I formed the strongest swordsman group.

Chapter 967: Edo Siege War, End! [4400]

After much thought and contemplation by Leopard, it is finally decided to change the "Selfless Demon King" to "Heartless Ghost Child"; and to change the evolved "Selfless Ghost God" to "Heartless Demon Child". Please be informed!
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Qing Deng almost forgot when he last heard the system sound.

As his strength continues to grow, fewer and fewer people can survive 10 seconds under his sword.

A new talent...and it is an extremely rare eternal talent!
It is both unexpected and reasonable.

Shuten-doji possesses the ability to "freely enter the 'state of no self'", so it is only natural that he possesses a talent of this level.

What surprised Qing Deng was that Shuten Douji's talent could be integrated with the "Innate Selfless Holy Body +7".

If you think about it carefully, this may be because these two talents belong to the same type, and are the "superior" and "inferior" in the same field. Their relationship is the same as that of the "sword genius" and the "sword master", so they can blend with each other.

In any case, it is a blessing to be able to copy this talent.

There is no doubt that with the blessing of this talent, Qing Deng's strength will be able to achieve a leapfrog growth!

What a pity, he was so tired that he couldn't even lift a finger.

The intense fatigue left him no energy left to rejoice.

Since the system sound has been heard, it means that in the system's cognition, the outcome of this battle has been decided.

In fact, it does.

Tick…tick…tick…tick…tick…

Drops of blood gushed out along Shuten-doji's wound, flowed onto Vairocana's blade, then flowed onto Qingdeng's hand, and then flowed to Qingdeng's feet.

The blade feels solid when it enters the body.

Shuten-doji's chest was stabbed through.

Qing Deng was very sure that his knife had pierced Shuten-doji's left lung, left sternum and aorta, and would definitely kill him!
The chest is one of the vital parts of the human body.

If you are injured here, and it is a penetrating wound that goes from the chest to the back, there is no way you can survive!
No matter how powerful Shuten-doji is, he cannot escape the natural law of birth, aging, sickness and death!

At this moment, Qing Deng suddenly felt pain in both lungs - it was not until this moment that he realized that he had been holding his breath for a long time.

Then he exhaled all the foul air in his lungs with a "puff" sound, and then took big gulps of fresh air.

While regulating his breathing, he turned the handle of the knife in his hand with force, loosening the muscles and sternum that were tightly clamping the blade, then slowly drew the knife back to his hand.

Instantly, at the moment the blade left the body, Shuten-doji's wound was like a bathtub with the drain open, and huge amounts of blood gushed out!

Although Shuten-doji stepped firmly on his feet subconsciously, it was of no avail.

Soon, his body began to sway, like a paper man in the wind.

Finally... with a dull thud, he knelt down dejectedly, his head hanging on his chest, as if he was examining the wound on his chest...

……

……

(What am I doing...?)

Shuten-doji was too weak to raise his head and could only roll his eyes stiffly to look around.

The stage is still there and the audience is still there.

Qingdeng's black clothes were still there, and his white clothes were also still there.

But... the cheering stopped, the applause stopped.

It was eerily quiet.

At this moment, he suddenly realized that there seemed to be a new group of people in the audience seats around the stage.

After taking a closer look, he found that there were many familiar faces among this group of "new audiences".

There were corrupt officials who were beheaded by him, including the deputy official who caused his family to be destroyed and was eventually dismembered...

There are innocent people who were implicated by him and became consumables for his "great cause"...

They had no expression, no sound, and didn't even blink. They just stared at him like puppets...

(What…? Are you…trying to kill me…?)

He twitched the corners of his mouth in a self-deprecating sneer.

(I can’t move… You can curse me… You can kill me… If you want to do anything to me… Do it now…)
(But... let me be frank... I never regret anything I did...)
(If you want to force me to repent... then your efforts will be in vain...)
As if he had given up on himself, he silently withdrew his gaze and no longer looked at the "audience" around him.

But at this moment, he suddenly saw a familiar face out of the corner of his eye.

He immediately side-eyed and stared at the other person.

(Father……!)

His long-deceased father was standing closest to him.

However... his father was just like everyone else, with no expression and no words, just staring at him blankly.

(Father...you...)
His father's expression and reaction made Shuten-doji feel upset.

He subconsciously wanted to say something, to explain something to his father.

But when he was about to say this, he closed his lips silently.

As of now, he has nothing to say.

At that moment, he felt like he was back in that helpless night, back in that cold and dark prison.

I want to hate someone, but I don’t know who to hate.

I want to kill someone, but I don't know who to kill.

