Dragon Clan: Force me to be reborn and slay dragons

Chapter 287 The Murasame Incident, Old Tang's Sudden Self-Improvement

The phrase "My father" struck Erii like a thunderclap, leaving her stunned and speechless.

The girl's slender fingers unconsciously twisted the hem of her dress, creating deep wrinkles in her shrine maiden outfit.

From childhood, Tachibana Masamune always told her that she was the only one left in the Uesugi family, and that her parents and other family members had long since passed away.

Even after learning about his sibling relationship with Genjiro and Genjiro in a dream, his father in the dream was clearly just a black and white portrait, a serious old man with a big beard.

She blinked blankly, her long eyelashes casting dappled shadows under the light.

Subconsciously, she turned her head to look for Lu Mingfei, only to find that his eyes, which were always full of smiles and gentleness, were now filled with complex emotions.

Lu Mingfei had once considered stopping them from recognizing each other, but he would never lie to her now, and nodded slightly.

Erii was even more confused when she saw him nod.

She glanced at her two brothers and found that Genjiro looked calm, and Genji even seemed to know something. Clearly, they were also in the know.

Looking at his daughter's bewildered expression, Uesugi Kotsushi slowly sat back down.

“My name is Uesugi Kotsugi. I came to Japan from France back then…” The old man’s voice was hoarse like a rusty knife as he recounted that long-forgotten past.

From a tycoon during World War II to a good-for-nothing uncle who lives in seclusion at a ramen stall, and now to a frail and terminally ill old man, the content of his story is almost identical to the materials left in the archives, only a bit more subjective.

He particularly criticized Herzog for leaving behind materials to deceive Minamoto no Chisei and the Snake-Headed Eight Families, claiming that Erii was actually his daughter. He gritted his teeth, wishing he could jump into a cesspool, fish out her remains, and chop them up.

Erii didn't really feel anything after hearing it. Although Uesugi Kotsugu's past could be described as dramatic and magnificent, for her, with her distorted worldview and wild imagination, the level of tragedy was probably not as bad as Lelouch's.

As for Genjiro, his reaction was actually not significant. Kazama Ruri's personality had disappeared, but this body had ultimately borne the weight of an angry emperor. Through self-hypnosis and imitation, Genjiro was no longer the cowardly and kind mountain boy.

In his view, Uesugi Koshi's fate was purely self-inflicted. He had enjoyed a life of great success, but after suffering a setback, he became despondent and exiled himself. Unlike the three siblings, who were bound by invisible shackles from birth, they were manipulated like puppets, living in a script called tragedy and suffering all kinds of pain.

If it weren't for his brother-in-law's intrusion, their fate would have been incredibly tragic. Unlike Uesugi Kotsugu, who only suffered some inner torment, he could kill, run away, live in seclusion, or go abroad to die whenever he wanted.

Yuan Zhisheng is an honest person with strong empathy, unlike his younger siblings who have personality flaws and see things more clearly.

Uesugi Kotsushi felt slightly embarrassed. His youngest son and daughter's reactions were a bit unexpected. He wanted to continue with the prepared speech he had rehearsed all night, saying that he wanted an opportunity to make up for the lack of fatherly love in the past, but Lu Mingfei repeated something first:

"Your mother's name is Charlotte Chen? She's of mixed Chinese and French descent?"

His mother was always the deepest pain in Uesugi Yue's heart. He didn't even dare to ask for her forgiveness when attending church services in the community. But since many years had passed, he didn't rush to answer her name. He nodded.

"Is she from a prominent Chinese family, the Chen family of Beijing?"

Uesugi Kotsugu pondered for a moment, then shook his head: "All I know is that my maternal grandfather came from a large family, but by my mother's generation, they had lost contact. Otherwise, she wouldn't have returned to France to become a nun after her failed elopement with my father."

Yuan Zhisheng asked Lu Mingfei if he knew anything. He replied that if nothing unexpected happened, Lu Mingfei's grandmother's clansmen were still alive and well, but they were suspected of being traitors.

Yuan Zhisheng didn't know what "two devils" meant, but he knew that people from the other side of the sea called their countrymen "little devils," which he guessed wasn't a nice term.

"Alright, now that things are out in the open, let's leave it at that. You can go about your business as usual. I'm taking Erii back to China, so I won't keep you for dinner."

Lu Mingfei checked the time; it was almost lunchtime, so he started to urge people to leave.

Uesugi Kochi had no idea that his precious daughter was about to be kidnapped to a foreign country by the blond-haired boy. He wanted to be anxious, but he had no right to be anxious. He could only look at Genjiro, hoping that the older brother who had truly fulfilled his duties as an elder brother would say a few words.

