Choose Liu Bei at the start, I am the only one who knows the plot of the Three Kingdoms.

However, just as they reached a relatively open section of the official road, suddenly, from behind the hills on their flanks, billowing dust and thunderous hooves erupted! A cavalry force of about five hundred men charged out like a whirlwind, quickly spreading out and forming a semi-encirclement, blocking their path!

"There's an ambush! Protect our leader!"

Zhang Fei reacted the fastest, glaring with his eyes wide open and roaring. His eighteen-foot spear instantly appeared in front of him, ready to spur his horse forward to meet the attack.

"Wait a minute!"

Gu Rubing raised his hand to stop him, his sharp gaze sweeping over the suddenly appearing cavalry.

These cavalrymen were all well-equipped, with gleaming armor, and their ranks were orderly. Their movements exuded a chilling aura, which was far beyond what ordinary bandits and outlaws could possess.

Moreover, the faint, seemingly condensed killing intent emanating from them is something only veterans who have experienced real battlefield battles and survived countless fights can possess!
"Yide, don't act rashly."

Gu Rubing carefully examined the cavalry that had suddenly appeared before him.

They were well-equipped and disciplined, and the fierceness and murderous aura that emanated from their very bones were far beyond that of ordinary bandits; in fact, they were even a cut above most of the elite troops of the feudal lords he had ever seen.

However, in his memory, neither Cao Cao's Tiger and Leopard Cavalry nor Sun Jian's troops had such a unique cavalry force.

Even the Wuhuan and Xiongnu cavalry from beyond the Great Wall had combat methods and equipment that were completely different from the troops in front of them.

"interesting……"

Gu Rubing thought to himself that he was not angry at being intercepted, but instead felt a strong sense of curiosity.

He wanted to personally assess the capabilities of this mysterious cavalry and, more importantly, understand their purpose in blocking his path.

He spurred his horse forward a few steps, passing Zhang Fei and Ma Chao who were protecting him. His gaze calmly swept over the group of silent, iron-willed cavalrymen. He spoke in a loud voice, steady and powerful, clearly resounding throughout the entire area.

"Who are you under? Why are you blocking my path? What is your purpose?"

However, all he got in response was dead silence.

The hundreds of cavalrymen sat upright on their horses like clay or wooden sculptures, their eyes behind their masks coldly watching them. Not one of them answered, not even whispering to each other, as if they were a group of lifeless war machines.

This silence itself carries an unsettling sense of oppression.

Just as Gu Rubing was about to ask again, someone in the cavalry seemed to make an extremely subtle, almost imperceptible gesture. The next moment, the cavalry formation, which had been as still as a mountain, suddenly moved!

There were no shouts, no war drums, only the sudden, uniform sound of horses' hooves pounding the ground!

Hundreds of cavalrymen, as one, instantly transformed from extreme stillness to extreme movement, like a flood bursting its banks or a precisely operating killing machine, launching a swift and fierce charge against Gu Rubing and his men without uttering a word!
The speed was astonishing, and the charging formation was not a simple wedge or arrowhead, but a more complex and strange formation that combined impact with flank cover!

"Protect the lord!"

Ma Chao reacted extremely quickly, thrusting his silver spear forward and shouting sharply.

"Good timing! Let me, Old Zhang, have a go at you!"

Zhang Fei could no longer contain himself. Seeing the enemy charging directly at him, he was not alarmed but delighted. With a roar, he brandished his eighteen-foot spear and took the lead in meeting them head-on! The personal guards and cavalry brought by Gu Rubing were also elite warriors who, though alarmed, remained calm and immediately formed a battle formation to meet the enemy.

In an instant, the sound of metal clashing against metal filled the official road, and men and horses roared as they clashed in battle!
However, once the fight began, the pressure on Gu Rubing's side increased dramatically!
The fighting power of this mysterious cavalry far exceeded their expectations!

Their individual martial arts skills may not be top-notch, but their teamwork is incredibly seamless. In groups of three or five, they combine offense and defense, and their moves are ruthless and direct, purely killing techniques honed on the battlefield, without any fancy moves.

Their tactics were also extremely strange, sometimes they would disperse and harass, and sometimes they would suddenly converge and launch a fierce attack on a single point. They moved like the wind, unpredictable and elusive, which was very different from the combat style of the Central Plains army and even the known external tribes!

Although Gu Rubing's personal guards were brave, they seemed somewhat hesitant and restrained in the face of this unfamiliar and efficient fighting tactic, resulting in a number of casualties in a short period of time.

