!
The pale white soft sunlight shines on the roofs of every house, and the dry and cold wind whistles on the red soil road.
It was obviously still early, but outside the martial arts training center there was already a crowd of people who had crossed the mountains and seas.
"Hey, are you really sure? Will Niou really challenge the military academy today?"
"Sure! Look, there are so many people here, all coming to see Nioh! Can there be any falsehood?"
"Hey! People behind you, don't squeeze in! I don't have a seat here anymore!"
"Barley tea! Barley tea! Two cents a bowl!"
"Grilled squid! Come and smell it! How fragrant the grilled squid is!"
…
There was endless chatting, throat-breaking shouting, hard-working hawking... all kinds of noises made the lecture hall surrounded by unprecedented noise.
Tachibana Aoden will challenge the martial arts school today - I don't know where this news leaked.
As news about the "Edo Conquest" becomes more and more popular, what other news could be more eye-catching than "Nioh's challenge to the military academy"?
Although in terms of popularity, reputation and historical heritage, Kobusuo cannot be compared with the major martial arts schools in Edo, including the "Three Great Halls", but in terms of overall combat effectiveness, no one will deny that Kobusuo completely surpasses them.
Above every martial arts school in Edo!
Not to mention anything else, just being 2.1 meters tall, Oishi Susumu, who had defeated all the invincible opponents in Edo and only lost to the male Tan Seiichiro, was enough to scare many martial artists and consciously give up the idea of "challenging the martial arts school"
idea.
Ever since, such a joke has been widely circulated among the people of Edo: The most heavily defended place in Edo is not the Edo Castle built by the Tokugawa family with great pains, but the place where Seiichiro Otani and Oishi lived.
Enter the martial arts training center where you are in charge!
Since the establishment of the Military Academy, no one has dared to step through its doors as a "challenger".
And now...the first person to create history has appeared.
"Nioh" Tachibana Aoden vs. "Sword Master" Seiichiro Tanani, "Seven-foot-Unparalleled" Oishi Susumu, "Kage of the Straight Heart" Noburo Imai, "Sword Master's Disciple" Sakakibara Kanyoshi, "Almighty Sword" Hideaki Itami
...Just the juxtaposition of these names is enough to make people eagerly wait and see!
Some businessmen with business acumen anticipated that the area around the martial arts center would be very lively today, so they set up a stall nearby from early in the morning, preparing to take advantage of this rare opportunity to make a lot of money.
Pen.
For a moment, there was a sharp contrast between the excitement outside the martial arts center and the tranquility inside.
…
…
Lecture Hall, Main Dojo——
The Military Academy was a military academy that incorporated modern military science and was built by the Edo shogunate at a great expense to cope with the invasion of Westerners.
In other words, the Kōbusuo was the shogunate’s hope against the Western powers.
Therefore, infrastructure such as research laboratories and training venues are being used to the best of their ability.
There are several dojos with an area of more than 100 square meters.
The area of the main dojo is an astonishing 150 square meters (9 square meters).
The main ashram, which is rarely used on weekdays, is packed with guests.
The martial arts teachers, led by swordsmanship instructor Oishi Susumu, and the academic teachers, led by gunnery instructor Takashima Akiho, sat face to face on the left and right sides of the main dojo.
The teachers from the Martial Arts School gathered together... This scene has really been a long time coming.
In addition, some apprentices from the martial arts school were also present, sitting behind the teachers with formal expressions.
On the main seat, two old men sat side by side.
One of them was Seiichiro Tanani, the "Sword Master" who had met Ayoto at the "Plum Blossom Appreciation Banquet" not long ago.
As for the other old man... although he is not called a "holy" like the male Tan Seiichiro, in terms of reputation, he does not lose to him at all.
He is none other than Qingyin Qingtian, who is known as the "powerhouse in the martial arts world"!
Born in the third year of Kansei (1791), he is now 72 years old, seven years older than the male Taniseiichiro who was born in the tenth year of Kansei (1798).
In February of the second year of Ansei (1855), he was appointed by the shogunate to serve as the head of the martial arts institute together with the male Tan Seiichiro.
Compared with Seiichiro Tanani, who is famous for his "unparalleled strength", Kiyone Eda's identity card is "unparalleled erudition and talent".
He was born in a Hatamoto family, his grandfather was Yu Tian Shenghu, and his father was Yu Tian Shengying, who was engaged in cavalry and archery.
In resource-scarce Japan, horses are a very scarce resource.
The number of horses is already scarce. On this basis, because the horses in Japan are very short, most of them can only be used to carry goods, so they are suitable for riding. Horses for combat are even more scarce.
.
