The Ancestral Legacy Begins in the Wild West

Chapter 125: Fragments of the Six Harmonies Twenty-Four Styles of the Family Genealogy

Zhang Chang'an cursed and stopped holding back.

"The Six Harmonies and Twenty-Four Forms—The Guide Form!"

This move is a superior spear technique. As he untangles the tangled spear shaft, he flicks the spear tip, and the spear in his hand immediately heads straight for Hozoin's face.

The shot came suddenly, but Hozoin reacted even faster. He held his cross spear horizontally, and the shaft immediately twisted against Zhang Chang'an's spear shaft.

Hozoin-ryu, scroll falling.

Zhang Chang'an felt a strange force coming from the gun barrel, threatening to twist the gun out of his hand.

However, there is such a move in the Six Harmonies Spear. In the second move of the Six Harmonies, he flipped his wrist, twisted the spear, and with a phoenix nod, he suddenly shook the spear while breaking free from the entanglement. The spear tip went straight for the throat of the Treasure House.

Hozoin dodged to the side, and the Cross Spear slashed down with the momentum. The side of the spearhead went straight for Zhang Chang'an's neck.

Zhang Chang'an lowered his body, simultaneously pressing down on the shaft of his spear in a low, defensive stance, while simultaneously counterattacking. The tip of his spear swept across the ground towards Baozangyuan's calf.

clang!

As Hozoin raised his cross spear, the spearhead slammed into Zhang Chang'an's spear shaft, forcefully deflecting the low sweeping attack.

Hozoin-ryu - Katsuro.

As Zhang Chang'an's spear was flung away, Okita's sword slashed in from the side once again.

Hozoin merely narrowed his eyes slightly, swung his cross spear horizontally, and instantly parried the slash with the spear shaft. At the same time, he flicked the spearhead, sending the side blade straight for Okita's ribs.

Okita sheathed his sword and returned to defense, raising the blade to block the side thrust.

At this moment, Zhang Chang'an unleashed the "Azure Dragon Claw" spear strike, a spear technique as swift and deadly as a lone eagle emerging from the forest, the spear tip thrusting straight forward to subdue the opponent. It was both fast and ruthless, aimed directly at Baozangyuan's flank.

Hozoin didn't even turn his head. His cross-shaped spear emerged from under his ribs, twisted, and then pulled away the spear shaft that was entangled with Zhang Chang'an.

Clearly, compared to Zhang Chang'an, who had just acquired the Rokujin Gun but hadn't yet mastered its use and was only making minor adjustments based on his Death Eye and formidable physique, Hozoin's marksmanship was already considered consummate.

However, with such a strong physique and profession, Zhang Chang'an naturally made rapid progress. When his spear was entangled and dragged out, he decisively pushed it forward.

The spear moved like an iron ox plowing the field, attacking and retreating relentlessly. The spear tip tore through the air, heading straight for Hozoin's side.

Baozangyuan's spear nearly slipped from Zhang Chang'an's grasp, leaving him no time to parry and forcing him to dodge to the side. The spear tip grazed past his monk's robe, catching a wisp of fabric.

But at the same time, his other hand had already loosened its grip on the gun barrel, quickly raised, and slapped Zhang Chang'an's gun barrel, deflecting the direction of the gun tip.

Zhang Chang'an smoothly retrieved the spear that had almost slipped from his grasp, decisively turned and twisted his waist, thrusting out again, while Okita's sword was already slashing down.

"Click—"

Unfortunately, Hozoin was armed with a cross-shaped spear with a uniquely shaped tip that could deflect both of their attacks at once.

The three men's weapons became entangled, the gun barrels clashing with the blades, sparks flying everywhere.

"Hmph—" Zhang Chang'an exhaled and exerted his strength. With the help of his booming exoskeleton, he should be able to completely suppress Hozoin in terms of physical strength.

But he hadn't been able to exert himself for long before he had no choice but to turn around and fire his gun.

"Bang!" A bullet fired by a foot soldier was deflected and embedded in the wall.

As he turned back, he had already pushed Okita's sword away. Although Zhang Chang'an took the opportunity to fire a shot, he decisively blocked it.

"clang!"

"Excellent marksmanship." Hozoin stood upright, his spear seemingly more agile than his own hands, defying the confines of the room and showing no signs of being hindered.

