Wen Xian is not tall, only about 160cm tall.
But when Fumiaki slowly walked towards Mamiya and Yoshitomo, they both felt as if a mountain was slowly pressing down on them...
Surprise and fear appeared in Yoshitomo's eyes.
Compared to Yoshitomo, the emotions that appeared in the depths of Mamiya's eyes were much more complicated.
At this moment, looking at Wen Xian who appeared from the darkness, Mamiya somehow recalled the day five years ago when he broke up with his father and his angry father removed the name of Yamada Asaemon...
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"Father! Why did you do that?!"
"I have explained it many times... Don't make me repeat it again: they are just a gang of evil people. Using their lives to exchange for His Majesty the Central Palace's life, these evil people died for what they deserved. And their sacrifice is also worth it. During the time when I imprisoned you to prevent you from causing trouble, I have successfully made high-quality human gall pills with the gallbladders of these evil people. These human gall pills have now been sent to Kyoto. With these human gall pills, His Majesty the Central Palace's body infected by lung disease should be able to recover."
"Father! How can human life be converted into equivalent value in this way?"
"Shut up!" Wen Xian, who usually spoke in a gentle voice, shouted at the top of his voice, "There is no distinction between the value of human life - this is just a lie to fool children!"
"In this world, some people deserve to live more than others!"
"If sacrificing some less important people can allow people who deserve to live more to live - I am happy to do it!"
"...Father." Jiulang slowly stood up from the tatami, "I'm sorry that I, Yoshitsune, cannot agree with your philosophy!"
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After Wen Xian suddenly appeared, the air in the basement was filled with a dead silence that was so oppressive that it made it difficult to breathe.
The first person to break the dead silence was Wen Xian.
"…Yoshitomo, I've already given you one chance." Wenxian's tone was without any sadness, "After you secretly let Azhu out last time, I didn't hold you accountable for it."
"I know the criminal must be you. Without your help, Ah Zhu would never have been able to break free of the chains that bound her and escape from the locked basement."
"Azhu didn't succeed in escaping. I wanted to just let the matter go and pretend that nothing happened."
"Now it seems...I have to consider whether my decision to let you go was right or wrong."
"I let you go out of my way, but not only did you not stop, you even went even further."
Yoshitomo now turned his attention to Mamiya.
"You really put a lot of thought into it... You even asked Jiulang to help you this time."
"I was confused when I saw Jiulang suddenly come back after being kicked out of the family for five years."
"Why did Jiulang come back at this time when we got Azhu?"
"So when I saw Jiulang coming back, I was worried: Maybe Jiulang was brought back by you, Yoshitomo, in order to ask Jiulang to help you release Azhu."
" I actually guessed it right."
"No." Mamiya said coldly, "You guessed wrong. I was not found by Yoshitomo."
"It was purely coincidental that I happened to be home at this time."
"Fortunately, I came back at this time, otherwise I really don't know how long this girl would be tortured by you."
"Weren't you brought back by Yoshitomo? Well, it's not important anyway." Wen Xian said calmly, "I won't say any more nonsense. Jiulang, Yoshitomo, get away from Atake."
"As long as the two of you leave now, I can treat the night as if nothing happened and just take away the key to your basement, Yoshitomo."
"Impossible." Mamiya rejected without hesitation, "You are the one who should move aside."
"...Ha." Wen Xian suddenly chuckled a few times, "This scene... is so familiar."
"Five years ago, before you abandoned the name Yamada Asaemon and left home, we had a similar confrontation."
"Father." Mamiya's tone was unquestionable. "Torturing a little girl repeatedly just to get a better pill - this is an absurd thing. I can't ignore it for both public and private reasons."
"... Humph, not only are the images similar, but even what you said is exactly the same as it was five years ago..." Wen Xian paused, "Jiulang, let me ask you: Do you know how many people died of lung disease in Edo in a year?"
Before Mamiya could answer, Wen Xian asked himself:
“Thousands of people die from lung diseases in Edo every year.”
"And the vast majority of them are not terminally ill and can be saved by taking high-quality medicine."
"This is why our human bile pills have always had no shortage of buyers and why there is an endless stream of people buying them."
"But we can't always produce high-quality human bile pills."
"You once bore the name of Yamada Asaemon, so you should know how much luck is involved in making human gall balls."
"The gallbladders are taken from executed prisoners who were beheaded by us."
"We don't always have healthy, young prisoners on death row, so the quality of the bile removed varies, which makes the quality of the pills we make also sometimes high and sometimes low."
"And this girl has a body that can regenerate gallbladder."
"She is young and healthy, and has a high-quality gallbladder, so she can make high-quality human bile pills."
"And I have personally tested whether the human gallbladder pills made from Ah Zhu's continuously regenerating gallbladder have any side effects - there are no strange side effects."
"So, Jiulang. Do you understand how precious and important this girl is?"
"Countless people will be saved because of this girl."
Wen Xian's tone gradually became lower.
