Chapter 8, City Battle

rumbling

A section of the city wall collapsed under the bombardment of the Cao army's catapults. A Cao army general rushed forward, cleaving two soldiers with his blades, and secured his footing on the wall. Behind him, waves of Cao soldiers surged forward, quickly occupying a segment of the wall.

Returning to the lord, if it were changed to twenty catties, it could approximately be thrown a distance of five hundred paces, but it would be very difficult to control the direction. The stone thrower shook his head; although the range of five hundred paces greatly increased the distance, it reduced the accuracy.

Do not panic, archers advance fifty paces and suppress the enemy's archers! In the rear of the Cao army, the commanding officers Li Dian and Cao Ren roared as they rode their horses behind the formation, continuously waving their weapons, slaying those in the Cao army who were fearful and hesitant or even fleeing, while simultaneously urging the archers to close in.

Boom boom boom

General! A group of loyal soldiers hurriedly stepped forward, protecting Cao Ren with utmost care. They helped Cao Ren to his feet and swiftly made their way towards the Cao camp.

"My lord, there are still thirty-six barrels left!" an excited deputy general shouted. In this brief moment, the impact on Cao's army was significant; casualties were secondary, but the most important factor was the blow to their morale. When the oil barrels fell, the scene was akin to hell, instilling fear in many of Cao's soldiers. Consequently, Cao Cao abandoned his strategy of continuing to suppress with momentum, while the morale of the defending soldiers was greatly boosted. This is the law of the battlefield: as one side diminishes, the other flourishes. The scene, reminiscent of hell, instilled fear in many of Cao's soldiers, leading Cao Cao to abandon his strategy of continued suppression, while simultaneously greatly uplifting the morale of the defending soldiers. This is the law of the battlefield: as one side diminishes, the other flourishes.

"How much oil do we have left?" Lu Bu waved his hand, signaling the stone throwers to cease their fire oil attacks. The Cao army had already approached the city wall, making it impossible for the catapults to launch. They could only continue to suppress the enemy's siege engines with stone projectiles.

In a fit of anger, Lü Bu was about to drag his Fangtianhua halberd to provide assistance, when he saw a frail figure flash through the crowd. A glimmer of silver light appeared, instantly killing a Cao general. Then, with a swift motion at his waist, a cold gleam emerged, slicing across the necks of two Cao soldiers. In an instant, it forced the Cao army, which had just stabilized its position, to retreat.

"Get lost!" Lü Bu snorted angrily, and with a swift motion, he struck the opponent's helmet with the iron bow in his hand. With a loud bang, the iron bow could not withstand the immense force and broke apart, sending the helmet along with the young general's head flying away.

At the moment the oil canister shattered, the splattered oil instantly ignited a large area within the formation, engulfing at least two hundred soldiers of the Cao army in flames, who rolled on the ground in agony. The originally disciplined formation experienced turmoil in that instant and quickly devolved into chaos

Continue, do not stop! A glimmer of excitement flashed in Lü Bu's eyes. The moment the twelve jars of oil exploded, he knew that the oppressive atmosphere created by Cao Cao had been completely shattered. Now, what he needed to do was to expand his achievements and further suppress the morale of Cao's army

Lü Bu wielded an iron bow, and arrows shot forth one after another, requiring no aim at all. With Lü Bu's strength combined with the range of the iron bow, as long as the arrows were released, they would surely hit their target. At times, the arrowheads could even pierce through the bodies of Cao's troops and embed themselves in the soldiers behind them.

Accompanied by a series of operations that are not complex yet extremely tedious, the stone was hurled by the catapult and struck forcefully at the center of the square formation

Cao Ren was urging the archers to advance when he suddenly felt a chill deep in his heart. A wave of icy killing intent enveloped him, making him feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave. Without time to think, he instinctively rolled over and fell off his horse. Almost simultaneously, he felt a sharp pain in his shoulder as a razor-sharp arrowhead pierced through his scapula. The terrifying force surged forth, nearly lifting his body off the ground.

"So few?" Lü Bu frowned slightly as he looked at the dense mass of Cao's army surging forward. He said in a deep voice, "When the Cao army presses up, where are the ladders? Just throw down a jar of incendiary when they come!"

The effective range of a typical catapult is between 120 to 150 paces, with a slight advantage when positioned at a height. However, it does not exceed 180 paces at most, and that is when the weight of the projectile reaches 50 pounds. This weight is not necessarily the best, but it is the most stable, and the trajectory of the projectile is also the easiest to control.

Continue shooting, do not stop!" Lü Bu took a deep breath. At this moment, the siege ladder was blocked by a sea of fire, and there was no need to worry about the enemy soldiers attacking for the time being. Before the sea of fire burned out, he would first take advantage of the height of the city wall to severely damage the enemy's archers. Moreover, Lü Bu was pleasantly surprised to discover something: there were no generals commanding the enemy forces at the front, which led to the chaos among the Cao army after suffering setbacks. This was a heaven-sent opportunity that could not be missed.

At present, Lü Bu has also joined the ranks of archers. With his astonishing strength, the iron bow continuously hums as arrows rain down upon the archers of Cao's army.

As the slinger said, there is no problem with just a square formation, but Lü Bu slightly frowned. The time consumed in this process was too long. At the current speed of Cao's army, they had already advanced nearly one hundred paces, and now they were less than four hundred paces from the city wall. At this distance, once they charged, with the firing rate of the catapult, there would likely be no opportunity for a second shot.

