Transmigrating to the Three Kingdoms as Lu Bu: I Have a Pseudo-Apocalypse System

Located on the southern slope of the Qinling Mountains, Jitou Pass, the southernmost point of the Baoxie Road, stands in a narrow pass between two mountains. The pass walls are about three zhang high, built of huge stones, and topped with arrow crenellations.

The pass was steep, but just two hundred paces away lay a valley, barely large enough to accommodate several thousand men in formation. When the pass was built, there were no catapults, and no one could have imagined that the attackers could threaten the pass from just two hundred paces away.

On the wall, a large banner with the character "[Zhang]" fluttered in the morning breeze.

Zhang Lu, the governor of Hanzhong, wore armor underneath a black Taoist robe and looked solemnly at the winding mountain road to the north.

Behind him stood his younger brother Zhang Wei, strategist Yan Pu, general Yang Bai, and 20,000 Hanzhong soldiers.

Most of these soldiers wore yellow turbans on their heads, carried swords, shields, bows, and crossbows, and had slightly uneasy expressions.

Most of them were followers of the Five Pecks of Rice sect. Although they revered their master Zhang Lu as a god, the recent rumors about Lü Bu receiving a divine granary from heaven cast a dark shadow over the entire army.

March 18th, morning.

"Report!" A scout rushed up the gate wall, knelt on one knee, and reported, "Lu Bu's vanguard has reached five li from the gate!"

Zhang Lu gripped the sword hilt tightly, his knuckles turning white.

Yan Pu whispered, "Master, the scouts have confirmed that Lü Bu does indeed possess the divine ability to create siege weapons out of thin air. Our army may not be able to hold out for long."

"We must hold on, even if we can't." Zhang Lu's voice was hoarse. "My mother is in Liu Zhang's hands. If Lü Bu is allowed to enter Shu, my mother will surely die." He turned to the entire army and raised his voice: "Gentlemen, although Lü Bu is strong, we, the sons of Hanzhong, will defend our positions and wait for the enemy to tire themselves out! Behind the pass are our parents, wives, and children. Today we fight to the death, not for Zhang Lu alone, but for the 100,000 people of Hanzhong!"

"We are willing to fight to the death with our master!" The shouts rang out from the gate wall, though they were somewhat incoherent, but the morale was ultimately boosted.

At 6:45 AM, a dark mass of troops appeared at the end of the mountain path.

The flags of the Han Dynasty court, the Imperial Guard, and the 1st Army came into view first, followed by neat rows of soldiers.

The soldiers were all dressed in new, dark blue uniforms, their epaulets gleaming in the sunlight. At the very front, a fiery red warhorse stood out, and on its horse rode a general in golden armor and a red robe, wielding a halberd—it was none other than Lü Bu.

The army halted in formation three hundred paces from the pass, their movements perfectly synchronized, and a chilling aura permeated the valley.

Lu Bu spurred his horse into battle, and Red Hare moved slowly forward until they were two hundred paces from the wall—a distance that ordinary arrows could hardly reach, but Lu Bu's perception was beyond human limits, and he could see the expressions of everyone on the wall clearly.

"Zhang Gongqi!" Lü Bu's voice boomed like a bell, piercing the valley. "I am acting on the Emperor's decree to punish this disloyalty. Hanzhong is Han territory, yet you have ruled it for many years, refusing to pay taxes and disobeying the court. You should be punished. However, considering your governance of Hanzhong, protecting the borders and ensuring the people's safety, you have rendered some service. If you open the gates and surrender now, the court may pardon your crimes and appoint you as the Prefect of Hanzhong, to govern for the people. If you remain obstinate, it will be too late for regrets when the gates fall!"

Hidden behind several shield-bearers on the wall, Zhang Lu said, "Lord Jin! I am a Han subject, how dare I establish a separatist regime? However, Liu Zhang, the governor of Yizhou, has unjustly detained my mother, forcing me to oppose the court. Now that my mother is in enemy hands, if I surrender, her life will be in danger. If you, Lord Jin, are truly benevolent, please withdraw your troops and wait until I rescue my mother. Then I will surely open the gates to welcome you!"

Lü Bu shook his head: "This is Liu Zhang's treacherous scheme, trying to make you fight me so he can reap the benefits. Even if you hold this pass to the death, do you think Liu Zhang will release your mother? It would be better to surrender to me, and I will lead a large army to rescue your mother from this predicament. That is the right way."

