New Three Kingdoms Tales: Starting as the expressionless Liu Bei

On the walls of Chenliu, the soldiers guarding the city, beating drums and gongs, looked towards the front lines and couldn't help but shake their heads.

"Is this person capable?"

"With Hua Xiong being so powerful, I'm afraid another head will roll!"

In Chenliu City, the various warlords were unsettled by Yuan Shao's earlier commotion and had no interest in listening to Cao Cao's strategy for defeating the rebels. They all lowered their heads and whispered among themselves.

"If this archer also dies, who else can we send to fight?"

"Ah, the Xiliang army truly lives up to its reputation."

"If even Hua Xiong is so troublesome, what will we do if we encounter Lü Bu later?"

Outside Chenliu City, Guan Yu and Hua Xiong were already locked in a fierce battle.

The two broadswords clashed back and forth, their cold glints flashing, each move blocked by the other, making it difficult to determine a winner.

During the fierce battle, Guan Yu showed no intention of attacking the warhorse; every strike was aimed at Hua Xiong himself. This caused Hua Xiong to completely lower his guard, assuming that Guan Yu was unaware of his weakness, and he fought with increasing ferocity, his killing intent growing stronger.

Guan Yu's fighting prowess was extraordinary; he actually withstood dozens of rounds of Hua Xiong's fierce attacks. Hua Xiong became somewhat curious, reined in his horse, retreated a few steps, and brandished his sword, demanding an explanation.

"I, Hua Xiong, do not slay nameless nobodies! State your name!"

Guan Yu, however, looked disdainful, slightly closed his phoenix eyes, stroked his two-foot-long beard, and coldly replied.

"A dying man is unworthy to know my name. Just call me Grandpa Guan!"

Hua Xiong was furious. He had never suffered such humiliation in a hundred battles! He immediately roared, spurred his horse, brandished his sword, and fought again. The two were locked in a fierce battle for dozens of rounds.

Seeing his opportunity, Guan Yu feigned weakness with a single strike, then turned and fled. Hua Xiong was overjoyed and shouted, "You scoundrel, don't run away!"

He spurred his horse to give chase, and was about to catch up when Guan Yu suddenly turned around and thrust his broadsword straight at Hua Xiong's face.

Oh? Another feint?

Hua Xiong grinned maliciously. Pan Feng had already used the "dragging axe" technique once, yet it hadn't even scratched him. At this moment, he was invincible! "Come and chop me if you dare!"

Hua Xiong was proud. Even if he stretched out his neck and let Guan Yu cut him down, no one in the world could hurt him in the slightest!

So, facing the straight-stabbing broadsword, he neither dodged nor flinched, but simply straightened his neck, ready to take the blow head-on.

He relished the look of shock and dismay on his enemy's face. Especially since this red-faced man had just humiliated him in every way; once he saw the look of utter terror on his face, he would personally sever his head and use it as a libation offering!

However, Guan Yu's next move completely surprised him.

The greatsword, which was thrusting straight at Hua Xiong, suddenly turned at the last second, carrying immense force, and slashed fiercely at the head of the warhorse beneath him!

Hua Xiong's expression changed drastically, his pupils contracted sharply, and he tried to parry with his sword, but it was too late.

A mournful neigh echoed across the battlefield. With a flash of the blade, Hua Xiong's head was severed from his body, flying skyward!

The head that flew off still bore a look of utter disbelief. The headless corpse gushed blood, swayed, and crashed to the ground.

Even at the moment of his death, Hua Xiong could not understand how this red-faced man had managed to discern his fatal weakness.

(P.S.: The following section is best viewed in conjunction with the Guan Yu Song.)

On the city wall, the soldiers who witnessed everything were all stunned. One of them rubbed his eyes hard, as if he had seen a ghost, and asked in a trembling voice, "They...they won?"

It wasn't until they clearly saw Guan Yu carrying that enormous head, galloping towards the city gate on horseback, that they snapped out of their daze.

"We won! We really won!"

In an instant, the drums on the city wall thundered, and all the soldiers erupted in cheers. They waved their arms wildly, cheering enthusiastically for the red-faced general.

"good!"

"good!!"

"good!!!"

Who could have imagined? Generals Yu She and Pan Feng had both perished under Hua Xiong's blade, their bodies barely cold. And now, an unknown archer, before the eyes of the masses, had slain the arrogant Hua Xiong!

