Chapter 82

Chapter 716: Unbinding His Hair and Tightening His Collar to the Left (披髮左?) (3)

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Startled by the sudden shout, Lü Bu involuntarily threw a punch. Even though it was an impulsive strike, it carried an unparalleled force.

The dull sound of a rupture vanished instantly, as it was caused by the impact against the inner wall of the fortress.

With just one blow, the man’s head drooped, and he died, blood streaming from his nose and mouth.

The deed was already done. With the restraints that had held Lü Bu in check gone, he began to display his boxing prowess like a fish in water.

One of the Red Silk Army archers, holding an arrow, lunged at Lü Bu, aiming to pierce him with the arrowhead. However, before the arrow could touch Lü Bu, he lightly struck the man’s wrist with the bow in his hand.

The trajectory changed instantly, and the man’s body staggered.

Lü Bu did not miss this opportunity and slammed the man’s head into the fortress wall. The blood splattered like water from a gourd, staining the wall.

Several archers from the Red Silk Army drew their sabers and attacked Lü Bu. To avoid the low, sweeping sword strikes aimed at his legs, Lü Bu leaped onto the parapet of the fortress, hovering in the air.

In an instant, the sky and the ground switched places, and at the peak of his leap, Lü Bu demonstrated a near-miraculous archery skill.

In that brief moment, he drew two arrows from his quiver, placed them on the string, and pulled it back, firing both arrows simultaneously.

Although it was not the same as the precious bow Lü Bu always carried, the Red Silk Army’s bow was no less powerful.

The two arrows killed two enemy soldiers, both of whom fell with arrows embedded in their foreheads.

Even as Lü Bu displayed his archery skills, the Red Silk Army could not do the same. Lü Bu knew they were part of the Red Silk Army, so he jumped into the midst of the enemy soldiers.

Aiming at Lü Bu, who was preoccupied with killing the enemy, was not difficult. However, if the shot missed, it would hit their own allies.

Lü Bu ran wild as if he had entered his own world.

He leaped again, driving his knee into the chest of an enemy soldier.

Crack!

Even without being taught, this was the sound of bones breaking. The enemy soldier, struck by Lü Bu’s knee, was flung over the crenellation and plummeted to the ground below.

A short scream echoed, and Wei Yue, who had taken his position at the gate, grumbled.

“It’s already started. Of course. The general must be planning to kill all the enemies by himself. Damn, I don’t care! Open the gate! I’m going to earn some merit.”

* * *

“Waaaah!”

A scream stretched out as a soldier fell from the high walls of Hangu Pass.

However, before the scream faded, another one followed.

The walls and parapets of Hangu Pass were already littered with bodies, all of which were Lü Bu’s handiwork.

The chaos on the walls prompted Lü Bu’s main force to begin advancing. Below, Wei Yue’s determined troops had already opened the gate and were engaged in a fierce battle with the Red Silk Army.

“Quickly suppress the enemies at the gate and close it!”

Anxi sent a detachment to the gate while he himself led the remaining troops to confront the enemies on the walls.

Lü Bu continued to slaughter the enemy soldiers on the walls with great enthusiasm.

Despite the hundreds of archers guarding the walls, only a few dozen remained.

Lü Bu made full use of the terrain advantage of the walls. He didn’t need to exert much force to kill them; he just had to throw them over the parapet.

Of course, there were casualties. In the heat of battle, injuries were inevitable. Fortunately, they were only minor, and none of his limbs were severely damaged.

The problem was with those who had climbed the walls with him. There were about five or six, but only one was still alive.

Considering the Red Silk Army’s strength, the survival of even one person was a miracle.

However, even this one person’s fate was precarious. Lü Bu was unbothered, but Anxi, the commander of Hangu Pass, had brought his troops.

Anxi aimed his bow at Lü Bu, who was preoccupied with killing the enemy. There was no way to kill a distant opponent with a bow.

In other words, there was no arrow on Anxi’s bowstring.

No matter how urgent the situation, to try to kill an enemy without an arrow on the string... Was Anxi insane?

No, he wasn’t. Anxi’s specialty was the slingshot.

Slingshot.

To put it simply, it was like a small crossbow in the shape of a bow. Instead of arrows, it fired small stones or metal pieces.

The history of the slingshot is unknown, but it became less common as bows became more prevalent.

Why? Because it didn’t shoot as far as a bow, wasn’t as lethal, and was difficult to aim accurately.

However, the slingshot wasn’t without its advantages. Its greatest strength was that it could fire anything as long as it fit.

The advantage of being small was truly remarkable. Due to this, the only subordinate soldier with Lü Bu on the walls became a casualty.

Seeing an enemy about to shoot from a distance, the soldier leaped to protect Lü Bu.

* * *

Thud!

It wasn’t the sound of an arrow hitting. The metal piece from Anxi’s slingshot struck the soldier’s back and pierced through his chest.

Lü Bu, who had been caught off guard, ended up embracing the soldier.

“General... S... Slingshot...! Cough!”

The soldier spat out a mouthful of blood and then his head drooped.

Without a moment to lay the soldier’s body down, Lü Bu had to dodge Anxi’s slingshot attacks.

With another thud, Lü Bu witnessed the head of the soldier he had grabbed explode. The blood and brain matter splattered over Lü Bu, and he immediately leaped away.

‘I can’t see it!’

Lü Bu’s eyes were not filled with sawdust, so he could see, but he couldn’t see what Anxi was firing with his slingshot.

It was too fast and too small to be seen.

The only way to avoid it was to keep moving, and not in a regular pattern. The moment the opponent could predict his movements, it would be the end.

Lü Bu’s movements, dodging Anxi’s slingshot attacks, were like those of a mad donkey. He would fall over and do a somersault in the air, looking like a madman even though there was nothing there.

