Chapter 473 – Guan Yu VS Zhang Tong – Part 1
As usual, Guan Yu never drank wine. He only had a teapot, a teacup, a plate of roasted duck, and a plate of a sliced extra-cheese spicy chicken pizza on the table.
Upon noticing Tong and his entourage, he stood up and bowed, "Greetings, your majesty. I am Guan Yuncheng, your duel opponent."
Tong looked at his food table with a complicated smile, "Eating before a duel? Won't it affect your performance?"
Guan Yu snickered, "To be honest, it probably will. Well, I just treat them as my last meal before an important fight. Do you mind if I finish my plates first and allow me to meditate and digest the food?"
"Take your time. Well, your old friends are already here, so you should talk to them," Tong glanced at Zhao Yun and Wei Yan behind his back.
Guan Yu smiled and greeted the two.
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It was like a reunion between graduated students who had not met each other for years. Everyone formed a click and reminisced of their past life.
Even Lu Bu had fun picking a fight with Xiahou Dun, and they ended up taking their weapons outside of the banquet hall for a quick spar. The result was obvious, but they enjoyed themselves.
Cao Cao kept teasing the three great generals, Xu Huang, Zhang He, and Zhang Liao. Still, they chatted about how they became Tong's subordinates in this life and recalled their funny events, including Tong's cliché lines that he wanted to be an immortal king.
Surprisingly, Taishi Ci got along with Xiahou Yuan well since both were master archers. They talked about how they should hold an archery competition sometimes in the future.
As for Zhao Yun and Wei Yan, they did their best, attempting to persuade Guan Yu to Tong's side.
As prideful and loyal as ever, Guan Yu refused.
"I'm a man of duty, Zilong, Wenchang. I swore that I'll bring peace to the people with my brothers. I will see it through to the very end."
Zhao Yun retorted that peace had returned. They could just stop all the hostility between Liu Bei and their forces, and everyone would be happy. They also accidentally blurted out that Cao Cao and Sun Clan were also on their side.
Tong did not mind the two motormouths. Since Cao Cao showed up here, Guan Yu already guessed that they had formed an alliance in secret, just like how Wu and Wei came to an agreement to hunt him down in Jing Province.
Ironically, in Guan Yu's last life, he died because of Wei-Wu coordination. Now, it became the Han-Wei alliance against Liu Bei's forces.
The red-face god-of-war felt the bitterness of his fate. No matter how he and Liu Bei struggled, they could not seem to get an advantage in this civil war.
'Fate, huh?'
Guan Yu placed his chopsticks down and turned to Tong, who was eating his food quietly despite being pampered by Dong Bai and Diaochan.
"Your majesty, we haven't talked about our bet yet."
Tong raised his eyebrows and nodded, "What do you want, then?"
"I will be direct, your majesty," Guan Yu paused to muster his courage as what he was about to say would ruin the party.
"I want both of your arms as compensation for killing my younger brother. You will also have to give the throne to Liu Bei."
As Guan Yu had predicted, the music ceased, and everyone stopped drinking and eating their food.
The hall fell to silence. All banquet participants looked at Guan Yu and Tong, listening to the development.
Strangely, nobody reprimanded or yelled at Guan Yu for being audacious like usual. After all, officers, minor officials, and others already left them alone. Only maids, performers, and miscellaneous servants remained in the hall.
Everything was fair-game this time. Only strength talked!
"And what if I win?" Tong asked back, "What can you give me in return?"
Guan Yu gritted his teeth and fell into deep thought. It did not take long for him to come up with a solution.
"I will commit suicide. After my death, my brother won't stand a chance against your forces."
Tong nodded. The bet was fair since they would lose everything they had.
For Tong, losing the throne would hurt him since it was something that he earned it through his hard work and effort. He had raked his brain and trained hard before he got to this point, so losing it was like losing his only child. Moreover, giving Liu Bei the throne would ensure chaos and infighting among Tong's subordinates, which was not a good idea.
As for Guan Yu, he placed his life on the line for his brother. Even if he were to defeat Tong, there was no guarantee that Lu Bu and the two demonesses would spare his life.
As long as he could kill Tong in the duel, his sacrifice was worth it since the Court would collapse to pieces because of the infighting for the successor position. Even if Liu Bei failed to inherit the throne, Tong's forces would be weakened.
Cao Cao's eyes gleamed as he was aware of the aftermath. Deep down inside, he prayed for Guan Yu's victory. But if Tong won, it was fine either way.
'Go on. Kill that otherworlder and make this world fun!'
