Chapter 780
Chen Xiaohu captures Fu Youde alive!
At this moment, Lan Yu was organizing people to repair the damage on the Broken Wave.
The sails of the "Breaking Waves" had three large holes, and the river wind made a wailing sound as it passed through.
This two-story ship was once the pride of Zhu Yuanzhang's navy. Now, its deck is charred black, and a three-foot-long crack has appeared on its port side, with river water constantly pouring in. It is only by having twelve sailors take turns bailing the water out that it is barely able to stay afloat.
Fu Youde leaned against the mainmast, his face as pale as paper.
The arrow wound on his left shoulder was hastily bandaged; Zhang Dingbian had stabbed him there, the spear piercing through, and now every breath brought excruciating pain.
What's even more painful is the loss of heart—of the 100,000-strong army and 1,000 warships, only 37 wrecked ships and fewer than 8,000 soldiers remain following the "Breaking Waves".
A crushing defeat, an unprecedented defeat. This crushing defeat even drove Fu Youde to the brink of suicide. Although Lan Yu stopped him, the pain in his heart was too great to bear. He felt that death would be better!
"Commander Fu, come into the cabin and rest." Lan Yu handed over a water bag, her voice hoarse.
He had been stabbed in the right arm, the wound so deep that the bone was visible. He had wrapped it haphazardly with a torn flag, the blood of which had soaked through three layers of cloth.
Fu Youde shook his head, his gaze fixed on the river.
As the sun sets, it dyes the river water a dark red, as if it were a continuation of the bloodshed that occurred at Wulongkou today.
In the distance, Chen Jun's pursuers could be vaguely seen, but they always kept a distance of five or six miles, following at a leisurely pace.
"What are they waiting for?" Lan Yu also looked behind her.
“Wait until we are exhausted, until the ships sink, until we collapse on our own.” Fu Youde coughed twice, coughing up blood. “Zhang Dingbian has always used troops in this way. He doesn’t pursue too closely, he doesn’t push too hard, he’s like a wolf chasing sheep, chasing them to a dead end before attacking.”
Lan Yu gritted her teeth: "Then we'll just keep going! Once we get past Eagle's Beak Bay, the waterway will widen, and then..."
Before the words were finished, the lookout suddenly shouted:
"General! A small boat is chasing us from behind! It's a lone boat with only one person!"
"what!"
Upon hearing this, Lan Yu suddenly stood up and followed to the stern of the boat. There, on the twilight-shrouded river, a small boat was indeed seen sailing upstream.
The boat was very small, holding at most three to five people, with no sails or canopies, and was propelled entirely by human oars.
But its speed was bizarre; it was breaking through the current and speeding against it, leaving Chen Jun's main force far behind.
The oarsman was a shirtless man, not particularly burly, but with each stroke of the oar, the small boat would leap forward several feet, like an arrow released from a bow.
"Is he Chen Jun's spy?" Lan Yu squinted.
Fu Youde slowly stood up, his hand on the hilt of his sword: "No, it's Chen Jiu Si's cousin, the deputy commander of the Han army, Chen Xiao Hu, who is at the Fusion God Realm!"
Lan Yu's expression changed drastically upon hearing this.
Chen Xiaohu, Chen Jiu's cousin, deputy commander of the Han army, a powerful expert in the Fusion God Realm, and the fierce man who fought a great battle with Commander Tang in Luoyang not long ago, is actually him!
"I never expected it to be him! He actually dared to chase after our nearly 10,000 troops all by himself!" Lan Yu exclaimed in disbelief. He was still young and didn't have a strong concept of a Molten God Realm expert!
Fu Youde smiled bitterly: "Why wouldn't we dare? He's at the second level of the Fusion God Realm, able to move freely among thousands of troops. He alone is worth tens of thousands of elite soldiers. It seems we're doomed this time!"
Upon hearing this, Lan Yu's gaze sharpened, and he said, "We haven't reached the point of certain death yet, so why does Commander Fu utter such discouraging words?"
Fu Youde shook his head and smiled wryly, looking at Lan Yu, who had a naive face and was as fearless as a newborn calf, and just sighed.
Meanwhile, Chen Xiaohu had already chased after them to within a mile in his small boat.
