Hijacking the Three Kingdoms with My System

Chapter 9: The Battle of Hulao Pass

The morning sun had just illuminated Hulao Pass, but the air already felt heavy. A thin mist covered the wide plain between the fortress gate and the Alliance army lines.

Guan Yu's victory over Hua Xiong the night before had given the Alliance a false sense of morale. They thought Dong Zhuo's forces were merely paper tigers. This morning, the eighteen princes deployed their armies, forming neat lines that stretched as far as the eye could see. Colorful banners fluttered, and war drums beat rhythmically.

Governor Wang Kuang, leading the left flank, rode his horse confidently. "Hua Xiong is dead! There is nothing left to fear! Who dares challenge us now?!"

The answer to that question came not with a shout, but with a tremor in the ground.

*THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.*

The Hulao Pass gate slowly opened. The sound of the giant, rusty iron hinges sounded like a ghostly scream.

From behind the gate, a cavalry unit emerged. Not many, only about five hundred men. But their horses were large, their armor was pitch black, and their gaze was cold. This was the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry.

And in front of them all, alone, rode the nightmare.

The man was tall, towering over any horse on the battlefield. He rode a blood-red horse whose muscles were clearly visible beneath its sweating hide—Red Hare (*Chi Tu*). The legendary horse was said to be able to run a thousand *li* a day and leap across rivers eight meters wide.

The man wore golden armor forged with a lion's head motif on the chest. On his head, a purple-gold crown with two long pheasant feathers trailed behind, waving in the wind like giant insect antennae.

In his hands, he held the Fangtian Huaji (Heavenly Halberd), a legendary weapon combining a spear and a crescent axe, nearly four meters long.

Lu Bu (Fengxian).

He did not shout. He did not roar. He simply spurred his horse slowly into the center of the battlefield, then stopped. He looked at the hundreds of thousands of Alliance troops with a bored gaze. The look of an apex predator viewing a flock of rabbits.

"Who wants to die first?" Lu Bu asked. His voice was flat, yet somehow clearly audible to the front lines.

"Arrogant!" shouted General Fang Yue of Wang Kuang's forces. "I, Fang Yue of Henei, will teach you manners!"

Fang Yue was a famous general. He spurred his horse hard, his spear aimed straight at Lu Bu's neck. His speed was high, his warhorse well-trained. The cheers of the Alliance troops echoed.

Lu Bu did not move. He stood still as a statue.

When the tip of Fang Yue's spear was just one meter from his face, Lu Bu merely shifted his body slightly to the left. Very slightly.

*Zrrrt.*

Fang Yue's spear missed, only grazing the air beside Lu Bu's ear.

In the same second, Lu Bu's hand moved. Not a wide, sweeping movement, but an efficient flick of the wrist. The curved, sharp tip of his halberd hooked Fang Yue's neck as the general's horse sped past.

With absurd arm strength, Lu Bu yanked Fang Yue from his fast-running horse.

CRACK.

Fang Yue slammed onto the ground with a broken neck instantly. His body rolled stiffly in the dust. Fang Yue's horse continued to run without a master.

One second. One move. One life.

The Alliance cheers died suddenly, like a candle blown out by a storm.

"Too slow," Lu Bu muttered. He didn't even look at Fang Yue's corpse.

"Bastard! He killed General Fang!"

From the right flank, General Mu Shun of Zhang Yang's forces could not accept this. He charged out with his long spear. "Lu Bu! Taste my spear!"

This time, Lu Bu did not wait. He patted Red Hare's neck gently.

WHOOSH!

The red horse shot forward. Its acceleration was terrifying. From still to full speed in two seconds. The distance between Lu Bu and Mu Shun closed instantly.

Mu Shun panicked at the speed. He tried to stab, but Lu Bu was already beside him.

Lu Bu didn't use the blade of his weapon. He held the middle of the shaft, then slammed the butt end into Mu Shun's chest like hitting a baseball.

THWACK!

