I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

The volume of the air was very loud and imposing.

The bamboo sword that was slashed down from the top road was as swift as lightning.

The use of footwork and the control of distance were also very good.

This new opponent has a very solid foundation in swordsmanship—Qing Deng quickly made this judgment in his mind, turned around with his sword, and raised his sword to block.

But then, something happened that surprised Qingdeng.

Suddenly, opponent number 52 leaped forward, his feet stomping loudly on the ground, and passed Qingdeng with a series of thuds. He then dodged behind Qingdeng and, without losing momentum, headed straight out of the arena—this action meant, "I'm not fighting anymore, I surrender."

At the very moment that opponent number 52 passed by Qing Deng, the next person... opponent number 53, rushed out of the "waiting area" and charged towards Qing Deng!

Because Qingdeng raised his sword to block the downward slash of opponent number 52, his bamboo sword was raised above his head, leaving him wide open!

Opponent number 53 seized this rare opportunity and launched a fierce attack from below with his bamboo sword, striking Qing Deng's exposed body!

This "two-person relay" tactic caught Qing Deng off guard and left him at a loss—however, this "chaos" only lasted for a moment.

In that split second, Qingdeng stopped and skillfully moved to a safe area on his right side.

While dodging, Qingdeng let out a short shout and attacked the opponent's shoulder with the momentum of the Xia Duan sword.

Opponent number 53 – Defeated!

"Waaaaaah!"

A loud shout shook the air around Qing Deng—opponent number 54 has entered the fray!

Qing Deng quickly turned around and swung his knife to meet the approaching black shadow; the two actions happened almost simultaneously.

Two people, four legs, trampled the dust on the ground into a frenzy.

Amidst the fiercely swirling dust, two figures passed each other at breakneck speed, their bamboo swords clashing several times, producing muffled thuds and intermittent shouts.

If Qingdeng were at his peak, he would only need to swing his sword twice to deal with someone of this caliber.

Unfortunately, Qing Deng was extremely exhausted. Even with the boost from "Strength +1" and "Focus", his muscles were still sore and his attention was starting to wander uncontrollably.

Even though its strength has declined significantly, it is still more than enough to deal with the opponent in front of it.

Before long, Qing Deng gradually suppressed the opponent.

Just then, a scene very similar to the one before appeared—after the opponent used a move that forced Qingdeng to raise his sword to block, leaving him wide open, he suddenly jumped behind Qingdeng and ran out of the arena without looking back.

Immediately afterwards, another person seized the opportunity to pounce on Qingdeng, swinging his sword to attack Qingdeng's exposed body.

Qing Deng narrowed his eyes slightly and pursed his lips thoughtfully.

If this "two-person relay" tactic only occurs once, it can be explained as a coincidence.

But it happened twice in a row... Unless Qing Deng has lost his mind, he doesn't believe there's nothing fishy going on!

Having witnessed this trick before, Qingdeng remained calm this time, having already gained relevant experience.

"Wa ...

He charged forward like a raging torrent, rapidly slashing his bamboo sword while uttering the "monkey cry" of the Jigenryu school.

Qing Deng increasingly understood why the "monkey cry" was one of the core techniques of the Manifestation Style—because it was just too useful.

Imagine this: your opponent is calm and collected for the first half second, then suddenly lets out a scream more shrill than a female ghost's cry for the second half second... Anyone with weak mental fortitude would be startled and their attention would momentarily lapse—that momentary lapse in concentration is enough to decide the outcome of the battle.

The other party was shocked by the sound wave that burst from Qing Deng's throat, and their expression changed drastically.

By the time he came to his senses, Qingdeng's bamboo sword had already struck him with a dull thud.

The sound of the 55th opponent entering the arena came from behind.

Qing Deng turned around and, after recognizing the 55th opponent, raised an eyebrow slightly—it was Aoi Osamu, the one with the least presence among the row of powerhouses in the Third Division.

With his short stature and delicate appearance, Lan Jing didn't look like someone skilled in martial arts.

And in fact, it is indeed the case.

He entered the arena carrying a bamboo sword, but his sword-holding technique was utterly terrible—his palms gripped the hilt tightly and stiffly, without any "softness."

This grip will only make your swordplay stiff and lack speed and agility.

Lan Jing nervously set up his bamboo sword, adopted an awkward mid-level stance, stepped forward, and pointed the tip of his sword straight at Qing Deng's chest.

Qingdeng stood with his legs apart, ignoring the weak and slow slash that Lan Jing had unleashed.

When Lan Jing's bamboo sword was less than 3 inches away from Qing Deng's chest, Qing Deng suddenly turned to the side and then used the bottom of the bamboo sword hilt to strike Lan Jing's right arm holding the sword.

Lan Jing cried out in pain, and the bamboo sword in his hand clattered to the ground.

The weapons had been removed, but Lan Jing suddenly unleashed a sudden, inexplicable ruthlessness.

While still yelling in pain, he crouched down and charged straight at Qingdeng's waist with a "do-or-die" attitude.

Judging from his movements, he intended to pounce on Qingdeng and engage in hand-to-hand combat.

As he crouched and lunged forward, a hint of guilt flickered across Lan Jing's brow—but because he was looking down, even Qing Deng, who was standing right next to him, didn't notice the strange look on his face.

