New Three Kingdoms Tales: Starting as the expressionless Liu Bei

Upon hearing this, Zhang Fei gripped his eighteen-foot spear tightly and slammed the shaft heavily on the ground, making a dull thud.

"What 'Red Hare among horses, Lü Bu among men'? I think he's just a good-for-nothing!" He turned to Liu Bei and Guan Yu, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said, "Big brother, second brother, you wait here, watch me poke a thousand holes through that Lü Bu!"

After saying this, he turned to get the horse, but Guan Yu stepped in front of him and blocked his way.

"Third brother, Lü Bu is incredibly brave. You're too agitated right now, so let me handle this."

Zhang Fei's face immediately fell. He narrowed his eyes, held his spear horizontally in front of Guan Yu, and the cold light of the spear tip flashed between the two.

"Second brother, you've already killed Hua Xiong. If you try to steal my credit again today, don't blame me for disowning you as my second brother."

Guan Yu knew this reckless man was stubborn and couldn't be persuaded by even ten oxen. He turned his gaze to Liu Bei, his tone neither hurried nor slow, yet carrying a subtle but profound meaning:

"Third brother, you should listen to your elder brother's arrangements. If your elder brother doesn't want you to fight, you can't disobey him, can you?"

The unspoken meaning in those words jolted Zhang Fei awake, and the string in his mind known as the "soul chain" suddenly tightened.

[Rule 1: You are linked to Guan Yu and Zhang Fei by a tiered soul chain. If you die, both Guan Yu and Zhang Fei die; if Guan Yu dies, Zhang Fei dies, but you do not die; if Zhang Fei dies, neither you nor Guan Yu die.]

Among the three, he is not only the lowest in status and combat power (in his un-monstrous state), but also the lowest in the chain.

If Liu Bei and Guan Yu truly wanted to abandon him, he couldn't take anyone with him and would only die unjustly in this chaotic world.

Seeing this scene, Liu Bei couldn't help but find it amusing, but his face remained as calm as ever.

He turned to Cao Cao, his tone suddenly carrying a hint of reminiscence, as if he were recounting something he had witnessed firsthand.

"Brother Mengde, please convey a message to the seventeen lords on my behalf."

"What do you mean?"

"In the Battle of Pengcheng, Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King, only used 30,000 men to defeat Liu Bang, the founder of the Han Dynasty, whose army of 560,000 men was routed and fled in disarray."

Liu Bei's gaze swept past Cao Cao and landed on the city gate. "Lu Bu alone is worth 100,000 elite troops. Today, we, the three brothers Liu, Guan, and Zhang, will emulate the Overlord and utterly defeat Lu Bu!"

Before Cao Cao could speak, Liu Bei had already mounted his horse and coldly ordered, "Third brother, I command you to fight Lü Bu. Your second brother and I will cover you."

Zhang Fei was overjoyed, and Guan Yu nodded. The two of them simultaneously leaped onto their horses. The three riders kicked up a cloud of dust and galloped towards the city gate.

The remaining soldiers silently lined up and retreated towards the Nineteen Garrison General's Mansion.

Cao Cao stood there, staring blankly at the three departing figures, before finally snapping out of his daze. He straightened his clothes and bowed deeply in the direction where the three riders had disappeared.

"Brother Xuande's words are enough to shame the seventeen princes."

........

On the command platform, after Cao Cao and Yuan Shao left one after another, the warlords who had been fighting fiercely suddenly seemed to be grabbed by the neck by some force. All the shouting and fighting stopped abruptly at the same moment.

They slowly loosened their collars and fists, their gazes becoming dull and empty.

Everyone's face was expressionless as they turned around in unison and walked towards their seats. Their steps were stiff, their knees unbent, like puppets held up by invisible strings.

Yuan Shu stood in the corner, watching this scene, his scalp tingling.

This is what Xuande meant by the will of Heaven. It is manipulating everyone present who has been corrupted by the strange force.

Yuan Shu desperately wanted to leave this awful place, but he knew that if he got up and left now, these warlords, manipulated by fate, would surely do something to him.

He moved back to his seat without making a sound and sat down slowly. The other lords also stiffly picked up their wine bowls and drank slowly.

Strangely, with each sip of wine they swallowed, their movements became smoother, and their pupils gradually focused, no longer as unfocused as before.

A moment later, Yuan Shao also returned.

His eyes, which had been strangely corrupted and now glowed with an eerie green, were now equally empty and lifeless. He stiffly moved to the leader's seat, picked up his wine bowl, and took a few sips.

As the wine went down his throat, his eyes regained their luster. He stood up and addressed the assembled lords in a loud voice: "Gentlemen, Lü Bu is challenging us outside the city. Let's go up to the city wall and take a look."

