I formed the strongest swordsman group.

Chapter 863: The [Tian Numa Spear] of the Punishment Party! [5100]

  "What's wrong? Why did you stop? Didn't you say time is running out?"

"Oh no! An unknown force appears ahead!"

"What did you say? Are they the enemy?!"

"It doesn't seem to be...Ah! It's Mr. Takasugi!"

"Mr. Takasugi is leading the special forces to meet us!"

"Really? That's great!"

“Wow… I’m saved… I’m saved…”

……

Suddenly, thunderous cheers spread out.

"Mr. Takasugi is here, and the special forces are here" - for the Choshu soldiers who had just experienced an epic defeat, this was long-awaited good news, which slightly dispelled the gloom in their hearts.

Although it is still a long distance from home, with the protection of the special forces team, those villains will surely not dare to act rashly!

The Kiheitai - an independent armed force formed by Takasugi Shinsaku, with a total strength of nearly two thousand.

Like the Shinsengumi, the Kiheitai also adopted a recruitment system of "regardless of background, the most capable will be promoted", so it attracted many middle and lower-level samurai, ronin and civilians to join.

As Takasugi Shinsaku gradually realized the powerful strength of the Western powers, he slowly changed from a radical who was "anti-Western" to a moderate like Katsura Kogoro.

In order to enhance the combat capability of the Kiheitai and make it a powerful force capable of competing head-on with Western armies, he vigorously introduced advanced Western firearms and tactics, and ultimately succeeded in making the Kiheitai become the well-deserved "strongest army in Choshu."

Funny enough, because of the discord with Kusaka Genzui, this "strongest army in Choshu" and Takasugi Shinsaku himself did not participate in this Eastern Expedition.

In this way, the Kiheitai was able to preserve its strength and became the last organized and combat-capable force left in the Choshu domain.

Katsura Kogoro dismounted and took two steps at a time to meet Takasugi Shinsaku.

Looking at the neatly-organized special forces team behind the enemy, he suddenly felt at ease, and his facial lines relaxed, looking as if relieved from a heavy burden.

Swords, spears, muskets, chain mail, and war horses are all available.

Anyone who sees the weapons and military appearance of the special forces team will either praise them or gasp.

Katsura Kogoro was feeling happy, but...when he saw the man standing next to Takasugi Shinsaku, his face suddenly fell.

"Mr. Gui, it is a great honor that you are back alive."

Shuten-doji said this with a peaceful smile.

Katsura Kogoro blinked in confusion, then turned his head and looked at Takasugi Shinsaku as if asking, "Why is this guy here?"

Takasugi Shinsaku shrugged his shoulders, a bitter look appeared on his face, and he replied silently with his eyes: This guy insisted on following me, and I really can't do anything about him.

"...Shuten-douji, thanks to you, I am alive again."

Facing Shuten-doji's enthusiastic greeting, Katsura Kogoro responded indifferently, then turned to Takasugi Shinsaku and said:

"Takasugi, thank you for coming. You really helped a lot."

"Kai, we are both Choshu patriots, so please don't say such polite words."

We are both Choshu patriots - upon hearing these words, a strange look immediately flashed in Katsura Kogoro's eyes.

Before the Eastern Expedition, Takasugi Shinsaku's words "Let Kusaka Genzui die" still echo in Katsura Kogoro's ears.

Despite his mixed emotions, he couldn't blame Takasugi Shinsaku.

After all... he had seriously considered killing Kusaka Genzui.

If Kusaka Genzui had not chosen to die on the battlefield, Katsura Kogoro really didn't know how he would get along with this former classmate in the future.

Therefore, he had no valid grounds to blame Takasugi Shinsaku for his ruthlessness.

At this time, Takasugi Shinsaku's praise brought him back to reality:

"Gui, you did a great job. Thanks to you, many people were able to save their lives and return home."

  Hearing this, Katsura Kogoro gave a bitter smile and said self-deprecatingly:

"Who called me 'Runaway Kogoro'?"

"I don't have any other skills, but I'm an excellent runner."

"After the 'August 18th Coup' and the 'Ikedaya Incident', this is my third successful escape from the battlefield."

  Takasugi Shinsaku retorted unhappily:

"What nonsense! Another way to say 'good at escaping' is 'good at preserving one's strength'."

