The knife used by Mamiya is not some cheap item that can be bought on the market.
The sword in his hand now is named "Bushu Shigezumi Fujiwara Isichi". Although it is not a great sword powerful enough to make countless swordsmen crazy about it, its quality is far superior to those ordinary swords on the market. It is not a problem to sell it for hundreds of taels in the market.
However, this sword, which could be sold for hundreds of taels in the market, was now covered with scars, while the Vairocana sword used by Wen Xian was intact.
Mamiya was not surprised by this result.
Although he had never used Vairocana, he had seen Wen Xian wielding Vairocana countless times before.
Mamiya knew exactly how powerful Vairocana was. This was a sword that his grandfather, the sixth-generation head of the family, Yamada Asaemon, had forged using all his connections and spending nearly a thousand taels of gold. It was a sword that was both tough and sharp, and it was not something that the "Bushu Shigezumi Fujiwara Isichi" in his hand could compete with.
Mamiya, who had already expected that his knife must be covered with scars, glanced at the knife in his hand and then turned his attention back to Wen Xian.
——How should... I defeat him...
Mamiya's expression is now very solemn.
His expression was not solemn because of the damage to his eyes caused by his sword - but because the sword-drawing technique that he had placed high hopes on and that he was best at was easily blocked by Wen Xian.
"Your swordsmanship has become different from before." Wen Xian suddenly asked, "Did you add your own new understanding to the swordsmanship I taught you? Also, what's the matter with your weird breathing rhythm?"
As soon as Wen Xian finished asking this question, Mamiya responded - but not with words, but with actions.
He switched his stance to a lower right stance and rushed towards Wen Xian like a falling meteor.
"You don't want to answer..." Looking at Mamiya who was rushing towards him, Wen Xian calmly put his sword back on, "Forget it then."
In the basement, the sound of metal clashing could be heard again.
When the battle just started, Mamiya, knowing that this was going to be a fierce battle, directly used the Source Breathing, which he rarely used, to improve his concentration, and his chest rose and fell with a unique rhythm.
At this time, Mamiya changed his tactics - he now targeted Wenxian's legs as the main attack direction, trying to destroy his center of gravity by injuring his legs.
Whether it is hand-to-hand combat or sword fighting, "being able to stand firm" is everything.
If you can't even stand steadily, then forget about victory.
Mamiya's plan was well designed - but facing the attack from below, Wenxian still defended himself impeccably.
Seeing that the fierce attack on Wenxian's lower body was ineffective, Mamiya gritted his teeth, switched his knife stance back to the upper stance that could easily deliver a sharp blow, and tried to break Wenxian's defense with a fierce attack.
But the result was no different from the previous series of fights. His attacks were either blocked by Wen Xian or dodged.
While Wen Xian was defending, he was also like a poisonous snake, looking for and waiting for the moment to counterattack - just like now, when Mamiya took back the knife he had chopped down, his body accidentally revealed a flaw.
After noticing this flaw, Wen Xian's pupils immediately lit up, and he aimed at the flaw that Mamiya had accidentally revealed and stabbed it straight away.
Fortunately, Mamiya dodged to the left in time and successfully avoided the straight stab, but the tip of Vairocana's knife still picked off some flesh on his right shoulder.
Although this kind of injury is not fatal, it is still very painful. However, Mamiya looked calm, as if the injury was not inflicted on his own body. After avoiding the direct attack, he silently regrouped and continued to look for ways to defeat Wei Nian.
Mamiya kept switching between different tactics, trying to find Wenxian's weakness and defeat him.
However... no matter what tactics he switched to, he couldn't do anything to Wen Xian.
Whether it was attacking Wen Xian's lower body as the main direction, or breaking Wen Xian's defense with a frontal attack, no matter what kind of fighting method was used, none of them were effective. Until now, Mamiya had not been able to leave even a scar on Wen Xian's body. Instead, he had been injured in two places by Wen Xian.
Ah... No, it should be 3 times.
Just now, Wen Xian seized upon a flaw that Jianmiya accidentally revealed and slashed his chest fiercely, leaving another wound on Jianmiya's chest that, although not deep, still bleeds a lot.