At this moment, Chen Xiaohu raised his head, revealing a rugged face with thick eyebrows, round eyes, and a short beard like a halberd. Since taking charge of the army, Chen Xiaohu had grown a beard. As the saying goes, "A man without a beard is unreliable." Chen Xiaohu was still young, becoming the deputy commander of the army in his twenties. Therefore, he deliberately dressed himself up to be more rugged in order to win over the troops.
"Haha, Fu Youde, it's been a long time! Now that we've met an old friend, why are you running away? Stay here and let's catch up!"
Chen Xiaohu glanced at the Broken Waves not far away, then abandoned the oars, stomped his foot, and unleashed his inner energy. The small boat was propelled by a tremendous force, increasing its speed by another three points!
Seeing the small boat about to rush towards them, Lan Yu was terrified and cried out.
"Fire arrows!"
The surviving archers drew their bows and fired in rapid succession, arrows raining down like rain.
Seeing this, Chen Xiaohu neither dodged nor avoided, but grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth as if mocking, while a faint golden light emanated from his body.
The arrows, when they reached within three feet of him, struck an iron wall and broke off, falling into the river.
“A protective aura; ordinary bows and arrows are useless against it,” Fu Youde said to Lan Yu.
Lan Yu said, "Even if it's useless, we should still deplete his internal energy. We can't just sit here and wait to die! Don't stop, keep shooting!"
Lan Yu shouted, and the arrows continued to rain down like a raging storm.
Chen Xiaohu stood with his hands behind his back, letting the arrows fly at him. He channeled his inner energy into his feet, and the small boat went upstream, reaching a hundred feet in the blink of an eye.
Seeing this, Lan Yu shouted:
"I'll hold him off, Commander Fu, get out of here!"
Having said that, he had already drawn his sword, ready to charge at any moment.
"Don't go, you're no match for him," Fu Youde said, pressing him down.
Lan Yu laughed, a bitter laugh: "Commander Fu, with 100,000 troops gone, how can I face the King of Wu if I don't atone for my sins? He's just Chen Xiaohu, isn't he? Today I will kill him!"
Before Fu Youde could persuade him further, Lan Yu had already leaped onto the stern tower of the ship.
He tore off the blood-soaked strip of cloth from his right arm, revealing a deep wound that exposed bone, then ripped off his battle robe and tightly bound the hilt of his sword to his hand.
"Chen Xiaohu! Do you dare to fight me!"
The sound shook the great river.
On the small boat, Chen Xiaohu looked up at the young general who had jumped onto the stern. He was brave and skilled, but while he was brave, he wasn't quite smart enough. Didn't he know who he was facing?
Can courage erase the second transformation of the Molten God?
Chen Xiaohu looked at the young officer and said, "Young officer, state your name!"
"Left Deputy General Lan Yu!"
"Lan Yu, not bad young general. Now that the traitor Zhu is showing weakness, why doesn't a wise bird choose a better tree to perch on!"
Chen Xiaohu developed a fondness for talent.
"Hmph, a true man doesn't serve two masters, so don't waste your breath!"
Seeing this, Chen Xiaohu said, "Fine, since you are unwilling to submit, then leave quickly. My target is Fu Youde, not you. You are no match for me."
Lan Yu was furious upon hearing this and said, "Don't look down on me. You only got to where you are today because you're Chen Jiu Si's cousin. If you really fight me, you might not be my match."
Upon hearing Lan Yu's words, Chen Xiaohu was taken aback for a moment, then chuckled and said, "That's interesting."
His expression immediately turned cold: "He really is a newborn calf that is not afraid of tigers!"
"In that case, let me test your skills!"
Before he finished speaking, Chen Xiaohu stomped his foot again, and the small boat sprang up from the river surface, shooting towards the stern of the "Breaking Waves" like an arrow.
While in mid-air, he pulled something out from behind his back—a blood-red broadsword that was entirely crimson and gleamed with golden light.
"Red Tiger Blade!" an old soldier exclaimed. Chen Xiaohu, once an insignificant basket weaver from Mianshui County, had unknowingly become a true hero who had captured the attention of the world.
Even his sword has been celebrated by many, just like the weapons of famous generals during the Three Kingdoms period. The Crimson Tiger Sword is also associated with Chen Xiaohu.
This is Chen Xiaohu's signature weapon, forged from overseas cold iron mixed with black gold, weighing forty-two catties. It was commissioned by Chen Jiu Si to be made by a famous craftsman. He used it for many years and went through many life-and-death crises with it, including the two battles to defend Huangzhou Prefecture!
