Guan Hai led his army eastward all the way. By dawn, he suddenly saw a force of Soldiers ahead. The leading General, holding a spear and mounted on a horse, stood before the formation.
Guan Hai looked closer and saw it was precisely the General, Zhang He, who had fought him yesterday.
Zhang He saw Guan Hai approaching and laughed, "Rebel, how did you like my Lord's ambush plan? Now that you are here, surrender quickly and you can still save your life and property. Otherwise, you will regret it!"
"Hahaha!" Guan Hai laughed loudly, "A defeated General under my command, how dare you chatter here! Watch me take you!"
With that, Guan Hai spurred his horse forward and brought his saber down towards Zhang He's face.
Zhang He's pupils contracted. He raised his spear to meet the attack and fought with Guan Hai.
Having been ambushed twice just now, Guan Hai was full of rage with nowhere to vent it. Seeing Zhang He leading Soldiers here, he felt the intense animosity of meeting an enemy. He immediately used all his strength, his moves were all killing blows, showing no mercy.
After exchanging blows for several rounds, Zhang He feigned a thrust with his spear and retreated from the formation.
"Where do you think you're going! Leave your life behind!" How could Guan Hai let him leave? He immediately roared and chased after him.
Xu Huang was greatly alarmed and quickly shouted, "Protector, no! Be careful, it might be a trap!"
Unfortunately, Guan Hai was already seeing red from killing. How could he listen? He had already spurred his horse and charged into the valley.
Yang Feng was greatly alarmed by the sight and couldn't worry about anything else. He immediately said, "The Protector has entered the valley. We cannot let the Protector face danger alone. Let's quickly charge into the valley!"
Xu Huang quickly tried to stop him, saying, "General, be careful..."
Yang Feng said sternly, "Gongming, I know you are cautious, but the Protector is the hope of our Yellow Turban. Even if it is a trap, we cannot abandon him! Your skill is far superior to mine, and you have a great future ahead of you; you should not be burdened by this. You lead your men to guard outside the valley. If things change, take them and escape!"
After Yang Feng finished speaking, he spurred his horse and galloped straight into the valley.
By this time, it was already broad daylight. Guan Hai charged into the valley, followed by the Yellow Turban Generals and their army.
The valley was vast and open. As Guan Hai rode, he vaguely saw a large force of Soldiers appearing ahead.
Guan Hai reined in his horse and stopped. Looking ahead, he saw Zhang Chen sitting upright on his horse, standing before the formation.
As expected, Zhang Chen's great army had not returned to Ye City but was specifically waiting for him here.
By this moment, Guan Hai understood everything. The news from Liangqi was completely false. The Soldiers from Zhao Commandery had not advanced deep into Wei Commandery. It was likely that Zhang Baiqi and Li Damu had already met with misfortune!
"General Guan, I have been waiting for you here for a long time," Zhang Chen said with a smile. "General, you are now trapped in a death trap. It would be better to surrender early, and you might still save your life."
"Hmph, want this General to surrender? Nonsense!"
Zhang Chen smiled, "General, why stubbornly resist? The Yellow Turban's destiny is over. Since the General has extraordinary talent, how can he not recognize the will of heaven?"
"Enough nonsense!" Guan Hai shouted. "This General has fallen into your hands today, and I have nothing to say, but don't think you'll get off easy either! You have seen this General's methods. Today, I will perish together with you all!"
With that, Guan Hai leaped up, soaring into the air. With a sweep of the long saber in his hand, a sharp saber light shot out.
Zhang Chen smiled slightly. He lifted his Xuan Tie Si Leng Qiang (Black Iron Four Edged Spear) upwards, and a spear light swept out, colliding with the saber light. Instantly, sand flew, the valley trembled, and a shocking crack appeared on the mountain walls on both sides!
Guan Hai then threw his long saber, drew the sword from his waist, and held it in front of him. He remained suspended in mid-air, chanting incantations.
In an instant, a sudden sandstorm arose, and four whirlwinds circled around Guan Hai. Within the eye of the storm, countless flying sand and stones were hidden.
Zhang Chen couldn't help but feel secretly startled, thinking to himself that Guan Hai's methods were truly mystical.
Guan Hai roared and swung his precious sword. The four whirlwinds instantly swept towards Zhang Chen's army.
For a moment, yellow sand filled the sky, obscuring the sun and moon. The bright morning sunlight now turned into a dull yellow haze!
Immediately after, many strange Soldiers suddenly appeared within the swirling yellow sand.