"Ha...ha...ha...ha...ha..." Mamiya, clenching the knife tightly, faced Wenxian a few steps away while adjusting his breathing.
Wen Xian did not take advantage of the moment when Mamiya was adjusting his breathing to kill him - because he was also adjusting his breathing.
However, Wen Xian was not breathing heavily like Mamiya, it was just that the breath exhaled from his nose became a little more rapid.
——Why is it that my physical strength has not improved at all?
Mamiya thought bitterly in his heart.
He himself knew that his biggest weakness was that he did not have enough physical strength.
Mamiya has tried different methods to try to correct his weakness, but he doesn't know if it's because of his physique or some other reason, but Mamiya's physical strength seems to have reached its maximum a long time ago and can't be improved any further.
Looking at Mamiya who was now facing off against Fumihiro, Yoshitomo's face was now filled with anxiety.
Even someone who had no knowledge of swordsmanship could see how the battle was going—Mamiya was completely at a disadvantage.
None of Mamiya's previous series of attacks were effective. Mamiya's physical strength is obviously not as sufficient as Wenxian's, and the knife in his hand is also covered with scars. If they fight for a few more rounds, it might break.
Weak. Undoubtedly a weak position.
If we don't think of a solution quickly, we will definitely fail.
Yoshitomo's expression was extremely complicated at this moment. A bit of determination slowly emerged in his eyes. He raised his hand and placed it on the hilt of the sword at his left waist.
He no longer cared about what Mamiya had just told him, such as "he had to settle things with his father."
He had made up his mind: when the situation really came to a last resort, he would rush forward to lend a helping hand to his brother.
…
…
Even an outsider like Yoshitomo could see that Mamiya was at a disadvantage, let alone Mamiya himself.
Mamiya knew exactly what the condition of his body and his sword was.
——We have to... decide the winner as soon as possible.
Next, if he fails to win quickly, then what will await Mamiya will be either his body collapses or his sword breaks first.
His Source Breathing was far from being able to freely enter the state of no self like Genichi, so his strategy of relying on the "state of no self" to defeat Wen Xian was rejected by Mamiya at the very beginning of the battle.
It seems that Mamiya has already used all the tactics that could be effective.
All his life's learning and every sword skill he possessed could not hurt Wen Xian in the slightest.
At this moment... Mamiya only has one last trick left, which he has not used yet.
Mamiya took a deep breath.
——I can only use this trick...
Mamiya made a sword flower, then slowly put the sword back into the sheath with his backhand holding the sword, and slowly lowered the center of gravity of his body.
"Oh?" Wen Xian raised his eyebrows. With such a classic stance, how could he not see what move Mamiya was going to use? "Are you going to use the sword-drawing technique... You should have remembered how I blocked your sword-drawing slash just now?"
"You're actually using sword drawing techniques against me, who is the best at sword drawing techniques... You're quite courageous."
"Okay! Then I will... compete with you!"
After saying that, Wen Xian also put the Vairocana in his palm back into the sheath and lowered his body center of gravity.
The two men, only a few steps apart, adopted similar sword-drawing stances.
Yoshitomo was shocked as he watched the unprecedented sword-drawing duel happening right before his eyes.
When he saw that Yoshitomo was actually planning to fight him in the art of drawing swords, a hint of shock appeared on Mamiya's face, but this shock quickly dissipated due to Mamiya's high concentration of mental power.
Mamiya's left hand tightly grasped the scabbard near the guard, while his right hand lightly rested on the hilt of the sword. His eyes were fixed on Wenxian, who was standing in front of him like a mountain, maintaining a sword-drawing posture and remained motionless.
A few drops of cold sweat emerged from Mamiya's forehead and then slid down his cheeks.
——Can you... defeat Wen Xian?
Mamiya asked himself loudly in his heart.
Mamiya knew better than anyone how powerful Wenxian's sword-drawing skills were.
Because his sword-drawing skills were taught by Wen Xian personally.
Every move he made just now was unable to do anything to Wen Xian, and whether his own sword-drawing skills would be effective... Although he was reluctant to admit it, Mamiya still had to face this reality: he had no idea at all.
