Catching Monsters

Chapter 349 The Seven Swords Reappear, Bloodshed is Inevitable
Looking at the old man and Xiao Jingqi on the roof, Jiang Yun dared not rashly order an attack.

The old man's cultivation level was quite impressive; his strength was probably that of a second-grade expert. Even if he were to forcefully take down Xiao Jingqi, many of his eight hundred-plus Imperial Guards would likely suffer casualties.

If the other party could agree to hand over Xiao Jingqi, that would be the best outcome.

Xie Yifeng remained calm as he looked down at Jiang Yun and said, "The Sixth Prince is not a guest I invited. Whether or not he can come with you is not a decision I can make."

Xie Yifeng glanced at the numerous Imperial Guards on the four rooftops and slowly said, "If you want to rely on your numbers to forcibly seize people, I will not allow it."

After saying that, he reached out and slowly took down the wooden sword behind him. His eyes were sharp, and a terrifying aura slowly emanated from his body.

Seeing that negotiations were failing, Jiang Yun's face darkened, and he shouted, "Attack! Kill the target!"

The numerous elite Imperial Guards, who had been preparing since early morning, instantly took out the crossbows they carried and shot them at Xie Yifeng and Xiao Jingqi on the rooftop.

Shhhhhh.

Countless arrows flew towards the two of them.

"Don't move." Xie Yifeng glanced at Xiao Jingqi and reminded him, then swung his wooden sword to knock down the arrows one by one.

Even with a hail of arrows, they could not harm the two in the slightest.

Shortly after the crossbow bolts were fired, many skilled members of the Embroidered Uniform Guard quickly approached, wielding specially made grappling hooks, and hurled them at the two men.

Such trivial tricks could not possibly harm Xie Yifeng.

But it can't go on like this, getting beaten up all the time.

The Imperial Guards moved closer to the two men as they made their move.

Xiao Jingqi grew anxious. Once the numerous Imperial Guards approached, Xie Yifeng, relying on his swordsmanship, would naturally be able to easily break through, but what about himself?

I'm afraid I'll be trapped here and die.

Although he wanted to take the opportunity to escape, he quickly gave up the idea when he saw that he was surrounded by the Imperial Guards from all sides.

……

General's Mansion.

Wang Longzhi was reviewing some grain and fodder allocation information when suddenly, hurried footsteps came from outside the door, and the door was pushed open with a bang.

The visitor was Deputy General He Zhenhong.

"General Wang, something terrible has happened." He Zhenhong's face was grim as he said in a deep voice, "The soldiers at the East Gate just reported that a Jinyiwei (Imperial Guard) team of about five hundred men rode directly into Wuling Prefecture."

"Furthermore, a large number of Imperial Guards gathered on Jixi Street and surrounded Xiao Jingqi and Senior Xie Yifeng."

"A rough estimate suggests there are probably as many as eight hundred Imperial Guards."

Wang Longzhi, who was sitting in the chair, quickly stood up and asked with a solemn expression, "Are you sure? Eight hundred Imperial Guards?"

"Yes." He Zhenhong nodded emphatically, took a deep breath, and said, "General, in my opinion, these people are probably after Xiao Jingqi. What do you think we should do?"

Xiao Jingqi's identity is special and extremely sensitive.

If the imperial court sends people to kill Xiao Jingqi at this time, and they mobilize troops to fight against the Embroidered Uniform Guard, then things will get really out of hand.

Wang Longzhi's face darkened, and he took a deep breath, thinking of the brocade pouch that Xiao Min'er had left behind before she left.

He pulled open the drawer, intending to open it, but upon closer reflection, he remembered that Xiao Min'er had instructed him that it could only be opened if she died in the capital.

Xiao Min'er is currently just trapped in the capital.

Thinking of this, he put the brocade pouch back, closed his eyes slightly, and a look of hesitation appeared on his face.

If troops are sent to rescue Xiao Jingqi, the situation will spiral out of control.

However, if they do not rescue him and let Xiao Jingqi be killed by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, it will be almost impossible to trick another prince of Xiao Yuzheng out of the trap.

Seeing Wang Longzhi's hesitant expression, He Zhenhong said in a deep voice, "General, no matter what, we must make a decision as soon as possible."

Wang Longzhi was a talented general, but not a brilliant commander.

Wang Longzhi took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "Never mind that, let's save Xiao Jingqi first. Immediately dispatch the nearest 20,000 soldiers into the city! Bring the God-Slaying Crossbows used against cultivators."

At this point, Wang Longzhi's eyes also flashed with murderous intent as he said in a deep voice, "In addition, all officers above the rank of centurion in the general's camp are to be notified to assemble immediately and attack the Embroidered Uniform Guard together."

Most of the generals in the army above the rank of centurion are cultivators; of course, it's not that there's a lack of such skilled generals.

Rather, the situation was urgent. Since they were going to take action against the Embroidered Uniform Guard, they had to involve everyone, including all the generals.

Once they've boarded this pirate ship, getting off won't be easy.

……

Several houses on Jixi Street had already been destroyed and collapsed.

Amidst the ruins, Xie Yifeng, holding Xiao Jingqi with his left hand and a wooden sword in his right, continuously fended off attacks from the surrounding Imperial Guards.

The two of them were compressed into a circle with a diameter of less than three meters, with Jinyiwei experts constantly attacking from all sides.

"Senior, you really have to use your killer." Xiao Jingqi looked at Xie Yifeng holding a wooden sword, only injuring people but not killing them, and shouted anxiously, "If you keep fighting like this, we'll both die sooner or later."

