In an inconspicuous house in Edo——
The air was filled with the smell of medicine.
Falling asleep in the strong smell of medicine, and waking up in the strong smell of medicine - Ogata has become accustomed to this kind of life, accustomed to the air full of the smell of medicine.
When I opened my eyes, the first thing that caught my eye was the ceiling that I was so used to seeing.
Turning his head, he saw Ating sitting cross-legged next to him, busy with something .
It is now around 8 o'clock in the morning and the sun has risen completely.
Behind Ating, there happened to be an open window. The sunlight shone through the open window onto Ating, making a layer of dazzling golden circle appear on her body. Ogata had to lower his eyelids slightly and use his eyelashes to filter most of the sunlight before he could see Ating's face clearly.
"Ah, are you awake?"
Atachi looked at Ogata who had woken up.
"You woke up just in time. The medicine has just been prepared for you. Come, let me help you sit up."
"No need..." Ogata lifted the quilt from his body and slowly sat up, "I think I can sit up by myself."
"You can sit up by yourself now?" A-Ming showed some surprise on her face. "You recovered so quickly... You needed my help to get up yesterday... Then take off your clothes and I'll help you change the dressing."
There is a grinding boat placed on the tatami next to A-Machi, with some fresh medicinal residue still left on the grinding boat.
In A-Cheng's arms was a small wooden basin, which contained a large mass of black "medicine paste" mixed with a variety of medicinal materials and emitting a strange smell.
Just now, Ating was preparing this "medicine paste".
"I really don't want to change the medicine..." Ogata said helplessly as he took off his black yukata, "After applying this medicine on the wound, the wound will feel numb and itchy..."
"Just bear with it for a while." A-Ming said, "I've been using this medicine for three days now. You should be used to it, right?"
The decisive battle with Shiranui——that happened three days ago.
After successfully defeating Shiranui, the wounded Ogata and his group quickly left Tenbo Mountain, where Shiranui's base was located, in order to avoid being discovered by the shogunate officials who arrived later.
Except for Mamiya, Genichi and Atachi, the rest of the people were seriously injured.
In order to recuperate in peace, Lin once again approached the leader of "Tojo-ya" - Tojo Daigo, and asked him to help arrange a remote and quiet house for them to stay in for a while.
In addition, Lin also asked Tojo Daigo to arrange a doctor with sufficiently superb medical skills to come and treat their injuries.
As a money-grubber, Tojo Daigo would naturally not miss such a profitable business.
Arranging a quiet, remote house suitable for recuperation in Edo, and arranging a doctor with sufficiently superb medical skills - these things were easy for Tojo Daigo, a local boss in Edo.
So Daigo Tojo quickly took over the "business" and arranged a house for Ogata and others at a very fast speed.
This house is located in the southwest corner of Edo. It has two floors and can accommodate more than a dozen people. Because it is located in a remote area, the flow of people is very small and it is very quiet. It is the best place to serve as a place for healing.
As for finding a doctor, that's even simpler.
As the most powerful Yakuza organization in eastern Japan, Tojo-ya often kills people.
Therefore, "Dongchengwu" usually employs more than ten doctors with superb medical skills, who are responsible for treating the members who were injured in the fighting.
Because the most common injuries they treat on a daily basis are knife wounds and fractures, the doctors under Tojo Daigo are all very good at treating external injuries. The injuries on their bodies are basically knife wounds, and Ogata and others happen to be quite compatible with the expertise of these doctors in "Tojo-ya", so Tojo Daigo lent several of his doctors to Ogata and others.
During these three days, Ogata and others lived in the house arranged for them by Tojo Daigo to recuperate.
By the way - in addition to Ogata and the others, Uncle Qing, who was also injured and recovering, also moved into this house.
Uncle Qing's room was located next to Ogata and Atachi's room - Ogata and Atachi lived in the same room.
It’s not because there isn’t enough room in the house.
The reason they lived in the same room was because it was more convenient for Atachi to take care of Ogata.
Ogata had many injuries on his body. Although none of them were fatal, they had a significant impact on his ability to take care of himself.
So in order to take care of Ogata more conveniently, Atachi lived in the same room with Ogata. During these three days, Atachi was responsible for taking care of Ogata's daily life.
In addition to taking care of Ogata, A-Machi is also responsible for taking care of Uncle Qing who lives in the next room.
After Ogata took off his clothes, Atachi immediately untied the sackcloth on Ogata's body with skillful techniques.
After removing the pieces of linen used to bandage Ogata's wounds, A-Machi looked at the wounds on Ogata's body.
"This medicine is really effective." A-Ting said with some joy in his tone, "Some of your shallow wounds have healed."
