Only the Strong Survive in Runan
“Yaaah!”
“You bastard!”
The two giants roared as they swung their weapons—the double iron halberds and the greatsword. Each time the blades collided, sparks flew, and both Cao Ren’s troops and Xu Chu’s band of warriors watched in stunned silence.
“Incredible. Truly incredible. I never knew Lord Dian Wei possessed such martial prowess,” Cao Ang murmured.
He had only witnessed Dian Wei in battle once before, during the pursuit of the White Wave Bandits back in Luoyang. Seeing him now, clashing one-on-one with an enemy general, left him even more awestruck. He kept clicking his tongue in amazement.
“Look at that. Dian Wei tries to keep distance with those halberds, but Xu Chu closes in like a madman, swinging wildly to take his head.”
Clang—
Just as I had described, Xu Chu was fighting with lethal intent, his greatsword slicing straight toward Dian Wei’s neck.
“Hmph!”
Of course, Dian Wei wasn’t about to let his head fly off so easily. He blocked every strike with his iron halberds, then kicked the pressing Xu Chu away to regain distance before thrusting again. Xu Chu seized his sword once more, parried the blow, reset his stance, and targeted Dian Wei anew.
The duel between the two giant warriors had already passed thirty exchanges and was closing in on fifty.
“It has been a long time since I’ve seen such a manly fight. After leading troops, the only place you see this anymore is on the training grounds,” Cao Ren remarked, clearly enjoying the spectacle as he voiced his admiration again and again.
In this era, the very concept of single combat barely existed. People would ask what it even meant. A general fighting an enemy leader on horseback only happened in the chaos of battle, as a final desperate attempt to kill the opposing commander and seize victory. To the generals, these duels before the soldiers clashed must have felt like something out of a romantic ideal.
“Huh?!”
Suddenly Cao Ang startled. I looked closer and saw that Xu Chu had taken a blow to the leg from the shaft of Dian Wei’s halberd. He staggered, giving ground.
Dian Wei was indeed slightly stronger. He refused to lose the advantage and kept pressing forward relentlessly.
But that was when it happened.
While Xu Chu’s warriors had been focused on the duel, several pairs of eyes narrowed. They began to slink forward.
I noticed immediately. My hand closed around the sword at my waist as I tracked their every movement.
In that instant, Dian Wei brought his halberd down at Xu Chu once more.
“You bastaaard!”
“Ugh!”
Whether from the leg wound or sheer force, Xu Chu staggered and failed to block properly. It looked like he was about to fall. And at that exact moment, Xu Chu’s warriors decided to intervene. Claiming they were saving their chief, they charged in with blades drawn. A well-honed sword thrust toward Dian Wei’s exposed flank.
Shing—
“Ziye!”
I drew my sword, leaped from my horse, and charged straight at them. Seeing me approach, they switched targets from Dian Wei to me and swung their weapons in my direction.
I dodged lightly and brought my blade down on the neck of the first man to lunge at me.
Slaaash—
One swing sent his head flying. Blood sprayed across my face and armor.
“You— you bastard!”
“Interfering in a one-on-one duel between men wasn’t enough? You dare try to kill a Commandant of the official army?”
That became the spark. Several more warriors rushed me at once. Their martial skills were decent, but they were nothing before me.
I evaded two blades flying simultaneously, then drove my blood-soaked sword into the second man’s stomach and ripped it free. His belly tore open, blood fountaining out. He staggered and collapsed, dead. As I moved to behead the third—
“Stop! Everyone, stop this at once!”
“!”
At Xu Chu’s commanding shout, everyone froze. I halted with my sword poised at the third warrior’s throat.
Xu Chu, who had been fighting valiantly, planted his greatsword into the ground before Dian Wei and declared, “I’ve lost!”
Dian Wei’s face had been twisted with murderous fury, but the moment his opponent admitted defeat, he lowered his halberds and burst into loud laughter.
“Hahaha! It’s been a long time since I met a real man!”
“General of the official army, hear me. This Xu Zhongkang admits defeat. But I ask that you protect my subordinates.”
“Chief!”
“Chief, let us fight too!”
“Enough. It is true that I lost this fight.”
Xu Chu then looked at the two warriors I had killed and clicked his tongue.
“Pitiful fools… Why did you do something so foolish…”
Hearing those words, I sheathed my sword and spared the third man. To settle the situation, Cao Ren dismounted and approached both Xu Chu and Dian Wei, exchanging formal greetings.
“I am truly impressed by the valor of you both. We have all gathered here to strike at the Yellow Turban remnants—traitors to the Han. Let us end this here.”
“Mmm…”
Xu Chu waited with his greatsword set aside. I stepped forward and reported to Cao Ren.
“Uncle Zixiao, we have received the surrender of Xu Zhongkang, leader of these men. How about we join forces with them to locate and immediately repel the remaining Yellow Turbans?”
“Hmm. A sound suggestion. And what do you men say?”
Xu Chu raised his hands in a respectful fist salute and answered, “I am a defeated warrior chief. I will follow the official army.”
“Uncle, if these men distinguish themselves by helping us capture the Yellow Turban remnants, perhaps we should bring them to the capital, report to the Minister of Works, and have them incorporated into the official forces?”
