Chapter Sixty-Seven: Weapons

  "Has it really been decided?!" Lü Bu asked standing in the middle of Shouchun's martial arts arena.

  Yuan Shu withdrew from Shouchun, and Lü Bu naturally occupied Shouchun. Ru'nan was no longer accessible, and now he was considering how to get from Jiangxia to Xinye, so for the time being, he stayed in Shouchun, where it was much better to be inside the city than outside under the open sky.

  "Hmm!" Liu Mang nodded, he couldn't retreat anymore. He had to practice martial arts. Since coming to this world, he had always thought that martial power was only possessed by rough and violent people. But now he understood that having a good mastery of martial arts was the only way to survive, and having a good mastery of martial arts was the only way not to implicate others.

  "Good!" Lü Bu nodded, Lü Bu was a god of war, he had his eye on Liu Mang inheriting his position and naturally hoped that Liu Mang would be a general too. Even if Liu Mang didn't say anything, Lü Bu would still force him to learn martial arts.

  In this chaotic world, how can one survive without a single martial art?

  Those vassals, which one is not a master among them? To mention the nearest ones, Cao Cao and Yuan Shu. These two had previously fought against the Yellow Turbans. Both Cao Cao and Yuan Shu had each led an army, and Yuan Shu had also served as the Colonel of the Western Garden.

  After Liu Bei, Liu Xuande, no need to say more. Although his martial arts skills are not impressive, he is still a character who can exchange blows with Lü Bu. The three heroes fighting against Lü Bu is not just for show.

  Let's talk about Gongsun Zan, who has already stepped onto the historical stage. His White Horse Cavalry is his own creation, and he can defeat those foreign tribes from outside the passes with ease. Naturally, Gongsun Zan's martial arts skills are not bad.

  Tao Qian, Bei Hai Kong Rong and now Jingzhou's Liu Biao, don't look at them as Confucians, the Confucians of this era are not those powerless bookworms of the Ming and Qing dynasties, among the six arts of a gentleman is horsemanship and archery.

  If Chen Gong is really considered a martial arts expert, then Cheng Yu is no match for him.

  The Sun family, which occupies Jiangdong, has three brothers who are all skilled in martial arts. Except for Sun Quan, which one of them has not personally gone to battle?

  Forcing someone to do something is never as good as being willing to do it, Liu Mang's desire to become stronger earned him Lu Bu's praise.

  "Which weapon have you chosen to use?" Lü Bu asked, pointing at a row of weapon racks.

  "What weapon to choose?!" Liu Mang was taken aback, he really hadn't thought of this question, in his opinion learning martial arts wasn't about choosing a specific weapon, but mastering all eighteen types of martial arts.

  Got it, Lü Bu shook his head "Mastery of ten skills is not as good as mastery of one!" Lü Bu pointed to the Halberd of the Sea God and said "Long spear, long gun, big knife, giant sword I am all familiar with, but the most proficient is only the halberd"

  "With the halberd in hand, I can charge into the enemy's formation and kill them, and even take the head of the enemy general in the midst of a thousand soldiers. However, I can only exert 80% of my strength with other weapons. When facing Zhang Fei, Guan Yu, or Xu Chu, those peerless fierce generals, I can hold my own but cannot defeat them! But with the long halberd, it's different. With the Sea God Halberd in hand, if one of them comes alone, I can kill him with a single strike; if two come together, I can defeat them; and if three join forces, I can fight to a draw!" This is Lü Bu's strength and also where his confidence lies.

  Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Xu Chu are all extraordinary brave generals, with martial arts skills that are among the top ten in the world. Lü Bu is confident that he can defeat any one of them alone, two of them together can be defeated, and three of them coming together can fight to a draw!

  "Is the halberd really that powerful?!" Liu Mang asked in doubt. If the halberd was truly that formidable, then why were there so few people throughout history who had mastered it, aside from Lü Bu and a few others like Dian Wei and Taishi Ci?

  Moreover, both of them used single-edged double halberds, not Lü Bu's two-meter-long halberd.

  "It's not the halberd that's strong, but the one who wields it!" Lü Bu replied once again. "Everyone has a suitable weapon for them, such as Zhang Fei's 8-foot-long spear, Guan Yu's Green Dragon Crescent Blade, and Xu Chu's Nine-Ringed Great Sword. These are all their own weapons, tailored to their needs! What you need is to find the one that suits you best from this pile of arms!"

  "Find the one that suits me best!" Liu Mang listened to Lü Bu's words and walked towards the weapon rack.

  "Choose your sword!" Liu Mang picked up a long knife and thought.

