Mengxi, I see hope for building our group now. Just think about how to set it up, and I reckon we’ll hit ten thousand bookmarks by the afternoon...
Wrapped in a shield of Qi, Gan Ning leaned against the wall of a shop, fantasizing about the benefits that the sponsorship he brought would have for Liu Bei, unaware that Xu Chu was already prepared in the room behind him.
"Lord, please step back a bit!" Xu Chu, watching Gan Ning’s movements through the cracks of the window, showed a trace of solemnity on his face.
"Zhongkang, is the enemy’s strength that formidable?" Liu Bei was taken aback, for he had never seen Xu Chu be so serious since they had been together.
"In terms of Inner Qi, he’s probably a top general! But Lord, just a little retreat is all that’s needed, and watch me take him down!" said Xu Chu as he slung his great sword onto his back.
"Bandits, prepare to die!" Seeing Liu Bei step back, Xu Chu quietly approached the window next to the wall that Gan Ning was leaning against, then summoning the qi in his dantian with a roar, he pounced like a tiger, grabbing Gan Ning by the shoulders and flying out with him before he could react.
As a guard, Xu Chu was very cautious, especially with his lord at his side. Xu Chu did not use his great sword. Attacks that relied on external objects were always a beat slower, coupled with his own speed being rather slow, fearing that any complication would allow the bandit to react and accidentally harm Liu Bei. Thus, he used the simplest attack, pouncing forth and carrying Gan Ning away!
"Thud!" Xu Chu grabbed Gan Ning’s shoulders, carrying him over ten meters away, then turned around, ready to embed Gan Ning into the ground. However, the previously stunned Gan Ning had finally reacted at that moment. A blue-green light wrapped around his body the moment Xu Chu let go, and with a fierce stomp, Gan Ning turned into a streak of light and broke free from the attack.
Then, with a somersault that forcefully stopped his descent, he landed steadily on the ground. Without waiting for Gan Ning to speak, Xu Chu, wielding his great broadsword, charged over like a bear, chopping down as if trying to split Gan Ning in two with a single strike.
Cursing his luck inwardly, Gan Ning nevertheless knew this was not the time for explanations. Drawing his own great sword, waves of Inner Qi covered its blade as he slashed directly at Xu Chu.
"Clang!" With a resonating sound, Gan Ning slid backward, while Xu Chu, seemingly unconcerned, kept charging at him. The opponent was just trash; Xu Chu was certain of it, the difference in strength was too much!
One strike sent Gan Ning sliding back, but he felt no fear. Although shocked by the other’s strength, in Gan Ning’s burning chest, only boiling blood roiled. How long had it been since he’d encountered such an opponent? On the entire Yangtze River, only a dark-haired man, who managed to show him within five moves that he was no match, and Zhou Tai could be mentioned in the same breath with him. As for others, Gan Ning never took them seriously.
And now, he had another opponent, this brute. That was Gan Ning’s evaluation of Xu Chu’s astonishing strength.
As the clashes continued, Xu Chu also realized a problem—the fellow in front of him was not as weak as he imagined. On the contrary, he could be considered very strong. With each slash, Xu Chu could feel layers upon layers of strength, like ripples, continually weakening his attacks. That’s the reason why Gan Ning, relying on his unremarkable strength and speed, hadn’t fallen behind all this time.
After discovering this, Xu Chu didn’t change his method of attack. He had only strength, so as long as the strength was great enough, no matter how many layers of reduction, he could defeat the opponent. The lord was watching from behind!
Xu Chu’s biceps trembled continuously and expanded with each hit, and Gan Ning’s defense became increasingly difficult. He found that even if his Qi weakened the other’s strength, the remaining power was still too much for him to bear!
"Ha!" Gan Ning violently yanked the chain on his body, transmitting power from his waist directly to his wrist, and in an instant, he straightened the chain out completely, with the last link striking squarely against Xuu Chu’s broadsword, sending the giant’s slashing blow askew.
The next moment, Gan Ning closed in, his great broadsword aimed directly at Xuu Chu’s belly, while his left hand dragged the chain, ready for the next strike.
Xuu Chu parried Gan Ning’s blade and coolly faced the spinning chain coming at his side with another slash. However, this time it failed to repel the chain, instead, the base of the chain smashed towards Xuu Chu’s face!
The blade moved across and with pure brute force, flattened the iron chain. Xuu Chu held no more contempt; the man before him was a top general!
Gan Ning, with a somber look, watched as Xuu Chu countered his signature move with sheer strength and swiftly pulled the chain back. As the chain and blade clashed, a series of sparks flew.
Xuu Chu, no longer underestimating Gan Ning, naturally wouldn’t ponder about his earlier declaration to Liu Bei to take down Gan Ning quickly. Tight and steady play was the right strategy against an opponent of such caliber!
Gan Ning quickly found himself struggling. Xuu Chu’s combat experience was extremely rich. With Liu Bei having various types of experts at his disposal, and having sparred with each, Xuu Chu knew that as long as he stuck with sheer force, he would not lose to anyone in any fight!
Gan Ning’s movement became stiff, and Xuu Chu, noticing this, gripped his great sword and delivered powerful slashes, discarding all flashy moves for the simplest, most unadorned yet forceful technique!
Slash! Slash! Slash! Each strike was stronger than the last, and the weighty blows didn’t give Gan Ning any chance to catch his breath. The fluid-like qi within him was torn apart by Xuu Chu’s massive strength, exacerbating Gan Ning’s plight!
A massive downward slash severed the chain Gan Ning used for a second force release and the subsequent attack slammed heavily onto Gan Ning’s broadback sword! Instantly, blood appeared at the corner of Gan Ning’s mouth. At most ten more slashes, and Xuu Chu would’ve split Gan Ning and his sword in half!
"Zhongkang stop!" Upon hearing that "Bandit, meet your end," followed by several booming sounds and then a series of clashing metal sounds, Chen Xi knew even without thinking that only a top general could last so many moves against Xuu Chu. In the whole Three Kingdoms, top generals never came from aristocratic families; they were all from the Humble Family or Local Tyrants, which meant as long as one used their hoe well, they could be uncovered!
With this thought, Chen Xi hurried towards the source of the sounds. The originally chaotic clashing of metal had turned into rhythmic impacts. If it continued , unless one were muscle-bound like Zhang Fei, they definitely couldn’t withstand the shock of Xuu Chu’s raw strength!
Upon hearing Chen Xi’s shout, Xuu Chu, in a habit, brought down the final slash. Despair filled Gan Ning’s eyes. His ambition unfulfilled, his life was about to end, and his blood spilled in vain. This was not the ending he wanted but he no longer had any strength to resist this kind of brute force.
The sword swing was too advanced to change direction. Even a ferocious warrior like Xuu Chu could hardly control such a full-force blow. So, as he tilted the blade in his hands to one side, he simultaneously kicked Gan Ning, forcibly kicking him out of the range of the great sword’s attack at the last moment.
In his rush to save Gan Ning, Xuu Chu didn’t have time to calculate the force of his kick. A hefty kick landed square on Gan Ning’s chest, sending sprays of blood from his mouth. Fortunately, his life was spared.
"Clink, clink, clang..." The Golden Bell, once carried inside Gan Ning’s clothing, now flew out, landing beside Chen Xi’s feet and kicking up splashes on his shoes. Looking at the bell, Chen Xi grimaced bitterly, a general nearly perished here due to his own cautiousness!