Cao Ren shook her head slightly as she readied her stance, alarm all over her face.

Kuh… What is the meaning of all this? Could it be that Yuan Shao intends to get rid of us here? And where is Lu Xiang? If I am not wrong, she should be inside this room, I thought as I looked about.

Un? While I was preoccupied with my thoughts and looked to the side, Shen Pei got up and prepared to hide at the back.

Kuh! She wants to escape!

“d.a.m.n you Shen Pei!! Don’t you dare run!” I yelled angrily as I shot forward towards her.

“Ha! Are you forgetting someone?” Just then, a delighted voice came out of nowhere.

Ah!! The rafters?! I realised where the voice came from and the sight of a short sword slas.h.i.+ng down greeted me as I looked up.

Wu! — Hei! I turned and leapt to the side, narrowly dodging the attack and quickly regained my footing as I stabbed with my spear.

*Ding* My spear was parried by her sword. I really did not expect that she could regain her balance so quickly after leaping down. Looks like this one is no pushover.

“Hmhm~” The girl smiled, “Looks like I got the upper hand in the first bout.”

Un? Upper hand? When I heard what she said, I inspected myself and found that though I was unharmed, my hat sustained a small cut.

If I had been just a little bit slower in dodging, my brain would have been sliced open.

Aiya aiya, I only brought 1 hate with me. If this one breaks, where will I find a replacement? I thought as I took it off and tossed it to side before looking closely at the girl before me.

She does not seem to be very old and has a very youthful face with a set of big, bright eyes. Her fringe was parted into 2 long locks that made her seem even younger. But there were the traces of old wounds on her face and arms, which meant that she was no pampered young miss. She has probably spent a fair amount of time on the battlefield which explains her skill in her attack before.

“Are you Lu Xiang?” I asked, calming down my raging emotions as I did so.

“That’s right! I’m Lu Xiang, the number 1 general under my lord!” As she said so, she spun her sword about and readied her stance.

Come on, number 1 general is a bit too much. From what I know, there is Yan Liang and Gao Lan who are far more worthy of that t.i.tle. Moreover, a warrior’s priority is not to be number one. When a warrior starts to covet fame and t.i.tles, he or she has probably failed to be a warrior.

*Ding* *Ding*! *Ding*!

Unfortunately, I had no leisure to indulge in these thoughts for long. The other side has already resumed combat.

“Un, the man over there is my big brother, the number 2 general under my lord.”

So that’s her older brother. This was perhaps the only grain of truth in that statement.

When I looked over and closely inspected him, I found that his face was darker and had a thick stubble, which meant that he was a fair bit older than her. He also wore a grey bandana, which made him look more like a carriage driver than a warrior.

Alright, that’s enough for now.

“So what is your intention behind all this?” I asked as I pointed my spear towards Lu Xiang. Though I asked as much, I already knew the possible answers that could result. They are either seeking vengeance or they intend to seize our troop command rights.

Or perhaps both, who knows?

“You want to know?” She said, giving a playful look as she twirled her sword around her neck, “Then beat me first!” When she finished, she swung her sword forward and dashed at me.

I was prepared for th

is and immediately began launching a series of stabbing attacks at her.

*Sou*– *Ding*! She deflected it!

I hurriedly drew back my spear to get ready for close quarters combat but heavy *Dong* sounded out as the pole end of my spear landed heavily on the wall of the room.

d.a.m.n it, this room is not suitable for long weapons at all!

“Yaa!!” This moment of hesitation and mistake allowed Lu Xiang to close in on me and launch another vicious attack.

This is a real pain! I complained inside and turned as I used the pole of my spear to block the attack.

*Dang* Good thing I was in time.

Wu… Before I could regain my balance, she applied strength into her attack and my right leg could not hold on for much longer!

“Yaa!” I knew that I could not hold on and let go of my spear as I leapt backwards. Ate the same time, I drew my sword with my right hand and dashed forwards.

*Ding* *Ding* *Ding* *Ding*!!

4 sounds rang out as I launched attacks in quick succession which were all blocked. I could sense that her strength was not low in the least and every attack ended up with her deflecting me away before counterattacking.

*Dang* As my spear hit the ground, I was running out of ideas. Close quarters combat is essentially a contest of brute strength. Her attacks are vicious and I was careless with dealing with some of the attacks from before, making me take some damage.

Right, and I am not wearing my hat either, which makes it even worse. Yes, I can only give myself 50 points or so for today’s performance.

“Yaa!” All of a sudden, she slashed down at me again. It was difficult for me to block this head on so I dodged and continued attacking her sporadically.

*Ding* *Ding*! After another 2-3 exchanges, I was still unable to land any attack. Her reactions were fast and being deflected away was difficult to deal with.

This Lu Xiang does not look very imposing at all, nor is there much meat on her arms. Yet, as a warrior, I must admit that she is superior to me. Looks like I still have a long way to go with my strength.

But… No matter how I look, she does not seem to be very old.

Well then– How about this!

As I thought so, I wordlessly dashed towards her side.

“Hmph! You’re so impulsive even though you’re my elder!” Lu Xiang mocked as she smiled and had an expression on that seemed like she had victory in her grasp.

*Dang*!!!

In the next instant, our weapons clashed. When I looked up, I saw that our weapons were locked in a cross and the intersection was just several centimeters above my head.

She used one arm and so did I. However, mine had begun trembling. Clearly, her strength was above and beyond that of mine.

“Admit defeat.” Lu Xiang said as she gave an arrogant and delightful smile, “If you don’t, your head will be split into 2. You managed to dodge before but you won’t be able to this time.”

It was as she said. If we keep at this, my strength will fail me sooner than hers will eventually. I can feel that her blade is slowly inching towards my head and it is only a matter of time before my brains are spilled out.

But…

“No! I won’t admit defeat nor will I surrender!” I forced these words out with my head lowered.

“Oh? Then you choose death?”

… I smiled.

“What are you smiling for?”

“Nothing, I am not choosing death either.”

“What are you…”

My smile grew wider by the second, which seemed to leave Lu Xiang at a loss as to what to do.

“Hmhm. You on the other hand ought to admit defeat.” I am not someone who likes riddles and just spat out the answer immediately, “Look at your throat.”

“… Eh?” She tried to lower her head but was not allowed to and all she could do was gasp. She never imagined that there would be a sharp spearhead pointing at her throat.

“When did you…” Lu Xiang blanched and her relaxed and joyful expression from before was nowhere to be found, “When did you pick up your spear…”

“40 points. I can only give you 40 points for asking this question.” I said as I lightly shook my head, sheathing my sword, “What you should have asked was why didn’t you see the spear in my hands.”

“… Why did I not see the spear in your hands?” She actually honestly asked.

“You’re still young.” I said as I kicked my hat up with my feed, caught it in my free hand and pulled it over my head before I slowly continued, “Martial arts depends on one’s strength, bravery and technique. I lack strength but my spear techniques have been finely tuned from sheer practice.”

When I finished, I withdrew my spear and spun it in my hands, accelerating with every revolution until it disappeared.

“That’s–”

“Don’t move.” I softly ordered and pointed the spear at her neck once more when I saw that she tried to move, “Know this, Lu Xiang. Sometimes, technique can negate strength. And it looks like my technique has prevailed over your strength this time.”

“Kuh…” Lu Xiang seemed dissatisfied with this, “Your hands just happen to be a little quick.”

“Yes, just a little quick.” I was not mad and merely placed my spear on her neck, “But that little bit of speed has given me your life.”