Chapter 145 [Seeking Subscriptions]

"Liu Bei, prepare to meet your doom!"

To Liu Bei, Chu Feng's thunderous roar exploded right beside his ear, piercingly sharp and accompanied by an overwhelming aura that nearly frightened him out of his wits.

Panic gripped him entirely. Originally, seeing Chu Feng pushed onto the defensive, Liu Bei had rushed forward simply to bask in some glory and build a renowned reputation across the realm—how prestigious it would have sounded if word got out!

Never had he imagined that this despicable scoundrel was so insidious, deliberately concealing his true strength and waiting in ambush for him.

Damn it all, what an absolute fox! This was a vicious trap!

Would this single halberd thrust not punch a gaping hole right through him?

"Third Brother, save me!"

Refusing to sit and wait for death, Liu Bei let out a high-pitched cry of despair while desperately parrying with his twin swords.

Almost instantly, the heavy halberd lunged forward with devastating force.

Liu Bei emitted a hysterical roar. He could not die here; he had yet to fulfill his lifelong ambition, yet to restore the Han Dynasty, yet to reclaim his wives and concubines.

He could not die—he simply could not!

The twin swords met the incoming blow.

Clang!

Screeech—

The sharp blade grated against the tip of the halberd, producing a harsh, grating sound.

Straining with every ounce of his strength, Liu Bei still failed to shake the relentless momentum of the war halberd. In the blink of an eye, he jerked his head to the side, though such a meager effort was utterly futile.

Just then, however, a long spear pierced through the air with astonishing speed.

"Get away from him!"

Fuelled by the desperate circumstances, Zhang Fei unleashed a spear thrust that far exceeded his usual martial prowess. The Serpent Spear, carrying a heaven-shaking momentum, brushed against the halberd in a shower of sparks while sweeping upward.

Working in tandem with Liu Bei's desperate resistance using his twin swords, the heavy halberd was finally deflected by a fraction of an inch.

Rip!

The halberd was batted aside, yet it still drew a bloom of fresh blood.

The tip of the halberd had clipped Liu Bei's right ear, slicing off the thick lobe entirely. Blood instantly stained his entire cheek.

"Ugh! Ahhh!!"

Liu Bei let out an agonized howl.

His face was horribly distorted, and combined with his blood-soaked visage, it was a truly terrifying sight.

"Eldest Brother, flee!"

Zhang Fei's harsh, gong-like voice rang out at that moment.

Though he had merely lost an ear, at least his life was spared, wasn't it? Furthermore, in that split second, Zhang Fei had exhausted every ounce of his power just to deflect Chu Feng's halberd. Given Liu Bei's mediocre martial arts, staying behind meant certain death!

Swallowing his screams, Liu Bei choked back a final groan and yanked fiercely on the reins. In his heart, he had already cursed Chu Feng ten million times over; he wished nothing more than to skin Chu Feng alive right then and there.

In this lifetime, he, Liu Bei, vowed to butcher Chu Feng, hacking him into a thousand pieces—only then would his hatred be even slightly appeased.

Yet for now, forget all that nonsense!

If he didn't run immediately, even Zhang Fei wouldn't be able to save him.

As he wheeled his horse around, Liu Bei desperately wished his steed had sprouted a few extra legs. It was far too slow—utterly, agonizingly too slow! He bitterly cursed his mother for not giving birth to a horse with more legs.

"Want to leave? Not a chance!"

The corners of Chu Feng's eyes narrowed into slits as he muttered a cold sneer.

The fact that his initial thrust had failed to finish off Liu Bei came as a slight surprise to him, meaning he now had to cut the weeds and eliminate the roots. However, these two generals, Guan and Zhang, were indeed troublesome.

Both possessed formidable martial might.

While fighting at full strength allowed him to suppress them both, his objective in this battle was to shatter the enemy formation and slay opposing generals, not to get bogged down in a duel of attrition. He could not afford to be entangled here.

Wielding his halberd, he prepared to pursue Liu Bei once more.

Suddenly, Zhang Fei intercepted him on horseback, batting away the halberd once again. Experiencing Chu Feng's sheer, unadulterated martial prowess firsthand filled Zhang Fei with a mixture of thrill and anxiety.

"Chu Feng, your opponent is me!"

Zhang Fei roared, barring the way with his spear planted horizontally across his saddle.

"Hmph, you are not worthy!"

Chu Feng scoffed coldly. Catching sight of Guan Yu charging toward him out of the corner of his eye, his eyes narrowed. If he wasted time subduing Zhang Fei before giving chase, Guan Yu would undoubtedly arrive to reinforce him, allowing Liu Bei to slip away scot-free.

With that thought, Chu Feng's halberd thrust straight toward Zhang Fei.

