The battlefield surrounding Tou had become a sea of blood.
Wave after wave of Chu soldiers surged forward under Karin's command, determined to bury the Qin Great General beneath an endless tide of men.
From atop her enormous command tower, Karin rested her cheek upon her hand, watching the battlefield with a lazy smile.
"Hm..."
"Looks like we've shown enough grandeur... and enough cuteness."
She stretched before waving her fan.
"Time to switch locations."
"We're going somewhere much more interesting."
Without another glance at Tou, Karin's colossal command tower slowly changed direction, followed by thousands of elite Chu soldiers.
Far to the west...
The earth trembled.
Soldiers from both Qin and Chu unconsciously stopped fighting as every eye turned toward two towering figures.
Mou Bu.
Kan Mei.
Neither spoke.
Their eyes alone carried the weight of their nations.
The strongest man of Qin.
The strongest man of Chu.
Both tightened their grips around their massive maces.
Then…
BOOM!!
The two monsters charged.
Their weapons collided with such overwhelming force that the shockwave blasted nearby soldiers from their feet. The ground split beneath them as dust exploded into the sky.
Another swing.
BAAAAM!!
Another earth-shattering impact.
Veteran commanders stared in disbelief.
"This..."
"...is no battle between men."
Karin's command tower arrived overlooking the duel.
Her smile widened.
"So that's where Kan Mei is having his fun."
She lazily waved a finger.
"Ka En."
A Chu commander immediately knelt.
"My Lady Sister."
Karin pointed toward Mou Bu.
"I've grown tired of watching."
"Go."
"Stab Mou Bu through the heart from behind."
Ka En smiled coldly.
"As you wish."
Without another word, he disappeared into the battlefield like a shadow.
Not far away...
Mou Ten's sharp eyes immediately caught the movement.
"...!!"
"Someone's aiming for Father!"
Without hesitation he pulled his reins.
"Gyoku Hou! With me!"
His cavalry burst forward at full speed.
Dust exploded beneath their horses as Mou Ten raced to intercept Ka En before the chu commander could reach Mou Bu.
At that very moment...
A panicked messenger climbed Karin's command tower.
"My Lady!!"
Karin glanced sideways.
"What is it now?"
The messenger's face had turned completely pale.
"Our rear headquarters..."
"...has been attacked!"
Karin's smile disappeared.
"...What?"
"The Coalition headquarters has fallen!"
"Lord Shun Shin Kun..."
"...has been slain!"
For the first time since the battle began...
Karin's playful expression vanished.
Hyou Ren's Point of View
The Coalition headquarters burned.
Broken banners fluttered in the smoke.
Corpses littered the command camp.
Leading the charge was Hyou Ren.
His black armor was drenched in blood.
Beside him rode Mo Yun and the elite cavalry.
The Coalition guards desperately attempted to reform their lines.
"Protect Lord Shun Shin Kun!"
"Do not let them through!"
Hyou Ren lowered his sword.
"Charge."
The Qin cavalry exploded forward.
Like a black tidal wave they crashed through every defensive line.
No formation could withstand them.
No commander survived the collision.
Inside the headquarters...
Shun Shin Kun stared in disbelief.
"How..."
"How did Qin reach this place...?"
Before anyone could answer…
Hyou Ren's horse burst through the collapsing barricades.
Their eyes met.
For only a heartbeat.
Shun Shin Kun opened his mouth.
"You…"
SHIIING!!
One clean swing.
His head flew into the air.
Silence.
The Prime Minister of Chu...
One of the architects of the Coalition...
Had fallen.
Hyou Ren calmly dismounted.
He picked up the severed head.
Then tied it securely to the side of his horse.
Moments later...
Mo Yun rode over.
"My Lord!"
Hyou Ren turned toward him.
"Riboku?"
Mo Yun shook his head.
"We searched every command tent."
"He is not here before we arrived."
Hyou Ren clicked his tongue.
"So he abandoned the headquarters."
He looked toward the distant battlefield where thunderous explosions echoed endlessly.
The duel between Mou Bu and Kan Mei.
A faint smile appeared.
"Since we're already on Chu's battlefield..."
"...then let's join the party."
The army roared.
"YES, MY LORD!!"
The Qin Army immediately divided.
Mo Yun led one wing.
Hyou Ren led the other.
Both descended upon Kan Mei's rear from opposite directions.
Mo Yun's cavalry smashed directly into the Chu rear guard.
General Bei Man barely had time to react.
"What…!?"
SLASH!!
