Chapter 153: Catch the turtle in the jar, capture and kill [Subscribe]

"It's such a waste, throwing away so many magical tablets." Cao Cao said.

"It might be unsafe if we don't throw enough. What if we can't control him?" Jia Xu said.

Cao Cao glanced at the bronze plate that almost pushed the Taoist to his knees, on which was written the words "Mountain Guarding Stele" in Qin seal script.

This copper plate inscription has a long history and it belongs to the Qin Dynasty.

The writing on the stele is from the handwriting of the First Emperor, copied onto a copper plate. Although its power has slightly diminished, it is still comparable to that of a saint.

It was used to suppress a certain mountain range at that time.

Later, it was taken into the tomb after the death of an important official of the Qin Dynasty.

The other small sword is a scraper used by the saint to make bamboo slips. It comes from a semi-saint of Confucianism in the Spring and Autumn Period.

With these two things working together, it's no wonder that the Taoist priest, who had cultivated Taoist qi to the level of supernatural powers and whose power flowed in harmony with heaven and earth, was still easily penetrated by the small sword.

Jia Xu stepped forward quickly, took back the bronze plate and held it tightly.

He looked around the dense forest cautiously and said, "Governor, since you have come to a place like this, you should leave as soon as possible."

Cao Cao didn't feel any danger anyway. As long as Jia Xu was around, he was safe.

The only regret is that Jia Xu only took action to protect himself.

The last blow of the bronze sword seemed not strong enough, and the Taoist priest was severely injured when he fell to the ground.

When he came closer, the Taoist priest died.

However, this Taoist's methods are not top-notch.

Of the two Taoists, the other one was clearly the leader.

Cao Cao looked at the dead Taoist priest.

He was about forty years old, of average build, with a pale complexion from not seeing the sun for so many years.

His appearance was also different from that of Zhang Huai and the Taoist who invaded Cao's mansion in Qiao County as described by Wang Yue.

At this time, troops were approaching quickly from a distance.

Some other personal troops were still hiding in the woods, carrying four giant crossbows, all of which were Mohist war crossbows that were nearly as tall as a human.

Among the personal soldiers around him, there were seventeen who were the heavy cavalry selected by Zhao Yun, and they were also the ones who operated the heavy crossbows.

The crossbow arrow that hit the Taoist priest just now was fired from a heavy crossbow.

Some soldiers came forward to check the Taoist's body:

"The governor died after being injured."

"This is not the main goal. If they die, they die."

Cao Cao looked in the direction where Xu Chu and Dian Wei were chasing the enemy, then turned back to look at the plain below the hill.

Zhao Yun personally led the troops and launched a surprise attack from behind.

Whether in terms of strategy or the quality of soldiers, they have the advantage. Although Cao's army is small, they are bound to win.

Two thousand Tiger and Leopard Cavalry were riding back and forth on the plain below, attacking the enemy!

The battle is in full swing!
……

The Taoist priest who was being chased by Dian Wei and Xu Chu took advantage of the dense forest and fled with all his might.

When he came to check the progress of the Qingzhou army, he was unexpectedly found by Cao Cao, which he had never expected.

He was also surprised by how powerful Dian Wei and Xu Chu were.

Under the pursuit of the two, he used various methods and almost used up all the things he had, but he was still seriously injured.

The Taoist priest was gasping for breath and blood was oozing from his chest.

As he was running away, he suddenly felt a strong sense of crisis. His hair stood on end and he leaped forward, narrowly avoiding a crossbow arrow.

There was no telling how many Cao troops were there in the dense forests around here, and from time to time, long-range crossbows were shot at us.

The crossbow arrow hit a tree nearby, and half of the arrow pierced into the tree trunk, causing terrible damage.

The secret patterns engraved on the arrow indicate that this is not a regular crossbow arrow. Even one with high level of practice may not be able to resist it.

The Taoist priest no longer hesitated and decided to use his last life-saving trump card.

"God bless me, may my life be long lasting!"

His body orifices vibrated, emitting a force of Taoism that burned the potential of Qi and blood throughout his body.

Once again, he disappeared into the void, and the remaining blood color on the Taoist's face had faded away, leaving him as pale as a dead person.

In just a hundred breaths, shallow wrinkles appeared on his face, as if he had aged ten years and his energy and blood had been greatly depleted.

After this battle, his life span will also be affected.

But the price he paid was that he was able to escape from the dense forests in the mountains where Cao's army had ambushed him at an incredible speed, covering several miles in an instant.

