Chapter 383 - 229: A Glorious Return

Chapter 383: Chapter 229: A Glorious Return

’Besides that Flood Dragon demon, Captain Su has gotten himself a Cyan Eagle Demon Pet now?’

’This is just unbelievable.’

’One can burrow through the earth, and the other can fly...’

He clambered onto Garuda’s back, trembling with apprehension.

Then he watched as Su Mu moved the injured Taiping Captains, along with the corpses of the Pure Land Sect followers, onto the Cyan Eagle Demon’s back.

"Garuda, let’s go!"

WHOOSH!

Garuda soared into the sky.

Although Liu Huayuan and the others were all heavily injured, their faces were filled with excitement.

Feeling the strong wind rush against their faces, they couldn’t help but look around in every direction.

Flying was an ability reserved for experts at the Nascent Soul Realm and above. Most of them would likely never touch that realm in their entire lives.

’Flying through the air was just too difficult!’

"I never thought the day would come when I, Old Li, would get to fly."

A Taiping Captain who was getting on in years couldn’t help but sigh with emotion.

"Surviving a great disaster is a sign of good fortune to come."

Liu Huayuan said through gritted teeth, "If we work hard and push ourselves when we get back, we might just be able to break through to the Nascent Soul Realm. Then we can soar through the sky with our own bodies, free as can be."

The others just listened.

How long had it been since a powerhouse above the Nascent Soul Realm had appeared in the Taiping Bureau?

Forget the Nascent Soul Realm; even the Core Formation Realm was already far beyond their reach.

...

「Hujue Pass.」

The tops of the city walls bristled like a forest of blades and spears.

Soldiers of the Border Defense Army paced back and forth along the walls, periodically observing the situation outside the pass.

Suddenly, a soldier shouted.

"A demon is attacking!"

In the distance, a massive Cyan Eagle Demon appeared in their field of vision.

WOOO! WOOO! WOOO!

The sound of a horn echoed.

The soldiers on the walls instantly tensed up.

The defensive crossbow carriages had already turned and aimed at the demon flying in the air.

Avian demons were undoubtedly one of the most difficult types of demons to deal with.

They could fly, rendering the city walls almost useless as a defense against them.

And normal attacks had difficulty hitting them; only powerful bows and heavy crossbows could have some effect.

But judging by the size of this Cyan Eagle Demon, it was highly likely a Tier Four Demon.

The Demon-Breaking Crossbow Carriages at Hujue Pass might not even be able to threaten it.

With a sound of rushing wind, Yang Changfeng, the Commander-in-Chief of the Hujue Pass Taiping Bureau, appeared on the city wall.

He stared with a grave expression at the approaching Cyan Eagle Demon.

"Thankfully, there’s only one."

Yang Changfeng thought to himself. ’If there’s only one, it’s not a large-scale invasion from the Demon Court.’

’But that makes sense,’ he mused. ’Da Xuan just concluded peace talks with the Demon Court. It’s impossible for the Demon Court to send troops at a time like this.’

’In that case, this must be a wild demon, not under the Demon Court’s control.’

Such demons often attacked Hujue Pass.

Generally, they were looking for food.

Most of the time, Hujue Pass could repel them. Occasionally, an avian demon like this would break through into Hujue Pass and cause some casualties.

Overall, it wasn’t a huge problem.

"Fire—"

Yang Changfeng roared.

Suddenly, he swallowed the rest of the command.

"Hold your fire!"

Yang Changfeng commanded.

The soldiers on the wall all looked confused.

If they didn’t act soon, the Cyan Eagle Demon would be right on top of the city walls.

At its speed, they wouldn’t have time to attack.

It all happened in an instant.

The Cyan Eagle Demon had already flown over the city wall.

The powerful wind from the flapping of its wings buffeted the faces of the soldiers on the wall, and those with slightly weaker cultivation began to stagger and sway.

"Commander-in-Chief—"

They looked at Yang Changfeng in a panic.

THUD!

THUD!

THUD!

Just then, bodies began to fall from the sky one after another, slamming onto the top of the wall like dumplings being dropped into a pot.

Immediately after, a voice called out.

"Make some room, everyone, we’re coming in for a landing."

As the voice spoke, the Cyan Eagle Demon folded its wings and actually landed on the city wall.

The top of Hujue Pass’s wall was very wide, but the Cyan Eagle Demon was so enormous that it took up a huge section, pushing the defending soldiers to the side.

"Su Mu!"

Yang Changfeng said in a deep voice. He really hadn’t been mistaken!

"Commander Yang, long time no see. I trust you’ve been well."

