Threatening Dong Zhuo

Ma Teng, Gao Shun, and the other forces from Longxi, finding themselves unable to capture Jincheng, continued their expedition northward. In the span of just over a month, they succeeded in taking over a major portion of Liangzhou. However, south of Jincheng, in the region bordering Chang'an and the Three Auxiliary Districts, Dong Zhuo's influence was deeply rooted and proved difficult to eradicate overnight—this very region being historically established as Yongzhou during the reign of Li Jue.

Barely two months had passed since Liu Yao dispatched his armies to Bingzhou and Liangzhou. Yet, these two months alone had expanded Liu Yao's territory more than twofold. Of course, seizing a province and a half so rapidly was built upon the foundation of Liangzhou and Bingzhou's insufficient manpower and inadequate preparedness, which thus gave birth to such a miracle.

Naturally, very few people were aware of all this as of yet. Even Dong Zhuo currently believed that Liu Yao had mobilized solely to deal with him and secure his family members, hence attacking Liangzhou for that singular purpose. Not a single person realized the sheer scale of Liu Yao's ambition, which was to capture both Liangzhou and Bingzhou in their entirety.

Inside the main command tent of Liu Yao's army at Sishui Pass:

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for taking control of Youzhou and Bingzhou. Reward: two sets of 30 lotteries. You now have a total of 92 lottery opportunities available." A mechanical voice rang out abruptly in Liu Yao's mind.

Upon hearing this, Liu Yao was momentarily stunned. First, he had not expected Xi Zhicai, Tian Feng, and the others to conquer Bingzhou with such incredible speed. Second, he had not anticipated receiving a reward for securing Bingzhou, and such a generous reward at that. This inevitably sparked the temptation in Liu Yao's mind to directly conquer the remaining major provinces as well.

However, Liu Yao calmed down almost immediately. He still understood the principle that biting off more than one can chew. Securing Bingzhou in one swift stroke was already remarkably fast; it would likely take a year or two of digestion before Bingzhou could truly be integrated with his current territory of Youzhou, let alone setting out to conquer several more provinces.

Yet there was also something that puzzled Liu Yao—the situation in Liangzhou was never mentioned by the system. That meant either Gao Shun, Ma Teng, and their forces had failed, or they had simply not managed to conquer the entirety of Liangzhou.

At that very moment, Guo Jia rushed in excitedly holding a letter, calling out, "My lord, news has arrived from Master Wenhe!"

Liu Yao asked with a smile, "Fengxiao, this must be regarding the matters of Liangzhou and Bingzhou, I presume?" Guo Jia's intelligence report had arrived even later than the system's notification by a fraction.

"My lord is truly divine in your calculations!" Guo Jia nodded, offering a flattering remark before handing Jia Xu's letter over to Liu Yao.

Liu Yao took the letter and swiftly scanned its contents. "Just as I thought, we only managed to secure the greater part of Liangzhou," Liu Yao thought to himself.

"Fengxiao, this time we dispatched forces on four fronts. Zhongde, Zhicai, and Yuanhao have all succeeded on their respective ends. Although Liangzhou is not entirely in our hands, it can still be considered a massive harvest. Now, the only thing left is our front here at Luoyang," Liu Yao said solemnly.

"My lord, Hulao Pass is renowned as one of the most impregnable fortresses under heaven; it is hardly a place that can be easily breached. Moreover, that Dong Zhuo has even taken the peerless warrior Lü Bu as his foster son. With him there, Hulao Pass will become all the more difficult to crack. I imagine those warlords are going to suffer quite a bit. I've only heard that Lü Bu holds the title 'Among men, Lü Bu; among steeds, Red Hare.' I wonder if that rumor is true or false," Guo Jia said with a smile.

"Fengxiao, Lü Bu's reputation as the foremost warrior under heaven is no empty boast. Even if Hansheng were to fight him now, it would likely end in a draw; and in a prolonged battle, the one to lose would still be Hansheng," Liu Yao said seriously. After all, Huang Zhong's age was indeed quite a bit more advanced than Lü Bu's, so he certainly would not be a match for Lü Bu in a war of attrition.

"Oh, is he truly that formidable?!" Guo Jia exclaimed in astonishment. In his mind, Huang Zhong's martial prowess had already reached the absolute pinnacle; he had never expected Lü Bu to outclass Huang Zhong by an even greater margin.

"Heh, indeed he is. But there is no need to worry; under my command, we still have Zilong and Mengqi. Their martial arts are not much inferior to Hansheng's either. Surely, if the three of them join forces, they can triumph over a single Lü Bu," Liu Yao said with a smile.

Historically, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Liu Bei—the three heroes who fought Lü Bu—were able to defeat him, even with Liu Bei acting as little more than dead weight. How much more so for the three formidable generals under Liu Yao's command? There was simply no way Lü Bu could be a match for the combined might of these three.

"If that is the case, we shall simply sit back and enjoy the spectacle made of those warlords," Guo Jia said with a laugh. Liu Yao echoed the sentiment with a knowing smile, quietly awaiting the arrival of Dong Zhuo's massive army.