  At this point, he changed the subject:

"I know that you will definitely abandon a large amount of baggage in order to escape the enemy's pursuit, so I specially brought a batch of food and grass here."

"Now that you have my special forces to protect you, the vassal states along the way will definitely not dare to attack you again."

"So you guys should take a break now and fill your stomach first."

Katsura Kogoro nodded vigorously.

"Well, that's what I meant."

At this moment, a helpless voice suddenly interrupted:

"Hey, hey, hey, don't ignore me."

  Shuten-doji spread his hands and sighed in a mock manner:

"I know I'm unpopular, but I still feel hurt by this kind of 'treating me like air'."

Katsura Kogoro and Takasugi Shinsaku both turned their heads and cast cold glances at Shuten-doji.

Katsura Kogoro dislikes Shuten-doji, and neither does Takasugi Shinsaku.

In fact, Shuten-doji didn't care about their indifference at all.

  Even though he was being ignored, he continued to talk:

"Mr. Gui, to be honest, I came here this time because I have an important matter to discuss with you."

  Before Shuten-doji could finish, Katsura Kogoro interrupted him coldly:

"If you have anything to say, let's talk about it during dinner."

……

……

"Woo woo... finally I don't have to chew on tree bark anymore..."

"Don't grab! Don't grab! There are plenty of rice balls!"

"Hey! Stop pushing! Those who loot will not get any food!"

“I’m finally alive…!”

"I'd rather be a vagrant for the rest of my life than go to war!"

……

Under the leadership of the Special Forces, rice balls were distributed in an orderly manner to all soldiers.

They had already been tortured beyond recognition by hunger.

After receiving the rice ball, he no longer cared about his image or the risk of choking, and hurriedly stuffed it into his mouth, fearing that others would snatch it away.

While all the soldiers were feasting, Katsura Kogoro, Takasugi Shinsaku and Shuten Doji gathered together under a big tree in a remote location.

The three of them sat in the shape of a Chinese character "品".

Looking at Shuten-doji who was so close to him, Katsura Kogoro couldn't help feeling depressed.

To be honest, if it weren't for the situation, he really didn't want to have any intersection with the Fazhu Party.

Firstly, he really could not agree with the unscrupulous and cruel style of the Fazhi Party, which treated human life as worthless. It was too brutal.

Secondly, the Fazhu Party is too mysterious, so mysterious that people just want to stay away from it.

He has been in contact with the Fazhu Party for more than a year.

But for all this time, he had only seen Shuten Doji among the three major cadres of the Fazhu Party.

Katsura Kogoro had never even seen the other two great cadres who were as famous as Shuten Douji - Otakemaru and Tamamonomae - and their leader Yamata-no-Orochi, and he didn't even know their gender or age.

In addition, the organizational goals of the Fazhu Party are also unclear.

Katsura Kogoro still doesn't know why the Fazhu Party is fighting and killing and running around.

The only thing he could be sure of at the moment was that the Hoshin Party was extremely hostile to the shogunate and regarded overthrowing the shogunate as their own responsibility.

In terms of "overthrowing the Edo Shogunate", Choshu and the Houzaitang Party do have the same demands and very broad prospects for cooperation.

However... although it is just a personal intuition, Katsura Kogoro always believes that behind the Hozu Party's efforts to overthrow the shogunate, there is a... more ambitious goal!

He once asked Shuten-doji directly what the organizational goal of their Dharma-killing Party was.

  At that time: Shuten-doji smiled mysteriously and said faintly:

"Mr. Katsura, now is not the right time to confess to you. If I rashly tell you the ultimate goal of our Fazhu Party, I am afraid it will scare you. All I can tell you now is that we hate the shogunate to the bone, and we will do whatever it takes to destroy the Edo shogunate."

In short, for the reasons mentioned above, Katsura Kogoro always holds an ambiguous attitude towards the Fazhu Party, that is, "a bad woman and a lazy man" - neither accepting it frankly nor clearly rejecting it.

Shuten-doji and others didn't mind Katsura Kogoro's attitude at all.

Not only did he wait leisurely for Katsura Kogoro to change his mind, but he also sent Prajna to serve as his personal bodyguard.

"By the way, where is Prajna?"

