Water Margin: The Tale of Li Erlang of Guankou

Chapter 174 Guan Yu's Great Sword Displays Its Divine Power, Little Li Guang's Army Defeat

"A god has descended to earth!"

When Yan Shun, nicknamed "Golden-haired Tiger," saw Wang Ying, nicknamed "Dwarf Tiger," fall from his horse, he rushed to his rescue. However, upon seeing the appearance of Guan Sheng, nicknamed "Big Knife," he was so frightened that he became "Dwarf Tiger."

After all, the fear of Guan Yu was deeply ingrained in the hearts of every person in the Central Plains.

Guan Sheng, known as "Big Knife," completely ignored Yan Shun, known as "Golden-haired Tiger," and charged towards the government troops in the village. His Green Dragon Crescent Blade rose and fell like a martial saint descending to earth, the blade sweeping past armor.

In addition, his appearance was exactly like that of Guan Yu, so the government troops were quite frightened when they saw him.

"Lord Guan has appeared! Lord Guan has appeared!"

The government troops, seeing Guan Sheng charging towards them, screamed in terror and immediately fled back.

"Stop! Don't run!"

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," roared and stopped the retreating army.

"What do you mean Guan Yu manifesting his spirit? How can a dead man manifest his spirit! Watch me!"

To stabilize the morale of his troops, Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," grabbed his bow and arrow and shot an arrow at Guan Sheng, nicknamed "Big Sword," who was charging towards him.

While Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," may not have been as unparalleled as Wang Shunchen in archery, his skills were still exceptional. The power of his arrows was enough to pierce through four or five layers of cowhide.

"Zheng!"

When it comes to defending against hidden weapons, Guan Sheng, nicknamed "Big Sword," is quite skilled. With a swift movement of his broadsword, the arrow struck the back of the blade with a resounding clang.

What kind of hero attacks others with underhanded tactics?

Guan Sheng gave Hua Rong a contemptuous smile, his Green Dragon Crescent Blade already held horizontally at his side, ready to charge at any moment.

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," has really lost face this time. He originally wanted to kill Guan Sheng with an arrow to boost his morale, but Guan Sheng was too strong and blocked the arrow. He had just said that this man was nothing to fear, but now he couldn't do anything about him. Not only did he fail to restore morale, but he also lost face.

"Pah! I'm not afraid of you even without drawing my bow and arrow!"

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," wanted to boost morale, so he had no choice but to take to the field himself. He took up his silver spear and stepped forward to fight.

"You've got some guts!"

Guan Sheng raised his Green Dragon Crescent Blade to meet the attack, and the two engaged in battle.

Speaking of Hua Rong's martial arts skills, even without using a bow and arrow, they are still very good. His spear skills can fight "Thunderbolt" Qin Ming for about fifty rounds without being at a disadvantage. He ranks first among the eight vanguard generals of Liangshan Marsh's cavalry, which is well-deserved.

"Beat the drums to boost morale!"

The government troops also sounded their war drums in perfect unison, the sound of which made the withered grass on the ground in Dongxi Village tremble. Two warhorses were circling in front of the two armies.

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," pawed at the ground with his white steed, leaving hoofprints on the yellow earth. His silver spear gleamed coldly in the sunlight, its tassel as red as if it were soaked in blood.

Guan Sheng, known as "Big Saber," rode Red Hare, its horse exhaling white steam, while his Green Dragon Crescent Blade pointed diagonally at the ground, its blade covered with a thin layer of frost-like mist.

This reincarnated, bearded man squinted his phoenix eyes, but his gaze remained fixed on the right hand of "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong, who was holding a gun.

Having just slain "Dwarf Tiger" Wang Ying, Guan Sheng's blade still bore traces of undried blood, a sight to behold.

Unfortunately, "Short-legged Tiger" Wang Ying was not killed and was rescued by "Golden-haired Tiger" Yan Shun. Guan Sheng was eager to get out of trouble, so he did not finish him off.

"Watch out for your gun!"

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," suddenly roared, and his silver spear transformed into a white rainbow, aiming straight for Guan Sheng, nicknamed "Big Knife," at the throat.