Hulao Pass was merely fifty miles away from Luoyang. Consequently, it did not take Dong Zhuo much time to lead his army of one hundred and fifty thousand to Hulao Pass. Perhaps because of Liu Yao's intervention, Dong Zhuo had not dispatched forces to attack Sishui Pass, choosing instead to quietly await the arrival of the coalition of warlords.

On the side of the coalition, Yuan Sheng, along with nine other warlords—Cao Cao, Wang Kuang, Qiao Mao, Bao Xin, Yuan Yi, Kong Rong, Zhang Yang, Zhang Chao, and Tao Qian—acted as the vanguard, marching their forces directly toward Hulao Pass. Meanwhile, Yuan Shu and several other warlords were left behind by Yuan Yuan; first, to properly consolidate Sishui Pass, and second, to provide reinforcements to Hulao Pass should the situation permit.

As for Liu Yao, he naturally acted in unison with the rest of the coalition. Originally, Liu Yao's command consisted of twenty thousand troops, which, combined with Hua Xiong's twenty thousand Xiliang cavalry, instantly swelled his forces to a total of forty thousand. They marched imposingly and mightily toward Hulao Pass.

Before the gates of Hulao Pass, the coalition set up their camp and immediately formed battle formations facing the fortress. Simultaneously, the figure of Dong Zhuo abruptly appeared atop the ramparts of Hulao Pass, bellowing down at the coalition arrayed below, "Where is the General of the Household Gentlemen of the Rapid Cavalry?"

Hearing that Dong Zhuo was actually calling for him, Liu Yao could not help but smile inwardly, knowing that Dong Zhuo had come to seek him out on account of his family members. Accompanied by Zhao Yun and Huang Zhong, the three of them rode past the coalition's formations and halted at the very front of the army.

Looking up at Dong Zhuo atop the city wall, Liu Yao asked deliberately, feigning ignorance, "Dong Zhongying, what brings you to call upon me?"

Dong Zhuo flew into a rage upon hearing this. Entire households of his family were currently in Liu Yao's hands, yet the man still had the audacity to ask what he wanted. Nonetheless, forcing a semblance of calm, Dong Zhuo shouted back, "General, why on earth did you capture my family members? Do you not know that misfortunes do not reach a man's wife and children? Are you not afraid of marring your own great reputation?"

"What a joke, Dong Zhuo! Given the atrocities you have committed, even executing your entire clan down to the nine degrees of kinship would be no more than you deserve. How dare you speak of misfortunes not reaching wife and children? Is that something you have any right to say?" Liu Yao sneered. Then, shifting the topic, he continued, "However, it is indeed true that your family members were invited away by me, Liu Yao. Rest assured, they are doing quite well right now; I am naturally treating them with the finest food and drink."

"General, whatever your conditions may be, out with them at once!" Dong Zhuo said, fiercely suppressing his rising fury. After all, with the current situation stacked against him, he had no choice but to swallow his pride.

Liu Yao had never expected Dong Zhuo to be so sensible. Radiating a murderous aura, he stated, "Dong Zhuo, I have no excessive demands. I require that from this day forward, you shall never set foot into the imperial palace of my late emperor ever again. Furthermore, you must not damage the ancestral temples and shrines of the Liu family, nor the city of Luoyang itself. Otherwise..." Liu Yao left the sentence unfinished, but the intent to threaten was palpable. Liu Yao was well aware that Dong Zhuo would eventually move the capital to Chang'an, and when that time came, he would burn the entirety of Luoyang to the ground and excavate the tombs of the late emperors and imperial concubines to plunder their treasures.

That was tantamount to digging up Liu Yao's ancestral graves—something Liu Yao could never, under any circumstances, accept. Hence why he made this demand. As for Dong Zhuo's family members, Liu Yao truly did not care much about them; after all, the saying that misfortunes do not reach family was indeed true, and had Liu Yao not needed to protect the imperial tombs, he would never have done something that compromised his reputation. As for whether other wealthy households and officials in Luoyang would be subjected to having their estates confiscated by Dong Zhuo, Liu Yao simply had no spare time to concern himself with such matters.

Standing beside him, Li Ru broke out into a cold sweat upon hearing Liu Yao's words. He stared at Liu Yao in absolute terror, as if he were gazing upon a ghost or a deity. He had originally harbored the very intention of persuading Dong Zhuo to relocate the capital to Chang'an. Once they moved to Chang'an, Luoyang would become utterly useless. Yet even if it were useless, it could not be left intact for these warlords. Therefore, the best course of action would be to pillage and burn Luoyang to ashes. But now, Liu Yao's condition completely blocked off his own plan. Unless it was a sheer coincidence, it meant that Liu Yao possessed the terrifying ability to foresee the future. To make an enemy of such an opponent was truly terrifying.

"You are threatening me?!" Veins bulged on Dong Zhuo's face as he roared in fury. How could a man like Dong Zhongying ever willingly stomach the threats of another?

"Precisely, I am threatening you! If you do not believe me, feel free to try and test whether I dare to make a move," Liu Yao threatened coldly.

"My lord, one must endure small humiliations to achieve a grand scheme," Li Ru whispered urgently from the side.