The latter braced himself rigorously, preparing to parry with his spear, only to realize that Chu Feng's thrust was merely a feint. Like an arrow loosed from a bow string, Chu Feng swept past him from the side, intending to bypass him and finish off Liu Bei directly.

"You thief, Chu Feng!"

Zhang Fei cursed furiously, wheeling his horse in pursuit while bellowing, "Eldest Brother, watch out!"

Liu Bei, spotting Chu Feng bearing down on him from behind, fell into an absolute panic. Why was this Chu Feng so obsessed with executing him? Why?! How on earth had he ever offended this man?

Overwhelmed by bitter frustration, he screamed toward the rear, "Second Brother! Third Brother! Save me!"

Dragging the Green Dragon Crescent Blade behind him, Guan Yu narrowed his phoenix eyes, a tense expression gripping his face. Still several horse-lengths away from the fray, he could only pin his hopes on Zhang Fei now.

"Go to hell!"

Realizing the distance was sufficient, Chu Feng thrust his halberd forward with a tearing momentum, aiming squarely for Liu Bei's spine. If this thrust connected, Liu Bei stood zero chance of survival.

Terrified out of his wits, Liu Bei whipped the reins with one hand, savagely beating his horse forward while wielding his sidearm in the other, glancing backward in a desperate bid to salvage a sliver of hope for survival.

Alas, the heavy halberd moved far too fast.

Though he swung his sword frantically, it was all in vain. At that split-second juncture, Zhang Fei roared furiously, his Serpent Spear crashing downward with tremendous weight.

Just as the halberd was about to pierce his target, the Serpent Spear violently intercepted it, deflecting the halberd downward. Fortunately, Zhang Fei's spear was long enough; had it been shorter by even two inches, Liu Bei would have been a dead man.

The halberd scraped past Liu Bei's back before crashing heavily onto the horse's flank. Stung by the sudden agony, the steed went wild, throwing its hooves and bolting forward at a mad gallop. Realizing further pursuit was impossible, Chu Feng let out a silent sigh.

Perhaps Liu Bei's time to die had not yet arrived, having been saved by Zhang Fei's desperate intervention twice over. Anyone else lacking the ability to deflect his strikes would have already perished miserably.

Channeling his remaining strength into one final gesture, Chu Feng swept the tip of the halberd—which had been grazing Liu Bei's rear—forward with a sharp flick. Liu Bei instantly felt a chilling tightness in his nether regions.

The next instant, his expression shifted wildly. He could distinctly feel that his precious jewels might have been grazed as well. A searing wave of agony instantly spread across his entire body.

He could feel a warm trickle running down his thighs.

The sheer pain brought tear mists to the corners of Liu Bei's eyes.

*Chu Feng, you bastard, I'll tear your mother apart!*

By now, the crazed warhorse had bolted far away. Zhang Fei finally let out a breath of relief; at least his eldest brother was safe.

Gazing at the fleeing figure of Liu Bei, Chu Feng felt no dejection. To slay him would be fortune; to lose him, destiny. He had done all that was in his human power; failing to eliminate him today merely meant his time had not yet come.

Still, using his halberd to give Liu Bei's backside a thorough scraping could at least be considered opening the man's horizons.

Watching Chu Feng—who had moments ago been beaten back—suddenly surge with ferocious valor, watching Guan Yu get pinned down under a single flurry of halberd blows, and watching Liu Bei flee in disarray,

Everyone present was utterly stunned.

Sun策 (Sun Ce) sneered internally, offering no sympathy whatsoever.

He had warned them beforehand, but Guan and Zhang had been arrogant and ignored his words; what happened to them now was entirely deserved. As for Liu Bei, actually attempting to build his reputation at Chu Feng's expense was sheer suicide!

Had Zhang Fei not risked his life to protect him just now, Liu Bei's head and body would already have parted ways.

Cao Cao: "???"
His subordinate generals: "???"
His civil and military officials: "???"

Only moments prior, they had been chuckling amongst themselves, already contemplating where to host the upcoming victory banquet. Yet in the blink of an eye, Chu Feng had staged a stunning counterattack—or rather, this was his true, terrifying strength.

He had directly suppressed Guan Yu to the point of keeping his head down, while sending Liu Bei scrambling for his life in utter humiliation. The disdain they had harbored moments before now left their faces burning red with mortification.

"My Lord, this is likely his true strength!" Guo Jia said in a deep, grave voice.

"My Lord, this man possesses a meticulous mind," Xun You added with a sigh of awe. "It seems he read right through human psychology, anticipating that Liu Bei would sally forth, and deliberately feigned weakness to lure in the enemy. What a terrifying adversary."

The most frustrated of all was Cao Cao. With a darkening expression, he had originally believed that Guan and Zhang were more than enough to capture Chu Feng. Never had he anticipated this outcome, though the two brothers hadn't quite managed to coordinate their strengths effectively just yet.

Perhaps... there might still be another chance.