Chapter Six: The Young General of Heavenly Strategy

“Squeak~~~”

The grand gates of the Shangguan estate swung open. A voice, stern and cold, echoed from within.

“Who dares make such a ruckus before my manor! Truly—”

The words were abruptly cut short. The figure who emerged from the estate looked to be in his early twenties, his features delicate and refined, attire sumptuous, yet radiating an air of aloof nobility. As he spoke, his gaze fell upon Li Fu standing in the courtyard, filled with haughty pride.

But that cold indifference swiftly vanished, replaced by rage.

“Who did this! Where is Zhang Yunxiao!”

The young aristocrat’s face twitched with fury as his eyes locked onto the battle flag that lay fallen upon the ground. Then, seeing the severed flagpole, he roared in anger.

“Reporting to the young master, the culprit is this man before you. I am incompetent, unable to match him.” The deputy, Zhang Yunxiao, pointed at Li Fu and barked.

The noble youth frowned at Li Fu, then turned his gaze to the deputy, his expression darkening.

“Useless fool! Why do I even keep you around? So many of you, yet you can’t handle a single youth? And you let him cut down the command flag before my manor!”

His face grew ever more frigid, his thin red lips issuing harsh reproach. He swept his gaze across the scene, when suddenly, a familiar voice caught his attention.

“Yang Zixu? Are you involved in this as well?”

The noble youth narrowed his eyes, his tone icy.

“I have better things to do, young master. It’s just a flag with a madcat embroidered on it. If you gave it to me as a rag, I’d find it too rough for my feet,” Yang Zixu replied with a dismissive sneer.

“You’re stubborn, aren’t you? Well, since you’ve come to me, I won’t waste your ‘kindness.’ Soldiers, hear my command: Yang Zixu, scion of the Divine Feather General’s estate, together with his companion, have insulted the imperial command flag bestowed by His Majesty. They have slain my Divine Strategy soldiers. By the laws of the Great Tang, they are to be executed! Kill them all!”

The young noble’s thin red lips delivered the sentence coldly.

“Shangguan Qi, how dare you frame me! I’d like to see if you actually dare lay hands on me right here in Chang’an’s streets!” Yang Zixu exploded in anger; the other was dumping all the blame upon him.

“Why wouldn’t I dare? So many witnesses have seen it before my manor. If that man isn’t your accomplice, would a scion of the Divine Feather General’s estate stoop so low as to rescue a stranger?” Shangguan Qi let out a cold laugh; Yang Zixu was right, it was a deliberate framing. The Divine Strategy estate had always been at odds with the other three major armies of the Tang, including the Feather Spirit Army.

Since Yang Zixu was now embroiled in the matter, why not seize the chance to deal with him as well?

Before Yang Zixu could retort, a gust of wind swept past his side.

That wind carried a murderous intent, aimed straight at the Divine Strategy soldiers who surrounded Yang Zixu.

“How bold!” Shangguan Qi’s brows furrowed as he looked down upon Li Fu, unruffled, taking a few steps forward.

Li Fu seized the gap in their exchange, unleashing his true energy, splitting the shield formation that held him with a single sword, and pressed forward.

But immediately, two Divine Strategy soldiers appeared before him, wrists twisting as two forged steel spears met Li Fu’s blade, barring his advance.

Yet Li Fu was undeterred; his sword gleamed with chilling murderous intent and stabbed forward nonetheless.

A pair of deafening clangs rang out.

The steel spears shattered into fragments, flying deep into the street and crashing heavily against the outer wall of the Shangguan estate.

The two soldiers groaned, collapsing to the ground, their chests marked by two clear wounds, blood gushing forth.

At the same time, Yang Zixu, who had been held at bay, began his counterattack.

His abundant true energy surged onto his spear, sweeping sideways, breaking free from the encirclement.

The surrounding Divine Strategy soldiers retreated, not daring to strike Yang Zixu with lethal force—for he was the only son of the Divine Feather General, and should he be accidentally harmed, the Shangguan family would not care for the life of a mere soldier.

Li Fu gripped his sword, standing before the gates of the Shangguan estate, silent as his mind raced to find an escape. He had accomplished what his mentor had asked, but the situation now was severely unfavorable.

