I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Zhuiqi's pupils contracted sharply in surprise at Qingdeng's swift change of move. He instinctively raised his sword as fast as he could, preparing to meet Qingdeng's impending attack head-on.

Looking at Tsuzaki raising the bamboo sword high... Aoto's lips curled up slightly.

When Tsurugi saw the corners of Aoto's mouth turn up, his expression changed slightly, and an ominous premonition arose in his heart.

But by then, it was too late.

Qingdeng suppressed the smile that had unconsciously appeared on his face, focused his strength in his waist and abdomen, and with a "snap," his feet, which had just slightly leaped up, landed back on the ground covered with white gravel.

Qing Deng's "downward slash" was just a feint used to trick Zhui Qi into using his move.

Having been fooled by Qing Deng's feint, Tsuzaki is still holding his sword high, in a defensive stance, unable to react quickly to Qing Deng's change of tactics.

In that split second, Qing Deng aimed the tip of his bamboo sword at the wide-open chest of Tsuzaki Sora and unleashed his most proficient move—the thrusting technique: Mumei Sword.

Thud... The tip of the bamboo sword struck the chest armor of Osaki with a dull thud.

"Ugh..." Tsuzaki, who had been stabbed in the chest, staggered back two steps before managing to steady himself.

—It's a success...

Seeing that his strategy of "using feints to deceive Tsurugi and expose his weakness" had been a great success, a look of elation appeared on Qing Deng's face.

The move he just used was learned from the red and white battle at the "Plum Blossom Festival" two months ago, when he and Okita worked together to defeat Chiba Jutaro.

At that time, when he and Okita joined forces to deal with the siblings Chiba Jutaro and Sanako, Okita first made a move towards Chiba Jutaro as if he was preparing to "split a mountain with his sword", successfully tricking Chiba Jutaro into raising his sword to defend.

After Chiba Jutaro was fooled by Okita's feint, Aoto seized the opportunity to swing his sword and successfully shattered the porcelain bowl on Chiba Jutaro's forehead, defeating him.

At this moment, Qing Deng single-handedly replicated the move that he and Okita had used together.

On the viewing platform, Okita and Chiba Jutaro's expressions both changed at this moment.

Okita looked pleasantly surprised, delighted that Aoto had been able to replicate the move they had used together so beautifully.

As for Chiba Jutaro, his expression was strange.

He had a very vivid memory of the trick that had caused his defeat in the Red and White Battle.

Seeing that Qing Deng had used the same move that had caused him to suffer a crushing defeat, Chiba Jutaro couldn't help but feel a mix of amusement and exasperation.

"The winner—"

After Aoto's Mumei sword struck Osaki squarely in the chest, the referees immediately raised their arms towards Aoto.

"Natural Rishin-ryu, Shieikan, Tachibana Aoto!"

Wow!

After the referees announced their verdicts, waves of sound erupted throughout the spectator stands.

Another instant sell-out!

Following Adachi and Morishita, Aoto once again killed his opponent with a single sword strike!

And this person who was instantly killed by Qing Deng was no small fry; he was an outstanding swordsman who was also listed as one of the "Three Heroes".

Within a single day, two of the "Three Heroes" were defeated by Qing Deng, and both were instantly killed with a single sword strike without any resistance... Even some swordsmen who had already seen that Qing Deng's strength was far superior to the other contestants during the first elimination round couldn't help but be surprised and silently raised their assessment of Qing Deng's strength.

[Ding! Talent detected]

As expected by Qingdeng, the system notification sounded in my mind.

[Successfully copied talent: "Minor Proficiency in Swordsmanship"]

[Talent Introduction: Swordsmanship talent is amplified 7 times the average level]

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

[Ding! Initiating talent fusion]

[Ding! The "Sword Prodigy" and the "Minor Master of Swordsmanship" have begun to merge.]

[Please wait, host... Please wait, host...]

As Qingdeng expected, Zhuiqi also possessed the talent of "Amplified Swordsmanship Talent"!

—7 times… Even with the same name, the talent content might not be exactly the same…

The "Swordsmanship Proficiency Master" skill that I just copied from Morishita is five times the level of an average person's swordsmanship talent.

The talent copied from Tsuzaki at this time is also called "Swordsmanship Proficiency Master", but its talent content is seven times that of an ordinary person's swordsmanship talent.

Although the names are the same, the specific talents differ slightly.

[Ding! Talent fusion successful]

[Sword Prodigy's Ability Advancement]

[“Sword Prodigy” Talent Introduction: Swordsmanship talent is amplified 62 times the average level]

62... Hearing the number announced by the system, Qing Deng struggled to keep his lips from curling up too high.

It was definitely the right decision to come to this swordsmanship competition!