“You’re doomed, but if I want to leave, they can’t stop me,” Xie Yifeng retorted, frowning. His wooden sword was incredibly fast, deflecting and repelling all weapons coming from all directions. On the rooftop in the distance, Jiang Yun and Linglong frowned deeply. Jiang Yun said in a low voice, “This old man is quite strong, but he’s unwilling to kill. Otherwise, with his strength, there would be hundreds of Imperial Guards dead or wounded.”

Looking at the wooden sword in the old man's hand, Linglong narrowed her eyes, as if she had thought of something. Her expression became even more serious, and she slowly said, "Jiang Yun, this old man's identity is probably not ordinary..."

"Of course I can tell..."

“What I mean is, this guy could be the Sword God Xie Yifeng.” Linglong swallowed.

Sword God Xie Yifeng?
Linglong slowly gripped the dagger in her hand and whispered, "It is said that the Sword God Xie Yifeng always carried a wooden sword with him when he traveled the world..."

"It's just that this man was too ruthless in his earlier years, and countless people died at his hands, which made him weary of killing. Now he is unwilling to kill easily anymore..."

Seeing this, Jiang Yun nodded slightly and was about to speak when suddenly, a bugle call came from afar.

woo woo woo...

As the long bugle call sounded, Jiang Yun and Linglong's expressions changed slightly as they looked towards the city gate. At that moment, a steady stream of elite troops was being brought into the city.

“This is bad. We must finish this quickly.” Linglong’s expression hardened. “Otherwise, once Wang Longzhi’s regular elite troops arrive… I’m afraid not many of your eight hundred Imperial Guards will be able to leave alive.”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yun quickly sat cross-legged on the ground, took a deep breath, and hurriedly opened the bag at his waist, taking out a thick stack of talismans.

Then, he made a hand seal and chanted in a low voice:
"The True King of the Realm, whose majesty governs the Nine Heavens. He holds the Three Elements in his hand and treads the Nine Mysteries with his feet. The Golden Tiger protects the sun, and the Flying Dragon encircles the heavens."

"The Yellow God wields the axe, the Green-Toothed Man holds the whip. He governs the Five Dippers and harmonizes the Seven Elements. I beseech the Supreme God to grant me longevity. Since the beginning of the Great Ultimate, I have lived for many years. I command you to hold the talisman and wield authority. So be it!"

In an instant, the stack of talismans in front of Jiang Yun shot straight into the sky, flying towards Xie Yifeng and Xiao Jingqi.

Dozens of talismans were arranged in a large circle, shimmering with a faint blue light, as the incantation was recited.

The surrounding clouds and mist converged towards Xie Yifeng and Xiao Jingqi's heads, and the originally pure white clouds turned into dark thunderclouds as they gathered.

"Everyone retreat!" Jiang Yun shouted loudly to his Imperial Guards.

Many of the Imperial Guards glanced up instinctively, and without hesitation, quickly retreated one by one.

"What is this?" Xiao Jingqi's expression changed completely after glancing at the sky above. As a cultivator himself, he could sense the terrifying power contained in the thundercloud above.

Xiao Jingqi couldn't help but gasp and looked at Jiang Yun on the roof in the distance. This guy had actually reached the third-grade Celestial Master realm!

This is the power of thunder magic that only a third-grade Celestial Master can unleash.

"Senior, we absolutely cannot let this lightning spell land." Xiao Jingqi said urgently to Xie Yifeng beside him, "You have profound magical power protecting you, so this lightning spell may not be able to deal with you, but I can't."

"You must kill that guy as soon as possible." Xiao Jingqi quickly pointed to Jiang Yun in the distance and said in a deep voice, "Senior, senior."

"I haven't killed anyone in a long time," Xie Yifeng said calmly.

"If I don't kill him, I'll be the one who dies."

"If I die, Wang Longzhi will not be able to accomplish what he wants to do!"

Boom!

Within the thunderclouds, purple light flickered. This was the True King's Thunder Decree, and its power was the strongest thunder technique that Jiang Yun could currently unleash.

"Edict!"

Jiang Yun pointed with both hands.

Boom.

A massive bolt of purple lightning roared down, hurtling towards Xie Yifeng and Xiao Jingqi.

Just at this moment.

The wooden sword in Xie Yifeng's hand cracked slightly, and he raised his hand and swung the sword towards the sky.

A sword aura and purple lightning collided in mid-air.

The enormous explosion resounded throughout half of Wuling Prefecture, and the shockwave from the collision of the two powerful magical forces even blew the roof tiles off houses within several miles.

Many of the elite Imperial Guards nearby were so shaken by the aftershocks that they almost lost their footing.

Xiao Jingqi, who was in the very center, was so shocked that his internal organs were damaged, and he spat out a mouthful of bright red blood.

His eyes were bloodshot as he stared in disbelief at Jiang Yun in the distance. This guy's lightning magic was terrifying to such an extent.

Just then, Xiao Jingqi heard the sound of something falling.

He turned his head and saw that the wooden sword in Xie Yifeng's hand had already shattered.

The wooden sword is merely decoration; it's just a scabbard.

Inside the large wooden sword, there were actually seven slender swords.

Xie Yifeng waved his hand lightly, and seven precious swords instantly flew into the air and surrounded him.

"These seven precious swords were seized by me from seven masters of swordsmanship, and have not been seen again for many years."

"I once said that when the Seven Swords reappear, blood must be shed."

(End of this chapter)