I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

At first glance, there was nothing unusual about it; everything was calm and peaceful.

Surely no one expected that the Shogunate, Aizu, and Satsuma had secretly formed an alliance! They are sharpening their claws, ready to strike!

On August 13, the imperial court officially issued an edict announcing the Emperor's visit to Yamato.

The news caused widespread panic both inside and outside Kyoto.

Prior to this, although rumors of "Yamato no Kōshō" were widespread, there was no official confirmation.

Now that the imperial court has personally issued an edict, it means that this is a done deal!

So, could the follow-up to this rumor—kicking the Emperor and burning down the Imperial Palace—also be true?

Having already learned the inside story, Qing Deng and others knew that this imperial edict must have been the work of the pro-imperial faction of court nobles led by Sanjo Sanetomi.

Now that things have come to this, Qing Deng and the others ignored all the outside noise and proceeded step by step.

Let these ridiculous rumors continue to spread.

Let the people of Changzhou and the officials of the Zunrang faction continue to jump around and make trouble!

Anyway, everything will be settled by August 18th!

……

……

January 17, 1863 (the third year of Bungu), nighttime—

Kyoto region, Yamato area, Gojo-cho (a direct territory of the shogunate) —

The weather is terrible tonight.

Those low-hanging, dark clouds shrouded the sky.

The sky resembled an overturned inkwell, erasing the bright moon and stars, and shrouding the earth in darkness.

At this very moment, the Gojo Daikanjo (Gojo Town Government Office) – which can be simply understood as the local government of Gojo Town – is still brightly lit.

Inside the office of the acting official, officials were busy running around, dealing with the piles of documents and scrolls on their desks.

Just then, a series of dark figures suddenly emerged from the wilderness outside Gojo Town! Their numbers were around 100!

Upon closer inspection, these dark figures turned out to be living, breathing people.

If you had to describe this group in one word, it would be "chaotic"!

Some people are impeccably dressed.

Some people wore tattered clothes.

Some people already have gray hairs at their temples.

Some people are in the prime of their youth.

Some were fully armed, with swords, spears, chainmail, headbands, and everything else they needed.

Some people only carry a shovel or a simple bamboo spear.

Different ages, different equipment... this perfectly illustrates what "mix and match" means, presenting a chaotic scene.

However, despite their vastly different appearances and weaponry, they shared one thing in common—a fierce glint in their eyes! They glared menacingly at Gojo-cho not far away!

A burly man with dark skin stood at the front of the group.

Judging from his appearance, this person should be about 30 years old.

He rested his hand on the sword at his waist, his face expressionless, staring straight at Gojo-cho.

At this moment, a young warrior quickly walked to the side of the burly man and said:

"Yoshimura-kun, everything is ready! We can attack at any time!"

The burly man, addressed as "Yoshimura-kun," nodded solemnly.

"Very good... Attack!"

……

……

Gojo Town, Gojo Agency——

Suzuki Gennai bowed his head before his desk, meticulously reviewing the documents.

As the acting governor of Gojo-cho, he did not achieve any outstanding political achievements, but he also did not make any mistakes. He was neither meritorious nor demeritful.

These days, an official who has neither made any great achievements nor committed any major mistakes is already considered a rare good official.

He was engrossed in his work... when suddenly he heard a commotion outside.

"what happened?"

He put down his brush and murmured softly.

It was 8 p.m.

Gojo-cho is not a bustling town; by modern standards, it is just a small town.

Logically speaking, at this time of day, Gojo-cho should be completely silent.

Before he could get up and go out to check, a fierce shout and a shrill scream rushed into his ears!

"Heaven will punish you!"

"Help! Help! Aa ...

"Heaven will punish you!"

"Spare me! Spare me! I'm just a servant who serves tea and water! I'm just a servant! Ugh...!"

"Heaven will punish you!"

"Heavenly Punishment!!"

"Heaven will punish you!!!"

……

The shouts of "Heavenly Punishment" grew louder and louder, causing Suzuki Gen's face to lose all color.

He grabbed the sword from the nearby sword rack and dashed out of the room.

As soon as he pushed open the door, the pungent smell of blood hit him.

Everywhere you look, cold light and death are intertwined.

The people who are chasing them.

The person being hunted.

Ferocious facial features.

A painful, crying face.

A stench of blood, pillars of blood, severed limbs, corpses... the official residence felt as if it were trapped in the deepest depths of the eighteenth level of hell!

"W-what's going on...? What's happening...? What's going on...? What's going on...?"

Gennai Suzuki's expression was dominated by shock and bewilderment, much like that of a sleepwalker.

The visually shocking and horrifying images briefly shut down his brain.

He was like a broken tape recorder, constantly repeating, "What's wrong with me?"

Not long after, an excited roar brought him back to reality.

"Found him! It's Suzuki Gennai, the acting magistrate of Gojo-cho!"

"Kill! Kill him! Kill him!"

"Take his dog's life!"

"Heaven will punish you!"

In an instant, Suzuki Gennai's body trembled violently several times.

The next instant, as if by reflex, he turned and ran, not even bothering to put on his shoes, fleeing in a panic, wishing his parents had given him a pair of wings instead.

"Huff! Huff! Huff! Huff! Huff! Huff!"

He ran towards a deserted place.

He ran away from the cold light and death.

The so-called "fleeing for a way out" is nothing more than this.

All the way, the hurried footsteps stayed close behind him, impossible to shake off.

At that moment, Suzuki Gennai suddenly noticed the "shadow" on the roadside ahead wriggling strangely—a burly figure suddenly emerged from the side and blocked his path with a single step.

Clang, clang... The dark-skinned, burly man drew his knife and said coldly in a deep voice:

"Gojo-cho Deputy Governor... no, you lackey of the shogunate, prepare to die!"

Seeing that the dark-skinned, burly man intended to deal with Suzuki Gennai personally, those who were following closely behind him stopped and retreated, making room for the fight.

Caught between a rock and a hard place... Suzuki Gennai had no choice but to stop and draw his sword.

It was less like drawing a knife and more like pulling out a "live fish"—the knife throbbed violently in his palm, as if it might leap to the ground at any moment.

Seeing this, the burly man casually spread his legs and assumed a fighting stance.

"Leader of the Heavenly Punishment Group"

"Yoshimura Torataro!"

Suzuki Gennai had no time to reveal his family background to the other party.

He swallowed hard, trying to remain calm:

"Who are you?! What do you want?! Are you trying to rebel?!"

The dark-skinned, muscular man... namely Yoshimura Torataro, replied without hesitation:

"That's right! We are the Heavenly Punishment Group! We swear to defeat the barbarians! To annihilate the traitorous Shogunate! Heavenly Punishment!"

Having said that, Yoshimura Torataro lowered his body significantly and then leaped up like a spring.