Catching Monsters

Chapter 468 Sending the Elixir into the Palace
The arrow from the God-Slaying Crossbow carried a power that seemed capable of destroying everything. As it flew, even the air around the arrowhead became chaotic, as if it were about to tear space apart.

Jiang Yun's expression changed drastically. He kicked his legs and casually tossed out a talisman:
"Dongjia Qianyuan Heng, righteous energy swiftly flows. I receive long life, the boundary between heaven and earth is vast."

"The six gods quickly descend their qi, helping me to ward off evil spirits; the hidden talisman follows my incantation, and when used, the Black Tortoise rises."

"Hurry up as a law!"

The moment he finished reciting the incantation, Jiang Yun threw the talisman in his hand.

In an instant, a defensive barrier shaped like a tortoise shell formed in mid-air.

The crossbow bolts, undiminished in power, pierced the defensive barrier in an instant.

In an instant, cracks appeared on the tortoise-shell-shaped barrier.

However, as its power gradually faded, the formidable God-Slaying Crossbow bolt fell to the ground with a thud.

Upon seeing this, Zhang Yao, who had already returned to the city wall, stared wide-eyed at Jiang Yun in the distance, seemingly in disbelief.

No, this guy's strength is definitely no longer at the third-grade Celestial Master level.

Although it was only a single God-Slaying Crossbow bolt, it wouldn't be so easy to kill a third-grade Celestial Master.

However, it is not so simple to withstand the power of the God-Slaying Crossbow so easily.

"Ready, fire all eleven arrows at once!" Zhang Yao shouted.

One arrow isn't enough, eleven arrows—he wants to see how Jiang Yun will block them.

Even if his strength wasn't at the third rank, he would never dare to confront him head-on.

At this moment, Jiang Yun, holding the Three Pure Ones Flying Staff, flew in mid-air, narrowed his eyes slightly, stared at Zhang Yao, and said indifferently, "The power of this God-Slaying Crossbow is truly extraordinary."

"What a pity."

Jiang Yun sighed slightly and said, "It must not be easy to make these things."

Just now, Jiang Yun only wanted to see how powerful this legendary God-Slaying Crossbow really was.

Now that we have a judgment, we'll have a better way to deal with it if we encounter it again in the future.

Now that we've seen it for ourselves, there's no need to hold back anymore.

After speaking, Jiang Yun tossed up more than a dozen yellow talismans:

"From the chaos and formlessness, all things were born. Heaven and earth opened up, and thunder and lightning moved. O Great Brahma, the pavilion of different laws arose."

"When Yin and Yang intertwine, the sun and moon revolve. The golden light shines forth, and the essence of things becomes clear. Recite this once, and thunder will descend."

"Urgent as a law."

boom!
In an instant, a pitch-black and oppressive thundercloud appeared above the south gate.

The thunderclouds rumbled with a deep, muffled thunder.

Then a deafening roar followed, in an instant.

More than a dozen bolts of lightning, each as thick as a water bucket, roared down.

In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen God-Slaying Crossbows on the city wall were instantly annihilated, turning into countless fragments.

The soldiers operating the God-Slaying Crossbows around them were also caught in the crossfire and died instantly.

Fortunately, Zhang Yao reacted quickly enough. He wasn't far from the God-Slaying Crossbow, and he managed to dodge it thanks to his timely reaction and quick evasion.

He couldn't help but look at Jiang Yun in shock, thinking to himself, "This Taoist magic is really a powerful weapon against the God-Slaying Crossbow!"
It should be understood that if one were to possess martial arts cultivation, whether at the third or second rank, it would be utterly impossible to destroy more than ten God-Slaying Crossbows so quickly.

Zhang Yao knew in his heart that it would be difficult to deal with Jiang Yun today, so he turned and prepared to flee down the city wall.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Yun, who was in mid-air, waved his whisk, and the whisk's tail turned into a length of tens of meters, instantly binding Zhang Yao tightly.

Jiang Yun glanced at Linglong beside her and said, "Let's retreat first and ask Zhang Yao what's going on."

After saying that, Jiang Yun and his group retreated to the rear.

Linglong took the lead.

It means, literally, to be the first to take the lead.

She rode her horse, brandishing her spear, and charged towards the imperial guards surrounding her, scattering them in an instant.

The group then fled at an extremely fast pace.

After Zhang Yao was captured, the Imperial Guards were leaderless and looked at each other, unsure of what to do next.

... About half an hour later, Jiang Yun and his group stopped to rest in a dense forest, while Zhang Yao remained bound by the whisk.

Jiang Yun casually tossed him under a tree and said coldly, "Commander Zhang, it seems we need to have a good talk about the current situation in the capital."

