Chapter 553: Brother, Look, Is That Aunt Zhao?

Chapter 553 -302: Brother, Look, Is That Aunt Zhao?

“Brother, are these Xingzi coming for us?” Su Liyan asked in a low voice.

Su Liyan didn’t dare let her guard down for a second, determined to protect Lu Yuan, who stood behind her.

“I can’t be sure yet. They don’t seem like a pack,” Lu Yuan said, observing the Xingzi in the woods.

The Xingzi came in all shapes and sizes. Some had sharp fangs, while others emanated a poisonous mist.

Fortunately, these were all corporeal Xingzi with physical bodies, which made them somewhat easier to deal with.

Su Liyan flicked her sleeve, unleashing a powerful, oppressive aura.

Lu Yuan immediately withdrew the Invisible Air Wall, coordinating with Su Liyan to catch the Xingzi completely off guard.

Wielding the Soaring Snake Fang Dagger in his right hand, Lu Yuan leaped into their midst.

Streaks of Sword Qi flew everywhere as Lu Yuan engaged the Xingzi in a fierce battle.

Lu Yuan gripped his dagger, mixing in a powerful Fist Technique as he became entangled with the crowd of Xingzi.

Each punch whistled through the air, landing with the solid, satisfying thud of fist meeting flesh.

Lu Yuan’s clothes were torn in several places, but his body was unharmed.

Lu Yuan was already holding back. He used his fists whenever possible, avoiding the Soaring Snake Fang Dagger.

The Soaring Snake Fang Dagger was coated in venom.

A mere scratch to a Xingzi’s skin was enough to either paralyze it within moments or kill it outright.

Meanwhile, Su Liyan continuously cast ranged attack Techniques from the rear, providing cover for her man.

After a difficult battle, the two gradually discovered the Xingzi’s weakness.

These Xingzi were powerful, but they lacked coordination and failed to form a pincer-like encirclement.

Lu Yuan weaved through the Xingzi with ease.

Lu Yuan saw his chance and thrust his dagger toward a Da Xingzi that possessed nearly a thousand years of power.

This Da Xingzi appeared to be the leader of the pack.

Su Liyan seized the opportunity to unleash a powerful Technique.

A sharp CRACK echoed through the air.

Not far in front of Su Liyan, a rift in space appeared.

“Brother, look! What’s happening?” Su Liyan asked.

Lu Yuan stared at the spatial rift and exclaimed in excitement, “A Space Secret Skill!”

‘What an unexpected success!’

‘To think that under these circumstances, Su Liyan has managed to grasp the rudiments of a Space Secret Skill.’

The rift generated a powerful gravitational pull, immobilizing all the Xingzi.

The Dao Banners Lu Yuan had originally placed at the four corners were ripped from the ground and sucked into the spatial rift.

The Space Secret Technique Su Liyan had cast was like a miniature black hole, generating an immense devouring force.

The rift was too small to swallow the Xingzi whole, but its pull was strong enough to completely restrict their movement.

Su Liyan raised a hand, and several High Level Explosive Talismans materialized in her palm.

Lu Yuan stopped her. “Honey, wait!”

If Lu Yuan hadn’t intervened, the handful of High Level Explosive Talismans in Su Liyan’s possession would have been enough to blast the paralyzed Xingzi to dust.

Su Liyan hesitated, looking for confirmation. “Brother?”

“These Xingzi have tracking marks on them. They’re not wild!” Lu Yuan said, lifting the corpse of one of the creatures.

Lu Yuan had noticed the marks on the Xingzi during the fight.

‘If Su Liyan blasts all these Xingzi to dust, it’ll be hard to explain things if someone comes looking for them!’

As they spoke, a heavy, massive net dropped from the sky.

It was wide enough to completely envelop both Lu Yuan and Su Liyan.

Lu Yuan acted decisively, slashing at the net with his Soaring Snake Fang Dagger.

Several flashes of Sword Qi sliced the heavy net into four pieces.

“Who’s there?”

A deep, resonant voice called down from the mountaintop.

Lu Yuan looked up to see dozens of paragliders circling in the air.

Su Liyan was still casting her Technique, suppressing the Xingzi that had rushed out of the woods.

‘Paragliders?’

‘Wasn’t this an idea I came up with before? We used them on the Northern front.’

