Chapter 11: Li Yu Battles Lü Fengxian Again

  Li Yu led the army to annihilate Dong Zhuo's entire army, leaving only Lü Bu to protect Dong Zhuo and Li Ru leading tens of thousands of elite soldiers to escape! Guo Si and Li Su also abandoned their main forces and escaped alone.

  Li Yu ordered Guo Jia, Tian Feng, Wang Xue, Zou Dan, Deng Mao, Ju Yi, and Huo Ge to quickly clear the battlefield and surround and annihilate the remaining enemy. At the same time, he personally led the army to join forces with Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Zhang Liao, Zhang Ren, Gao Shun, Xu Huang, Wu Yi, and Leng Bao, a total of 170,000 cavalrymen, to pursue Dong Zhuo and Lü Bu.

  At this time, the crisis of Tian Shui City was lifted. Tian Feng and others quickly cleaned up the battlefield, on the one hand, they properly placed the body of Cheng Yuanzhi, on the other hand, they prepared a banquet to celebrate their victory! Waiting for Li Yu's army to return to the city to hold a celebration banquet!

  Guo Jia hastily wrote a memorial to Han Xing Wang Liu Bei, detailing the situation from Li Yu's deployment of troops to the decisive battle, including Cheng Yuanzhi's death on the battlefield and Li Yu's complete annihilation of Dong Zhuo's army. He ordered someone to rush to deliver it to the palace of Han Xing Wang in Chengdu within 800 miles. At this point, it was already very clear that this battle had been a great victory! This victory would be enough to write a glorious page in history! The victory also meant that Liu Bei's army had thoroughly opened up the roads to western Liang, eastern Chang'an, and northern Central Plains. From then on, the gates of Yi Province were completely closed. The capture of Tianshui City made it possible for Liu Bei's army to develop peacefully in Yi Province in the future. For Dong Zhuo, whether he marched from Chang'an or Liang, Tianshui City would be a must-attack location; otherwise, there would be no more illusions about conquering Yi Province!

  Then Li Yu merged with the nine routes of troops, and the 170,000-strong army converged in one place. The uniformed Yizhou iron cavalry quickly pursued and went!

  And what about Dong Zhuo at this time? He barely escaped and couldn't help but sigh, day and night rushing to prepare for his escape to Chang'an. Moreover, Dong Zhuo had previously discussed with his military advisor Li Ru and Lü Bu, sending someone ahead of time to Street Pavilion to order his own brother Dong Wen to lead the army to come and support him, on the other hand, ordering Han Sui from Anding to lead the army to respond, and commanding Ma Teng to lead the army from Liangzhou to come and rescue!

  Some people do not understand how Ma Teng and Han Sui became Dong Zhuo's subordinates. In fact, before Dong Zhuo died, Ma Teng and Han Sui were always under Dong Zhuo! Historical records show that Dong Zhuo was a general of the Han Dynasty in his early years, suppressing minority rebellions in the west, and later participating in the suppression of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, several times defeated in battle, but still promoted to General-in-Chief, commanding heavy troops. Dong Zhuo controlled the army and stationed it in Hedong, during the winter of the first year of Han Emperor Ling's Zhongping (184 AD), the Xianbei Qiang and the bandits from Fanyang County rebelled, enthroning the Qiang leader Beiyuan Boyu and Li Wenhou as generals, killing the Protector of the Qiang, Leng Zheng. Later, Boyu and Li Wenhou also kidnapped Jin Cheng (now northwest of Lanzhou, Gansu) Han people Bian Zhang and Han Sui and Ma Teng fought several battles with Dong Zhuo but were defeated by him. At that time, Dong Zhuo had already owned the entire territory of Xiliang through continuous wars of annexation. In my personal opinion, Ma Teng and Han Sui at this time could only surrender to Dong Zhuo, otherwise, Dong Zhuo would not have dared to accept the imperial court's summons and give up his military power. Later, it happened that the capital was in chaos, He Jin was killed, and Dong Zhuo took advantage of the situation to enter the capital, controlling the central government. Before Dong Zhuo entered the capital, he was a warlord of Xiliang, belonging to the official army, relying on fighting against rebels to rise to power, while Han Sui and Ma Teng were branches of the rebel army. Han Sui, a famous figure in the western region of Xiliang at the end of the Han Dynasty, was kidnapped by the rebel army, elected as their leader, and from then on controlled an area for decades. Ma Teng, a participant in the rebellion at the end of the Han Dynasty, rose to the position of Military Colonel through his merits, later joining forces with Han Sui and others to rebel and control an area. If these two men were still causing trouble in Xiliang at that time and had not surrendered to Dong Zhuo, how would he have dared to confront the lords of the world? This is my own understanding!