"Alright! General Han Fu, let's go, let's go. I've been wanting to see Lu Bu's might for a long time."

"General Ma Teng, please. We are all loyal subjects of the Han Dynasty, there is no need for such formalities."

Yuan Shu held his wine bowl, his gaze sweeping over the group of lords bowing and exchanging greetings from above the rim of the bowl, a chill running down his spine.

Just a minute ago they were fighting on the ground, grabbing each other's hair and cursing at each other, but now they were behaving like guests, as if the brawl had never happened.

How bizarre! So bizarre!

He secretly kept all of this in mind, planning to tell Xuande as soon as he got away.

.......

"Yuan Shao! Aren't you from a family that has held high office for four generations? Aren't you renowned throughout the land? Why don't you dare come out and fight me? Why are you as cowardly as a mouse, as timid as a tortoise!"

Lu Bu rode on his Red Hare, carrying his halberd in one hand, galloping back and forth around the city.

The dust kicked up by the horses' hooves mingled with his curses, each word striking the city wall.

He had used his strange power to heal the arrow wounds on Red Hare, and its coat was as shiny as ever. The toxins in its body had also been completely removed.

But the thought of how this group of people had targeted his horse only fueled his anger.

He suddenly pulled on the reins, and Red Hare reared up, its front hooves pawing the air twice before slamming heavily back onto the ground.

Lu Bu drew his longbow with a backhand, nocked an arrow, drew the bowstring to its fullest extent, and pointed the arrowhead directly at Yuan Shao's face on the city wall.

When the soldiers guarding the city wall saw this, they broke out in a cold sweat.

Someone yelled at Yuan Shao, "Alliance Leader, run! Lü Bu knows evil magic; his arrows never miss!"

Yuan Shao stood with his hands behind his back behind the battlements, a cold smile on his lips.

Evil magic? Infallible accuracy? He completely disregarded the soldier's warning.

But when he looked up again, the arrow had already torn through the air and was right in front of his face in the blink of an eye.

However, the next moment, Yuan Shao's figure vanished into thin air.

The arrow pierced through the spot where he had just stood and embedded itself hard in the wooden pillar behind him, its fletching still humming.

Yuan Shao instantly teleported to Yuan Shu's side, standing with his hands behind his back, his robes perfectly intact.

The soldier who had been shouting just moments before was stunned, his mouth agape.

Lord Yuan actually possesses such supernatural powers? He rubbed his eyes hard, wondering if he was hallucinating from being frightened by Lü Bu.

Lu Bu also witnessed this scene. He frowned slightly, but his face showed little surprise.

It was just teleportation; Lu Bu had seen far more bizarre abilities than that.

Since he couldn't hit Yuan Shao, he decided to try a different target. He withdrew his gaze, slowly scanning the pale faces on the city wall, and finally fixed his eyes on Han Fu.

He took a new arrow from his quiver and slowly nocked it onto the bowstring.

The moment Han Fu was stared at by those eyes, every hair on her body stood on end.

He wanted to run, but his legs felt like they were made of lead and he couldn't lift them.

The bowstring was drawn back inch by inch, the arrowhead gleaming coldly in the sunlight, and it was aimed steadily at his brow. Han Fu's pupils dilated suddenly, his lips trembled, and he couldn't utter a single word.

Just then, a noisy commotion arose from below the city gate.

Immediately afterwards, the city gate burst open, and a thunderous voice boomed up from below.

"Pah! Yuan Shao is a coward! He told you to close the city gates, and you just closed them? Don't you even recognize your own Grandpa Zhang? Get out of the way, or I'll feed you to Lu Bu!"

Yuan Shao's face darkened. He didn't even need to look further; based on Zhang Fei's past actions, he could guess what was happening below the city.

He ordered that no one should go out to fight without authorization. Zhang Fei, that reckless man, wanted to go to his death, but was stopped by the gate guards. Not only did Zhang Fei not listen to their advice, but he had probably already knocked the soldiers who were blocking him to the ground and opened the city gate himself.

Yuan Shao sneered. "Whatever. If you want to die, then go ahead."

As soon as the city gate opened, Zhang Fei charged out first, followed closely by Guan Yu and Liu Bei.

Seeing the three riders gallop away, a hint of amusement flashed in Lü Bu's eyes.

He put down his longbow, picked up his halberd, and looked at the dark-faced man in the lead with great interest, about to ask his name.

Zhang Fei reined in his horse, pointed his eighteen-foot spear forward, and spoke first: "You traitorous slave! Cease your arrogance! Zhang Yide of Yan is here!"

Lu Bu's smile froze instantly. His eye twitched violently, veins bulged on his neck, and the knuckles of his hand gripping the halberd cracked.

"What did you call me?!"