——We have no choice but to fight!
After suppressing the slight uneasiness in his eyes, Mamiya gritted his teeth and clenched his right hand on the hilt of the knife.
But at this moment——
(Don't be confused!)
Mamiya suddenly heard a loud shout in his head.
This sudden roar made Mamiya's expression freeze.
This voice... Mamiya is too familiar.
It was Wen Xian’s voice…
…
…
…
…
"Father, how can I use the sword-drawing technique with such great power like you?"
In the woods, Jiulang, whose voice became a little strange due to the voice changer, asked Wenxian in front of him.
"Nothing special, just practice hard. But if there is any other secret... it's probably to not be confused when you draw your sword."
"Don't be confused?"
"When swinging a sword, the most important thing to avoid is confusion. If you want to swing a powerful blow, you must exert all your strength in a straight line. The direction of the blade and the direction of the force when swinging down must be completely consistent."
After saying this, Wen Xian faced a huge tree in front of him, the trunk of which required an adult to hug.
"Once you are confused, your sword will move in the wrong direction and your power will dissipate. On the contrary - as long as you have no confusion in your heart when you swing the sword..."
clang!
The sound of a blade being unsheathed could be heard.
Wen Xian aimed at the tree in front of him and slashed it with his sword so fast that it was difficult for the human eye to catch it. After the tree made a series of "wailings", it slowly fell to the ground, and the broken ends were extremely neat.
"So, Jiulang, you must remember - no matter what time, don't be confused!"
…
…
…
…
The chest rose and fell in rhythm with the source's breathing, squeezing out the turbid air in the lungs one after another.
"Don't be confused... don't... be confused..."
Mamiya stammered and repeated what Wenxian had once taught him.
This sentence seemed to have some magical power. Every time it was repeated, the uneasiness in Mamiya's eyes would dissipate a little.
After only a moment, there was no more unnecessary emotion in Mamiya's expression and eyes, only calmness.
Wen Xian, who was confronting Mamiya, immediately noticed the abnormality of Mamiya at this time.
He first looked puzzled as he didn't understand why Mamiya had suddenly changed so much, and then his expression gradually became solemn, and he kept relaxing and tightening his right hand that was holding the hilt of the Vairocana sword.
He instinctively felt that the Mamiya in front of him could no longer be treated lightly.
Wen Xian now felt that every hair on his body stood up.
He smelled danger from Mamiya.
It was like facing some large ferocious beast.
But Wen Xian did not feel the slightest fear.
On the contrary - he now just felt eager to try.
He raised the thumb of his left hand, which was gripping the scabbard close to the hilt, and pressed against the hilt, pushing the blade of Vairocana more than an inch out of the scabbard.
At almost the same time, Mamiya used his left thumb to push the blade out of the sheath.
In the five years since leaving the Yamada Asaemon family, Mamiya has continued to add his own understanding to the swordsmanship he learned from Bunken. While improving most of the moves, he also added many new moves of his own.
For example, the trick he was about to use on Wen Xian.
Mamiya once used this move to cut down a swooping Feiyan. This feat made Mamiya decide on the name of his new sword style derived from the sword technique taught by Wenxian - Feiyan Zanshin-ryu!
As if the two had agreed on it in advance, Mamiya and Wenxian stomped their hind legs towards the ground at the same time!
The two rushed towards each other!
Both of them kept their center of gravity low and rushed towards each other at a speed as if they were teleporting!
6 steps!
5 steps!
4 steps!
3 steps!
The two had similar arm spans and the same blade length, and they entered each other's attack range almost at the same time!
clang!
The sounds of two swords being drawn were heard almost at the same time.
Because it was only a moment, Wen Xian did not see it - the moment when Mamiya drew his sword, a strange light flashed across Mamiya's eyes.
If Genichi was present, he would definitely be delighted to see the light in Mamiya's eyes - this is the gorgeous light that is unique to entering the "state of no self".
…
…
Two sword lights, one white and one purple, appeared.
Mamiya and Wenxian passed each other.
The two people who passed each other maintained their original positions .
No one moved.
Time seems to have stopped at this moment.