Although Zhang Fei and Ma Chao were exceptionally brave and could kill several enemy cavalrymen in succession during their charge, the enemy did not give them a direct confrontation. Instead, they used their exquisite teamwork and mobility to constantly maneuver and wear them down, like a pack of wolves tearing apart a tiger.

"Brother!
These guys are really weird! They're not like us Han people at all!

Zhang Fei forced back two enemy cavalrymen who were trying to attack him from both sides with his spear, and took the opportunity to shout to Gu Rubing.

Ma Chao also said in a deep voice.

"My lord, judging from their tactics and equipment, they are definitely not troops that Sun Jian could possess. They must be an army from beyond the borders!"

Under the protection of his personal guards, Gu Rubing calmly observed the battle situation, his mind already made up.

It is highly unlikely that Sun Jian could have secretly trained such a distinctive and powerful cavalry force.

This must be an army from an unknown realm!
What was their purpose? A test? An assassination? Or something else entirely?
Seeing that victory was impossible in the short term, and that the opponent's strange tactics might continue to wear them down, Gu Rubing made a decisive decision.

"The enemy's tactics are unpredictable, and their objectives are unclear. We cannot sustain a prolonged battle! Order them to provide alternating cover and retreat to nearby cities!"

The order was given, and the well-trained quality of the Han army was demonstrated.

With Zhang Fei and Ma Chao covering the rear and launching a fierce counterattack, the troops fought and retreated. Although they suffered some losses, they eventually managed to shake off the mysterious cavalry and retreated into the nearest city, where they closed the city gates and defended the city.

Upon entering the city, Gu Rubing immediately ordered the city's defenses to be strengthened, the losses to be assessed, and the wounded to be treated.

His expression was very solemn.

This sudden appearance of foreign cavalry, like a venomous snake lurking in the shadows, made him feel deeply uneasy.

We must find out their origins and intentions as soon as possible!
He immediately summoned his trusted confidants, wrote a secret letter detailing the characteristics, equipment, and tactics of the cavalry, and ordered it to be sent to Xuchang at top speed to be reported to the imperial court.

"Send this letter out by express courier! At the same time, order Xu Du to use all available resources to find out which faction sent these cavalrymen!"

Where is their stronghold?

However, to Gu Rubing's surprise, the first batch of spies he sent out, disguised as ordinary people and mixed in with the crowd leaving the city, met with utter destruction less than two miles from the city gate!

The mysterious cavalry, as if they had foreseen the future, charged out precisely from their hiding place, completely ignoring the other civilians, their target clear: the few informants!
The movements were clean and swift, the attacks ruthless. In just a few breaths, several elite informants lay dead in pools of blood, without even a chance to resist!
When the news reached Gu Rubing, he was shocked! His informants were all experienced veterans, and their disguises were so realistic that they were almost indistinguishable in a crowd.

How did the other side manage to identify and kill them so accurately in such a short time?
It's as if... they already knew who the informants were!
"This is weird! This is fucking weird!"

Upon receiving the news, Zhang Fei flew into a rage, pacing back and forth on the city wall. He grabbed the eighteen-foot spear standing by the wall and roared.

"Brother! Let me lead a squad out to fight! I want to see if these cowardly rats can withstand my eighteen-foot spear!"

"Yide! Don't be reckless!"

Gu Rubing immediately shouted to stop them, his face grim. The precise identification and hunting ability displayed by the other party sent chills down his spine.

This is not just a matter of strong combat power; there must be a deeper secret hidden behind it.

He became increasingly curious about the identities and purposes of these people, and also increasingly wary of them.

"Keep sending! Use different routes and different disguises, send out more groups of people! I don't believe they can stop everyone!"

Gu Rubing gritted his teeth and gave the order.

After paying a considerable price and sending out several groups of spies, a few alert scouts finally managed to break through the mysterious cavalry's blockade under the cover of night and the complex terrain, and carried the message out to Xudu.

Upon receiving the urgent military intelligence from Gu Rubing, Xu Du dared not delay and immediately dispatched a large number of his most elite crossbowmen to conduct a secret investigation into the identity and origin of this mysterious cavalry force throughout Ji Province and potentially the relevant border areas.

In the following days, the cavalry did not attack the city, but they also did not go far away.

Like ghosts, they patrolled and roamed around the city day and night, blocking the main entrances and exits, as if waiting for something, or as if carrying out some kind of surveillance mission.

