Captus
Captus is the crimson Banishing Blade whose spirit takes human form while seeking a bearer. It joins with Lan Jue, becomes one of his strongest weapons, and later serves as the western blade in the four-sword Banishing Strategy coordinated with Lan Qing and the other bearers.
History
Choosing and joining its bearer
Captus is introduced as one of four ancient god-swords whose combined formation is the Banishing Strategy. Its spirit approaches Lan Jue in human form and warns that union will be grievous. During the joining, the sword descends as a pulsing red blade whose influence stains Lan Jue’s soul with blood-colored light. It overwhelms and absorbs his lightning before fusing into him, while the resident spirit guides the process from within Captus. The mental construct used for their training taxes Lan Jue’s will and can only be maintained briefly. (Chapters 494, 536, 546–548)
A weapon against alien life
Thor can carry Captus, but Lan Jue remains its bearer. Against the Violet Prince, the blade penetrates defenses that withstand ordinary human weapons and leaves wounds that refuse to heal. Captus can also sense its fellow Banishing Blades across an ethereal connection. When combined with All-Heaven Lightning, it locks down a swift alien, suppresses its psychic call, and helps capture it alive. Lan Jue’s absorbed immortal qi improves his command, though the sword’s spirit tells him that true control depends on reaching Paragon. (Chapters 663, 679–680, 693–696)
Harmonious Swords and Paragon ascent
Used in concert with another Banishing Blade, Captus helps pierce powerful alien defenses and enables the Harmonious Swords technique. That power is costly: when Lan Jue joins his heart with his partner’s, Captus drains every remaining drop of his energy. The blade then participates directly in his Paragon breakthrough. Golden runes appear on its surface, his dharmic image takes it in hand, and its power severs the energy channel linking earth and sky before returning to hover above him. (Chapters 745, 763–764, 784–788)
The completed Banishing Strategy
After Lan Jue’s breakthrough, Captus responds more completely to his Boundless Starlight Domain and to the five lightnings. Even drawing slightly more than a tenth of its potential is treated as a formidable release, showing that the weapon’s full strength remains beyond its bearer. It breaks a seal at his touch without requiring his former thunderbolt Discipline. In the final formation, Captus occupies the west while Ultus, Occisus, and Demortus hold the other directions; Lan Qing and the other bearers sacrifice energy and life force alongside Lan Jue to complete the Strategy. Captus survives the conflict and remains current at the end of the scoped corpus. (Chapters 829, 832, 838–842, 895, 900)
Abilities and properties
- Captus is a sentient or spirit-bearing god-sword that can merge with a chosen bearer and communicate from within the blade. (Chapters 536, 546–548)
- Its attacks bypass exceptional alien defenses and leave wounds that resist healing. (Chapters 679–680)
- It suppresses movement and psychic signaling, especially when paired with Lan Jue’s All-Heaven Lightning. (Chapter 694)
- It senses the other Banishing Blades and combines with them in Harmonious Swords and the Banishing Strategy. (Chapters 693, 763, 900)
- Its consumption of the bearer’s energy is severe, and even a Paragon draws only a fraction of its potential. (Chapters 764, 838, 895)