Baron, Zhang Da Zhi, and commander Ke gathered in the Combined Dragon’s war room which was located in Zhang Da Zhi’s camp to discuss a few matters.

(BM) “Well, looks like this battle is nearing its end. Quite a shame actually, I did not think we would be able to win this easily.” Baron said as he held up a cup of wine.

(ZDZ) “Indeed, this was above all of our expectations. However, this just proves that we are great strategists, hahaha.” Zhang Da Zhi said with a hearty laugh.

(CK) “I’m just a little saddened by the fact that commander Ba is not here to join in on our toast.” Commander Ke sighed.

(ZDZ) “Don’t think like that, just think of his capture as a necessary sacrifice so that we would be able to win the war.”

(BM) “I don’t completely agree with Zhang Da Zhi, but you must know that there are no sacrifices that go unnoticed in war.”

(CK) “I suppose, let’s all forget about this matter, for now, cheers.”

(BM) “Cheers.”

(ZDZ) “Cheers.”

All three of them clinked cups and downed their wine. Showing their empty cups as they finished.

(BM) “Now, let’s get to the matters at hand. Even if we are on the verge of victory, we should not get complacent. We must crush them now so that they have no chance to counter us in any way.”

(ZDZ) “Heh, do you take us for fools, Baron? This is such a beginner mistake to make. Those who make such mistakes will not be able to become great strategists.”

(CK) “I agree, this is a bit of an insult to our skill, Baron.”

(BM) “It’s just a reminder, no need to get so defensive about it.”

(ZDZ) “Don’t forget, I will be waiting for that blueprint. After integrating it into my army, my defense and certain aspects of my offensive capabilities increased dramatically.”

(BM) “You have not earned it yet, you still have to kill one of the all-stars.”

(ZDZ) “Oh come one. How can I do that if they aren’t even showing up on the battlefield anymore?”

(BM) “Wait, seriously? Could they be planning something?”

(CK) “I wouldn’t think too much about it if I were you, Baron, in my case, Lun Hu deserted his army so that he could take out our Commander Ba. I wouldn’t exactly say that he got out on top of that trade, especially now that he doesn’t even have a large enough army to contest all of us.”

(BM) “I’m not so sure about that. My opponent, Xuan Feng didn’t seem to be at his best when we fought him together, Ke. I’m now wondering what happened to make his reaction time slower than what I have seen in the past as well as not making the most strategically sound decision a few times.”

(ZDZ) “Baron, you’re killing the mood. Stop thinking about this matter and let’s talk about how we will be able to break through tomorrow. This battle has dragged on long enough, I want it to end as soon as possible.”

(BM) “Hmmm…..”

(CK) “Baron, you’re overthinking the situation. Let’s talk about what we can do tomorrow, not the what-ifs.”

(BM) “A good strategist formulates their plan based on what they have seen. A great one will formulate a plan based on various other hypothetical situations… Excuse me, you two continue, I’ll be taking my leave early, just send a messenger to brief me on whatever you two come up with.”

With that, Baron left the room with both Ke and Zhang Da Zhi surprised at the urgency of Baron. However, the two still decided to continue the talks so that they would still have something ready for tomorrow. A few more trusted strategists were sent in to give their opinions on the matter.

As soon as Baron left the Combined Dragon’s war room, he immediately left their camp and headed straight for his. He called Yue Fei, Guan Yu, Meng Wu, and Roxi in so that they could talk about something in private.

(BM) “Guys, I think that there is something going on with the all-stars. This isn’t like them. This was too easy. There has to be something else that we are missing.”

(YF) “I have had the same feeling as you. This just doesn’t seem like the same Xuan Feng that we fought before.” Yue Fei added.

(GY) “I trust you, Baron, I’ll send out some scouts in a few directions and have a look around and see if there has been any suspicious activity around here.”

(BM) “Good, Meng Wu! Get everyone under you to be on guard, it’s better to overreact in this situation than being caught off guard.”

(MW) “You got it, I won’t let any of them let their defenses down.” Meng Wu said.

(BM) “Roxi, I know that you aren’t going to like this, but I think you should really get that special weapon of yours primed and ready. We may or may not need all of them.”

(RB) “It’s that serious of a problem? I’m surprised that you are acting this way. Alright. I’ll have them ready, but all of you better make sure that you don’t miss your cue if we do seriously have to use them. This is perhaps one of the most powerful handheld weapons that I have ever seen.”

(BM) “Not to worry, we have already practiced for this. We only have one chance, so failure is not an option. If there is really nothing then I will see you all with one hell of an achievement under our belts. Good luck to all of you.”

All 5 of them nodded to each other as if they knew what each other were thinking. Then, they all left the room and began to work on their own little projects that Baron and the others had agreed upon. The 18th day of battle began with many of Baron’s soldiers being fanned around the immediate surroundings to assess if there were any other enemies nearby.