I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

clang!

It was another loud clang, enough to make onlookers wonder if someone's knife had broken.

As if bounced back by an invisible force, the two of them retreated backward, their feet leaving two white marks on the bridge surface.

The separation... lasted only a moment.

In the next instant, the two stopped in their tracks and then charged at each other again!

Jinno shifted his sword stance back to mid-range, while Aoto met him with a low stance.

Qing Deng slid across the ground as he swung his blade upwards, the blade grazing the bridge surface and leaving a thin mark on it with its sharp tip.

Facing Qing Deng's downward slash, Jin Ye took a deep breath and then slashed down with his sword! He wanted to suppress Qing Deng's swift attack!

Qing Deng's upward sweeping motion contained both powerful force and exquisite skill.

As the two swords clashed, Jinno felt as if his sword was about to be swept away by a strong gust of wind blowing from below.

Although Jinno's powerful downward slash was precisely caught mid-air by Qing Deng's sword, the ensuing immense danger caused Jinno's expression to change drastically.

Fortunately, Kamino was no weakling. He gritted his teeth, exerted force in his hands, and relied on brute strength and skill to hold the sword firmly and prevent it from slipping from his grasp.

A tremendous force erupted at the point where the two blades clashed.

Driven by this force, the two lowered their waists and stepped forward. As they shifted positions, they exchanged another move, but neither gained any advantage in this exchange.

Aoto and Shinno, who had just passed each other, returned to their original places.

This round ended with Qing Deng having a slight advantage.

But the battle continues!

********

********

Yesterday, the author spent a lot of time thinking about whether to have Aoto and Jinno say something exciting before the fight to set the mood.

After thinking it over, I realized that it would be stupid to have Qing Deng and Jin Ye ramble on and on before the fight even started—a swordsman's duel needs no words!

Draw your sword and start slashing!

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Chapter 185 Holding a long sword, bathed in moonlight, his sword aura was like a dragon!

"Ha ha ha ha……"

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Aoto and Shinno both opened their mouths slightly and gasped for breath.

It wasn't because my body felt too tired.

Rather, it was because the fast-paced, high-speed offense and defense they had just engaged in had pushed their nerves to the limit, causing them to unconsciously hold their breath and dare not blink.

It wasn't until the two "silver snakes" separated again that they belatedly realized how dry their eyes were and how their chests were throbbing with pain as they protested the lack of oxygen.

The two swordsmen temporarily "ceased their fight"... but the space was still filled with an atmosphere of impending conflict.

The alternating breaths of the two created an eerie tension on the bridge.

In the next instant, as the tension built up to a point where it felt suffocating, a dark shadow flickered! The moonlight shimmered! Two gleaming "silver snakes" once again pounced and bit at each other!

Jinno, in a mid-stance stance, thrust his sword, its blade gleaming coldly, straight toward Aoto's chest.

With his center of gravity extremely low, Qing Deng, in a posture that resembled kneeling, thrust the sword hidden behind his right side upwards, attempting to break through Jin Ye's attack.

But at that moment, Qingdeng suddenly felt soreness and numbness in his left leg, and a faint pain in his knee.

It wasn't an attack... it was a signal from my legs that they were "overburdened".

The series of hard battles tonight have left Qing Deng's hands and feet somewhat unresponsive.

Although the numbness and tingling in her left leg were not intense, and although it came on suddenly, it also went away quickly, this unexpected situation still caused Qingdeng's movements to become uncontrollably distorted.

The negative consequences of the distorted movements soon befell Qing Deng.

The trajectory of the sword swing was deviated due to the distortion of the movement, and it failed to perfectly block Jinno's attack.

Although he parried Kanna's sword, preventing it from striking his chest, the sharp tip still grazed Aoto's upper right arm, tearing the sleeve of his kimono.

Qing Deng glanced quickly at his cut upper right arm—although he had lost a lot of blood, the injury was not too deep and would not affect his movements.

Qing Deng used his toes to propel himself backward with force.

Jinno strode forward, not giving Qing Deng a chance to create distance between them... and this was exactly the moment Qing Deng had been waiting for.

In the split second that Jinno lunged at him, Qing Deng freed his left hand to grab the slashed sleeve of his right arm and ripped it off. He then threw the wide sleeve at Jinno's face like a net.

Faced with the rapidly enlarging piece of clothing in his field of vision, Jinno frowned slightly, then subconsciously swung his sword and cleaved the piece of clothing in two.

As the fabric, neatly divided in half, fell to the left and right... a sharp glint of cold light shot rapidly toward Jinno's nose!

Like a dagger revealed at the end of a painting, the tip of the blade was hidden behind the cloth that had been cut in two... the tip of Qing Deng's blade!

The sword, thrusting straight at Jinno's face, drew a straight line of light and stirred up a gust of wind.

With his pupils contracting sharply, Jinno forcefully turned his head to the left, while hastily retracting the sword he was about to use to slash at Qing Deng back to the front of his body.

