My Gang of Swordsmen

Chapter 449: Chapter 161: Fierce Battle with Chiba Eijiro! Copying the Talent [Gathering Spirit][7600]_2

Despite Aoto’s best efforts to raise his bamboo sword at maximum speed, he was still a beat too slow.

Bang!

The dull sound of bamboo sword clashing against armor echoed through the spacious dojo.

Chiba Eijiro’s bamboo sword struck Aoto for the first time.

If Chiba Eijiro were wielding a real sword... Aoto’s entire right arm might have already been severed at the root.

Watching the struck Aoto, Chokata and his group, standing by the edge of the dojo, couldn’t help but change their expressions slightly.

In an ordinary contest, Aoto, having been struck in the shoulder, would have already lost, and their duel could end here.

But the intense fight currently unfolding between Aoto and Chiba Eijiro wasn’t an ordinary contest.

This was a duel with the ultimate goal of forcing Aoto to release his "momentum" once again.

Thus, this duel had only two ending conditions.

Either Aoto would unconsciously release his "momentum" again.

Or the fight would continue until one of them ran out of stamina.

Despite the protective gear, after taking Chiba Eijiro’s powerful downward slash, Aoto’s right shoulder still felt a wave of pain that numbed his entire right arm.

Stimulated by the pain from his right shoulder, Aoto jumped back, putting distance between himself and Chiba Eijiro, while changing his sword-holding stance to the Kasumi Stance, pointing the sword tip straight at Chiba Eijiro’s chest.

He prepared to unleash his best move against Chiba Eijiro — the Unconscious Sword of the Natural Reasoning Heart Stream.

Kasumi Stance was Aoto’s most adept stance.

The Unconscious Sword of the Natural Reasoning Heart Stream was originally a thrusting skill performed from a Middle Stance, but Aoto was more accustomed to using his most skilled Kasumi Stance to perform the Unconscious Sword.

Holding his breath, Aoto unleashed the Unconscious Sword towards Chiba Eijiro.

This was Aoto’s most adept move with his most skilled stance — this move was essentially the most powerful secret move Aoto had mastered so far.

Yet Chiba Eijiro merely held his blade upright in front, effortlessly deflecting Aoto’s secret attack.

It didn’t hit him either... Aoto gritted his teeth, his bamboo sword which was deflected due to Chiba Eijiro’s defense, spun half a circle in mid-air, slicing an arc and fiercely sweeping towards Chiba Eijiro’s chest from a highly tricky angle.

This strike by Aoto was also made with all his strength.

The blade’s force intertwined like a fast-moving cloud, stirring up the air currents with a whoosh.

If Aoto’s previous Unconscious Sword was "strong in speed," then this diagonal slash was "strong in power."

However, whether "strong in speed" or "strong in power," neither managed to touch Chiba Eijiro.

Chiba Eijiro tilted his body, allowing Aoto’s bamboo sword to only brush past the air beside him.

Immediately following, an unexpected scene for Aoto unfolded in the next instant.

Chiba Eijiro surged forward with his left shoulder, using it as a weapon, striking Aoto’s body.

Aoto, caught off guard by Chiba Eijiro’s "Meat Bomb Impact," couldn’t defend or evade in time, and his chest made a close contact with Chiba Eijiro’s shoulder.

Bumped by Chiba Eijiro’s "Visual Impact," Aoto staggered back two steps, his balance disturbed.

Oh no — just as this thought emerged in Aoto’s mind, the scene confirming his exclamation unfolded before his eyes.

Seizing the moment when Aoto’s stance showed vulnerability due to his loss of balance, Chiba Eijiro launched his attack.

He executed the classic Beichen One-Sword Style tactic: Chopper.

Attacking the hand holding the sword... this was considered the most classic tactic of the Beichen One-Sword Style.

When your opponent aims for effective harm, they must target vital areas like your head, chest, or stomach, thus if you target their hand to chop, the path your sword needs to traverse will inherently be shorter than the opponent targeting your vital areas — this is the principle behind the Beichen One-Sword Style’s "Chopper tactic."

Chiba Eijiro attacked Aoto’s right wrist with a Middle Sword Stance, and Aoto narrowly retreated, deflecting the sword to the side.

Chiba Eijiro’s offensive did not relent; he raised his sword, taking an Upper Stance, Aoto’s form fully exposed within the circle of his sword.

Due to Chiba Eijiro’s fierce attack, Aoto struggled to stabilize his disturbed balance.

In such a condition, maneuvering to dodge felt overly taxing, thus Aoto chose to raise his sword to block.

As Chiba Eijiro showed the intent of slashing his bamboo sword downward, Aoto took a deep breath, plunged the sword tip sharply, opting for a Lower Sword Stance instead.

Woo!

Woo!

The sound of two swords swinging rose almost simultaneously.

Aoto and Chiba Eijiro slashed their respective swords in nearly the same instant.

Chiba Eijiro’s sword slashed from top to bottom.

Aoto’s sword slashed from bottom to top.

Their swords collided in mid-air, then passed each other.

Aoto’s upward strike successfully skewed Chiba Eijiro’s downward sword path, failing to hit Aoto’s body.

Yet in the next moment, Chiba Eijiro delivered a new strike.

He lunged forward, passing by Aoto, and in the instant they crossed, their bodies nearly fused together, Chiba Eijiro’s bamboo sword traced a heavy white arc as it swept across Aoto’s side abdomen.

Chiba Eijiro’s onslaught was still unfaltering!

In the fleeting moment of their passing Flowing Light, Chiba Yorizo pivoted fiercely on his left toe, spinning halfway around, then continued his momentum, swinging his sword with great force.