New Three Kingdoms Tales: Starting as the expressionless Liu Bei

Half an hour later, Sun Ce, along with Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, and other generals, arrived hastily with their elite troops.

After hearing Liu Biao's "win-win strategy" for Sun Jian, all the generals believed him without a doubt and exclaimed that Liu Jing Sheng truly had the demeanor of royalty.

Sun Jian drew his sword, its tip pointing directly at Liu Biao's four-wheeled chariot in the distance, and roared, "All troops, charge into the Jingzhou army's camp! Take Liu Biao's chariot!"

The order was given like a mountain, and thousands of soldiers shouted as they charged toward the Jingzhou army formation.

But as a song about Guan Yu suddenly began to play, the battle was skipped by the Heavenly Will Master with a single click.

No one knows whether that charge actually took place or not. But when the camera pans to another scene, Sun Jian and his men are already sitting on a ferry, eating meat and drinking wine.

Sun Jian tilted his head back, took a swig of wine, wiped his mouth, and exclaimed, "Ce'er, we were right about him! Liu Biao truly has the bearing of royalty; he is a man of his word, loyal, and kind."

Sun Ce nodded and said with the same emotion, "Yes, Father, I never expected Liu Biao to be so loyal."

Sun Jian took another gulp, gazed at the wild grass swaying on the distant cliff, and waved his hand:

"We will repay Liu Biao's kindness today tenfold in the future! After returning to Jiangdong, immediately send back all the troops and soldiers you captured and seized from Jingzhou, along with two thousand shi of grain and five hundred bolts of silk!"

"From now on, on every festival, wedding, or birthday, our Sun family will extend our greetings with gifts!"

Sun Ce frowned slightly, a sense of familiarity suddenly welling up in his heart. He hesitated and asked, "Father, haven't you already said this once?"

Sun Jian, holding a half-eaten chicken leg, paused, then asked, "Huh?"

On the ship's side, Sun Quan had no appetite. He sat on the deck, hugging his knees, his eyes fixed on the steep cliffs on both sides. The cliffs were covered with lush, dense wild grass, obscuring his view completely.

He always felt that countless soldiers were hiding in the bushes, watching them intently through the gaps in the grass, waiting for a command to unleash a barrage of arrows.

But he knew that it was no use saying anything now.

Sun Jian was drinking heartily, boasting and bragging to his generals, and no one could stop him. He could only hug his knees, staring at the endless expanse of wild grass, and let out a long sigh.

Ta-da!

Suddenly, a strange change occurred, and a sharp shout exploded from the cliff.

"put!"

Countless dark figures suddenly rose from the bushes, and countless archers simultaneously drew their bows.

Arrows rained down like a storm. Before the sentry on the lookout tower could even shout, an arrow pierced his throat, sending him plummeting from the tower into the river and splashing up a cloud of muddy water.

A piercing cry echoed across the river: "The Jingzhou army is in ambush! Watch out for an ambush! The Jingzhou army is in ambush!"

But it was too late. Five arrows pierced the air and struck Sun Jian, who was holding a wine bowl, with pinpoint accuracy.

The bowl shattered and the wine spilled. Sun Jian was blasted backward by the immense force, crashing heavily onto the deck, blood gushing from the corner of his mouth.

"Father!" Sun Ce swung his sword, cleaving through the oncoming rain of arrows, and staggered toward Sun Jian. Sun Quan also rushed over immediately, but was pulled into the cabin by Cheng Pu, who caught up with him.

A dozen shield bearers quickly formed ranks, raising their shields high, arrows striking the shields with a loud thud.

Sun Ce and Huang Gai dragged Sun Jian by his arms and pulled him into the cabin.

Cheng Pu released Sun Quan, squatted down, and anxiously looked at Sun Jian lying in a pool of blood: "My lord, the Jingzhou army ambushed us!"

Sun Jian waved his hand, his face pale, but his voice was surprisingly calm:

"I'm fine. Don't worry about my injuries; I can heal myself with my strange power. You all get back to your positions quickly. Don't panic, row hard and break out of the channel!"

His gaze swept over Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, and Sun Ce, finally settling on Sun Ce's face, which was etched with resentment. He sternly ordered, "Go now!"

The generals gritted their teeth and dispersed from Sun Jian's side, rushing back to their respective posts.

Sun Jian leaned against a pillar, closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and channeled the strange power within his body to slowly wrap around his wound.

After about half a cup of tea's time, his complexion finally regained some color.

He opened his eyes, looked at Sun Quan beside him, whose eyes were red-rimmed but who had not left, and his voice was hoarse and weary:

"Quan'er, I'm sorry. I should have listened to you. That Liu Biao is a treacherous villain; he stabbed me in the back!"

