Chapter 30: Unexpected

  The white horse was incredibly fast, and soon picked up speed, its four hooves flying like the wind, carrying with it the biting chill of the northern air. Perhaps disturbed by the killing aura, the petals on the peach trees on either side suddenly came to life, dancing in the wind beside Gongsun Zan, who was as fierce as a tiger and majestic as a dragon. Behind him, they formed a long dragon made up of pink petals that lingered for a long time, reluctant to disperse, like butterflies in love with flowers that refused to leave the fragrant blossoms.

  Gongsun Zan then took this swirling peach blossom and swept past everyone.

  "Awesome! So handsome!" Liu Xiu picked up a peach blossom that had fallen on Liu Bei's shoulder and blurted out.

  "Wow——" Liu Bei let out a cry of surprise, his eyebrows raised, his eyes shining brightly, and both hands forgot to clap.

  "Ah——" The classmates behind him, regardless of age, all let out a cry of surprise, some even had their eyes narrowed by the strong gust of wind that swept past.

  When Gongsun Zan started to move, Yan Rou also urged his war horse to start galloping. Unlike Gongsun Zan who held the spear with both hands, he held the reins tightly with one hand, and his body leaned slightly forward. His right hand held the long spear horizontally, his arm slightly retracted, and the sharp tip of the spear pointed straight ahead, pointing directly at Gongsun Zan who was approaching with peach blossoms.

  A distance of one hundred and fifty paces is actually not very far, and it's even insufficient to let the warhorse reach its top speed. However, whether or not you can bring the warhorse's speed up as much as possible in the shortest distance is an important aspect of horsemanship itself. If your horsemanship isn't precise, and you can't reach a certain speed before clashing with the enemy, then when you engage, you'll be at a disadvantage, and it's very likely that the opponent will use the force of one blow to knock you off your horse, no matter how high your martial skills are, you won't have the chance to display them.

  When the two were less than ten steps apart, Baima's horse galloped forward, Gong Sunzhan leaned forward, grasping his spear with both hands, and shouted loudly as he charged straight at Yan Ruo's chest.

  Gongsun Zan's white horse was spirited, and Yan Rou's red horse was not bad either, but it didn't have the upper hand. In fact, it seemed to be slightly inferior to Gongsun Zan's white horse. At this time, Yan Rou was far from being as powerful as Gongsun Zan in terms of speed or momentum. His eyebrows were even slightly furrowed, as if he was overwhelmed by Gongsun Zan's fierce aura.

  The iron spear pierced through the void, and suddenly arrived in front of Yan Rou's horse.

  Yan Rou's hand slightly retracted, not extending forward, but unintentionally shook once. The long spear in her hand suddenly trembled, and the spearhead jumped up like a snake, accurately colliding with Gongsun Zan's spearhead that was thrusting towards her.

  Gongsun Zan, exerting all his strength, stared wide-eyed as the spears clashed together, seemingly without much force. The long spear in his hand was lightly deflected by a powerful force, slightly changing direction, and swept past Yan Rou's side, barely an inch away from piercing the large cape blown up by the strong wind behind him.

  What a pity! Gong Sun Zan sighed silently, and couldn't help but think more. His instinctive arms used force, following the momentum to turn the long spear horizontally, and another spearhead hidden behind his elbow suddenly swept across, heading straight for Yan Rou's waist side as she brushed past him.

  "Kill!" Gong Sun Zan stared at Yan Rou, who was only a step away, with suddenly tense eyes and thunderous tongue, shouting loudly.

  Gongsun Zan not only had a handsome face, but also a good voice, clear and loud, with extremely strong penetration. When speaking to people normally, even if they were dozens of steps away, he could still make the other person hear clearly. At this moment, he was only one step away from Yan Ruo, and suddenly let out a loud roar, which was even more shocking.

  In the midst of loud shouting, the cold gleaming spearhead had already been swept out.