Mu Shun's iron armor dented inward as deep as a fist. His ribs shattered, piercing his lungs and heart. Mu Shun vomited blood mixed with fragments of internal organs, then was thrown five meters from his horse. He died before he hit the ground.

"Who's next?" Lu Bu said coldly.

Fear began to spread like a plague. This was not a fight. This was an execution. Lu Bu was not enchanting them; he was simply faster, stronger, and had a longer weapon reach than anyone else.

"Everyone attack at once!" shouted Wu Anguo, a giant general who used an iron mace weighing 50 kilos. "He's only one man!"

Wu Anguo advanced, followed by ten elite cavalrymen.

Lu Bu smirked. The corner of his lip curled into a cruel smile. "Finally, a little exercise."

Red Hare leaped into the middle of the enemy crowd.

Lu Bu's Heavenly Halberd danced.

SLASH!

The leg of the first horse was severed.

STAB!

The second soldier was pierced by Lu Bu's weapon, which easily penetrated his armor.

SWING!

The third soldier's head flew off.

Wu Anguo swung his iron mace at Lu Bu's head. Lu Bu did not dodge. He raised his Fangtian Huaji to parry.

CLANG!

Iron met iron. Wu Anguo's mace was stopped. But the terrifying thing was that Lu Bu's hand did not tremble in the slightest. He held the heavy mace with one hand.

"You have strength, Fatty. But your technique is garbage," Lu Bu scorned.

Lu Bu rotated his weapon, locking Wu Anguo's mace, then with a precise cutting motion, the crescent blade of his halberd slashed Wu Anguo's wrist.

CRASS!

Wu Anguo's hand holding the mace was severed. Blood spurted. Wu Anguo screamed hysterically, spurring his horse to flee while clutching the stump of his arm.

"Monster... He's a monster!" shouted the Alliance soldiers. The front formation began to break. They retreated in fear. Their horses refused to advance, smelling the thick blood coming from Lu Bu's direction.

On the Alliance observation hill, Yuan Shao dropped his wine glass. His hands trembled.

"Who... who can stop this man?" Yuan Shao's voice was desperate. "Hua Xiong yesterday was nothing compared to him."

Cao Cao, standing next to him, narrowed his eyes. His face was serious. "That is Lu Bu. 'Among men is Lu Bu, among horses is Red Hare.' He is the peak of warrior evolution."

In the distance, on a small hill overlooking the battlefield, a simple cart had just arrived.

Jo Fan jumped down from the cart, breathing heavily from having to push the wheel stuck on the incline. Behind him, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei looked down at the valley of slaughter.

"System..." Jo Fan whispered, his eyes wide at the sight of the scattered generals' corpses around the red horse. "Display casualty data."

[SCANNING BATTLEFIELD]

[Casualties: General Fang Yue (Dead), General Mu Shun (Dead), General Wu Anguo (Permanently Disabled).]

[Combat Time: Less than 5 minutes.]

[Enemy Status: Not Yet Sweating.]

Jo Fan's face turned pale. He swallowed, his mouth dry.

"Gentlemen," Jo Fan said to the Three Brothers behind him, his voice trembling not from fear, but from the realization of the history before his eyes. "That's him. The real Boss Raid."

Down below, Gongsun Zan, the Governor of Youzhou and Liu Bei's old friend, could not bear to see his troops slaughtered. With a heroic but foolish shout, he spurred his horse to challenge Lu Bu alone.

"Gongsun Zan will die in three moves if he's not helped," Jo Fan analyzed quickly. He turned to Zhang Fei. "Lord Zhang, you said you were bored fighting small fry?"

Zhang Fei grinned widely, showing his teeth. The muscles in his neck tensed, his serpent spear vibrating. "That man in gold armor... his aura is very challenging. May I fight him?"

"Fight him!" Jo Fan commanded, pointing toward Lu Bu, who had just knocked Gongsun Zan from his horse. "Before he kills your brother's old friend."

Zhang Fei roared, spurring his horse down the hill like a rock slide.

[Mission Started: The Battle of Hulao Pass.]

Jo Fan took a deep breath, prepared his support items, and prayed that history and his system would not fail today.