Lu Mingfei, who had read Dragon Clan before slaying the dragon

The most famous and highest-ranking "Setsuna" in history was possessed by Viscount Charlotte, a former high-ranking member of the Secret Party. This European dragon slayer was renowned for his "Silver Wings," meaning that when he wielded his dual pistols, bullets would be expelled from the barrels, and a silver barrage would instantly unfold around him like wings. Silver Wing Charlotte was Ange's teacher, and at his peak, he had reached the eighth level of Setsuna, boasting a speed of 256 times greater than the speed of the Seventh Order.

And sixty-two years ago, when Ange left Japan, Inuyama He climbed to the seventh level of Setsuna and used a 128-fold Iai Slash, almost sweeping all the eight families of Snake at that time, but he still could not break Ange's defense.

Ange gently tossed Hongxue Samamonji up. This was how he had provoked Inuyama He sixty-two years ago, and he said contemptuously, "You can sneak attack me anytime. Anyway, a loser like you wouldn't have the courage to draw his sword even when the knife is about to fall."

Is that so, teacher? In your eyes, have I always been the loser I was sixty years ago?

Inuyama He took a deep breath, and then exhaled the haze that had accumulated in his chest for sixty years!

The seventh level "Moment", he actually started from the seventh level, the murderous intent that Inuyama He burst out in an instant was unprecedented!

One hundred and twenty-eight times faster slash!

From visualizing, breathing to blood vibration, sword sheathing... the complete seven steps of Iai were completed in an instant. Inuyama He's figure almost disappeared from the spot, and suddenly appeared behind Ange. Until his figure holding the sword appeared, the sound of swords clashing spread in the center of the dance floor on the first floor.

No one knew what happened in the field. Even the awakened sharpshooter Maki, she tried her best to open her eagle eyes but could not see the murderous intent in that moment. Inuyama He's swift slash was unstoppable among the Sheqi Eight Family.

But this obviously did not pose a fatal threat to Ange, because his figure was still standing in the same place, with Hongxue Samamonji carried on his left shoulder, and only Ichimonji Norimune stood in front of him, looking normal and leisurely, as if he had not just taken on a fatal move, but was attacked by a child.

Ange turned around and swung his sword, and Ichimonji Norimune transformed into the most severe teaching stick in the world and lashed it fiercely at Inuyama He. Inuyama He raised Onimaru Kuninaga to resist, but was shocked by the huge force and could not help but retreat.

"Is that all, Aha? Sixty-two years have passed, and your Setsuna is still stuck at the seventh level." Ange frowned and scolded, showing no mercy. "Is your Iai only at this level? With such a fast blade, it would be difficult to cut an old lady, right? Why don't you just stay as a pimp? The Snake Eight Clan are really losing talent. They actually let a loser like you become the strongest swordsman."

Inuyama He retreated to the corner of the wall, with no way out behind him. He leaned his back against the wall, his face as gloomy as water, and imagined in his mind a sharp sword that could cut through Ange's defense.

For this sword, he practiced hard for sixty-two years. Sixty-two years of time and billions of swings were concentrated on the blade of this sword. Even a mountain in front of him would be cut in half... He had reasons to defeat Ange. He gambled his entire life just to defeat this man. If he failed, his sixty-two years of life would become meaningless!

Look, breathe in and out, cut with the carp's mouth, pull out, and cut off!

The ultimate Iai! Eighth-order instant! Two hundred and fifty-six times the speed of a slash!

Inuyama He's figure disappeared again, and when he reappeared, he was blocked in front of Ange. Although he had clearly broken through the peak of the moment, this swift Iai move could not even complete the blood vibration step because Ange blocked his blade.

Ichimonji Norimune struck Onimaru Kunitsuna's midsection fiercely, which was the center of a sword's blade, the "eye" for defeating the enemy in a sword duel.

Even with Inuyama He's sword speed being 256 times faster than his own, Ange could still accurately find his weakest spot, and with a casual swing of his sword, he defeated the seemingly flawless swift slash. Moreover, Ange was clearly holding the sword with both hands, but Hongxue Sawamonji had been carrying it on his shoulder, tossing it up and down from time to time. Facing the all-out decisive battle of the strongest swordsman of the Eight Snake Families, he was as relaxed as strolling in the garden.

No wonder he's been a nightmare for Inuyama He for sixty-two years. Does a man like him really have weaknesses? What kind of strength could defeat such a man?

