Chapter Thirty-One: Helping Dong Zhuo (Part Two)

On the other side, Cao Cao observed the performance of the vanguard troops, a contemplative look upon his face.

Just then, countless fire arrows rained down upon the ramparts, instantly igniting a blaze. The vanguard troops and some of Dong Zhuo’s soldiers were immediately swallowed by the sea of flames, their agonizing screams audible from a great distance. Panic-stricken, soldiers from both sides began leaping from the walls in a scene of utter chaos and shock.

Yuan Shao stared wide-eyed, crying out, "My top general, Yan Liang!"

At that very moment, Yan Liang burst through the flames, leaped onto a scaling ladder, and descended rapidly back to the ground. Yuan Shao was overjoyed. Yan Liang led the surviving vanguard troops back to where Yuan Shao stood. As they approached, Yuan Shao and his men could see smoke rising from Yan Liang’s body and head; much of his hair and beard had been singed away, yet this only served to amplify his ferocious presence.

Indignant, Yan Liang cupped his hands to Yuan Shao and said, "My Lord, that villain Dong is truly despicable! He disregarded his own men, setting the fire without a second thought!"

Yuan Shao chuckled, patted Yan Liang on the shoulder, and remarked, "This strike of yours is enough to strike fear into the hearts of the enemy! They won't be able to hop about for much longer."

"Eh, what is that?" Li Dian, standing beside Cao Cao, suddenly pointed to the north, his voice filled with confusion.

Everyone instinctively turned to look north and saw a multitude of people rushing toward them. Cao Cao felt a jolt in his heart as he realized the fleeing soldiers belonged to his own ranks, and the one leading them was none other than Cao Ren. Shocked, Cao Cao led his men to meet them. As they drew closer, he saw the soldiers arriving in a state of utter disarray—a defeated army. Many bore the marks of smoke and fire, and half of Cao Ren’s hair had been burned away, making him look as though he had just escaped a furnace.

Upon seeing Cao Cao, Cao Ren knelt in profound shame and said, "My Lord, this subordinate is incompetent; I have been defeated by Luo Ang!"

"Stand up and speak!" Cao Cao commanded.

Cao Ren scrambled to his feet. Cao Cao looked at the several thousand battered and bedraggled soldiers, furrowing his brow as he asked, "What happened?"

Cao Ren said indignantly, "That Luo Ang is far too cunning! He intentionally led his main force across the river slowly, while having already dispatched an elite unit to cross the Yellow River upstream and sneak near our ambush site. Just as we prepared to ambush his main force, that elite unit suddenly fired arrows into our hiding spot! The fire spread instantly. I immediately ordered a retreat, but Luo Ang’s main force suddenly launched a fierce frontal assault! As we were withdrawing, their cavalry swept down upon us like a gale, throwing our army into total chaos! Though I tried my best to stabilize the situation, I could not hold back the tide; the entire army collapsed."

By the end, his expression was one of deep resentment and frustration. Cao Cao frowned, his face turning grim.

Li Dian asked in astonishment, "How could Luo Ang have foreseen that General Cao Ren would set an ambush there? This is truly inconceivable!"

Before Cao Cao could continue his questioning, Xiahou Dun pointed to the distance and said, "My Lord, look!"

Cao Cao looked up and saw an army of about ten thousand appearing on the low hills ahead. The infantry held the center while the cavalry took the flanks, and they moved without a sound, as if they had suddenly erupted from the earth.

Cao Ren’s expression shifted, and he said excitedly, "It is Luo Ang's army!"

Cao Cao immediately ordered Li Dian, Xiahou Dun, and Cao Ren to return to their positions while he rode to Yuan Shao’s side. By now, Yuan Shao and the others had also discovered Luo Ang’s sudden appearance on the battlefield, all of them wearing expressions of disbelief. Seeing Cao Cao approach, Yuan Shao hurriedly asked, "Mengde, is that Luo Ang?"

Cao Cao nodded, frowning. "I originally sent men to ambush the area near the ferry, but they were discovered, and we suffered significant losses. Now that Luo Ang has entered the battlefield, we must be extremely cautious."

Yuan Shu let out a cold snort, saying disdainfully, "What can a mere ten thousand men do? He is simply here to throw his life away!"

Cao Cao pointed at Luo Ang’s army and replied sternly, "Look at their formation—steady as a mountain, their killing intent restrained. In all my life, I have never seen such an army. Even though there are only ten thousand, they must not be underestimated!"

Yuan Shu scoffed, unconvinced.

Cao Cao hurriedly cupped his hands to Yuan Shao. "Alliance Leader, we must immediately detach a portion of our forces to crush them while they have just arrived and have yet to secure their footing, so as not to interfere with our siege of the city!"

Yuan Shao nodded in firm agreement.

Yuan Shu stepped forward and said, "Alliance Leader, I am willing to lead my own troops to capture Luo Ang and bring him before your tent!"

Yuan Shao was delighted. "Good! If Gonglu goes, success is certain!"

Yuan Shu turned his horse, rode back to his army, raised his right arm, and shouted, "Men, follow me!"

