Tokyo: The evil god doesn't want to be the top star

Deep in the cameraman's heart, he even felt a sense of "both his soul and eyes were purified at the same time", and his vision was blurred by tears of emotion.

"You haven't learned kendo, so why are you just going to do a few swings like them?"

Reaching out for the sword at his waist, Xia Fan was originally planning to imitate the sword and start wielding it randomly, but he subconsciously felt that something was wrong.

"Director, can you give me another sword?"

He stopped and asked Nakano.

"Here, this is the only spare one we have. Be careful and don't learn to be as violent as them."

Director Nakano handed him the sword as if it were a treasure.

"Hey, an amateur is an amateur. I have been learning swords since I was young, and I dare not talk nonsense about two-sword style."

"Hahahahahaha, this kid probably plans to treat it as some kind of 'couch-sleeping art' and just show off his skills."

Looking at Xia Fan who tied the second sword around his waist, Tanaka and the other two laughed disdainfully.

Among the kendo schools from ancient times to the present, in addition to the famous "Niten Ichiryu", there are actually many schools that inherit the "Nitoryu" swordsmanship.

The Kagami Shinmei-ryu school is said to have a set of dual-sword techniques that they practice deeply, but the three Tanakas have never seen anyone use it.

In the final analysis, just like there are left-handed and right-handed people, although dual-sword style is powerful, there are only a few disciples who are truly talented enough to wield two swords at the same time.

"call……"

In the center of the camera, Xia Fan exhaled lightly, and placed his left and right hands on the hilt of the sword at his waist...

“This feels right…”

At that moment, he sensed a familiar feeling and entered a state of "harmony between man and nature". His whole body exuded a sharp and holy aura.

"This kid's aura has changed?"

"This grip is very particular, it seems to be some kind of 'ancient style'."

"It's an illusion. Don't be fooled by the fancy things..."

Tanaka and his two companions, who were well versed in kendo, keenly sensed that something was wrong.

"Number four, Xia Fan, audition!"

Xia Fan's eyes became serious, and the two swords in his hands turned into streams of light that were difficult to see with the naked eye and slashed out...

His body moved according to his instinct, and he controlled the knife in his hand with a very difficult posture, sweeping it back and forth around the wooden man, making a sharp sound of breaking through the air.

That’s right, the moment he clenched his two swords, he subconsciously used [Kagura Izumo Sword Dance].

The second time he used it, the glow stick turned into a long sword, and he had a deeper "understanding" of this sword dance.

[Kagura Izumo Sword Dance] is not just a pure sword-wielding Kagura, but a set of powerful sword skills born from the battlefield.

After drinking blood, reaping thousands of lives, and conquering countless faiths, this set of sword skills reached perfection and became "Kagura", dedicating the final victory and the glory of faith to the great gods.

Under the spotlight, the dancing sword blades merged into a scorching light, obscuring Xia Fan's figure.

"Wow, what a gorgeous move, just like the 'Starburst Healing Slash', snap it quickly, snap it hard!"

It wasn’t just Director Nakano and the staff who were stunned.

"It's so fast, I can't see clearly at all."

"Hey, hey, this kind of move that kills with every strike can't be done by Luanwu."

The three Tanaka teachers were watching with bated breath, not even noticing the sweat pouring out from under the wig, washing away the foundation on their faces like a waterfall.

The layman looks at the excitement and the insider looks at the doorway.

Having grown up being beaten with bamboo swords, they could naturally see that the sword skills Xia Fan demonstrated were the "real stuff."

If Kagami Shinkei-ryu is a "modern kendo" that combines the artistry and practicality of postures and forms...

Then what Xia Fan displayed was the "Ancient Sword Art" that was born on the ancient battlefields and whose sole goal was to kill people.

"Master Fan, if it were you, how many moves could you take?"

Tanaka Zuozuo and Tanaka Hachiro all looked at Tanaka Kansuke, the strongest among them.