"Yeah." Ogata nodded, "This medicine is indeed quite effective."
——But the main reason why my wounds healed so quickly is because I now have a high “vitality”.
Ogata added this sentence silently in his mind.
Although the attribute of "vitality" cannot directly improve Ogata's combat effectiveness like "strength" and "agility", it is no worse than any other attribute in terms of practicality.
The improvement of "vitality" can not only make Ogata healthier and less prone to illness, but also increase Ogata's physical recovery speed and injury recovery speed.
Ogata's "vitality" is currently as high as 23 points, far exceeding that of ordinary people.
This "vitality" far exceeds that of ordinary people, allowing Ogata to recover from his injuries extremely quickly.
Now, only three days have passed since the decisive battle with Shiranui, and some of Ogata's shallow wounds have healed and new rosy flesh has grown.
At this rate, it would only take about half a month for Ogata's injuries to be almost healed.
This is not the first time that A-Machi has changed Ogata's medicine.
In Kyoto a few months ago, it was A-machi who was responsible for changing the dressings on Ogata, who was badly wounded in the attack on Nijo Castle.
Because of his previous experience, Ating is now quite familiar with it.
While using her fingers to apply the freshly ground medicine paste to the wounds on Ogata's body, A-Machi couldn't help but look up at the wounds that had not yet fully healed and still looked quite scary, as well as the old scars on Ogata's skin.
Looking at the new and old scars on Ogata's body, a complex look appeared in Atachi's eyes.
But as soon as this complex color emerged from his pupils, Ating quickly blinked twice, hiding the complex color in the depths of his pupils.
"Are there any injuries on your body that still hurt?" asked Ating.
"Well... the wound on my chest and the wound on my left neck still hurt a little." Ogata pointed to his chest and then to his left neck.
A-Machi untied the linen wrapped around Ogata's neck and looked carefully at the wound on Ogata's left neck.
"Hmm... the wound on the left side of your neck has not healed yet. Let me apply more medicine."
A-machi skillfully applied medicine to every wound on Ogata's body and wrapped them with new linen.
"How is it? Is it tied too tight or too loose in any way?"
Ogata twisted his arms and said, "No. They are tied well. There is no discomfort anywhere."
Ogata turned his head and looked at Ating: "How are your injuries?"
"Yeah. I'm fine." Ating touched his right shoulder and left leg. "Although I can't use too much force on my right arm and left leg, the wounds have healed well. I should be able to recover as before after resting for a while."
In the battle with Shintaro, Atachi's right shoulder and left leg were injured by the kunai thrown by Shintaro, but fortunately they were not serious injuries.
After Ah-Ming packed up the mill and various medicinal materials placed next to Ogata's bed, he said:
"I'll go see how Uncle Qing is doing. Ayi, you should continue to rest first ."
"Yeah." Ogata nodded.
"You got up pretty early today." Ating continued, "Do you want to sleep a little longer?"
"It's different." Ogata smiled, "I think I slept a little too much. I plan to sit by the window for a while and enjoy the fresh air."
"Okay then. Just make sure you get some rest. I'll get you breakfast."
Ating stood up and walked quickly out of the room.
Not long after Ating left, he returned to the room with a bowl of hot porridge.
After handing the bowl of hot porridge to Ogata, Atachi left again and went to the next room to take care of Uncle Qing.
After watching Atachi leave again, Ogata let out a long sigh. Then, holding the porridge that Atachi had just handed to him, he moved his butt on the tatami, little by little, to the open window.
After sticking his head out of the window, fresh air without any unpleasant smell of medicine blew towards Ogata.
Ogata and Omachi's rooms are located on the second floor of the house.
Although the view is pretty good because I live at a relatively high altitude , there is nothing nice to see outside the window.
The house they currently live in is located in a remote area of ​​Edo. There are few pedestrians. Looking around, all you can see are sparsely populated low-rise houses.
After taking a few glances at the scenery outside, Oufang withdrew his gaze.
While enjoying the fresh breeze, I ate the porridge in the bowl in big mouthfuls.
In just three or two bites, Xubian finished all the porridge in the bowl.
Just as Ogata finished the bowl in his hand, he heard a familiar old male voice outside the room:
"Ogata-kun, it's me. Would it be convenient for me to come in now?"
It was Genichi's voice.
"Please come in." Ogata said as he put the empty bowl in his hand aside.
Wow.
The door was opened.
Yuan Yi walked slowly into the room carrying a bottle containing something unknown.
"I just ran into Ms. A-machi in the corridor." Genichi walked over to Ogata and sat cross-legged, saying, "He said you were awake, so I came to see you."