No one could see clearly how their arms were swinging. The swords they swung turned into a series of afterimages. The sword lights and sword shadows rolled up the gold powder on the ground. Only in the gaps where the gold powder was cut could the trajectories of their swords be seen. The sword lights almost filled all the space around the two people.

The air was cut apart at a very fast speed, and the sound of breaking through the air accumulated layer by layer, deafening. The knife shadows had turned into an overwhelming wave, surging and rolling, like a rainstorm pouring down.

It was almost no longer a battlefield for humans, but a battle between the warlike Yama and the warriors and the Kingdom of Tigers and the Kingdom of Yakshas, ​​who fed on ferocity and competed for the pinnacle of violence.

"Oh my, is that the eighth-level Setsuna? That loser from the Inuyama family actually used the eighth-level Setsuna?"

"So what if you're only at the eighth level? Ah He, you're really too slow. You're so old, with one foot in the coffin, and you're only at the eighth level? Have you only been enjoying yourself with your goddaughter for the past 62 years? Your swordsmanship has become useless!"

"How pathetic, Aha. You've always targeted me, lived in my shadow, felt yourself in dire straits at every turn... Is this the extent of the outcome? Is this the extent of the outcome?!"

They are both teacher and student, but unlike the satisfaction and encouragement he showed when fighting against Lu Mingfei, Angé does not seem to be proud of Inuyama He at all. Instead, he speaks harshly and mocks him.

It seems that no matter how high Inuyama He's Iaijutsu skills are, or how sharp his swordsmanship is, if he doesn't break Ange's sword light once, in Ange's eyes, this student will always be a waste.

Inuyama He had already swung out hundreds or thousands of swords under the blessing of the eighth-level moment. He was a little numb from swinging the sword, but he was still suppressed by Angé and could not make any progress... Perhaps it was not only the hand that swung the sword, but also his brain that began to go numb.

Along with Ange's brisk knife swings and harsh taunts, the feeling of humiliation came like a tide, suffocating.

……

1945 was the year when Japan was defeated in the war, and it was also the year of the most fatal defeat for the Inuyama family. After the emperor announced unconditional surrender, the US military occupied Japan, and the Inuyama family was pushed out as a scapegoat by the Yaki family and suffered a near-destructive blow.

The streets after the war were covered in mud, and the uncleaned alleys were in ruins. American military jeeps and pickup trucks sped past, and the accumulated water and mud on the ground splashed high onto the kimonos and paper umbrellas of the pedestrians.

The American soldiers laughed loudly in the back seat of the car and shouted in incomprehensible English. If they saw a woman or girl they liked on the street, they would kidnap her without restraint and walk away amid the angry gazes of others who dared not speak out and the screams of women who resisted.

The next year, Inuyama He was still an eighteen-year-old boy, running back and forth on the streets wearing the Inuyama family's kimono. The accumulated water on the roadside would splash his wooden clogs and white socks, and the puddles filled with cherry blossom petals would always reflect the boy's hurried and fleeting figure.

He traveled between Tokyo and Yokohama every day. Most of the ports in Tokyo Bay were occupied by powerful families. He would get up early every day and go all the way to the port in Kanagawa Prefecture. He would gaze at the steel warships coming from the United States from afar, wave his hand and introduce himself loudly, saying that he was the current head of the Inuyama family and had beautiful women under his command.

Inuyama He has been living in such a busy life for almost a whole year.

This is the business that has been passed down from generation to generation in the Inuyama family. To put it bluntly, it is a pimp or a mama-san. Inuyama He is the last man left in the Inuyama family. Even if he runs his legs off and shouts his throat out, he cannot see the Inuyama family go to decline in his hands.

Inuyama He failed to attract any business that day. The number of warships passing through Kanagawa Prefecture was getting smaller and smaller, but he did not lose heart. Instead, he prepared to try his luck in Tokyo Bay.

There was no territory left belonging to the Inuyama family in Tokyo Bay. Those families who had tried to deprive the Inuyama family of their power saw the eighteen-year-old Inuyama He and wanted to drive him away as if he were a dog with the plague.

Chapter 266: Double the Speed ​​Slash! Congratulations from the Inuyama Family!

"You have no right to expel me. This is supposed to be the Inuyama family's territory, and all of this is the Inuyama family's business. I am He from the Inuyama family, and you have no right to expel a man from the Inuyama family!"