  "The sword is the king of all weapons!" Lü Bu said, "The sword is famous for its overbearing style, whether it's a long sword or a short sword, the most important thing is to chop and slash! The three moves are full of overbearing energy, using force to break through people! Whether it's Xu Chu's nine-ring broadsword or Guan Yu's Green Dragon Crescent Blade, they all follow the path of dominance!"

  "The king of a hundred soldiers, dominating the road? Breaking people with force?" Liu Mang waved his knife for a while and shook his head. This was not the weapon he wanted. The big knife was indeed very domineering, but it was not what Liu Mang had in mind. A person who plays with knives must have personality, and can be said to be very domineering. However, Liu Mang's scholarly air was present, but the domineering air really couldn't come out, and how could he break people with his strength? He would rather be broken by others.

  "Sword?!" The knife was too overbearing, so Liu Mang switched to a more elegant one.

  Lü Bu nodded, Liu Mang's physique was indeed not suitable for using a knife. Generally, only people with a large build like Xu Chu could wield a big knife to a certain extent, which had both intimidation and killing power.

  "Sword! The gentleman among soldiers!" Lü Bu said, "The beauty of swordplay lies in its elegance and freedom. A true swordsman's moves are like a dragon or snake, smooth and effortless!" A sword is not only a deadly weapon but also a symbol of status for scholars and gentlemen. Chen Gong's swordsmanship was something even Lü Bu admired, and he had met many skilled swordsmen before, such as his former teacher Wang Yue, whose skills were on par with his own. Then there was Liu Bei, who wielded the powerful Dragon and Phoenix twin swords.

  "It's not what I'm looking for!" Liu Mang shook his head again. Although Liu Mang wore a sword, it was only a symbol of his identity and it was better not to let him stain it with blood. "Spear?" Lu Bu suddenly appeared with a long spear in his hand. "Spear?!" Liu Mang took it over and looked at Lu Bu's gun technique, explaining "The spear is the commander of the troops, with its thrusting and piercing movements, it follows an unpredictable path, containing the essence of the sword, while also having the ability to sweep horizontally, following a powerful path. It can be said that the spear combines the abilities of many weapons!" "Commander of the troops?!" Liu Mang thought that this spear was indeed very handsome. In the Three Kingdoms era, those who used spears, such as Zhao Yun, Zhang Xiu, and Zhang Ren, were all elegant and handsome warriors. They became famous not only because of their martial arts skills but also due to the credit of their weapons! If Zhao Yun had used a large axe or hammer instead, would you still like him?! Handsome is handsome, but this was not what Liu Mang wanted! What's the use of being handsome? Can it be eaten as food?! As for spears, Liu Mang couldn't command or throw them with skill.

  " Clubs?! Swords, spears, axes, halberds, hooks, forks, whips, maces, hammers, staffs, shields, clubs, staves, rods, crutches, and meteorites!" More than a dozen weapons were tried out, but Liu Mang still couldn't find one he liked. Even the long spear in Lü Bu's hand wasn't what Liu Mang wanted.

  "What kind of weapon do you want?!" The entire rack of weapons had been taken out, but none of them were what Liu Mang was looking for.

  "I need a weapon that's big, can block flying arrows, and not only protect myself but also the people behind me!" Liu Mang said, revealing his thoughts.

  "Block flying arrows? Protect yourself and the people behind you?" Lü Bu furrowed his brow. What Liu Mang described sounded like a shield.

  "Do you want to use a giant shield as a weapon?!" Lü Bu asked hesitantly.

  "Giant shield?!" Liu Mang's eyes lit up as he remembered the alloy shields he had brought, which were not only large but could also block flying arrows and protect himself and those behind him. The giant shield was so big that it could cover a person's entire body if placed on the ground.

  "That's it!" Liu Mang exclaimed.

  "Learn how to use a shield?!" Lü Bu's mouth twitched. From ancient times to the present, there had never been any mention of shield techniques.

  "You need to think carefully, a giant shield can only help you block damage but won't solve the problem of your enemies!" No matter how strong a shield's defense was, it could still be broken. Lü Bu believed that the best defense was offense.

  "Who says shields can't defeat enemies?!" Liu Mang took out a polished giant shield from the armory, its edges sharpened like a blade.

  Liu Mang suddenly raised the shield and thrust it into the ground.

  "You're going to kill people with the edge of the shield?!" Lü Bu didn't understand, but he knew that Liu Mang's expression meant he had made up his mind and wouldn't change it.

  "Alright, take your weapons, let's start from the basics!" The two figures on the training grounds began to train with fiery passion!