  Less than a moment later, Guo Si and Li Su led the remnants of their army to arrive!

  They came before Dong Zhuo, who had just sat down and opened the window of his carriage. Guo Si and Li Su hastily told him about their battle with Lü Bu, and then described how they had fought to the death just now. They spoke in vivid detail, with mouths full of spittle.

  Dong Zhuo sat in his carriage, looking left and right, and asked: "Hey, Li Yu! Li Yu! He's really my nemesis! From the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Li Yu has been suppressing me everywhere. Several times I wanted to lead the army to avenge my grievances, but all were defeated by Li Yu! Liu Bei! Big Ears Bandit! You have such a brother! How can I still hope to enter Yi Province?! Now that Ma Teng and Han Sui's righteous army in Xiliang are rebelling, what should we do?!"

  Dong Zhuo's military advisor, Li Ru, sighed and said: "The Chancellor is not the time to be discouraged now. What I fear is that Xiliang will take advantage of the situation to make trouble! However, fortunately, in this battle, Han Sui and Ma Teng's righteous army has been exhausted! Ma Teng and Han Sui's righteous army in Xiliang are now only around 100,000, while General Li Quan in Xiliang still has an army of 200,000 to 300,000. Ma Teng and Han Sui may not listen to orders, but they dare not harbor evil intentions!"

  Just as they were sighing, the scouts who had been sent ahead to reconnoiter returned!

  The scout returned and reported: "The commander-in-chief of the Yizhou army, Li Yu, personally led his troops to join forces with Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Zhang Liao, Zhang Ren, Gao Shun, Xu Huang, Wu Yi, and Leng Bao, a total of eight routes with tens of thousands of cavalrymen, pursuing us, only thirty miles away!"

  At this time, Dong Zhuo was indeed at a loss for words. When did the Demon King Dong Zhuo become so desperate! At this moment, he had no choice but to be helped onto his horse by Li Ru and abandon his carriage. He fled towards Changan Street with Guo Si and Li Su protecting him, leaving behind Lü Bu to guard the rear.

  At this time, Lü Bu looked back at his soldiers: they were all wearing their helmets crookedly and their armor was askew, their uniforms were loose, their faces were as pale as yellow paper, and some of them still had bloodstains on the corners of their mouths. They were in a state of utter disarray.

  Just then, the street pavilion direction smoke rolling originally Dong Wen had seen Tianshui city direction flame soaring to the sky, early led the troops to hurry over! And Dong Zhuo at this time walked less than two or three hundred meters, just in time to meet Dong Zhuo! Dong Zhuo saw the reinforcements arrived immediately ordered them to respond to Lü Bu!

  On the other hand, Ma Teng and Han Sui also knew that they had their own 100,000 troops, so they rushed to support and coincidentally met!

  At this time, Dong Zhuo's army, together with the defeated generals and remnants of the three armies, had more than 200,000 soldiers!

  Li Yu led his troops over at this time!

  The two armies confront each other!

  Li Yu held the Heaven Painting Halberd in his hand, seeing that Dong Zhuo's reinforcements had arrived, and also knew that at this time Dong Zhuo had already escaped for a long time, with no chance of capturing him alive!

  Lü Bu and Ma Teng also knew that if the two armies clashed again, reinforcements from the side of Tianshui would arrive in an instant!

  It was just like this that neither of the two armies made another move!

  Li Yu raised the halberd in his hand and angrily rebuked Dong Zhuo, saying: "The national thief Dong Zhuo has repeatedly invaded my border without reason! Can he be spared today?"