Zhang Chen saw clearly that those Soldiers were the same ones they had encountered yesterday. They were invulnerable to blades and spears, had skin like copper and bones like iron, were unarmed, and only attacked enemies by biting.
Yesterday, they had suffered greatly at the hands of these fellows!
"Blade and shield Soldiers, form a circular formation, protect!"
With a command from Zhang Chen, the infantry stepped forward, forming a semicircle. They planted their large shields, taller than a man, on the ground, protecting the center army. The spearmen were inside, thrusting outwards under the cover of the shields.
However, when the long spears pierced those people, it was like stabbing an iron plate; they couldn't injure the opponents at all. Those strange Soldiers vigorously impacted the shields with immense strength. The Soldiers desperately held on, managing to keep the formation from breaking.
Seeing this scene, Zhang Chen couldn't help but be greatly alarmed.
"Archers, fire flaming arrows!"
Zhang Chen waved his hand, and the archers immediately drew their bows and nocked arrows, firing them in a high arc. However, unlike ordinary arrows, what they shot were flaming arrows.
In an instant, a rain of fire descended from the sky, igniting the tattered clothes those people were wearing.
However, the next second, the sight before them once again astonished Zhang Chen and all the Soldiers.
Those strange Soldiers had become firemen, yet they were still desperately crashing into the shields, as if they felt no pain at all.
Qian Zhao, who was nearby, couldn't help but be greatly alarmed, exclaiming, "What... what kind of monsters are these!"
"Demonic magic, it must be demonic magic!" Zhang Chen murmured, thinking to himself, "It seems whether we can defeat the enemy today depends entirely on Guo Jia. I hope his Qimen Dunjia technique can counteract Guan Hai's demonic magic!"
Just as Zhang Chen was frowning with worry, he heard a clear ringing sound echo throughout the valley, followed by a vast and low voice.
"Qiankun Righteous Method, summon the divine thunder of the Nine Heavens, dispel all evil, break!"
As soon as the words fell, the sky immediately became covered with dark clouds, and lightning flashed and thunder roared. Everyone present was terrified.
After a few breaths, the thunder stopped, the dark clouds dispersed, and the sky-obscuring violent winds, sand, and stones also vanished into thin air.
By this time, the sky was already bright. Sunlight shone on the valley, and only then did Zhang Chen and the Soldiers see the appearance of those strange Soldiers clearly.
Their skin was grayish-white, and they looked withered. They were clearly not living people.
But in the blink of an eye, those Soldiers seemed to be suffering immense pain. They fell backward one by one, curling up their bodies and rolling on the ground.
White smoke was actually rising from their bodies, as if they were about to burn!
"Pfft!" Guan Hai immediately spat out a mouthful of fresh blood and said with a trembling voice, "What expert has broken my spell?"
"I am Guo Fengxiao from Yingchuan. Guan Hai, you do not recognize the will of heaven, you act against it, secretly using forbidden techniques to refine puppets. This has already incurred the wrath of heaven and resentment of men. This retribution today is your own doing!"
As Guo Jia's voice fell, those puppet Soldiers were seen to have all turned into blood.
Where had the Soldiers seen such a thing? Each one's face revealed a look of horror.
Zhang Chen pointed his Xuan Tie Si Leng Qiang (Black Iron Four Edged Spear) and commanded, "Soldiers! The demonic magic is broken! Slay the Rebel Army, earn merits and establish your careers! Kill!"
With a single command, Zhang Chen's tens of thousands of Soldiers' morale soared like a rainbow, pouring out like a tide. The Yellow Turban Army's morale was already low, and seeing the government army's momentum, they immediately felt fear and could no longer suppress it.
"Don't... don't kill me, ah!"
"No! I surrender, I surre... ah!"
"Quick... run!"
Guan Hai's face turned ashen, and a deep sense of despair rose in his heart. He had never imagined that things would escalate to such a point!
A hundred thousand strong army, finished! The Yellow Turban's last foundation was destroyed, and it was destroyed in his hands!
Zhang Chen, it's all Zhang Chen! All of this is thanks to him!
Guan Hai's eyes were about to split. He roared and spurred his horse to charge towards Zhang Chen.
Zhang Chen's Soldiers couldn't last even a single exchange under his saber. Their lives were taken as easily as chopping melons and cutting vegetables.
Guan Hai charged into the formation like a war god possessed. Wherever he went, none could stop him.
Zhang He was furious. He spurred his horse forward and fought with him. Qian Zhao and Fang Ping also charged forward and engaged the remaining bandit Generals.