Chapter 4

After Liu Tianyin killed seven bandits, he wandered in the forest for three more days before finding a village. This village had hundreds of villagers and was considered a fairly large village during the Bakumatsu period. At the village entrance, there were a few militiamen guarding, likely to prevent bandits from raiding the village. Before entering the village, Liu Tianyin was questioned by these militiamen, but they probably saw that he was well-dressed and unlikely to be a bandit, so they eventually let him in. Liu Tianyin found this quite helpless. The katana in the hands of these militiamen were covered with bloodstains and notches, and the blades near the hilts were clearly not well-maintained. The bandits he had encountered earlier, though not particularly skilled, had much better weapons, which were free of rust and blood. Although the militiamen had a numerical advantage, their weapons were far inferior. If those bandits had invaded this village, the militiamen would have had to suffer at least two to three times the casualties to kill the bandits.

Liu Tianyin slowly strolled through the village. At this time, Japanese buildings were all wooden, giving them a unique charm. The streets were not very clean, but they were not dirty either; at least there was no waste or blood on the ground. After a while, Liu Tianyin saw a tavern. After some thought, he entered and ordered some wine, sitting down in the shop. Of course, Liu Tianyin wasn't there to drink. To be precise, he wasn't particularly fond of drinking but could hold his liquor well. The phrase "drinking without tasting" probably described him well.

In the tavern, people often discussed current events, and occasionally, representatives from various factions would meet. Keeping up with the events of the era was very important for Liu Tianyin. Another reason was to meet people and leave an impression, so that when he suddenly appeared as a skilled warrior, neither the government nor Kenshin would be wary of him, which would be detrimental to his future role in witnessing Kenshin's journey of redemption. Over the next three months, Liu Tianyin would visit this village every three to four days to purchase various items. While living in the small wooden house, he did not slack off in his training, practicing sword techniques every day.

In his spare time, Liu Tianyin also began learning a secondary skill, such as painting landscapes. During this period, he also learned how to forge weapons, but in just three months, he could only make short swords and kitchen knives. Forging samurai swords was still a long way off. One day, Liu Tianyin returned to the tavern.

"Hey, Mr. Tendou, you're here to buy wine again." The tavern owner greeted Liu Tianyin warmly and took out a jar of the wine he often bought.

During this time, Liu Tianyin had changed his name to Tendou Shinjin, a name that fit in with Japanese names to avoid unnecessary trouble. The name "Shinjin" came from his role as a seeker of the heart, a reminder to himself not to forget his true purpose. (From now on, he will be referred to as Shinjin.)

"Boss, has anything happened in the village recently?" Seeing the owner, Shinjin skillfully inquired about the current situation.

"Not much, nothing major has happened in the village these days. But I've heard that the number of bandits has increased recently. Mr. Tendou, you should be careful since you live outside the village." The tavern owner was well-informed, and Shinjin often obtained new information from him.

"Shinjin, there's another regular customer who buys the same wine as you." The tavern owner suddenly remembered something and said to Shinjin.

"Really? A regular customer who buys wine? What does he look like?" Shinjin was also curious about this person, as there were few people in this era who could afford to buy wine regularly.

"He's a very muscular man, almost a head taller than you. He wears a white cloak that reaches his calves, not much different from your attire, just a different color." The tavern owner enthusiastically described the man's appearance, not noticing that Liu Tianyin's expression was becoming increasingly strange.

'In this era, a man almost a head taller than me, muscular, wearing a white cloak that reaches his calves, and frequently buying a jar of wine. If he's not Seta Sōjirō, I'll drink the jar and die.' From the tavern owner's description, Shinjin immediately recognized who this person was. As one of the most distinctive characters in the Rurouni Kenshin world and a frequent target for Shinjin's training, he was very familiar with him.

"It's getting late, I'll take my leave, boss. If I don't leave soon, I won't make it home before dark." Shinjin bowed to the tavern owner and left the tavern, heading towards the village exit. Suddenly, he heard a commotion, and some people were fleeing from the village entrance to other exits. Shinjin grabbed one of them.

"What's happening?" Seeing the villagers' panicked expressions, Shinjin had a bad feeling.