  Lü Bu suddenly rode out on his Red Hare horse from behind and replied, "General Li Jue, today's matter! Both sides fighting again will bring no good to either side! You have already won, why must you stubbornly pursue others?" Han Sui also rode forward on his horse and said, "Does General Li Jue not fear that Liu Biao of Jingzhou and Zhang Lu of Hanzhong will take advantage of the situation to seize Yizhou from you? As the saying goes, 'the mantis stalks the cicada, while the oriole waits behind!' Now if we both withdraw our armies and return, and from now on do not engage in battle with each other, would that not be better?"

  Li Yu heard this, although he also understood that this time Yizhou was also mobilizing the national strength to fight Dong Zhuo! However, at this time, Chengdu and Xiaomen Pass had 200,000 troops, and the entire territory of Yizhou could gather more than 300,000 troops. What's to fear Zhang Lu and Liu Biao? But today his own army has been fighting for three days and three nights, if he fights again, he will inevitably collapse! But the revenge of Cheng Yuanzhi cannot be unreported!

  Li Yu sneered coldly and said, "Lü Bu, you beheaded my beloved general, Cheng Yuanzhi. How can I not avenge his death? I, Li Yu, swear that if I don't behead you, Lü Bu, I will not be human! Do you dare to fight me today?"

  Lü Bu fought fiercely for a long time, but when he heard that Li You was looking for him to duel, he couldn't help but respond. Lü Bu raised his halberd and roared: "Li You Li Hanxing! Do you think I, the noble lord, am afraid of you? Truly, good advice is hard to give to a doomed ghost like you!" With that, he charged forward on horseback. Li You also rode forth with his halberd at the ready.

  What a thrilling scene, it's really a battle of dragons and tigers!

  Li Yu's heart was filled with hatred, and his attack on Lü Bu was swift and ruthless! However, Lü Bu's martial arts skills were not to be underestimated! In fact, the person Lü Bu least wanted to encounter was Zhao Yun! Because Zhao Yun's spear techniques were unpredictable and impossible to defend against! Li Yu, on the other hand, was somewhat similar to him because their Heaven-Defying Halberd techniques were basically identical! Therefore, it was difficult for the two of them to determine a winner or loser, but Li Yu's strength was not as great as Lü Bu's. However, Li Yu's moves were varied and unpredictable, so although he was unable to defeat Lü Bu several times, he never fell behind!

  Two people fought with lightning speed and sparks flying everywhere, exchanging dozens of blows in just a few rounds!

  Li Yu's Fang Tian Hua Halberd is ingenious and unpredictable, while Lü Bu's Fang Tian Hua Halberd is majestic and powerful!

  Lü Bu's halberd techniques, including the "Heavenly Chop", "Returning Slash", "Horizontal Thrust", "Descending Pierce" and "Slanting Sweep", were as smooth as a well-oiled machine!

  Li Yu's Fang Tian painting halberd is a masterful use of various techniques, including poking, pointing, piercing, chopping, circling, lifting, separating, stabbing, whipping, sweeping, coiling, and flourishing!

  Two men on horseback fought and killed each other for a long time! It was hard to distinguish between victory and defeat.

  Li Yu's anger suddenly changed, and the Fang Tian Hua Halberd opened and closed quickly! A swift stab shot straight at Lü Bu's heart! And Lü Bu saw this and immediately changed his move! He switched from offense to defense, using the Fang Tian Hua Halberd in his hand to block! The sound of clashing echoed as they clashed together!

  Lü Bu's moves were swift, using the Guandao to slash at Li You with a "Force Splitting Mount Hua" move. Li You immediately withdrew his Guandao and crossed his hands over his head. There was a loud "clang" as Li You countered Lü Bu's attack! But before Lü Bu could withdraw his Guandao, he quickly changed hands and stabbed out in an instant, trying to take advantage of the moment when Lü Bu's defenses were open. However, Lü Bu was highly skilled and daring, and immediately dodged to the side, then transferred his Guandao to his right hand and swept it horizontally at Li You with a "Sweeping Thousand Armies" move! Li You saw this and didn't flinch, leaning back on the horse's back to avoid the attack. Then he took advantage of the momentum to raise his Guandao and slash down at Lü Bu once more with another "Force Splitting Mount Hua" move! Lü Bu met this by raising his own Guandao to block it, and the two men clashed like hammering on metal, the sound of "clang clang" ringing out incessantly. In an instant, they exchanged dozens of blows, neither gaining the upper hand.

