The Tibetan general Chiduo Qinbu and the Tang guerrilla commander Xiang Qiang were preparing to fight a duel before the two armies. Just then, drums began to thunder from both sides.
Boom, boom, boom! Boom, boom, boom!
The drumming grew faster and more urgent with every passing moment.
In ancient warfare, drums were used to inspire the troops and raise their fighting spirit. As the ancients said, "When the drums sound, advance; when the gongs sound, retreat." Drums signaled an assault, while the striking of metal gongs commanded the troops to withdraw.
The two warriors faced each other in the space between the opposing armies and began their duel. Every soldier on both sides watched intently, their eyes fixed upon the two combatants, eager to see who would emerge victorious.
Xiang Qiang suddenly sprang forward. Fighting alone, he wielded a single saber with an imposing and fearless bearing. The moment his blade left his side, he brought it crashing down in a fierce slash.
Chiduo Qinbu raised his saber to block.
"Good move!"
Clang!
Xiang Qiang immediately thrust forward, following with five consecutive cuts. Chiduo Qinbu suddenly retreated a step and thrust his own saber toward him. The unexpected attack startled Xiang Qiang, and cold sweat broke out across his body. The angle of his own blade changed abruptly as he withdrew it, sweeping it in an arc to deflect the incoming strike.
"Good! Let us see what you are made of!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Xiang Qiang rotated his saber and thrust directly toward Chiduo Qinbu's throat. Taking advantage of his momentum, he launched three successive slashes, his blade raining down like a sudden storm.
Chiduo Qinbu spun around and hurriedly brought his saber up to guard his neck.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
He blocked all three blows in rapid succession.
The attacks were so fierce that even Chiduo Qinbu was drenched in cold sweat.
The battle continued.
Xiang Qiang raised his saber and hacked downward, while Chiduo Qinbu likewise lifted his weapon and struck with all his strength. The two warriors wielded their great sabers in great sweeping arcs, attacking directly without the slightest hesitation.
They fought for more than thirty exchanges.
Suddenly, Chiduo Qinbu let out a great shout and swept his saber horizontally. Xiang Qiang answered with an equally powerful cry and swept his own blade toward his opponent.
Slash! Slash!
Both men were struck.
Fortunately, they were clad in armor, and the blades could not penetrate their protective armor.
Xiang Qiang immediately swept his saber from left to right. Chiduo Qinbu raised his weapon to block, but Xiang Qiang seized the opportunity to close the distance and struck him squarely in the chest with his left palm.
Thump!
Chiduo Qinbu staggered several steps backward.
"Bring me a spear!"
The Tibetan soldiers behind him immediately obeyed. One of them hurled a long spear toward him. Chiduo Qinbu reached up and caught it in midair.
He then began to whirl the spear, launching a furious barrage of thrusts.
Although Xiang Qiang's saber technique was superb, the saber's effective range was ultimately limited. Faced with the long spear, he suddenly found himself unable to maintain his offensive momentum. In an instant, his attack became a defense.
Chiduo Qinbu suddenly halted his assault.
"General Xiang, your saber technique is truly superb. I admire it. But now, let us compare our spear techniques!"
The spear was known as the "King of the Hundred Weapons." Among the eighteen traditional weapons, it ranked immediately behind the saber. Its exalted status was closely related to its characteristics in combat.
In the long struggle between Tibet and the Tang Empire, the Tibetans had also learned and adopted many techniques in weapons craftsmanship. Building upon the traditional spear, they had made improvements to the weapon. Compared with the older form, the spearhead was thinner and sharper, allowing it to penetrate more effectively through gaps in armor and inflict serious wounds. It was therefore particularly suited to individual combat.
Strictly speaking, the weapon Chiduo Qinbu carried should be called a spear rather than a pike. Yet Chiduo Qinbu himself made little distinction between the two.
As the ancients said, "The spear is the King of the Hundred Weapons."
Xiang Qiang replied, "Very well. Let us compare spear techniques!"
Xiang Qiang and Chiduo Qinbu faced each other once more in the open square.
In an instant, Tang soldiers brought Xiang Qiang a long spear.
This spear was somewhat different from the long spear carried by the Tibetan general.
Chiduo Qinbu's weapon was a heavy spear. The entire shaft was rigid and powerful, giving it tremendous destructive force. Yet when wielded, its weight and stiffness made it somewhat less agile.
The spear brought by the Tang soldiers was different. Its shaft was made from flexible white-wax wood, a variety of tree cultivated specifically for making spear shafts. Its remarkable flexibility allowed the shaft to bend and rebound according to the rhythm of the wielder's movements.
This gave the spear wielder the ability to "borrow force to strike with force."