‘And now they’re appearing here.’

The dozens of paragliders slowly descended, landing in a nearby clearing.

Dozens of men unstrapped their paragliders and walked up to Lu Yuan.

One of the men demanded angrily, “Who are you? Why are you interfering with our property and disrupting our operation?”

These men had been lying in ambush on the mountaintop since early morning, but Lu Yuan had used a few tricks of his own.

As a result, they hadn’t discovered Lu Yuan and Su Liyan in the valley.

The man’s immediate, blistering accusation left both Lu Yuan and Su Liyan stunned.

They had been peacefully cultivating here when they were disturbed by these Xingzi. They had only fought back in self-defense, yet now they were being treated as the culprits.

Lu Yuan’s expression darkened. He sheathed his dagger and announced, “I am the Commander of the Left and Right Guards of the Mansion Army!”

“Lord Commander?” the leader murmured, not quite believing Lu Yuan’s claim.

‘To become a Third Grade Military Officer in one’s early twenties…’

‘Even the famed Marquis Yongchang, Lan Yu, didn’t have such a smooth career path.’

Another man stepped forward and whispered something in the leader’s ear.

“Forgive my impertinence! I was not aware of the Lord Commander’s presence. I have offended you, my lord. Please grant me your pardon!”

The leader immediately dropped to one knee, bowing his head to Lu Yuan.

The dozen or so men behind him quickly followed suit, all dropping to one knee.

Lu Yuan did not press the issue. “All of you, rise. Stand and speak.”

“Yes, my lord!” The leader gestured, and the men behind him all rose to their feet.

Lu Yuan asked, “What unit are you from? And what are you doing here?”

“My lord, we are from the Yulin Right Guard. We are here to capture Xingzi,” the leader answered with utmost respect.

The Yulin Right Guard was part of the Court’s Imperial Guard.

Although Lu Yuan wasn’t their direct superior, his rank still gave him a degree of authority over them.

“Go! Have your men take control of those Xingzi and relieve my wife!” Lu Yuan ordered, pointing to Su Liyan, who was still maintaining her spell.

Su Liyan seized the opportunity to retract her space Technique.

The dozen or so men surged forward, pulled out Spirit Capturing Devices from within their robes, and began detaining the controlled Xingzi within them.

Seeing the Spirit Capturing Devices in their hands, Lu Yuan finally believed their story.

If they weren’t using Spirit Capturing Devices to detain Xingzi, there would have been no reason for them to herd these wild creatures into this valley.

They must have stumbled upon this place by accident as well.

Su Liyan came to Lu Yuan’s side and whispered, “Brother, it’s getting late. We should head back soon.”

With Su Liyan’s reminder, Lu Yuan noticed that the sky had grown dark.

If they returned too late, they would surely worry everyone back home.

Lu Yuan didn’t exchange any more words with the soldiers. He took Su Liyan’s hand, turned, and walked away.

The soldiers called out to Lu Yuan’s retreating figure, “Take care, my lord!”

After Lu Yuan was a good distance away, the leader let out a long sigh of relief and said:

“That Lord Commander has a surprisingly good temper. If it had been any other commander, we’d be lucky to escape with just a whipping.”

Another soldier came up and whispered to the leader:

“General, that Lord Commander is a bit strange, isn’t he? Bringing a woman of the Half-demon Race all the way out here. I wonder what they were up to.”

The General turned and whacked him on the head, scolding,

“You’re still just a kid. Don’t stick your nose where it doesn’t belong. A man of his stature has his own… tastes. How could the likes of you and I possibly understand?”

The soldier who was hit rubbed his head and said, “You’re right, General. I spoke out of turn!”

The General watched Lu Yuan’s departing figure and muttered under his breath,

“This is a pretty good spot for a ‘roll in the hay.’ I just wonder if you’d freeze your ass off.

If I ever make it to the position of Jinyiwei Commander, I’ll have way more fun than he does!”

Lu Yuan and Su Liyan walked for several more miles before they reached the outskirts of the Imperial City.

The sharp-eyed Su Liyan spotted a large procession of several dozen people emerging from the West Gate of the Imperial City.

Leading the group was none other than Zhao Qiao’Er!

Su Liyan pouted, pointing toward the West Gate of the Imperial City. “Brother, look. Isn’t that Aunt Zhao?”