Under the bright moonlight, two men with strange appearances and equally strange clothing flew over a dozen meters at a time, like immortals, quickly vanishing into the darkness.
A full three or four minutes passed before the people on the gently rocking fishing boat finally began to stir. Someone crept out from the cabin to scope out the situation. After several more minutes, once the scouts had confirmed that these two men—strong beyond anything resembling normal human beings—had indeed left and were nowhere to be seen, and the boat had docked, everyone began talking in voices still shaky with fear.
Everyone aboard shared the same feeling of having narrowly escaped death. They were emotional and shaken.
When those two men had leapt aboard from a wooden plank drifting in the distance out on the open sea, everyone on the fishing boat thought they’d encountered some kind of supernatural event, or perhaps run into terrorists. They figured their luck had run out and they’d be losing their lives out on those waters.
To their surprise, the two men who’d suddenly flown aboard had only borrowed the boat, ordering them to quickly sail back to land before leaving. They hadn’t killed a single person along the way.
“Who were those two? Were they… even human?”
“Of course they were human. Even though their clothes were nothing like modern people’s—looked like something from ancient times—they were definitely human. But they must be legendary martial arts masters. Otherwise, how could they stand on a single wooden plank and skim across the sea at high speed, or leap through the air for over ten meters at once?”
“Of those two, the one with blond hair wearing church robes was definitely a Westerner—probably some kind of Christian expert. And that long-haired middle-aged man in the long robe, he was Eastern. Could he have been Japanese?”
“Are you stupid? How could he be Japanese? If he were Japanese, he’d be wearing our kimono. That long robe style of his—he was clearly Chinese!”
“That was truly a terrifying night. I thought our whole crew was doomed, that we’d be slaughtered by those two inhuman experts. Thank goodness it turned out to be a false alarm. Those two masters didn’t go on a killing spree—they weren’t bad people after all.”
The harrowing experience of that last hour and a half was something none of the fishermen or the boat’s owner had ever encountered or even imagined. They probably wouldn’t forget it for the rest of their lives.
——–
In the darkness of night, the two experts who seemed like gods or ghosts to ordinary people were still rushing onward without rest. Their faces showed little relief—if anything, they looked exhausted as they continued running.
One was a typical Western face, wearing the tattered robes of a Vatican ascetic. His clothes were now in shreds, full of rips and tears, barely covering his body. The other had long hair and a powerful build, like a lion from the African savanna. His normally clean long robe was equally filthy.
These two were none other than Olivia, the ascetic from the Vatican Church in the West, and the Lion King, founder of China’s Seven Kills Organization!
Two masters of unfathomable cultivation—top-tier experts even among those at the Danjin level—were now fleeing in utter disarray. The sight was deeply incongruous.
After the two had met previously in London, England, they’d launched an investigation to thoroughly uncover who was behind the assassin organization “Skynet,” aiming to root out every last remnant. They’d wanted to trace clues from the three deceased Danjin-level experts—the “Devil Killer” Augustine, the Church ascetic Michael, and Shiva, one of the Three Great Gods of the Land of the Three A’s—to find out who had hired them.
Finding nothing useful from Michael’s trail, the two had agreed to travel together to the Land of the Three A’s to investigate Shiva.
By all logic, they should still be there investigating. No one knew why they’d suddenly appeared in Japan, and in such a state—fleeing for their lives.
Moving like the wind, the two ran over ten miles in one breath before finally finding a temporary spot to rest.
“I never imagined that Brahma—the eldest of the Three Great Gods—has reached such an unfathomable level of cultivation. By your Eastern standards of martial progression, he’s already broken through Danjin and stepped into the Innate Gangjin realm, hasn’t he?” Olivia said grimly.
The Lion King, usually wild and unrestrained to the extreme, had truly been humbled this time.
When you genuinely can’t beat your opponent, all you can do is run. No amount of toughness changes that.
“You certainly know a fair bit about our Chinese cultivation levels,” the Lion King said after steadying his emotions.