(I am not the loyal subject Oobishi Yuranosuke...)
The moment this thought arose, he and Qing Deng's costumes, the stage under their feet, and the surrounding audience seats all dissipated and turned into nothingness.

He returned to reality and to the dilapidated castle tower.

At the same moment he returned to reality, he slowly closed his eyes...

……

……

Shuten-doji's body tilted to the side and he collapsed to the ground in boredom, without any sign of life.

Qing Deng looked at Shuten-doji's body without any sadness or joy.

After confirming that the other party was indeed dead, he silently lowered his head, staring at Vairocana in his palm while recalling the details of the battle just now.

To be honest... he couldn't remember how he defeated Shuten-doji just now.

He only remembered that at a certain moment, his vision suddenly changed - that "transparent world" came again!

Shuten-doji, pillars, beams, tatami, wind, clouds... everything within sight becomes "transparent"!
While seeing through the internal structure, you can also see strange "airflow".

Every thing, whether it is a person or an object, has an unknown "air current" flowing inside it, the only difference is the quantity and size.

At the moment when Shuten-doji raised his sword to chop, the "air flow" in his body underwent a special change.

Although he couldn't explain it, he instinctively made a decision: the chance to win with one strike is right now!
Then, his body moved uncontrollably, as if "magnets attract each other", closing the distance at the speed of teleportation and stabbing Shuten-doji's chest with a knife.

Recalling this, Qing Deng subconsciously tightened the black knife in his hand, and his facial expression became extremely complicated.

——Here we go again… It’s the same situation again…!
Qing Deng was not unfamiliar with this situation, after all, he had experienced it several times before.

Knowing that this state is extremely powerful, one has no way of controlling it and can only let it appear and disappear from time to time... This feeling of powerlessness is truly distressing.

——Forget it… I’ll think about this kind of thing later…

He let out a silent breath, and the tiredness on his cheeks became more intense.

Not only did he defeat the powerful enemy and eliminate a major threat, but he also copied the eternal talent "Careless Demon Child" which had an incredible effect.

From the perspective of personal gains, this was undoubtedly a resounding victory.

However... Qing Deng did not feel any pleasure of victory at this moment.

He turned his head stiffly and looked outside the castle tower.

With his good vision, he could see the entire town of Edo clearly.

Raging flames, stinking smoke, collapsed houses, dead bodies all over the ground... the once "number one town in the world" has now become this tragic state.

Even the majestic Edo Castle, a symbol of the shogunate's authority, was destroyed beyond recognition. More importantly... Tokugawa Iemochi's life was hanging by a thread...

Yes, Aoto won, the Shinsengumi won, and the shogunate won.

But...can it still be considered a victory after paying such a huge price?

……

……

"Surrender quickly! Those who surrender will not be killed!"

"Damn it! I can't fight anymore!" (Russian)

"There are still a lot of enemy soldiers over there! Go and reinforce them!"

"Has the order to retreat not come down yet?" (Russian)

"No! I can't find the commander!" (Russian)

"Never mind! Let's retreat!" (Russian)

"No! There are enemy soldiers everywhere! There is nowhere to escape!" (Russian)

……

Before breaking into Edo Castle alone, Aoto handed over the overall command of the cavalry to Harada Sanosuke.

Although Harada Sanosuke is not a smart and wise man, he has always had a very sharp combat intuition.

Perhaps it is precisely because he has an empty head that he never hesitates and always acts very decisively and without ambiguity!
Facts have proved that Qingdeng's decision to entrust him with the important task of "wiping out the remaining enemies" was a very correct choice.

At this moment, he was standing on the Clock of Time in Kan'ei-ji Temple, observing the battlefields in various places, issuing precise orders, and advancing the front line in an orderly manner.

For the Shinsengumi soldiers, the current battle is nothing more than boring "garbage time".

The exhausted and demoralized remnants of the defeated army could not stop their attack at all!
The offensive of the 7th and 10th Divisions and the Aizu Iron Cavalry was like a raging flood! Every street and alley was washed clean!

Wherever he passed, the enemy soldiers collapsed as if ice had melted away!

Even the enemy soldiers who fought back stubbornly were quickly defeated and could hardly be of any use.

Obviously, the outcome has been decided.

It won’t be long before the few remaining enemy soldiers will be completely wiped out!
Although the outcome of the battle was clear, Harada Sanosuke's expression and nerves did not relax.

——Damn it! Haven’t you found “that guy” yet? !
When he thought of this, Harada Sanosuke couldn't help but feel depressed.

Just as he was secretly worried, he suddenly heard a cry:
"Captain Harada!"

He turned his head and saw the vice-captain of the 7th Division, Koto Nakazawa, riding towards him on horseback.

