Three Kingdoms: Fusion of Entries, Change of Destiny

Chapter 199 Guan Yu's Battle Chronicles

Ignoring the objections of his civil and military officials, Yuan Shu, after a lavish coronation ceremony, donned the heavy twelve-tassel crown and proclaimed himself emperor!

After that, he not only built palaces on a grand scale, but also selected beautiful women from the common people to fill his harem, and his life became increasingly extravagant and licentious.

Those who had followed him earlier were naturally promoted as well.

Use whatever sounds nice, like Prime Minister, Grand Commandant, General, or General of the Cavalry.

The entire court was filled with flattery, which gave Yuan Shu the illusion that he had successfully replaced Emperor Xian of Han and become the ruler of the world.

However, his comfortable days did not last long. When the true emperor of the Han Dynasty in Xuchang learned that Yuan Shu had declared himself emperor, he was furious and immediately issued an edict ordering the lords from all directions to attack this false emperor.

Although many copies of the imperial edict were sent out, only Liu Bei, the former governor of Xuzhou, responded to it.

Liu Bei left only Mi Zhu and Sun Qian to guard Xiaopei.
He personally led an army of 20,000 men and the generals Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to Huainan to attack Yuan Shu.

For the past two months, Yuan Shu has been thoroughly annoyed by Liu Bei's guerrilla tactics.

He could no longer bear it, so he ordered General Ji Ling to lead 50,000 troops from Luyang, vowing to completely annihilate Liu Bei.

Meanwhile, Yuan Shu's territory was short of grain, so he sent Zhang Kai to borrow grain from the State of Chen, but was refused by Luo Jun, the Chancellor of Chen.

Yuan Shu was furious, so he sent Zhang Kai, who had previously joined him after killing Cao Cao's father Cao Song, as an assassin. Zhang Kai pretended to be passing through Chen State on personal business, took the opportunity to kill Luo Jun and Liu Chong, and occupied Chen State.

Upon learning that Ji Ling had launched an attack, Liu Bei withdrew his troops overnight and found a high ground that was easy to defend and difficult to attack, where he set up camp.

Ji Ling, as Yuan Shu's top general, had led troops for many years and was very experienced. He was always the person Yuan Shu relied on the most.

After receiving news that troops were being dispatched to meet Liu Bei in battle, Ji Ling first sent scouts to gather intelligence. Then, the army advanced steadily and without any flaws, until they reached Liu Bei's camp.

Seeing that Liu Bei had already set up camp and was preparing to defend it from a strategic location, Ji Ling then directed the remaining laborers to set up camp ten miles away from Liu Bei's camp.

After setting up camp, Ji Ling led his army to the outside of Liu Bei's camp and sent several loud-voiced soldiers to challenge them.

“Those who weave mats and sell shoes, those who guard homes, dare to raise troops to invade our borders!”

"If you know what's good for you, get lost and don't get my sword dirty!"

"You big-eared scoundrel, surrender now! The General's 200,000 troops can crush Xiaopei at any time!"

Outside the camp, a constant stream of insults and abuse could be heard.

Liu Bei was a man of great composure, and his expression remained unchanged upon hearing these insults.

Although Guan Yu was furious, he could only endure it from the sidelines since his elder brother had not given the order.

Ji Ling's soldiers cursed for two hours until they were exhausted and began to slacken. Only then did Liu Bei lead his army out of the camp and slowly deploy his troops.

Not to mention the soldiers, even Ji Ling herself was getting sleepy from waiting.

Seeing Liu Bei finally emerge, he immediately perked up, picked up his three-pointed dagger, and went to the front of the battle, shouting, "You big-eared scoundrel, how dare you invade my borders?!"

Liu Bei remained calm, first bowing respectfully towards Xuchang, then loudly proclaiming, "Liu Bei, a descendant of the Han emperor, hereby carries out the imperial edict to punish the disloyal!"

These words were spoken with righteous indignation and exceptional eloquence, instantly boosting the morale of Liu Bei's army. This was the effect of having a legitimate reason for attacking.

Ji Ling knew he was in the wrong and didn't say anything more.

He drew his sword and shouted, "Liu Bei, do you dare to fight me!"

Liu Bei would naturally not personally go into battle; such a duel between generals would be handled by his two younger brothers.

Zhang Fei raised his spear, intending to roar twice before charging into battle.

Unexpectedly, Guan Yu raised his Green Dragon Crescent Blade, spurred his horse, and charged out.

"Hey? Hey! Second brother, you're not showing any martial ethics!"

