I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Although he had just confidently declared, "Don't think that having a Gatling gun is enough to contend with my blade," seemingly with complete confidence, in reality, if he were to let his guard down, he could very well become a victim of Mael's gun!

First, Mael held the gate, pointing his gun directly at the outside, thus gaining a strategic advantage.

To get inside, the only way is through the doorway; there is no other way.

The doorway wasn't very wide; it could only accommodate one adult man at a time. In such a narrow space, there was practically no way to avoid it.

Furthermore, the Gatling gun's rate of fire should not be underestimated!

Qingdeng had personally witnessed the machine gun's rate of fire and power, and the fragments of the door panel at his feet were excellent evidence of this.

Mael's claim that he could fire 150 bullets per minute was not just empty talk!

While Qing Deng could certainly split bullets, he was helpless when the barrage was too fast or too thick.

No matter how hard he tried and pushed his cutting speed to the limit, he couldn't possibly block all the bullets that fired at 150 per minute.

There's no way to dodge, no way to block... Mael doesn't need to do anything, he just needs to point his gun at the door and unleash a barrage of bullets.

That alone is enough to keep everyone, including Qingdeng, out of the door!

Unless Qingdeng launches a "human wave offensive," ordering the soldiers who arrive later to charge straight in regardless of casualties and carve out a path with their own flesh and blood.

But this would inevitably lead to the deaths of countless people.

Given the prestige of "King Ren," it wouldn't be difficult to organize a "suicide squad" if generous rewards were offered.

However... this kind of tactic that disregards human life is not what Qingdeng desires.

Qingdeng would never issue such an order unless absolutely necessary.

Just as Qing Deng was secretly pondering a countermeasure—

"Tachibana-kun, you seem to be in trouble."

Qing Deng was taken aback, then turned to look at the opposite side—Ogata, carrying the dripping blood-stained Great Buddha, was walking towards him unhurriedly.

Judging from Qingdeng's posture, Xu knew that something had happened in the room, so he consciously pressed himself against the wall and moved to the door frame.

Thus, the two occupied the left and right sides of the doorway respectively.

Aoto naturally wouldn't let go of a top-tier fighter like Ogata, and unceremoniously asked him to assist in this battle.

Ogata readily agreed.

However, he made one request: he preferred to act alone rather than in "group activities".

Therefore, he would not accept Qing Deng's command, nor would he act with the main force; he would fight according to his own ideas.

Qing Deng didn't mind Ogata's "personality"—having an unorthodox swordsman like Ogata as a "roving soldier" might produce a stronger and more unexpected effect—so he nodded in agreement without hesitation.

For this reason, Aoto was unaware of Ogata's specific actions along the way.

Since he was able to become the second person after Qingdeng to reach this place, his offensive must have been very successful.

Qing Deng succinctly explained:

“Mr. Ogata, be careful, it’s a Gatling gun. Mael is guarding the door with a Gatling gun.”

Ogata raised an eyebrow:

"Did they already have Gatling guns in this era?"

"I don't know. Judging from what Mael just said, he was probably using an experimental model that hadn't been mass-produced yet."

"Machine guns...this is really difficult."

"Mr. Ogata, can you cut through machine gun bullets?"

"I haven't tried it, but it probably won't work. My cutting speed probably can't keep up with the machine gun's rate of fire."

"Not even you..."

Qingdeng pursed his lips, his expression growing even more solemn.

If he could create just 5 seconds... no, 3 seconds would be enough! If he could create just 3 seconds of opening, Qingdeng was confident that he could close in on Mael in one go!

"...Mr. Ogata, I have a plan, but I don't know if it's feasible."

"tell me the story."

"I'll hold you in front of me and use your body to block the bullets."

"Using a nearly 100-year-old man as a human shield, that's quite a creative idea. Although I've said it many times, I'll say it again anyway: I'm not truly immortal. If I get shot in the head or heart, I'll die too."

At this moment, Mael's shouts rang out again from inside the room:

"What's wrong? Tachibana Aoto, what are you muttering about? Have reinforcements arrived?"

Aoto and Ogata communicated at a volume only they could hear, so Mael couldn't hear their conversation at all and could only vaguely sense that a "third party" had arrived.

