mtl008 Chapter 798 The War of Founding the Nation (8)
Chapter 798 The War of Founding the Nation (8)
Liu Bao is dead, cut in two by Liu Feng. The two men surnamed Liu are somewhat at odds with each other.
It is worth mentioning that Liu Bao had a son named Liu Yuan, who was Emperor Guangwen of Han, the first emperor to enter Han territory and establish the Han Zhao dynasty during the Five Barbarian Invasions.
However, Liu Yuan was born in 252 AD, meaning he was not yet born at this time. His father died before his son was born, and the future Emperor Guangwen of Han, Liu Yuan, did not even have the chance to become a cell embryo.
Liu Feng didn't care about anything else. After killing Liu Bao, he immediately rushed to the next person, shouting as he charged, "Brothers, follow me and kill them all! Kill all these damned Xiongnu! Let them all stay in the Han Dynasty as fertilizer!"
The Han Dynasty and the Xiongnu had been sworn enemies for four hundred years, so Han generals were truly willing to fight to the death whenever they were fighting the Xiongnu.
With the deaths of Budugen and Liu Bao, the Xianbei and Xiongnu people on the battlefield suffered a devastating blow, their bodies strewn across the fields and rivers of blood as they were slaughtered by the Han army.
The Qiang, Jie, and Di tribes fared no better, suffering heavy losses at the hands of the Wu brothers, Wu Yi and Wu Ban.
It is worth mentioning that the Qiang and Di tribes were too scattered, and only a few tribes came. Even if the entire army was wiped out, it would not lead to the extinction of the tribe. But the Jie tribe was different.
To be precise, the Jie people were not a single ethnic group, but rather a hodgepodge of fugitives and bullies from the Xiongnu, Xianbei, Qiang, and Di tribes, or tribes that had been defeated in their own internal conflicts. They had no history, no written language, and no culture—truly a product of three nos.
Unlike the Qiang and Di tribes, this new ethnic group did not spread out and grow everywhere. Instead, they gathered together without any backup plans. This battle was naturally brought in by Cao Pi. In other words, if all the Jie people died on the battlefield, it would be equivalent to the extinction of the entire tribe.
More importantly, the Jie people, being a hastily assembled and temporary ethnic group, lacked cohesion. They were fine when they won, but they were prone to collapsing when they lost.
After the Wu brothers breached three of the Jie tribe's defensive positions, the Jie tribe completely collapsed. Some began to flee, while others knelt and surrendered. However, the Wu brothers chose to ignore them and continue killing, because Liu Bei had given a strict order before the battle: anyone could surrender except the Jie tribe, and they had to be wiped out completely.
Although the Wu brothers did not know why Liu Bei would issue such an order, they chose to carry it out. The Jie tribe, which numbered only ten thousand, was rapidly reduced in number under the Wu brothers' attacks.
It is foreseeable that regardless of whether the Han or Wei dynasty wins or loses this battle, the Han people of the Central Plains will be the biggest beneficiaries, because the Five Barbarian tribes that could have threatened the Central Plains will be quickly wiped out by the huge grinder of flesh and blood on the battlefield.
In other words, if Liu Bei wins, he will have no need to worry about border troubles after the successful Northern Expedition. The nomadic tribes of the grasslands, having survived this battle, will pose no threat to the newly established Han Dynasty.
The same applies to Cao Wei. A victory would not only interrupt the Northern Expedition of the pseudo-Han regime, but also completely resolve the northern border troubles, allowing the Central Plains to enjoy decades of stability and development, which would bring many benefits.
After the Wu brothers launched a full-scale attack and felled the last Jie tribesman, Wu Yi looked up and saw Liu Bei wielding his double-edged sword and fighting desperately not far away. His expression changed slightly, and without thinking, he led the few hundred men he had left to move closer to Liu Bei.
Liu Bei's aged yet agile and powerful body seemed to possess some kind of magic. Upon seeing him, the exhausted soldiers were instantly filled with energy again, as if they had been injected with chicken blood. Even their legs, which had been as heavy as lead, became much lighter.
Liu Bei used his left sword for defense and his right sword for offense, cooperating seamlessly with Chen Dao as if they were in an empty field. They killed the enemies who kept retreating while also attracting the attention of others.
Xu Huang, who was also scattered by the chaotic soldiers and couldn't even tell where he was, was even more excited than Wu Yi and Wu Ban when he saw Liu Bei. He brandished his gilded axe and roared, "My men, follow me to kill that big-eared thief!"