Snap!

The blade of the Demon God, aimed at Jinno's face, collided violently with the back of Jinno's sword, which was held upright at the tip. Like two welding torches clashing, it sparked a series of leaping sparks that illuminated Jinno's face.

Jinno's timely defense caused the trajectory of the demon to deviate, missing Jinno's face and only leaving a deep bloody mark on Jinno's right cheek.

In an instant, half of Jinno's face was stained with blood flowing from his own body.

The balance of power shifted in just a few seconds! Now it's Qing Deng's turn to pursue the wounded Jin Ye.

Qing Deng had been gripping the hilt of the sword tightly, but now he loosened his grip slightly, giving the tip of the blade a light, rhythmic movement... This was an imitation of the Hokushin Itto-ryu swordsmanship.

The blade tip twitches slightly to prevent it from freezing, allowing for quick responses to any of the opponent's actions and making it difficult for the opponent to detect one's intentions—this is one of the most distinctive features of the Hokushin Itto-ryu style.

Because he frequently sparred with swordsmen who used the Hokushin Itto-ryu style, Hokushin Itto-ryu was the sword style that Qing Deng was most familiar with, apart from the Tennen Rishin-ryu style.

With his "sword genius" and "demon heart," Qing Deng unknowingly and successfully "stole" some of the classic techniques of the Hokushin Itto-ryu style.

Qing Deng loosened his grip on the sword and swung it rapidly. Dense blade light wove into a large, silvery-white net, covering Jin Ye with overwhelming force.

There was no time to dodge with movement... Jinno gritted his teeth, lowered his waist, and decided to clash with Qing Deng's sword! He would go head-to-head with Qing Deng!

铛！铛！铛！铛！铛……

Two silver snakes, each occupying a space, entangled in mid-air, repeatedly going through a process of "colliding, separating, colliding again, and separating again".

On the empty bridge, the clanging of metal echoed repeatedly... but only a girl in red was fortunate enough to hear it.

Qing Deng's every slash was delivered with almost all his might.

Jinno's every defense was a testament to his all-out effort. While defending against Qing Deng's attacks, he also launched fierce counterattacks from time to time.

A fierce and relentless offensive and defensive battle... it's the same for both sides; even a moment's relaxation can bring a fatal blow that can determine the outcome.

The fierce clash resulted in three more nicks appearing on the blade of the "Demon-Slaying" sword within just a dozen seconds.

As of now... the blade on the Ghost-Slaying Sword is now pitted and uneven, like the serrated teeth of a shark.

A rough count reveals that there are at least 10 gaps.

After the war, this battered knife will be sent to the swordsmith for a major overhaul.

Jinno's sword wasn't much better. Its quality was clearly inferior to that of the Demon King's sword.

Although he did not experience a continuous series of battles tonight like the Demon King, the blade of Jinno's sword was covered with just as many nicks as the Demon King's.

clang!

The two blades clashed again... but this time, something went wrong.

In the instant the two swords clashed and were still in motion, Qing Deng swiftly freed his left hand and grabbed Jin Ye's right wrist, which was holding the sword, attempting to use a grappling technique to disarm Jin Ye.

Jinno reacted quickly... no wonder he is the leader and strongest member of the Exile Group.

He gripped the knife handle tightly with his right hand, preventing Qing Deng from controlling him, and at the same time, he used Qing Deng's own methods against him, releasing his left hand from the knife and grabbing Qing Deng's right wrist.

The two remained locked in this bizarre standoff, with their swords drawn together and each gripping the other's right wrist.

Neither side would give in, and neither side would gain the upper hand...

Continuing this stalemate will only waste energy, effort, and time.

For Qing Deng, who has already fought in multiple venues tonight and whose physical strength has been severely depleted, a "war of attrition" that tests strength and stamina is the kind of battle he most wants to avoid.

Therefore, Qingdeng took the initiative to withdraw from the stalemate.

He released his grip on Jinno's right wrist, pointed his left shoulder diagonally forward, and forcefully rammed into Jinno's chest.

Jinno was mentally prepared and on guard against Aoto's physical attacks, such as shoulder bumps and kicks.

For Jinno, the sooner and easier he wins this decisive battle against Aoto, the better.

After all, besides this hateful traitor, there's also that red-clad girl with impressive martial arts skills who's currently standing quietly not far away, and we need to deal with her.

Moreover, if the time drags on for too long, other officials might arrive.

This kind of "war of attrition" that tests physical strength and time is something that Kamino tries his best to avoid.

So, after Aoto released his right wrist and crashed into him, Kanno also released Aoto's wrist and stepped to the side to avoid Aoto's "meatball impact".

The two switched positions again... the one who was facing away from the moon now faced the moon, and the one who was facing the moon now faced away from the moon.

The moonlight cast the long shadows of the two swordsmen onto the bridge.

Under the moonlight, the two figures, having just separated, immediately merged back together.