The Coalition Army's invasion had begun.
Across Qin's northern plains, banners numbering in the hundreds of thousands filled the horizon. Drums thundered without pause, while war horns echoed across the battlefield.
The first battlefield to erupt into chaos...
...was the Zhao front.
Standing atop a small hill, Hyou Ren silently observed the vast formation stretching before him.
Beside him stood Ri Yue, calmly surveying every movement of the enemy.
Far across the field, Zhao's headquarters overlooked the Qin army.
Keisha smiled faintly.
"So... this is the man Riboku spoke so highly of."
His gaze settled upon Hyou Ren's banner.
"Show me your worth."
The war began.
"ADVANCE!!"
The earth trembled.
Thousands of soldiers charged simultaneously as the distance between both armies rapidly disappeared.
At the forefront of the Qin army...
General Lu Shen raised his spear.
"Forward!"
His twenty thousand soldiers surged ahead like a crashing wave.
Across the battlefield...
General Ri Haku responded immediately.
"Meet them head-on!"
BOOOOOOM!!
The two armies collided with earth-shaking force.
Spears shattered.
Shields splintered.
Men were thrown from their horses as steel clashed against steel.
Lu Shen's elite troops forced themselves into Zhao's front line, while Ri Haku's veterans refused to yield a single step.
The center of the battlefield instantly became a brutal grind.
Watching the clash unfold...
Keisha narrowed his eyes.
"As expected..."
"The first move is merely a test."
Then...
Another roar shook the battlefield.
"GYAAAAAAAHHH!!"
The Duke Hyou Army charged.
Unlike Lu Shen's orderly formation...
Duke Hyou's soldiers resembled a stampede of wild beasts.
Leading the charge personally, Duke Hyou laughed as his glaive carved through Zhao soldiers.
"GYAHAHAHAHA!!"
"There!"
"I smell the fire!"
Beside him...
Shin rode fearlessly into battle.
"Hi Shin Unit!"
"Follow me!!"
The Duke Hyou Army slammed directly into the center of Ri Haku's formation.
BOOM!!
The already-engaged Zhao center suddenly bent inward.
Ri Haku's soldiers struggled to withstand the overwhelming momentum.
Within moments...
The Qin assault split into two streams.
One surged toward the left.
The other toward the right.
Like two giant fangs...
They struck the exposed flanks of Ri Haku's army.
Ri Haku's formation began to buckle.
Inside Zhao Headquarters...
Keisha remained calm.
"So that is your objective."
He calmly raised his hand.
"Send General Gaku Ei."
"Strike Duke Hyou's exposed rear."
Messengers immediately galloped away.
Moments later...
General Gaku Ei led his cavalry around the battlefield, aiming directly for Duke Hyou's vulnerable rear.
His eyes gleamed.
"The Duke has overextended."
"Now..."
"...fall."
But before Gaku Ei could reach his destination...
Another Qin banner suddenly appeared.
General Mo Yun.
Without hesitation, he drove his army directly into Gaku Ei's advancing force.
"Intercept them!"
BOOOOOOM!!
The two cavalry forces crashed into each other.
Gaku Ei's advance came to a complete halt.
Back at Zhao Headquarters...
Keisha's expression changed slightly.
"...Hm."
"So he anticipated that."
Without hesitation, he issued another command.
"General Son Sui."
"General Kin Mou."
"Destroy the Hi Shin Unit."
"Once accomplished..."
"Strike Lu Shen's rear."
This time...
Two Zhao armies moved simultaneously.
Like twin blades...
They advanced toward Shin.
At Qin Headquarters...
Ri Yue calmly watched their movements.
"They've committed."
Hyou Ren nodded.
"Exactly as expected."
He turned toward his waiting generals.
"Bao Jun."
"Tian Hao."
"Go."
"Hold both armies."
Neither man hesitated.
"Understood."
Moments later...
Bao Jun crashed into Son Sui's advancing force.
While...
Tian Hao intercepted Kin Mou before either general could even approach Shin.
Steel erupted once again.
The battlefield fractured into countless smaller engagements.
Every Zhao attack...
...was immediately met by an equal Qin response.
Time passed.
Dust covered the battlefield.
Reports flooded into Keisha's headquarters.
"Gaku Ei has been stopped!"
"Son Sui is engaged!"
"Kin Mou cannot advance!"
"Ri Haku's center remains under heavy pressure!"
Messenger after messenger delivered identical news.
Keisha's calm expression slowly disappeared.
His fingers tightened.
"...Impossible."
"They're responding..."
"...the instant I move."
His carefully woven web...
...wasn't trapping Qin.
It was being matched thread for thread.
For the first time in years...
Keisha felt pressure.
Cold sweat rolled down his forehead.
"What..."
"...is this feeling?"
At Qin Headquarters...
Ri Yue smiled faintly.
"We've found it."
Hyou Ren nodded while watching the battlefield unfold exactly as predicted.
"Keisha's greatest strength..."
"...is also his greatest weakness."
Ri Yue continued.
"He waits."
"He observes."
"He refuses to commit until his opponent makes the first move."
Hyou Ren folded his arms.
"So instead of trying to outmaneuver him..."
"...we simply mirror him."
"The moment he commits one piece..."
"...we commit one of our own."
Ri Yue looked toward the battlefield.
"Every attack is answered."
"Every maneuver is intercepted."
"Every opportunity disappears."
Hyou Ren finished the thought.
"And because he always reacts after seeing his opponent..."
"...once every one of his reactions is immediately matched..."
"...he has nowhere else to go."
Ri Yue nodded.
"The spider has become trapped inside his own web."
Far across the battlefield...
Keisha stared silently at the endless reports arriving one after another.
For the first time...
His battlefield had become completely still.
A perfect stalemate.
Exactly as Hyou Ren intended.
But while Zhao struggled to break free...
In the Chu battlefield...
Another battlefield finally awakened.
The banners of Chu stretched across the horizon like a sea of crimson.
War drums thundered.
Massive footsteps shook the earth.
At the very front...
A colossal warrior slowly raised his mace.
Kanmei.
Behind him stood Rinbukun and the elite commanders of Chu.
Across from them...
The Qin defenders tightened their formations.
The soldiers swallowed nervously.
Everyone understood.
What was about to begin...
...would be unlike anything seen on the Zhao front.
Kanmei slowly smiled.
Then...
He pointed his mace toward the Qin army.
"Advance."
The ground itself seemed to tremble beneath the march of Chu's giants.
The battle against Chu...
...was about to begin.