After saying this, he took the lead and charged towards Liu Bei. The Wei soldiers along the way followed one after another. Soon they arrived in front of Liu Bei, raised their giant axes and aimed straight at Liu Bei's face, and shouted loudly: "Uncle Liu, it has been many years since we last met. How have you been?"
They've known each other for a long time, having been rivals and teammates alike; their relationship is so complicated it would take three days and three nights to explain.
But now was clearly not the time to build rapport. Liu Bei knew the superiority of his short sword over the opponent's long axe, so he quickly dodged to the side and swiftly closed in, raising his sword to thrust straight at Xu Huang's face, while shouting loudly, "Xu Gongming, how dare you come alone to kill me? Who gave you the illusion that my martial arts are inferior to yours?"
Faced with Xu Huang's attack, Liu Bei was truly unafraid. You must know that when he quelled the Yellow Turban Rebellion and fought against Dong Zhuo, he braved wind and rain and fought through mountains of corpses and seas of blood. It's just that after becoming a lord, he rarely faced enemies.
However, Liu Bei's martial arts skills never declined, and he had never suffered any serious injuries and was in good physical condition. He was not afraid of Xu Huang when he was at his peak decades ago, let alone the old Xu Huang who had fought for many years and was suffering from chronic diseases.
Instead of retreating, Liu Bei advanced, intending to kill Xu Huang while Xu Huang's old strength was waning and his new strength had not yet been generated.
After all, Xu Huang's Xuanhua axe was too heavy, and being heavy meant he wasn't flexible enough. His attack speed was definitely not as good as Liu Bei's double-edged sword. It would take a long time to swing it out and pull it back, which would be enough time for Liu Bei to kill him.
However, Xu Huang was a veteran general who had fought for decades and his combat experience was no less than Liu Bei's. Faced with Liu Bei's attack, he decisively retreated and created distance, not giving Liu Bei a chance to get close.
His Xuanhua axe was much longer than his double-edged sword. Every inch longer made him stronger, and as long as Liu Bei didn't get close to him, Liu Bei couldn't do anything to him.
Liu Bei was aware of the weaknesses of his own weapon, so he quickly closed in and did not give Xu Huang a chance to create distance. As long as the two were close enough, Xu Huang's Xuanhua axe could not take advantage of its length.
The two, one wanting to stay away and the other wanting to get closer, soon found themselves in a strange situation of chasing and fleeing. Chen Dao, who was Liu Bei's personal bodyguard, did not go to help, but instead faced Xu Huang's son, Xu Gai, and the Wei army behind him.
Xu Huang's prestige and influence within the Wei army were so great that whenever they saw him charging, nearby Wei soldiers would spontaneously gravitate towards him, resulting in Chen Dao facing an ever-increasing number of Wei soldiers and mounting pressure.
So all Chen Dao can do right now is to block the advancing Wei army and prevent them from harassing Liu Bei and Xu Huang; there's really nothing else he can do.
Fortunately, Wu Yi and Wu Ban arrived in time to relieve some of the pressure, allowing him to continue guarding Liu Bei's outer perimeter.
Thanks to the combined efforts of both armies, Liu Bei and Xu Huang were able to fight with ease.
Liu Bei thus unleashed his true strength, which had been misunderstood for decades. His Gu Ying sword technique was so fluid and graceful that he forced Xu Huang to abandon his Xuanhua axe and draw his sword to fight Liu Bei in just over thirty rounds.
If we were to compete with Liu Bei in swordsmanship, who in the world today would dare to claim victory?
This time, Xu Huang only lasted ten rounds before being stabbed in the throat and collapsing to the ground. Looking at his old friend who had been entangled with him for decades, Liu Bei sighed and said, "Brother Gongming, I know you will not surrender. Today, I will simply fulfill your loyalty and righteousness. After the battle, I will bury you with the honors due to a duke or marquis, and I will also treat your family well. Go in peace."
Xu Huang, stabbed in the throat, coughed up blood and was too weak to speak, but with his last strength, he managed to say, "Thank...Your...Sovereign..."
After saying this, he closed his eyes weakly, and a great general thus perished.
Seeing this, Xu Gai, who was not far away, was thrown into disarray. He immediately abandoned his opponent and rushed over, roaring at the top of his lungs, "Father..."
Chen Dao seized the opportunity and slashed hard at the back of his head, but Liu Bei hurriedly stopped him, saying, "Don't kill him."
After all, he is the descendant of an old friend; it's best not to kill him unless absolutely necessary.
Upon hearing this, Chen Dao twisted his arms, changing his slash to a slap, and the blade struck Xu Gai on the back of the head, knocking him unconscious on the spot.