Chapter 288: Second

The Great King said to first bring a hundred people, ten per group to fight.

Those two performed much more low-key than when they were in the Southwest Army; showing off easily invites hatred, we let strength speak.

The Great King didn't pick his nearby guards; he directly, following the proximity principle, had a hundred men step out from the Owl Cavalry without any selection.

Aside from a few exceptionally talented members, the Owl Cavalry's levels are roughly equal, with no weaker ones; the too weak have already been eliminated.

Tang Qian was still arranging for people to move stools over and set them up; Wei Shen stroked his chin and said, '…Then, no need, right?'

Tang Qian directed the soldiers to set things up, then had the Great King take his seat. He thought they still needed to fight a while; making guests stand that long isn't proper hospitality.

As a result, the Great King casually shouted 'start,' and the Owl Cavalry casually KO'd his men; Tang Qian hadn't even reacted before it was over… over.

What's going on?

A martial bout decided in three moves—how many years has it been since I've seen something like that?

Or a hundred all at once!

The Owl Cavalry knew the Great King was trying to pick up someone from Jade Gate Pass, so they polished their armor especially for this; they didn't dare slip up in this match, leaving the opposition no time to react—zero experience.

You say losing would be shameful? No, not even that.

Because there wasn't time.

Tang Qian was stunned, then he had someone fetch his weapon.

That was a spear; he took a few steps forward, indicating he also wanted to learn.

The Owl Cavalry facing him quickly looked to the Great King; the Great King nodded, and the one who had swiftly swept aside the Jade Gate Pass border troops and firmly stepped on that Owl Cavalry also drew his weapon—he hadn't used a weapon in the earlier bout, but this time General Tang's face must be given.

Spear against spear.

Tang Qian brandished his spear, aura overpowering; at a glance it was the skill and ruthlessness of years of polishing, yet each Owl Cavalry member was an elite from the Great King's personal unit.

They fought for about ten rounds; when Tang Qian swept his spear sideways again, the Owl Cavalry seized an instant opening, flipped his wrist, lifted the spear with his lance, and thrust straight at Tang Qian's face without losing momentum!

It stopped dead an inch from his face, astonishing control.

Tang Qian stood there stunned, digesting for a moment, then suddenly turned to the Great King and asked, 'Is it just him like this, or all of them?'

The Great King smiled, 'Only the level of those I brought today is like this. The battalion captains would be better—there are rarely even a few thousand eight hundred like them.'

Tang Qian: ……

Tang Qian's teeth ached.

It seems I understand how the Great King managed to flee all the way from You Province to Han Yang intact—with this kind of killer weapon plus a good horse, it's no surprise he could withdraw unscathed from any battlefield.

Looking at the Owl Cavalry just made him crave them more—a great killer weapon!

Jade Gate Pass has this kind of cavalry, and what about the Western Regions people? As for numbers, even a thousand elite troops is not few. Moreover, if we can train a thousand like this now, we could later train five thousand, ten thousand!

The Great King bounced over, shouting warmly, 'Tang Uncle, want to join me in fighting the Xiongnu?'

Tang Qian stared into the Great King's eyes and asked seriously, 'May I ask Your Highness, if you truly drive the Xiongnu from Liang Province someday, could we continue guarding Jade Gate Pass?'

The Great King gave it serious thought: 'I'm afraid not.'

Tang Qian's eyes widened: 'No, you weren't saying that just now? You're going back on your word?!'

All I heard was the Great King panting again as he added, 'I'm afraid we can't just guard Jade Gate Pass.'

The Great King scratched his head in distress: 'No one guards the Northern Region either. Shanggu Pass had fifty thousand, now it's split into three places.'

Tang Qian: ……

Seeing Tang Qian's strange expression, the Great King explained, 'I did think about immediately conscripting troops, but aside from You Province, the able-bodied men have mostly fled or died; conscripting now would be difficult. And we in You Province have only over ten thousand households, already scraped clean several times over.'

Originally I planned to trick my maternal grandfather into sending people to guard Jade Gate Pass, haha… Anyway, have you seen my maternal uncle here, Tang Uncle?

Wei Shen: ……

You finally remembered!

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Folks, grab a spot first—I'll rest tomorrow and make up the update.