I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

They all adopted their most proficient stances and then introduced themselves one by one:

"Direct Heart Shadow Style, Uehara Saichiro!"

"Ono Itto-ryu, Mikami Masajiro!"

"Direct Heart Shadow Style, Takesaburo Okuda!"

"Shinto Muken-ryu, Takahashi Yashiro!"

Zuo Yilang, Masajiro, Takezaburo, Yashiro... One, two, three, four, these four names are easy to remember, but Qing Deng didn't pay any attention to their names.

Qing Deng's attention was now entirely focused on himself.

—“Momentum”...it’s been so long since I’ve had that…

Qingdeng blinked in surprise.

The last time it unleashed its "momentum" was more than half a year ago in the duel with Kamaitachi.

The "momentum" was once again suddenly and unexpectedly triggered without any prior warning... Qing Deng was naturally astonished and puzzled by this.

Although I'm very curious about the reasons behind this, I have to put the question aside for now due to the current situation—I'll think about the answer later!

With a long "Ha..." sound, Qing Deng exhaled, shaking off his fatigue, and impatiently addressed the enemies ahead, enunciating each word clearly:

"Stop talking nonsense and bring it on!"

At that moment, the "momentum" released from Qingdeng's body suddenly surged!

At that very moment, the five figures merged into one!

Qingdeng leaped into the middle of the enemy ranks.

He swung his sword diagonally, aiming for Zuo Yilang's chest, then adjusted the position of the blade tip to stab at Masajiro's neck. Immediately afterwards, he swung the sword in a beautiful fan shape, sweeping it towards Takezaburo's abdomen.

Although Qing Deng's series of fluid attacks were blocked or dodged, he successfully forced the three attackers back, causing their originally tight formation to loosen.

In the blink of an eye, Zuo Yilang let out a low shout and his body flew like a swallow, slashing straight at Qing Deng's head.

Qing Deng fearlessly launched a counterattack! With fluid footwork as if gliding on water, he closed in on Zuo Yilang, deflecting Zuo Yilang's sword, and then swiftly slashed at Zuo Yilang's neck.

Zuo Yilang also parried Qing Deng's attack, and the two switched positions.

At this moment, Qing Deng suddenly felt a murderous aura approaching from behind.

Qing Deng reacted swiftly, turning around and swinging his sword to meet the attacking Yashiro from behind.

In the sky and earth, a white blade flashed suddenly—people saw that Qing Deng's sword flashed only once, deflecting Mi Shiro's sword and thwarting Mi Shiro's sneak attack.

In the next instant, Qing Deng took a large step forward with his feet firmly planted on the ground. Just as he was about to pass by Mishiro, he raised his sword high above his head and then slashed down with force, unleashing a Kesa Slash.

Upon seeing this, Mishiro was terrified and instinctively raised his sword to defend himself.

The downward slash and the upward defense appear to be equally fast.

But what is the real situation?

In reality, Qingdeng's sword speed is slightly faster.

The sword is swift and deadly.

A moment of carelessness, a difference in speed, can determine the outcome of a sword duel!

puff!

Aoto's blade sprayed out a waterfall of blood—his sword had cut deeply into Mishiro's left shoulder, from the shoulder all the way down to his abdomen!

*******

*******

Yesterday's monthly ticket goal was successfully achieved! However, because I was busy dealing with some personal matters yesterday, I wasn't able to write 8000 words today. I'm very sorry! I will make up for it with an 8000-word chapter tomorrow! (Like a leopard crying.jpg)

Chapter 345 New Talent [Dry Palm] Combined with Talent [Tiger Arm +1]! [6700]

[Ding! Talent detected]

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

[Talent Introduction: Swordsmanship talent is amplified 9 times the average level]

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

[Ding! Initiating talent fusion]

[Ding! A "Minor Master of Swordsmanship" cannot fuse with a "Saint of Swordsmanship"]

[Talent Fusion Failed]

……

Enhancing swordsmanship skills... It's been a long time since I've seen this type of talent.

Unfortunately, the title of "minor mastery of swordsmanship" is no longer of any use to Qing Deng at this moment.

Currently, only those with a "Sword Master" or higher talent level can further enhance Qing Deng's swordsmanship.

Mishiro, whose body had been cut in half by Qingdeng, slid down from his blade and collapsed to the ground, lifeless.

The battle had only just begun, and people were already dying... The gruesome scene caused severe physical discomfort to many onlookers.

For a moment, the crowd resembled a flock of startled crows taking flight.

However, the latter made a "ga-ya-ga-ya" cry, while the former made a "woo-woo-woo" and "vomit-vomit-vomit" cry and gagging sound.

Without a moment's respite, a new, suffocating killing intent swept towards Qing Deng.

Qing Deng prepared his sword and parried the cold wind blowing towards him.

The sound of blades clashing rang out, and sparks flew.

Wu Sanlang, who practiced the Straight Heart Shadow Style, shouted loudly, focused his energy into his dantian, exerted force in his waist and arms, and planted his feet firmly on the ground, forcing Qing Deng to wrestle with him.