  After the three of them gathered, Shuten-doji did not rush to talk about the main topic, but first cast a confused look at Katsura Kogoro:

"Mr. Gui, why didn't you see Prajna? Isn't he with you?"

  Katsura Kogoro replied calmly:

"When I was busy organizing the 'Arashiyama Defense Line', he suddenly ran away, saying he was going to meet an old friend."

"Old friend?"

Shuten-doji raised his eyebrows, then seemed to realize something and smiled helplessly. "Is that so... Then I probably know where he went..."

Katsura Kogoro really dislikes Prajna.

Therefore, he doesn't care what Prajna is like.

He just wanted to talk about business now.

  So he got straight to the point:

"Shuten-doji, what exactly is this 'important matter' that you just mentioned that you wanted to discuss with us?"

After hearing this, Shuten-doji tried to calm down his sadness caused by Prajna's disappearance.

"Mr. Gui, don't be so cold."

As he spoke, he curled up the corners of his mouth, showing a playful smile.

"It's not nice to treat the only companion who can lend you a helping hand like this."

"Now that things have come to this, I will make it clear - you Changzhou are now at your wits' end, aren't you?"

As soon as these words were spoken, Katsura Kogoro and Takasugi Shinsaku both looked unhappy.

Although both of them had ferocious expressions as if they wanted to knock Shuten-doji to the ground immediately, they remained silent and did not take any action, let alone refute each other.

  Seeing this, Shuten-doji nodded slightly:

"very good!"

"It seems that you have a clear understanding of the current predicament facing Changzhou."

"This way, I can continue the topic."

"You were defeated miserably in this Eastern Expedition."

"There were heavy casualties and a complete loss of prestige."

"Although Tokugawa Iemochi was not as wise and powerful as Emperor Gaozu of Han or Emperor Taizong of Tang, he was definitely not a foolish and weak ruler."

"At least he certainly understands the principle of 'pursuing victory'."

"Since the 'August 18th Coup', the shogunate and its allies have been preparing for the 'Choshu Expedition', accumulating money and food, and training the army."

"The enemy's westward expedition is still in the making, but you launched an eastward expedition that started off well but ended badly, sending away a large number of troops for nothing and causing your own national strength to plummet to the bottom."

"Do you think Tokugawa Iemochi will let go of this precious opportunity?"

"I dare to assert that by the end of this year at the earliest, or by the beginning of next year at the latest, the shogunate will launch an unprecedented westward expedition and wipe out Choshu in one fell swoop!"

"Even if we recruit soldiers immediately, we won't be able to train any troops in such a short time."

"In your current state, are you able to resist the Shogunate's next invasion?"

"The Shinsengumi alone will overwhelm you."

"Not to mention the powerful Aizu and Satsuma armies?"

"So, the only ones you can rely on now are us!"

Having said this, Shuten-doji poked his chest with his hand and suddenly raised his voice.

"Your only way out now is to put aside all your concerns and fully cooperate with us!"

"In this way, you will be able to reverse the current predicament in one fell swoop!"

After hearing this, Katsura Kogoro couldn't help but frown.

As soon as the other party finished speaking, he said unceremoniously:

"As long as we fully cooperate with you, we will be able to reverse the current predicament?"

"Excuse me, but what gives you the right to be so confident?"

"Can you, the Fazhu Party, help us in Choshu to stop the shogunate's westward expeditionary army?"

"Or do you have any tricks?"

To be honest, what Shuten-doji just told was too mysterious.

Katsura Kogoro almost thought he was listening to the nonsense of a profiteer selling toad oil.

【Note: Toad oil: A Japanese folk legend. There is a special toad that is not only ugly in appearance, but also has several extra legs. When people catch it, they put it in front of a mirror or in a glass box. When it sees its own ugly appearance, it can't help but scare oil all over its body. This oil is said to be a precious medicinal material for treating burns and scalds. There are often fraudulent brands that claim that the potion they sell is toad oil.】

Facing Katsura Kogoro's question, Shuten-doji had anticipated it and answered calmly and slowly:

"Yes, Mr. Gui, you are right."

"We do have a brilliant plan, and it is a plan that is powerful enough to overthrow the shogunate and create history."

"We have come up with a catchy code name for this - 'Amano Spear'!"