Gu Rubing stood atop the city wall, his brow furrowing deeper as he watched the cavalry figures outside the city swarming like maggots. The enemy's strategy of surrounding without attacking, yet precisely sealing off the city, was proving extremely troublesome and frustrating.

His patience was being worn down little by little.

Just as Gu Rubing's eyes were turning cold, and he was about to lose his temper and order Zhang Fei to lead the elite troops out of the city to forcefully tear open a gap and see just how capable these people were, the scene outside the city suddenly changed!
The cavalrymen, who patrolled like statues, seemed to receive an invisible command at almost the same time. They turned their horses around in perfect unison and then... without hesitation, retreated like a tide towards a dense forest in the distance!

Their actions were swift and decisive, without the slightest hesitation; in the blink of an eye, they all disappeared into the mountains and forests, vanishing without a trace.

Silence fell over the city walls; everyone was bewildered by the sudden retreat.

"Huh? Why did it run away?"

Zhang Fei stared wide-eyed, holding his spear, his face showing a mixture of lingering interest and bewilderment.

Gu Rubing's gaze sharpened, his mind filled with doubt. The timing of the enemy's retreat was too perfect, coinciding precisely with the point where his patience was at its limit.

They seem to be able to read their own minds?
“Yide,” Gu Rubing pondered for a moment, then pointed to the quiet mountain forest and gave the order.

"Take a light cavalry squad and carefully approach that forest to probe their strength and see if they have truly retreated or if they have set up an ambush. Remember, focus on reconnaissance; do not venture deep into the forest to engage in battle unless absolutely necessary!"

"Order!"

Zhang Fei had been itching to get back to work. Upon hearing this, he immediately clasped his hands in a fist salute, summoned a squad of agile cavalry, opened the city gate, and cautiously rode his horse toward the forest that had swallowed the mysterious cavalry.
-
Zhang Fei led a troop of light cavalry, like a wary cheetah, cautiously approaching the unusually quiet mountain forest.

He ordered his cavalry to keep watch on the perimeter, while he himself, with a few of his best guards, dismounted and walked into the woods.

They searched carefully for a long time, but apart from some messy but quickly receding fresh hoofprints, they found no human figure or any sign of an ambush.

That mysterious cavalry force truly vanished as if they had evaporated from the face of the earth, retreating completely and utterly.

Filled with doubt and a hint of frustration at not being able to engage in combat, Zhang Fei returned to the city to report to Gu Rubing.

"Brother, there's nothing in the woods. Those bastards are faster than rabbits. Their footprints are heading northwest. There's no way we can catch them!"

Zhang Fei reported in a muffled voice, his tone tinged with displeasure.

Upon hearing this result, Gu Rubing's brows did not relax; instead, they furrowed even more.

He waved for Zhang Fei to go and rest, while he paced alone in the temporary government office, his doubts surging like a tide.

"When attacking, they are fearless, coordinated, and unpredictable in their tactics; when retreating, they are swift and decisive, leaving no trace, and obeying orders without question... Such well-trained elite cavalry could not be cultivated by ordinary forces."

Gu Rubing muttered to himself, his fingers unconsciously tapping the table.

"If they are the enemy, with such combat power and such skill in concealment and mobility, they will surely become a major threat to me in the future!"

The appearance of this mysterious cavalry was like a thorn in Gu Rubing's side, making him uneasy about his journey back to Linjiang City. He couldn't eat or sleep until he figured out their origins and intentions.

He deployed more personnel, on the one hand to closely monitor the area around the city to prevent the enemy from returning, and on the other hand to anxiously await the investigation results of the Xu Du Younu Xiaowei.

Two whole days passed in the oppressive wait.

Finally, a messenger, a warbler with a weary yet excited expression, was secretly brought before Gu Rubing.

"My lord! We've found out!"

The messenger knelt on one knee, his voice hoarse but carrying the relief of having completed his mission.

"Based on extensive inquiries, comparisons of the remaining arrow patterns and horse hoof marks, as well as oral accounts from some veteran border soldiers and merchants from the Western Regions, it can be confirmed that the cavalry was from the Shatuo people of the Western Regions!"

"Shatuo people?"

A hint of understanding flashed in Gu Rubing's eyes, but it was quickly replaced by new doubts.

He remembered clearly that when the Han Dynasty was at its peak, it had launched several westward expeditions, defeating and annihilating the thirty-six kingdoms of the Western Regions, including some powerful nomadic tribes. The Shatuo tribe was one of them; its main force had long been wiped out and scattered, leaving only some insignificant remnants struggling to survive on the edge of the grasslands and deserts. (End of Chapter)