Yuan Zhisheng wants to prevent a repeat of the tragedy that happened to him and his brother, and also to make up for the mistakes he made in the past. Although he has only just started the work, everything is difficult at the beginning. Resolving the grudges between the Snake-Headed Eight Families and the Demon Clan is bound to be full of trouble. He also cannot take good care of Erii in the short term, so he simply lets her go abroad with Lu Mingfei to relax.

As for Uesugi Kotsu, he was only reliable once in his entire life. Genji was completely uneasy about entrusting his sister to his care. Besides, Erii might not be willing either.

So Uesugi Kotsushi could only follow Genjiro with a sullen expression.

He arrived with a staggering $1.2 billion fortune, hoping for a chance to reclaim his responsibilities as a father. Unfortunately, his two children were not interested, and his eldest son was not short of money. His mood was beyond words.

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the doctrine."

Looking back at the Takamagahara nightclub, Uesugi Kotsugu recalled the farewell words he wanted to say before Lu Mingfei slashed him away with a sword last night. Such a cool sentence, but now it was hard to say it.

The good fight has been ended by others, the principles that should have been upheld have not been upheld, and the road ahead, which seemed to have reached its end, still has a long way to go.

The three-man diving team had already left. Uesugi Koshi got into Genji's car, his eyes still filled with reluctance as he left.

……

All of Genji's supporters died at Genji's hands, but the remaining demons, leaderless, naturally supported the only emperor and prayed for his protection.

The mistakes he made in the past will not disappear just because Kazama Ruri's personality has vanished; he can only try to atone for them.

This was a matter between the brothers, and they knew that Lu Mingfei didn't want to get involved. He just wanted to send them off on the plane before regrouping his old team and starting a new chapter in his life.

Old Tang returned just in time for dinner, accompanied by Long Ma Xun, who was carrying a large suitcase. It seems this girl is really determined to keep her hands on Old Tang.

"Where's Lao Feng? Didn't we say we'd go to China together?" Lao Tang asked curiously, not having found Fingel.

"He was dragged away by their principal to write a mission report. He'll be back when he boards the plane," Lu Mingfei replied casually as he examined Chu Zihang's demon sword, Murasame.

Fingel's full name is Fingel von Frings. Old Tang once joked that Fingel was so talkative, and his middle name was Feng. He heard that there was a famous Chinese crosstalk actor with the surname Feng, so why not just call him Old Feng from now on?

Fingel didn't mind at all, saying that he was so fluent in Chinese because he watched Mr. Feng's crosstalk performances.

Unfortunately, his words of power weren't magical; otherwise, a simple "I missed you all so much" would have completely killed the game.

Meanwhile, Chu Zihang continued the interrupted conversation. While Lu Mingfei and the Huang Xue family were dealing with their family affairs, Cheng Shuangfan approached him alone and asked to borrow his knife to take a look.

Chu Zihang assumed that Caesar had revealed the story of him releasing the alchemical matrix inscribed inside the demon sword Murasame in the underground parking garage, which was imbued with the King's Flame. He didn't suspect anything and handed the sword to the other party.

Cheng Shuangfan merely glanced at the blade and noticed inscriptions on its snow-white surface. His disappointment was palpable, as if his initial guess had fallen short of reality. Nevertheless, he still asked, with a hint of hope, where he had obtained the knife.

Chu Zihang sensed something amiss and suspected that the other party knew the demon sword Murasame, and even his father.

“This was left to me by my father,” he said.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Shuangfan's eyes widened, and her hand gripping the knife trembled slightly. It took her a great deal of effort to sheath the knife.

Chu Zihang could tell that he probably still had something to ask, but after hesitating for a long time, he held back, handed the knife back to him, and left in a hurry, as if he was going to question someone.

After listening to everything, including the information Angers told Chu Zihang, Lu Mingfei thought to himself that Uncle Chu was indeed Uncle Chu, and that he had a great background in both his past and present lives, but he was a bit of a scoundrel in this life.

"When did the inscription on this sword appear?" Lu Mingfei looked down at the demon sword Murasame.

The blade is as bright as a mirror, with a beautiful yet menacing curve. It is made of iron and has no tsuba (handguard). The blade is engraved with lightning-shaped folds called "Inazuma". If you swing the blade for a long time, dew will condense on it.

But now, several golden inscriptions have appeared at the base of the blade—"Morning Rain at Dawn: Heavenly Demon Annihilation!"
Cheng Shuangfan was greatly disappointed because she saw the golden inscription.

“Last night,” Chu Zihang replied.

Last night, after he killed someone and cleaned the knife, the blade was still as white as snow, without any blemishes, except for a line of golden inscriptions at the base of the blade.

He tested it and found it didn't affect use, and it didn't feel special to the touch, so he didn't care too much.