It was not until half a while later that someone finally broke the silence that seemed to have been cast under the magic of "time standing still".
“… Well done.”
The corners of Wen Xian's mouth curled up slightly.
"Defeated to... you... kid... cough! cough cough!"
A few mouthfuls of blood spurted out as Wen Xian coughed a few times.
A bloody line suddenly appeared from Wen Xian's left shoulder to his right rib, and then a cloud of blood mist spurted out from the wound.
“That move just now...is it a unique skill you created...?” Wen Xian, still with a smile on his face, turned his head and asked Mamiya.
At this time, Mamiya, who had slowly stood up, swung the knife, shaking off all the blood on the blade.
"Feiyan Zanshinliu
Secret
--moment."
"Setsuna... a nice name..."
Wen Xian withdrew his gaze from Jian Gong and cast his gaze on Vairocana in his palm.
He looked deeply at Vairocana with a complex and unpredictable look, then slowly put Vairocana back into the sheath.
"It should be very happy that you are its third owner... This way... I will have lived up to my father's trust in this sword..."
Wen Xian threw the Vairocana sword and scabbard behind him.
The knife drew a beautiful parabola high up and fell directly beside Mamiya.
Mamiya looked at Wen Xian in astonishment as he threw Vairocana to him. After throwing Vairocana to him, Wen Xian's body, which was not very tall but made Mamiya and the others feel like a huge mountain, fell heavily to the ground...
As he fell to the ground, Wen Xian used up his last bit of strength and said:
"Okay... come and take my head..."
Mamiya looked at Wen Xian who fell to the ground with a complicated expression.
Wen Xian fell to the ground, his chest still rising and falling slightly.
Mamiya held a knife and walked slowly to Wenxian's side.
Then... he raised the knife high...
…
…
The next morning,
In the Yamada Asaemon residence, in the room where the Buddhist shrine of Mamiya's mother is placed—
Mamiya, who had received simple treatment for the injuries on his body, knelt in front of his mother's Buddhist shrine.
On the tatami between him and the Buddhist shrine, the sword that Wenxian had given him last night was placed neatly - the family heirloom that had been passed down for two generations of their Yamada Asaemon family: Vairocana.
Mamiya sat for a long time in front of his mother's Buddhist shrine. When he entered the room, the light coming in through the window was still moonlight, but now the light coming in through the pager has turned into sunlight.
(Jiulang, you must remember: human life is not divided into noble and humble. Human life can never be measured by numbers. If you measure the value of human life by numbers, you will only become less and less human.)
His ears kept echoing with his mother's teachings to him.
Although my mother was the daughter of a samurai family, she did not have the idea that "no one other than a samurai is a human being."
Mamiya couldn't help but think: Perhaps it was because the education they received in their childhood was completely different that the ideological conflict between him and his father was so sharp.
The foreshadowing of his final battle with his father had been laid since he was a child...
Wow...
At this moment, the sliding paper door behind Mamiya was slowly opened, and the person who opened the door and entered was Yoshitomo.
"The servants in the house are so annoying." After Yoshitomo entered, he smiled bitterly at Mamiya. "Just now they kept asking me 'how did the master get injured', and I had to work hard to get rid of them all."
Mamiya slowly opened his eyes at this time: "...How is father?"
"The treatment is over." Yoshitomo knelt beside Mamiya, facing the shrine. "He survived, but because of the serious injuries, he will have to stay in bed for at least half a year. The doctor also said that this injury destroyed the vitality of my father's body. Even if the injury is healed, his strength will be greatly reduced."
"I see..." Mamiya said softly, "...Yoshitomo, I chopped our father into pieces like this, will you resent me?"
"Of course not." Yoshitomo sighed softly, "In fact, last night, I was already mentally prepared for my father to be killed by you, my brother..."
"I also want to thank you..."
"Thank you for saving my father's life..."
"Although my father did some really bad things... but... he is still my father, and our blood is thicker than water..."
As soon as Yoshitomo finished speaking, Mamiya slowly raised his right hand and gently stroked his left cheek, which was gently stroked by Fumiaki's rough hand when he just returned home yesterday.