Olivia’s eyes narrowed slightly, his gaze complex. “In your China, experts of this level are called Innate Gangjin. But in our Church, they’re referred to as… ‘demigods.'”
Indeed, if Danjin-level experts already seemed unimaginable to ordinary people—possessing incredible abilities and capable of feats normal humans wouldn’t dare dream of—
Then Innate Gangjin-level experts could already be called “demigods.”
Or rather, they were gods walking among mortals, their power so immense it drove people to despair!
Take this Brahma, for instance. Now that he—one of the Three Great Gods of the Land of the Three A’s—had stepped into this level, even the Lion King and Olivia working together couldn’t put up the slightest fight. They had no chance in battle, only the option of fleeing in panic. Had they been a moment slower in their escape, they would likely have been killed by Brahma on the spot!
It should be understood that both the Lion King and Olivia were formidable figures among Danjin-level experts. Against slightly weaker Danjin masters, they could deliver killing blows—just as the Lion King had previously slain Shiva.
Yet even such powerful Danjin experts were utterly insignificant before an Innate Gangjin master. There was an insurmountable chasm between the two levels.
“He’s chased us all the way from the Land of the Three A’s to Malaysia, then to the Philippines, and now across the sea to Japan. This guy still hasn’t given up. He’ll probably catch up soon—we can’t stay here too long.”
Olivia analyzed the situation.
The Lion King nodded in agreement.
Brahma’s killing intent toward the two of them was at its absolute peak. This was a fight to the death. He wouldn’t be satisfied until he’d killed them, even if he had to chase them to the ends of the earth.
And why? Not only because word had leaked that the Lion King had killed Shiva and Brahma had learned of it—but also because the two had caused chaos at the headquarters of the Three A’s religion during their investigation, stirring up an unholy mess that couldn’t be contained. They’d also destroyed something very important—a treasured inheritance of the religion.
What’s more, the second of the Three Great Gods, Vishnu, had tried to kill them as well, and had been severely wounded by the Lion King and Olivia fighting together. He was left with barely half a life, and whether he could even be saved was still uncertain.
As the eldest, Brahma naturally flew into a rage. Almost the moment he emerged from seclusion and heard the news, he’d entered a state of frenzy.
For half a month, across mountains and rivers, over land and across vast oceans, Brahma had been like a relentless specter of death, dogging their steps without pause. He was determined to cut them down no matter what.
With such deep hatred, Brahma didn’t care who these two were.
A Vatican ascetic? A Chinese expert? So what?
In this world, Danjin-level experts were people that no major power wanted to offend, and no one would tear off all pretenses unless absolutely necessary.
But an Innate Gangjin-level master—a rare creature qualified to be called a “demigod”—could truly disregard everything.
Such beings could genuinely sit at the same table as first-rate powers like the Church, speaking as equals. It wasn’t that the Church merely chose to avoid conflict with them out of caution—these masters had the real power to command that respect.
So when Brahma’s fury erupted, he went straight for the kill against Olivia and the Lion King, without the slightest hesitation to spare them on account of their backgrounds.
“Lion King, now that Brahma has broken through, he’s beyond what you and I can contend with. Running forever isn’t a solution. One careless moment and he’ll catch us. Then it’ll be a bloody fight at best—at worst, total death. We need a plan. Japan is very close to your China. How about we go to China and find someone to drive Brahma back? Don’t tell me your country doesn’t have any Innate Gangjin-level experts,” Olivia suggested.
“Why don’t we go to the Vatican instead? Does your Church not have a demigod-level old monster guarding it?” the Lion King replied coldly.
Of course the Vatican had demigod-level beings.
Otherwise, the Vatican Church could never have become the most powerful force in the West, with no person or organization daring to challenge its authority.
That reputation couldn’t be maintained by Danjin-level experts alone. A demigod was needed as the stabilizing anchor.
However, demigod-level beings generally didn’t show themselves. Unless it was a matter of utmost importance, even Danjin experts couldn’t reach them.
“The Vatican is too far. I’m afraid we’d never make it before Brahma catches us,” Olivia said without the slightest shame.