"Even with reinforcements, it will be useless!"

"Even if you send a large army to attack, I can still take a dozen or so people down with me before I die!"

"The Shinsengumi members are elite soldiers you painstakingly trained! Is it really okay to let them die so pathetically?"

At this point, Mael paused, shifting to a more gentle tone:

"Ju Qingdeng, listen to me, we really don't need to fight to the death."

"Let's renegotiate."

"I only want to leave this place safely, and I ask for nothing more."

"If you are not satisfied with the conditions I have proposed, we can continue to discuss them."

"If you're interested, I can give you both ironclad warships."

"However, after the warships are delivered, you'll have to help me and my men get back to France!"

"These two warships are the only ships I have left in Japan! Without them, I can't move an inch!"

Mael spoke with great enthusiasm.

However, Qing Deng completely ignored his request for "peace talks".

After pondering for a while, he muttered to himself:

"...There's no other way, let's give it a shot."

He turned to look at Ogata:

“Mr. Ogata, if we work together, we might have a chance to shoot down that machine gun. I need you to buy me one second.”

Upon hearing this, Ogata immediately showed a look of great interest and listened intently.

Qing Deng lowered his voice and quickly explained his battle plan.

Gaining three seconds of space in front of a Gatling gun... is indeed very difficult.

After racking his brains, Qingdeng has come up with a brand new method that can reduce the time it takes him to get close to Mael to less than 1 second!

After hearing this, Ogata grinned, revealing a strange expression.

"After all that, I'm the one who has to suffer..."

Qing Deng gave a bitter smile:

"I'm sorry to trouble you."

Ogata waved his hand:

"This is a trivial matter, nothing to worry about. Compared to my past experiences, this level of hardship is insignificant."

Having said that, he gripped the Great Heavenly Sword tightly in his palm and shook the tip of the blade.

"I'm ready to go anytime, are you prepared?"

Qingdeng nodded vigorously.

"Then... let's go!"

The instant he finished shouting, Ogata moved with lightning speed, rushed out of his hiding place, and stood straight in the doorway, brazenly appearing under the muzzle of the Gatling gun!

The sudden change stunned Mael, who was in the room.

Despite his shock, his hands moved without slowing down—he spun the wheel in his hand as if by reflex.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

A terrifying barrage of bullets enveloped Ogata.

Before the bullets even arrived, Ogata had already vanished from his spot.

But Ogata lowered his center of gravity, his body becoming like the wind, and sprinted around the room, the machine gun fire only managing to catch his afterimage.

Mael gritted his teeth, laboriously turned the gun, and fired at Ogata.

Tables, chairs, portraits... everything in the barrage of comments is pulverized.

Wherever the Gatling gun muzzle is pointed, the "honeycomb" pattern extends there.

Ogata drew Mael's attention, but only his comments... Little did he know, he had fallen into Qing Deng's trap.

Seizing the opportunity, Qing Deng stepped forward and stood at the doorway, right after Ogata.

Admittedly, the Gatling gun is a weapon of mass destruction capable of changing the nature of warfare, but a gun is still just a gun and has its limitations—when it fires in one direction, other directions become blind spots!

Mael belatedly noticed Qing Deng, his eyes widening in shock. He quickly abandoned Osamu and hastily turned his gun around.

His reaction was quick enough, but it was too late... Qing Deng had already attacked him!

Qingdeng did not charge straight down, but rather leaped high into the air like a roc, soaring straight towards the ceiling in the center of the room.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

The machine gun barrage came, but it passed right by Qingdeng.

As he leaped, Qingdeng nimbly adjusted his posture, turning his body upside down, head down, feet planted on the ceiling, using this as a leverage point, and leaped again! He pounced on Ma'er!

Replacing "sprinting" with "jumping" not only saves time but also makes it inconvenient for Mael to turn the gun.

Mael never had the chance to raise his gun again.

Because Qing Deng was already standing firmly on the Gatling gun barrel.

Upon seeing this, Mael's face changed color. He decisively abandoned the Gatling gun, reached into his pocket, and pulled out a flintlock pistol.