Last night, facing Wen Xian who was still breathing his last breath, Mamiya raised his knife... but he couldn't chop him down.
Because when he raised the knife, Mamiya recalled the scene when Wen Xian touched his face when he returned home after 5 years...
Then, all the past events with Wen Xian flashed through Mamiya's mind...
"I can't escape the bondage of family affection..." As the Time Palace murmured, he put down the knife in his hand...
"...Where is Azhu's child?" Mamiya put down the hand that was gently stroking his left cheek and asked.
"She's sleeping soundly now." Yoshitomo smiled, "I haven't had a good night's sleep in a long time. I don't think she'll wake up for a while."
Last night, after successfully bringing Azhu out of the basement, Yoshitomo explained to Mamiya why Azhu was in good mental condition now : every time Wenxian took Azhu's gallbladder, he would first let Azhu drink a powerful drug to reduce the pain to a minimum.
When Azhu was regenerating his gallbladder, he had no feeling and did not feel any pain or itchiness.
A human gallbladder can actually be used for a long time, so Wen Xian only takes gallbladder from Azhu once every 5 days on average . Therefore, up to now, the number of times he has taken gallbladder from Azhu is not very many.
Due to all the reasons mentioned above, Azhu's mental state is relatively normal now, and he has not become mentally ill due to experiencing pain too frequently.
"Onii-sama," Yoshitomo suddenly asked, "When Atake wakes up, will you take her away directly?"
"Yes." Mamiya nodded. "If Azhu and I stay here for too long, it will be inconvenient for you to explain to the waiters at home, right?"
"And—I have a new big family now, too."
A smile appeared on Mamiya's slightly raised lips.
"If I leave them for too long, they'll get worried."
"Yoshitomo, what about you? What are your plans?"
"What can I plan?" Yoshitomo smiled and shrugged, "Of course I will stay here and prepare to inherit the name and become the eighth generation head of the Yamada Asaemon family in the future."
"Father will have to stay in bed for half a year anyway." Yoshitomo changed his tone to a half-joking one, "It will take another one or two years for him to fully recover."
"In a short period of time, I will be the one who calls the shots in this family, and my father will not be able to do anything to me. You don't have to worry about whether my father will be so angry that he will draw his sword and chop me because I let Ah Zhu go."
"...Then you can take this sword." Mamiya suddenly raised his hand and moved the Vairocana in front of Yoshitomo, "I am no longer a member of the Yamada Asaemon family. This sword should belong to you who is destined to inherit the position of head of the family in the future."
Yoshitomo lowered his eyes and glanced at Vairocana in front of him.
“…Onii-sama.”
Yoshitomo spoke seriously, enunciating each word.
"You have always been smarter than me. Don't you remember your grandfather's instructions about this knife, and don't you know what your father meant by entrusting this knife to you last night?"
"'Pass this knife down from generation to generation, and pass it down to the most outstanding person in each generation of the family' - this was my grandfather's instruction before he passed away."
Yoshitomo paused at this point.
"The following is my guess. I may be overthinking it, but I think my guess is not impossible..."
"I think... my father entrusted this sword to you... maybe he wanted to say 'I was wrong' in disguise for taking away your family name, Yamada Asaemon, in a fit of irritation five years ago..."
"In his heart, father must have always recognized that you are a member of our Yamada Asaemon family. That's why he followed grandpa's instructions and handed Vairocana to you, who in his eyes is the most outstanding among the younger generation of the family..."
"So - the one who should accept Vairocana is you, my brother..."
After saying this, Yoshitomo picked up the Vairocana, held it with both hands, and handed it to Mamiya with a smile.
"Besides, I have always recognized you as a member of our family in my heart."
"If I don't follow Grandpa's instructions and let you, the most outstanding one, hold this knife, I will feel guilty."
"Moreover, you are holding Vairocana. I believe that not only I, but even my mother will be happy to see this."
Hesitation appeared on Mamiya's face, and he looked at the knife that Yoshitomo handed over.
Then he looked at the Buddhist shrine next to it.
Finally - he stretched out his hand and grasped Vairocana firmly in his hand.