Main Text, Chapter Eighty-Seven: The Contest of Strength, Part Twenty-One

Zhang Wansui unleashed his spear thrust with every ounce of skill he possessed.

The spear shaft trembled faintly, driving forward with fierce momentum, while his back hand still held a reserve of strength, ready to adapt to any change in Xu Le’s movements. A general’s blow was not to be compared with the blows of ordinary men.

In his early, obscure days, Zhang Wansui had already been renowned as a formidable fighter in Yanmen Commandery. After he followed Yang Xuangan into rebellion and distinguished himself in the army, Yang Xuangan had personally instructed him in the use of the mounted spear. After so many years of battles and trials, of honing himself in the presence of the enemy, he believed he had reached the level of consummate mastery.

Yuchi Gong had won his fame as the foremost duel warrior in Heng'an Prefecture and even in Mayi Commandery with one whip and one spear. Zhang Wansui had always sneered at that. He had never believed he would lose to Yuchi Gong in any respect. When his own name had shaken Yanmen Commandery, Yuchi Gong was still swinging a heavy hammer in a frontier smithy, pounding iron.

But by now, he had long since reached the point where he sat at the center beneath the commander’s banner, and with a single command his officers and soldiers would rush forward to fight and die for him. When one possessed the command of a thousand men and the stillness of mind to govern them all, how could one still charge at the front like some reckless warrior?

Let Yuchi Gong and men like him win their empty renown.

Whenever he trained in the drill grounds, wielding any weapon at all and sending a dozen sparring officers and soldiers stumbling and sprawling until they could only submit in disarray, Zhang Wansui would feel a faint loneliness.

Ah, those old days of shouting into battle, of being invincible before the horse...

A thousand or so warriors of the Yue tribe surrounded Xu Le and the others, stalling for time as they slowly escorted them out through the camp gate, buying Zhang Wansui the moment he needed. Zhang Wansui had long since circled out beyond the camp, refused his men’s help, and hidden himself in the shadows by the gate, quietly gathering his strength. He intended to wait until Xu Le emerged, then pierce him from his horse with a single spear thrust and leave the Zhibi clan a great favor.

After that, he would turn and leave at once, getting out of this dangerous place as quickly as possible.

With that thought in mind, Zhang Wansui put everything into this strike, holding nothing back. He felt that in recent years he had never delivered such a perfect blow. Horse and rider were in flawless accord; spirit, vigor, and intent had all reached their peak.

Beneath the firelight, in that split second of lightning speed, Zhang Wansui’s spear shot forth—only to see that Xu Le had already turned to look at him, his expression half-smiling, half-not. His white teeth, reflected in the firelight still flying through the camp, gleamed brightly.

Xu Le held his spear in one hand and brought it crashing downward.

That downward sweep was cast out like a lash, arriving after the fact yet striking first, as fast as lightning. With a crack, it hit squarely in the center of the spear shaft.

Xu Le’s hand gripped the very end of the spear shaft, and with such a sweep there came such a long lever arm, such a long arc of force, that the power behind the thrust became overwhelming beyond measure.

No matter how much reserve strength Zhang Wansui held in his hands, no matter how tightly his two palms gripped the spear in the yin-and-yang fashion, that strike sent a violent shock through the tiger’s mouth of his hand, and he could no longer hold the mounted spear securely. The shaft shuddered violently, bending in the middle and springing up at both ends. Zhang Wansui could only loosen his grip to hold it loosely, straining to control it and keep it from flying free.

This single blow showed Zhang Wansui the true measure of the youth before him. How could he still dare be reckless? If the mounted spear slipped from his hand, and he were to stand before this young man and clap his hands empty, how would that differ from suicide?

The force behind the thrust was too great. The hard wooden shaft could bear it no longer. With a sharp crack, the spear broke apart, splinters and chips of wood scattering everywhere.

It turned out that Xu Le had been pinning the back of Zhibi Sili’s head with the spearhead collar, and Zhibi Sili, looking as though he had been concussed out of his wits, had obediently lain motionless over the horse’s back. At that moment, with Zhibi Sili draped across the horse like a sack, the instant Xu Le’s spear came loose, his whole body sat down and slid beneath the horse’s belly with a hiss.

At the same time, Zhibi Sili mustered every ounce of strength and shouted, “What are you waiting for?”

On the ramparts, several Turkic Green Wolf Cavalry sharpshooters, already prepared, drew their bows to full moon. A few armor-piercing wolf-fang bolts had already been released in the trembling of the bowstrings, streaking toward Xu Le!

