The crowd parted, leaving ample space for the two men confronting each other.
"Takenouchi Dansui-ryū, Takenouchi Jun! My blade, Fuenmaru Oikoshi, has slain forty-six enemies, and no nameless Soul shall escape my blade!"
Takenouchi Jun's right hand rested on his blade's hilt, his body slightly lowered, his sharp Aura completely concealed within the scabbard, poised to strike.
"Zhou Ming." Zhou Ming, however, did not introduce himself as earnestly as Takenouchi Jun, merely stating his name rather perfunctorily, holding his blade loosely, showing no regard for his opponent.
"Hmph, arrogant!"
Takenouchi Jun roared, drawing his blade with a clear, resonant sound. A flash of brilliant white light swept from bottom left to top right, as if to cleave Zhou Ming in two with a single strike.
Ghost Shadow Gu!
Swish!
The blade light cut through Zhou Ming, but only struck air, dispelling an afterimage.
Zhou Ming himself appeared five steps behind, completely unharmed.
"How can he be so fast!"
Just as this thought surfaced in Takenouchi Jun's mind, Zhou Ming opened his mouth, and a chilling, ferocious shriek erupted.
Soul Howl Gu!
Not good!
Takenouchi Jun felt his scalp tingle and instinctively reached to cover his ears, but no matter how fast he was, how could he outpace sound?
The shrill sound, like fingernails scraping a blackboard, instantly pierced his ears, like a sharp sword thrust directly into his brain, making Takenouchi Jun's consciousness muddled and blank.
Not only him, but all the Takenouchi Dansui-ryū samurai who were close by also became disoriented, swaying as if drunk.
This state came and went quickly, rapidly fading as the shriek stopped.
However, as everyone's consciousness just returned, they saw with wide, furious eyes that Zhou Ming's long blade had already sliced into Takenouchi Jun's waist and abdomen.
Splat!
Hot blood splattered. The tough bones were as fragile as biscuits before the edelman alloy blade. Takenouchi Jun was cut in half at the waist, falling to the ground, blood gushing from his midsection, quickly staining a large patch of ground beneath him.
"Dojo Master!"
"No, Dojo Master!"
"You villain!"
"Stand back! Stand back!"
The surroundings immediately erupted in an uproar. The Takenouchi Dansui-ryū Disciples were enraged; some showed shock and grief, crying out Takenouchi Jun's name, while others glared at Zhou Ming with hatred and fury.
At this moment, Takenouchi Jun, lying on the ground, had not yet drawn his last breath. He struggled to speak in gasps: "That… that's not swordsmanship… it's… Demonic Technique…"
"I apologize, my swordsmanship is indeed not as good as yours, so I could only defeat you this way," Zhou Ming admitted generously, sheathing his blade.
"You… lack martial virtue… you cheated, you ambushed…" Takenouchi Jun's sentence was ultimately left unfinished. His head drooped, and he let out his last breath, dying.
"As long as the goal is achieved, the method doesn't matter, does it? The primitive accumulation of capital is always bloody. Learn to adapt, oh, but you won't have the chance to learn."
Feeling the surging martial Dao experience in his mind, Zhou Ming said with an indifferent expression.
One could also gain martial Dao experience by using Gu. It seemed the Main God truly valued the Reincarnator's own power.
If he had followed Yang Zhisheng's Dao, killing Takenouchi Jun with a weapon enhanced by his own body, would he have gained martial Dao experience?
This question flashed through Zhou Ming's mind and was then dismissed.
He would simply verify it according to his actual situation; thinking about such irrelevant things was pointless.
Takenouchi Jun's death was like a burning match thrown into an oil barrel, igniting the fury of all Takenouchi Dansui-ryū Disciples and overwhelming their reason.
"Kill him!"
"Avenge the Dojo Master!"
"Kill!"
One by one, the samurai roared, drawing their blades and charging at Zhou Ming, hacking down indiscriminately, vowing to dismember Zhou Ming to avenge their murdered master and insulted school.
This included Takenouchi Seita. The Bewitching Soul Gu was not a Slave Gu; it could not control enemies once and for all. It required continuous use of the Gu and constant consumption of true Qi to maintain its effect.
During his duel with Takenouchi Jun, Zhou Ming had already released his control over Takenouchi Seita.
The previously timid young man now had bloodshot eyes like a demon, his expression twisted and distorted, snot and tears streaming down his face as he roared and charged at Zhou Ming.
The next moment, his body was pierced by a flash of sword light. Accompanied by intense pain, all his strength drained away through the pierced blood hole. His legs gave out, and he fell to the ground, his eyes completely losing their light.
Sword light crisscrossed, Ghost Shadows loomed. At this moment, Zhou Ming truly displayed the combat power of a Two-turn Peak Gu Master, embarking on a massacre.
The wind of slaughter stirred up bloodstorms, and fresh lives fell before Zhou Ming.
Martial Dao experience continuously poured into his mind, and was rapidly digested, absorbed, and transformed into even greater combat power through the constant killing.
Every swing of his blade, every chop, deepened Zhou Ming's understanding of swordsmanship, making his blade techniques clearer and sharper.
He continued killing until the remaining people were terrified, scattering and fleeing, with no one daring to rush forward to their deaths.
Zhou Ming flicked his adamantium alloy blade, and a line of blood dripped from the blade, leaving the cold blade unsullied.