  General Guan personally beat the war drum to help Li Yu gain momentum! The three armies shouted in unison, cheering for their great general!

  Dong Zhuo's army also responded with a loud drumbeat, waving flags and shouting to support Lü Bu!

  At this time, Dong Wen saw that Lü Bu had been attacking Li Yu for a long time without success, and suddenly came to assist Lü Bu in attacking Li Yu from the side!

  Li Yu and Lü Bu's martial arts skills were already evenly matched, making it difficult to determine the winner! Moreover, both of them had been through several days and nights of fierce fighting! The extent of their fatigue can be imagined! Dong Wen's participation in the battle immediately tipped the scales in favor of Lü Bu!

  Li Yu forced open Dong Wen's big knife and Lü Bu's Fang Tian painting halberd, pulled his horse back to the main formation! At this time, Guan Gong, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Xu Huan, Zhang Liao, Zhang Ren, Gao Shun, Wu Yi, and Leng Bao also led their troops to take advantage of the momentum and charged forward!

  Ma Teng and Han Sui also led their troops to welcome them!

  But just then, something unexpected happened!

  Li Yu was now leaning on the horse's back, stealing a glance at Lü Bu. Suddenly, a golden object flew towards Lü Bu! But Lü Bu was not destined to die yet! At this moment, he was caught by Zhao Yun and didn't rush forward. As for Dong Wen, eager for merit, he urged his horse to surpass Lü Bu! A loud "crack" was heard as Dong Wen was struck, his skull shattered, brains splattered out, and the corpse fell under the horse!

  Li Yu had used his trump card, the "sudden throw"! What is a sudden throw? A "throw" was an ancient combat weapon that resembled a whip with four ridges and no blade. Originally used for hand-to-hand combat, if suddenly thrown out, it would greatly exceed the opponent's expectations, often allowing the attacker to gain victory. Therefore, people use the term "sudden throw" to describe a crucial moment in defeating the enemy.

  Although Li Yu was exhausted, he wouldn't have struggled so much to open up Lü Bu's halberd and Dong Wen's large knife! He saw that fighting Lü Bu was also inconclusive. So, he took advantage of the situation, turned his horse around, and pretended to retreat in defeat. When he saw Lü Bu and Dong Wen chasing after him, Li Yu held the halberd in his left hand and raised the thrower in his right hand. Listening with his ear, he estimated that they were within ten meters or so away from him.

  Li Yu folded the halberd on his back, turned around, and threw out a sudden throw, intending to kill Lü Bu. However, Dong Wen was chasing too hastily and was unexpectedly struck down from his horse. His brain burst open, and he died an untimely death!

  Dong Wen is dead, and Lü Bu can see it! Lü Bu can understand that Dong Wen took the hit for him! If he had gone to chase after them himself at that time, he would have been unable to avoid this attack! In serious cases, he would have died a wrongful death like Dong Wen! In lighter cases, he would have been knocked off his horse by Li Yu's sneak attack or suffered a broken bone and torn tendons! At such close range, it was impossible to dodge!

  At this time, the two armies were fighting together, Guan Yu was fighting Ma Teng, and Zhang Fei was fighting Han Sui! Xu Huang and Zhang Liao led their troops to command the entire army to charge and kill! Lü Bu single-handedly fought against Zhao Yun and five others: Zhang Ren, Gao Shun, Leng Bao, and Wu Yi! One Zhao Yun would have been enough to overwhelm Lü Bu, let alone five now! Lü Bu had no choice but to flee in defeat! Han Sui and Ma Teng couldn't rely on Dong Zhuo to replenish their troops after all, they both had ulterior motives. Seeing Lü Bu escape, they also retreated with their armies! Dong Zhuo's soldiers lost their commander and scattered in all directions!

  Li Yu's morale was high at this time, and it was the time for the three armies to fight bravely! He immediately led his troops to take advantage of the situation and launched a surprise attack from behind, killing more than 30 miles, until he almost reached Jieting, before withdrawing his army. Li Yu won a great victory in this battle!

  Li Yu also ordered the beheading of Dong Wen's head to offer sacrifices to the spirit of Cheng Yuanzhi!