Lü Bu wielded his Fangtianhua halberd as he roamed the city walls. Whenever the troops of Cao Cao attempted to storm the walls, they would be met with Lü Bu's thunderous assault. His spear techniques and archery skills continuously improved as the war progressed

"Yes!" the deputy general shouted excitedly, rushing to prepare. Lü Bu then looked at the advancing Cao army, waved his hand, and said in a deep voice: "Archers, prepare to shoot upwards!"

Lu Bu swiftly grasped his Fangtianhua halberd, the blade glinting as another freshly severed head soared into the sky. The headless corpse fell helplessly, crushing the Cao army below.

With a creaking sound that is grating to the teeth, jars of fire oil were sealed with cloth as instructed by Lü Bu, ignited, and placed on the catapult

As for whether Cao Cao would learn this method and turn it against himself, it is certainly possible. After all, this approach lacks technical complexity. Although fire oil is considered a valuable strategic resource, Cao Cao's financial strength far surpasses that of Lü Bu. However, Lü Bu currently has no other options, so he can only hold on for the time being.

Looking at these two generals, Lu Bu's eyes lit up, his hawk-like gaze fixed intently on Cao Ren. Although he did not know who this person was, it did not hinder Lu Bu's enthusiasm for him. Each general of the Cao army was a moving point of achievement

As the Cao army approached the city, ladders began to be set up against the city walls. Lü Bu let out a cold snort, and with a fierce shout, thousands of arrows rained down from the sky, instantly filling the area below the walls with cries of despair

Unable to capture the generals left Lü Bu somewhat frustrated, and he could only refocus his attention on those archers. Without the command of Cao Ren and Li Dian, these archers were continuously retreating under the suppression of the archers on the city wall

Twelve catapults launched twelve barrels of oil simultaneously, igniting them in mid-air with the help of the flames. From a distance, it appeared as if twelve fireballs were descending upon the formation of Cao's army

In the distance, the sound of Cao Jun's war drums grew more intense, and the marching speed of Cao Jun also increased significantly

Nonsense! However, Lü Bu's expression darkened.

On the city wall, listening to the introduction of the stone thrower, Lü Bu nodded and looked towards the catapults at the rear of the Cao army: "If the stones are replaced with twenty jin, how far will the range be?"

"Kerosene!" With a furious roar, Lü Bu commanded his prepared deputy to have men throw down the already ignited barrels of kerosene down the ladders. As thirty-six barrels of kerosene fell, the area below the city instantly transformed into a sea of flames. Amidst countless screams, the pressure that had just built up on the city walls was suddenly alleviated.

Damn it! Lu Bu slammed his fist hard against the city wall, and Cao Ren's fate startled Li Dian as well. Instinctively, he retreated on horseback, moving out of Lu Bu's range. Now, it would be difficult to kill him again.

Creak ~

Cold arrows shot towards the rear ranks of the enemy, causing the unprepared archers of the Cao army to fall in droves.

An archer drew the bowstring fully, not aiming at the Cao army below, but rather at an angle towards the sky, nearly perpendicular to the ground. This was a tactic developed by Lü Bu during these days of defending the city. Arrows shot at this angle would land just below the city wall, avoiding the risk of exposing oneself while shooting. Moreover, the power of the arrows was tremendous; even arrows shot by ordinary archers could penetrate wooden shields, and the impact area was quite extensive. Arrows shot at this angle would land just below the city wall, avoiding the risk of exposing oneself while shooting. Moreover, the power of the arrows was tremendous; even arrows shot by ordinary archers could penetrate wooden shields, and the impact area was quite extensive.

"If it is just a square formation, there is no problem." The catapult operator nodded.

Under the astonishing strength of Lü Bu, the iron bow was drawn to its limit, and a glimmer of cold light on the icy arrowhead appeared particularly dazzling in the sunlight

Upon hearing this, Lü Bu nodded, somewhat disappointed, and then said: "It does not need to be precise; as long as it can generally land on the formation of Cao's army, is that possible?"

The Cao army beneath the city has begun to shoot arrows at the city walls, with arrows whistling through the air, striking the walls and the wooden shields in the front line with piercing sounds. Many unfortunate soldiers are hit by stray arrows, falling to the ground with cries of agony, while the surrounding soldiers remain indifferent.

Beneath the city wall, the sea of flames gradually dissipated with the passage of time; however, the ladders had all been burned to ashes and could no longer be used. Within the ranks of Cao's army, new ladders were being erected, and the true battle only reached its peak at this moment

Bang bang bang

"Give it a try." Lü Bu waved his hand, instructing someone to bring over an irregular stone weighing approximately twenty pounds. He casually pointed to a square formation and had the stone thrower attempt a shot.

Creak ~

Lu Bu cast a fierce glance at the archers in the opposing rear, a cold glint flashing in his eyes, and shouted sternly: "Archers, fire!"

Open the oil can, insert a cloth strip and ignite it, all catapults should fire directly at the Cao army formation without trial shots! Although the firing rate of the catapults does not satisfy Lü Bu, what needs to be done now is to completely shatter the psychological pressure imposed by the Cao army. Even a single round, Lü Bu believes, is sufficient to break the psychological pressure brought by the Cao army.

Creak ~

Kill! A young soldier rushed up the cloud ladder first, just in time to see Lü Bu shoot an arrow. As he was about to retrieve the arrow, he let out a furious roar and lunged at Lü Bu, brandishing his steel knife.