In the Battle of Luoyang, he used this sword to fight a fierce battle with Tang He, a general under Zhu Chongba, resulting in both of them suffering heavy losses.
Entirely crimson, with a blade gleaming with golden light, the Crimson Tiger Blade, Chen Xiaohu!
when!
Chen Xiaohu swung his knife down with a single blow, using only a fraction of his strength. He still admired Lan Yu and didn't want to actually kill him with a single strike.
Seeing the sword coming, Lan Yu did not retreat but advanced, raising his sword to parry.
clang!
The two swords clashed, producing a piercing, sharp sound.
Lan Yu felt an overwhelming force surge towards him, the long sword flew out of his hand, and his tiger's mouth split open, blood gushing out.
He was thrown back several meters by the shock, crashing through the stern railing and nearly falling into the river. "General!" His personal guards rushed to his rescue.
"Get out of here!" Lan Yu spat out a mouthful of blood and struggled to stand up.
The wound on his right arm had completely reopened, exposing the bone fragments, but he was completely oblivious, staring intently at Chen Xiaohu.
Chen Xiaohu had already landed on the deck, holding a knife in one hand, as still and imposing as a mountain.
The surrounding soldiers thrust their spears at him, but he didn't even look. He swung his long sword, the wind from which swept away more than ten men at the same time, sending them flying into the river.
"Fu Youde, how long are you going to hide? Do you really want me to kill you all one by one?" His voice wasn't loud, but it overpowered the wind and waves of the river and clearly reached everyone's ears.
Fu Youde pushed aside the soldiers who were helping him and walked step by step to the stern of the boat.
He walked very slowly, each step heavy.
The gunshot wound on his left shoulder ruptured, and blood flowed down the gaps in his armor, leaving a trail of bloody footprints on the deck.
But he stood ramrod straight, his phoenix-beak knife pointing diagonally at the river, the blade reflecting the setting sun, gleaming with a blood-red, cold light.
"Tiger Commander, how have you been?"
Chen Xiaohu squinted and carefully examined this famous general who was renowned throughout the Jianghuai region.
Fu Youde was over forty years old, his temples were slightly gray, his armor was tattered, and he was covered in blood, but his eyes were still as sharp as knives.
"Commander Fu looks quite haggard." Chen Xiaohu twirled his spear. "Surrender. We're old acquaintances. You know my lord values talent. If you surrender, you'll be given a great position."
Fu Youde smiled, a very soft laugh: "In my twenty years of military service, I have only learned to advance, not to surrender."
"Are you forcing someone to take action?"
"Tiger General, you don't need to be so polite."
Fu Youde held the phoenix-beak knife horizontally in front of his chest.
Chen Xiaohu looked at Fu Youde. They had known each other for a long time, but back then he was following Chen Jie, while Fu Youde was already a general under Xu Shouhui. In just a few years, everything had changed.
"Then I'll have to offend you."
Chen Xiaohu sighed, and then his hand moved!
The moment he moved, everyone felt a blur before their eyes. It wasn't fast, it was "heavy"—with each step he took, the entire "Breaking Waves" trembled, and the deck planks cracked inch by inch.
When the long sword was swung out, there was no sound of wind, no afterimage, only a red light, like a tiger descending the mountain, aimed straight for Fu Youde's throat.
Fu Youde raised his knife to parry.
clang!
The deafening roar was like that of a great bell. Fu Youde staggered back seven steps, each step leaving a deep footprint on the deck. With the last step, half of his foot was dangling over the edge of the ship. His hand was completely split open, and blood flowed down the hilt of his knife, dripping onto the deck and forming a puddle.
"Good knife." Fu Youde spat out a mouthful of blood, mixed with half a broken tooth.
"Commander Fu's blade is not bad either," Chen Xiaohu said, pointing the tip of his blade diagonally, "but you're only at the Furnace Realm, the difference is so obvious, why are you still struggling?"
Fu Youde did not answer, but took a deep breath, and his aura suddenly changed.
A martial artist in the Furnace Realm uses their body as a furnace to refine essence into qi. At this moment, Fu Youde burned his essence and blood, forcibly stimulating the flow of qi. His dantian was boiling like a furnace, and his qi flowed into his limbs and bones.
His skin turned crimson, and steam rose from his pores, forming a faint blood mist around him.
"Risking your life for something?" Chen Xiaohu frowned. "Is it worth it?"