The eighteen-year-old boy shouted stubbornly amidst the beatings and insults. He was thrown into the mud, the sleeves of his kimono were torn to pieces, and dead and smelly fish were thrown at him. The sharp sarcasm pierced the boy's self-esteem like sharp knives.

The fight was interrupted by a loud whistle. Even in Tokyo Bay, Japan's largest port, there were few whistles as deafening as this one. It was like the horn of the emperor personally leading the army, full of majesty.

The boy from the Inuyama family was thrown aside, and everyone turned their heads to look towards the sea level at the same time.

Gasps and discussions rang out one after another, and Inuyama He, who was lying in the mud pit, struggled to raise his head.

In his vision blurred by mud and water, a white battleship was coming from the end of the sea. When he got closer, he found that the ship was incredibly huge. It was docked in the harbor, blocking out the sun and the sky. Its huge shadow covered the entire crowd. Its black gun turret was like a giant's arm. Standing on it were American sailors in neat white uniforms, looking down from above, with the pride of the victor on their faces.

The battleship was called the USS Iowa.

A senior American naval officer with a white military cap tucked under his arm walked down the gangway. He was tall and handsome, and looked very heroic. The crowd swarmed over to greet him with flattery, and introduced the youngest and best-looking girls in their families in broken English.

The American naval officer glanced at the two Inuyama Hes sitting in the corner. He pushed through the crowd and walked straight to Inuyama Hes. He glanced at the tattoo exposed under Inuyama Hes torn sleeves and asked calmly, "Is this the child of the Inuyama family?"

Inuyama He looked up at the man who looked as majestic as a general. He didn't know where he got the courage from. He held his head high, his muddy face full of stubbornness, and said in a persistent tone: "He is a man from the Inuyama family!"

"A man?" the American naval officer scoffed. "I'm a half-blood from America. Tell your parents that the secret party's envoys have arrived."

"I am the only adult in the Inuyama family." Inuyama He said, "My name is Inuyama He, and I represent the Inuyama family."

"Inuyama He, huh?" The officer leaned forward, looked into his clear eyes, and then straightened up. "My name is Hilbert Jean Ange. The Inuyama family can choose: peace or dignity."

You can only choose one between peace and dignity: either surrender and survive, or dignity and die with it... What an arrogant self-introduction, thought the boy who was only eighteen years old at the time.

Inuyama He later learned that this man named Hilbert Jean Ange was a staff officer of the U.S. Navy, serving as a lieutenant colonel. He was also a mixed-race American, the leader of a mixed-race organization called the Secret Party.

Inuyama He became Ange's disciple and gained strength and power, but he also suffered endless humiliation from then on. However, all this was voluntary. He could give everything for the rise of the Inuyama family, including his life and even his dignity.

"Is that all?"

"Too slow, Ha! Is this your full strength? Is this all you can do?"

"Aha, why don't you try to chop down the old lady crossing the street? Is a loser like you the only man left in the Inuyama family?"

Time and again, insulting words shot at him like sharp arrows, and he was beaten with wooden sticks or bamboo swords. Inuyama He roared and fought back again and again, and was knocked to the ground again and again. His body was covered with bruises, and his self-esteem was also bruised. Ange stepped on his chest with his shiny leather boots, as if crushing Inuyama He's self-esteem as the last man in the Inuyama family.

The Inuyama family was revived as they wished, and even became stronger than at their peak. Sixty percent of the sex industry in Japan was controlled by the Inuyama family. Those families that had taken advantage of the family's misfortune to divide its power fled in panic and fell apart.

Inuyama Kazuya became the first director of the Japanese branch. His power in the Sheqihachi family even surpassed that of the head of the family. He had the unique right to speak in the Sheqihachi family, but in front of Ange, he had to choose every word he said carefully, for fear of being met with a stinging sarcasm or a vicious beating.

Inuyama He used to have nothing but dignity, but now Inuyama He has lost only his dignity. It seems that he has everything except dignity, but it seems that he has lost the only thing he has... The people of Sheqibajia implied that he was a dog of Ange, this weak waste borrowed strength from the American half-breeds and acted arrogantly in front of his compatriots.

Inuyama Heya feels that he is just a dog of Ange. This is a choice he made himself, because he has no choice between keeping his dignity and destroying the Inuyama family together with him and abandoning his self-esteem to let his family rise.

Whenever Ange stepped on him and his eyes were level with the ground, he would think of himself being pushed into the mud by a group of people. He remembered every face clearly, so ugly that they looked like the bull-headed and horse-faced people released from hell. They also stepped on Inuyama He's head, snatched the territory belonging to the Inuyama family, and tore the women's kimonos.