Amanuma Spear - the spear used to create the first earth in Japanese mythology, also known as "Ama-no-Jong-Spear" or "Ama-Jong-Spear".

According to the records of Kojiki, the two pillar gods Izanagi and Izanami were ordered by the god of the north to repair the drifting land of Gushen and gave the Amano spear.

Then Izanagi and Izanami stood on the Sky Floating Bridge and used the Amanuma Spear to stir up the chaos of the world above. A drop of water dripping from the tip of the spear became the Goro Island.

Izanagi and Izanami got married on Uenogoro Island and gave birth to Ōhachima and the gods.

"We have been planning and preparing this plan for a long time."

"It is no exaggeration to say that all of our Fazhu Party's actions in recent years have basically been centered around the 'Amano Spear'."

"If our plan succeeds, we will be able to inflict heavy damage on the shogunate!"

"If we're lucky enough, we can even destroy the shogunate in one fell swoop!"

The more Katsura Kogoro listened, the harder it was for him to hide the look of astonishment on his face.

There was the "Amano Spear" and the destruction of the shogunate... The overwhelming amount of information made him stunned.

He was still digesting the information, but Takasugi Shinsaku beside him spoke first:

"'Amanuma Spear'... I don't know the details of your plan, but the name is pretty intimidating."

"Shuten-doji, I have to admit that what you just said does sound very attractive."

"As long as I can save Choshu and defeat the shogunate, I will do it even if it means making a deal with a demon."

"I'll be frank. We can work with you."

  At this point, he suddenly changed the subject:

"But before the two sides have a deeper exchange, I have a condition."

  Shuten-doji raised his chin:

"Please say."

Takasugi Shinsaku put on a stern face and said:

"We don't want to talk to you!"

"We need to talk directly to your leader... that is, the Yamata no Orochi!"

"I hate your hidden ways. It makes me feel like you have no sincerity."

"They keep saying they want to cooperate, but in the end they don't even dare to show their faces. Where in the world can we find such an ally?"

"Let Yamata no Orochi talk to us directly - only then will we be willing to continue the dialogue with you."

"If you can't even meet this request, then you should just go wherever is cooler."

As soon as Takasugi Shinsaku finished speaking, that playful look appeared on Shuten-doji's cheek again.

"Oh, what a coincidence."

"In fact, Lord Orochi has exactly that intention."

"He also felt that if they wanted to cooperate, it was necessary for him to meet with the two of you."

"Mr. Takasugi, Mr. Katsura, if you are willing, I can introduce you to them immediately after returning to Choshu."

  Katsura Kogoro raised his eyebrows when he heard this:

"Is the Yamata no Orochi in Choshu?"

Shuten-doji nodded:

"Yes, Lord Orochi went to Choshu specially for the purpose of meeting him. By the way, Otakemaru and Tamamonomae were also traveling with him."

Otakemaru and Tamamonomae also came...After learning this, Takasugi Shinsaku and Katsura Kogoro both looked solemn.

Apart from the Yamata-no-Orochi, the person Katsura Kogoro most wants to see is Otakemaru.

Although he disliked Prajna very much, Katsura Kogoro had to admit that this guy's skills were indeed outstanding and incredibly powerful.

Prajna once told him that in terms of personal strength alone, he was only the third in the Dharma-killing Party, and those ahead of him were Otakemaru and Shuten-doji.

Therefore, Katsura Kogoro was very curious about Otakemaru.

  What kind of extraordinary man could defeat Shuten Douji and Prajna and become the undisputed strongest fighter in the Dharma-Slaying Party?

Takasugi Shinsaku and Katsura Kogoro looked at each other - they both saw the same determination on each other's faces.

"……it is good!"

Katsura Kogoro turned his head to look at Shuten-doji and said seriously.

"Then I'll have to trouble you to introduce him to us!"

  *******

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Asking for a monthly ticket! Please vote for recommendation! (Leopard head crying.jpg)

PS: Yamata no Orochi, Otakemaru and Tamamonomae are finally going to make their official debut!

I found that many book friends confused the positions of Yamata no Orochi and Otakemaru. Yamata no Orochi is the leader of the Dharma-Trump Party, and Otakemaru is the strongest fighter of the Dharma-Trump Party. They are not the same person.

(End of this chapter)