"By sacrificing Azhu, countless families can be spared the pain of losing a family member to illness - Jiulang, don't you agree that this is the right thing to do?"
As soon as Wen Xian finished speaking, Mamiya answered without hesitation:
"I feel so stupid."
His answer was brief and clear.
"Father, the remarks you made just now were only meant to impress yourself."
"Sacrificing this girl so that more people infected with lung disease can be saved?"
Mamiya glanced at Azhu behind him.
Ever since Wen appeared behind him, Azhu immediately looked as if he had seen some indescribable horrible monster. His face turned terribly pale, his body trembled violently, and he kept hiding behind Yoshitomo.
Mamiya had been watching Azhu's reaction.
"Father, you are only moving yourself."
"Since you just asked me 'How many people die of lung disease in Edo every year', I will ask you a question now."
"Father, do you remember when my eyesight became bad and I couldn't see things far away?"
"...16 years old." Wen Xian answered Mamiya's question in a very cooperative manner, "Because you read books by candlelight every night at that time."
"You took me to seek medical treatment everywhere." Mamiya continued, "We tried all kinds of methods to correct vision."
"I've even tried weird things like drinking yellow talisman water, but none of them worked."
"It was not until I left my family that I found a way to see clearly again with the help of someone in Nagasaki."
"It's the southern barbarian stuff called 'glasses'."
“That trip to Nagasaki was an unprecedented and precious experience for me.”
“That was the first time I realized how advanced the southern barbarians were.”
"After further investigation, I realized that some diseases that are considered terminal illnesses in Japan are just simple minor illnesses among the southern barbarians."
"The southern barbarians have found ways to treat diseases that we Japanese cannot cure."
"The reason is that the southern barbarians have been constantly researching new and more effective methods of treating diseases."
"So, father. Do you understand what I just said?"
Mamiya imitated Wenxian's tone just now.
"As you just said, I was once a member of the Yamada Asaemon family! So I know very well that even if the quality of the human gallbladder pill is extremely high! It cannot guarantee that everyone will feel the effect after taking it!"
"If you really want all the lung-infected people in Edo to be cured, you should work with doctors to find new and better ways to treat lung-infected people!"
"Instead of torturing an innocent girl here, using old-fashioned methods, and then feeling proud of yourself! What a great thing you have done!"
The further Mamiya spoke, the more powerful his tone became.
"Onii-sama..." Yoshitomo stared blankly at Mamiya in front of him.
He never dared to refute his father loudly and face to face like this.
But my brother said "no" to his father without backing down.
Wen Xian's expression, which had been calm all along, changed slightly at this moment - it became gloomy.
"... In other words - you're not willing to give way?"
Mamiya was speechless and just stood there quietly.
After hesitating for a moment, Yoshitomo firmly protected Atake behind him and whispered in a whisper, "Father... please don't do such unscrupulous things again..."
"...The negotiations...broke down."
Wen Xian's head drooped slightly, with a look of helplessness and unspeakable emotions appearing on his face.
"I don't want to... use this last resort on you..."
Wen Xian spread his legs, raised his left hand, and pressed the guard of the sword at his waist.
His simple action made Yoshitomo's face turn pale and he unconsciously took a half step back.
Yoshitomo retreated, but Mamiya——did not move.
His feet seemed to be rooted in the ground, facing the pressure that was like a flood emanating from Wen Xian.
"Think carefully: exchanging verbal arguments like a court noble is indeed not suitable for us warriors."
"Let's put an end to this verbal battle where no one can convince the other."
"Next - let's talk with swords!"
Clang——!
Wen Xian suddenly pulled out the black and purple scabbard and handle of the katana hanging on his left waist.
The candlelight shone into the blade, reflecting an eerie, cold purple light.
"Vairocana..." Jianmiya whispered the name of the sword in Wenxian's hand.
As he was still a member of the Yamada Asaemon family five years ago, he naturally recognized that this sword was the Vairocana sword made by his grandfather, the sixth generation head of the Yamada Asaemon family, who required it to be passed down from generation to generation.
When he was young, Mamiya once asked Wenxian: Why did grandpa name this sword after the name of Vairocana Tathagata in Tantric Buddhism?
" Because holding this knife will make me feel like I am possessed by Vairocana Buddha." Wen Xian answered proudly at the time.
After a brief moment of shock and daze, Yoshitomo gritted his teeth and reached for the sword at his left waist.
But as soon as his hand touched the hilt of the sword, Mamiya shouted:
"Yoshitomo, stand down!"
"You can't interfere in this fight..."
"I have to come to terms with my father...alone!"
Clang——!
Mamiya also suddenly drew his sword.
"Come on, Jiulang... no, Yamada Asaemon Yoshitsune." Wen Xian smiled at this time, "It's been a long time since I competed with you. Let me see how much you have improved in the past five years."
"Teach anytime."
Mamiya prepared his knife.
"Ronin."
"Mamiya Kuro!"
"Wow... that's a good posture. It seems I can finally give it my all for the first time in a long time."