Some soldiers stared blankly at Guan Yu's retreating figure, muttering to themselves, "Such combat prowess... we can only look up to him in the dust, we can't even begin to compare!"

Inside Chenliu, morale had plummeted. Cao Cao continued to speak eloquently about his strategy for suppressing the rebels, but the lords beneath him no longer had any interest in listening.

Everyone was pondering: if Guan Yu were to be killed by Hua Xiong again, would there be any point in maintaining this alliance? After all, Hua Xiong was invulnerable to swords and spears; even if everyone present rushed at him, they probably wouldn't be able to harm him in the slightest.

Suddenly, the sound of drums and music outside the tent intensified. A general in green robes with a red face, carrying a bloodied human head, strode into the command platform with an expressionless expression. It was Guan Yu, Guan Yunchang.

When the lords first saw Guan Yu, they were taken aback, thinking to themselves, "Could this man have deserted the battlefield? If so, he must be severely punished!" But when their eyes fell on the head in his hand, everyone was horrified.

"What? Impossible! This is absolutely impossible! Hua Xiong was so valiant, how could you have killed him?"

"Hua Xiong is dead? Really?... Damn it, he's really dead!"

Guan Yu threw the head to the ground. The assembled lords rushed forward, scrutinizing it closely. The man with the ferocious face and unseeing eyes was none other than Hua Xiong, the arrogant general who had just slain two generals.

"Heavens! A mere horse archer was able to slay a general who was impervious to swords and spears! General Guan is truly a divine being!"

"General Guan, I must now look at you with new respect!"

Yuan Shao stared intently at the severed head, his eyes wide open, still unable to believe it. Hua Xiong, invincible and revered as a god, was dead just like that? This was certainly a great thing, but how exactly did Guan Yu manage to do it?

His mind was filled with doubt. Then, seeing Guan Yu silently walk back behind Liu Bei, a thought flashed through Yuan Shao's mind. He had inadvertently glimpsed Liu Bei whispering something to Guan Yu earlier. Could the method of slaying Hua Xiong be related to this?

Seeing Guan Yu return unharmed and with Hua Xiong's head, Liu Bei finally felt relieved.

Immediately, a surge of secret joy welled up in his heart. According to the rules, once Hua Xiong died, he would obtain the limited-edition general card, Hua Ci - Qing Dynasty Soldier Edition. The team's combat power would experience a qualitative leap.

On the command platform, Cao Cao saw Guan Yu return with his head presented, and a hint of shock flashed in his eyes. He gently stroked the still-warm wine cup with his fingertips, and sighed silently in his heart.

Unfortunately, Guan Yu was ultimately unable to drink the cup. Otherwise, Hua Xiong would not have lost his life at his hands.

At the alliance meeting, Yuan Shao once again turned his gaze to Liu Bei. He saw that the man remained expressionless throughout, even after Guan Yu had slain generals and captured flags, achieving unparalleled feats, he remained calm, as if his second brother's slaying of Hua Xiong was nothing more than a trivial matter.

Yuan Shao was even more shocked. He composed himself and announced it aloud to the crowd.

"Send word! Establish a nineteenth guerrilla force to suppress the bandits!"

"The commanding general is..."

"Liu Bei!"

Liu Bei calmly stood up, his face expressionless, stepped forward, and bowed to accept the order.

The bugle sounded. The combined forces of the nineteen warlords, numbering 510,000, poured out like a tidal wave towards the remnants of the Western Liang army outside the city.

With Hua Xiong dead and his deputy Hua Ci missing, the Xiliang army was leaderless and routed. They were powerless to fight back and could only abandon their armor and flee in panic.

The allied forces of the feudal lords pressed their advantage, slaughtering their way through. Zhang Fei, in particular, was caught up in the frenzy of the battle, his face contorted with a maniacal grin, wishing he could tear every last soldier before him to pieces.

Hua Xiong's troops suffered a crushing defeat and fled. The allied forces of the various lords pursued them for dozens of miles before withdrawing. The main army did not press its advantage but instead turned back to Chenliu.

After entering the city, Cao Cao immediately held a grand banquet, inviting all the warlords to celebrate Guan Yu's victory in slaying Hua Xiong that night.