In the Edo period, the only families who were qualified to ride horses and could afford to keep war horses were the upper-class samurai who were well-paid.
Not only can the Yutian family ride horses for generations, but they can also practice riding and shooting for generations... One can imagine how strong Yutian Qingyin's family background is and how strong the martial arts atmosphere is in the family.
A good family environment, a diligent character who works day and night, and his own amazing talent...all the above made him an encyclopedic martial arts master.
Since he was young, he has been practicing martial arts eagerly and happily.
Swordsmanship, spearmanship, archery, equestrianism, artillery... he would accept anyone who came.
According to statistics, the martial arts that Kiyone Eda is proficient in include, but are not limited to: Tamiya-ryu style swordsmanship, Sekiguchi-style jujutsu, Koshu-ryu style Shikden martial arts, Hohoin-ryu spear art, Mugen Yumeki-ryu spear art, and Ogasawara-ryu archery.
Jutsu, Hioki-ryu archery, Otsubo-ryu Ueda style equestrianism, Geki-ryu artillery, Noshima-ryu water army, etc.
Any one of these is a profound martial art that would take an ordinary person more than ten years, or even half a lifetime, to master.
A master of martial arts, he truly deserves his reputation.
It's a pity that he is old and currently lives a reclusive life. He only appears in public on very rare special occasions after a long absence.
"Is everyone here?"
The voice of Otani Seiichiro, neither sad nor happy, echoed inside and outside the dojo.
His beloved disciple sitting not far away—Kenkichi Sakakibara, known as the “Sword Master’s Disciple”—immediately replied:
"Master, everyone is here."
"Now that everyone is here, please come and explain to me what is going on with the formation outside?"
Male Tan Seiichiro turned his eyes and glanced around from left to right.
As the instigator, Noburo Imai had no intention of hiding anything.
When Otani Seiichiro's eyes fell on him, he smiled slightly, and then said lightly:
"Mr. Otani, we just want to give Nioh a little surprise."
"Surprise? It's obvious to me that it's all nonsense!"
The male Tan Jingyirou frowned, showing displeasure.
"Hurry up and call those people outside!"
Before he finished speaking, rapid footsteps suddenly came from the direction of the corridor.
A young man who looked like an apprentice walked into the dojo in a hurry.
"Lord Otani! Lord Soda! He, he, he is coming! He is coming!"
…
…
When the tall figure wearing a snow-proof hat, burgundy feathers, and two knives on his waist appeared... the crowd's reaction was unexpectedly quiet.
Qingdeng's height was far above the average for men of this era, so it was impossible for him to hide his figure in the crowd.
The first people who spotted him noticed the conspicuous tall man and cast their eyes over him casually.
After seeing who the visitor was, their expressions were quickly dominated by various emotions such as surprise, excitement, and excitement.
Wow.
Just like the ripples caused by the wind blowing across the lake, the low uproar spread to the surroundings without much fanfare.
Under the influence of this sudden commotion, more and more people turned their heads one after another, and then their expressions became colorful.
Strangely enough, even though Qingdeng's traces have been exposed, the whole place has always maintained a certain silence.
No one yelled.
No one made any inappropriate noise.
Just like they had made an appointment in advance, maybe it was because they were "awed by Ayoto's aura", or maybe it was just because they respected Niou. In short, everyone restrained their emotions to the greatest extent possible.
Anyone who happens to stand in front of Qingdeng consciously and quietly separates to the left and right, leaving a wide avenue for two adults to pass side by side.
In this way, Qingdeng walked straight towards the gate of the martial arts training center on the road vacated by the masses.
The two apprentices guarding the door swallowed hard.
One of them said loudly and calmly:
"Your Majesty Nioh! Lord Otani, Master Soda, and the teachers, we have been waiting for you for a long time!"
Having said that, the two doormen reached out their hands at the same time and pushed open the door in a tacit understanding.
The main door of the military academy is facing east and west.
That is to say, when the door is pushed open, as the door cracks are opened little by little, the warm winter sun hanging high in the sky and the clear sky dyed milky white by the slightly white sun are magnified, like a slow slowdown.
Like a slowly opened scroll, Qingdeng's eyes were filled with a feeling of "sudden enlightenment".
The sunlight penetrated through the cracks in the door and hit his body, illuminating his face bit by bit.
The spacious and clean Hakushu, the brick roads connecting the venues, the sparse and suitable vegetation...the typical Japanese architectural structure.
[Note·Hakushu: The place where the front door of a Japanese-style mansion is paved with fine white stones.]
However, there was one thing that caught Qingdeng and the onlookers outside the door beyond their expectations.
"oh?"
Qingden raised his eyebrows, with a playful expression on his cheeks.