Wen Xian raised the knife high.
"Head of the Seventh Generation Yamada Asemon Clan."
"Yamada As'emon Fumaki!"
Mamiya and Fumihiko shouted in unison: "Come on!"
After shouting, Wen Xian leaped towards Mamiya without a running start, like a mountain pressing down on his head. Using his own weight, he swung his sword at Mamiya from top to bottom.
Mamiya raised his knife and blocked Vairocana's attack that was heading towards his forehead.
The sharp sound of metal clanging rang out.
The wind pressure spreads out in all directions with the two people as the center.
Both of them are top swordsmanship masters.
Both of them have a strong and powerful aura.
The majestic aura of the two of them seemed as if they would transform into a flying dragon at any time, breaking through this tiny basement, soaring into the sky, and dancing in the night sky of Edo!
Wen Xian, who had leaped over, had already landed on the ground. He and Mamiya maintained a sword-holding posture and wrestled with each other.
The guards of their swords were pressed against each other, and this position made it difficult to separate the swords when they wrestled with each other.
Whenever Wen Xian exerted some strength, Jian Gong would push back with some strength, and neither of them would give in.
Strength is not Mamiya's advantage, but rather it is Wenxian's advantage as he is more muscular than him.
In order not to be controlled by the enemy, Mamiya exerted his strength horizontally and successfully escaped from this wrestling match that was bound to put him at a disadvantage.
Mamiya adjusted his stance, changing to an upper stance, and slashed at Wenxian from the upper road. The knife slashed from the upper road was as fast as lightning, and Mamiya's advance was also extremely accurate, but was easily blocked by Wenxian.
After blocking Mamiya's attack, Wen Xian took a wrong step and moved his body sideways to the left side where Mamiya was difficult to defend. Then he lowered his body and attacked Mamiya in front of him.
Lower the center of gravity , bend and stretch the upper body, and chop the knife vertically from bottom to top in one smooth movement.
Mamiya's body reacted before his brain did - his body knew that it was difficult to defend against attacks from this direction, so he quickly took two steps back and dodged the slash.
Agility is Mamiya's strong point, and this level of attack is not enough to hit Mamiya.
The father and son continued to exchange fierce offense and defense, alternately launching fierce attacks like a storm.
The sparks produced when the two men's swords clashed became another source of light in the basement besides the candlelight.
The sparks alternately illuminated the faces of the father and son.
In the not-so-spacious basement, the only sounds were the clanging of swords and the sliding of two people's footsteps.
Yoshitomo protected Takeru behind him as Mamiya had just said, and at the same time, he watched the duel in front of him with an expression of astonishment that had not yet determined the winner.
Fumiaki was an unrivaled master in Yoshitomo's mind. He always believed that the only one who could defeat Fumiaki was probably the now famous Ogata Ittosai.
He knew that his brother was a true genius. He could master swordsmanship and other skills at a glance, and his learning progress was rapid.
But even though he knew that his brother was a genius, seeing his brother, whom he hadn't seen for a long time, grow to the point where he could fight on par with his father in just five years - it was still difficult for Yoshitomo to hide the astonishment that kept coming out of his eyes.
clang!
clang!
clang!
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clang--!
Following an almost deafening sound of metal clashing, Wen Xian's sword was heavily blocked, and Mamiya suddenly put his sword back into the scabbard.
This was the opportunity that Mamiya had been waiting for for a long time.
It was a good opportunity to use his best skill against Wen Xian: the sword-drawing technique "Liu Guang".
Flowing light!
The next moment he put the sword back into the sheath, the sword light burst out from the sheath and swept towards Wen Xian's belly.
However……
clang--!
The light that poured out from the sheath was blocked by Wen Xian's Vairocana halfway and was blocked heavily.
Before Mamiya could show his surprise at his special move being blocked, Wen Xian perfectly repeated what Mamiya had just done - he quickly sheathed Vairocana...
Mamiya's pupils shrank suddenly, and then he subconsciously raised his sword.
clang--!
The sound of two swords hitting each other was heard again.
Mamiya took several steps back while holding the sword that was blocked.
Wen Xian stood there, not moving a muscle.
"...Heh." Wen Xian, who did not chase after Mamiya, raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a smile of appreciation, "It seems that you have really made a lot of progress in the past five years."
"But—you're still a long way off."
Mamiya felt a sharp pain in his left collarbone.
He lowered his eyes and looked at his left collarbone - the clothes at his left collarbone were quickly stained red with blood.
He was unable to completely block Wen Xian's sword-drawing attack.
Vairocana's blade still cut the skin on his left collarbone, but fortunately the wound was not deep.
"You are still the same. Your biggest weakness is your lack of physical strength." Wen Xian then continued, "But compared to yourself, your sword will probably collapse before you do."
Mamiya looked at the sword in his hand.
In the fierce fight just now, the blade of the sword had been dented.
But the Vairocana in Wenxian's hand was intact.