Tied Up the Flying Dragon Army

"Eldest Senior Brother!"

Baiyun Zi's eyes lit up, and she smiled until her eyes narrowed into slits.

In truth, Zhang Yang and the other Azure Cloud Seven Sons all knew that Azure Cloud Master had made a move.

Because Azure Cloud Sect had no one else capable of such a thing besides Azure Cloud Master.

Zhang Yang was dumbstruck. He truly had not expected his master to be this terrifying.

The other Azure Cloud Seven Sons were almost all in the Nascent Soul Realm.

Thus, Zhang Yang had subconsciously assumed that Azure Cloud Master was also in the Nascent Soul Realm.

It was not until Ling Yunzi said last time that Azure Cloud Master had beaten Tan Qiushui of Langya Sacred Land that Zhang Yang realized Azure Cloud Master's strength was far more terrifying than it appeared.

Yet this still far exceeded Zhang Yang's imagination.

His heart surged like a raging tide. This was what Immortal Cultivation was supposed to be, damn it!

He saw the giant hand conjured from white clouds seize the Cloud Mountain Empire's Dragon Boat and smash it toward the ground. A thought flashed through his mind, and he hurriedly shouted, "Don't break it! Don't kill them—keep them alive and make them pay ransom!"

How desperately did Azure Cloud Sect need money right now?

Although Situ Mingyue had brought a million Spirit Stones, that was nowhere near enough.

The Cloud Mountain Empire now had three thousand Flying Dragon Army soldiers, a Third Prince, and a huge flying vessel... How much were those worth?

The giant hand formed from white clouds had been about to slam the Dragon Boat into the ground. Azure Cloud Master must have heard Zhang Yang's words and stopped. The Dragon Boat was set down on the ground.

By this point, the three thousand Flying Dragon Army soldiers had long since been scared stiff and did not dare move.

The Third Prince sat on the Dragon Boat's deck with a pale face, having long lost his previous arrogant demeanor.

As for the red-robed eunuch, he was naturally gone.

Zhang Yang first went to Biling Zi's side and asked with concern, "Fourth Uncle, are you alright?"

Biling Zi raised her hand to recall the Formation Disk, wiped the corner of her mouth, and said fiercely, "Are you hoping something happened to me? The formation merely did not operate smoothly, and I suffered a little backlash. What could possibly be wrong? Still, this disaster turned into a blessing. I found one weakness in my formation and gained quite a lot."

Seeing that Biling Zi was still discussing how to improve her formation, Zhang Yang knew she was not seriously hurt.

Only then did he walk to the Dragon Boat, glance at the Third Prince, and say to the Flying Dragon Army, "Everyone off the ship. Squat over there with your hands on your heads. Anyone who moves dies! Fifth Uncle, come confiscate this Dragon Boat."

His skill in Talismans was still inferior to Hualingzi's. For such an enormous flying vessel, Hualingzi was the one who had to handle it.

The Flying Dragon Army soldiers hung their heads in dejection and obediently disembarked as Zhang Yang ordered, all of them squatting to one side with their hands on their heads.

They did not actually know why they had to put their hands on their heads... but now, they could only obey.

Hualingzi eagerly boarded the flying vessel and began studying the Talismans on it.

To him, that was the greatest interest of all.

"Third Prince, are you not getting down yet? Do you need me to pick you up and throw you down?" Zhang Yang asked flatly as he looked at the Third Prince.

"I am a member of the imperial family. You..."

Zhang Yang gave a cold laugh. "If I had not spared your life, you would have died just now. Get down this instant, or I will do it myself."

He had no favorable impression of this Third Prince.

The Third Prince lowered his head and walked off the flying vessel, though his eyes were filled with resentment.

After driving everyone off the flying vessel, Zhang Yang began confiscating the various talisman bows and arrows aboard. He even found a large amount of Spirit Stones, along with plentiful supplies for the Flying Dragon Army.

In the sky, Ling Yunzi and Xu Bai, who had been fighting fiercely, had already stopped.

When the Flying Dragon Army was about to charge into Azure Cloud Sect, Xu Bai had thought Ling Yunzi would return to save it. He had desperately suppressed Ling Yunzi, refusing to let him retreat to Azure Cloud Sect.

Yet he had not expected Ling Yunzi to make no other move at all.

Only after what happened next did Xu Bai finally understand what was going on.

He stared at Ling Yunzi in utter shock and asked, "Your Azure Cloud Sect has an expert like this as well?"

Had he known earlier that Azure Cloud Sect possessed such an expert, he would not have been so overbearing.

Ling Yunzi gave a cold smile. "We have not finished fighting. Continue."

It was rare to find an opportunity to spar. It would be a pity not to continue.

