Chapter 21: Zhang Liao Beheads the General

  Lü Bu entered Tiger Trap Pass and was to engage in a decisive battle with the heroes of Guandong the next day. Zhang Liao advised, "Why use an ox cleaver to kill a chicken? I am enough to go into battle."

  Lü Bu knew that Zhang Liao's martial arts were extraordinary, so he agreed.

  The next morning, before Yuan Shao attacked the city, Zhang Liao led 500 iron cavalry out of the pass to meet the enemy and stood in front of the camp calling for battle.

  Yuan Shao and others arrived at the front of the formation and asked those around them: "Who is the general calling out to challenge?"

  The subordinate replied: "They are from Yanmen, named Zhang Liao and Zhang Wenyuan."

  Li Chong listened clearly on the side and couldn't help but be stunned. Was Zhang Liao playing the role of Hua Xiong?

  "Unknown minor official!" Yuan Shao sneered: "Who dares to behead Zhang Liao?"

  As soon as his voice fell, someone shouted: "Look at Yu Shen going forward to take his life."

  Yu Fan charged straight at Zhang Liao on horseback, Li Chong rushed to Tai Shi Ci and said in a low voice: "Zhang Liao's martial arts are extraordinary, Yu Fan will surely die."

  Taishi Ci strangely asked: "Does Zihuan know Zhang Liao?"

  Shut up! Li Chong cursed himself silently and spoke nonsense: "I've met Zhang Liao before, we're both from Pingzhou anyway."

  Tai Shi Zi stopped asking questions. In fact, he didn't quite believe Li Chong's words. Instead, he thought that Li Chong knew some physiognomy techniques. It was a popular practice in the Han Dynasty to judge people by their appearance.

  Zhang Liao wore iron armor, a copper helmet on his head, and held a steel knife upside down in his hand, sitting upright on horseback, motionless.

  Yu She galloped his horse and rushed to Zhang Liao's face, shouting loudly: "Yu She is here, Zhang Liao will die."

  Zhang Liao suddenly let out a cold shout, his warhorse suddenly surged forward, and he crossed paths with Yu She. At the same time, Zhang Liao swung his sword horizontally towards Yu She's waist, and Yu She hastily held up his long spear in front of him, propping it outward.

  A blade of light, like a waterfall crashing against the rocks, clashed with Yu She's spear shaft, and in an instant, Zhang Liao's warhorse leapt out several feet, suddenly reared up on its hind legs, spun around in mid-air, and charged at Yu She once again.

  At this time, Yu She had not yet recovered from the huge impact just now, and the gun stock was still humming, but he did not find that Zhang Liao had already arrived behind him.

  Zhang Liao's warhorse swept past Yu She like a whirlwind, stirring up snowflakes everywhere. A flash of sword light flickered in the snowy air, and Zhang Liao's horse, due to inertia, galloped for dozens of steps before finally coming to a stop.

  He turned his horse's head, and Zhang Liao inserted the long knife into the snowy ground with a swoosh, wiping away the bloodstains on it. His eyes were as sharp as the blade, staring at Yu She, and his mouth curled up in a cold arc.

  Yu She was suddenly shaken on horseback, his eyes blurred, his body swayed several times, and he fell headfirst under the horse. The crimson blood from his neck instantly soaked through the accumulated snow. Yu She... died in battle!

  The various lords of the Kanto region were shocked, and for a moment, there was complete silence. They didn't know if Yu She was being reckless or Zhang Liao was too ferocious. But no one noticed that the 500 iron cavalry brought by Zhang Liao also remained silent, as if beheading a general was a very ordinary thing.

  Han Fu did not believe that Zhang Liao's martial arts were strong, wanting to gain the upper hand and suppress the other vassals. He said: "I have a general named Pan Feng who can behead Zhang Liao."

  Pan Feng heard this and responded with a loud "Ah!", raised his great axe, mounted his horse and charged straight at Zhang Liao.

  Zhang Liao saw Pan Feng charging towards him, raised his long knife and silently welcomed him. Due to the death of his own general, Pan Feng was extremely angry in his heart and did not announce his name, swinging his large axe down on Zhang's head.

