Chapter 1229: Tyrant General

“That may be too hasty a judgment. Past the Cloud Hue Old Road is the Cloud Hue Pass, and Cloud Hue Pass is guarded by Taba Xuanwu, the one they call the Tyrant General. He is the thirty-first warrior on the Earth Champions Ranking and the true number one warrior below the Half-Sage stage. We can call the Mad Lord invincible under the Half-Sage stage after he defeats the Tyrant General.”

Suddenly, a rough, boorish voice interrupted the echoes of agreement and praise taking over the Jade Capital Teahouse. To say it was incongruous would be understatement.

And yet, no one argued against the dissenter. After all, he was right.

The Earth Champions Ranking was ranked based on one’s overall strength, not their cultivation level. The ranking could roughly be split into three categories: top, middle, and bottom.

The top category referred to the top thirty warriors. They were all Half-Sages, and they were all famous

jianghu

warriors. No one could best them save for a Sage.

The middle category referred to the thirty-first to the sixtieth warriors. They were all Great Truemen and Great Grandmasters. While they could not compare to the monsters on the top category, there was no denying their titanic strength and fame.

Finally, the bottom category referred to the last forty warriors. The large majority of them were Truemen and Grandmasters, though there were Great Truemen and Great Grandmasters as well. They were all famous geniuses or elites of the

jianghu

.

The thirty-first warrior of the Earth Champions Ranking, Taba Xuanwu, was just a Great Grandmaster. However, his cultivation level was infinitely close to the Half-Sage stage, and his strength was definitely above that of a Half-Sage. That was why he was praised as the number one warrior below the Half-Sage stage.

Of course, the world was big, the

jianghu

was deep, and the elites were as innumerable as fishes in a river, the three rankings could not possibly encompass all under the heavens. Therefore, the claim was, frankly, a little exaggerated. Even so, looking at the rankings alone, it was an indisputable fact that Taba Xuanwu was the number one warrior below the Half-Sage stage.

After all, Taba Xuanwu had earned his place by rite of combat. He once fought five Half-Sages alone and escaped intact with an amazing score of two kills and three injured. It was a feat that stunned the world at the time.

If Ye Qing truly wished to become invincible under the Half-Sage stage, then Taba Xuanwu was an obstacle he must overcome no matter what.

“Do you think that the Tyrant General would fight against the Mad Lord?” One man looked at the rugged-looking man who had made the incongruous but accurate remark earlier.

The rugged-looking man picked up his cup and took a small sip. He then said, “A king does not meet another king unless in combat. Of course they will.”

His movement was unusually graceful for someone his appearance.

“Indeed. The Tyrant General is also known for his love for combat. It is very possible that he will fight against the Mad Lord,” someone echoed in agreement.

“It’s not ‘very possible’, it’s absolutely going to happen.”

However, the rugged-looking man corrected the other person’s statement. “You probably don’t know this, but the Brocade Shirt Marquis was a good friend of the Tyrant General. They once fought side-by-side and pacified the rebellion of Marquis Huan before.”

“Now, his friend and comrade is killed. Do you really think he would stay on the sidelines and do nothing?”

No one said a word against that. The Tyrant General was vengeful, protective of his own, and tyrannical. Once, a disciple of Sword Holding Mountain made a mistake and killed one of his bodyguards. Enraged, Taba Xuanwu mustered thirty thousand Tyrant Might Army and annihilated all one thousand and three hundred members of the sect.

Therefore, assuming that what the rugged-looking man said was true, the Tyrant General wasn’t just going to duel the Mad Lord. He was going to fight the man to the death.

“A battle will happen between the Tyrant General and the Mad Lord. The victor will live, and the loser will perish.”

The rugged-looking man looked outside the window and into the skies beyond, his eyes distant as if his gaze had crossed untold distance and landed squarely on the mighty pass. “Who knows, the battle may have begun already.”

......

Cloud Hue Pass was one of the main passes northwest of Wei. It got its name because of its proximity to Cloud Hue Old Road, and it became famous because of the Tyrant General, Taba Xuanwu.