"For a general, to die on the battlefield is a blessing."
Fu Youde let out a long roar and charged forward again, brandishing his sword.
This time, he stopped defending and only attacked.
The phoenix-beak blade transformed into a blood-red whirlwind, each strike delivered with all its might, each strike carrying the momentum of mutual destruction.
The wind ripped deep furrows into the deck, and the mast was swept by the aftershocks, sending wood chips flying everywhere.
Chen Xiaohu's expression turned solemn, and his spear technique changed from fierce to meticulous.
The black spearhead wove a large net in front of him, making it impossible for Fu Youde to cross the line, no matter how fierce his sword strikes were.
Three moves, five moves, ten moves...
Fu Youde grew increasingly frenzied as he fought, his blade surging like the Yangtze River.
But Chen Xiaohu remained as steady as a rock, his sword shadows shrinking smaller and smaller until he finally guarded only a small area, which was as solid as an impregnable fortress.
"The thirteenth move," Chen Xiaohu suddenly said.
"almost."
That's all the face I can give you!
After thinking it over, Chen Xiaohu slowly drew his knife, the tip of which touched the guard of the Phoenix Beak Knife.
This seemingly simple point actually contains immense power.
Fu Youde felt an overwhelming force coming from the blade, and he could no longer hold on to it. The phoenix-beak knife flew out of his hand, drew an arc in the air, and fell into the river.
The moment the knife fell, Chen Xiaohu reversed his hand and struck Fu Youde in the back of the knee with the back of the blade.
Click.
The sound of bone cracking was clearly audible.
Fu Youde groaned, knelt on one knee, and could no longer stand up.
"Commander Fu!" Lan Yu's eyes were bloodshot as she struggled to get up, but Chen Xiaohu stepped on her chest, rendering her unable to move.
Chen Xiaohu pressed the blade against Fu Youde's throat, staring at this defeated general.
Fu Youde was disheveled, his armor was shattered, and he was covered in blood, but he still held his head high, his eyes showing no fear, only calm.
"I respect you as a man and will not humiliate you." Chen Xiaohu sheathed his knife, casually pressed Fu Youde's acupoints to seal his martial arts, and then took out a roll of ox tendon rope from his pocket. "But I have military orders to follow, so please forgive me."
He moved with lightning speed, and in the blink of an eye, he had Fu Youde tied up securely.
"Chen Xiaohu!" Lan Yu roared angrily when he saw his commander being captured: "If you want to kill or torture someone, come at me! Release Commander Fu!"
Chen Xiaohu didn't even look at him, but picked up Fu Youde and leaped back into the small boat.
The small boat rocked on the river but didn't sink.
“Go back and tell Zhu Chongba.” Chen Xiaohu stood at the bow of the boat, his voice echoing in the twilight, “I’ve taken Fu Youde with me. If you want him, bring Hongdu in exchange.”
After saying this, he stomped his foot, and the small boat shot off like an arrow, heading upstream and disappearing into the vast twilight in the blink of an eye.
There was a deathly silence on the "Breaking Waves" ship.
Lan Yu collapsed on the deck, staring in the direction where Fu Youde had disappeared. Suddenly, he looked up and howled, his voice like a wolf's howl, mournful and desolate. With that howl, he spat out a mouthful of blood and fainted.
He was angry, furious, and even a little disappointed. Did he not even have the value of being captured in the eyes of the other party?
This battle dealt an unprecedented blow to Lan Yu.
The setting sun sank completely into the river, and night fell.
The river wind howled, carrying with it the smoke of gunpowder, the stench of blood, and the phoenix-beaked knife that had sunk to the bottom of the river, all flowing towards an unknown distance.
Meanwhile, the "Breaking Waves" continued to drift, carrying a ship full of defeated soldiers and eight thousand remaining troops, heading deeper into the night.
News of Fu Youde's defeat spread quickly. At the same time, there was another piece of news: of Fu Youde's 100,000-strong navy, almost the entire army was wiped out. The last 8,000 men who followed Fu Youde also lost morale after Chen Xiaohu captured their commander Fu Youde. Most of them deserted that night and eventually returned to Hukou. When the number of men was counted, only 1,200 had escaped with Lan Yu.
Of the 100,000 troops, only 1,200 remained; it can be said that the entire army was almost wiped out.
The news quickly reached Jinling and then Xu Da's army, who was on their way to Hongdu! (End of Chapter)