Genichi looked Ogata up and down several times.
"Ogata-kun, your injury has healed really quickly. You can even sit up now, whereas you could only lie down yesterday."
"I have a physique that allows wounds to heal easily." Ogata told the truth.
"Xiao Lin and the others must be very envious of your physique." Yuan Yi said in a half-joking tone, "Xiao Lin and the others will definitely not be able to fully recover without 2-3 months."
"How are other people's injuries recovering?" Ogata asked.
A-Machi, Genichi, and Mamiya—they were the only three people whose injuries were not too serious.
Ating, who was less seriously injured, was mainly responsible for taking care of Ogata and Uncle Qing.
Genichirō and Mamiya were responsible for taking care of Lin, Makimura, Asai, and Shimada respectively.
"Xiaolin and the others have recovered well from their injuries."
Yuan Yi said slowly.
"Macun is the same as you. He has a physique that can heal quickly from wounds."
"After another month of rest, Mucun should be able to be full of life again."
"As for Xiaolin, Asai, and Shimada, the speed at which their wounds heal is just that of an ordinary person."
"It will take about two to three months for the three of them to recover as before."
The speed at which Makimura's wounds healed - Ogata had witnessed this before in Kyoto.
Makimura was also seriously injured in Kyoto a few months ago, but he recovered in a short time.
After briefly introducing Lin and the others' current situation, Genichi handed the bottle he had been holding to Ogata.
"Ogata-kun, would you like to drink?"
Ogata glanced at the bottle in Genichi's hand.
"…Could this be the 'Oolong Tea'?"
Ogata still has fresh memories of Genichi's special liquor - "Oolong Tea".
On the surface it looks like ordinary oolong tea, but in reality it is a strong liquor that will catch fire upon ignition.
The first time I came across Genichi's "Oolong Tea" was when I was resting at the Gourd-ya headquarters in Owari before heading to Edo.
Ogata felt that he would never forget the moment he brought the flame close to Genichi's "Oolong Tea" and the "Oolong Tea" instantly burst into flames...
"How could I let the injured drink my 'Oolong Tea'?" Genichi said unhappily, "The bottle is just filled with ordinary warm water."
Ogata took the heavy bottle handed to him by Genichi with some doubt.
When I put my nose close to the bottle, I really didn't smell any alcohol.
But because Ogata was not very thirsty at the moment, he thanked him and returned the bottle of water to Genichi.
After taking the bottle of water from Ogata, Genichi grinned at him and said:
"Ogata-kun, you seem to be in good shape today, so let's chat. I happen to be free right now."
"Tell me how you defeated Shuntaro back then."
The smile on Yuanyi's face became more intense.
"I never thought you would reach the 'selflessness realm' again. You really are very talented."
"I think with your talent, it should only be a matter of time before you can freely enter the state of 'selflessness'."
"In terms of talent, you might even be better than Mamiya."
Hearing what Genichi said, Ogata smiled modestly and said, "Master Genichi, you are too kind."
If he were to confess to Lin, Genichi and the others that he was able to freely enter the "state of no self" like Genichi, it would be truly shocking.
After all, it took Ogata only a little over a year to learn the Source Breathing.
To reach the level that Genichi took 30 years to reach in just one year - this is really hard to explain.
Moreover, "being able to freely enter the 'selfless state'" is Ogata's biggest trump card at the moment, which may save his life in an emergency.
Therefore, the fewer people who know this trump card of yours, the better.
So Ogata lied a little about how he defeated Shuntaro, the leader of the "Four Heavenly Kings".
Ogata said that when he was fighting with Shuntaro, he unconsciously entered the "state of no self" again, just like when he fought with Kotaro in Kyoto.
Lin, Genichi and the others naturally had no doubts about Ogata's words. After all, they did not think that Ogata had the possibility of freely entering the state of "selflessness". They just thought that Ogata was truly gifted.
Seeing that Genichi wanted him to talk about the battle with Shuntaro, Ogata seemed to remember something, pursed his lips, and looked Genichi up and down several times.
"Master Genichi, are you really free now?"
"Hmm? Xiaolin and the others are still sleeping, so I am quite free right now. What's wrong?"
Hearing what Genichi said, Ogata thought to himself:
——Now is a good opportunity to ask Master Genichi what that mysterious state is…
Ogata has always been very concerned about the magical state he entered during the battle with Shuntaro, which allowed him to sense everything around him.
He instinctively felt that this situation was not simple.
If there is anyone who is most likely to know the details of this magical state, it is undoubtedly the "Sword Saint" Genichi Kinoshita.
Ever since moving into this house, Ogata has been looking for opportunities to ask Genichi questions.