I'm afraid no one expected that in less than a day, Ju Qingdeng's swordsmanship talent would leap forward again!

“…Thank you for your guidance.” Zhuiqi, carrying his bamboo sword, stood directly opposite Qingdeng and bowed respectfully to him.

Completely powerless against Qing Deng's attack, Tsuzaki showed no dissatisfaction or resentment.

His face and eyes showed only pure admiration.

Qing Deng had a good impression of his opponent, who was poor but ambitious. After Zhui Qi bowed to him, Qing Deng immediately returned the bow.

……

……

By the time all the matches in the third round of the knockout stage were finished, the west was already filled with the glow of sunset, and the setting sun cast a dim yellow light on the sky and the earth.

All of today's matches have concluded successfully as expected.

After eliminating half of the contestants, the remaining dozen or so will compete again tomorrow!

The spectators, who had enjoyed a feast for the eyes and had a great time watching the martial arts performance, dispersed from the viewing area in small groups.

Many spectators, still caught up in the excitement of watching the thrilling match, chatted enthusiastically with friends and family as they made their way home.

If we're talking about which player's performance was the most dazzling and eye-catching today, it would undoubtedly be Qing Deng.

In three consecutive battles, he swiftly and decisively killed his opponents with a single sword strike. The three people he killed were all outstanding talents who had previously been praised as "geniuses"... Such a performance was truly astonishing.

"This competition is much more exciting than I expected!" Asa patted her ample chest, which was stretched high by her kimono, and exclaimed with delight, "The exciting matches are one after another, and my heart is still pounding."

"Sōjirō, you agree... huh? Sōjirō?"

It was only then that As noticed that her husband, sitting beside her, was now resting his elbows on his thighs, his fingers interlaced and pressed against the area below his nose, looking deep in thought.

Seeing her husband suddenly adopting this pensive look, Asa wanted to ask him what he was thinking about, but she was also afraid that her sudden voice might disturb him.

After a brief hesitation, Asu finally chose to keep her mouth shut and wait silently to the side.

After a while, when almost all the onlookers around them had left and only the couple remained on the viewing platform, Asi finally noticed that her husband, who had been as "solidified" as a rock since earlier, had finally made a move.

*Slap!* Sojiro slapped his thigh and burst into laughter.

"That's right! How come I didn't think of that!"

Asa blinked at her husband in confusion: "Sōjirō, what are you thinking about?"

"Asu! I've got inspiration for writing!"

Upon hearing this, Asi was both taken aback and delighted.

"Really? What have you decided to write?"

"This... I'll keep it a secret for now!" Sojiro smiled slyly. "I'll tell you after I finish writing it!"

"Asi, let's go home! I'm going to write all night tonight!"

After saying that, Sojiro stood up abruptly and hurried off towards home.

"Ah, wait for me!" As her husband rapidly shrank in her field of vision, Asa quickly lifted the hem of her kimono, slipped her bare feet into straw sandals, and hurriedly followed behind Sojiro.

……

……

At this very moment—

In an inconspicuous corner of the viewing area on the east side, a tall young man and a short, ugly middle-aged man sat side by side.

“…Lord Rakshasa.” The short and ugly middle-aged man raised his head, glanced at the darkening sky, and said, “It’s getting late, we should probably head back.”

The tall, slender young man... or rather, Rakshasa, seemed to turn a deaf ear to the suggestion of the short, ugly middle-aged man.

With a faint smile on his face, he gazed into the distance at the arena where no one was competing anymore, and muttered to himself:

"I originally just wanted to see what the Aizu Marquis Matsudaira Katamori looked like."

"Unexpectedly... there was a pleasant surprise in this competition that I thought would be quite boring."

"The speed at which that Tachibana Seiden has improved has really exceeded my expectations."

"What a terrifying talent."

"In terms of talent... among all members of our entire Party, I'm afraid only Lord Ōtakemaru can reliably defeat this Tachibana Aoto."

The short, ugly middle-aged man turned his head and looked at the Rakshasa beside him.

"Lord Rakshasa, I seem to have heard that you intend to recruit that Ju Qingdeng. Is that true?"

“Ah, yes,” Rakshasa said without hesitation, “There’s no reason to miss out on such a gifted and brilliant young man, is there?”

"However, I don't have the time or energy to focus on recruiting Tachibana Seiden right now."

A bitter smile appeared on Rakshasa's face.

"Master Orochi has been giving me so many tasks lately... I'm finding it hard to keep up."

He maintained a wry smile as he slowly stood up.

"Alright, let's go."

"Should we head back to the base first?" The short, ugly middle-aged man stood up. "Or should we find a restaurant for dinner first?"

"Let's find a restaurant for dinner first," Luosha said. "After dinner...we'll go meet that Shinzawa Hiroshi from the training ground."