Tears welled up in Sun Quan's eyes. He shook his head vigorously, his voice choked with emotion, but he tried to hold it in: "Father, it's alright, you should rest. As long as you're alive, we have hope!"

Sun Jian nodded vigorously, a burning flame igniting in his eyes: "That's right! Once I've healed these wounds, I'll personally summon the Demon Tiger and fight that old scoundrel Liu Biao to the death!"

Before he could finish speaking, his pupils suddenly contracted, and he spat out a mouthful of black blood, splattering it all over the deck.

Sun Quan was shocked and grabbed his swaying body, crying out, "Father!"

Sun Jian gasped for breath several times, desperately urging his strange power to barely steady himself.

He gritted his teeth and squeezed out each word, one by one:

"Damn Liu Biao... he actually coated this arrow with a potent poison! The more strange power I use, the faster the injury spreads... the poison just now even brought out some hidden injuries that were already suppressed within my body!"

He raised his hand, looking at the black line slowly spreading across his palm, and let out a low growl that sounded almost desperate: "I...I'm afraid I won't live much longer."

Before Sun Quan could speak, the entire ship began to shake violently, and the wooden planks at the bottom of the ship made a screeching sound.

Sun Jian lost his balance and fell to the ground. Cheng Pu stumbled in from outside the cabin, his face pale: "My lord! The Jingzhou army has piled up huge rocks underwater, blocking the waterway! We can't get out!"

Sun Jian felt the world spin, as if it were collapsing. With the last ounce of strength in his body, he forced out a few words: "Abandon ship and go ashore... Fight Liu Biao! Fight him!"

Cheng Pu and Sun Quan exchanged bewildered glances. They were surrounded by near-vertical cliffs; where could they possibly reach the shore? How could they abandon ship and land?

Sun Jian seemed to realize this. His hand trembled as he reached into his robes, pulled out the Imperial Seal of the State, and held it up with unsteady steps:

"The First Emperor of the Dark Abyss... the former emperors of all dynasties... the incomparably brave and peerless overlord... please grant me the right to burn once more!"

A response indeed came from the jade seal. The voice was cold and mechanical, resounding only in Sun Jian's heart, inaudible to anyone else: "Your death is the will of Heaven, the convergence of the world lines, and cannot be changed."

Sun Jian froze, then burst into a fit of madness, laughing wildly. His laughter, shrill and desperate, echoed through the cramped cabin: "Hahahaha! Heaven's will! Heaven's will favor Liu, not Sun!"

Cheng Pu and Sun Quan were so frightened by his appearance that they both took a half step back. Before the laughter had even subsided, Sun Jian vomited a large mouthful of black blood.

He gasped for breath before picking up the imperial seal again, his voice weak as a wisp of smoke: "Your Majesty the First Emperor of the Dark Abyss... please grant the Jiangdong youths in my cabin a strange power..."

The jade seal's icy voice echoed in his mind once more: "Last time you traded ten years of your lifespan with me in exchange for the power to crush Liu Bei. This time, will you trade your lifespan again?"

"Change! Change!" Sun Jian shouted hoarsely without thinking.

"Beep! Insufficient balance! Your lifespan is insufficient to complete the transaction. Please exchange it for something else."

Sun Jian was stunned. His mouth hung open, and for the first time, utter bewilderment appeared on his face.

But he only hesitated for a moment before urgently asking, "What else can I use to exchange for it? Anything that can be exchanged, I'll do! As long as it can ensure that my Jiangdong brothers return alive!"

The jade seal remained silent for a moment before slowly saying, "Your soul will enter the 'Destiny's Trick.' In your next life, you will continue to play the role of Sun Jian in this [Eternal Reincarnation]. Are you willing to exchange?"

Sun Jian was completely stunned. He lowered his head, looking at his still trembling hands, then raised his head again, gazing at the river outside the cabin, where arrows rained down and battle cries mingled.

Then he nodded.

"As long as my Quan'er and Ce'er can live... as long as my Jiangdong sons can return to Jiangdong alive... I, Sun Jian, am willing to be shattered to pieces!"

The moment the words fell, a powerful and strange force surged from the jade seal, flooding into the bodies of every Jiangdong soldier in the cabin like a tide.

Except for Sun Quan, everyone present let out a roar that was almost like a tiger's howl. Their limbs swelled up rapidly, their armor was torn apart, and golden tiger stripes appeared on their skin.

They transformed into grotesque tigers, half-human and half-tiger, leaping from the ship's side, their sharp claws digging deep into the steep rock face, climbing step by step up the almost vertical cliff.

Rock fragments tumbled down the cliff face, splashing into the river and creating countless sprays. Above them, on the mountainside, archers from the Jingzhou army emerged from the grass, their bows drawn taut.