I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Bang!

Bang!

Two stomping sounds rang out, one after the other.

The two swordsmen charged at each other.

The two swords slashed at each other simultaneously.

As a result, blood spurted from the shoulder of Masashiro Oshino, which was tattooed with a horse.

In contrast, Qingdeng was completely unharmed.

Just as Masashiro's sword was about to fall on his head, he precisely twisted his body to the right, avoiding the strike by an inch.

The two passed each other.

"Waaaaah...!"

Painful groans escaped from Masashige's lips.

The injuries he suffered were severe enough to render an ordinary person instantly incapacitated.

However, Masashiro Oshiro, with his amazing willpower, endured the excruciating pain in his body and the dizziness in his head.

He turned around and relentlessly lunged at Qingdeng again, his knife whistling as it hurtled towards Qingdeng's head.

Qing Deng stepped to the side, dodging the attack, and then swung his sword forward to strike the opponent's thigh.

Masago Saburo instinctively leaned back, dodging the attack, but not completely – the tip of Echizen Sumitomo Riku no Kami Kanetsugu's sword still grazed his thigh muscle.

The injury to his leg caused him to lose his balance and stagger uncontrollably.

Seizing the opportunity, Qing Deng lunged forward and slipped under Masato Saburō's right armpit.

In the instant their sleeves met, Qing Deng swung his sword diagonally, striking Ma Yuezaburo's other thigh with lightning speed.

Qing Deng, who had darted behind Ma Yuezaburo, quickly turned around, habitually glaring at his opponent while keeping a close eye on him.

Despite being covered in wounds, Ma Yuezaburo still hadn't fallen.

He held the knife, turned around shakily, and faced Qingdeng again.

Just as Qing Deng was about to deliver another blow, Ma Yuezaburo suddenly lost his footing.

He seemed to be about to raise the knife, but the knife in his hand fell to the ground with a clang as soon as it reached the height of his chest.

Immediately afterwards, he himself collapsed to the ground.

[Ding! Talent detected]

[Successfully replicated talent: "Steelbow"]

[Talent Introduction: Exceptionally resilient bones]

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

[Ding! Initiating talent fusion]

[Ding! "Steel Bones +1" is beginning to fuse with "Steel Bones"]

[Please wait, host... Please wait, host...]

[Ding! Talent fusion successful]

[Upgrade from "Steel Bones +1" to "Steel Bones +2"]

[“Steel Bones +2” Talent Description: The talent effect is enhanced on top of its original effect. “+9” is the highest level.]

Qing Deng stepped forward, squatted down, and after confirming that Ma Yuezaburo was still alive, he let out a sigh of relief.

"Okay... time to go to the next venue."

*******

*******

The fight scenes in the last two chapters really have the romance of traditional martial arts.

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Please vote with monthly tickets! Please vote with recommendation tickets! (Leopard crying.jpg)

Chapter 452 Severely Damages the Shimizu Clan! A Powerful Figure Shakes the Northeast! [4700]

somewhere in Edo—

Rakshasa sat upright at his desk, meticulously writing on the spread-out Xuan paper.

Practicing calligraphy helps to calm the mind, concentrate the spirit, and cultivate one's character.

Therefore, Rakshasa has a special fondness for calligraphy.

Whenever he feels irritable, he locks himself in his room and practices calligraphy quietly by himself.

The art of calligraphy emphasizes free and spontaneous brushstrokes.

So, without much thought, Rakshasa let his wrist drive the brush, writing one large Chinese character after another on the neat Xuan paper.

However, his heart remained restless.

Even after writing down a hundred or eighty words, his mind was still unable to regain its tranquility.

What could possibly have caused the Rakshasa, who was used to weathering storms and was unyielding, to become so restless and anxious?

That naturally refers to the two recent events—the rebellion of my grandson, Chutaro, and the disappearance of Nishino, Hosojiro.

Undoubtedly, these two events are closely related.

Based on all the clues and intelligence currently available, Luosha has concluded that the two of them have always been in cahoots! My grandson pretended to "capture" Nishino in order to bring him into his headquarters!