Seeing that the person coming was Nakazawa Koto, Harada Sanosuke immediately perked up and asked hurriedly:

"Vice Captain Nakazawa, have you found Katsura Kogoro?"

When handing over the battlefield, Qing Deng specifically instructed: Kill Katsura Kogoro first!

The most valuable targets among the enemy are Shuten-doji and Katsura Kogoro.

Kusaka Genzui and Takasugi Shinsaku had been killed one after another, and the only person who could take the lead in the Choshu domain was Katsura Kogoro.

In other words, if Katsura Kogoro is killed, it will cause irreparable harm to Choshu! Maybe it will make Choshu unable to recover from this!
As early as when he was halfway to Edo, Qing Deng had set a strategic goal for this rescue battle: everyone can be spared, except Shuten Douji and Katsura Kogoro who must die!
It was for this reason that he repeatedly demanded that Harada Sanosuke and others must find and kill Katsura Kogoro.

For this purpose, Harada Sanosuke specially allocated a part of his troops and let Koto Nakazawa lead this special forces to search for Katsura Kogoro's whereabouts.

Harada Sanosuke cast an expectant look towards Nakazawa Koto.

What a pity... Nakazawa Qin shook her head vigorously in embarrassment:

"No! I can't find him!"

Upon hearing this, Zuo Zhisuke instantly frowned and gritted his teeth in hatred.

"Damn it! 'Runaway Kogoro' really lives up to his reputation!"

……

……

Edo, northern suburbs——

"Run! Run! Everyone, run! The troops brought by the King are all cavalry. We will be safe as long as we escape into the woods!"

Katsura Kogoro shouted at the top of his voice, urging the soldiers of the special forces to move north.

"Runaway Kogoro" - although this title is a derogatory term to mock Katsura Kogoro, if you think about it from another perspective, this title may also be praising Katsura Kogoro.

Another way of saying “good at escaping” is “good at observing the situation” or “good at rallying people and maintaining order in critical moments”!
Everyone can fight when the wind is in their favor, but true ability is revealed when the wind is against you.

After discovering that the Shinsengumi had arrived, Katsura Kogoro acted decisively and quickly integrated the remaining forces of the Kiheitai - about 200 people - and retreated northward, bypassing the Shinsengumi's front line and successfully escaping Edo.

Next, they planned to retreat westward along Zhongshan Street back to Changzhou.

I have to say, this kind of courage to disregard "sunk costs" as nothing, to withdraw when necessary, and never to look back is truly amazing!

Because of their small size, they can move very quickly.

In just a short while, the lush forest was right before our eyes.

As long as they hide in this forest, the Shinsengumi will never be able to find them again.

At this moment, Katsura Kogoro suddenly stopped.

"..."

He turned his head with a serious expression and looked at Edo behind him.

In the huge Edo town, the smoke was still filling the air and the flames were still burning.

He didn't know the current situation of Shuten-doji and others, nor did he know whether they had succeeded in killing Tokugawa Iemochi.

However, somehow, he had a strong premonition: although they could not be said to have won this battle, they had not lost it either!

“…It’s not over yet.”

While muttering, he withdrew his gaze and plunged into the bushes in front of him.

When his figure was about to be swallowed by the shadow of the tree, a faint voice was heard:

"This is just the beginning...!"

……

……

The killing of the remaining bandits continued until dusk.

The sun setting in the west cast a weak afterglow, dyeing the sky orange.

Countless crows were circling in the sky, making annoying cries repeatedly.

The shouts and cries gradually died down… With nothing left to kill and nothing left to fight, the soldiers slowly put down their weapons, releasing their fighting stances, with bewildered expressions on their faces.

They all understood what was happening, but their tense nerves made it difficult for them to react in a short period of time.

"it's over……"

Suddenly, someone muttered this.

Before long, more and more people were repeating in a low voice, "It's over..."

After a while, the murmurs turned into shouts, and then into cheers!

"it's over!"

"we won!"

"We've secured Edo!"

“Oooooohh ...

Fists were shaken vigorously towards the sky!
Although the battle only lasted one day, there is no doubt that it was an extremely long day!
Although the winner and the loser have not yet been determined, what is certain at present is that this extremely fierce Edo Siege Battle, which is destined to go down in history, has ended!
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Today is the last day of this month! Book friends who have monthly tickets, please be sure to vote for this book! (crying leopard head.jpg) Please vote for the monthly ticket! Please recommend! (crying leopard head.jpg)

From Chapter 32 to this chapter (Chapter 101), there have been constant battles, one after another, which has made Leopard Leopard tired of writing. It is finally over... (豹衰.jpg)