NOVPUB"General, the problem is that at that time, White Horse Soldiers were not led by Zhao Zilong! Now that Zhao Zilong is in command, it’s a completely different story from having Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry led by Lyu Bu and without him!" Clearly, this Military Marshal named Li Zheng was a man of understanding.
"There’s no need to worry. If my Great Halberdiers could use merely a few hundred men to withstand the first charge of tens of thousands of White Horse Soldiers, how could my Cao Family’s three thousand elite soldiers arranged in the Eight Gates Golden Lock not hold back a mere three thousand mixed White Horse Soldiers!" Cao Xiu confidently said.
Speaking of which, the Cao Family’s Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation was indeed formidable, but sadly, no one mastered it; it was nothing but a Death Formation. However, it was still quite effective for frightening the enemy, and Cao Chun planned to use this Death Formation to block Zhao Yun.
After all, in Cao Chun’s view, a martial fanatic like Zhao Yun was only useful for charging into battle and had no other utility. A small strategy would be enough to lead to his demise in this place, and even Lyu Bu, if trapped by the Three Thousand Eight Gates Golden Lock by mere men, would only have a dead end!
A general may lack unparalleled martial arts, but they must have a clear head. Even the brave King Xiang was confined to Gaixia. Bravery is one thing, but failing to understand strategies and tactics will eventually lead to being played with at will.
"Since the General is so confident, I will go carry out the orders. Shall I lead a thousand men to hide on either side in the snow ravines?" Li Zheng said expressionlessly, fulfilling his responsibility. Whether Cao Chun listened was his own affair.
Cao Chun glanced at Li Zheng. This fellow came from a prestigious family; his father, Li Qian, was also an old man who had followed Cao Cao through battles across the land. It was precisely for this reason that Li Zheng could command a unit at the age of twenty. Of course, it was undeniable that this young man did indeed have some capability; otherwise, Cao Cao would not have entrusted him with five hundred men.
"If that is the case, take your men and hide in the ditches under the snow on either side. When I block the White Horse Soldiers, seize the opportunity to attack the enemy and work with me to compress their range of movement, exposing the most vulnerable side of the White Horse Soldiers and then completely annihilate them," Cao Chun nodded as he spoke.
Li Zheng no longer said anything; he simply led his five hundred men to hide in the ditches beneath the snow, while commanding another five hundred men to hide in a different direction. Honestly, he wasn’t optimistic about Cao Chun’s ability to block Zhao Yun, although he had also heard of a great ancient formation from the Cao Family known as the Eight Gates Golden Lock.
However, it was precisely because he was aware of the ancient formation known as the Eight Gates Golden Lock that Li Zheng was apprehensive; after all, he had a clan cousin who, out of boredom, had disclosed to him some secrets and even described various great arcana. In short, according to what he learned from his clan cousin, without achieving a spiritual essence, it was impossible to truly master the Eight Gates Golden Lock.
Of course, almost everyone in their family thought that cousin was bragging, especially since upon returning from his travels, he did not exhibit any unusual characteristics but rather seemed to have a Piercing Vision of the world.
Others might not believe it, but Li Zheng and his younger brother Li Dian had truly witnessed the extraordinary aspects of their cousin Li Jin, which is why Li Zheng had taken those words, that seemed no more than wind, to heart.
"Duanfang, remember this, there is a type of troops called elite troops in this world. They are entirely different from ordinary troops. The biggest difference is that elite troops have integrated into the team after a long period of cooperation, so no matter what formation the elite troops fight in, there is a conceptual military formation present, which can be considered the innate gift of this elite troop," Li Zheng silently recalled the knowledge Li Jin had shared with him.
"The talent of the White Horse Soldiers is speed, and it’s not just about movement speed, but complete speed—attack speed, speed of action, and so on..."
Li Zheng silently concealed himself, and he believed the words of his clan brother; thus, he understood that it wasn’t easy to defeat the White Horse Soldiers, and that the victory of the Great Halberdiers and Vanguard was certainly not that simple.
As Li Zheng was reflecting on this, a white line emerged on the horizon, which then advanced smoothly like waves.
"They’re here!" Cao Chun looked at the surging line, fixing his gaze on the leading figure, and narrowed his eyes slightly. There was no doubt now—it was indeed Zhao Yun.
"Form up!" Cao Chun bellowed in the face of Zhao Yun, and the troops behind him quickly interlaced each other, as a misty Qi rose up, concealing Cao Chun along with all his subordinates.
"Xuanxiang Formation, huh?" Zhao Yun sneered. Those from Mount Tai who had practiced the Eight Gates Heavenly Lock with Hua Xiong for countless times, even if they hadn’t fully understood the formation, Zhao Yun knew for sure it was a Death Formation in front of him. So, he would make a few probes to find the Death Gate, and then striking directly into the formation, he would break it, whether from within or without—this was the experience he had gleaned from over two hundred practice sessions with Hua Xiong.
The reason being that although the defenses of the Death Gate was the strongest, due to it being a Death Formation, the adjustments were the most troublesome. So as long as one was fast enough to penetrate the center of the formation before the Death Gate closed, the formation could be easily disrupted.
"Draw up!" Zhao Yun led the cavalry as if he didn’t take Cao Chun seriously at all and charged straight ahead. Cao Chun, watching this scene, sneered repeatedly, such a brute!
The White Horse Soldiers, under Zhao Yun’s command, burst forth with a pure white Qi, tinged with a silver-blue thread, and suddenly, their speed surged. In a blink of an eye, they were within fifty steps of Cao Chun’s army; at that moment, Cao Chun had already placed his Long Spear atop his Great Shield but to his surprise, instead of a collision, the three thousand White Horse Soldiers, like dancers, swung a large circle to the left and right, and countless arrows flew toward the fog-covered formation of Cao Chun.
"Tingling!" A downpour of arrows caused only minimal damage, but Zhao Yun was not discouraged; two detachments of White Horse Soldiers crisply crossed each other and began to rotate around Cao Chun’s Death Formation.
Wave after wave of arrows fell continuously toward Cao Chun’s side, and though the Eight Gates Golden Lock made it impossible to see what exactly was happening inside, Zhao Yun was not in the least disheartened and just kept the Righteous Followers rotating around the adversary.
"Hmph!" Cao Chun had to admit that Zhao Yun was indeed an excellent Cavalry Chief Commander, with no intention of breaking the formation—instead hoping to grind him down with mounted archery. Unfortunately, as long as the Eight Gates Golden Lock remained unbroken, the soldiers dying under the arrow rain were few and far between.
"Fire!" Zhao Yun, leading his troops into the third probe, finally gave Cao Chun his chance. A barrage of arrows flew toward Zhao Yun’s direction, but all that was seen was Zhao Yun leading his troops in a wide sweep, avoiding most of the arrows, as the agility of the White Horse Soldiers was fully showcased in this moment.
[Let’s see who can endure longer!] Cao Chun, seeing the natural movements of the White Horse Soldiers, knew it was unrealistic to count on bows and arrows to retaliate against them. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it on qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to continue reading.) 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙥𝙪𝙗.𝒄𝙤𝙢