"Is there still any need to fight?" Xu Bai gave a bitter smile.

This time, they had suffered a crushing defeat.

"Since you will not fight, then surrender without resistance." Ling Yunzi snorted coldly. "Seal your Nascent Soul yourself, or we will continue."

Xu Bai let out a long sigh, descended to the ground, and sealed his own Nascent Soul.

He had not considered fleeing. Eunuch Xi's fate had already shown him that they could not escape at all.

Only after Zhang Yang had thoroughly looted the flying vessel did he step down and say to Xu Bai, "You may go back."

"You are letting us leave?" Xu Bai found it unbelievable. Was this matter really going to be resolved just like that?

Zhang Yang said blandly, "Go back and tell your master this: ask him how much three thousand Flying Dragon Army soldiers, one prince, and one Dragon Boat are worth. Once he has calculated it, send us the money. Other materials may be used in exchange as well.

"Oh, and aside from this matter, the previous matter has not been settled. He must also give us an explanation for that."

Xu Bai froze.

Was this not kidnapping for ransom?

Every Immortal Cultivator he had met possessed the bearing of a lofty master. He had never seen an Immortal Cultivator with such a kidnapping-for-ransom bearing as this one!

Then his expression changed.

He could imagine just how furious the emperor would be upon hearing this news.

But did they have any other choice now?

"I... Please treat our people well. I will bring the news back as quickly as possible," Xu Bai said bitterly.

"Please." Zhang Yang gestured.

Xu Bai nodded toward the Third Prince, released the seal on his Nascent Soul, and flew away.

Just after Xu Bai left, Qin Yushu flew over from Qingyun Market and landed before the mountain gate. Looking at the three thousand Flying Dragon Army soldiers and the enormous Dragon Boat, he asked in uncertainty, "Did Azure Cloud Master just make a move?"

The flying vessel defended at full strength by three thousand Flying Dragon Army soldiers possessed combat power that absolutely exceeded the Nascent Soul Realm.

Even so, that flying vessel had been toyed with like a toy... The crucial point was that Azure Cloud Master had never appeared from beginning to end, yet displayed such power from a distant location.

Was this Azure Cloud Master's strength?

Zhang Yang did not answer Qin Yushu directly. Instead, he smiled and said, "Uncle Ling Yun, since Senior Qin is worried about his junior sister's safety, let him wait until this matter is resolved before leaving. During this time, please entertain him."

Ling Yunzi gestured to Qin Yushu and smiled. "Fellow Daoist, please!"

Qin Yushu nodded and followed Ling Yunzi up Cloud Soaring Peak.

Only after the dust settled did Situ Mingyue run over. She looked over the situation before asking Zhang Yang, "Eldest Senior Brother, was that Master's doing just now?"

"Probably!" Zhang Yang was not certain either. After all, he had not seen anyone and did not know whether Azure Cloud Sect had other people hidden away.

"Haha, I knew joining Azure Cloud Sect was an incredibly wise decision." Situ Mingyue laughed.

She knew the Flying Dragon Army's strength. It was the sharpest sword of the Cloud Mountain Empire, solving many of the empire's problems. In truth, the Cloud Soaring Empire possessed a similar force as well.

This was the only means ordinary empires had devised to contend against Immortal Cultivators, and it was also an indispensable force.

Now that the Cloud Mountain Empire had broken its wings, even if the Cloud Soaring Empire learned that she was in Azure Cloud Sect, it would pose no threat to Azure Cloud Sect.

She could remain in Azure Cloud Sect without worry.

Those disciples who had just entered Azure Cloud Sect had also witnessed the scene just now. When they saw Azure Cloud Sect achieve a great victory, cheers erupted from the crowd.

The scales in the hearts of those hesitant disciples slowly tipped, and they made their decisions.

They were children to begin with, and their minds were not firm. They could easily be influenced by the outside world.

Now that they had seen Azure Cloud Sect's strength, coupled with the ideological education Zhang Yang had carried out earlier, they naturally began to identify with Azure Cloud Sect.

Only Cao Ying and the other disciples had faces as white as snow.

Their faces were full of disbelief. The invincible Flying Dragon Army of the Cloud Mountain Empire had been defeated just like that?

Three thousand Flying Dragon Army soldiers were all squatting to one side with their hands on their heads. What kind of sight was that...

Then, something even more unacceptable to Cao Ying and the others appeared.

After Zhang Yang finished collecting the spoils of war, he walked before the Flying Dragon Army and asked, "Before the Cloud Mountain Empire redeems you, you will have to work for my Azure Cloud Sect. Azure Cloud Sect has many projects waiting for you to begin! No work, no food. My Azure Cloud Sect does not support idlers."