I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

However, his "sincerity" did not elicit a pitiful and pleading surrender.

"Humph!"

Onodera gave a heavy, cold snort, then said, without hesitation, enunciating each word clearly:

"Now that things have come to this, I, Onodera Sakura, only know that there is no honor in dying, but no shame in living!"

Before Onodera spoke, the burly man appeared quite composed and dignified.

And now, his fleshy face is contorted in a comical way.

"Fine! You've got guts!"

The burly man shouted sharply, like boiling water suddenly overflowing.

"Onodera! You just wait! I'll send you to the underworld right now!"

"Although you've brought in a master to help, this minor variable won't affect the overall situation at all!"

"Charge! Whoever cuts off Onodera's head will be rewarded with 50 taels of gold! Whoever cuts off the head of Onodera's comrade will also be rewarded with 50 taels of gold!"

50 taels of gold... This is a fortune that could drive a poor man mad!

As the saying goes: A generous reward will surely attract brave men.

Enormous wealth can cause humans to lose their ability to make calm judgments and turn them into beasts that follow their desires.

As of just now, many of the women in black at the scene were still showing fear and apprehension after witnessing Qing Deng's exceptional skills.

But now, their eyes have changed.

The wishful thinking that if everyone attacked together, they might be able to take advantage of the chaos and kill their opponents in the confusion spread like wildfire through their minds.

"on!"

The burly man forcefully swung his large hand down from where it was raised high.

"Kill everyone in the house!"

As soon as the burly man spoke, the men in black immediately let out beast-like howls.

"Kill! Kill!"

"I'm taking Onodera's head!"

"Get out of my way! Don't try to take it from me!"

Faced with the swarming enemy, Qingdeng remained steadfast.

Onodera is an accomplice of Takayuki Tachibana.

Takayuki Tachibana has long since passed away.

In contrast, Onodera has lived to this day.

Although it is not yet certain, Qing Deng has roughly guessed why Onodera was only now being hunted down by the Black Mother Cloaks.

Aoto still has many questions for Onodera.

Therefore, even if there were thousands of troops in front of him, he would never back down an inch!

He's saved Onodera's life!

"Okita-kun! Sanako-san!"

Qing Deng shouted the two women's names and then prepared his knife.

"Let's go!"

"understand!"

Souji replied loudly in her signature energetic voice.

"..."

Sanako remained elegant; though she didn't shout, she silently assumed a fighting stance.

In the next instant, Qingdeng leaped out of the thatched hut without a running start, and with the help of gravity, brought down the knife he had raised above his head.

Pfft!

The shattered head looked just like a broken watermelon.

As soon as his feet touched the ground, Qing Deng spun around on his left toe and swung his sword—the blade traced an arc as it slashed at the enemy to his left.

With the added centrifugal force, how powerful is this strike?

With a single slash, the opponent's upper and lower body were separated.

Immediately afterwards, as if he had eyes in the back of his head, Qing Deng swung his sword backhand, sweeping it across his back to slash at the enemy chasing after him.

This time, Qingdeng's offensive was thwarted.

clang!

Just as Echizen's slayer, Tsuri no Kami Kanetsugu, was about to engulf the enemy's mouth and nose with his sword's edge, the enemy timely raised his palm sword and caught Aoto's slash.

However... it was merely "caught".

"Waaah!"

The enemy screamed, then staggered backward, clutching the knife that had been deflected.

With his many extraordinary talents, Qing Deng's strikes are no longer something that ordinary people can withstand.

The enemy gritted his teeth and strained his lower body to barely maintain his balance.

But what followed was Qingdeng's pursuit...

Natural Rishin-ryu: The Sword of No-Knowledge!

puff!

The flattened blade pierced through the gap between the enemy's chest and ribs.

Enter through the left chest and exit through the back.

The white blade advances, the red blade emerges.

The enemy's eyes widened instantly from the intense pain, the whites of his eyes turning bloodshot.

As Qing Deng withdrew his sword, life force gushed out from the hole in the enemy's chest along with bright red blood, emitting a foul, fishy smell.

The next second, the enemy's head dragged its body forward and fell slumped down.

His body collided heavily with the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Go to hell! Aa ...

Before Qingdeng could even exhale, he heard heavy, hurried footsteps behind him again.

He had no choice but to turn around, knife in hand, preparing to plunge into the next battle.

The newly encountered opponent is a tall man who wields a greatsword.

He shouted loudly as he raised the massive blade above his head.

At the same time, he had a determined look on his face, which probably showed that he was very confident in his skills.

Because the Ōdachi is much longer than the tachi, the first person to enter the opponent's optimal attack range will inevitably be Aoto.

Just as a fierce battle between a katana and an otachi was about to erupt—

puff!

A few scattered drops of blood splattered onto Qingdeng's face.

This is not Qingdeng's blood.

It was the blood of the tall man.

Qingdeng blinked in surprise.

At this moment, a scene that was both terrifying and aesthetically pleasingly violent unfolded before his eyes—

The tall man stood frozen in place, his chest pierced, the tip of the naginata piercing through his chest.

"Ugh...! Pfft! Cough!"

Despite his best efforts to endure it, Gao Lao still involuntarily coughed up a mouthful of blood.

"Who...who is it?!"

The tall man squeezed out the last bit of strength he had left and turned his head with difficulty to look back.

Then, his eyes widened.

The person who made him "open-minded"... was actually a woman.

And she's a very beautiful woman.

A high ponytail with the ends hanging down to the waist.

A women's kendo uniform with a white top and blue bottom.

A face of unparalleled beauty.

It was Chiba Sanako!

To facilitate her movements, at the very beginning of the battle, Sanako threw away her cumbersome straw hat, revealing her stunning beauty.

In the blink of an eye, Sanako shouted and pulled the naginata back from the tall man's chest with all her might.

"The front of the heart connects to the back"... Even Hua Tuo would shake his head at such an injury.

With only exhaled breaths remaining, the tall man collapsed limply to the ground, as if he had slipped off the tip of a naginata.

Just then, perhaps because they thought Sanako was a woman and therefore thought she was easy to bully, nearly 10 enemies rushed towards Sanako from different directions like wolves and tigers.

Clearly, these people had no intention of showing any mercy or tenderness towards women.

Tempted by 50 taels of gold, mere beauty is utterly insignificant!

Seeing the large number of attackers, Sanako was neither surprised nor afraid.

She calmly spread her feet and raised her sword, her heroic gaze sweeping across the enemies around her along the blade.

During the Heian period, Kamakura period, and Muromachi period, when spears were not yet common, the naginata, capable of both thrusting and slashing, and used in both mounted and foot combat, was undoubtedly the undisputed master of close combat on the battlefield!