Su Mu jumped down from the Cyan Eagle Demon’s back and cupped his fists toward Yang Changfeng.

"Liu Zhenfu Envoy and the others are severely injured. Let’s get them medical attention first. We can talk about everything else later."

Su Mu said, pointing at the people on Garuda’s back.

Only then did Yang Changfeng notice Liu Huayuan and the others. His expression grew solemn, and he quickly called people over to carry them down.

After sending Liu Huayuan and his men off for treatment, Yang Changfeng returned to Su Mu.

By now, Xu Chongyuan, Shi Ziran, and others had also heard the news and rushed over, excitedly surrounding Su Mu and peppering him with questions.

The Cyan Eagle Demon stood nearby, preening its feathers as if it had nothing to do with anything.

Yang Changfeng looked at Garuda and felt a profound sense of threat from it.

"Captain Su, this is—"

Yang Changfeng couldn’t help but ask.

It wasn’t that he was inexperienced, but this was simply too shocking.

The Taiping Bureau did have people who could tame demons, but those were usually Tier One or Tier Two demons. Moreover, the taming process had to start from the demon’s infancy; only then would they obey human commands once grown.

But this Cyan Eagle Demon before him had to be at least Tier Four.

A Tier Four Demon was on par with him in terms of strength.

He couldn’t fathom how Su Mu had managed it.

"His name is Garuda."

Su Mu smiled faintly and said, "He’s one of us now. Don’t worry, Commander Yang. I’ve given him instructions. He won’t hurt people randomly."

’I’m not worried. I want to know how you did it.’

Yang Changfeng grumbled inwardly, his face a mask of envy.

’He wanted to tame a demon like this too.’

"So, Junior Brother Su, the reason you lingered outside the pass for so long was because of Garuda?"

Xu Chongyuan asked.

"You could say that."

Su Mu said, "I could have been back earlier, but on the way, we ran into members of the Pure Land Sect attacking Liu Zhenfu Envoy and his people. It took some time to eliminate those fiends."

"The Pure Land Sect deserves to die!"

Xu Chongyuan cursed. The Pure Land Sect was the reason Su Mu had been forced to cover the retreat before.

"I’ve examined the body. The person you killed should be the Pure Land Sect’s Cyan Lotus Envoy."

Yang Changfeng glanced around, and seeing no outsiders, he lowered his voice and said.

"The Cyan Lotus Envoy?"

Xu Chongyuan, Shi Ziran, and the others looked utterly shocked.

The Pure Land Sect’s Cyan Lotus Envoy was a Core Formation Realm expert.

’Is Su Mu already capable of killing a Core Formation Realm expert?’

’No, that can’t be right. Su Mu probably didn’t do it himself. It must have been Ao Qing.’

’But there’s no real difference between Ao Qing killing them and Su Mu doing it himself. After all, Ao Qing obeys Su Mu’s commands.’

"That’s right."

Yang Changfeng said, "I’ve already given orders that this matter is not to be spread. Publicly, I will claim that I was the one who killed the Cyan Lotus Envoy."

"Because of Sha Tongtian’s death, the Pure Land Sect already has you in their sights. If they find out you also killed the Cyan Lotus Envoy, they will definitely send even stronger assassins after you."

Yang Changfeng continued, "Although the Bureau will increase its efforts to suppress the Pure Land Sect after this, these fiends are like rats in a sewer—it’s hard to wipe them out completely.

For your own safety, it’s best to handle this matter with discretion.

But don’t worry, you’ll get full credit for the achievement."

"In that case, my thanks, Commander Yang."

Su Mu said, cupping his fists.

"Since you didn’t return for a while, Zhu Jiuyuan and the others have already gone back to the Capital City to report."

Yang Changfeng waved his hand and continued, "There’s no need for you to go after them.

Zhu Jiuyuan is a decent person; he won’t try to steal your credit.

There’s nothing great about the Capital City anyway. It’s a waste of time to travel back and forth.

I suggest you rest for a while, either here at Hujue Pass or back in Wuling. Wait for the imperial court’s reward to be announced. After that, you’ll probably have to relocate."

"What do you mean?"

Su Mu asked, confused.

"You don’t really think the imperial court fails to distinguish between merits and faults, do you?"

Yang Changfeng said, "You were the single greatest contributor to the safe return of the Da Xuan Envoy. Combined with your previous merits, you might just become the youngest Governor in the history of the Taiping Bureau.

Once you become a Governor, you’ll have to take charge of a region. As for which place you’ll be assigned to defend, that will depend on the considerations of the Marquises and the imperial court.

However, I estimate they won’t let you stay in Wuling."