Liu Bei kept himself immersed in his studies to keep from slipping into the deep depression that threatened to take hold of him. Never had he actually thought that Cao Cao's evil could triumph over his righteous claim to the Han dynasty. Now it seemed impossible for his army to emerge victorious. Could this be the end of his claim to be Emperor?

"Dammit!" he shouted and slammed his fist on his table. And why had he sent out Wei Yan? That seemed like a foolish plan to him right now. He should have just sent Guan Yu. It was true that the old general had a tendency to offend people, but he trusted him as a brother. Especially after the Oath which made them brothers. He guessed it just came down to the fact that he was running out of good officers. He had to send someone who didn't command any troops and who would probably not be pivotal to the battle that could possibly take place while he was gone.

Zhuge Liang walked in. "Filled with tension still, I see."

"I can't take anymore of this!" Liu Bei said. He was losing it right before Zhuge Liang's eyes.

"My Lord, he's just one man. Lu Bu will not make or break any battles."

"Explain that last battle then! We had every conceivable advantage, then we were just suddenly wiped out by that bastard!"

The sorcerer didn't know if he really believed what he was saying, but Liu Bei really needed to raise his morale. Soon his troops would probably begin deserting. "Look, if you're that scared of him, let's just have all our officers converge on him at once and wipe him out. Even Lu Bu couldn't fight that many officers at a time."

"I'd really rather not do that."

"But do we really have a choice, my Lord? Can you beat him yourself?"

"No, I don't think so."

Zhuge Liang walked to right near the exit of the tent. "Well, I'm suggesting we attack tomorrow. Right now we have the advantage in numbers. He could receive reinforcements if we wait too long." With that, the sorcerer was gone.

Liu Bei actually understood what Zhuge Liang was saying, and he was aware that the great strategist was always right as well. He just didn't want to go back into combat. Perhaps he could send Guan Yu in his stead? No. His troops would not be happy if he were not out on the battlefield himself. There was only one option. Zhuge Liang's plan had to be followed.

The following day, Liu Bei sent his army out in force. Every officer but the inexplicably absent Wei Yan prepared their forces for battle, shouting battle cries mostly relating to killing Lu Bu. Liu Bei himself stayed behind because of the importance of his unit. If he acted foolishly this time, Lu Bu might not be so kind as to let him live.

Guan Yu and Zhang Fei rode up beside their commander and brother. "Brother," said Zhang Fei, "We're ready to engage the main enemy. Is it time yet?"

Liu Bei nodded. "Converge on Lu Bu's unit and end the beast's life!"

Guan Yu spun his spear around. "I don't normally condone of unfair fighting, but this is the exception. Lu Bu should already be dead."

Zhang Fei continued speaking as they rode away from Liu Bei, "I bet Dong Zhuo gave him one hell of a fight. He was a tough old man."

"True. But it's better that Lu Bu was victorious. Dong Zhuo would actually be a much more dangerous enemy. He had lots of alliances that we really don't need to face. But, hey, what's up with Liu Bei?"

Zhang Fei scratched his head. "I'm not sure. I thought he was acting a bit strange. Normally he'd want to be out there on the front lines. He must have been more affected by losing to Lu Bu the other day than we thought."

Guan Yu then mused, "Perhaps he's still recovering from that last battle. It was a pretty rough fight for all of Shu."

"Yeah, that must just be it."

With that, they prepared for what would be one of the defining battles of the war.

Meanwhile, heading toward them, Cao Cao's army (Cao Cao not being present) had the best of morale. A few more officers, including Cao Ang and Cao Pi, had shown up, sent by Cao Cao. Cao Bu was recovering from his injuries. A large section of the army was headed up by Xu Zhu (sp?), a very large man who wielded a great club. Cao Cao seemed to be fond of him for his many years of faithful service. Normally he would probably break off and fight Guan Yu, but this time he was given a mission. His forces were to sneak around and attack Liu Bei, who Lu Bu guaranteed them would not be on the front lines.

Xu Zhu was not a very intelligent man, possessing, for the most part, the mind of a child. But he could understand missions that were given to him, and he could carry them out with deadly proficiency.

As Lu Bu sat there pensively on top of Red Hare, he suddenly saw Liu Bei's forces come running over the horizon. "Here it comes. The battle of my life," he said rather quietly, then shouted, "All forces, rush them!"

They followed his command and both armies clashed. Men fell dead everywhere. However, not as many as would when all the officers reached the front lines. Wei did well to hold off Shu, having the advantage due to their set archer ambushes, but it was obvious that they would not win unless the officers' battling went in their favor.

That was when Lu Bu rushed out of the front of the Wei army and cut down a whole division in one sweep of his mighty halberd. "This won't be so easy, fools. None among you are worthy of being called my enemy!" he shouted as he mercilessly slaughtered any normal soldiers who got in his way.

The first officer to reach him was the powerhouse known as Taishi Ci. Taishi Ci was a very dangerous man who had joined Liu Bei in response to an offer for friendship. His giant rods he fought with had unrivaled power when he wielded them and he was known for sending enemies flying fifty feet or more with a good, solid blow.

Lu Bu jumped off his horse and prepared to defend himself. Taishi Ci yelled a battle cry and struck out with all his might at the beast's head. Lu Bu easily blocked it, a slight smile never leaving his face, then he countered, striking Tashi Ci in the face with the blunt end of his polearm. Never had the strong man been manhandled like that in his life, and now he was pissed. He rose up off the ground, his energy emanating from him visibly. "You die!" he shouted and struck with as much energy as he had.

Even Lu Bu would not try to block such a mighty blow, so he nimbly dodged it. Afterward he had plenty of time to gash Tashi Ci badly along the back with the point of his weapon. The Shu officer groaned and fell to the ground, very much ashamed of being defeated so easily.

Lu Bu had been lucky only one officer had found him at a time. However, he figured that luck was probably about to run out. And he found that this theory was correct when the brothers, Zhang Fei and Guan Yu, ran onto the scene at the exact same time. Liu Bei must have been especially worried, thought Lu Bu, he usually assigns one of them to each side of the battlefield. It truly was quite unusual to see them converge on the same enemy.

Despite slight dismay, Lu Bu had no doubts as to his ability. He stepped forward with extreme confidence. "Well, now. Shall we fight?"

End of Chapter Note: I have a lot of things going here. The next chapter will probably be a long one, detailing both Lu Bu's battle and Liu Bei's confrontation with Xu Zhu. Also, Wei Yan's reinforcements. It'll be cool. I'll get to work on that right now.