[This chapter draws on parts of Romance of the Three Kingdoms. There was no way to skip this battle! Old Ya has kept it brief, so please bear with him.]
Guandu.
Cao Cao ordered Cao Xiong to lead his troops to Wuchao under the banner of Jiang Qi, a general in Yuan Shao's Army.
Xu You had already given Cao Xiong all the passwords and code phrases used by Yuan Shao's Army. Xu You also knew the Yuan Army inside out, and Jiang Qi was the identity least likely to arouse suspicion.
Cao Xiong reached Wuchao, found the granaries, and set them ablaze as planned.
Chunyu Qiong, a general of the Yuan Army, was a Rare Boss with formidable strength. But he was drunk, and the Divine Court Awakeners led by Cao Xiong easily knocked him from his horse. Unlike in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Cao Xiong did not take Chunyu Qiong prisoner. He killed him on the spot.
Just then, Chunyu Qiong's deputies Sui Yuanjin and Zhao Rui returned with a grain convoy.
The Cao Army was caught between two forces, and the situation looked grim. But Cao Xiong showed his strength. He hurled a spear flashing with lightning into Sui Yuanjin's vital spot, killing him instantly from a distance! The officers in Cao Xiong's personal retinue rallied and worked together to slay Zhao Rui.
With their commander and deputies gone, the Yuan troops at Wuchao lost heart and fled in all directions.
Seeing Cao Xiong's prowess, Cao Cao sighed. "I thought my yellow-bearded son Cao Zhang was the bravest of my sons. Who would have thought my fourth son, barely twenty, would be stronger still?"
Cao Cao's eyes held a complicated look as he spoke, but the night was too dark for anyone to notice.
Cao Cao