I, Zhou Cang, am the number one tank in the Three Kingdoms.

"Mr. Sun Qian, please wait a moment!" In the heavy rain, Sun Qian heard someone shouting behind him, so he quickly reined in his horse and turned around.

The man who arrived was Zhou Cang, who was not wearing a raincoat or riding a horse, and came galloping through the rain.

The rain grew heavier, so Sun Qian waited for Zhou Cang inside the city gate.

"Yuanfu has come chasing after me; what brings you here?"

"Sir... your journey to Hebei will surely be a resounding success!" Zhou Cang gasped for breath.

Sun Qian was taken aback, then nodded, clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Thank you for your kind words, Yuanfu."

"But what are your plans for General Guan's place after this journey, sir?" Zhou Cang looked earnestly at Sun Qian and asked the question he had been pondering for a long time.

The reason he only chased after them now was twofold: firstly, he didn't want to anger Zhang Fei while he was at the mansion; secondly, given Cao Cao's attack, Zhou Cang didn't have enough confidence to wait for good news.

"Oh...? What advice does Yuanfu have for me?" Sun Qian was a little puzzled when he saw that Zhou Cang had chased after him so far in the rain just to ask this question.

Zhou Cang thought to himself, since he's already said it, he might as well say it all.

Zhou Cang knelt on one knee, clasped his hands in a fist, and said to Sun Qian, "I will not lie to you, sir."

"When Cang Jiu followed Zhang Bao, he had witnessed the majesty of General Guan and had long harbored the desire to follow him. It was only a pity that he had fallen into the clutches of the rebels and could not fulfill his wish."

"The reason I encountered the three generals by chance in the past was because I wanted to go north to find General Guan."

"Given General Guan's unwavering loyalty and courage, I suspect that his decision to serve in Cao Cao's camp must stem from his concern for our lord and some unspeakable difficulties. However..."

Zhou Cang didn't know how to continue speaking at this point, and lowered his head.

"But at this time, Yun Chang is isolated from both inside and outside the country, and no one is willing to believe him or refute him. Is this what Yuan Fu is thinking?" Sun Qian continued Zhou Cang's words.

Zhou Cang nodded, and when he looked up, Sun Qian saw that Zhou Cang's eyes were already wet.

From the moment he learned of Guan Yu's predicament, Zhou Cang kept these words to himself.

Originally, he wanted to find Guan Yu before Cao Cao's army arrived, but the war was so arduous that he was now completely unable to extricate himself.

So after much hesitation, he still chose to chase after Mr. Sun Qian and ask him for a solution.

Upon hearing this, Sun Qian finally realized what was happening and helped Zhou Cang up.

"I never imagined that Yuanfu's heart was so sincere," Sun Qian muttered to himself.

"I am aware of Yuanfu's intentions. As for General Guan's matter, I will have a plan after I have met with the lord. Yuanfu, please rest assured."

Sun Qian looked at Zhou Cang solemnly, nodded, then mounted his horse and headed straight for the city gate.

"Cang...Thank you, sir!" Zhou Cang bowed and clasped his hands in thanks until he could no longer hear the sound of Sun Qian's horse hooves.

The next day, Cao's army did not go out to battle. Apart from the sound of rain, the city and its surroundings were unusually quiet.

"The rebel army must be building siege equipment. The city's defenses cannot be neglected. You all should patrol the city again and inspect it." Zhang Fei stood on the city wall, looking at the clusters of black dots in the distance that looked like ants, and said to the men behind him.

Everyone agreed.

On the third day, Cao Cao's army began to break camp one after another. It was still raining. By noon, except for the east of the city, where the terrain was too low and muddy to set up camp, the west, north, and south suburbs of the city were basically filled with Cao Cao's army, forming a continuous line of camps.

The weather finally cleared up in the afternoon. Zhou Cang and Gong Du led twenty riders out of the east gate, intercepted and killed several scouts, and then rushed to the Ru River to check the water level.

Gong Du saw that the water was not large, but the current was rapid and clear, and knew that Liu Pi's plan to dam the river had succeeded. He nodded to Zhou Cang.

As the group was about to return to the city, they suddenly saw a rider coming from upstream in a disheveled state, braving the heavy rain.

Zhou Cang couldn't help but feel nervous.

The man rushed to Gong Du's side and immediately bowed.

"General Gong!"

What brings you here?

"This is a letter from General Liu. Please take a look, General Gong!" the messenger said, taking out a small wooden box from his bosom and handing it to Gong Du.