Shangguan Qi eyed Li Fu, his gaze narrowing like willow leaves, growing sharper. His words, from those thin red lips, were now colder than ever: “Truly a fearless youth. All these years, no one has ever dared kill my family’s soldiers before our gates…”

He was interrupted by Yang Zixu: “Why not? Years ago, the Grand Tutor slew dozens here, and I never saw your Shangguan family utter a peep!”

Yang Zixu, spear in hand, stood at the center of the street, leaning close to Li Fu to whisper a single word.

“Run.”

What awaited them was a bloody slaughter. Though only Shangguan Qi had emerged so far, elders of the clan were surely already approaching the gates.

Today, Li Fu had brazenly severed the command flag, a treasure of the Shangguan clan. They would never let it go. A youth with no background, falling into their hands—what fate would he meet? Yang Zixu dared not imagine.

They had only known each other for a day, yet Yang Zixu admired and respected Li Fu greatly.

As for whether they could escape unscathed from the Shangguan estate… Yang Zixu was realistic; it was impossible. With the current strength and realm of the Divine Strategy soldiers, they could easily capture both.

Only by exploiting their reluctance to kill him outright, could he delay and give Li Fu a chance to flee.

No footsteps sounded, nor did Li Fu turn away. He remained where he stood, prompting Yang Zixu to frown and bark in a low voice: “You fool! Why are you still standing here? Do you really believe your teacher, who’s thousands of miles away, will come to your aid?”

Li Fu shook his head, gesturing towards Shangguan Qi atop the stone steps. The meaning was clear—it was already too late to flee.

…

Shangguan Qi, upon hearing the word “Grand Tutor,” seemed greatly agitated, his delicate face contorting into a snarl.

“Where are the crossbowmen? Kill these two villains now!”

Shangguan Qi bellowed, commanding the Divine Strategy crossbowmen to target Li Fu and Yang Zixu.

“Swish! Swish! Swish!”

Arrows shot through the air like a sudden storm, their blinding tips infused with true energy.

These were the mighty Breaker Army crossbows of the Tang military, designed specifically to combat powerful cultivators. Their force far exceeded ordinary bows and crossbows by dozens, even hundreds of times!

“Damn it! Shangguan Qi, you’ve lost your mind! You even want to kill me!” Yang Zixu paled at the sight of the rain of Breaker Army arrows—should they strike, even a whole corpse would not remain!

True energy surged forth, forming a solid barrier before him. The Breaker Army arrows slammed against it, sending tremors through his body.

Meanwhile, Li Fu’s swift footwork was even more uncanny, dodging through the hail of arrows.

“Boom! Boom! Boom!”

Explosions echoed, splintering the bluestone slabs of Chang’an’s street, reducing the road before the Shangguan estate to dust in an instant.

“Hmph—!”

A muffled groan reached Li Fu’s ears. He saw Yang Zixu clutching his right arm in pain; a Breaker Army arrow had exploded near him, grazing his arm.

Soon, more arrows flew towards Yang Zixu.

“Damn!” Li Fu cursed, rushing to Yang Zixu’s side.

True energy surged throughout his body. On his sword, a faint blue lotus bloomed, then was flung into the arrow storm ahead, tracing an arc through the air before exploding.

Brilliant blue light shattered the incoming arrows, fragments ricocheting back. Many crossbowmen, caught off guard, were struck by their own arrows and died.

“Blue Lotus Sword Technique!”

At this moment, three middle-aged men emerged from the Shangguan estate. One, seeing the blooming blue lotus, exclaimed in shock.

“Yes, it’s the Blue Lotus Sword Technique. But only that drunkard knows it—this youth is… his disciple?” another said, his expression grave as he looked at Li Fu.

“Regardless, anyone connected to that old drunk must die! Moreover, he dared slaughter our Divine Strategy soldiers before our manor—he deserves death all the more!” The third man watched Li Fu with a wolfish, sinister gaze.

“Step! Step! Step!”

Just as Li Fu and Yang Zixu were about to be overwhelmed by the Breaker Army arrows, tremors shook the ground of Chang’an street, coming ever closer...

“Yang Ning, Senior Commander of the Heavenly Strategy Estate, is here! Who dares harm the young master of our estate!”

A young officer in white robes, astride a furious steed, whipped his mount and flung a spear into the ranks of the Divine Strategy archers, true energy swirling and exploding in their midst.