But unfortunately, for the past three days, Ogata has been lying in the room recuperating from his injuries, and Genichi has been busy taking care of Lin and the others, so he has not found a chance.
And now, Ogata has finally got the chance he has been waiting for.
Now there were only Genichi and Ogata in the room, and Genichi was free now after being embarrassed - there was no better opportunity than now.
Ogata cleared his throat:
"Master Genichi, when I was fighting with Shuntaro, I entered a very strange state..."
Ogata told Genichi everything that happened during the battle with Shuntaro.
After quietly listening to Ogata's recounting of the battle, a hint of excitement appeared on Genichi's face.
"Ogata-kun, are you saying that you were able to sense everything around you?"
"Yes." Ogata nodded, "Not only can it sense everything around it, it can also sense itself."
“I can clearly sense which muscles in my body are injured and which are intact, and I can freely mobilize the strength of each muscle in my body.”
If the body is a bottle and strength is the water in the bottle, then after entering that magical state, Ogata can freely mobilize the water in the bottle.
You can concentrate the water wherever you want it to be.
At that time, Ogata relied on the ability to freely mobilize the power in his body to burst out with powerful strength in his already wounded state, killing Keitaro in one blow.
After Ogata finished speaking, Genichi, who had been looking down in deep thought, slowly raised his head.
He gave Ogata a look of admiration and surprise.
"...Ogata-kun. This is the 'transparent state'. You entered the 'transparent state' at that time."
"'Transparent state'?" Ogata repeated the unfamiliar term softly.
"After entering this magical state, everything is transparent, so I named this state 'Transparent State'." Yuan Yi said slowly.
"So transparent..." Ogata muttered as he carefully recalled the scene when he was fighting with Shuntaro.
After careful recollection, Ogata found that the name "Transparent Realm" was quite fitting.
After entering the "transparent state", one can clearly sense all the movements of everything around him, including himself.
The movement of the opponent's muscles, the swaying of the surrounding flowers and plants, the change in wind direction... these can all be clearly sensed.
All living and inanimate objects within the field of vision seemed to be transparent. All changes were visible and could not escape Ogata's perception.
"Master Genichi," Ogata asked impatiently, "Since you named this state 'Transparency', you must have entered the 'Transparency' before, right?"
Yuan nodded.
"I have indeed entered the 'transparent state'. But I have only entered it five times."
At this point, Yuan Yi gave a wry smile.
"So I don't really understand the 'transparent realm'."
"The only thing I can be sure of about the 'transparent state' is that this state is extremely strong, far superior to the 'selfless state'."
"After entering the 'transparent state', your body will be as if it has become one with the heaven and earth."
"Within your field of vision, the changes in the sky and the movements on the ground cannot escape your eyes."
"Just like you would definitely feel a cockroach crawling on your arm."
"You can clearly sense how your opponent's muscles and bones are moving now, and how they are going to move next. Then, based on the changes in your opponent's muscles and bones, you can accurately predict your opponent's next move."
"So this powerful perception alone is enough to make you invincible."
"What's more, the 'transparent state' brings you more than just this powerful induction ability."
"The 'transparent state' can also allow you to take a leap forward in your ability to control your own body."
“You can freely mobilize the strength of every muscle in your body, and you can freely focus the strength of your whole body on one point.”
"If your powerful induction ability gives you the ability to predict and remain invincible, then your ability to freely mobilize all the strength in your body gives you the explosive power to break through any obstacles."
Upon hearing this, Ogata nodded slightly.
It was with this ability to freely mobilize all the strength in his body that he killed Keitaro in an instant.
He first used his powerful perception to notice that Keitaro had relaxed a little in the next moment.
Then he concentrated all his strength on his feet, quickly approached Keitaro, and then concentrated his strength on his arms, and cut Keitaro in half with one blow.
"That's all I know about the 'transparent realm'." A hint of helplessness appeared on Yuanyi's face. "Since I started learning swordsmanship, I have only entered the 'transparent realm' five times, so I don't have a deep understanding of it."
"I don't even know what the opportunity to enter the 'transparent state' is."
"However - I guess that a major opportunity to enter the 'transparent state' should be to first enter the 'selfless state'."
"The only five times I entered the 'transparency realm', without exception, I entered the 'selflessness realm' first."
"Then in the 'selfless state', the mind is further highly concentrated."
"Then, without realizing it, I entered the 'transparent realm'."
"Perhaps there is still an opportunity to enter the 'transparent state', but one of the opportunities I know of is to first enter the 'selfless state' and then further concentrate your mind in the 'selfless state'."
Ogata listened carefully.