Gong Du quickly took it and, in the rain, opened the wooden box and took out the bamboo slips inside.

"The rain has been torrential and the water level is extremely high. Although the earthen dam has been built, it will likely not last long. I urge the general to fight quickly. I bow again."

"Ah! This matter is extremely urgent! We must go see the Third General immediately!" Gong Du exclaimed in shock after reading the report, and said to Zhou Cang.

The group quickly returned to the city to find Zhang Fei.

"General Gong, how are the rafts being prepared?" Zhang Fei looked at Gong Du immediately after reading the letter.

"Reporting to the Third General, time is of the essence and resources are limited. We have already prepared more than five hundred." Gong Du quickly gave his answer after making an estimate.

Zhang Fei nodded and instructed, "Quickly hide the raft inside the fortified city. Once the water rises outside, charge out and fight your way out!"

Gong Du accepted the order and left.

"Bring me my weapons and armor, and come with me out of the city!" Zhang Fei said resolutely, looking at the remaining few men.

"Dong~dong~dong~dong" The war drums sounded, and Zhang Fei, wearing armor and holding a serpent spear, charged out of the west gate first, followed closely by Zhao Yun and Zhou Cang, with two thousand soldiers behind them.

Cao's army was clearly prepared for this, and soon their main force also came out of the camp to meet the attack.

Tens of thousands of soldiers and cavalry stood in neat formation, with siege engines, ladders, and other equipment already in place. Under several generals' flags in the center, a dozen or so cavalry generals lined up in a row.

Looking at the sparse army formation opposite him, Cao Hong sneered, "Hmph, the traitor is in such a hurry to die."

One of the men beside Cao Hong turned to look at him and said angrily, "If it weren't for your constant underestimation of the enemy and your arrogance, the Prime Minister would have been living a carefree life in Xuchang long ago. Why would we have come here?!"

The man who spoke was burly and strong, wearing iron armor and a crimson battle robe, holding an iron spear. A cloth covered his left eye, but it could not hide the murderous aura emanating from him. He was Xiahou Dun, the commander-in-chief of this rebellion, who was then the governor of Henan, held the official title of Jianwu General, and was enfeoffed as the Marquis of Gao'an Township.

After being reprimanded by Xiahou Dun, Cao Hong was furious and full of resentment, but he had nothing to say.

"Cao Hong's head is here!" When the group looked up, they saw Zhang Fei holding Cao Hong's helmet on his spear and shouting insults in front of the enemy lines. Cao Hong's face turned red with rage.

"Yuan Rang, I'll go and behead him!" Cao Hong said through gritted teeth.

Xiahou Dun remained unmoved, looked at the imposing, unsmiling cavalry general beside him, and said in a deep voice, "Gongming, you go to meet the enemy. Do not underestimate them!"

It was Xu Huang, the famous general whom Cao Cao praised as having "the style of Zhou Yafu," who later became the Right General of the Cao Wei regime.

"Here!" Xu Huang, wielding a large axe, charged straight at Zhang Fei.

Seeing Cao's general accept the challenge, Zhang Fei also sent out a rider, clad in silver armor and a white robe, wielding a silver spear on a white horse—it was Zhao Yun.

As the two faced off, Xu Huang shouted, "I, Xu Huang, do not kill nameless generals. State your name!"

Zhao Yun pointed his spear at Xu Huang and laughed, "I am Zhao Zilong of Changshan, and I do not kill nameless nobodies. Quickly summon Xiahou Dun to come and face his death!"

Enraged, Xu Huang roared, "You traitor, prepare to die!" and spurred his horse, brandishing his great axe, to charge at Zhao Yun.

One relies on immense strength, each move potentially fatal; the other uses minimal force to overcome immense strength, displaying unparalleled skill.

The two fought more than fifty times, with neither gaining the upper hand.

When Xiahou Dun saw that Xu Huang had encountered a formidable enemy and was unable to defeat him for the time being, he ordered the retreat to be sounded.

Xu Huang and Zhao Yun soon returned to their respective camps.

When Zhang Fei saw that the enemy was about to retreat, he thought, "How can this be?! The water hasn't even reached us yet!"

"Yuanfu! You must go into battle immediately and buy us some time!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Cang, who was worried about Liu Pi's failure to open the dam and release water in time, accepted the order to go into battle.

Xu Huang returned to Xiahou Dun and asked, "Why did Yuan Rang sound the gong?"

Xiahou Dun said, "I believe this man is no ordinary person. I fear that Gongming may make a mistake, so I have withdrawn my troops."

