Present King Zhao and his Qi warriors were ready for war, though not as prepared as he would have liked. His father, King Zhuan, had reportedly commanded at least five times as many men, possibly even ten times as many when he fought against the demonic Wild. The signs of their diminished strength were everywhere. Abandoned farms and shops lined the road, evidence of a once-thriving town now in ruins. This stark reality gave King Zhao pause.
However, on this day, as the sun rose behind them and gilded their spear tips, the enemy melted away before them, abandoning the siege as if Xiang Stronghold had never truly been under threat. The army halted at the edge of the great river, and the Royal Huntsmen finished off any swamplings too slow to descend the great earth cliff to the beach below. Heralds counted the dead and debated whether to consider the destruction of the small enemy force as a battle.