As he listened, he recalled the battle with Shuntaro.
"...It seems to be true." Ogata said softly, "Shuntaro is very strong. When I was fighting with Shuntaro, I didn't even dare to breathe. I was concentrating so much that I could hardly hear any sound from the outside world..."
"Whether you can successfully enter the 'transparent realm' may be related to luck." Yuan said half jokingly, "In short - Ogata-kun, you really surprise me more and more."
Genichi let out a long breath and looked at Ogata with genuine admiration in his eyes.
"Ogata-kun, how old are you?"
"Hmm? 21."
"21... I was 27 when I first entered the 'transparent realm'."
At this point, a faint smile appeared on Genichi's face.
"You entered the 'transparent realm' six years earlier than me. Your future is limitless..."
"Now it seems that your talent is still higher than mine, Ogata-kun."
As soon as Genichi finished speaking, Ogata said:
"No, the reason I was able to enter the 'transparent realm' this time was probably just because I was lucky enough."
"Don't be so modest, Ogata-kun." Genichi laughed, "It's a pity that I'm already old..."
At this point, a hint of helplessness appeared on Genichi's face.
"It would be nice if you and I were of the same generation."
"If you and I were of the same generation, I would definitely discuss with you whether my Yang Shen is more powerful or your Da Shi Tian is faster."
Ogata smiled.
Just as he was about to say something, a strong sense of pain suddenly struck Ogata's brain.
It was as if someone suddenly placed a huge bell over Ogata's head and then struck the bell hard.
The intense pain made Ogata's face change involuntarily, and then he subconsciously raised his hand and pressed his head tightly.
Ogata's action naturally surprised Genichi, who was sitting in front of him.
"Ogata-kun, what's wrong with you?"
"fine……"
The intense pain came suddenly and went away quickly.
Gradually, the pain dissipated and I no longer felt any discomfort.
"It's just that I suddenly felt a little pain in my head..."
"Pain? Does it still hurt now?"
"Not anymore."
"Maybe you're too tired. We just talked for quite a long time."
After saying that, Yuan Yi stood up.
"Let's stop here for now. You take a rest first. I should go check if Xiaolin and the others are up."
"Yeah." Ogata nodded, "Maybe..."
Ogata does feel a little tired now.
Genichi quickly left the room.
And Ogata lay back down in bed.
After lying back in bed, Ogata couldn't help but raise his hands and rub his temples on both sides.
——Could it be the aftereffect of ?
——Or is it a subsequent side effect of entering the "transparent state"?
After the battle with Shuntaro and Keitaro ended and he exited the "transparent state", he not only felt a headache but also felt dizzy.
There were too many possible reasons for his headache just now, and Ogata couldn't figure out the reason no matter how hard he tried.
Lying in bed, Ogata felt his eyelids becoming heavier and heavier without him noticing.
Finally, at some unknown time, Ogata fell into a deep sleep...
…
…
"……Awake!"
Ogata heard someone calling him.
“…Wake up!”
It seemed to be Atachi's voice.
"Ayi, wake up!"
Ogata slowly opened his eyes.
The ceiling and the smiling face of Atachi between him and the ceiling came into view.
"You can sleep a lot." Ating said with a smile, "It's already noon, so it's time to have lunch and the midday medicine."
"Well, okay..."
Ogata pushed his hands against the tatami and was about to stand up.
However, when he was about to get up, Ogata felt something was wrong.
He found that he had no strength.
Atachi noticed something strange about Ogata and quickly stepped forward to support him.
"What's wrong with you?" Atachi asked anxiously, raising his hand to touch Ogata's forehead.
Ogata's forehead was not hot, it was normal body temperature and he did not have a fever.
"I... don't know..." Because he couldn't use any strength, Ogata spoke weakly, "I just felt... I had no strength in my body... and... I felt so heavy... It was getting heavier and heavier..."
Ogata felt as if someone was constantly pouring weights into his body, making it heavier and heavier.
As the weight continues to increase, the body feels more and more tired.
"Lie down and rest for a while!" A-Ming pushed Ogata back into the bed, "I'll go call the doctor!"
After saying that, Ating ran out of the room with a "dong dong dong" sound.
At this time, Ogata could no longer hear the sound of Atachi's footsteps running out of the room.
The intense feeling of fatigue that continued to surge made Ogata feel as if all the senses in his body seemed to have become dull.
I can't open my eyes and I can't hear clearly.
Consciousness becomes chaos.
In this chaotic consciousness where he was unable to concentrate on any thoughts, Ogata vaguely heard a system sound in his mind that he seemed to have heard a long time ago.
…
[Ding! The host begins to absorb "immortality"...]
…