If the women dared to resist, they would be slapped hard, and any cry for mercy would only arouse the men's animal desires... until the men put their clothes back on, spitted and left, and the women lay on the ground, their fair skin covered with red marks, their eyes staring at the sky empty and numb, their tears almost dried up... Inuyama He struggled and staggered to their side with his bruised body, and covered the naked women with his muddy kimono.

"Ahe, life is like this. When you choose something, you have to give up something else." Angers words from sixty-five years ago echoed in his ears. "Such a tragedy will never happen again. Look how happily those women are laughing now. Ahe, why aren't you laughing? You know, Ahe, when you cry you look uglier than a woman..."

Something like that will never happen again, but my dignity has been thrown away forever... Teacher, do you know that I was angry when those people stepped on me, but I was sad when you stepped on me... Something like that will never happen again, but I will never be able to get my dignity back... Teacher, do you know that you stepped on the last man of the Inuyama family and deprived him of the only dignity he had left in his life!

As I recall, Inuyama He was knocked down by Ange with a wooden sword and stepped on... That year, he was eighteen years old and Ange was sixty-eight years old.

Now, Inuyama He was forced to retreat step by step by Ange's long sword, with no way to retreat... This year, he was eighty-three years old and Ange was one hundred and thirty-two years old.

"I am a man of the Inuyama family!" The roar drowned out the sound of the sword, "I am He of the Inuyama family!"

Spanning sixty-five years, the voices of the two Inuyama Hes overlapped, emitting a desperate roar.

A flash of sword light shone brightly from the scabbard, and the sword lights and sword shadows that were overlapping like a tsunami all over the field were shattered by this sword. The sharp arc of light started from the west wall and ended at the east wall, running across the entire Tamamonomae.

Ninth-level instant! Five hundred and twelve times the speed of slashing! !

This sword even surpasses the ultimate power of Iai!!!

No one had ever seen such a fast sword light. The blade exceeded the speed of sound, cutting through the air and producing sonic booms. The wind stirred up by the blade also turned into Inuyama He's blade.

No one had ever seen such a sharp murderous intent, so sharp that it even left a clear vertical wound on the chest of the strongest dragon slayer Ange, and blood burst out like thick fog.

Ange suddenly smiled, his figure disappeared from the spot, and appeared in front of Inuyama He at the moment he drew his sword. He flipped the Ichimonji in his right hand, and hit Inuyama He's waist with the back of the knife, making him stagger. He flipped the Hongxue Samamonji in his left hand, and hit Inuyama's face hard, knocking him to the ground.

It was as if he was hit on the head by a powerful hammer, the world was spinning, and Inuyama He collapsed face up on the floor, gazing at the dome of Tamamonomae. His vision was blurred, his head was dizzy, and his lungs seemed to have a hole in them, gasping for breath heavily.

A shiny black leather shoe appeared in Inuyama He's sight, the same one that Ange always stepped on his head in his memory. But this time, Inuyama He did not close his eyes tightly with a sad look on his face like he did more than 60 years ago. Instead, he waited very calmly, waiting for Ange to trample on his face with his dirty soles again.

However, to Inuyama He's surprise, the sole of the shoe did not fall down, but instead stepped over him. Angé crossed over Inuyama He's body and sat down on the steps of the dance floor next to him.

He waved to the girls watching the game on the third floor: "Give me my cigar, and a glass of brandy, with ice cubes in a separate ice bucket."

Miwako quickly picked up the cigar and matches and trotted downstairs. Maki was busy preparing the wine and ice cubes that Ange wanted. Nanako went to find bandages and medicine to stop the bleeding. The well-trained girls ran up and down between the third floor and the first floor of Tamamonomae.

"Why didn't you step on me this time? Do you think I'm old and want to give me some face in front of your goddaughter?" Inuyama He finally caught his breath and asked in a low voice.

"Ahe, I remember you have challenged me thousands of times. Have you ever hurt me?" Ange asked with a smile.

"No." Inuyama He said calmly, "One thousand and twenty-four times, my knife couldn't even touch the hem of your clothes. Every time, your teasing of me is no different from teasing a dog."

"You remember it so clearly. You must be really resentful towards me." Ange smiled and shook his head.

Miwako ran downstairs and handed the lit cigar to Ange's mouth. Ange naturally took it in his mouth, took a deep puff, and the mist he exhaled filled the air. He waved his hand, and Miwako bowed and stepped back.