The strange Taoist priest disappeared without a trace.

East County of Yanzhou.

Dongqiu County is one of the counties closest to the battle site between the two sides.

After the Taoist escaped, he fled to Dongyu, and immediately changed his appearance, took off his Taoist robes and put on ordinary people's clothes.

His facial expression also changed under the stimulation of the Qi in his body.

The face was slightly longer than before, with an aquiline nose, a wide mouth, and a steady gaze.

Dongyu is a large county, close to the Yellow River. It plays an important role in Dongjun in terms of strategy, geography and commercial status.

Therefore, the city is quite developed, with a population of tens of thousands. Under the cover of the complex atmosphere, the Taoist priest regained some sense of security.

He activated his secret technique, and no longer received any warning signs of danger.

Only then was he sure that he had escaped the pursuit.

The long night passed in a flash, and it was already the next morning. The sky was gloomy and it was still drizzling.

The Taoist priest, wearing a raincoat to cover his pale face, walked into a house in Dongqiu.

This family was quite wealthy in Dongqiu. Their surname was Guo and they were merchants in the county.

The Taoist came over and was led by the owner into a quiet room in the inner house.

When there was no one around, the head of the Guo family knelt down and said, "My name is Jun, Guo. I greet Master Huang Tianliang!"

"Spread the news quickly. Guan Hai's troops were ambushed and it is difficult to break through the northern line of Yanzhou. I was also seriously injured. May God..."

Before the Taoist priest finished speaking, his face changed in shock.

In the rain, there was an extra umbrella in the yard where he was.

And Cao Cao walked slowly into the courtyard under an umbrella.

The room where the Taoist priest was, the windows, the door and the roof were all quickly controlled the moment Cao Cao appeared.

The reason why Cao Cao personally participated in the pursuit of this evil Taoist priest.

It was because of the first assassination attempt he suffered. The Taoist priest who had appeared intermittently over the past year was likely related to that assassination.

Cao Cao wanted to find out the underlying cause.

Otherwise, there is always an unknown enemy hiding in the dark, which is very dangerous. "The God of Heaven you just mentioned, is it the Great Sage Master, the God of Heaven General Zhang Jue? He... is not dead!"

Cao Cao's voice was heard in the house, causing the Taoist to feel a sense of fear.

When he whispered to Guo just now, he said the word "God", and Cao Cao actually heard it.

He was trapped in this inner room, like a turtle in a jar.

The Taoist priest reacted immediately.

Before, Xu Chu deliberately left Dian Wei a glimmer of hope, letting him run, and only by chasing him could they dig out more.

For example, the Guo residence is his only base in Dongyu, which should have been extremely secretive, but now it has been implicated.

After figuring out the reason, the Taoist took a deep breath and suddenly rushed towards Cao Cao head-on.

Behind him, there was a phantom, vaguely emerging, like a Dharma body formed by Taoist magic, as tall and majestic as a god!

Boom—bang!

As soon as he moved, the tiles on the top wall sank immediately.

Xu Chu's iron tower-like figure launched an attack from the top wall and fell towards the Taoist's head.

The Taoist priest formed the Sky-supporting Seal with one hand and blasted it upwards.

The huge phantom of the Dharma image behind him also waved its arms and bombarded Xu Chu.

Clang!

Xu Chu drew out a ring-handled sword, and the sword wave was like a tide, and he attacked the Taoist Dharma body behind the Taoist priest.

Another figure from the flank crashed into the Taoist priest.

The Taoist priest formed a seal again and slapped the figure that was rushing towards him.

The opponent rushed towards him without dodging.

The Taoist priest was hit hard at this time, and the protective energy dissipated. The arm that was forming the seal was twisted strangely and was directly broken.

He was hit by the huge force from Dian Wei, and his body flew into the air uncontrollably and landed on the wall behind him.

The wall is covered with cracks.

Blood began to ooze out of the Taoist priest's body, and the Dharma-like shadow behind him also disappeared.

"catch him!"

"Don't worry. He was already seriously injured after fleeing all the way. If he took action just now, he would have died. He will not survive."

The Taoist's spirit was weak, a mark faintly appeared between his eyebrows, and his face turned black.

"The blue sky is dead, the yellow sky should be established... the year is Jiazi... the God of Heaven has returned!
Cao Cao, it is your luck and misfortune that you are being noticed by Huang Tian. Let's see how long you can live..."

Before he finished speaking, the Taoist priest had already died.

