I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

The first sword strike started from the lower right and swung upwards, delivering a heavy blow to Qing Deng's back. Immediately afterward, the second sword strike followed the upward-sweeping blade back along the same path, delivering another heavy blow to Qing Deng's back from the upper left to the lower right.

In just a few seconds, Qingdeng was stabbed three more times... once in the side abdomen and twice in the back.

Aoto hurriedly turned around to face Chiba Eijiro, cautiously guarding against Chiba Eijiro's possible continued attacks, while taking several steps back to widen the distance between himself and Chiba Eijiro.

Chiba Eijiro did not launch another attack. He stood still, quietly watching Aoto retreat, and then said softly:

“You’ve been focusing your attention on my sword the whole time.”

"That won't do."

"In a life-or-death struggle, fists, feet, knees, shoulders... even teeth, every part of the body can be used as a weapon."

"Don't just observe the sword in the enemy's hand, observe the enemy's whole body."

"If you focus all your attention on the sword in the enemy's hand and ignore the rest of the enemy's body, you are likely to end up like you just now—getting bumped by my shoulder and losing your balance."

Qing Deng paused for a moment, then calmed down and thought about it carefully... Just as Chiba Eijiro said, in order to block or dodge Chiba Eijiro's "Divine Speed ​​Sword", he had to keep his attention on Chiba Eijiro's bamboo sword and subconsciously ignored the rest of Chiba Eijiro's body.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so easily hit by Chiba Eijiro's "Human Bomb Impact".

Qing Deng took a deep breath: "Thank you for your guidance...!"

Seeing Aoto readjust his sword, Chiba Eijiro's lips curled up slightly: "Very good, let's continue."

The battle resumes.

However, the battle situation did not change significantly.

Don't just observe your opponent's sword, observe your opponent's whole body... Applying this principle to Chiba Eijiro is far too much of a stretch for Aoto in his current state.

Chiba Eijiro's speed is simply too fast; he is a complete "speed-type swordsman".

With his extraordinary speed, Chiba Eijiro's feet completely controlled the space around him and Aoto, frantically compressing Aoto's range of movement.

Qing Deng had to concentrate intently on Chiba Eijiro's right hand and the bamboo sword in his right palm; only in this way could he barely keep up with Chiba Eijiro's sword speed.

But if you do that, you won't be able to focus your attention on other parts of Chiba Eijiro's body...

In short, this is a deadlock.

Because of the good relationship between Shiwei Hall, Xuanwu Hall, and Xiaoqianye Sword Hall, Beichen Itto-ryu is the school of martial arts that Qingdeng has been in contact with the most, apart from the Tianran Rishin-ryu that he has been practicing.

That is why Qing Deng could clearly feel how significantly different Chiba Eijiro was from the other swordsmen he knew who used the Hokushin Itto-ryu style, such as Chiba Jutaro, Sanako, and Yamanami Keisuke!

Facing Chiba Eijiro, whose individual strength and sense of pressure were clearly far superior to those of the strongest opponent Aoto had ever faced before, Kondo Shusuke, Aoto's "lone wolf" talent had already been fully unleashed.

Even so, Aoto was still being completely suppressed by Chiba Eijiro.

Qing Deng had lost count of how many times he had been stabbed by Chiba Eijiro.

If it were a duel with real swords... he would have been dead long ago.

However—despite being badly beaten by Chiba Eijiro, Aoto's face did not show the slightest bit of ferocity or annoyance.

--sharp!

Qing Deng couldn't remember how many times he had been stabbed by Chiba Eijiro, nor could he remember how many times he had mentally shouted "Awesome!" since the start of the battle.

Chiba Eijiro's bamboo sword struck Aoto again—the tip of the bamboo sword hit Aoto's chest from an unbelievable angle.

Besides his speed, Chiba Eijiro has another terrifying quality: his sword has no fixed trajectory.

His sword can perform ultra-high-speed attacks and defenses from any direction and angle.

Aoto fought back fiercely, his sword whipping up a gust of wind, but once again he futilely struck only the afterimage of Chiba Eijiro.

—I couldn't keep up with his speed again...

Compared to the swift and sharp Chiba Eijiro, Aoto was like a novice who had just learned how to hold a sword, only able to clumsily and haphazardly slash and swing the blade... It was clear that Aoto had recently defeated a group of young swordsmen from the Edo swordsmanship world, led by the "Three Heroes," to win the swordsmanship tournament.

—Is this the strength of Edo's strongest swordsman...?

Chiba Eijiro swiftly stepped forward and once again used the classic "hand-cutting" technique of the Hokushin Ittō-ryū school, this time slashing heavily into Aoto's right wrist, which he hadn't had time to retract.

The throbbing pain in Qingdeng's right wrist was stimulating his nerves... but Qingdeng was smiling.

He raised his gaze and stared directly at Chiba Eijiro.

The fiery light emanating from his pupils seemed to melt the mask on his face.

--sharp!

—My skills are still far from sufficient!

Chiba Eijiro was about to deliver another blow to Aoto, but he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Through the gap in the mask, Chiba Eijiro saw the smile on Aoto's face, and the light in his eyes that not only did not fade, but became even more intense.

Nearly 20 minutes have passed since the start of the competition.