“If you agree to go to the Vatican, I can guarantee we’ll arrive alive!” the Lion King shot back coldly.
At that, Olivia fell silent.
What a joke—leading an Innate-level being straight to his own home base was absolutely a stupid move.
And not just any Innate Gangjin expert, but one filled to the brim with rage and deep-seated hatred.
Whether they led him to China or the Vatican, even if they ultimately found an Innate Gangjin or demigod expert to put out the fire, what if Brahma—in a moment of fury—went to extremes and started killing innocents indiscriminately?
That would be a catastrophe of enormous proportions.
An enraged Innate Gangjin expert was already incredibly difficult to kill. If they went on a rampage, it would take at least two experts of the same level to stop them.
So they might as well keep wandering.
Japan was a place with no shortage of experts, after all. Maybe something would turn up.
———
After Liu Yunduo defeated Ueizumi Ise, the top master of Daito Gasshi-ryu, her fame exploded across Japan.
And the news that her next challenge would be against Chiba Jujiro, the number one expert of Hokushin Itto-ryu, spread like wildfire. Soon, everyone in Japan’s kendo world knew about it. The match drew enormous attention—it was no exaggeration to say all eyes were on it.
Under this atmosphere,
finally, three days later, Liu Yunduo arrived at the headquarters of the Hokushin Itto-ryu’s Genbukan dojo.
As the pioneer of Japan’s modern sword training halls, the vast majority of today’s training halls had been influenced by Hokushin Itto-ryu. Things like protective gear and wooden swords—all of these had been pioneered by Hokushin Itto-ryu.
Because of this, the Genbukan was thriving. The main hall was naturally grand and imposing, ranking among the finest of Japan’s many sword training halls and dojos.
Chiba Jujiro had also long since received the news.
When Liu Yunduo had publicly declared before numerous experts of the kendo world that her next challenge would be Chiba Jujiro, that in itself was tantamount to issuing a formal challenge.
Even without additional written documents, the match between the two had essentially been set.
If Chiba Jujiro wasn’t afraid, he would remain at the Genbukan, waiting quietly for Liu Yunduo to come challenge him, and accept when she did. If he was afraid, he could of course avoid the fight—but that would mean admitting defeat.
As the number one expert of Hokushin Itto-ryu and the genius hailed as the most likely person of this generation to step into the “Kengou” level, Chiba Jujiro naturally wouldn’t fear a challenge. Nor could he afford to!
If Liu Yunduo had been some nameless nobody, he could have ignored her, pretended not to hear, and avoided the fight—and no one would say he’d lost. But after defeating Ueizumi Ise, Liu Yunduo’s name carried weight. She had earned the right to challenge him, and he could no longer pretend not to hear.
He had to accept!
Of course, he wasn’t necessarily afraid of Liu Yunduo.
Years ago, he had already touched the threshold of the Danjin level. He was just a hair’s breadth away from comprehending the essence of swordsmanship and becoming another Kengou in Hokushin Itto-ryu’s history.
After all these years, no one knew whether he had broken through or not.
Given his talent, in such a long time, breaking through to the Kengou level and comprehending the essence of swordsmanship wouldn’t be impossible at all.
That day, the sky was clear and bright, with gentle breezes and beautiful weather.
At the sprawling Genbukan, Liu Yunduo entered the dojo wielding twin swords, officially challenging Chiba Jujiro!
But this time, Liu Yunduo didn’t come alone. Two men stood behind her.
One was Jiang Fei, the other was Su Mengnan.
Jiang Fei was calm and composed, carrying no weapon. He simply watched with a faint smile. Su Mengnan, on the other hand, looked quite excited.
Although he had worked hard to bring Jiang Fei along as backup to ensure nothing went wrong, deep down he still very much hoped Liu Yunduo could defeat Chiba Jujiro on her own.
“Please.”
Chiba Jujiro—who looked quite young, not yet forty—made a gesture of invitation. His presence was far more imposing than Ueizumi Ise’s had been.
Liu Yunduo returned the gesture with one of her own.