"Hey, that's strange." Lu Mingfei frowned, but frowning didn't tell him what was wrong with Murasame.

When he rescued Genjiro from Shikato Town, he helped examine the Murasame sword and said it was definitely over 300 years old. It was an alchemical weapon forged using the fictional demon sword Murasame from "Nansō Satomi Hakkenden". He promised to help Chu Zihang find relevant clues when he returned.

In Japan, even if the truly famous swords capable of slaying dragons and demons were not collected by the Snake-Headed Eight Families, they were all recorded in a book called "The Great Sword Appraisal". However, when Genji went back and looked through it again and again, he found that there was no record of Murasame in the book.

There is also no record of another "Muramasa" lost in the Nibelungen.

There is no such thing as the demon sword Murasame in history. There are many swords named Muramasa, but none of them are alchemical weapons and they are not worthy of being recorded in the "Great Sword Collection".

Chu Zihang recalled the rainy night that changed his life dramatically. He clearly remembered the scene of the man using the long sword he called "Muramasa" (which was actually "Muramasa") to slay more than a dozen death servants. How could that be a feat that an ordinary famous sword could accomplish?

To be honest, that man was really confused; he not only got on the wrong elevated road, but he also forgot the name of the knife.

If Murasame could speak, the dew that falls when she waves her arms would probably be her spittle spewing profanities.

The two were deep in thought when Old Tang, noticing their odd expression, leaned over for a look and immediately said:

"This is because the alchemical tool was bathed in too much high-concentration dragon blood, and the alchemical matrix inside has become visible. If left unattended, it will revert to its original state by tomorrow."

He said it so casually, as if it were as commonplace as a person getting flushed after drinking alcohol.

But Lu Mingfei and Chu Zihang looked at him immediately, their eyes filled with surprise.

"No, how do you know?" Lu Mingfei tilted his head and looked at Lao Tang, not understanding how this "supernatural immune person" who didn't even know about dragons and hybrids and had lived for more than 20 years in a daze suddenly became enlightened. Could it be that he had encountered similar objects when he went into tombs?
They weren't the only ones surprised; even Old Tang was stunned after he said those words.

Is this knowledge you could possibly possess, and you just blurt it out so smoothly and matter-of-factly?

"Hiss—I don't know either." Old Tang scratched his head, gasped, and frowned as he recalled the feeling from just now:

"It was just that after seeing the changes in the blade, this idea naturally popped into my head."

Lu Mingfei and Chu Zihang exchanged a glance, both realizing the seriousness of the problem.

Lu Mingfei had long suspected the authenticity of Lao Tang's identity, and Chu Zihang also had doubts after witnessing Lao Tang ignore the time zero and easily suppress the Dead Servants when he was besieged in Takamagahara last night. Now they are all in the same boat.

Regardless of what Old Tang was like in the past, he's becoming more and more inhuman. It wouldn't be surprising if he grew horns on his head and a tail behind him at any time.

Dragons need time to regain their memories and adapt to their bloodline at the beginning of their revival, and Lao Tang's changes perfectly fit this characteristic.

Lu Mingfei clenched his fist. He was skilled in three types of fist techniques: the Friendship-Breaking Fist, the Restore My Beauty Fist, and the Personality Correction Fist.

If Lao Tang really has a mental breakdown, then his iron fist of love might just smash into Lao Tang's head.

This punch, the culmination of ten years of training, can you withstand it?
will die.

Old Tang shuddered at Lu Mingfei's clenched fist and fixed gaze, the strange emotion that had just surfaced in his mind instantly vanishing. He pointed at him and said:

"Hey, Mingming, what are you trying to do?"

"No, I'm just itching for a fight. How about we go to the octagon?" Lu Mingfei chuckled mischievously, giving him a strange look that said, "Come on in."

What are brothers?

When you're in danger, your brothers are your greatest source of security.

When there's no real danger, your brother is your biggest threat.

"Get out of the way, get out of the way. Why would I want to fight you?" Old Tang rolled his eyes. If it were a game, he might reluctantly go up and get beaten, but Mortal Kombat was a no-go.

I don't know what's wrong with me these past two days, but I get a little creeped out whenever I make eye contact with Mingming. I wonder if he fell off a cliff while traveling and was rescued by an old man with a white beard who taught him his skills and even mastered some unparalleled martial arts.

The issue of Murasame has been temporarily resolved, but too many questions remain: about Uncle Chu, about Cheng Shuangfan, about Old Tang…

It seems I'll be busy and on the go ever since I get back.

Lu Mingfei stretched and yawned. "Where there's a will, there's a way," he thought. "There's always a solution to every problem."

This time, I'm going to carry the whole team!

(End of this chapter)