Behind Zhang Lu, Zhang Wei said urgently, "Brother, Lü Bu is right! Liu Zhang is holding Mother hostage, intending for us to fight Lü Bu to the death. Even if we die in battle, Mother may not survive..."

"Shut up!" Zhang Lu shouted. "Liu Zhang has already said that if she surrenders to Lü Bu, my mother will die immediately; if she guards the pass, she might have a chance to live. Don't you understand this?"

Yan Pu sighed, "Master, Lü Bu possesses a divinely bestowed granary; his attack on this pass will be swift. I fear this pass cannot be held for long."

Zhang Lu gritted his teeth: "We must hold out for as long as possible! I have already sent a secret envoy to contact the Shu army and bribed Zhang Ren and Wu Yi's men with a large sum of money. If we can hold out for three to five days, there may be a turning point."

At the pass, Lü Bu saw that Zhang Lu remained silent and did not answer, so he knew what Zhang Lu meant and said no more.

He reined in his horse and returned to his camp, saying to Cao Xing, "Zhang Lu's lifeline has been seized by Liu Zhang, and he will not surrender. Prepare to attack the pass."

Cao Xing clasped his hands in a fist and said, "This humble general obeys!"

Lu Bu waved his hand, and fifty catapults and twenty ballistae appeared out of thin air on the open ground in front of the pass. These machines were all made of hardwood, with key parts covered in iron. The catapults' counterweight boxes were filled with huge stones, and the ballistae' arms were taut, with huge arrows as thick as a child's arm resting on their quivers.

An uproar erupted on the wall.

Many soldiers from Hanzhong had heard the rumors, but seeing so many siege weapons appear out of thin air still left them speechless with shock. Some dropped their bows, while others instinctively retreated.

"It is truly a miracle; Duke Jin is indeed blessed with the ability to store divine granaries."

"Can Master's Taoist magic conjure up these things?"

Whispers spread like a plague.

After decades of charlatanry, Zhang Lu never imagined that Lü Bu's supposed divinely bestowed granary was actually real. This clearly greatly affected the morale of his soldiers. Zhang Lu's face turned ashen, and he shouted sternly, "What's the panic? This is just a sorcery illusion! Archers, prepare! If the enemy gets close, fire with all your might!"

But his voice could no longer quell the panic in the army.

Lü Bu drew his command flag: "Catapults, fire!"

"put--!"

Fifty catapults started up simultaneously, the counterweight boxes crashed down, the launching rods were raised, and fifty millstone-sized stones roared down towards the wall.

"Get out of the way!" Zhang Lu roared.

The stone struck the gate wall with a dull thud.

Stone chips flew everywhere, and a crenellation was smashed open, crushing two soldiers hiding behind it into a bloody pulp before they could even scream. Another stone flew over the wall and landed inside the pass, overturning a water cart and spilling water all over the ground.

The ballista was immediately fired, and twenty giant arrows shot towards the wall with a whooshing sound.

These giant arrows have shovel-like tips and are specifically designed to break through wood and stone. One arrow pierced the wall, penetrating half a foot deep, its fletching vibrating and humming.

Another arrow struck a squad leader who was peeking out, sending him flying and pinning him to a wooden post behind him.

In just one round of attack, dozens of the defenders at the gate had been killed or wounded, and their morale had plummeted.

"Second round, release!"

Stones and giant arrows flew again, and screams echoed from the walls. Some people were hit in the face by rubble, and they fell to the ground, rolling around in pain. Others were grazed by giant arrows, and their arms were severed at the shoulder.

Zhang Lu, hiding behind the battlements, roared at Yan Pu, "Get the archers to return fire! We can't let them run rampant!"

Yan Pu smiled wryly: "Master, our crossbows have a range of less than 150 paces, while the enemy is 200 paces away..."

"Then let's wait for them to get closer!"

The catapults and ballistae bombarded the fortress for fifteen minutes, causing cracks in many places and damaging more than ten crenellations. The defenders had suffered more than two hundred casualties. The fortress was stained with blood, and broken arrows were scattered all over the ground.

Seeing that the defenses of the fortified wall had weakened, Lü Bu ordered, "Vanguard suicide squad, charge!"

A thousand heavily armored infantrymen stepped forward, ready to launch an attack on the city.