Zhang Chang'an didn't reply, but helplessly pondered a way to break the deadlock: "American-style Iaijutsu is definitely meaningless against this guy at such close range. The only thing that gives me an advantage over this old monk is my physical strength. To finish him off quickly, I can only rely on the supercharged power of oil combustion—"

Zhang Chang'an pondered, already raising his gun. In the third move, he used the White Snake Playing with the Wind, a move specifically designed to pierce through sleeves and fingers. The exoskeleton on his back was already gathering power.

"Clang! Clang!"

In the blink of an eye, he exchanged two blows with the Cross Spear in Hozoin's hand. This further boosted the pressure on his exoskeleton's turbine: "Tsk—this will consume a lot of energy now, and there's more to come—"

Just as he was pondering this, he saw a dark figure burst out from behind the door of the Treasure House.

On the side of Hozoin Temple, a lattice door painted with a dry landscape was suddenly cleaved open from the outside with a "whoosh!"

Wood chips flew everywhere, and scraps of paper scattered. A knife emerged from the hole, heading straight for the back of the Treasure House.

However, Hozoin's reaction was astonishingly fast. With a swift turn of his cross-shaped spear, the shaft instantly blocked backward: "Clang!"

Swords and spears clashed, sparks flew.

As expected, Okita Souji did not let this opportunity pass. He pushed off with his feet and shot out like an arrow, unleashing the Nameless Triple Thrust with three swords at once.

Hozoin had just parried the blade from behind, but couldn't retract it in time and could only dodge to the side. The first blade grazed his neck, the second pierced his monk's robe, leaving a bloody gash on his arm, and the third... *clang!*

He finally withdrew his gun, the barrel held upright, blocking the third blow. But attacked from both sides, he had no strength left and was immediately pinned to the spot, just like before.

A figure strode in through the hole.

She wore a dark kimono, had a casual ponytail, and wore a smile that evoked mixed feelings.

Ryoma Sakamoto.

Presumably, they have finally broken into the inner palace as well.

"Looks like I arrived just in time." He said as he used the upper stance that Hokushin Itto-ryu was best at to suppress Hozoin's Jumonji-yaki.

"Namo Amitabha Buddha." Hozoin frowned slightly, finally showing a somewhat uneasy expression.

Zhang Chang'an did not choose to delay any longer. He took a deep breath, decisively raised his foot, and kicked hard.

The hydraulic system of his exoskeleton gradually adjusted to its optimal state, and he shot into the wall behind Hozoin like a cannonball.

"boom--!"

Wood chips flew everywhere, the paper door shattered, and golden foil fluttered in all directions. He burst through the wall and landed in a larger space.

"If someone can help, then there's no need to linger. The important thing is to get down to business!"

"Whoosh!" Wood chips were still falling from the air.

"Bang!" Zhang Chang'an landed, and the wooden floor beneath his feet finally returned to the dull sound of an ordinary floor.

He raised his head and his gaze swept across the space.

This is clearly the main hall, the central hall of Nijo Castle, in the Okura-maru (Great Hall).

The double-height ceiling is adorned with an extremely luxurious Kano-style screen painting, featuring golden clouds, vigorous pine forests, and majestic tigers, each stroke showcasing the grandeur of the shogunate.

Four enormous golden pillars stretched from the ground to the roof, their reliefs appearing and disappearing in the dim light.

But at this moment, none of that matters.

What truly caused his pupils to constrict was the machine right in the center of the main hall.

A massive cast iron frame rises from the ground, intersecting to support a core compartment.

Countless copper pipes of varying thicknesses converge from all directions like blood vessels, hanging down to the ground, or connecting to several pressure tanks and gearboxes of different sizes.

At the top is a horizontal cylindrical boiler with densely packed rivets neatly arranged on its surface. Steam hisses out from the pressure relief valve and condenses into white mist in the air.

In the center of the machine is a huge brass gear disk, with a diameter of about ten feet.

The gear disk, engraved with precise markings and runes, was slowly rotating. Each time it passed a mark, the piston below would suddenly push forward, producing a dull "thump" sound that made the floor tremble slightly.

At the center of the gear disk is a fist-sized groove, which is clearly the core of the entire machine.

And what was sealed in the groove was clearly a yellowed piece of paper.

"You have discovered a lost item from your clan: a fragment of the family genealogy."

>