Zhang Yao lay down beside a tree, snorted coldly, and slowly said, "Jiang Yun, so what if you capture me? There are still a large number of imperial guards guarding the capital."

"If you want to force your way in."

"To be honest, your strength is indeed remarkable. I'm afraid you've already reached the second rank, right?"

"But if you try to force your way into the imperial city, your second-grade cultivation level is not enough. Countless experts could take your life."

Jiang Yun listened to Zhang Yao's words and only smiled faintly. She believed what Zhang Yao said.

Although he has now reached the second-grade cultivation level, he has not become arrogant or careless and has directly stormed into the capital.

Because he didn't know which other subordinates Xiao Jingfu had, or whether there were any experts at the same second-grade level as him.

After all, I've been away from the capital for too long.

At the same time, Zhang Yao gave Jiang Yun a cold look and said, "And do you think capturing me is enough?"

"You probably don't know this, but your sister is already in His Highness the Crown Prince's hands. He can kill her at any time if he wants to."

At this point, Zhang Yao took a deep breath, a smile appearing on his face. He glanced at the soldiers around him; there were some things he couldn't say.

Seeing this, Jiang Yun waved his hand, signaling the soldiers and others around him to retreat first.

Soon, only Jiang Yun, Linglong, and Zhang Yao remained.

Zhang Yao then slowly said, "Jiang Yun, to be honest, His Highness the Crown Prince likes talented people. You are quite capable now and are the commander of the Eastern Garrison. Why not try to be more open-minded?"

"If we bring back the elixirs and medicines from the immortal island and present them to His Highness the Crown Prince, what wealth and glory wouldn't we have?"

"His Majesty the Emperor is now terminally ill, and his condition is beyond saving."

"But His Highness the Crown Prince is still young. He can guarantee you a life of wealth and comfort for the rest of your days."

Hearing Zhang Yao's words, Jiang Yun touched his nose, seemingly lost in thought. After a long while, Jiang Yun slowly said, "Lord Zhang, what you said makes a lot of sense."

"But."

"Who told you that we obtained elixirs from the immortal island?" At this point, Jiang Yun looked at Linglong beside him and slowly said, "What did the immortals on the immortal island say?"

Linglong then said slowly with a cold face, "The immortals on the Immortal Island said that birth, aging, sickness and death are the cycle of heaven. The so-called medicine that can prolong life is just a rumor. There is no such thing in the world."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yao's expression turned somewhat strange. He stared intently at Jiang Yun and asked, "What do you mean? You didn't obtain the spiritual medicine?"

Zhang Yao knew that His Highness the Crown Prince had gone to such great lengths, even mobilizing the Imperial Guards, just to snatch the elixir from Jiang Yun.

They refused to allow Xiao Yuzheng to continue living.

Jiang Yun's face darkened, and she said coldly, "You didn't even ask me if I had obtained the spiritual medicine."

"On the contrary, while I was still on my way back to the capital, they sent a eunuch to grab my sister's arm and scare me."

"I just arrived in the capital, and you, without even distinguishing right from wrong, brought the Imperial Guards to attack me."

"What do you think I can do?"

Hearing Jiang Yun's words, Zhang Yao's eyes turned strange. He stared at Jiang Yun and asked, "What do you want to do?"

Jiang Yun took a deep breath, slowly squatted down in front of Zhang Yao, and said in a low voice, "Lord Zhang, you need to go back to the capital."

“I, Jiang Yun, am not a stubborn rock that cannot be swayed by either soft or hard tactics. I have failed to obtain the elixir to return to the capital, and His Majesty clearly does not have much time left to live.”

"How could I not think of myself?" Jiang Yun said in a deep voice, "If Your Highness the Crown Prince is willing, I can go to the Crown Prince's residence to apologize to Your Highness."

"I'll still be begging for food from His Highness the Crown Prince in the future, so tell me, is it worth it for me to fight him to the death?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yao narrowed his eyes slightly and couldn't help but praise Jiang Yun, saying, "It seems that you are quite a smart man, brother."

Zhang Yao breathed a heavy sigh of relief. He was now afraid that Jiang Yun would fight to the death, since he was still in Jiang Yun's hands.

Seeing Jiang Yun's attitude, he breathed a sigh of relief. Soon, Jiang Yun called out, "Someone, give Lord Zhang a horse and send him back to the capital."

Zhang Yao, with a broad smile, mounted his horse and dared not linger, fearing that Jiang Yun might change his mind and quickly ride away.

Watching Zhang Yao's departing figure, Linglong was somewhat puzzled: "You just let him go like that?"

“Killing him is pointless, and besides,” Jiang Yun nodded, took a deep breath, and slowly said, “the most important thing right now is to get Wen Chen to deliver the elixir to the palace. If he is in our hands, the Imperial Guards’ security will remain tight.”

(End of this chapter)