Yuan Shu’s fifty thousand troops erupted in a roar, their momentum surging like a rainbow. Leaving the main camp, they marched north to confront Luo Ang’s formation.

On the city walls, Dong Zhuo saw Luo Ang’s arrival and cried out joyfully, "Excellent! Zichen has finally arrived with his army!"

Li Ru frowned. "Judging by the size of General Luo's force, there are only about ten thousand men. I fear such a small force will not be of much use." Upon hearing this, Dong Zhuo grew worried again.

Drums thundered from Yuan Shu’s ranks, and the fifty thousand soldiers let out a massive roar that shook the heavens; the display of force was indeed staggering. Yuan Shu stood beneath his banners, looking arrogant, tapping his whip against his hand as if Luo Ang were beneath his notice. He glanced at his generals and asked coolly, "Which of you will go and take Luo Ang’s head for me?"

A ferocious-looking, burly general stepped forward. "My Lord, I will take his head and present it to you!"

Seeing it was his fierce general Wan Cheng, Yuan Shu said, "Good! If you can take Luo Ang’s head, I will reward you with one hundred taels of gold!"

Wan Cheng’s eyes lit up. He charged out of the formation and rode to the front of Luo Ang’s lines, shouting, "Luo Ang, come out and die!"

Xu Chu stepped out of the ranks, brandishing his great blade, and roared, "I, Xu Chu, am here to send you to the underworld!"

Enraged, Wan Cheng spurred his horse forward to meet him. Drums beat like thunder, and the shouts of the armies rose up. Just as Wan Cheng raised his blade, he saw the opponent’s weapon whistling toward him. Unable to dodge, he was cleaved in two by the blow and tumbled from his horse.

The shouting from Yuan Shu’s army ceased abruptly. They stared in disbelief, unable to fathom how the valiant General Wan Cheng had been cut in two in a single exchange.

Yuan Shu was beside himself with rage. Pointing at Dian Wei, he screamed, "All of you, attack together and kill him!"

A dozen generals around Yuan Shu reacted, howling as they swarmed toward Xu Chu, quickly surrounding him in a fierce melee. Suddenly, a roar erupted. Xu Chu’s blade struck through the air, sending sparks flying as the fierce encirclement was shattered in an instant. Before anyone could react, Xu Chu swung his weapon with both hands, a flash of blood-red light sweeping out as the surrounding generals were sent flying.

In the blink of an eye, five of the dozen generals had been slaughtered. Another general rushed at Xu Chu from the side, swinging his blade, but before he could land a strike, Xu Chu’s weapon swept horizontally. The general’s head took flight before he even realized what had happened. Xu Chu was like a tiger among a flock of sheep, killing wantonly, appearing like a demon from hell, reaping lives with frenzied abandon.

Luo Ang looked at Guan Yu and said, "Yunchang, go and assist Zhongkang. If necessary, cut off Yuan Shu’s head to dampen the arrogance of these warlords and clear the obstacles to peace under heaven."

"As you command," Guan Yu replied, departing.

Yuan Shu and his men were stunned. They stared with wide, pale eyes, their bodies trembling uncontrollably. Before long, the dozen generals surrounding Xu Chu were nearly all dead. The two remaining survivors were seized with terror and hurriedly turned their horses to flee.

Xu Chu, in the heat of the slaughter, would not let them go and spurred his horse in pursuit. The two fleeing generals, paralyzed with fear, dared not look back and fled for their lives. Seeing the distance widening, Xu Chu roared and hurled his great blade. It struck one of the generals, sending him crashing from his horse.

Xu Chu grumbled, "Damn it!"

The words had barely left his lips when an arrow struck the back of the remaining general. He screamed and fell from his mount. The archer was none other than Guan Yu.

Yuan Shu and his men, watching from afar, were shocked to see Xu Chu’s blade strike one general down and Guan Yu’s arrow fell the other. Yuan Shu let out a cry of alarm, nearly falling from his own horse. Xu Chu rode to the two corpses, bent at the waist, and retrieved his blade.

Yuan Shu and his men looked on in horror at the dozen corpses strewn not far ahead. A dozen generals, yet they could not defeat a single man, and were instead slaughtered like mere vegetables.

Yuan Shu’s strategist, Yang Dajiang, said, "My Lord, order the entire army to attack! If we wait for morale to hit rock bottom, there will be no point in fighting this battle!"

Recovering his senses, Yuan Shu’s fear was replaced by a hysterical madness. "Luo Ang, you rat, you have gone too far! I have fifty thousand men; that is enough to crush you! Beat the drums! All forces, attack!"

The drums sounded again. The morale of Yuan Shu’s army was jolted back to life, and they let out a wave of shouts. Yuan Shu drew his sword, held it high, and cried, "Men, leave not a single one alive!"

With a thunderous roar, Yuan Shu’s army surged forward—cavalry in the front, infantry in the rear—sweeping toward Luo Ang’s formation. Xu Chu and Guan Yu returned to Luo Ang’s side. Luo Ang watched the approaching tide of enemy troops, raised his right hand, and commanded, "Ready!"

The crossbowmen immediately drew their bows, arrows notched and ready.