“Hmm, yes. Once they achieve merit, we will report to the Minister of Works.”
Only moments earlier—before his duel with Dian Wei—Xu Chu had referred to the capital as “Cao Cao’s army.” It seemed he had already realized that this meant joining Cao Cao’s forces rather than the formal Han army.
“The man called Cao Mengde seems different from what I imagined. To command warriors of such caliber so naturally…”
“Hmph!”
Dian Wei crossed his arms with a confident grin. Xu Chu turned to look at me.
“And it seems there is more than one such warrior…”
I simply shrugged. Receiving recognition from Xu Chu meant my martial reputation was now firmly established across the Central Plains.
After incorporating Xu Chu’s band into our forces and obtaining their intelligence, we launched a surprise assault on the mountain stronghold of the Yellow Turban remnants. Their leader was a man named Huang Shao. Together with the remnants Yu Bi and Xia Yi, he had been expanding his power throughout the Runan region.
We struck their base without warning. Flames roared into the sky as tents burned. The Yellow Turbans scrambled out like insects fleeing a nest, and we cut them all down.
I rode through the chaos, striking down every remnant who charged me. I carved through dozens, then hundreds, my spear dripping with blood as I searched for my friend in the melee.
“Zisu! Zisu!”
When I finally spotted Cao Ang, he was fighting hard at Cao Ren’s side. Flanking Cao Ren were the two giants carving through the enemy with peerless ferocity.
“Uraaaah!”
One was Dian Wei—the nine-chi giant known as Elai—wielding his double iron halberds.
“Chaaaah!”
The other was Xu Chu, his greatsword slicing through Yellow Turban necks as easily as chopping vegetables. Though the enemy numbered nearly twenty thousand, they had already been shattered in a frontal clash with Xu Chu’s warriors. The surviving remnants had lost all fighting spirit the moment their base came under surprise attack.
“Well, no need for me to jump in there. In that case…”
I pushed deeper into the chaotic fighting, searching for the enemy leaders. Huang Shao, Xia Yi, and Yu Bi. At least one of them would die by my hand. Truthfully, all three would be fine.
I advanced, looking for a general worth taking a head from, and spotted an especially large building inside the stronghold that was burning fiercely. Such oversized structures usually belonged to the chief. They would be there.
“General, we must retreat! There is no hope left here!”
“Damn it all! We already retreated after fighting Xu Chu, and now the official army…”
Found him. That was the enemy leader.
“Hey, you Yellow Turban—halt!”
“!?”
As I charged with spear in hand, the man who appeared to be the commander snatched a subordinate’s sword and prepared to face me on foot. His courage was admirable—standing on the ground with only a blade against a mounted spearman.
“Yaaah!!!”
In that instant, I hurled my spear with every ounce of strength I possessed. The massive weapon flew like a bolt of lightning, punching straight through his chest and pinning him to the wall behind him.
“General!!!”
The spear had pierced his torso cleanly, killing him instantly. I reined in my horse, approached the corpse, and asked the subordinate, “What is this man’s name?”
“General…”
“I asked who he is. Do you wish to follow your master in death?”
“Th-this man… is Lord Huang Shao, general of the Yellow Turban army…”
“So I have captured Huang Shao.”
I seized the spear still embedded in Huang Shao’s body, yanked it free, and shouted, “Enemy general Huang Shao has been captured! This Cao Ziye has taken Huang Shao’s head!”
Holding the blood-drenched spear high, my cry reached Cao Ren’s troops even through the chaos. They surged forward. The battle ended in a complete rout shortly afterward.
“Ziye, you have achieved a magnificent merit. You pursued the enemy general yourself and took his head,” Cao Ren said, laughing heartily as he clapped both hands on my shoulders and announced my accomplishment to the entire army. “We must report this to my brother at once. At this rate, the whole of Runan will fall into our hands.”
That was when Xu Chu stepped forward.
“They are certainly powerful warriors, but the man who rules this region of Runan—Wenda—is no easy opponent.”
“Hmm? Wenda? Who is that?”
When Cao Ren asked, Xu Chu explained. “His courtesy name is Wenda. His given name is Li Tong. He was originally a powerful clan leader from Jiangxia in Jing Province, but he rose in rebellion here in Runan with his followers. Their numbers now approach several thousand.”
Xu Chu, Li Tong… This really was a land where only the strong survived.
“Li Tong? I’ve never heard the name. I’ll handle this one as well. Once he tastes these iron halberds, I’m sure he’ll become quite agreeable,” Dian Wei declared confidently, arms crossed.
This time, I raised my hand. “Uncle Zixiao, allow me to meet this Li Tong.”
“You, Ziye?”
“I intend to take Zisu with me.”
“Huh? Me?”
Going together with Cao Ang would be sufficient. If it came to a fight, I could handle Li Tong myself. Cao Ren walked over after hearing my words.
“Are you confident? You have just fought a major battle. Facing a powerful local clan force again will not be easy.”
“I will not refuse if it comes to combat. But since this Li Tong is a local power, I would like to at least try speaking with him first.”
This was the perfect opportunity to seize Runan entirely. Cao Ren seemed to sense my determination. He nodded and gave permission for me to go once the army had been reorganized and rested.
So, Zisu. Next, you and I will go together and accomplish something great.