Strictly speaking, the weapon Chiduo Qinbu held would also be classified as a spear in the Central Plains. Spears were generally divided into two types: the Great Spear and the Flower Spear.
Clearly, the weapon in Chiduo Qinbu's hands was a Great Spear, while Xiang Qiang wielded a Flower Spear.
Xiang Qiang swept his spear through the air and said,
"Please enlighten me!"
Chiduo Qinbu studied the weapon in his hands and asked,
"Is that the Fenyang Spear Technique?"
Xiang Qiang replied,
"Indeed."
The moment Xiang Qiang took the spear in his hands, he instinctively employed the famous Fenyang Spear Technique of the great Tang general Guo Ziyi.
The Tang soldiers behind him suddenly began chanting loudly:
"The Lazy Dragon stretches its waist and rises from the sea;
The Dragon raises its head, and the spear returns, unmatched beneath heaven.
The Fenyang banner rolls and dances before the wind;
Striking high and sweeping low, it crushes the enemy's guard.
The Jade Maiden casts the shuttle, charging through the Hongmen Gate;
Body following spear, the short defeats the long.
Twelve straight paths advance without hesitation;
Peace rises beneath the heavens, and the barbarian lands tremble."
This was the spear technique created by the great Tang general Guo Ziyi, Prince of Fenyang. In his day, he had won unparalleled military victories with this very technique. The Fenyang Spear Technique consisted of thirty-six forms and was renowned throughout the realm. Nearly every officer serving under Guo Ziyi knew how to wield it.
A chill passed through Chiduo Qinbu's heart.
Yet he merely snorted coldly.
"I have long heard that the Fenyang Spear Technique is famous throughout the land. Today, I shall see for myself just how formidable it truly is!"
The spear was known as the "King of the Hundred Weapons." Sharp and pointed, agile in the hands of a skilled warrior, and devastating in combat, it could thrust and withdraw with extraordinary speed, making its attacks extremely difficult to defend against.
For this reason, the spear was also called "the Thief among Weapons."
Once again, the drums of both armies began to thunder.
Boom, boom, boom! Boom, boom, boom!
The rhythm grew faster and faster.
Xiang Qiang raised his Flower Spear.
The shaft was eight chi long, with a shuttle-shaped spearhead and a red tassel hanging beneath it. As Xiang Qiang began to wield the Flower Spear, the spearhead trembled and danced continuously.
Suddenly—
Whoosh!
He thrust forward.
Chiduo Qinbu raised his Great Spear and blocked the attack. He immediately counterattacked, driving the heavy weapon forward.
The Great Spear was heavy and possessed tremendous power.
Xiang Qiang, however, coordinated his hands, eyes, body movements, and footwork with practiced precision. One technique after another flowed from his hands without hesitation: catching the spear, tossing the spear, hooking it around his elbow, and circling it around his neck.
Every movement was executed cleanly and decisively.
The sunlight was dazzling.
Suddenly, Chiduo Qinbu thrust his spear through the air.
The spearhead flashed brilliantly as it shot straight toward Xiang Qiang, carrying immense force.
Yet Xiang Qiang did not retreat.
Standing as firmly as a crouching tiger, he executed a technique known as "Steady Spear Stance."
Clang!
Sparks flew as the two weapons collided.
The force behind that single thrust was terrifying. Xiang Qiang's Flower Spear trembled violently in his hands.
The Great Spear was more than a zhang in length, while the Flower Spear was approximately eight chi long. The ferocity of the Great Spear was enough to make even seasoned warriors shudder.
Compared with the Great Spear's straightforward strength and ferocious power, however, its movements were easier to anticipate.
The Flower Spear, by contrast, relied upon agility and subtle manipulation of force. Its lightness was its greatest advantage. When wielded, the spearhead constantly trembled and shifted, creating a dazzling blur that made it extremely difficult for an opponent to determine the true direction of the spear tip.
That was why it was known as the Flower Spear.
The spectators heard nothing but the continuous clash of weapons.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The two warriors fought with increasing ferocity.
Their figures seemed to fly across the battlefield.
They moved like dragons gliding through the clouds, swift as startled rabbits, agile as monkeys, and light as cranes riding the wind. Each displayed the full extent of his skill.
As the ancient spear manual said:
"First intercept, second advance, third parry, fourth entangle, fifth seize, sixth thrust straight.
Feint and evade with the Flower Spear.
Below, sweep the grass seeking the snake;
Above, perform the Qin King's sweeping banner."
Suddenly, Xiang Qiang gave a great shout.
"Ha!"
He abruptly unleashed a technique known as "Three Thrusts with the Stolen Step."
His spear flashed forward in rapid succession, stabbing again and again toward Chiduo Qinbu...