Liu Pan was the first opponent Qin Tian had encountered in Jing Province, and now the only general stationed outside under Liu Biao's command.
With Jiangxia and Jiangling breached, Huang She surrendered, Wen Ping captured, and Cai Mao fleeing, Liu Pan's force was the only one left south of Xiangyang!
It could be said that once Liu Pan was defeated as well, Qin Tian could march north to join forces with Liu Bei and encircle Xiangyang City.
Yet Liu Pan still did not know that Jiangling had fallen to Qin Tian. He did not even know that Qin Tian had quietly moved north.
Because he had once let his guard down and suffered two consecutive defeats at Qin Tian's hands, losing soldiers and commanders alike, his force of more than twenty thousand had dwindled to less than twenty thousand.
By comparison, Qin Tian had brought forty thousand troops, absorbed over ten thousand soldiers from Changsha and Wuling, and had Guiyang and Lingling at his back.
The disparity in strength had already grown too great for Liu Pan to ignore, so he could only hold fast and refuse battle!
Even when Qin Tian sent Taishi Ci to station more than ten thousand troops at Zuotang, he did not dare take the initiative to attack Qin Tian's detached force.
This allowed Qin Tian to quietly lead his troops north while Liu Pan remained utterly unaware, believing Qin Tian's main force was still in the south.
Unexpectedly, that day he received a report saying that unusual activity had been spotted on the river: a force was traveling by ship from west to east.
This force was naturally Huo Jun's contingent sent out by Cai Mao. Liu Pan was startled at first, then heard that another force was traveling from east to west.
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