Wearing full armor and engaging in a high-intensity sword fight for 20 minutes... such an intensity of exercise is enough to put a tremendous strain on the body.

Qingdeng's breathing was so rapid that he had to open his mouth wide to inhale air in order to barely meet his body's current oxygen requirements.

Chiba Eijiro stared at Aoto, whose shoulders and chest heaved violently from exhaustion, yet whose eyes remained burning with passion.

"You didn't seem discouraged at all, even though I beat you so badly."

Chiba Eijiro was unusually curious about the motivation behind someone who, despite being beaten so badly, still maintained such a high fighting spirit.

Frustration... A faint smile appeared on Aoto's face when he heard this word from Chiba Eijiro's mouth.

"Having personally recognized how many shortcomings I still have... is that something to be discouraged about?"

When Aoto said this, Chiba Eijiro looked like he really wanted to burst out laughing.

"Well said."

Chiba Eijiro's eyes shone with undisguised admiration and praise.

He took a deep breath, then slowly spread his feet apart, adopting a mid-stance, and the tip of the knife pointing diagonally at Qing Deng's chest trembled lightly like a wagtail.

Then, something astonishing happened to Chiba Eijiro. He lowered his eyelids slightly, and in the shadows of his eyelids and mask, Chiba Eijiro's eyes shone with a captivating light.

In the next instant, Chiba Eijiro unleashed a surging aura that pressed down on Aoto head-on, like a raging flood!

Okita and his group, who were standing at the edge of the dojo watching the battle, all felt the change in Chiba Eijiro's aura, and their expressions became serious as a result.

Aoto, who was directly confronting the aura emanating from Chiba Eijiro, held his breath and solemnly gripped the bamboo sword in his hand.

—“Momentum”…

Chiba Eijiro unleashed his "power".

Whether in terms of quantity or quality, Chiba Eijiro's momentum is far stronger than that of Shusuke, which Aoto had previously sensed!

If Shusuke's "momentum" is like a fierce tiger, then Chiba Eijiro's "momentum" is like a flying dragon in the sky, looking down at the creatures of the lower world.

When Chiba Eijiro's "power" came crashing down, Aoto felt his heart skip a beat.

This powerful deterrent... made Qingdeng feel like he wasn't competing against one person, but against a massive army.

Zhou Zhu had previously mentioned to Qing Deng that when fighting against a master who can freely control and release "momentum," if the opponent releases "momentum," it only means one thing.

He's about to show his true skills!

"I'm going." Chiba Eijiro's body and his voice rushed towards Aoto at the same moment.

Ugh!

The air was shaken.

Aoto saw Chiba Eijiro's attack coming from the top, but he could only watch helplessly as the sword rapidly approached his body.

Chiba Eijiro's move... in terms of speed and power, far surpassed all of his previous attacks!

If Aoto's body could barely keep up with Chiba Eijiro's speed just now, the situation has completely changed.

Snapped!

Chiba Eijiro's sword struck Aoto's chest with a heavy blow, adding another "death in battle" to Aoto's record.

Aoto took a half step back and swung his sword to counterattack, but Chiba Eijiro easily dodged it.

At this moment, Qingdeng found himself in a rather embarrassing situation.

Thanks to his "Eagle Eyes," he possesses formidable dynamic vision, allowing his eyes to barely keep up with Chiba Eijiro's movements, but his body is completely unable to react.

He could only watch helplessly as Chiba Eijiro's bamboo sword slashed at him, and he was powerless to do anything about it... This was the predicament that Aoto was currently in.

After Chiba Eijiro unleashed his "power" and got serious, in the blink of an eye, Aoto's body had been hit more than a dozen times, and that number was still rising.

—We must find a way to counter this…!

Not wanting to continue being passively attacked, Qing Deng let out a long breath and pondered whether there was any way to counter Chiba Eijiro in his current state.

At that moment, an idea flashed through Qingdeng's mind like lightning.

This idea... is a very bold operational plan that Qing Deng has never tried before.

—Want to give it a try...?

Qingdeng asked himself this question in his heart.

Snapped!

At that moment, Chiba Eijiro's blade struck his body once again.

Looking at the spot where Chiba Eijiro had just hit him again, Aoto pursed his lips tightly, then, as if he had made up his mind, his gaze sharpened, and he slowly closed his eyes.

Everyone present, including Chiba Eijiro and Okita and the others who were watching from the edge of the dojo, noticed Aoto's unusual action immediately.

What was he going to do? — This was the same question that popped into everyone's mind.

Chiba Eijiro stared thoughtfully at Aoto, who had suddenly closed his eyes, for a few moments, then continued his fierce attack on Aoto, his hands and feet moving as usual.

Every time Chiba Eijiro's bamboo sword came slashing down, Aoto tried to dodge or raise his sword to defend, but his movements were always a few beats too slow. By the time Chiba Eijiro's bamboo sword had already struck him, Aoto could barely move his feet or raise his bamboo sword.

That's understandable, after all, Aoto had his eyes closed. Without his vision, how could he keep up with Chiba Eijiro's sword?

But Qingdeng remained calm and composed.

With an expression of calm, he remained with his eyes tightly closed, unwavering.

Chiba Eijiro, Okita, and the others gradually realized what Aoto was trying to do.

“Oh…” Chiba Eijiro’s brows furrowed with interest. “Interesting…”