With his poor martial arts skills, how could Lan Jing possibly get close to Qing Deng?

Qingdeng skillfully dodged and jumped behind Lanjing.

Unaware that Qingdeng had moved behind Lanjing, he still foolishly charged forward.

Qing Deng slashed horizontally, striking Lan Jing squarely in the back.

Lan Jing let out a "Ugh!" and staggered forward a few steps before falling straight to the ground, landing on her shoulder.

……

……

Although physical exhaustion brought some danger to Qing Deng's battles, he still managed to defeat his 56th, 57th, and 58th opponents after Lan Jing without any major incident.

As the battle progressed, the doubts that had been building up in Qing Deng's mind had become so thick that they could no longer be ignored.

Aoki clearly stated that ever since he defeated Midorikawa, his subsequent opponents had all become strange.

To be more precise, their playing style has become strange.

Some people cooperate with each other and join forces—for example, the two pairs of people who use a "relay race".

For some, every move they made was no longer aimed at defeating Qingdeng, but rather at wearing down his physical and mental strength—such as Lan Jing, and opponent number 56. They all fought with great intensity, using moves that forced Qingdeng to expend energy to defend and dodge, all displaying the relentless spirit of "as long as I have the strength to stand, I will not leave the arena."

According to the rules of "Liqie", each participant must fight until they are too exhausted to continue or surrender before they can leave the arena.

Therefore, as long as the fighter does not surrender and still has enough strength to fight, they can stay on the field and fight the opponent indefinitely.

The fact that so many people's tactics have suddenly become so strange... it's obvious that someone is secretly organizing and planning all of this.

Qingdeng had no time to think about all this—because at that moment, a strong wind, like a tiger descending a mountain, attacked Qingdeng from the side!

Qing Deng has already defeated 58 people.

Currently, the only ones who haven't been "eliminated" are Shirasaki and Akabane, who left a very deep impression on Aoto.

The person who is taking the stage now is none other than the most senior member of the Third Division: Shirasaki Heijiro!

Bai Qi, wielding a wooden spear with a cloth wrapped around its tip, leaped forward with imposing grandeur, aiming straight for Qing Deng!

Qingdeng raised his sword to defend, and with a "crack," he deflected the fist-width spearhead.

Qing Deng's eyes narrowed instantly—the force transmitted from the sword to his palms clearly told him: the old man in front of him was a master of spearmanship!

Seeing that his attack had missed, Shirasaki took seven steps back to increase the distance between himself and Aoto. Then, he spread his feet apart and pointed the tip of his spear diagonally downwards at Aoto.

Just then, a gentle breeze blew by, ruffling his half-black and half-white eyebrows and short beard. Beneath his slightly swaying eyebrows were a pair of sharp eyes that were fixed intently on Qing Deng—he truly looked like a general stepping out of an ancient painting!

Qing Deng met Bai Qi's gaze solemnly, quietly placing the bamboo sword in front of him.

—Finally… a capable person worthy of the title “military general” has arrived!

Even if we argue that the thieves were an army, they should still have generals and soldiers.

Functionally speaking, Yu Li is the "General" of Huo Fu Dao Zei, and Tong Xin is the "Soldier" of Huo Fu Dao Zei.

As a result, the performance of the Third Division members so far can only be described in one sentence: they have neither the bearing of generals nor the manner of soldiers.

The appearance of Shirasaki finally reminded Aoto: Oh! Right, the Fire Thieves were actually an army!

Qing Deng glanced at Bai Qi's posture and thought to himself:

—The 'King of Weapons' is indeed very intimidating…

Among the eighteen weapons, the spear, with its simple attack method and wide attack range, is the absolute king that allows users to easily challenge stronger opponents.

Shirasaki's attack just now could only be executed by a spearman who had been immersed in spear techniques for many years—he had encountered a long-lost master of spearmanship... Qing Deng thought to himself.

The strength of the opponent before us should not be underestimated.

And my current physical and mental state is not ideal due to fatigue.

All these factors combined made Qingdeng dare not be careless.

He pondered for a moment.

A moment later, Qingdeng took a step to his left at a moderate pace.

Just as Qingdeng's left foot shifted to the side, a spear tip wrapped in cloth pierced the air and thrust straight toward Qingdeng's left side.

Qing Deng's step just now was actually a feint to lure Shirasaki into making a move.

As soon as Shirasaki thrust out his spear, Qing Deng quickly pulled his left foot back, skillfully dodging Shirasaki's thrust with a distance that was neither too much nor too little.

Immediately afterwards, Qing Deng began to step forward, trying to close the distance between himself and Shirasaki.

However, for every step Aoto took forward, Shirasaki would retreat the same number of steps, always maintaining a distance of about seven steps between them.

"Drink!"

Shirasaki let out a deep shout, flicked his wrists, and the spear in his hand transformed into a slippery, venomous snake carrying an astonishing momentum.

The venomous snake opened its blood-red maw and lunged menacingly at Qingdeng.

This time, Qingdeng did not dodge.

Instead, he swung his bamboo sword and slashed straight at the tip of the wooden spear that had entered his attack range.

The sword blade and the spear tip collided in mid-air.

The "lateral force" exerted by the sword sweeping from left to right forcefully deflected Shirasaki's spear, causing it to veer off its original trajectory.