  Zhang Liao raised his long knife and made a circular arc, dissipating the force of the big axe. It's worth noting that except for the big hammer, no other weapon can collide head-on with the big axe, otherwise it will be a disastrous outcome of breaking the knife and losing one's life.

  If Zhang Liao's swordsmanship was like thunder and lightning, swift and unmatched earlier, then his current swordsmanship is like a gentle breeze and fine rain, continuous and unending.

  Pan Feng launched a fierce attack, while Zhang Liao defended steadily, and in the blink of an eye, they had exchanged over a dozen blows.

  Seeing Pan Feng and Zhang Liao entangled together, the allied forces were suddenly delighted, constantly cheering for Pan Feng, and the war drums were loud and explosive.

  Little did he know, Pan Feng was already sweating profusely and now he couldn't even move, Zhang Liao's sword was like a spider web, sticking Pan Feng to it, Pan Feng felt that his breathing was becoming more difficult.

  To know that the guandao is a weapon with astonishing destructive power and has an advantage in close combat, there is one condition: the user must have astonishing endurance. In the Three Kingdoms, Guan Yu was the best at using this type of weapon. With dozens of kilograms of giant knives chopping down, both strength and speed can reach an astonishing level, often able to instantly kill opponents.

  But this kind of weapon also has its drawbacks, that is, it is not suitable for a protracted war. Even a master like Guan Yu can't do anything about it. This is why Guan Yu always kills his opponents in seconds, but once he encounters a cautious opponent, he can't win. It's like Xu Huang and Pang De, their martial arts are indeed inferior to Guan Yu, but they can fight with him on an equal footing.

  Pan Feng felt the large axe in his hand getting heavier and heavier, each swing exhausting all his strength. However, he didn't dare to withdraw, because Zhang Liao's sword was like a poisonous snake, if he dared to slow down even a little, it would definitely be a disastrous outcome. Pan Feng regretted this in his heart, wishing he hadn't used the large axe as a weapon, at least he could have escaped!

  Many people in the allied army can see this situation, Xiahou Dun's brothers, Yan Liang and Wen Chou, Zhang He and Gao Gan, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei all saw that Pan Feng was already in a precarious situation.

  Unfortunately, Xiahou brothers, Yan Liang, Wen Chou and others were not in the formation. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei's positions were too low to get to the front.

  Now the only one who can see the form is Taishi Ci, thanks to Li Tong's luck. Yuan Shao stood in front of Li Tong without showing any opposition. To know that personal standing is also arranged according to status, Liu Bei wouldn't have had the opportunity to show his face if he hadn't been carrying the title of a great Han royal relative, and would have ended up like Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.

  Li Chong knew that Pan Feng was bound to lose, but he didn't plan to say more. Whether Pan Feng lived or died had nothing to do with him.

  Tai Shi Zi stood behind Li Zhong and couldn't help but say: "Pan Feng's situation is not good!"

  Cao Cao knew that Taishi Ci's martial arts were extraordinary, and he hastily asked: "How did you say that, Zi Yi?"

  Tai Shi Zi frowned and said: "General Pan Feng's strength is not increasing, in just ten moves, he won't be able to withstand Zhang Wen Yuan's counterattack."

  Han Fu, the governor of Ji Province, was the most powerful among all the vassals and had a high position. He stood beside Yuan Shao and was greatly shocked when he heard this. Without caring whether what Taishi Ci said was true or not, he hastily said: "But please ask General to save us."

  Li Chong could not refuse Han Fu's face, so he could only hint at Taishi Ci to go and rescue him.

  Taishi Ci rode out on horseback and charged straight at the enemy formation, shouting: "General Pan Feng, retreat! Let me fight Zhang Liao!"

  Zhang Liao was about to make a final effort and behead Pan Feng, when he suddenly heard someone joining the battle. His hands involuntarily slowed down, and he diverted his attention to look at Taishi Ci. Pan Feng, whose eyes were blazing with urgency, heard that someone had come to his rescue, and his spirit shook. Taking advantage of Zhang Liao's distraction, he turned his horse around and escaped.

  Taishi Ci was also a proud man, unwilling to take advantage of Zhang Liao. He called out in a deep voice: "Taishi Ci of Donglai is here! Can you rest and fight again, Zhang Wen?"