"I... am worthy of being the contemporary master of the Kagami Shinkei school..."

"I couldn't even take a single move."

Tanaka Kansuke thought hard for a while, and finally shook his head with a dark face.

UI.

Xia Fan's sword style is very simple, fierce and accurate, but because it is fast, it appears flashy.

"This... should be... almost done... huhu..."

A few seconds later, Xia Fan sheathed both swords smoothly with movements that were difficult to see clearly and took a breath.

After performing the [Kagura Izumo Sword Dance] with all his strength, he felt his body beginning to sweat, and stopped because he was afraid that his makeup would be smudged.

"It's OK. Very good!"

"Xia Jun is indeed an experienced 'veteran actor' with rich experience in commercial shooting. Not only did he not damage the props, he also danced in a very good manner. It was quite impressive!"

Director Nakano couldn't stop praising him, and when he confirmed that the sword in Xia Fan's hand was intact, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

But before he could finish his words, the wooden puppet opposite him suddenly made a "crack" sound, and its hands, feet and head broke into pieces.

"Hey, that's too much! I told you to take good care of your props!"

Just as the prop master was tearfully collecting the body of the wooden man that had been cut into a human stick, Tanaka and the other two had already surrounded him impatiently.

"The Kagami Shinmei Ryu, the master Tanaka Kansuke, the master Tanaka Zuo, and the master Tanaka Hachiro greet Mr. Xia."

"You can chop the wooden man into pieces with this 'toy' without damaging the blade. Xia Jun's swordsmanship has reached perfection. We misjudged you. Please forgive me for being so careless just now!"

"I am ignorant, may I ask what school of martial arts you just used?"

They solemnly performed the half-kneeling salute of warriors and formally introduced themselves to Xia Fan.

"School… Xiaji Eighth School?"

Looking at the three people squatting on the ground in front of him, Xia Fan could only squat as well and make up something nonsense.

"I see... It sounds like the two-sword secret sword passed down by the Xia family. We are lucky to see it today."

Tanaka Kansuke silently memorized the name and prepared to go back to look up the classics.

The fact that Xia Fan was able to chop the wooden man into pieces while keeping the prop sword intact showed that each of his fierce blows accurately hit the same few spots on the wooden man's body with a force that the prop sword could just withstand, causing the scars to accumulate until it eventually broke.

From this perspective, the practicality of the sword skills of the "Eight Streams of Xia Ji" can be seen, and it is very worthy of study and reference for the "Kingshin Akechi Stream".

Chapter 34 Willing to be a supporting role

2024-07-13

"Ahem, then, it's time for our crew to give the scores. The four of you can go to the side and remove your makeup first..."

On the other side, Director Nakano called the staff nearby and started to clean up the scene.

"Director Nakano, wait a minute..."

"The three of us have some opinions regarding the audition scoring."

However, he didn't expect that Tanaka and the other two would be like an iron wall, blocking his way with serious expressions.

"Hey, three Tanaka teachers, we have something to discuss. Auditions have their own rules..."

Surrounded by three sturdy men, the thin Nakano subconsciously tightened his buttocks muscles.

"At this point, we think there is no point in giving a score."

"That's right, Director Nakano, please make sure that Brother Xia Fan plays the 'protagonist'. The three of us brothers are willing to be 'miscellaneous soldiers' and feed him swords."

"what?"

But the next second, the three people's requests made Nakano look confused.

"We originally had the wishful thinking that we could dominate the advertising industry with our sword skills, but we didn't expect that there are always people who are better than us and mountains that are higher than mountains."

"If it's Brother Xia Fan, he will definitely be able to show the beauty of kendo to the audience better than us."

"That's right. As long as more people like kendo, we are willing to be supporting roles. The fact that we have never experienced being the heroine or having a romantic relationship in our lives... is nothing!"

Tanaka and the other two explained with a look of righteousness, righteous words, and deep sorrow.