"Bandits, so many bandits, Mr. Tendou. There are over a hundred of them." The villager, who recognized Shinjin, told him the situation and then fled in a panic. Shinjin looked towards the village exit, where a group of black dots was approaching, numbering over a hundred. For Liu Tianyin, a hundred bandits were a significant problem, but he couldn't just abandon the villagers. He couldn't stand by and do nothing. Tying the wine jar to his waist, Liu Tianyin, with his left hand on the scabbard and his right hand on the hilt of Kikyō Sen Mikkazuki, rushed towards the bandits.

A muscular man in a white cloak was walking up the mountain to his hermitage. As the thirteenth successor of the Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu, Seta Sōjirō had strength far beyond that of ordinary people. However, to avoid being used by other forces and becoming a killing machine, he lived a semi-reclusive life. On this day, after buying wine and preparing to return to the mountain for a good drink, Sōjirō敏锐地感觉到山下村庄的异常，向村庄看去，上百名强盗正向着村子的方向靠近，不久后村子中就会是一片尸横遍野的景象。Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu is a sword style that protects the weak, and Sōjirō, who always adhered to the principles of Hiten Mitsurugi, would not allow bandits to harm the defenseless villagers. Tying the wine jar to his waist, Sōjirō, with his left hand holding Kikyō Sen Fuyuki, rushed down the mountain.

Shinjin charged into the bandits, using his qi to enhance his speed to the limit. With one strike, he cut down five people, and the splattered blood, torn organs, and rolling bodies sent chills down the spines of even the bandits, who were used to violence.

"One strike can kill five people, this... is a monster." Some bandits, terrified by Liu Tianyin's sword skills, retreated in fear.

A man who appeared to be the leader, standing among the bandits, had some experience. Seeing his men retreat, he immediately stepped forward to stop their cowardice: "That person is just faster with his sword. We have over a hundred men, and he is just one. What are you afraid of? Men, attack him, and the one who kills him will be rewarded with one gold coin."

Hearing the leader's words, the bandits regained their courage and surrounded Shinjin. In this era, bandits were desperate men, and the promise of a reward made them forget their fear of death, focusing only on killing Shinjin to claim the reward.

Unfortunately, these bandits were not very skilled. Shinjin swung his sword at high speed, and any bandit who entered his range was killed instantly. Soon, over thirty bodies piled up around him, and the blood flowing on the dry ground made Liu Tianyin look like a demon of slaughter. But the next command from the bandit leader put Liu Tianyin in a difficult position.

"Men, spread out and attack him with ranged weapons." Following the leader's command, the bandits immediately pulled out various ranged weapons and attacked Shinjin with shurikens, throwing knives, and axes. Thanks to the qi and predictive skills of the Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu, Shinjin released a large amount of sword qi to blow away the weapons he couldn't avoid and found gaps to kill over a dozen bandits. However, releasing sword qi also consumed a lot of energy, and now Shinjin was a bit tired. Seeing over sixty bandits still eyeing him hungrily, Shinjin found himself in a difficult situation.

The bandit leader, satisfied with the barrage of ranged weapons, ordered his men to continue the attack. At this moment, a figure in a white robe quickly approached the side of the bandit group. Before the leader could give another command, this figure charged into the bandits, easily cutting down over a dozen with a few swings, causing the bandit leader to feel immense fear.

These bandits were just unlucky, encountering the thirteenth successor of the Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu, known as the "Black Ship on Land" — Seta Sōjirō. A blue glow slowly floated on Kikyō Sen Fuyuki, and each strike took at least three lives. Shinjin naturally wouldn't miss this opportunity. Taking advantage of the bandits' disarray, he charged into the group again, and Kikyō Sen Mikkazuki was constantly stained with fresh blood.

With the assistance of qi shockwaves, Shinjin could perceive the movements of everyone around him. The qi-enhanced speed allowed him to move at least ten times faster than his opponents. For a moment, two white lights moved through the bandits, reaping lives. Five minutes later, only two people were left standing: Seta Sōjirō and Shinjin.

PS: This book currently has about 300,000 words in reserve, so there's no need to worry about it being discontinued. You can wait until it's fully updated before reading.