  Liu Xu's mouth was agape, he forgot to cheer, forgot to breathe, forgot Liu Bei by his side and everything else. His eyes only had the spearhead that popped out from behind Gong Sun Zan like a cobra, the galloping warhorse suddenly slowed down in his eyes, just like slow motion, the scattered mane, the muscles trembling under the smooth fur, the battle robe blown back by the wind, all were so clear and visible.

  He saw the legendary cavalry charge for the first time, although it was only two people, not thousands of troops, but this was real. A swear word suddenly flashed in his mind: "Damn, one move can be fatal, how is it possible to have dozens or hundreds of rounds without a winner? This is really fucking ridiculous."

  In his view, Yan Rou and Gongsun Zan were far too different, as they had not even reacted yet, let alone stabbed out their long spears. He was lucky to have escaped Gongsun Zan's first strike, but he would never be able to dodge this treacherous one.

  What a great horse thief, what a fire burning cloud, everything is just a fleeting cloud.

  Gongsun Zan is mighty!

  Just as Liu Xi was excited to witness the legendary warrior's one-on-one duel for the first time, he saw an even more astonishing scene.

  Yan Rou's left hand, which was holding the reins, suddenly flipped outwards and charged towards the sinister spearhead. What entered Liu Xiu's eyes was a small shield with a diameter of about three feet. The spear and shield collided, and the spearhead that had just popped out rebounded at an even faster speed. The intense impact was apparently beyond Gongsun Zan's expectations, and his body swayed on the horse, almost falling off.

  Two warhorses crossed each other in error, separated by dozens of steps in an instant, and then almost simultaneously began to slow down, preparing to turn their heads and start the second wave of attack.

  Liu Xiu was stunned, and he subconsciously looked towards Gong Sun Zan, who had just turned his head. Gong Sun Zan's face had a hint of redness, and his eyes had an unusual color, clearly showing that he was extremely shocked and bewildered by the failure of his previous attack. Liu Xiu thought for a moment and then understood why Gong Sun Zan was bewildered. From Gong Sun Zan's angle, he couldn't see the scene where Yan Rou's small shield collided with the spearhead. He could only feel that the spearhead, which should have cut through Yan Rou's waist or arm, had been knocked back, almost making him lose his balance, but he didn't know what had happened in that instant.

  Liu Xiu's astonishment was no less than Gong Sun Zan's. He turned his head to look at Yan Rou, who had already turned her horse around. He didn't know if Yan Rou's small shield had accidentally blocked Gong Sun Zan's attack or if it was a timely reaction. If it was the latter, then her reaction speed was also astonishingly fast. The two horses had passed each other in an instant, and Gong Sun Zan's strike was so stealthy that even lightning couldn't describe the brevity of the time.

  Liu Xiu thought to himself that it was impossible for anyone to have such speed, and even the so-called "Ghost Hand" Wu Junhou might not be this fast. As soon as he thought of the hopes Wu Junhou had placed in him, he suddenly felt a very heavy heart.

  Wu Junhou said to him, he would let Gongsun Zan first engage in a cavalry battle with Yan Rou. Although Gongsun Zan had never been on the battlefield before, his horse was fast, and since he could hold two spears in his hands, his riding skills must be good too. Even if Yan Rou was a great thief, with high martial arts skills, when facing such an unorthodox opponent, he wouldn't have the upper hand either. Gongsun Zan had a relatively large chance of winning, and whether he won or not didn't matter.

  Liu Xiu didn't know if Yan Rou was now frightened, but he could confirm that Yan Rou wasn't injured. Gong Sun Zan's first strike had no effect, and his double-headed iron spear lost its surprise attack value. Yan Rou had mentally prepared himself, and Gong Sun Zan's chances suddenly decreased.

  This way, he is no longer able to win or lose, but must win.

  But he, a newcomer, could defeat Yan Rou, such a master, just by being instructed by Wu Jun for more than an hour? Although he hated this traitor and wanted to beat him until he couldn't take care of himself, it wasn't something that could be done with just a burst of righteous indignation.

  This requires strength.

  Liu Xiu didn't know if he had this strength himself.