Xu Huang responded and returned to the queue without saying anything more.

"Cao Hong! Your head is right here. If you don't want it, it'll be perfect as my chamber pot!"

Zhou Cang's shout caused the garrison of Runan to burst into laughter.

Xiahou Dun had originally planned to return to camp and surround the enemy camp to fight after the test was over, but he couldn't help but react after hearing this.

"Yuan Rang! This scoundrel has gone too far! If we do not fight, will we not be a laughingstock?" Cao Hong gripped his broadsword tightly, staring fiercely at Zhou Cang, his anger clearly uncontrollable.

Xiahou Dun glanced at Cao Hong's murderous intent and pondered, "We must not prolong the battle."

Upon hearing that Xiahou Dun had agreed, Cao Hong charged straight at Zhou Cang like an arrow released from a bow.

"Today, I swear to avenge the loss of the ancient city!" Zhou Cang declared, brandishing his long-handled sword to meet the challenge.

Immediately, the drums of both armies roared, and cheers filled the air.

On the city tower, Pei Yuanshao saw that Cao Cao's army had a numerical advantage and their shouts were gradually drowning out his own. He pushed aside the drummer and personally beat the drum for Zhou Cang.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!" The war drums suddenly quickened their pace, stirring up Zhou Cang's murderous intent.

"Clang!!!" Zhou Cang's Mo Dao and Cao Hong's steel sword clashed violently. Both of them felt numbness in their hands, but they were unwilling to let go, gritting their teeth and pressing against each other tightly.

At this moment, the advantage of the thick blade of the Mo Dao became apparent. Just like when Zhang Fei pressed the back of the blade against him that day, Zhou Cang quickly freed his hand and pushed hard, bringing the blade only two inches away from Cao Hong's face.

"Let me ask you... what have the people of this ancient city done wrong?!" Zhou Cang asked Cao Hong, baring his teeth as he continued to exert his strength.

It is normal for two armies to have victories and defeats in battle, but at this moment, Zhou Cang thought of the innocent people in the ancient city and wished he could tear Cao Hong to pieces.

"Traitor... no need for further words...!" Cao Hong gritted his teeth and forced out the words from his throat.

He actually wanted to make a few excuses, admitting that his act of letting his troops plunder was intentional, in order to vent his anger at being ambushed last time.

The massacre of the city was completely unexpected. These Qingzhou soldiers were on the front line at Guandu, facing great pressure from Yuan Shao's army. They finally got to run wild in a small county town in the rear. As they fought, their thuggish nature was awakened. Although Cao Hong was also very angry that night, he had no choice but to kill these people because they were essentially lent to him by Cao Cao.

Just as Zhou Cang's blade was about to reach his face, Cao Hong shouted "Whoa!" and kicked Zhou Cang's horse. Both horses were startled, and the two men were separated.

As the drumbeats continued, the two immediately resumed their fight.

Whether Zhou Cang split Mount Hua in two or swept through thousands of troops, Cao Hong could not defeat him.

At this point, Zhou Cang had completely lost his rationality and was only thinking about avenging the elders of the ancient city. He used every move with deadly force, but it was easier said than done to defeat Cao Hong in just a few moves.

Gradually, Zhou Cang fell into a disadvantageous position. During their third encounter, Cao Hong feinted a horizontal slash with his steel blade. Just as Zhou Cang raised his sword to block, Cao Hong suddenly swung his sword hilt fiercely at Zhou Cang's back, instantly cracking Zhou Cang's back armor.

[Damage taken, Stamina -15, Attributes increased]

[Stamina: 166/181+15]

[Strength: 85+15]

【Intelligence: 42】

Morale: 70+15

After a sharp pain in his back, Zhou Cang's system was immediately activated, his blood surged, and he felt boundless energy.

After blocking another blade with his Mo Dao, Zhou Cang launched more and more counterattacks, thrusting left and right, and the two sides were back to a state of mutual offense and defense, evenly matched.

Seeing that Zhou Cang had become even more courageous after being injured, Xiahou Dun knew that a quick victory was not possible. In addition, Xu Huang had not gained any advantage over Zhao Yun earlier, so he had the idea of ​​withdrawing his troops first and then looking for a way to break through the city.

"Pass on my order to sound the retreat." Xiahou Dun kept his eyes fixed on Zhou Cang, calmly conveying his request to the messenger, but he did not hear a response from the messenger for a long time.

He turned his head and saw the messenger facing northeast, mouth agape, eyes wide, stammering out a few words—

"My lord...my lord, the water...the water...the flood!"