I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

All sounds around him faded away; both his mental world and his physical senses were eerily quiet.

At the same time, he felt a powerful force surging from within him! Like a gushing spring!

This feeling... I haven't felt it in a long time.

After defeating Yamada Asaemon Katsumi, he once again entered this supreme realm!

Talent "Innate Selfless Holy Body +7", activated!

[Note: More likely than ordinary people to enter the "state of selflessness"]

The instant the two entered the "state of selflessness," two incredibly powerful "forces" erupted from their bodies, immediately colliding fiercely in mid-air! The battle was evenly matched!

Before the battle even began, the aura of the two had already caused the weather to change dramatically!

Shuten-dōji was taken aback when he saw that Aoto had also entered the "state of no self".

After a brief moment of astonishment, surprise turned into delight.

The next instant, there was a loud "thud" as he stomped his hind legs.

In the blink of an eye, he had vanished from the spot.

Pushing off the ground, lunging forward, closing in, swinging the knife—this entire sequence of movements was completed in an instant.

Sun Liujianyuan, accompanied by a whooshing sound, pierced the atmosphere and, with the overwhelming force of Mount Tai, plummeted straight towards Qingdeng's head.

This move may seem like a random strike, but it is equally deadly!

If it were someone of average skill... no, even a highly skilled swordsman with unparalleled mastery of swordsmanship, facing this strike would most likely result in their head falling to the ground!

Shuten-dōji's attacks were extremely fast... but Aoto's reaction speed was no less than his!

Without even raising his eyes, he directly swung Vairocana, using the blade in his palm to meet the opponent's blade.

Attack against attack, strike against strike!

With a loud clang, a fleeting blue spark flew through the air.

Watching Qing Deng effortlessly block his attack, Shuten-dōji murmured repeatedly:

“It’s truly astonishing, it really is the ‘state of no-self’… Niou, in this way, we are now on equal footing.”

Qing Deng coldly retorted:

"Side by side? That's hilarious, you think you can?"

Under the influence of the "selflessness state," their emotional fluctuations almost disappeared, and even their tone of voice became exceptionally calm and indifferent, as if two robots were having a conversation.

In the blink of an eye, Qing Deng secretly mustered a fierce strength and flicked away Shuten-dōji's sword with a "crack".

Shuten-dōji used the momentum to leap backward, widening the gap.

However, he did not retreat too far, only about three steps back.

The two faced each other, and if either of them had the will, they could easily slash at the other's body by taking just half a step forward.

However, neither of them acted rashly.

The two men, standing close together, assumed their stances and began a standoff.

The same sword is raised in front of the chest, the same starting stance from the middle.

The tips of the two knives touched lightly in mid-air, testing each other repeatedly.

They were all looking for the perfect moment to strike—the moment that would kill their opponent!

The standoff ended very suddenly.

In a flash, Qingdeng suddenly swung his sword, pushing aside Shuten-dōji's blade and opening the gaping hole. Then, he stepped forward and used his robe to cleave Shuten-dōji's chest.

In that instant, the black blade transformed into black lightning! Its power and speed were as swift as thunder!

Faced with Qingdeng's swift attack, Shuten-dōji remained calm and composed, as if he had anticipated Qingdeng's moves.

He leaned back slightly, creating some defensive space, and then raised his knife to parry, turning the danger into safety.

Qing Deng used a lot of strength in this attack.

Therefore, although Shuten-dōji himself was unharmed, his sword suffered damage!

After the two swords collided, Vairocana's sword remained intact, smooth and new.

In contrast, Sun Liujianyuan's blade now has a noticeable nick!

Sun Liujianyuan is not some low-quality, nameless sword; it is one of the world's top-tier artifacts!

The most skilled swordsmith was completely outmatched in the "slash-to-slash" battle... If this were to spread, it would probably shock countless swordsmiths.

In addition to its toughness, Vairocana is also incredibly sharp.

Although Shuten-dōji did not experience it firsthand, the sharp wind pressure coming towards him made him directly feel the sharpness of the sword!

Using idioms like "cutting a hair in half" or "slicing iron like mud" to describe it all seems incredibly vulgar!

Without a doubt, the quality of the Vairocana sword, reforged into a black blade, has surpassed that of the supreme dakini!

He muttered involuntarily:

"So this is the Black Blade... It truly lives up to its reputation...!"

Black sword + "Selflessness"... Apart from Ōtakemaru, the swordsman before him was undoubtedly the strongest opponent he had ever faced.