I saw that the left and right sides of Baizhou were filled with fully armed warriors. Roughly speaking, there should be about three hundred people.
They all faced the masonry road in the middle of Baizhou, with swords drawn in their hands, the blades standing on their chests, and the tips pointed straight at the sky.
The sword in his hand and the armor on his body turned into dazzling silver waves spreading in all directions in the morning light.
Judging from their age, they should be apprentices in a martial arts school.
In order to ensure the quality and loyalty of future officers of the shogunate army, the military training institute only recruits the best from the flag book.
Because the enrollment scope is for outstanding students in the banner, the apprentices of the martial arts school generally have a very good family background, eat well, sleep soundly, and have a body that is much taller and stronger than the average person.
Although their overall quality is far from being called the masters of tigers and wolves, their mental outlook is undoubtedly much better than those of the dandy young masters and the decadent and depraved ronin who are just waiting to die.
At this time, the onlookers outside the gate all looked over because they noticed the strange movement inside.
After seeing the scene inside the door clearly, they were all shocked.
More than three hundred warriors armed to the teeth, with steel swords unsheathed in their hands, line up in a neat queue, staring at you with eager eyes... Don't underestimate such a battle.
Being intimidated by the mighty battle - the best example is the famous historical event two thousand years ago: Jing Ke's assassination of the King of Qin.
At that time, Qin Wuyang, who had killed someone at the age of 13 and no one else dared to look at him head-on, had just entered King Qin's palace when he was so frightened by the majestic King Qin's honor guard that he trembled all over and could not move.
Although the formation arrayed by the apprentices of the Jiangwu School cannot be compared with the ceremonial guard of King Qin, it is not something ordinary people can bear.
Ordinary people would feel weak in their legs just by taking a look at them, let alone walking between them.
The onlookers outside were still stunned...but Qingdeng had recovered from his initial surprise.
Compared to before, his expression and demeanor had not changed at all.
If I had to say something... it would be that there was an extra arc in the corner of his mouth that looked like a smile but not a smile.
He stepped forward without fear.
Just as one of his legs crossed the threshold, invisible waves escaped from his body and headed forward...
…
…
Otani Seiichiro's brows suddenly jumped.
At this moment, looking around the dojo, he was not the only one whose expressions suddenly changed.
Kiyone Eda, Susumu Oishi, Noburo Imai, Kanyoshi Sakakihara, Hideaki Itami... the most powerful people in the martial arts school all had expressions changing.
As if they sensed something, they raised their heads in unison and looked in the direction of the door.
"Imai-kun," Sakakibara Kankichi said with a smile, "I'm afraid your plan to 'intimidate Niou' has failed."
Imai Noburo shrugged nonchalantly and grinned:
"Good guy, are you going to do this... This is really beyond my expectation!"
At this time, Oishi Jin turned his head and said to the apprentices who stayed in the dojo and the academic teachers in front of him:
"Hey, juniors and you guys who are good at writing, get out of here quickly, be careful that you can't bear it."
Someone asked in confusion:
"Huh? What do you mean you can't bear it?"
"I'll explain to you later, but just stay away."
As soon as Dashi Jin finished speaking, a sudden strange sound attracted the attention of everyone in the room.
"Uh huh...!"
A certain apprentice was half lying on the ground with a pale face and sweat on his forehead.
The person sitting next to him immediately helped him up in a hurry:
"Hey! What's wrong with you? Are you feeling unwell?"
This man's strange behavior is just the beginning.
It was like a chain reaction, with more and more people collapsing to the ground in pain.
"What's going on...it feels so uncomfortable...!"
"Huh...! Huh...! Huh...! Panting, I can't breathe...!"
"My head...my head..."
…
Looking up, the entire dojo collapsed.
Seeing this, Yitian Qingyin sighed softly:
"Is it too late..."
Dashi Jin raised his head and shouted:
"Don't panic! They were just frightened by the 'moment'! Those who can still move quickly help those who have any abnormalities in their bodies out!"
Imai Noburo's eyes were fixed on the direction of the door, and a faint drop of cold sweat appeared on his forehead.
"My dear...what a strong 'power'! Even I can't help but feel heart palpitations...!"
…
In Baizhou, the originally extremely neat and strict array was completely missing.
Moaning and wailing sounds came and went.
The apprentices in the martial arts school were staggered, like a field of leeks that had been swept by a sickle.
Qingdeng passed between them, facing the morning light, and walked towards the stadium.
The "power" escaping from his body covered most of the martial arts center!
*******
*******
Book friends often ask me: What is the use of "shi"?
Let me give a formal answer here: It’s useless! It’s just convenient to show off!
()
This chapter has been completed!