Guan Sheng, wielding a broadsword, did not parry the attack. His Red Hare nimbly shifted half a step to the side, the back of the sword sliding along the shaft of the spear, sending sparks flying.

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," felt a slight chill. He deflected the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, but it was extremely difficult.

Guan Sheng's seemingly casual parry actually made his hand go numb.

"The enemy is truly formidable!"

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," pondered to himself that among all the masters he had ever encountered, only Qin Ming, nicknamed "Thunderbolt," seemed to possess a mace with such an effect. However, the swordsmanship of the man before him was even more refined than Qin Ming's mace technique.

After all, the mace, as a blunt weapon, has very limited attack methods. It relies on its powerful force, and even the most ingenious techniques have their limits.

Guan Sheng's Green Dragon Crescent Blade is incredibly versatile!

Thirty rounds passed in the blink of an eye. "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong's spear technique was like pear blossoms falling, and the cold stars covered the vital points of "Big Knife" Guan Sheng. For "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong, he was now using all his strength. Even if he was fighting "Thunderbolt" Qin Ming in front of him, he could not have used this much.

However, Guan Sheng's swordsmanship remained perfectly sealed, and whenever the silver spear was about to reach him, a streak of green light would always intercept it at just the right moment.

In reality, Guan Sheng only used 80% of his strength with the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, not his full strength, because he wanted to figure out "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong's fighting style first.

Eight cavalrymen fighting five tiger generals—if it were anyone else, "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong might not have had such a hard time, but when he encountered "Big Saber" Guan Sheng, he could only accept his bad luck.

Suddenly, Guan Sheng, wielding the "Great Saber," let out a long roar that shook the surrounding area: "Well done, little Li Guang! Behold my family's secret saber technique!"

The Green Dragon Crescent Blade suddenly unleashed a terrifying aura, its blade light stretching out like the raging tide of the Qiantang River.

This is precisely the "Flooding the Seven Armies" technique from the Guan Family's Thirty-Six Styles of Spring and Autumn Saber Techniques; once the saber's momentum begins, it is difficult to stop.

Hua Rong felt only a blue light before his eyes. Every time he parried with his silver spear, it felt like he was hitting a mountain. His white dragon steed was even shaken and forced to retreat repeatedly.

"Big Sword" Guan Sheng unleashed his accumulated power. After he had thoroughly explored "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong's moves and exhausted his own techniques, he suddenly unleashed his full power. His swordsmanship was like a surging wave, and once he started, it was unstoppable.

With a crisp clang, the silver spear was sent flying high by the back of the blade.

Just as "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong was about to return the spear, he suddenly saw a flash of cold light in the corner of his eye—the Green Dragon Crescent Blade had transformed into a bolt of lightning and was slashing straight at his face!

At the critical moment, a rider suddenly appeared from the side.

The young general, clad in silver armor and masked with a black veil, thrust his spear straight at Guan Sheng, the "Big Saber," at his ribs.

The shot came at a tricky moment, just as Guan Sheng, wielding the "Big Sword," had exhausted his old strength and had not yet generated new power.

Guan Sheng, wielding a broadsword, sneered. His sword flashed in mid-air, twisting strangely, and the back of the blade slammed heavily into the seven-inch mark of the incoming spear.

Let go!

With that shout, the silver spear flew more than three zhang away. "Big Knife" Guan Sheng then struck the masked man in the chest with the back of his knife. The man fell off his horse like a kite with a broken string, and the black cloth on his face fell off, revealing a beautiful face that was seven parts similar to "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong.

"Girl!"

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," had eyes that were practically popping out of their sockets.

He should have realized that the look in his sister's eyes when she said she would sew him a battle robe before he went to war was filled with an unusual determination.

As the daughter of a military family, Hua Baoyan learned martial arts from a young age, hoping to become a female general who could fight on the battlefield like Hua Mulan, Fan Lihua, and Mu Guiying.

However, Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," felt sorry for this girl and never let her go into battle with a group of grown men.

However, Hua Baoyan did not give up on this dream, and today she actually secretly followed us here!