Immense pressure and intense fighting spirit surged into Shuten-dōji's heart.

Even with his "selflessness," he couldn't suppress the faint smile at the corner of his mouth.

Suddenly, a low shout was heard. Shuten-dōji lowered his center of gravity slightly, his whole body almost touching the ground, and slid forward to take the initiative to attack.

In a split second, the two were locked in combat.

Fine dust and particles of light swirled and flew everywhere.

Sword marks were scattered all over the tatami mats, walls, wooden pillars, ceiling, and other places, spreading rapidly due to the two people's quick movements.

They silently proclaimed the intensity of the deadly battle!

No matter what moves their opponents made, the two of them were able to skillfully counter them and resolve each one.

While on the defensive, their gaze was terrifyingly ruthless.

Whenever they spot an opportunity, they will strike swiftly and decisively, showing no mercy!

Judging from their actions and momentum, it's hard to imagine that one of them rushed from Choshu to Edo, fighting a fierce battle along the way, while the other rushed from Noo to Edo, having just single-handedly breached Edo Castle.

If it were an ordinary person, they would have been exhausted long ago after going through this series of battles, let alone raising a sword to face a powerful enemy.

The two heroes forgot their physical fatigue and launched an all-out attack, allowing people to directly feel the burning and collision of two lives!

At that moment, Shuten-dōji let out a strange roar like a tiger, and fiercely attacked Qingdeng's body with the Blue-Eye Sword.

Qing Deng responded with Xia Duan's move, but was a little slow.

Although he successfully deflected Shuten-dōji's sword, its blade still grazed Aoto's left shoulder, leaving a glaring bloody mark.

Their sleeves brushed together as they passed each other.

Driven by inertia, Shuten-dōji lunged forward a considerable distance, eventually moving to a position five meters behind Aoto.

As soon as he landed, he spun around and stood with his knife in the middle.

He had barely gotten into position when he saw the pale blue haori billowing high, filling his entire field of vision.

A flash of purple light appeared, and Vairocana drew a high arc in the sky. Shuten-dōji was unable to dodge in time, and his left leg was slashed with a three-inch-long gash.

The two sides are roughly equal in strength.

This will naturally lead to a situation of "mutual harm".

In the state of "selflessness," the high concentration of their minds allows them to temporarily forget the pain.

For them at this moment, this level of injury is nothing to worry about!

Having finished his attack, Qingdeng was eager to pull his sword back to his side.

Shuten-dōji, who had just been attacked, was busy regrouping.

A brief silence has fallen.

Of course, this silence lasted only a moment!

A moment later, the triumphant shouts and the fierce clash of blades once again shook the atmosphere!

Qingdeng rushed to Shuten-dōji's side.

Shuten-dōji threatened with his sword, attempting to force Aoto to retreat.

While moving at high speed, Qing Deng subtly twisted his body and quickly moved from right to left, passing in front of the opponent's knife and under his left armpit.

Just as they were about to pass each other, he used the hilt of his sword to touch his opponent's waist, and then in one swift motion, he pulled the sword from the hilt to the tip, preparing to finish his opponent off at the waist, cutting him into two clean halves!

Unexpectedly, Shuten-dōji dodged this fatal attack.

The greatest enhancement brought about by the "state of selflessness" is the significant increase in reaction speed.

At the critical moment, he switched from attack to evasion, using his agile movements to perform several side somersaults, causing Vairocana's blade to go a little further away, only slicing his belt and some flesh.

Qingdeng relentlessly stepped forward and slashed, the blade arcing as it repeatedly approached Shuten-dōji.

Faced with Qingdeng's fierce attack, Shuten-dōji dodged left and right, struggling to cope, seemingly only able to parry and having no power to retaliate.

Of course, in such an evenly matched battle, there is no such thing as "suppression" at all.

In just a short while, Shuten-dōji seized the opportunity, using a fierce thrust to force Aoden back, and then turned defense into offense, seizing the initiative in the battle.

The attacker becomes Shuten-dōji, and the defender becomes Aoto.

The former lunged forward with his knife, while the latter refused to back down. The two fought fiercely, their swords flashing and their movements dazzling.

Unbeknownst to them, the fighting area gradually shifted to the edge of the railing.

"Drink up!"

Shuten-dōji raised his sword overhead, let out a short shout, and then brought the sword down fiercely.

Upon seeing this, Qing Deng instinctively adopted a defensive stance, holding the knife in his palm diagonally above his head.

The next moment, the two steel knives clashed in mid-air.