in advance, the sense of crisis behind him grew closer and closer as time went on.

Finally, it reached a point that sent chills down his spine. His intuition told him that Zhao Du'an had caught up with him, but why hadn't he shown himself?
I can't run anymore... If this continues, he'll wear me down... Xu Jianwen suddenly stopped, turned around, slightly out of breath, and warily looked at the empty forest behind him:
"Zhao Du'an, come out. I think we can talk. You must have learned quite a few secrets during your infiltration of the Liao people, don't you want to know more?" *Sobbing*

The mountain wind blew by, but no one answered.

But the sense of crisis did not dissipate.

Suddenly, an "arrow" shot through the wind from deep within the forest.

Xu Jianwen dodged hastily, the "arrow" narrowly missing him, grazing his scalp and shaving off a strand of hair. The "arrow" struck a large tree behind him, nearly piercing the trunk with a "thud".

Those were "arrows" made of "tree branches," which should have been harmless, but because they were enveloped in aura, they became weapons capable of threatening lives.

"grass……"

Xu Jianwen felt a chill run down his spine, turned around and started running again, this time with arrows flying from behind him from time to time.

Zhao Du'an has not yet shown up.

Xu Jianwen had no choice but to continue fleeing through the mountains and forests, but gradually, his strength began to wane, his luxurious robe was torn by tree branches, and his hair became disheveled.

Finally, Xu Jianwen seemed to have run out of strength and stopped in front of a stream. He collapsed to the ground, drenched in sweat, panting heavily, like a fish out of water, looking utterly defeated.

"Zhao Du'an, is this funny? If you want to kill me, then do it. Why be so sneaky and act like a petty person?! You want to shoot me? Then come and shoot me!"

He was gambling that the other party didn't want to kill him.

"Whoosh!"

In response, another arrow pierced the air, but as expected, it only struck Xu Jianwen's parted groin and sank halfway into the ground.

"..." Xu Jianwen's forehead was covered in even more cold sweat, and then he heard footsteps approaching.

Holding the Taibu Bow, Zhao Du'an slowly emerged from the forest. His expression was calm, like a composed hunter admiring the exhaustion of his prey.

Zhao Du'an said calmly:

"Xu Jianwen, I'm sorry to say, but this time there's no cliff in front of you."

Xu Jianwen lay on the ground, seemingly having completely given up resisting. He gasped for breath and said:

"I think we can talk. There's nothing we can't talk about. Putting everything else aside, don't you want the help of the Liao people? With a large Liao army, the chances of winning the war in Xiping Road would be much greater... I can give you the Liao people..."

Zhao Du'an approached step by step.

Suddenly, after the two had reached a certain distance, Xu Jianwen abruptly sat up, supporting himself with both hands on the ground!

His brow suddenly "split open," and a grayish-white "eyeball" moved eerily, locking onto Zhao Du'an.

At the same time, a dense array of "curses" descended.

Zhao Du'an froze, as if he were bound by a curse.

Xu Jianwen finally got this opportunity.

"Hahaha……"

He laughed, but soon Xu Jianwen could no longer laugh, because he discovered that the "Zhao Du'an" in front of him was fading little by little, turning into a rotten tree stump.

"Second Prince, do you think the reason I've been chasing you without making a move is because I'm wary of the strange and unusual trump cards you possess?"

A voice rang out from behind, and Xu Jianwen's hair stood on end. He tried to turn around, but it was too late!
Zhao Du'an delivered a knee strike to Xu Jianwen's lower back with a loud "crack," as if his spine had split open. Xu Jianwen instantly lost sensation in his legs and became paralyzed.

Zhao Du'an pressed down on his shoulder with his left hand, and slapped his right hand onto Xu Jianwen's forehead, his fingers digging in.

"what!"

Amidst screams, Zhao Du'an brutally ripped a grayish-white jade-like "eyeball" from the flesh.

He snorted and, with a forceful squeeze of his hand, crushed the strange talisman left behind by the Qi Kingdom into dust.

