stonecrandall Chapter 843: Black Tiger’s Bravery, the Situation is Critical!
Chapter 843: Black Tiger’s Bravery, the Situation is Critical!
Many Chu soldiers had just emerged from the ladders when they were met with a series of blades bearing the utmost determination to kill them instantly! Some were even so frightened by the brutal slaughter on the city walls that they became stuck between the ladders, unable to advance or retreat, and wailed in despair.
Just as Gao Yao's forcible boost to the morale of the Southern Border Army had barely stabilized their position, an unusually heavy sound of footsteps and the rubbing of armor could be heard from below the city. A murderous aura, even colder and more concentrated than that of the ordinary elite Chu Army, surged up from below like a cold wave!
Black Tiger, along with his hundred Tiger Guards, each one like a tiger or a wolf, had already climbed the siege ladder! The most brutal collision was about to break out on the narrow city wall!
Black Tiger, Xiang Yu's fiercest and most loyal personal guard commander, was the first to step onto the blood-stained masonry of Yishui City like a tiger pouncing on its prey. His massive body was clad in black leather armor soaked in blood and sweat. His heavy breathing resembled a worn bellows, but his eyes burned with a fervent fighting spirit. He instantly locked onto the core of the fiercest vortex in the center of the city wall—Gao Yao!
Even though he had already met this Qin army commander in a previous meeting, and even though his loyalty to Xiang Yu had long overwhelmed his fear of life and death, when Hei Hu's gaze was truly focused on Gao Yao, a chill from deep in his bones still ran up his spine uncontrollably!
It wasn't pure fear, but an almost instinctive feeling of... insignificance!
At this moment, Gao Yao was covered in blood, unable to distinguish between enemy and personal blood. His signature black general's armor was already riddled with knife and arrow holes, yet it remained as straight as a pine tree. The strangely shaped longsword in his hand was no longer ordinary iron, but a black storm that harvested lives! Every swing brought a shrill cry of breaking air and flying blood and flesh! The Qin soldiers around him seemed to be infused with an invisible force, tightly guarding him, while the Chu soldiers who rushed towards him were like waves crashing on reefs, shattered and killed one after another.
Gao Yao simply stood there, fighting with all his might, like an impassable mountain, emanating a suffocating, invincible pressure! Black Tiger had fought for years, crawling out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood, and had long since forgotten how to write "fear." But facing Gao Yao, he felt a profoundly absurd yet all-too-real realization: he couldn't defeat him! Like a ferocious wolf facing a lion perched atop a mountain, its gaze fixed on all directions, its ferocity remained, but the chasm in its power was clear, and there was even a hint of... awe, facing a higher being?
"Ridiculous!" Black Tiger shook his head, ruthlessly crushing the thought that was shaking the army's morale! He was the sharp claw of Overlord Xiang Yu! He was the spearhead of the Xianzhen Camp! How could he be afraid before the battle? Behind him were his comrades constantly climbing the city walls, and in front of him was the core of the enemy that must be torn apart! He had no way to retreat, only to fight to the death!
"kill--!!!"
A roar filled with determination and fury, like thunderclaps from the sky, instantly drowned out the cries and wails from the city walls! Black Tiger's eyes were bloodshot, and his entangled muscles instantly tensed to the limit. With a fierce kick of his foot, the solid bricks were cracked! He transformed into a sharp black arrow, carrying a tragic momentum of mutual destruction. He ignored any Qin soldiers who blocked his way and had only one target: Gaoyao!
The moment Gao Yao let out that war cry from the black tiger, he sensed an unusual murderous intent! He glanced at it from the corner of his eye, and his pupils suddenly contracted!
This new batch of Chu troops were far better equipped than the previous ragtag troops. Their movements were swift and coordinated, their eyes fierce and focused; they were clearly the elite! And the giant charging at the head was as imposing as a flaming meteorite: violent, resolute, and unstoppable! That black armor, that significantly longer and heavier longsword, and that mad aura of selfless devotion...
"Xiang Yu's personal guards!" Gao Yao suddenly understood. The real tough guy is coming!
Without the slightest hesitation, Gao Yao retracted his sword, no longer entangled with the surrounding soldiers, and instead of retreating, he pressed forward! He knew he couldn't let these elite troops gain a foothold on the city wall. He had to strike them head-on while their momentum was at its peak and their formation was unstable! Like a bolt of black lightning, he tore through the crowd and pounced directly on Black Tiger!
"when--!!!"
A deafening clang of metal clashed between the two men, sparks flying everywhere!
Black Tiger's Changshuo, with its air-rending whimpers, was like a raging poisonous dragon, attacking with the simplest and most brutal methods—stabbing! Sweeping! Hack and smash! There was absolutely no pattern, or perhaps it could be said that his pattern was to abandon all defense, pouring all his strength, speed, and even his life into each attack! Changshuo danced like a wheel, stirring up a bloody storm, each move targeting Gao Yao's vital points, a complete life-for-life, a mutually assured destruction!
Gao Yao's sword transformed into a dense curtain of light, precisely blocking, dissipating, and deflecting attacks. Every clash of weapons sent a tooth-grinding force, numbing his arms slightly. He walked steadily, yet under Black Tiger's reckless, reckless onslaught, he was forced to retreat repeatedly!
It's not that I'm not as skilled as others! It's not that I'm not strong enough!
Gao Yao's heart was as calm as ice, his eyes as sharp as an eagle's. He saw clearly that while Black Tiger's attack was ferocious and powerful, its rapid movement left numerous flaws. If it were an ordinary opponent, Gao Yao would have a dozen ways to kill him in three moves! Either he could engage in close combat, avoiding Chang Shuo's sharp edge, or he could dodge with his footwork and wait for an opportunity to strike at his vital points...
but!
Black Tiger's fighting style was that of a complete desperado! He didn't defend himself at all! Or rather, he had transformed himself into part of the weapon! Gao Yao thrust his sword at his chest, but he ignored it completely, instead lashing out with an even more ferocious blow at Gao Yao's neck! Gao Yao slashed at his arm, but he would rather lose his arm than pierce Gao Yao's waist with his long sword!
"Madman!" Gao Yao cursed inwardly. This kind of tactic, completely abandoning one's own safety for the sole purpose of killing the enemy, was a new one for him in all his years of fighting! Fighting desperately on the battlefield was the norm, but that was done while protecting one's own vitals. And this man, the leader of Xiang Yu's personal guards, treated his life like a disposable commodity! He seemed to have only one goal: to tear a wound through Gao Yao's body, even if it meant his own death!
Gao Yao must not be injured! At least not seriously injured at this moment!
He was the pillar of the Yishui defenders! He was the god of war in the hearts of tens of thousands of Qin soldiers! His unwavering presence was the very soul of the army! If he were to be wounded by a desperate criminal like Black Tiger, or even just scratched, the first drop of blood would be shed, it would be a devastating blow to the morale of the Qin army currently fighting bloody battles on the city walls, struggling to hold on! The soldiers would panic, waver, and wonder if the myth of invincibility in their hearts would also fall!