At this moment, blood trickled from the corner of Hua Baoyan's mouth, yet she still stubbornly tried to get up, with half of her skirt embroidered with begonia flowers peeking out from under the soft armor at her waist.

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," grabbed his bow and arrows to try and save people, but Guan Sheng, who was already prepared, swept his Green Dragon Crescent Blade, rendering his carved bow useless.

At the same time, "Little Tyrant" Zhou Tong had already led his personal guards to surround them. This guy was always good at taking advantage of others, especially women!

Just as "Little Overlord" Zhou Tong was about to press his green spear down on Hua Baoyan's shoulder, "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong swept his silver spear, forcing back the surrounding enemy soldiers. The white dragon horse reared up and kicked heavily on Zhou Tong's warhorse's head with its front hooves.

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," disregarded his own safety and turned his back to Guan Sheng, nicknamed "Big Knife." He was truly risking his life for his sister!

Fortunately, Yan Shun, nicknamed "Golden-haired Tiger," was loyal enough to ride out on horseback, brandishing his sword, and pretending to block Guan Sheng's path. Of course, he knew he was no match for Guan Sheng, so he circled around him like a revolving lantern, just trying to keep Guan Sheng occupied.

"Little Tyrant" Zhou Tong's horse neighed in pain, while "Tiger Slayer" Li Zhong took the opportunity to throw out a lasso, which wrapped around Hua Baoyan's slender waist.

"Brother, run!"

Hua Baoyan suddenly pulled a dagger from her boot, but instead of stabbing the enemy, she used it to cut the ropes in an attempt to save herself.

"The little beauty can't escape now!"

"Little Tyrant" Zhou Tong let out a wicked laugh, sweeping his spear and knocking her unconscious. He then dismounted, lifting Bao Yan with one hand and placing her delicate body across the saddle: "Pretty boy, if you want your sister's life, you'll have to exchange it for Chao Tianwang!"

Zhou Tong, the "Little Tyrant," was naturally lustful, but at this moment he had no intention of taking advantage of Hua Baoyan. Women were like clothes, and brothers were like limbs; getting Chao Gai back was the proper course of action.

"Damn it! Let her go!"

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," had bloodshot eyes and wielded his silver spear, creating a flurry of spear shadows as he risked his life to break through the enemy lines.

Suddenly, a cloud of dust rose from the east, and the second reinforcements from Liangshan arrived. "Red-faced Tiger" Yuan Lang, wielding his double maces, charged forward, while "Horse Hawk" Ma Ji, with his iron-backed steel spear, was incredibly sharp. The two of them rushed over together, throwing the Jizhou army into chaos. Hua Rong's white dragon horse was also wounded by a stray arrow, its front hooves buckling, and it almost collapsed to its knees.

"Protect General Hua and retreat!"

Wang Ying, nicknamed "Dwarf Tiger," who had already been half-crippled by Guan Sheng's sword, shouted. Hua Rong's personal guards from Qingzhou, undaunted by death, desperately swung their iron shields forward to block the three wolf-tooth arrows.

"Look at the gun!"

"Horse Hawk" Ma Ji, swift as a horse and sharp as a spear, thrust forward with his spear. "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong, hiding in the stirrup, dodged Ma Ji's iron spear, and with a backhand thrust, pierced the enemy soldier's throat. Looking up, he saw "Little Overlord" Zhou Tong had already retreated into the central army tent with Hua Baoyan in tow.

"We're too busy taking care of ourselves to care about others."

"Red-faced Tiger" Yuan Lang's double claws tore through the air as he swept them towards Hua Rong.

Hua Rong's silver spear touched the ground and soared into the air, its two blades grazing past the iron armor, scraping sparks three feet long off the breastplate.

Before he even landed, Ma Ji's iron-spine steel spear had already sliced ​​across the ground, the blade of the spearhead hooking onto the white dragon horse's belly band.

"Get down!"

Ma Ji roared and exerted his strength, and the poor "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong and his horse crashed to the ground.

A flash of blue light appeared amidst the smoke and dust. Yuan Lang's double claws transformed into a fierce tiger descending the mountain, the five steel hooks on the claws aimed straight for Hua Rong's eyes.