Xiahou Dun, who had been beaten black and blue, smacked the back of Cao Cao's head, warning him.
"Don't ever wish for more chaos. We fought enough. I want to retire one day as well. I want to live with my both eyes intact this time, mind you."
The back-head slap was so hard that Cao Cao's face slammed onto the food on his plate. Pizza's ketchup sauce and cheese got stuck on his face.
"I know, goddammit!"
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An hour later, both Tong and Guan Yu rested enough. They walked toward the entrance of the assembly hall, leaving the building.
Sima Lang had already been waiting for them, "I shall lead you to our prepared stage."
Tong and Guan Yu shook their head, "We're fine. We'll be fighting here."
Both sides took their weapon from the nearby guards. Afterward, they stood still, watching their opponent in solemn.
In front of the assembly halls in every city, the locals always left the area open, which had the same structure as the Forbidden City Royal Palace.
The large open area was there for the local garrison forces to form ranks and train. This time, it was used for a duel stage between the god of war, Guan Yu, and the self-proclaimed immortal king, Zhang Tong.
There was no referee. Only participants could start the match.
All spectators gathered on top of the stairs in front of the building, watching them with interest.
Diaochan and Lu Bu paid attention to their wings and their distribution of aura in detail as they could use it as a reference in the future.
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Tong took a deep breath as he held his halberd as it were a spear, pointing its tip forward while holding its shaft with two hands.
Guan Yu also took the same stance even though his weapon was a glaive.
Both duelists stopped moving, staring into the eyes of their opponent.
As if the time had stopped, their motion paused. However, all angels and demonesses could see the fluctuation of their aura and their inner forces.
Guan Yu and Tong were testing each other by moving their inner force toward different parts of their body, probing their reaction speed and their foundation, feinting future movements, and baiting the opponent to take actions first.
Tong's ability to distribute his forces into all parts of his body was not surprising as Medusa was his private coach. However, Guan Yu managed to allocate his power like fluid, which astonished everybody, including Lu Bu.
Because of the talent of Guan Yu, Tong's concentration slipped for a split second.
A fracture of a second gave an opening for Guan Yu to strike. Before anyone could realize Tong's mistake, Guan Yu already appeared before Tong with a thrusting strike.
*WHOOSH*
The thrust missed.
Guan Yu frowned as he could see that his glaive went through Tong's flesh, but he did not get the feedback that his weapon cut through anything.
Tong's afterimage faded as his real body had already side-stepped and left enough distance for him to thrust his halberd.
*WHOOSH*
The halberd went through Guan Yu's body, but it missed.
Like how Tong dodged the previous attack, Guan Yu's speed left an afterimage as he took a few steps backward, resetting their distance.
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Lu Bu touched his chin as he analyzed their movements just now.
'Tong hasn't used his cheat skill nor the [Square Accel] yet, but he already possesses this kind of speed without them.'
He glanced at Diaochan, his former concubine in the other life.
'This demoness should have imparted a footwork skill to Tong. Without that kind of foundation, he shouldn't be able to move this fast. Still, that how did that Guan Yu manage to keep up with Tong's footwork and speed?'
Medusa and Friday also had the same thoughts. Since Guan Yu never had a proper trainer or an instructor, they were confused about why this historical figure could utilize a footwork technique.
'As expected of a god-of-war. Guan Yu's martial art talent is peerless,' Diaochan clenched her fist in nervousness. Even though she was a demon, she prayed for Tong's safety.
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Meanwhile, Tong did not care how Guan Yu managed to keep up or able to use a footwork technique. Since Guan Yu proved to be a dangerous opponent, Tong discarded his honor and decided to fight for his life.
Everything is fair in war!
"Don't blame me, Guan Yuncheng. Time Stop!"
The entire world lost its color as the flow of time paused. However, all angels and demons here could still see the movements and were aware of the frozen time flow. Their eyes could follow Tong even though they could not move.
By the time that the spectators regained their senses and awareness, Tong already rushed before Guan Yu and concentrated his aura into his halberd.
Moreover, he did not allow Guan Yu to react as he boosted his speed by another notch.
Square Accel!
Tong's halberd slashed down while Guan Yu had yet to react.
Tong's steel halberd hit Guan Yu's neck. Yet, no sound came out from the clash between the steel and human flesh.
Although Tong injected his aura into his halberd, the halberd blade could not cut through Guan Yu's skin.
Something was wrong!
Guan Yu was unharmed. Fortunately, he managed to move his inner aura to protect his neck on time.
His eyes glared at Tong with resentment, believing that Tong had cursed him or had done something unfair to soil this sacred duel.
