Big Charles pondered, “Let’s first talk about the Battle of Xiangfan. By that time, the Three Kingdoms had already entered a tripartite standoff. All three powers were fighting with large armies and multi-point support systems—it was no longer the era of warlords clashing in thousand-man skirmishes. The personal valor of generals was no longer important. With the defensive systems of the Three Kingdoms in place, whoever attacked first would suffer losses. That’s why you had situations like Cao Wei failing in repeated expeditions to Chao Lake, Sun Wu attacking Hefei six times without success, and Zhuge Liang’s six failed campaigns at Qishan. But Guan Yu, relying on the strength of just one province, directly shattered Cao Wei’s Xuchang defensive system and nearly forced Cao Cao to relocate the capital. In terms of military talent, that’s worthy of the title ‘Martial Saint’ and the praise ‘awe-inspiring across China’!”

　　Little William nodded, “Systematic warfare… that’s true!”

　　Big Charles continued, “As for Guan Yu’s defeat, let’s set aside the Jingzhou issue for now and just talk about Sun Quan’s group’s ability to besiege cities. Take their father’s killer, Huang Zu, the Prefect of Jiangxia—Gan Ning looked down on him, saying he was old, muddle-headed, neglected military preparations, and was doomed sooner or later. He was also just a doorkeeper general for Liu Biao, who wouldn’t give him full support. Yet, even such a Huang Zu forced Sun Quan to throw in all his main forces for years, losing several top generals. Even though Huang Zu was eventually defeated and killed, Jiangxia was never really lost.”

　　Little William nodded, “Huang Zu is quite an interesting character.”

　　Big Charles got more excited, “Then there’s Sun Quan attacking Jiangxia, which was defended by the surrendered general Wen Pin. After the city fell, Wen Pin didn’t even bother to repair it—he just went home to sleep and pulled off an ‘empty city ruse.’ Sun Quan was so spooked he didn’t dare attack, earning Wen Pin the nickname ‘Wen the Sleeper.’ Wen Pin guarded Jiangxia for decades until he died of old age, and Sun Quan never dared to make a move on Jiangxia.”

　　Little William kept nodding, “Wen Pin was a capable man.”

　　Big Charles got to the point, “And then there’s Sun Quan attacking Hefei—this one’s even more famous. It made Zhang Liao’s name as the terror of Xiaoyao Ford, and turned Sun Quan into a laughingstock as ‘Sun the Hundred-Thousand.’ The key is, Sun Quan spent his whole life attacking Hefei, from youth to old age, and never took it!”

　　Little William burst out laughing.

　　Big Charles concluded, “So that’s about the extent of Sun Quan’s siege skills. So I have just two words—‘Not convinced!’”

　　Little William said indignantly, “Exactly! None of us are convinced. We just can’t stand that bunch of Sun traitors!”

　　Big Charles asked cautiously, “So, did I get it right?”

　　Little William sighed, “No matter how clever those Sun traitors are, a loss is a loss. If you keep making excuses for Second Master, you’ll only tarnish his reputation and give people more reason to mock him. At that point, you’ll have to learn my secret technique and avoid meeting any key figures for a while!”

　　Huh? So as long as I don’t shift the blame, I’m good? Then I could just say, ‘A real man doesn’t pass the buck,’ and that’s it!

　　Big Charles said awkwardly, “So I cursed out the Sun traitors for nothing?”

　　Little William laughed, “But it felt great, didn’t it!”

　　Big Charles breathed a huge sigh of relief, “Actually, being able to learn William Bro’s secret technique is a blessing for me.”

　　Little William waved his hand and said seriously, “Have you ever heard of the Fast Blade Society in the city?”

　　Big Charles immediately recalled the rumors among players about these woodcutters, “You mean the ones chopping wood in the mountains?”

　　Little William stopped and looked at Big Charles with utmost seriousness, “Yes, the Fast Blade Society is a secret organization. Its purpose is to protect us woodcutters and retired soldiers from being bullied by landlords and powerful families. It’s similar to the Luban Society in the construction industry. But our Fast Blade Society is just a front—no one knows the real secret core department!”

　　Big Charles immediately understood, “William Bro, today I’ll treat it as if I died once. I’ll keep the secret.”

　　Little William nodded and continued, “The real core is the Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness! The head of the hall is Miss Guan the Third. Back in the day, Lame Grandpa went to the Central Plains, admired Lord Guan, and became a personal guard in the Guan household. He wasn’t lame back then. When Jingzhou fell, it was Lame Grandpa who protected the young lady and broke out… After that, Lame Grandpa became the branch leader stationed in Yongchang City! The Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness secretly selects loyal and righteous heroes, never forgetting the original aspiration to unite the world!”

　　Big Charles was overjoyed—so it really was Guan Yinping! Was he about to get her general’s token? Across the country, there were tens of thousands of players who had obtained general tokens, but only a handful had gotten female general tokens. Even though Yongchang had Lady Zhurong, few players in the city had ever seen her…

　　Big Charles was so excited he couldn’t wait, “So where can I meet Miss Guan the Third?”

　　Little William smiled, “You can go now. Today is the Dragon Boat Festival, the day with the strongest yang energy of the year, perfect for opening the Pure Yang Secret Realm! Guess how far we are from Yongchang City right now?”

　　Only then did Big Charles realize that, without noticing, he had arrived in a completely unfamiliar mountain forest. The birds were singing, the mountains were tranquil, and mist shrouded everything. He couldn’t hear the woodcutters’ mountain songs at all.

　　Big Charles was bewildered, “Where is this?”

　　Little William smiled, “Maybe a hundred li away!”

　　Big Charles was shocked, “William Bro, do you know immortal arts?”

　　Little William laughed, “Not really. Some special places undergo changes at certain times. All a mortal has to do is arrive at the right place at the right time—”

　　At this point, he pointed into the mist ahead, “Go in. Miss Third will personally test you. No matter how you do, you’ll still get a meeting gift. I’m off to pick mushrooms.”

　　So this is a dungeon quest! Big Charles was overjoyed, “Thank you for the guidance, William Bro!”

　　“Go on, go on!”