The Shifting Battlefield

Rivers and streams are probably the most hated terrain for any cavalry.

Especially artificial rivers, those that defy natural laws, designed purely for "aesthetics," completely disregarding practical considerations.

What are rivers supposed to look like? It doesn't matter. Artificial rivers just need to be beautiful. With nearly vertical banks that can hold as much water as possible, creating a sparkling, aesthetically pleasing sheen.

However, this is definitely not pleasant terrain for the two individuals intending to battle on the river.

A riverbank more than thirty meters deep means that if Lu Bu falls in, he'll be forced to dismount Red Hare. Due to the nature of his Noble Phantasm, Lu Bu absolutely cannot dismount Red Hare. This is a "prerequisite." Otherwise, everything will be over.

In mid-air, the crimson steed fully displayed its legendary agility. Its mane seemed to surge like black flames, and its powerful hooves landed heavily on a wide ice floe, causing it to bob and dip. One couldn't help but marvel at how perfectly Red Hare and Lu Bu complemented each other, a seamless match. Even with such an unexpectedly unstable landing, Red Hare skillfully adjusted its body, providing stable support for Lu Bu on the shifting ice. The Servant, renowned as the Flying General, felt almost no tremor, maintaining excellent balance.

Leonidas was not as refined. The ice floe beneath him churned violently from the force of his landing. He then leaped, changing his footing three or four times to absorb the impact before finally stabilizing himself.

"Heh... You don't seriously think cavalry can't attack just because there are no plains, do you?"

Lu Bu scoffed, his defiant posture seeming to mock Leonidas's recklessness while simultaneously showcasing his peerless bravery.

Red Hare snorted, as if echoing Lu Bu. The essence of magic flowed vigorously through its breath. Sensing his partner's support, Lu Bu let out a hearty laugh, turned his halberd, and without waiting for Leonidas's reply, shouted, "Giddy up!" The crimson figure charged again, like a serpentine lightning bolt, swiftly galloping towards Leonidas!

However...

Clang!

Spear and halberd clashed!

Leonidas, wielding his spear with both hands, treated the heavy shaft like a club, spinning it in a half-circle and swinging it sideways at Lu Bu! Lu Bu, not to be outdone, brought his halberd up from below in a sweeping slash!

If the battlefield were to become like this, then... Lu Bu's landing points would be easy to predict.

As cavalry, the only places he could fight were on the "ice floes." Once the ice floes shattered into smaller pieces, his jumping direction would be clearly known!

This is "Thermopylae"!

The 300 Spartans and the approximately seven thousand allied Greek forces absolutely could not stop Xerxes's army of two hundred thousand. At the simplest, they could have dispatched thirty thousand to surround them, and the remaining seventeen thousand would have marched straight through.

Yet, they managed to do it, intercepting Xerxes's army for three days and three nights with less than ten thousand men at Thermopylae.

The reason was... the unique terrain of Thermopylae.

The narrow pass maximally negated the advantage in numbers. No matter how many men arrived, only about a hundred could reach the front line, nullifying the numerical superiority. What remained was a direct confrontation of combat prowess!

Many people considered Leonidas a brute. However, it's important to remember that "defending at Thermopylae" was Leonidas's idea. He strongly advocated for resisting the Persian army and considered Thermopylae the most crucial battlefield. If he were a brute, how could he have such clear logic?

Within this heroic, muscular physique lay the rationality and wisdom of a king and a commander.

He was a fierce warrior, but even fierce warriors had different levels. Some excelled at single-handedly defeating a thousand enemies and charging into battle, like Lu Bu. Others excelled at commanding armies, turning the tide of disadvantage, like Leonidas.

By shattering the ice field, he was constructing terrain favorable to himself. Lu Bu could only leap between ice fragments, thus reducing Leonidas's defensive routes! This way, no matter how fast Lu Bu was, as long as his attack routes were understood, he would be much easier to deal with! In principle, it was exactly the same as the Battle of Thermopylae: utilizing terrain advantages to maximally neutralize the enemy's strengths.

On the Ice Castle, Abner overlooked the terrain through a semi-transparent ice wall, watching the two crimson figures continuously clash amidst the expanse of white and black-blue. The deafening roars of violent metal impacts echoed within the castle's empty walls...

"Truly... I've acquired a skilled warrior."

He sighed with emotion, a sense of pride rising within him. Summoning Leonidas was his idea, and in terms of results, he had drawn an excellent trump card for himself.

Although he appeared difficult to manage, once one understood his temperament, this straightforward Servant was quite easy to get along with.

He continued to focus his gaze on the two combatants, simultaneously channeling the magic crests within his body with all his might. The surging magical energy was almost visibly pouring out of him, and he was prepared to support Leonidas at any moment!

However, the battle between the two Servants offered no room for him to intervene.

His Servant was fighting valiantly, and what he, the Master... no, as a friend, could do was ensure he didn't have to worry about mana depletion and could fight with all his might.

The force of their impacts naturally transferred through their massive bodies into the ice below, the recoil pushing the ice blocks slowly apart. After only three exchanges, the ice floes had separated by more than ten meters. The two then leaped sideways with great coordination, darting and leaping between the shattered ice, striking and disengaging.

Each leap was inevitably accompanied by three or four sounds of metal clashing, and then the battlefield would change again.