Whenever he thought of this, Rakshasa felt waves of regret and heartache. He, who thirsted for talent, greatly admired my grandson.

The legal purge of factions, which begins with the smallest details, has never lacked warriors wielding swords and spears, but it lacks strategists who can win battles from afar.

My grandson not only possesses outstanding intelligence, but also has the formidable mental capacity to maintain work efficiency even if he doesn't sleep for five days and five nights.

For a long time, Luocha has always regarded my grandson as a key person to be cultivated.

However… he never expected that the other party's betrayal would come so suddenly…

Thanks to his men who put out the fire in time, the fire that my grandson and Nishino set before leaving did not spread.

Even so, his bedroom was almost completely burned down.

In particular, the ancient books and materials stored on the bookshelves have all turned to dust and ashes.

It was just some books and letters; once gone, it was gone. Although some of them contained important documents, it wasn't enough to make Rakshasa feel a pang of heartache.

What truly made him feel uneasy was that sense of the unknown.

What materials did my grandson and Nishino actually read about him?

Did they take anything with them?

Without knowing which documents my grandson and Nishino actually read, it's difficult to remedy the situation, and it's also difficult to pinpoint my grandson's true identity and purpose.

The question that Rakshasa is most concerned about right now is undoubtedly, "Which camp does my grandson, Chutaro, belong to?"

If he's a member of the shogunate... then that's fine.

The Edo Shogunate of today is long since weakened and no longer possesses its former glory.

For Rasetsu, the shogunate was not the most troublesome entity.

Leaving aside the deeply entrenched problem of "direct senator corruption," the endless factional strife alone was enough to overwhelm officials at all levels of the shogunate, leaving them with no time to spare.

[Note: Direct Advisors: A collective term for hatamoto samurai and gokenin samurai]

The "Hitotsubashi faction" and the "Nanki faction" are locked in a fierce battle.

Although the current situation favors the "Hitotsubashi faction," no one can say for sure whether the "Nanki faction" will one day turn the tables on the "Hitotsubashi faction."

After all, the Hitotsubashi faction only managed to regain control of the narrative after Ii Naosuke's untimely death.

Regardless of time or place, factional strife invariably leads to political chaos, with "checks and balances" degenerating into "veto politics."

As long as the factional strife between the "Hitotsubashi faction" and the "Nanki faction" continues, the Edo Shogunate will remain a threat.

If the Edo Shogunate's policy of punishing factions according to the law was like a cold that could be ignored for the time being and wouldn't cause immediate serious harm, then the policy of punishing factions according to the law by a certain force was like a deadly poison that would be life-threatening if not eliminated immediately!

And there are two more of these highly potent poisons!

"The Big Salt Party... Gourd House..."

Rakshasa murmured the names of the two troublesome organizations in a voice only he could hear.

Although both were secret societies dedicated to overthrowing the Tokugawa shogunate, the revolutionary ideals of the Ooshio Party and the Hoju Party were vastly different.

The Big Salt Party views the legal system's elimination of the party as a thorn in its side.

The Fazhu Party also viewed the Daishio Party as a thorn in their side, a heretic even more detestable than the Edo Shogunate.

As for the gourd house...

The moment the words "Gourd House" flashed through Luosha's mind, his brows furrowed uncontrollably.

He still doesn't understand why the Gourd House is always going against them.

Unlike the Fazhu Party and the Da Yan Party, the Hulu House organization itself did not have a strong political nature.

Strictly speaking, Gourd House is just a conglomerate whose main business is business.

After much deliberation, Luosha still felt that there was no direct conflict of interest between them and the Gourd House.

Rather, it's more accurate to say that there's still significant potential for cooperation between them.

Their goal in punishing the party was to launch a nationwide war to overthrow the Edo Shogunate and eliminate it.

Although the arrival of war will cause widespread economic hardship, for a large conglomerate like Gourd House, it is both a formidable danger and a valuable opportunity.

They could easily take advantage of the chaos and make a fortune through hoarding and speculation.

Why was the Gourd House so hostile towards them? Rakshasa couldn't understand it at all.

This was completely contrary to his impression of businessmen as a group.