"But you managed to cut me today, didn't you?" Ange lifted the lining of his suit, revealing the wound on his chest caused by Inuyama He. "You made me bleed and get hurt. If this is a test paper, then Ahe, you have passed."

Inuyama He was stunned: "What do you mean?"

"You are really stupid, Aha. You are the dumbest among my students, so it took you sixty-five years to pass." Ange said.

"I'm already immune to this level of humiliation," Inuyama He said hoarsely. "I've heard all kinds of awful things. Even today, someone from the Snake Eight Clan called me their dog. It doesn't matter anymore. I'll hear that kind of talk every day of my life."

"I have a student named Lu Mingfei. You should have seen him, right?" Angé glanced calmly at "Sakurano" who was "fainted" among the dancers not far away.

"Well... Kassel Academy's 'S' level, he should always get full marks, right?" Inuyama He smiled, but couldn't stop coughing, coughing up blood all over the floor.

Maki also ran over, and Ange took the brandy and ice cubes from her hand. He stuffed the ice cubes into Inuyama He's mouth, and poured the brandy over Inuyama He's forehead... not to humiliate him, but to pour it on the place where his cheekbone was broken by his slap.

Inuyama He grimaced in pain.

Nanako held the bandage and hesitated for a moment whether she should stop the bleeding of Ange first or bandage the head of the family. Ange waved his hand to indicate that he didn't need it, so Nanako wrapped the bandage on Inuyama He's forehead and waist.

"Yes, Lu Mingfei is my best student. I never need to push him, and he always does things to my satisfaction." Ange said, "Of course he is completely different from a fool like you, Ah He."

"Hahahaha... Of course it's different. It took me sixty-five years to barely pass. A fool like me certainly can't compare with the genius who always gets full marks. You should be very disappointed in me, right?" Inuyama He chewed on ice and spoke vaguely.

"Ah, have you ever thought about this? I'm your teacher." Ange leaned down and looked directly into Inuyama He's eyes. "A teacher may favor one child over another because of certain things, because you are all different, but a teacher will not give up on any child. A qualified educator has no right to be disappointed in his or her students."

Inuyama He was suddenly stunned.

"Geniuses have their own educational methods, and fools have their own educational methods. Maybe you don't have the extraordinary talent like Ming Fei and Caesar, but you also have something that they don't have."

"What?" Inuyama He asked subconsciously.

He regretted it after asking the question. He was unconsciously led by Ange's words. He would definitely be laughed at again, like a child who had not grown up.

But surprisingly, Ange did not mock him this time. Instead, he said seriously, "You are stubborn, Ahe. You are more stubborn than any other child I have ever met."

"Stubborn... is it a compliment?" Inuyama He was a little confused. As far as he could remember, this was the first time that Ange praised him... if stubborn here could be considered a compliment.

"Why not? You've always been a child who refused to give up. You fought against the villains who bullied your Inuyama family, fought against the US Navy, fought against fate, and finally fought against me, your teacher. You've lived in battle all your life. Stubbornness has shaped your life."

Ange's voice was as low as a tape.

"Remember what happened when we met when I first came to Japan?"

Chapter 267 The Thorn Birds, Like a Teacher and a Father

Inuyama He remained silent. He didn't dare look directly into Ange's eyes. This was a past event that he had deliberately hidden deep in his heart, and now it was mentioned again by Ange.

Over the years, he has been avoiding his terrible past, treating those tragic events as just a nightmare, which there is no need to recall. He treats Ange as an imaginary enemy and trains himself day and night, as if defeating Ange can say goodbye to his cowardly past self... But how can it be so easy to forget the past that he has personally experienced?

The biggest devil in a person's life is the unbearable self in his memory.

"Ahe, some problems cannot be solved by avoiding them. Have you ever thought about what you would become now if I showed up, helped you solve the Inuyama family's predicament, accepted you as my student, and praised and encouraged you like I praised Lu Mingfei and Caesar?" Ange asked.

Inuyama He was stunned, because in his memory, Ange was probably the biggest villain in the world. He couldn't imagine what his expression would be like when Ange praised him. Sixty-two years ago, the words echoing in his ears were all insults like "waste", "coward" and "idiot". If he heard Ange use the word "stubborn" to describe him once at that time... he would probably be moved to tears.

"Remember the story of 'The Thorn Birds' that I told you?" Ange said.

Inuyama He nodded subconsciously.