Capítulo 25: Going for the Top Three
Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
In a destroyed village, thirty Yellow Turban soldiers were killed. Another 40 Yellow Turban soldiers were surrounded, having abandoned their weapons and surrendered.
A team of light cavalrymen wiped blood off of their blades.
This was Xia Village's first team of light cavalrymen. Although there were only 20 of them, they were a powerful force in their early stages.
On both sides of the light cavalrymen, light infantrymen and local soldiers were present.
"We'll use the old rules and each take half of the prisoners."
Chu Tian and Xiaozhu Village divided the 40 Yellow Turban captives, with each village getting 20 laborers.
In order to defeat the Yellow Turban soldiers, Xia Village and Xiaozhu Village had both suffered losses. They chose to enslave the captured Yellow Turban soldiers and use them as unpaid labor in the village to make up for those losses.
"This event lasts for 20 days, but it will be over in three days. I'm ranked 10th in the Eastern Han region now," Chu Tian stated, observing the ranking for the Eastern Han region.
Ranked first was the lord of the Guanzhong district, "Juju Qin," with 1125 points.
Ranked second was the lord of the Eastern Liaoning district, "Soldier at the Border in Late Ming," with 1091 points.
Ranked third was the lord of the Dongwu district, "Late Spring Copper Bird with Two Beauties," with 1059 points.
...
Ranked ninth was "Lord Zhao" of the Qing Prefecture district, with 945 points.
Ranked tenth was the lord of Xu Prefecture, "I Just Want to Farm," with 927 points.
"These players' names are so bizarre," he commented.
Xia Tianliang complained to him, "'I Just Want to Farm' is a weirder name than any of the one's you just listed."
"Hmmm… We have worked very hard to eliminate the Yellow Turban soldiers. My score is now 927, but I didn't expect there to be nine people in front of me. With only three days left, it will be difficult to get into the top three."
In Chu Tian's sweep of the nearby Yellow Turban Army, they had already defeated nine groups of Yellow Turbans.
The coalition of Xia Village and Xiaozhu Village looked for traces of the Yellow Turban Army within a 10-mile radius, as the forces didn't have enough energy for any Yellow Turban soldiers further than that. If they were far away from either village and the Yellow Turban soldiers attacked, they wouldn't have enough time to return.
Xia Tianliang analyzed the situation. "They may have used the power of the guild or had free players helping them. Any player who wanted to go in the direction of the general is at least equivalent to a bronze-level hero."
"Perhaps. But we have to think of ways to get into the top three."
Chu Tian knew that the top three's rewards were usually much better than those of the top ten. Since they had already reached tenth place, they might as well try to get into the top three.
They had a problem, however: while the Xia Village-Xiaozhu Village coalition forces had enough strength, the surrounding Yellow Turban soldiers had already been eliminated, and the event would end in three days.
Suddenly, Chu Tian noticed a post from a lord player in the guild.
"D*mn it! The Yellow Turban Army's Xu Prefecture General Zhang Kai and his 20,000 Yellow Turban soldiers are fighting the Langya City Captain Zang Ba! My village turned into the center of the battlefield and was razed to the ground! If it weren't for my fast feet, I would have been killed!"
Zhang Kai? That Yellow Turban general of Xu Prefecture who killed the father of Cao Cao?
So the Yellow Turban Army's main forces in Xu Prefecture were in Langya!
Xia Village was 50 kilometers away from Langya City, and Xiaozhu Village was 45 kilometers away from Langya City. The place where the Yellow Turban Army general Zhang Kai was fighting the Langya Captain Zang Ba should not be far from Xia Village.
Chu Tian asked for the location, finding out that the place where the Yellow Turban Army were fighting the Langya Army was about 30 kilometers west of Langya City.
Chu Tian drew a crude diagram on the ground, trying to figure out the best path to the fighting site
Xia Tianliang, however, had some doubts. "What are you doing?"