But if he didn’t do this, he wouldn’t be able to avoid the slingshot attacks that were too fast for the eye to follow.

Lü Bu, who couldn’t be expected to know military strategy, had a cunning mind when it came to physical combat. How could he be called the best without a strategic mind? His solution now was to take hostages.

The soldiers who had been fighting Lü Bu on the walls and those Anxi had brought were positioned on either side of Lü Bu.

Finding it difficult to close the distance and approach Anxi, Lü Bu changed his plan and instead retreated. This was a disaster for the few remaining soldiers who had retreated to the left to avoid Lü Bu.

They were caught by Lü Bu like chickens in a coop and became his hostages.

“Shoot! Come on, shoot more!”

Lü Bu used the captured enemy soldiers as shields to provoke Anxi.

Without hesitation, Anxi ordered his troops.

“Shoot! Turn him into a pincushion!”

One of his subordinate generals cautiously warned.

“If we do, we might hit our own men.”

“So what? The enemy is advancing! We must secure the walls as quickly as possible! Shoot! It’s an order, shoot!”

Anxi, without any hesitation, pulled the string of his slingshot.

Thud! The head of the enemy soldier Lü Bu was holding exploded. The metal piece that had killed the soldier’s comrade then struck Lü Bu’s forehead.

“Ouch!”

A scream involuntarily escaped Lü Bu’s lips.

The pain was like his skull being shattered, but he couldn’t help but admire Anxi’s slingshot skills. Anxi felt the same way.

‘What kind of human is this! Does he have a steel helmet on his head?’

Anxi was speechless. He knew better than anyone the power of his slingshot.

He could easily shatter two skulls with one shot, yet Lü Bu’s head remained intact. Although it quickly turned red and swollen, it wasn’t enough to satisfy Anxi.

* * *

‘I can’t underestimate this man’s slingshot skills.’

Lü Bu instinctively knew that he couldn’t deal with Anxi using the hostage tactic. If he were hit directly without any protection, he wouldn’t survive.

Besides Anxi’s slingshot, there were arrows from the Red Silk Army soldiers that were making Lü Bu’s life miserable.

Even with his bare hands, Lü Bu found it challenging to face Anxi alone. Now, he had to deal with so many distractions.

‘In this situation, it’s all or nothing! Let’s see who wins!’

Lü Bu decided to try another tactic to attack Anxi.

“You bastard! Your slingshot skills are quite impressive!”

The first part of Lü Bu’s plan was to keep moving while talking to Anxi, trying to distract him and look for an opportunity.

Click! Thud!

The metal piece from Anxi’s slingshot missed Lü Bu and instead damaged the parapet.

Despite being just a metal piece, the force behind it was so strong that it created spider-web-like cracks around the point where it hit the parapet.

“How long do you plan to keep dodging? You rat!”

“I’ll walk slowly if you stop shooting. What do you say?”

“Madman! Stand still!”

“Do you think I’m the kind of person who stands still when Lü Bu tells me to?”

“Oh! So you are Lü Bu! One of the six commanders of the Red Silk Army, I, Anxi, will... No, I won’t just take your head. I’ll leave your head intact and make a large hole in your chest!”

Anxi continued to shoot relentlessly. Lü Bu, in response, grabbed any enemy soldier he could and threw them at Anxi.

The sight of human bodies being thrown like balls was truly spectacular.

Anxi didn’t care about his subordinates being killed by his own shots.

“This bastard, Lü Bu! I still have a handful of metal pieces left. How will you save your life today!”

“Hmph! I now know your weakness. I’ll send you to your comrades soon.”

Lü Bu even kicked up the bodies on the ground, sending them flying into the air, and alternated his palm strikes.

‘Your slingshot skills are impressive, but nothing is perfect. No matter how great your slingshot attacks are, they can’t match the penetrating power of arrows! This, the battle! I will win!’

Lü Bu’s goal was to use the enemy soldiers and bodies to block the trajectory of the metal pieces from Anxi’s slingshot. This would also help him block the annoying arrows.

His plan worked.

Anxi’s metal pieces could penetrate two bodies but not three. The pieces that came out after piercing two bodies were no longer a threat to Lü Bu.

Despite Anxi’s continuous rapid shots, Lü Bu quickly closed the distance.

Seeing Lü Bu right in front of him, Anxi threw his slingshot aside and extended his tough hand.

Lü Bu also threw a punch.

Lü Bu was startled when his fist hit Anxi’s palm. Anxi’s palm was so rough and thick that it didn’t seem human.

After all, using a slingshot meant he had to grip things tightly, and getting cuts was inevitable. By now, he could probably hold a blade without bleeding.

However, the calluses on his palm could not stop Lü Bu’s punch.

Even though he only blocked Lü Bu’s punch with his palm, the impact was tremendous. Anxi’s shoulder dislocated instantly.

Before Anxi could scream, Lü Bu grabbed his collar. Even with both hands, Anxi couldn’t handle Lü Bu, let alone with just one.

Lü Bu used Anxi’s back as a shield to block the arrows from the Red Silk Army archers. In an instant, six arrows were embedded in Anxi’s back.

Anxi, who had ordered his troops to shoot at their own allies, now bled and lowered his head, hit by his subordinates’ arrows.

“Lü Bu Fengxian! I have defeated the enemy commander!”

Lü Bu let out a roar, but his expression was not bright. The main force had already crossed the open gate of Hangu Pass and was cutting through the Red Silk Army like a gale.

Moreover, Lü Bu had killed the enemy commander. So why was his expression so dark?

Lü Bu’s gaze was on the bodies of his subordinate soldiers who had helped him kill the enemy on the walls.

‘What did I do wrong? Why did Mr. Guo’s strategy get exposed?’