A person in Japan, a sword that soars to immortality.

Winter of 1866, Takasatsuba, west of Sanjo Bridge, Kyoto.

The Gaozha Field was actually a place for posting notices, and the content of the notices was usually about new policies issued by the imperial court, or explanations about certain people and forces.

Following the incident at the Forbidden Gate, the largest and most conspicuous notice board was created.

Passersby glanced at this largest official document and paid it little attention, but the people of Choshu Domain hated it to the core.

The content written above was a statement issued by the imperial court, designating the Choshu Domain as an "enemy of the court."

When someone inserts a token, someone else will pull it out; and when someone pulls it out, someone else will stop them.

Even this small piece of paper was considered a major battleground between the anti-shogunate faction and the pro-shogunate faction.

The place is small, yet it has created a legend.

Every day, the Shinsengumi samurai would fight against various anti-shogunate samurai here, and the exciting sword fights would be a feast for the eyes of passersby.

After all, true qi warriors are very rare, and life-or-death battles between true qi warriors are even rarer.

"Die!"

With a loud roar, Kondo Isami wielded his katana at an uncanny angle, imbued with a layer of dark gray sword energy, cleaving a true qi warrior from Satsuma in two.

"Damn the Shinsengumi, you'll regret what you've done today! We're retreating!"

With their strongest samurai killed, the remaining anti-shogunate members made a quick decision to save their lives for later.

After leaving behind a harsh remark, the group, as usual, disappeared into the street with practiced ease, as if they were greased.

"No need to chase them. They'll be back in a couple of days anyway."

Kondo Isami, tall but with an increasingly pale face, ordered the Shinsengumi to stop their pursuit of the samurai.

Hijikata Toshizo, who had been watching the battle from the sidelines, and Okita Souji and the others came over. They checked him to see if he was injured and congratulated him on his increasingly proficient mastery of the new true energy.

Transforming into true qi is the main training method currently practiced by the Shinsengumi.

The supreme swordsmanship training manual was personally taught to them by Tokugawa Yoshinobu, the newly appointed Shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate.

"Sigh, although I have mastered it, I always feel that when I use it, it is not as smooth as my previous true qi."

Kondo Isami raised his palm, watched as a mass of grayish-black energy condensed and then dissipated, and then said with emotion.

"Haha, but Kondo-nii, you still need to practice more. Okita has proven to us that the Transformation of Qi is really useful!"

Hijikata Toshizo patted Kondo Isami on the shoulder and laughed heartily.

A few days ago, a powerful Oni warrior from Satsuma came to remove the seal.

Kondo and the others tried to stop him, but were all defeated. In the end, it was Okita Souji, the strongest among them, who stepped in and, after a thrilling battle, managed to kill him.

"Is the True Qi of Qianyang truly inferior to the True Qi of Bianruo?"

Seeing everyone's admiring expressions, Kondo Isami remained silent.

In his heart, he still believed that the Qianyang True Qi he learned from Kenji was the most powerful sword true qi.

Even so, he couldn't openly express this idea, simply because the words "Sword Mastery" no longer held any credibility.

"Master Huameiwan, why haven't you appeared yet, even though Kenjiro's situation has already plummeted to rock bottom?"

Kondo Isami recalled that when he was studying in Edo, he had the privilege of witnessing Hōmei-maru unleash his full power.

That near-invincible posture, that violent power comparable to a hurricane, fascinated him and moved him.

Originally, the position of swordsmanship in the hearts of samurai should be like the snow on the top of Mount Fuji, never melting and always at the top.

But a war plunged Kennoyu into utter hell.

First, the Sword Guard was thrown into chaos, and Sakiri and the Sinful Clan, led by Hanamimaru, all disappeared. Then, the remaining members were all killed on the battlefield of the Second Choshu Campaign.

Upon hearing this news, the current head of the Edo-era swordsman, Shugen, instead of going to the Choshu Domain to seek revenge, turned into a coward and announced that he would go into seclusion.

If we're talking about who gets the biggest impact from this series of actions, it's undoubtedly the swordsmen in the first group.

The search for Master Taiyi has ended, and all of his former masters have also disappeared.

Just when the Shinsengumi were all in a state of confusion, a man named Yoshinobu Hitotsubashi, who was not yet the Shogun and was working at the Kyoto Imperial Palace, contacted them.

This man's status is extremely important in the Tokugawa family. It is said that if it weren't for the obstruction of Lady Tenshōin Atsuhime of Edo, Hitotsubashi Yoshinobu might have taken the position of shogun of Tokugawa Iemochi.

However, it doesn't matter now. Tokugawa Iemochi passed away unexpectedly, and Hitotsubashi Yoshinobu, who had the highest opinion of the candidate, naturally became the current Shogun.

Having accepted his goodwill, the many swordsmen of the Shinsengumi who had switched to cultivating true qi naturally found new objects of loyalty and became even more determined to support the shogunate.

As long as the shogunate stands, we will not disband. Anyone who dares to oppose the shogunate is an enemy of the Shinsengumi!

"So, these people are strong enough for you to practice on, right?"

Among the onlookers in the distance, Kenshin, wearing a straw hat, peered through the gaps at the Shinsengumi swordsmen inside the high ground.

Beside him floated the White Serpent Goddess Mi Niang, who was in an invisible state.

"It's barely acceptable. Why can't we just kill them? You know, we people of the Choshu Domain hate the Shinsengumi to death."

Kenshin gripped the hilt of his sword, narrowing his eyes slightly, while skillfully concealing the killing intent within him.

"It's not the right time yet; their full potential hasn't been realized."

Mi Niang replied calmly.

Why let them grow up unchecked?

He was a little confused by what Mi Niang was saying.

Even if they grow stronger, they will never be a match for us, so what is the point of this kind of free-range approach?

Furthermore, since absorbing Tokugawa Iemochi's soul, his cultivation speed has accelerated even further, making him arguably the strongest samurai in Sakura's history.

However, whenever Mi Niang was asked who was the strongest between him and that samurai named Taiichi, the other party would just smile and remain silent.

"You are not strong enough, and your strength is not growing fast enough."

As if guessing his thoughts, Mi Niang suddenly said something from the side.

"Am I not strong enough? Am I not fast enough? I've been slaughtering my way across the battlefield!"

Kenshin said defiantly.

"Hehe, compared to them, you are indeed very strong and your cultivation speed is also very fast, but compared to Taiyi back then, you are still far behind."

Mi Niang squinted, recalling Taiyi from the past.

From the very beginning of their acquaintance to the great battle on Paradise Island, in less than a year, he had already acquired strength comparable to a Nascent Soul cultivator. Who could be faster than him?

Looking at Kenshin below, who seemed completely unconvinced, she shook her head helplessly.

"So, you need to become stronger."

After saying that, he turned his gaze towards the Kyoto Imperial Palace, where there was still a soul that would be a great tonic for Kenshin.