Leonidas aimed to maximally neutralize Lu Bu's speed. Meanwhile, Lu Bu was also roused, determined to settle the score head-on! Both were Servants in the red and gold spectrum, like two dancing flames, attempting to devour each other on the endless sea of ice, igniting an even fiercer crimson.

Suddenly, Lu Bu leaped again! The crimson steed was like a cannonball wreathed in flames, its roaring magical energy transforming into terrifying impact force! However, Leonidas had dealt with leaping strikes multiple times and was gradually becoming adept. Leonidas focused, gripping his spear with both hands, and thrust it towards the horse's back!

He missed!

No!

This wasn't a matter of Leonidas misjudging his aim. The Spartan warrior could not make such a subtle error in spear technique!

Leonidas's spear had accurately pierced where Lu Bu's hip bone should have been.

But the spear had not hit Lu Bu.

Because, from the very beginning, there was no one on the horse's back!

Yes!

Lu Bu wasn't on the horse's back! Leonidas quickly shifted his gaze. Because Red Hare's crimson color was so exceptionally agile and conspicuous, and Lu Bu's coordination with Red Hare was so seamless, as if they were one entity, Leonidas had almost forgotten that this was one person and one horse! Not a centaur monster!

Lu Bu! He had leaped from the horse's back! Using the warhorse's presence to momentarily disappear from the enemy's attention...

Whoosh!

That was the sharp whistling sound of heavy metal cutting through the air! Leonidas had no time to confirm Lu Bu's position. Vaguely hearing the wind, he estimated the direction of the attack and quickly retracted his spear, turning to sweep it against the Fangtian Halberd behind him!

Lu Bu was seen lunging from behind Leonidas, wielding his halberd!

Clang!

It was like a baseball game, the clash of spear and Fangtian Halberd ending with Lu Bu at a severe disadvantage!

The arrogant Lu Fengxian was sent flying by Leonidas in mid-air! Like a giant baseball, his bronze beast-helmed armor swayed dazzlingly gold in the air!

Was it a strategy?

Leonidas's heart skipped a beat. Lu Bu's strength was far less than it was at the beginning...

However, in that moment of hesitation, Lu Bu in mid-air revealed a cold smile. Being sent flying by Leonidas, even if it meant making such a humiliating move, Lu Bu's next attack was naturally one he had absolute confidence in!

He skillfully adjusted his body in mid-air, raising his halberd with one hand, like a javelin thrower!

"Ha!"

With a fierce roar, the gleaming halberd instantly transformed into a meteor tearing through the night sky! It sped towards Leonidas!

"What!"

Leonidas had just sent Lu Bu flying and was at the end of his spear thrust. He had no choice but to fully engage his muscles, forcibly retracting the spear's momentum, and reluctantly turning it back, aiming its tip at the halberd's edge!

Dong!

However, the moment the spear and halberd met, Leonidas felt a heavy blow to his abdomen again!

It was Lu Bu!

In mid-air, as the valiant warrior threw his halberd, he delivered a flying kick, his long leg shooting towards Leonidas's body like an arrow!

The ultimate manifestation of Lu Bu's mounted combat, the Fourfold Coordination, a dual attack from the sky and ground!

The first layer: Red Hare drew the enemy's attention, and Lu Bu seized the opportunity to leap and strike from the [side].

Unfortunately, he was sent flying by Leonidas.

The second layer: Using the momentum from being sent flying, he threw his halberd in mid-air, striking from [above]. If the enemy defended against the first strike, their stance would inevitably be greatly disrupted, making it difficult to deal with this attack.

However, Leonidas still managed to pull back his spear and block the halberd...

Then came the third layer of attack! Taking advantage of the halberd distracting Leonidas, Lu Bu kicked down from mid-air, striking Leonidas's abdomen with his foot, while simultaneously grabbing the halberd and using its special [crescent structure] to hang in front of Leonidas!

Finally, even a warrior like Leonidas was caught off guard by Lu Bu's skillful coordination...

But... this was the [Fourfold] Coordination!

The fourth attack was...

"Red Hare! Come back!"

Lu Bu's heroic voice almost shattered Leonidas's eardrums. Beneath the thunderous sound, his undisguised joy was evident.

In fact, Lu Bu didn't need to say anything more.

His like-minded partner, after parting ways with his master, had already galloped forward a considerable distance, building up a full sprint, and then turned back, charging towards the two combatants!

With enough distance, Red Hare could accelerate to its maximum speed!

The mass of Red Hare, combined with its speed, resulted in terrifying kinetic energy! Why can a speeding train kill people? It's the kinetic energy generated by the combination of speed and mass! Having only mass or only speed is not enough.

This fourth attack was a suicidal charge from Red Hare towards the enemy's unguarded back, while Lu Bu occupied the enemy!

Lu Fengxian was a master of mounted combat, having spent his life on the battlefield. He hadn't ridden any terrifying mythical beasts, nor could he be compared to the Riders who had participated in previous Holy Grail Wars. However, the ability to completely master the horse he rode and evolve unparalleled combat tactics—who could deny him the title of Rider!

Riding ancient exotic beasts is indeed a characteristic of a Rider, but being able to control an ordinary beast at will and display peerless mounted combat skills is also the mark of a Rider.

Amidst the heavy breaths of Red Hare's neighing, Leonidas turned back in terror. In his chestnut pupils, he saw the crimson figure growing larger, powerfully charging towards his back!

Fiery red instantly engulfed his entire field of vision!