However, before his death, Cao Cao had already received enough information.

The entries in front of him pushed out lines of text, which was one of the reasons why he wanted to come to the scene in person.

[Zhang Bao, a native of Julu, Jizhou, was the younger brother of General Tiangong Zhang Jiao, one of the founders of the Taoist Taiping Dao, the leader of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, and his courtesy name was Chonghuan.

In the first year of Zhongping, Zhang Bao followed his brother Zhang Jue in the uprising and was known as "General Digong".

In the same year, he was besieged by General Huangfu Song and Julu Governor Guo Dian in Xiaquyang, but he pretended to be dead and escaped.

[Zhang Bao, good at Taoist practice, proficient in the art of talismans, can use Taoist rhymes to derive Huangtian magic methods]

During the Taiping Rebellion, among the three brothers Zhang Jue who led the rebellion, only the body of the third brother Zhang Liang was found.

Some say that Zhang Jue, the leader, died of illness, some say that his body sank into the lake, and some say that he was burned to death.

The second son, Zhang Bao, died in the chaos of the army pursued by Huangfu Song.

The news reported to the court said that Zhang Bao was trampled into a pulp by a war horse, so there was no body.

Only the third brother, Zhang Liang, was defeated and captured, and then beheaded by the government.

At that time, many people suspected that the cause of death of Zhang Jue and his brother Zhang Bao was questionable.

Some of the secrets of the past have been revealed.

This Taoist priest turned out to be Zhang Bao.

General Digong!

According to the analysis of the existing situation, when the Taiping Dao was defeated, the Zhang Jiao brothers faked their own deaths and escaped, hiding in the dark. It is very likely that they gathered a small number of remnants of the Taiping Dao and have been acting in the dark.

The leader is Zhang Jiao, the god of heaven, and the second is Zhang Bao.

The government was corrupt, so they were not wrong to gather troops and revolt. But these Taoists hid in the dark and engaged in petty intrigues, which ruined the reputation of Taoism... Cao Cao turned around and glanced at the head of the family who had been controlled:

"Interrogate this person strictly, find out how they passed the message behind the scenes, and find out their origins!"

Cao Cao said, "Wenhe, you should take charge of this matter yourself!"

Jia Xu agreed, holding the Dunjia map in his hand, but did not show up.

He felt very insecure being exposed in public.

Cao Cao was somewhat puzzled as to what Zhang Liang meant when he said before his death that he was being watched by Huang Tian. What did that mean?
Huangtian refers to Huang Lao, that is, the two sages Huangdi and Laozi.

Zhang Jue pretended that Huangdi was the supreme god, rebelled against the government, founded the Taiping Dao, and recruited followers.

No matter how you look at it, this matter has nothing to do with me... Cao Cao rubbed his eyebrows, feeling an inexplicable headache.

However, the current war situation was tense and the surrounding states and counties were conspiring against Yanzhou, so Cao Cao did not delay in Dongyu.

After dealing with Zhang Bao, Cao Cao led his men out of the city to meet up with Zhao Zilong.

Two thousand Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, every man fighting in blood, defeated the Qingzhou army.

At this time, the team had gathered and followed Zhao Zilong.

The fatigue after the war could not hide the excitement brought by the great victory.

The Dongyu garrison was out of the city to deal with the aftermath and to hunt down the fleeing Qingzhou army.

Zhao Yun led the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, rode eastward and galloped away.

Xuzhou and Qingzhou want to attack Yanzhou together. If Jingzhou joins the war, the situation will expand to a point where it is difficult to control.

The tactics formulated by Cao Cao were to attack quickly with the force of thunder and lightning, to quickly defeat the troops of Qingzhou and even Xuzhou, in order to deter all parties and stabilize the movements.

The news that the Qingzhou army secretly entered Yanzhou and was defeated by Cao's army spread immediately.

Cao Cao deliberately sent people to inform Jingzhou and Xuzhou respectively.

Tao Qian, the governor of Xuzhou, received the news of Qingzhou's defeat and said, "I knew Qingzhou was unreliable. Cao Mengde wanted to scare me in Xuzhou, but he underestimated me."

"Where are the three brothers of Liu Bei heading north with their troops?"

"We have passed Qixiang on the northern front and are about to engage in battle with Cao's army!"

"Well, with brother Liu Bei's bravery, we will surely defeat Cao this time."

Tao Qian was asking about the battle situation when a scout came in quickly, looking anxious.

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(End of this chapter)