Three Kingdoms, Myth

Qiao Rui indeed moved to intercept the invading Taishan Army, but contrary to Xun Zheng's expectations, the first thing Qiao Rui did after leaving was to order his men to pour tung oil on Pingyu's main north-south street. Since it was clear the city couldn't be held, Qiao Rui wasn't planning to fight to the death, but he still needed to slow the enemy's advance.

"Hua Xiong! Come and face your death!" Qiao Rui, alone with three to five of his personal guards, stood at the intersection in the city center, shouting at the distant sound of galloping horses. He had sent his other men to guard the supply depot, but he held no illusions about being able to hold it. His real intention was to have them burn everything if they couldn't hold out—only destruction would suffice!

Hearing Qiao Rui's shout as he raced toward the city center, Hua Xiong was momentarily taken aback. He had never expected the usually cowardly Qiao Rui to choose a one-on-one duel under these circumstances.

"You all go elsewhere," Hua Xiong turned and instructed those behind him. "Let me give him a warrior's death!"

Hua Xiong, with his peculiar sense of honor, couldn't bear to see a fellow warrior, even an enemy, be desecrated. So, he decided to personally kill Qiao Rui.

With a nudge to his horse's flanks, Hua Xiong charged full speed toward Qiao Rui.

"Watch closely! As soon as you see him approach, don't hesitate—throw the tung oil jars and the torches! I've soaked half the street in tung oil! I refuse to believe I can't kill Hua Xiong!" Qiao Rui instructed his men.

Hua Xiong's speed was fast, and he quickly spotted Qiao Rui standing beneath a torch. Although a sudden sense of unease flickered through his mind, he remained fearless.

At that moment, a jar was hurled toward Hua Xiong. He instinctively slashed it apart with his blade, but as the sticky substance splattered onto him, he realized too late what it was. He immediately unleashed his inner energy in full force.

"Throw the torches!" Qiao Rui shouted.

As soon as the words left his mouth, five torches hit the ground. In the next instant, the tung oil, mixed with some unknown substance, erupted into flames, setting a good portion of the street ablaze. Hua Xiong, who had been splashed with a jar of the mixture, nearly caught fire himself.

"You seek death!" Hua Xiong roared, furiously shaking off the enhanced tung oil from his body, but his clothes had already begun to catch fire.

"Take this!" Hua Xiong unleashed a powerful strike in Qiao Rui's direction, despite the flames. Then, he dismounted and stomped hard on the ground, propelling himself a dozen meters into the air. Seeing Qiao Rui, now in a panicked state below, Hua Xiong's anger flared even higher—Qiao Rui's actions had severely tarnished his warrior's spirit.

With his entire body engulfed in flames, Hua Xiong unleashed his inner energy to shield himself from the fire's searing heat.

"Qiao Rui, meet your end!" Hua Xiong shouted as he leaped high into the air, ignoring the burning clothes on his body. Gathering all his strength, he brought his sword down upon the terrified Qiao Rui.

"Boom!" Hua Xiong's strike, fueled by his fury, sent a massive blade of energy, at least a hundred meters long, crashing down on Qiao Rui, killing him instantly and delivering a significant blow to Yuan Shu's army's morale.

After cutting down Qiao Rui with a single stroke, Hua Xiong landed back in the fiery street. His warhorse had fled the scene as soon as he dismounted. Stripping off his burning armor, Hua Xiong, now shirtless and clad only in his pants, grabbed his sword and charged out of the flames. This relatively small stretch of fire was no match for a warrior of Hua Xiong's caliber. To burn such a general alive, you'd need to turn the entire city into an inferno.

Glaring at Qiao Rui's corpse, which had been cleaved from shoulder to abdomen, Hua Xiong spat disdainfully. He despised cowards who resorted to such tactics.

Still bare-chested and wielding his sword, Hua Xiong, covered in soot and scorch marks, turned toward Yuan's residence. Upon entering, he found the place deserted. After returning to Qiao Rui's body, Hua Xiong's expression softened slightly.

"General, should we take the enemy general's head?" one of his guards asked.

"Forget it. Though he was a bit unscrupulous, he was also loyal. Sew his body back together and give him a proper burial," Hua Xiong ordered, waving his hand. He had a habit of judging others by his own standards.

The sounds of battle gradually died down, and soon, the entire city fell silent, except for the places still burning.

By the time Chen Xi entered the city, the sky was filled with raindrops, quickly quenching the flames that had engulfed the city under the summer's sudden downpour.

Within three days, reports from the eastern, central, and western fronts had landed on the desks of Liu Bei, Cao Cao, and Yuan Shu, the three major players in this conflict. As for Liu Biao, he wished to know but had no means to get the information.

Liu Bei was overjoyed, relieved of all worries. Cao Cao, however, sighed with a complex expression as he glanced at Chen Qun, who had recently defected to his side. Yuan Shu, upon reading the reports, furiously flipped his desk!

"Retreat the troops!" Yuan Shu roared in anger.

"My lord, please calm down," Yang Hong, Yuan Shu's chief strategist, stepped forward to placate him. "Although our soldiers are weary from the constant attacks, the Jiangling defenders are in worse shape. If we don't defeat Liu Biao now, we'll lose all the territory we've gained, and even our homeland will be at risk!" The situation had reached a point where they had no choice but to continue the fight.

Yuan Shu's expression wavered. He wasn't a fool. With Yang Hong's reminder, he immediately realized that the situation had reached a critical juncture—retreat was no longer an option.

"Attack! Take Jiangling! I want Liu Biao's head within ten days!" Yuan Shu screamed, driven to madness. He had no way out. Cao Mengde had locked down Yingchuan, Chen Zichuan had sealed off Runan, and Guan Yun Chang had secured Chen. His entire army was trapped in Jingzhou. If they retreated now, their morale would plummet, and Liu Biao's forces might sweep through Jingbei as easily as Yuan Shu had done to Liu Biao before! As for Jingnan, once Jingbei fell, it would submit to the victor in no time.

Yuan Shu gave no further orders about Yuzhou, only issuing the command to take Jiangling within ten days, even if it meant throwing everything they had at it!

Chen Xi and Liu Ye both had some capacity for continued operations, but like Cao Cao, who had also halted his advance, they knew pushing further would bring diminishing returns.

As attractive as Nanyang was, Liu Bei couldn't even fully annex Yuzhou, let alone this distant territory. In fact, most strategists believed that even the nominal control over Lu County was a burden best left to Cao Cao or Yuan Shu—let them fight over it. Liu Bei's forces had already reaped enormous rewards. If Liu Biao couldn't hold Jiangling even after this, Chen Xi had nothing more to say. He'd simply return to Qingzhou to focus on development, letting Cao Mengde and Yuan Shu tear each other apart!

After all, the troops hardened by the Yuzhou campaign, and the fertile land they had seized, would give the now well-supplied Cao Mengde the strength to resist Yuan Shu for at least a year. As for Qingzhou and Taishan, fortunately, they didn't border Yuzhou, so any future conflict would involve Cao Mengde first.

Even if Yuan Shu somehow managed to pull a miracle and defeat Cao Cao, by then more than a year would have passed. At that time, Liu Bei, having solidified his hold on Qingzhou, wouldn't hesitate to use Xuzhou and Lu as battlegrounds. Even if the land was devastated, he wouldn't care. Moreover, by that point, no matter how lucky Yuan Shu might be, even with a powerful mentor by his side, he'd be crushed all the same!