Zhou Ming stepped over the scattered limbs and avoided the blood pits, but his soles inevitably got stained with blood, leaving black-red footprints.
Ahead and to the side, a samurai lay sprawled on the ground, trembling all over, struggling to crawl towards the main entrance of the Takenouchi Dojo.
Hearing footsteps behind him, the samurai looked back. Seeing Zhou Ming's figure, his expression quickly contorted with fear, and tears and snot matted his face.
"No, don't kill me… Sir, please…"
He wanted to stand up and run, but extreme fear made his limbs soft like noodles; he couldn't even crawl, let alone stand up?
"Don't be afraid, I won't kill you."
Zhou Ming looked down at the samurai, a faint smile on his face, his tone gentle, and his expression amiable.
"Look into my eyes and tell me, what is your name?"
The Bewitching Soul Gu was activated again, and the samurai's gaze quickly became hazy.
"My name is Ōwada Minami."
The samurai said blankly.
"Ōwada Minami, stand up and speak to me."
Hearing Zhou Ming's command, Ōwada Minami immediately got up from the ground and stood straight in front of Zhou Ming, showing no signs of weakness in his hands or legs.
"Good." Zhou Ming smiled with satisfaction.
The weaker in Soul and less resolute in will a person was, the easier they were to control with the Bewitching Soul Gu, the easier they were to manipulate, and the less true Qi was consumed.
This was true for both the previous Takenouchi Seita and the current Ōwada Minami.
If he were to use the Bewitching Soul Gu on Takenouchi Jun, the probability of success would be very low, and even if successful, maintaining the Gu's effect would be extremely difficult.
"Let's go, take me to the Ōishi Shinpū-ryū Dojo."
Ōishi Shinpū-ryū, the sworn enemy of Takenouchi Dansui-ryū, had caused Takenouchi Jun's two sons to be one dead and one crippled, bringing great shame to Takenouchi Dansui-ryū.
Zhou Ming was very curious about the differences between this school and Takenouchi Dansui-ryū.
At the same time, he was also awaiting the reaction of Oda Heizo, the Daimyo who governed this land.
Zhou Ming's plan was simple: since it was such a world, such an era, there was no need for many scruples. It was simple and brutal; everything could be accomplished through slaughter.
Why would an unknown person be favored by the Daimyo to participate in The World's Greatest Swordsman Tournament?
Kill!
Why would Zhou Ming, with his ordinary swordsmanship, stand out in the Tournament and surpass all heroes?
Kill!
Nohara Momonosuke wanted to see slaughter, and the Daimyos relied on slaughter to contend for the world.
Primitive, bloody, violent, simple.
"What a wonderful era,"
Zhou Ming laughed heartily in his mind.
Oda Great Hall, Oda Heizo's residence.
The irritable Oda Heizo was currently in a rage because the miso soup rice made by his servant was too salty.
The servant trembled, secretly thinking the miso soup rice tasted the same as usual, but dared not utter a single word, fearing that the furious Oda Heizo would demote him to a Slave, or even more directly, chop off his head.
At this moment, a samurai walked in from outside, oblivious to the scene, and went directly to Oda Heizo, whispering a few words in his ear.
"What? Are you serious?" Oda Heizo asked in surprise.
"My lord, it is absolutely true! Many passersby witnessed it. Your subordinate has already sent people to the Takenouchi Dojo to investigate!"
"That person… where is that samurai now?"
"He's heading to the Shinpū-ryū Dojo! I'm afraid…" The samurai wiped the sweat from his face, hesitating.
"Quick! Arrange the carriage, I want to personally meet that samurai!"
Oda Heizo said impatiently.
"My lord, think thrice! That samurai is so bloodthirsty, he must be an extremely vicious person. If you approach rashly, I fear…"
"Alright, alright, don't you still have us?" Oda Heizo said impatiently, "Do you mean to say that this group of you can't protect me well?"
"No, not at all." The samurai quickly bowed, "Your subordinate will arrange it immediately!"
Driven by Oda Heizo's accumulated authority, his subordinates were highly efficient, completing the assembly and departure in ten minutes and arriving at the Shinpū-ryū Dojo in less than half an hour.
Although Oda Heizo impatiently urged them to go faster several times along the way, and his subordinates almost used their fastest speed, the scene that greeted them upon arrival at the Shinpū-ryū Dojo still stunned everyone.
The Dojo's main gate was wide open, and a strong smell of blood assailed them. Blood flowed over the threshold, down the steps, Step to the street, forming a puddle.
Even though they couldn't see a single corpse from the entrance, everyone could imagine in their minds the horrific scene within the Dojo and the intensity of the battle that had just erupted.
No, not a battle; it was practically a one-sided crushing!
A line of clear bloody footprints extended from the Dojo, heading west along the street, the footprints gradually fading.
There were no irregularly scattered bloodstains around the footprints, indicating that the owner of those footprints had not sustained serious injuries.
Such a tragic battle, yet one side didn't even have a bleeding wound. What else could it be but a one-sided crushing!
Among the stunned group, it was the samurai beside Oda Heizo who reacted first, shouting commands.
"Quick, two of you go inside and see what's happening, and if there are any survivors!"
"You few, go ask the people nearby if they saw what happened here just now, and where the person who walked out of here went!"
His subordinates immediately took orders and scattered to inquire.