Then, a swastika appeared between his brows, and illusory chains quickly bound Xu Jianwen. At the same time, the "Demon Sealing Spell" was activated, sealing off Xu Jianwen's hearing, sight, and touch...

This completely deprived him of all ability to resist.

Like a dead piece of wood, it lay stiffly on the ground.

Only at this moment did Zhao Du'an finally breathe a sigh of relief. He then squatted down and quickly searched Xu Jianwen before sitting down with a thud. He raised his hand and released the "Illusory Realm of the Great Void," holding the silver scroll in his hand.

Just now, he hid in the stream using the Xuan Turtle Seal and tricked Xu Jianwen into revealing his final move through an illusion.

"Hu Chi... Hu Chi..."

Zhao Du'an breathed softly, looking at Xu Jianwen on the ground, somewhat dazed.

He finally caught the mastermind behind the "Xuanmen Coup".

He was also the true mastermind behind the first desperate situation he encountered after transmigrating.

The true masters of the Kuangfu Society.

Zhao Du'an suddenly looked into the distance and saw Tuoba Weizhi rushing towards him. Seeing that he was safe, the black-haired, black-eyed priestess silently breathed a sigh of relief: "Master..."

Zhao Du'an waved his hand, indicating that he wanted to rest and didn't want to talk.

So the master and servant waited quietly in the woods for quite a while.

Finally, a ripple of moonlight spread out, and Yu Xiu, Han Zhao, and Jin Jian emerged from an illusory moon.

They were all stunned by what they saw in the woods.

"He's dead?" Yu Xiu asked instinctively.

Zhao Du'an shook his head and said:
"He's not dead, just his senses are sealed. I've said it before, capture him alive if possible, and even if you have to kill him, bring him back to the capital to kill him."

Xu Jianwen's identity was too special, and he wanted to hand over the power of disposal to Xu Zhenguan.

"Oh." Yu Xiu didn't seem to care much, and Jin Jian was even less interested.

Zhao Du'an asked curiously instead:

"Why did you all follow us here? Aren't you going to take care of the city?"

Han Zhao chuckled and said:
"With Master here, what use are we? Besides, Zhao Shixiong is also staying over there."

"That's true..." Zhao Du'an smiled, spat, and said with a laugh:

"This time, the Celestial Master made an exception and killed Po Yun. With the strongest man and leader of the Liao people's army gone, the remaining group of Liao people is no longer a threat."

Yu Xiu glanced at him and suddenly said:
"Don't expect your master to kill all these bastards in one go."

"Master, you killed Po Yun and Qi Yuchun today for your sake, interfering in the royal family's civil war. This has already damaged your cultivation of the Heavenly Dao. If you were to go on a killing spree, the karma of those Liao people's deaths would all fall on your shoulders, a burden even a Celestial Being couldn't bear."

Is it so mysterious?

Zhao Du'an was somewhat surprised, but the cultivation system of these sorcerers was indeed extremely strange.

Those who cultivate the Heavenly Dao, despite their terrifyingly powerful strength, seem to be subject to extremely strict constraints.

I don't understand... I don't understand...

He shook his head:
"Don't worry, I'm not that ruthless. As long as the situation in the southwest is stabilized, that's enough. I also have no intention of forging a blood feud with the Liao people."

That's good... Yu Xiu breathed a sigh of relief. At this moment, she remembered the question she had only half-asked earlier:

"By the way, how did you know that Master would..."

Zhao Du'an chuckled, glanced at Han Zhao, and said:
"Thank you very much, Brother Han."

Han Zhao also laughed and explained:

"It's nothing. Yesterday, Brother Zhao asked me to use a hyacinth to send a message over a wide area in the wind... to summon Master over."

Is that really how it is? Yu Xiu and Jin Jian were stunned.

"Let's go, it's time for us to go back."

After resting enough, Zhao Duan picked up Xu Jianwen and stood up, looking back at the border town.

He needed to go back to clean up the mess, and then return to the capital as soon as possible to bring the Empress everything that had happened in the La Garden, as well as the Second Prince in his possession.

(End of this chapter)