Mo Yun's glaive cleaved through him, sending his body crashing from his horse.
The Chu rear immediately descended into chaos.
Meanwhile...
Hyou Ren charged directly toward the chu strategist Jin Ou.
The Chu strategist roared.
"You dare attack our rear?!"
His blade descended toward Hyou Ren.
Hyou Ren slipped beneath it.
One thrust.
His sword pierced Jin Ou's throat.
The commander collapsed instantly.
Without slowing down...
Hyou Ren drew his bow.
Far across the battlefield...
Gou Ma Shou was desperately shouting orders.
"Reform the line! Hold the…"
FWOOOSH!!
The arrow flew across the battlefield.
It pierced straight through Gou Ma Shou's eye.
He died before his body struck the ground.
Kan Mei witnessed everything.
His rear.
His commanders.
His headquarters.
Everything...
Was collapsing.
His eyes shifted toward Hyou Ren's banner.
Then he saw it.
Shun Shin Kun's severed head hanging from Hyou Ren's horse.
Kan Mei's eyes widened.
"The Prime Minister..."
"...has fallen?"
For the first time in the battle...
Kan Mei hesitated.
That single instant...
Was all Mou Bu required.
His entire body swelled with monstrous strength.
"I AM MOU BU!!"
His mace descended with the weight of a mountain.
BOOOOOOOOM!!
The crushing blow shattered Kan Mei's guard.
His armor exploded apart.
Bones splintered.
The strongest warrior of Chu was driven into the earth.
Kan Mei...
Was dead.
From atop her command tower...
Karin watched everything unfold.
Her gaze settled upon Hyou Ren.
"...So."
"You're the one who broke Chu's momentum."
She sighed.
"What an irritating monster."
Looking across the battlefield, she instantly understood the situation.
Kan Mei was dead.
His commanders had been slain.
Hyou Ren's armies had struck their rear.
If she continued pressing Tou, her own army would soon be surrounded.
She clicked her tongue.
"Signal the withdrawal."
One of her officers hesitated.
"My Lady?"
"If we continue attacking Tou..."
"...we'll become the ones surrounded."
"Withdraw immediately."
The Chu horns echoed across the battlefield.
Karin's massive army immediately disengaged from Tou and began an orderly retreat.
Hyou Ren slowly rode to the center of the battlefield.
Around him, the last remnants of Kan Mei's army desperately attempted to regroup.
He raised his sword.
"Leave none alive."
The Qin cavalry answered with a thunderous roar.
"YES, MY LORD!"
Like wolves descending upon wounded prey, they crashed into the shattered Chu formations.
Leaderless and broken by the deaths of Kan Mei, Jin Ou, Gou Ma Shou, Bei Man, and Shun Shin Kun, the once-proud Chu army collapsed. Those who resisted were cut down without mercy, while countless others abandoned their weapons and fled in terror.
When the slaughter finally came to an end, Hyou Ren dismounted.
He untied Shun Shin Kun's severed head from his horse.
Then, before the eyes of tens of thousands of soldiers, he raised it high into the air.
His voice thundered across the battlefield.
"LOOK WELL!"
"The Prime Minister of Chu..."
"The Supreme Commander of the coalition armies..."
"SHUN SHIN KUN IS DEAD!"
For a heartbeat...
The battlefield became utterly silent.
Every Chu soldier froze.
Their faces turned pale as they recognized the unmistakable face of the man who had united Chu beneath the Coalition.
"No..."
"It... it cannot be..."
"Lord Shun Shin Kun..."
Despair spread through the Chu ranks like wildfire.
The death of Kan Mei had already shaken their spirits.
Now, with the death of their Prime Minister, the very heart of Chu's army was crushed.
Across the battlefield, Qin soldiers erupted into deafening cheers.
"OOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHH!!"
"Victory for Qin!"
Tou watched from afar and allowed himself a faint smile.
"So... Hyou Ren reached the Coalition headquarters."
Mou Bu looked toward the raised head of Shun Shin Kun before turning back to the fleeing Chu soldiers.
"Their spirit is broken."
Far away, Karin silently watched Hyou Ren.
"...So Shun Shin Kun has truly fallen."
Her expression remained calm, but her thoughts raced.
"The Coalition still stands..."
"...but Chu has suffered a wound that will not heal today."
She closed her fan.
"The center of this alliance has begun to crack."
Elsewhere, a messenger finally reached Ri Boku.
The Zhao strategist listened in silence.
"...Shun Shin Kun is dead?"