Before Taba Xuanwu came, Cloud Hue Pass was just a normal pass. In fact, it was one of the most chaotic passes in Wei. The power structures were complex, the gangs and sects were innumerable, and the conflicts were endless. The pass was an absolute shit show at the beginning.

Then, Taba Xuanwu came. Without hesitation, he led his army to root out every gang and sect inside and outside the Cloud Hue Pass.

It was said that Taba Xuanwu had led the charge that day, personally ensuring that the heads of the rebels rolled like tumbleweeds, and the blood ran like the river. When the sun set, it looked like half the sky was red because of all the blood he had spilled.

Since then, no gang or sect existed in Cloud Hue Pass anymore. The conflicts and killings had also come to a complete stop. In just the span of a few months, Taba Xuanhu had transformed Cloud Hue Pass into a military town of perfect order via brute force and sheer tyranny. Just a few years later, he had raised a competent and powerful army called the Tyrant Might Army and used it to quell rebellions, eliminate the monsters, and suppress the Strangers. There was nowhere they couldn’t go; no one they couldn’t destroy.

To reward him for his meritorious achievements, the Emperor of Wei conferred him to be General Xuanwu, a third rank official, and increased the size of his Tyrant Might Army to fifty thousand. He became one of the youngest and most influential figures in Wei.

Tyrant General was the

jianghu’s

moniker for Taba Xuanwu. Tyrant came from his tyrannical and ruthless modus operandi, and general from his rank.

Here in Cloud Hue Pass, Taba Xuanwu was the heaven and the king. No one was taller than him in this place.

Right now, the heaven and king of Cloud Hue Pass was seated on the tallest fire beacon tower of Cloud Hue Pass. In front of him was a pot of liquor and a bull.

The liquor was the most intoxicating liquor in Wei, the Nine Suns Brew. A single drop could intoxicate a normal person for three days and nights[1]. However, there was an entire pot in front of Taba Xuanwu.

The bull was the largest bull in Wei, the Dragon Mountain Bull. The bull was as big as a mountain, and a single leg was enough to feed twenty to thirty people for several days straight. However, there was an entire Dragon Mountain Bull in front of Taba Xuanwu.

Taba Xuanwu alternated between bites of the bull and deep gulps of the liquor. Just half a teatime later, the pot of Nine Suns Brew had hit rock bottom, and all that was left of the mountain-sized Dragon Mountain Bull was bones.

Having eaten and drunk to his heart’s content, Taba Xuanwu got up to his feet and let out a thunderous burp. Seriously, the rumbling did not end until a long time later like a thunderstorm.

Taba Xuanwu wasn’t particularly tall or muscular. Despite this, he felt as steady as a boulder when he sat, and as tall and insurmountable as a pass when he stood. He felt just like the pass he was guarding, the Cloud Hue Pass.

Right now, Cloud Hue Pass was Taba Xuanwu, and Taba Xuanwu was the Cloud Hue Pass.

“Bring me my bow!”

Taba Xuanwu waved his hand and declared in a loud, rough voice.

A moment later, a series of heavy footsteps thudded from the distance. It belonged to nine tall and brawny men.

The nine men were a little over three meters tall and baring their upper bodies. The Sun Devouring Divine Beast was tattooed to their chest, and their vigor was ferocious like a furnace.

These nine men were Taba Xuanwu’s bodyguards. They were all Strangerkin, and they were all extraordinarily strong. Hundreds and hundreds of kilograms were like a feather to them.

Right now though, they were shambling and sweating like crazy. It looked like they were carrying a mountain.

They weren’t carrying a mountain though. They were carrying a bow stand with a large golden bow sitting on it.

The large bow was gold in color and about two meters long. The bow string was colorful like a rainbow. It was simple but noble, mysterious but dignified.

Nestled next to the golden bow were ten arrows. Each arrow was crimson red like it was forged from fire and giving off a fiery heat.

It was clear at first glance both the bow and the arrows were extraordinary. It would explain why it took the nine men a quarter of a teatime to cross just thirty meters of distance.

𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

By the time the nine bodyguards carried the bow and the arrows to Taba Xuanwu, they were white as a sheet and panting heavily. They looked like they were scraping the bottom of their stamina.

1. ... I’m pretty sure it just kills them if the alcohol level is that high. ☜