Jitshin-kage-ryu is a long-established swordsmanship school that arose during the Genroku era (1688-1703) and produced many talented individuals.

To date, the most famous swordsman of the Straight Heart Shadow Style is none other than Otani Seiichiro, the current head of the Kōbō-shū, who is hailed as the "Sword Saint" by the world and is often compared to Ogata Hayase by busybodies, with discussions about who is stronger between him and the "Eternal Sword Saint".

The Straight Heart Shadow Style emphasizes the tempering of the heart and courage, and stresses the use of a "heavy sword".

Judging from the techniques used by Takesaburo, he has a good grasp of the principles of the Straight Heart Shadow Style.

Qing Deng, who was exchanging blows with Wu Sanlang, felt as if an indestructible boulder was pressing down on him.

At the same time, two other adversaries... Saichiro and Masajiro launched a pincer attack, closing in on Aoto from the left and right.

Their intention was clear: to take advantage of Qingdeng being held back by Wu Sanlang and subdue him with a flurry of blows!

What appears to be an imminent crisis to ordinary people is nothing more than a common sight to Qingdeng.

No sooner said than done, Qingdeng took action.

"Haaaaaaah!"

A standard breathy sound burst forth from Qingdeng's throat.

With the help of the combined energy, Qingdeng secretly channeled his strength, turning his legs, waist, and arms into one—his feet pushed off the ground, his legs aided his waist, his waist aided his arms, and his arms aided his wrists.

"Leading the Way", "Bear's Waist +1", "Elephant's Core +1", and "Tiger's Arm"—activate these four talents together!

Furthermore, the "Gathering of Spirits" and the "Lone Warrior's" already "shining" status due to his ability to fight against multiple opponents—

The seemingly indestructible boulder was broken apart.

"Whoa!"

Wu Sanlang let out a strange cry that sounded like he was gasping for breath.

Wu Sanlang's sword seemed to be struck by an invisible shockwave, and with a clang, it separated from Qing Deng's sword.

In the next instant, his entire upper body leaned back as if falling backward, taking several steps backward with a series of "thuds," and the knife in his hand almost flew out of his grasp.

This is the consequence of trying to outmuscle Qingdeng.

Using pure physical strength, he deflected Wusaburo's sword, forcing him to retreat. Then, Qing Deng quickly turned around and swung his sword at Zuo Yilang, who was the fastest on the right.

Zuo Yilang, who had never expected Qing Deng to get rid of Wu Sanlang so quickly, couldn't help but feel a few horrified expressions.

However, Zuo Yilang was not a novice who had never held a knife before, and he only panicked for a moment before regaining his composure.

"Drink up!"

As if to suppress Qing Deng's strike, and seemingly determined to fight against Qing Deng, Zuo Yilang changed his stance and used the same move as Qing Deng: a horizontal slash.

Qing Deng's sword slashes from west to east, while Zuo Yilang's sword slashes from east to west.

Two swords, pointing in completely opposite directions, collided heavily together in an instant—clang—along with the deafening sound of metal clashing and the shattering of blades.

Zuo Yilang's sword was damaged. A three-millimeter-wide nick appeared at the spot where it collided with Qing Deng's sword.

In contrast, Qing Deng's knife was completely undamaged.

As Qing Deng's own reputation soared, the fame of his beloved sword, Ding Guishen, also rose accordingly.

Anyone familiar with Qingdeng's resume and deeds knows what Niou's sword looks like.

In order to prevent anyone from discovering Aoto's true identity, before leaving the Moon Palace Shrine and preparing to begin his incognito visit for the day, Tokugawa Iemochi specially prepared a fine sword for Aoto to replace the spirit.

The sword provided by the current shogun of the Edo shogunate... it certainly couldn't be some cheap, street-side item!

According to Qing Deng's own estimation, in terms of quality alone, the sword that Tokugawa Iemochi temporarily lent him was in no way inferior to the sword given to the Demon God!

When comparing a rare item to an ordinary one, it's only natural that one person's knife will be damaged while the other's remains intact.

After witnessing Takeshiro being flung away by Qing Deng with brute force, Zuo Yilang still dared to confront Qing Deng head-on... which shows that Zuo Yilang was very confident in his arm strength.

Zuo Yilang's confidence was indeed not unfounded.

After exchanging a sword strike with Zuo Yilang, Qing Deng suddenly felt a numbness in both palms. He hadn't encountered an opponent who could cause such numbness in his hands in a long time.

However... in terms of sheer strength, Qing Deng, who possesses a multitude of extraordinary talents, ultimately prevailed!

"Ugh—!"

In the instant the two swords clashed, despite his best efforts, the powerful impact transmitted from the blades to his palms and body caused Zuo Yilang to stagger back three steps in pain due to exhaustion.

After successfully forcing Zuo Yilang back, Qing Deng immediately turned to the left, preparing to meet the next enemy.