The moment Xu Le left the camp, he had already made his preparations. With his keen senses, how could he not have guessed that someone was waiting outside the gate? But he could not keep wasting time inside the camp. With three men against a powerful enemy, accidents could happen at any moment. Xu Le had no confidence that he could ensure Luo Dun and Bu Li’s safety.

He had long been prepared for an ambush from outside the camp, but Zhibi Sili’s sudden burst of speed had truly taken him by surprise.

Still, there was no time to worry about Zhibi Sili, who had suddenly flipped from a fish on the cutting board to something else entirely. As the Turkic Green Wolf Cavalry’s arrows flew, Xu Le had already released the spear shaft, seized the shaft beneath Zhang Wansui’s mounted spearhead, and with one smooth motion gave it a shake and a twist.

The mounted spear was already quivering violently. With that shake and twist, Zhang Wansui could no longer control it, and Xu Le lightly and neatly snatched the mounted spear away. Zhang Wansui stared blankly at Xu Le. Earlier, Zhibi Luo had wanted Zhang Wansui to seize Xu Le’s weapon, but in the end it was he who had clapped his hands in vain.

Gripping the shaft beneath the spearhead, Xu Le turned the mounted spear over and swept it out. The arrows came streaking in, but the sweep of the mounted spear shattered them with crackling impacts, sending them flying off into who knew where. Yet that sweep was not even finished; Xu Le carried it through in a circle, and with a sharp crack struck Zhang Wansui squarely on the back.

Taking that blow, Zhang Wansui immediately slumped over his horse’s back. A hot, bloody taste surged in his mouth, and he could not hold it back any longer. With a heave, he spat out blood, staining the horse’s back in a smear of red.

Xu Le’s other hand, which had remained free all along, shot out and seized Zhang Wansui by the belt. With one foot he dismounted, then kicked against Zhang Wansui’s horse to borrow its force, and forcibly dragged Zhang Wansui across, setting him down lengthwise where Zhibi Sili had just lain.

By then, Zhibi Sili had rolled away from beneath Xu Le’s horse belly, limbs flailing. More bowstrings sounded from the ramparts.

Xu Le clamped his legs against the belly of Tonglong and shouted toward Luo Dun and Bu Li, “Move!”

With the neighing of their mounts, Luo Dun and Bu Li darted forward at full speed. Xu Le pressed down on Zhang Wansui, no longer giving Zhibi Sili a thought, and leaped up as well, surging straight ahead.

Dozens of arrows chased hard after the place where Xu Le had just been. The instant Tonglong shot forward, the ground where he had stood was bristling with arrows, one of them landing beside the eye of Zhibi Sili, who had just rolled out and was still lying on the ground. This young shanyu of the Zhibi clan, already with a face full of nosebleed, was instantly covered in a cold sweat as well.

Zhibi Luo stared dumbstruck at all of this, never having imagined that an ambush hastily arranged at the last moment would end like this. Zhibi Sili had somehow escaped by a fluke, but Zhang Wansui had instead been captured alive by Xu Le on horseback.

This outcome was truly worse than if Zhibi Sili had fallen into Xu Le’s hands. Even if Xu Le handed Zhibi Sili over to Liu Wuzhou, Liu Wuzhou would have to treat him with courtesy. But now that Zhang Wansui had fallen into Xu Le’s hands, the Zhibi clan’s intention to cooperate with Wang Rengong had been completely exposed.

Among the two sides, the Zhibi clan had been bargaining for the best price, and that had been the most favorable position of all. But if it were proven that the Zhibi clan was already preparing to cooperate with Wang Rengong, then if Liu Wuzhou went mad with fury, even Zhibi Luo could not guarantee that he and the young shanyu would leave this place alive.

Zhibi Luo roared in fury, “Pursue them! Hurry and pursue them!”

The next words were hidden in his heart.

If they could not catch up, then there was only one choice left: flee. Run at once.

Xu Le sat on horseback, flashing eight white teeth in a smile. The thought in his mind was the same as Zhibi Luo’s.

With Zhang Wansui in hand, he had a gift for Liu Wuzhou even better than Zhibi Sili. Everything could be explained away now.

Looking at the dazed Zhang Wansui slung before him, Xu Le shook his head. “General Zhang, you really are no match for General Yuchi.”

After a moment’s thought, he added, “Not even close.”

And behind Xu Le, countless warriors of the Yue tribe and Turkic Green Wolf Cavalry surged out, racing after them like mad.