Chu Tian didn't answer, but said to himself, "The distances may vary, anywhere from 40 to 70 kilometers. If we rode a horse, it wouldn't take long."
Chu Tian suddenly got up, surprising Xia Tianliang. Looking at her, he said, "I want to go to the outskirts of the battlefield where the Yellow Turban Army is fighting the Xu Prefecture Army. Perhaps there is a chance to surprise the Yellow Turban Army general Zhang Kai. If I kill him, my points would reach the top three."
Xia Tianliang looked incredulous, "You're crazy! That is a special hero famous in our Eastern Han region. There may be tens of thousands of Yellow Turban soldiers with him and you only have 20 light cavalrymen. How could you possibly kill him on your own?!"
"No risk, no reward. There is no better way to hit the top three with only three days left." When Chu Tian thought of taking these risks, his breathing became labored, but he continued, "You stay at Xiaozhu Village, look out for Xia Village too. Let me know if any Yellow Turbans attack our villages."
"You trust me?"
"There's no other way. Only players can send messages in real-time."
"Fine. You... be extremely careful."
Chu Tian only brought 20 light cavalrymen with him. Xia Village originally had 21 light cavalrymen, but one of the men was killed by several Yellow Turban soldiers during the battle.
The light cavalrymen could come and go like the wind, able to attack for long distances. When retreating, the infantrymen were no match for the cavalrymen.
As for the elite light infantrymen in Xia Village, Chu Tian had most of them stay there, leaving a few to defend Xiaozhu Village, so as to ensure the safety of the two villages.
This was the second time Chu Tian left Xia Village to explore the vicinity of Langya City, and the target of his long-distance attack was the Yellow Turban military general, Zhang Kai.
This was a highly dangerous mission.
"Hopefully, when I get to the battlefield, Zang Ba would have already defeated the Yellow Turbans and I can take advantage of the chaos..."
Chu Tian thought deeply about the situation.
It was basically impossible for the twenty light cavalrymen to fight head-on with 20,000 Yellow Turbans. He could only lead the cavalrymen to kill Zhang Kai in the melee, when the Yellow Turbans were all defeated.
Someone who killed a special hero of the Yellow Turban army would earn many rich rewards and points.
Zang Ba was regarded as a somewhat famous general in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. There should be no worry about him defeating Zhang Kai.
"Let's go!"
Chu Tian, Hua Mulan, and twenty light cavalrymen headed toward the approximate direction.
There were many lords' villages outside Langya city. Langya City, also known as Kaiyang City, was a large city at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, so many players built their villages near it. No one wanted to build villages in remote mountain areas, as it would mean having virtually no trade with the outside world.
Because of the Yellow Turban rebellion, many of the villages outside Langya City had been destroyed. A large number of weaker lords were also wiped out, leaving only the powerful lords behind.
When these surviving lords saw a team of light cavalrymen passing by, they all closed their village gates tightly.
Chu Tian ignored these lords. Once the game launched the function to conquer between lords, they would become enemies.
"There must be stragglers near a battlefield of tens of thousands of people. When you see those stragglers, you are probably on the battlefield."
The cavalrymen ran into several groups of Yellow Turban soldiers attacking villages. Chu Tian overlooked these Yellow Turban soldiers. He had to save his arrows to kill Zhang Kai.
When Chu Tian and his group had marched almost 60 kilometers, the number of Yellow Turban soldiers around them suddenly increased. These Yellow Turban soldiers were wounded and wailing in pain.
They were close to the battlefield!
Hua Mulan captured a Yellow Soldier and tossed him to the ground.
The terrified Yellow Turban soldier begged her, "Please be merciful. I have elderly parents, and I have..."
Chu Tian was on a warhorse. He yelled condescendingly from his place on top, "Stop that nonsense! Where is your general, Zhang Kai?!"
"Our general was defeated. Officers and soldiers are chasing him. The general and his soldiers ran to a village to the west..."
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