But Guan Yu had already charged out, and Zhang Fei couldn't go into battle anymore, so he could only return to Liu Bei's side dejectedly. Guan Yu came to the front of the formation, narrowed his phoenix eyes slightly, and said to Ji Ling, "Ji Ling, if I wanted to take your head, why would my elder brother need to lift a finger?"

When Ji Ling saw Guan Yu come out, he stopped mentioning Liu Bei and immediately became extremely alert.

Although he had never fought Guan Yu, he had long heard of the legendary battle between Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei against Lü Bu at Hulao Pass.

However, Ji Ling always felt that the rumors might be somewhat exaggerated.

At this moment, Guan Yu rode a skinny yellow horse to meet the challenge. He couldn't help but chuckle to himself, and said without holding back, "A general of such stature doesn't even have a decent horse."
"Why don't you come work for me? I'll give you ten or eight horses, and you can ride them every night, haha!"

The soldiers and officers behind Ji Ling also burst into laughter.

When Guan Yu heard Ji Ling's mockery, he just sneered and then began to gather his strength, his aura rising steadily.

Ji Ling was also a top-notch expert, so he could naturally sense the change in Guan Yu's aura.

"Oh no, we can't let him build up his strength any longer!" Ji Ling was startled. He immediately raised his three-pointed dagger, spurred his horse, and charged towards Guan Yu, shouting, "Red-faced thief, take this!"

Guan Yu's momentum was still rising. When he saw Ji Ling charging at him with his sword, he immediately sneered, "You scoundrel, you dare to show off your sword in front of me?"

When Ji Ling rushed to within five meters of him, Guan Yu suddenly spurred his horse forward and used the momentum to unleash the Green Dragon Crescent Blade!

The Green Dragon Crescent Blade slashed down towards Ji Ling's head.

A chilling whistling sound suddenly filled the air.
In the dim light, Ji Ling seemed to hear a dragon's roar!
Faced with Guan Yu's strike, a thought flashed through Ji Ling's mind: "I'm afraid I can't withstand this blow!"

After all, he was a seasoned general who had fought countless battles, so Ji Ling would not give up the fight just because of a single thought.

He knew that Guan Yu's strike was incredibly powerful, so since he couldn't withstand it, he decided to dodge it.

Relying on the fact that his warhorse was several levels better than Guan Yu's,
Ji Ling gently spurred the horse's flanks and pulled the reins, and the warhorse, understanding his intention, veered slightly to the right.
In the end, he barely managed to dodge Guan Yu's powerful and heavy strike.

Guan Yu's sword slammed into the ground, creating a crack more than half a meter long.

However, with a mournful neigh from Guan Yu's warhorse, it was overwhelmed by the weight, its front legs buckled, and it stumbled.

Guan Yu originally planned to follow up his vertical slash with a horizontal sweeping attack.

However, due to the exhaustion of the warhorse, he could only use his sword to prop himself up and reduce the burden on the horse.

After dodging Guan Yu's blade, Ji Ling saw that Guan Yu was unable to change his move due to the problem with his warhorse, so he immediately raised his broadsword and slashed at Guan Yu's head.

When Liu Bei saw Ji Ling's broadsword about to fall on Guan Yu's head, even with his deep composure, his expression changed drastically.

The soldiers behind him gasped in alarm, all holding their breath for Guan Yu.

But Guan Yu was no ordinary man; he was a true top-tier martial artist!
Just as Ji Ling's broadsword was about to fall on his head, Guan Yu seemed to have eyes in the back of his head. He lowered his head and pulled his sword hilt backward, blocking Ji Ling's broadsword perfectly.

With a loud "clang," Ji Ling's broadsword was sent flying high into the air.

At this moment, Guan Yu's warhorse had regained its footing.

He used his arms and neck together to twist the 80-plus-pound Green Dragon Crescent Blade around his neck like a juggling act, and finally held it back in his hand.

When the Azure Dragon Blade wrapped around his neck, Ji Ling had no choice but to retreat to avoid the blade.

After Guan Yu gripped his sword, he seized the opportunity to rein in his horse and slashed down at Ji Ling with his sword again.

Ji Ling had no time to change her move and could only take the blow head-on.

With a loud crash, Ji Ling was struck and forced to stagger back several steps, horse and all.

Ji Ling felt a slight numbness in her arm, and a tearing pain came from the web of her hand.

"This Guan Yu is truly formidable!" he thought to himself in astonishment. "Even a casual slash possesses such power. It was a wise move not to rashly meet his first, fully charged strike head-on!"

(End of this chapter)