I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Although Nakamura Ichiro is a swordsman of the Katori Shinto school, judging from his fighting style, he is actually from the Jigen-ryu and Shinto Munen-ryu school: he prefers offense to defense.

Just as he gripped the bamboo sword in his hand, took a step forward, and prepared to attack... he suddenly froze.

—Huh? What's going on?

This was the second time the thought "What's going on?" had crossed Nakamura Ichiro's mind.

Mingming Qingdeng's figure still looked like a rotten tree, but after careful observation, the "rotten tree" gradually turned into a "mountain"!

Not only did he exude an indescribable sense of weight, but he was also flawless.

Ichiro Nakamura opened his eyes wide and looked over Aoto's entire body, but still couldn't find the slightest "gap" to exploit.

His intuition told him that if he rushed forward rashly, he would definitely suffer a heavy "defensive counterattack"!

This superposition of "rotten tree" and "mountain"... was something he had never seen before in his life!

"Ooh ooh ooh!"

Ichiro Nakamura stomped his foot on the floor, launching a feint attack.

"..."

But Qing Deng remained unmoved.

At this moment, Qingdeng, who had been standing still since earlier, suddenly began to move.

He moved forward little by little, towards the direction where Ichiro Nakamura was, with his feet practically touching the ground.

Completely helpless against Qingdeng's "mountain state," Nakamura Ichiro could only be squeezed and pushed back little by little towards the wall.

"Oooooooo!"

"Drink it! Ahhhhhh!"

"Yo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!"

During this time, in an attempt to salvage the situation, Ichiro Nakamura launched several feint attacks.

However, Qingdeng remained unresponsive, maintaining its constant speed and moving forward slowly.

With a soft thud, Ichiro Nakamura felt his back hit something hard.

It's a wall.

Knowing he had no way out, Nakamura Ichiro gritted his teeth and wore a stern expression.

Rather than sit and wait for death, it's better to take a gamble!

At the same moment he made this decision, Nakamura Ichiro let out a loud "Whoa whoa whoa!" and took a big step forward. Using the momentum of the step, he swung his sword down at the "mountain" in front of him.

Just as Nakamura Ichiro's bamboo sword was drawing an arc and approaching Qing Deng's body... another arc, a more concise, sharp, and swift arc, flew through the air, grazed Nakamura Ichiro's bamboo sword, and struck Nakamura Ichiro's left abdomen heavily.

Ichiro Nakamura screamed, clutching his wound, staggering backward before collapsing to the ground.

"I lost..."

Qingdeng bowed quietly.

"I appreciate your concession."

[Ding! Talent detected]

[Successfully copied talent: "Sword Master"]

[Talent Introduction: Swordsmanship talent is amplified 10 times the average level]

[Ding! Detected that the host already possesses a talent of the same type]

[Ding! Initiating talent fusion]

[Sword Saint's Ability Advancement]

[“Sword Saint” Talent Introduction: Swordsmanship talent is amplified 142 times the average level]

……

……

Qingdeng strode away from Jingxue Hall along the path he had come from.

From the moment he stepped into the dojo to the moment he returned, less than 20 minutes had passed.

Compared to when he went in, Qingdeng's body was almost unchanged.

Her hair was neat and there was no sweat on her face.

Upon seeing Qingdeng return, the crowd gathered outside the Jingxue Hall immediately began to discuss the matter.

Did Niou win?

"Nonsense! Is there even a need to say it?"

"Oh dear, Niou is leaving!"

"Let's go! Hurry up and keep up!"

After leaving the Jingxue Hall, Qingdeng immediately turned onto the adjacent street.

The onlookers hurriedly followed.

The group set off again for the next martial arts gym.

……

……

Edo, Hyuga-kan —

Hyuga-kan is a martial arts school that teaches Tang Shou (a style of Chinese martial arts).

Tang Shou, which later became known as Karate, primarily involves hand-to-hand combat and barefoot fighting.

Qingdeng is least afraid of hand-to-hand combat.

An ancient proverb succinctly summarizes the importance of physical fitness in unarmed combat: "A fist fears the young and strong, a stick fears the old."

In the case of armed combat, the elderly and physically weak can use their superb skills to overcome the gap in physical fitness, thanks to a series of physical laws such as the "lever law".

Even the strongest physique will eventually meet its demise after being stabbed.

In hand-to-hand combat, the difference in physical fitness is decisive and cannot be compensated for by any skill.

A 50kg lightweight fighter simply can't beat a 150kg heavyweight fighter.

It's not much harder for the latter to hit the former than for an adult to hit a baby.

As for the former attacking the latter... unless he attacks the groin, armpits, eyes, or other weak points, no matter how hard he tries, he can't break through the latter's defense.

Of course, the world Qingdeng lives in is a low-level martial arts world, where there are super-standard martial arts and unreasonablely strong individuals.

However, no matter how "low-level" the weapon is, there is still a limit.

Even Kinoshita Mai, who has mastered special techniques for generating power and can easily kick a tree as thick as a bowl in half, still finds it difficult to fight against a strong man who weighs two or even three times her weight.

In this era, there were no terms like "Tang Hand Black Belt" or "Tang Hand Ninth Dan." Instead, like in swordsmanship, ranks were awarded with certificates such as "Cut Paper," "Table of Contents," and "All Can Be Transmitted Without Permission."

The head of the Hyuga House, Hyuga Juntaro, possesses the complete mastery of the Tang Hand technique.

"Oooooooo!"

Hyuga Juntaro punched Aoto directly in the chest.

Just as the shot was about to hit, Qingdeng moved with extreme agility, his body twisting gently like a snake to dodge it.

Hyuga Juntaro relentlessly pursued him.

He used his left foot as a pivot, rotated his body, and used centrifugal force to swing his right leg out like a whip.

Qingdeng raised his arms and placed them in front of him.

Bang!

Arms and legs crossed.

After the impact, Qingdeng stood still, his feet firmly planted on the ground.

On the other hand, look at Hyuga Juntaro...

"Well……!"

He clutched his slightly twitching right leg, and despite his efforts to endure it, painful groans still escaped uncontrollably from between his lips and teeth.

A strong sense of numbness dominated his entire right leg... He almost thought he had just kicked steel! It felt like his leg bone was about to crack!

From a certain perspective, Qingdeng's body is indeed "a body of steel".

"Steel Bones +2" strengthens bones, "Slender Body" strengthens internal organs, "Soft Body" strengthens skin, and the newly acquired "Majestic Muscles" strengthens muscles... a comprehensive enhancement from bones to muscles, from internal organs to skin.

It can be said that Qingdeng's physical strength has reached the level of an alien.

Juntaro Hyuga, who had temporarily lost sensation in his right leg, could no longer even stand steadily.

There was no better time to attack.

Qing Deng followed up with a punch aimed at Hyuga Juntaro's chest.

The speed of the punch was so fast... let alone dodging, Hyuga Juntaro couldn't even react in time!

Qingdeng's fist struck him squarely in the thickest part of his right chest.

In an instant, he felt as if he had been hit head-on by several galloping horses, his body staggering backward until he fell to the ground in a sorry state.

Qingdeng showed mercy.

If one goes all out... a broken bone is inevitable, and the broken bone might even pierce the lung, bringing the person to the brink of death.

"I appreciate your concession."

[Ding! Talent detected]

[Successfully Replicating the Talent: "Strong Muscles"]

[Talent Introduction: Muscles do not easily fatigue]

[Ding! Detected that the host already possesses a talent of the same type]

[Ding! Initiating talent fusion]