The unbroken Serpent's Spine had one greatest pass: the gateway to the Vale of Eternal Blossoms, the Gate of the Setting Sun.
Every hundred years, the mantid launched an assault on the Serpent's Spine, and their primary target was the Gate of the Setting Sun.
Because directly beyond the Gate of the Setting Sun lay the Vale of Eternal Blossoms. The heart of Y'Shaarj, the most powerful of the seven Old Gods—the master and god worshipped by the mantid—was located there.
To free the god who was their sole faith, the mantid never ceased launching the Cycle of Battle.
After a hundred years of buildup, given the mantid's terrifying breeding capacity, every centennial Cycle of Battle saw millions of mantid assault the Gate of the Setting Sun.
Over the past ten thousand years, the mantid had launched more than a hundred Cycles of Battle. Countless heroic spirits from both sides had remained forever atop the Gate of the Setting Sun. That was why it was called the Gate of the Setting Sun: every hard-won victory came at an incomparably enormous price.
It was said that whenever the Shado-Pan warriors emerged victorious, all they saw when they looked toward the horizon was a blood-red setting sun.
This time, under the influence of the Sha, the mantid had mobilized on an unprecedented scale. Normally, they left behind large numbers to breed and await the next Cycle of Battle, but the Sha of Fear, Sha of Doubt, and Sha of Despair did not care about such things. They had driven nearly every mantid from its nest.
The unprepared Shado-Pan garrison at the Gate of the Setting Sun had been caught completely off guard. They had never anticipated such a massive upheaval. The troops outside the pass were swallowed by the mantid horde, which