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," rolled into the pile of corpses, thrusting his silver spear out from an unbelievable angle. The spear tip pierced through three corpses and aimed at Yuan Lang's throat.

*Clang!*

Suddenly, the two claws straightened, locking the silver spear in place.

Yuan Lang's face turned red with a sinister grin, and he kicked a burning log with his right leg, sending the burning log hurtling towards Hua Rong's face.

At the critical moment, Hua Rong suddenly let go of his gun, drew the machete of his fallen personal guard, and cleaved the burning wood in two, revealing his blood-stained, ferocious face amidst the flying sparks.

Guan Sheng is one of the Five Tiger Generals, Yuan Lang is also one of the Five Tiger Generals, and Ma Ji has the strength of at least eight cavalry generals. Hua Rong has no chance of defeating him, nor can he escape unscathed!

At that moment, Ma Ji's iron-spine steel spear hooked onto Hua Rong's right shin guard, the reverse blade plunging into his leg. "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong groaned and had no choice but to resort to a rogue move, his broadsword flying out of his hand and spinning, the hilt slamming heavily onto Ma Ji's nose.

Taking advantage of his opponent's staggering retreat, he pulled out the silver spear that Yuan Lang had thrown aside and was now stuck in the pile of corpses, and swept the spear shaft to force Yuan Lang back three steps.

"Prepare to die!"

Hua Rong's silver spear suddenly unleashed seven phantom images, which was none other than his ultimate move, "Seven Stars Shining the Sun."

Even at his last gasp, Yuan Lang was not afraid of him. He wielded his double clubs like an iron wall, blocking all of "Little Li Guang" Hua Rong's attacks.

At this moment, Ma Ji also swung his spear to stab, which was bad. The weapons of the three men became entangled. The red tassels on the two spears got tangled, and the double hooks and spearheads were also twisted together.

The three men's weapons were tangled together when Hua Rong suddenly spun around and kicked up a burning banner. Yuan Lang turned his head to avoid the fireball, and Ma Ji took the opportunity to pull back his spear. The reversed blade of the spearhead grazed Hua Rong's waist armor, cutting the armor ribbons cleanly.

Hua Rong's armor suddenly crumbled, revealing the white linen battle robe underneath. "Red-faced Tiger" Yuan Lang's double claws suddenly changed their move, coiling around Hua Rong's neck like a python.

Hua Rong planted his silver spear upside down in the ground, using the force to leap into the air. He barely managed to dodge the fall, but as he landed, the spear tip lifted a headless corpse and smashed it towards Ma Ji.

The corpse was still in mid-air when the iron spine spear pierced its abdomen. Although Ma Ji had opened the corpse, its intestines still drenched him.

Ma Ji, wielding his iron-spine spear, unleashed a strange arc, aiming straight for Hua Rong's exposed right shoulder.

The silver spear hastily parried, and the clang of metal against metal caused the wounded soldiers around to bleed from their ears and noses.

Hua Rong, nicknamed "Little Li Guang," suddenly noticed fine cracks appearing on the spear shaft—the hidden injury left from the clash with the Green Dragon Blade was now erupting. Yuan Lang seized the opportunity to twist the spear shaft with his double claws, while Ma Ji's spear pierced straight into his heart like a poisonous dragon.

At the critical moment of life and death, Hua Rong suddenly let go and spun around, letting the silver spear be twisted into a pretzel by the double claws.

He grabbed Ma Ji's gun barrel with his bare hands and, taking advantage of Ma Ji's forward momentum, flung it toward the burning house.

Ma Ji staggered and almost fell headfirst into the fire, but quickly planted his spear in the ground to steady himself.

However, Yuan Lang had already struck Hua Rong in the abdomen. The five steel hooks on the Tiger Claw Steel Claw pierced through the inner soft armor, leaving five wounds on Hua Rong's chest and abdomen. Although they were not very deep, pain was inevitable.

A trickle of blood flowed from the corner of Hua Rong's mouth, and he couldn't help but cry out, "Heavens above, must I, Hua Rong, die here?"