Director Nakano, who had just gotten a false alarm, smiled and clapped his hands, "Okay, the roles are decided. Xia Fan will play the 'protagonist', and the three teachers will play the 'miscellaneous soldiers'. The filming will start in a week!"

Even if Tanaka and the other two didn't mention it, judging from his performance in the audition, he must have been inclined towards Xia Fan in his heart, and now he can save himself a lot of trouble.

"Mr. Xia, we have met each other in the mountains and rivers, so we say goodbye today!"

"The shoot in a week will be a good opportunity to exchange swordplay. I hope you can give me some advice."

"The three of us will use all our strength to attack, please be sure to give us your guidance!"

The three Tanaka teachers bowed to Xia Fan again and left towards the locker room.

"Well, didn't anyone ask for my opinion? I'm quite interested in playing a miscellaneous soldier..."

In the studio where the lights were beginning to go out, Xia Fan took off his "Mediterranean headgear" and looked at the calendar on his phone in distress.

"Speaking of which, if we start filming in a week, it won't clash with the theme song review for Cursed Blade, right?"

……

A week later.

“Hiroshi Yamazaki: The deadline for the theme song submission for Cursed Blade was 12:28 last night. We received submissions this week. Thank you very much for your support. Today is the review meeting for the theme song of Cursed Blade. Producers who have submitted their works must be present on time to attend the on-site review meeting of the director team.”

"Kawai Ryuichi: Didn't you guys agree in the private group that you wouldn't vote? This is to teach the picky Party A a lesson. I'm going to find the betrayer!"

"Sakamoto Koji: Forget it. As the owner of the private group, you voted as well, didn't you? I don't want Mr. Zhou to come to the music club with a gloomy face one morning and cut off Section Chief Yamazaki's little finger..."

"Fujiwara Saburo: Section Chief, I am collecting materials in Kabukicho and would like to apply for video participation."

"Shi Jiurang: +1, I have the flu. To avoid infecting Party A's father, I'm applying for video conference."

“Yamazaki Hiroshi: You guys…”

"There are more songs submitted this time than last time. It seems that music producers are a strange kind of creatures who are willing to give up even if their bodies are in a bad state."

In the shaking subway car, Xia Fan, who was heading to the B Company Building, looked at the chat messages in the music department work group and smiled.

After the commercial auditions and movie theme song submissions came to an end, he returned to his peaceful campus life these days, and even found time to work part-time at a convenience store a few times.

The review meeting for the theme song of "Cursed Blade" did not conflict with the commercial shooting as Xia Fan worried, but was scheduled for the day before the start of filming.

[Faith value +1...Current accumulated faith value 1850...]

Hoshina Hanami is touring the country with the "Sakura Front" and has updated several videos including "Looking at Your Figure from the Pink Shiraki Peak" and "Praying for You under the Sakura of Asai Ippon".

Perhaps, after this publicity and promotion plan, people's attention will shift from the song itself to the idol singer.

But as the number of people who heard "Sakura" for the first time increased, Xia Fan's faith value steadily approached the two thousand mark.

"We have arrived at Shinjuku Station. Passengers getting off the train, please note that the door opens on the left..."

The train arrival signal sounded.

Shinjuku Station, as the most crowded subway station in the world, is not an exaggeration to call it "crowd hell" during rush hour.

Before the train stopped, Xia Fan was pushed by the flow of people and rushed out of the carriage effortlessly.

"hiss……"

"what!"

When he reached the narrow door of the car, Xia Fan felt a pain in his chin and a bounce in his chest. A fragrant figure followed the flow of people and crashed into his arms.

"It hurts, hurts, hurts..."

Xia Fan covered his chin and looked down. In his arms was a girl wearing a mask, black-framed glasses, and dressed in an OL uniform, a short skirt, and black stockings.

"I'm sorry, I didn't stand still."

The girl took a step back and bowed to him apologetically.

"You are……"

Xia Fan tilted his head in confusion, feeling that this person looked familiar.