Volume 2: Thick and Heavy Winds and Clouds Chapter 54: Master Uncle and Master Nephew

  Uesugi Kenshin, the god of war, is undoubtedly the greatest enemy in the eyes of the Hojo clan's generals, a formidable and respectable opponent.

  Uesugi Kenshin, after his conquest of Echigo Province, spent over a decade in the Kanto region, fighting dozens of battles large and small without ever suffering a single defeat. Last year, he even led an army of 100,000 from the Kanto region to lay siege to the Odawara Castle of the Hojo clan. Despite the bravery of Hojo Ujiyasu and the martial prowess of Hojo Ujitsuna, with their military strength at its peak, they were forced to retreat within the walls of Odawara Castle and did not dare engage in open battle outside.

  It is said that at the time, the Kanto Allied Forces had been attacking Odawara Castle for a long time without success, suffering heavy losses. Uesugi Kenshin was so enraged that he ran alone to a place not far from Odawara Castle and drank wine.

  At that time, the Northern Forces saw Uesugi Kenshin sitting on the ground at a distance of just a few feet away from the castle wall and immediately brought out iron cannons, bows and arrows, and stone-throwing wheels to attack Uesugi Kenshin in turn. However, a miracle occurred, no matter how hard the Northern Forces shot, not one hit Uesugi Kenshin.

  At that time, the Northern Army was shocked, and it was rumored that Uesugi Kenshin had a divine spirit protecting his body, and indeed he was an incarnation of Bishamonten.

  The Northern Fujiwara samurai's view of Uesugi Kenshin was born out of hatred and fear, which in turn gave rise to reverence.

  It is said that the Takeda family's Ming country warrior, unexpectedly once fought with the incarnation of Bishamonten, Uesugi Kenshin, and even saved his lord Takeda Shingen. Many people did not believe it at first, especially since the opponent was from the special identity of the Ming country across the ocean.

  Everyone's eyes were on the Takeda clan's warriors, searching one by one to see what made this legendary Ming country warrior so extraordinary.

  Li Xiao put down his wine cup and slowly stood up, among the Japanese of this era, his height of 1.85 meters was absolutely towering. So when the various leaders of the Hojo clan saw Li Xiao's figure, they were all stunned, even including Hojo Tokimune, there was no such tall and majestic general in the Hojo family.

  Kamizumi Hidetsugu was also slightly surprised by Li Xiao's physique, but he didn't take his opponent seriously because of it. With a casual expression, his eyes scanned Li Xiao up and down, asking: "You're the Ming warrior who fought with Kaito on Kawajiri Island?"

  Li Xiao bowed and replied: "I am indeed Li Xiao from the Ming State. What instructions do you have for me?"

  Facing Li Xiao's courtesy, Shang Quan Xiuyin suddenly snorted and swung the wooden sword in his hand, saying: "I don't know what skills you have to rival Huihu Gong, since that's the case let's fight and see your strengths and weaknesses. Maybe the rumors were exaggerated."

  Alright, this kid doesn't have the strength of a Sword Saint, but his tone is even bigger than a Sword Saint's.

  Facing the opponent's provocation, under everyone's gaze, Li Xiao slowly shook his head and unexpectedly replied: "I refuse to compete with you."

  At that moment, a burst of scolding voices came from the leaders of the Hojo family, and many of the Takeda family's generals were also embarrassed, avoiding battle in the face of challenge, which was more shameful than being defeated. Only Yamamoto Kansuke, Sanada Yukimura and a few others who knew Li Xiao better did not think so.

  Kamizumi Hidetsugu also thought that Li Xiao was just retreating in disarray, and sneered, saying: "What a warrior from the Ming country, he's just a coward."

  Li Xiao hummed softly and suddenly turned serious, saying solemnly: "You guessed wrong. The reason I refused to compete with you is not for any other reason."

  At this point, Li Xiao suddenly pointed at the crowd of North House people and said loudly: "Because the person I want to fight is Di Huang Ba Fan, not you."

  The scene fell silent for a moment, then suddenly the northern side erupted in an uproar. Who would have thought that this Ming country warrior was so bold, actually daring to challenge the first brave general of the Hojo clan, Hojo no Sanetada?

  Of course, Li Xiao did this and also cut off the face of Shang Quan Xiuyin. This move clearly did not put Shang Quan Xiuyin in his eyes, meaning that you are not worthy of being my opponent. As the saying goes, face is something that needs to be given mutually. Since the other party is so arrogant and doesn't give Li Xiao face, Li Xiao also doesn't need to give him face.

  Facing Li Xiao's challenge, Nitta Toshihide burst out laughing before responding.

  But then, Shōin confronted Li Xiao with uncontrollable anger, blocking his path and saying: "You dare to challenge the Eight Trigrams Temple? If you want to fight, you must first defeat me!"

  Li Xiao shook his finger, but Jozen Takada naturally couldn't understand what this meant. Li Xiao spoke up and said: "Don't worry about this, I've already thought of someone to send in my place for the trial by combat with you."

  "What? Let me have a duel with your subordinate," Jōsen Hidenaga gripped the wooden sword with both hands, his veins bulging out, and glared at Li Xiao with indignation. "Can't even your subordinate defeat me?"

  "You'll know when the time comes."

  Li Xiao dropped this sentence, and didn't care about the anger of Kamizuki Shosuke at all. He walked out of the formation, found a foot soldier from the Takeda clan, gave him some instructions, and then walked back into the formation. He calmly returned to his seat and said lightly to Kamizuki Shosuke: "Sir, please be patient, my troops will arrive soon."

  Only Shisen Yuuin was left standing, his eyes fixed intently on Xiaolong. Xiaolong looked at him and couldn't help but shake his head. It seemed that this son of the Sword Saint had none of the refinement or demeanor of a true swordsman. With only his sword skills to rely on, his future accomplishments would be limited indeed. No wonder in the original timeline, he died in battle just a year later at the Second Battle of Sekigahara between the Houjou and the Rikyu clans.

  A swordsman must have a good mentality, so in Japanese kendo, apart from mastering martial arts, one also needs to understand Zen, hence the saying "unity of sword and Zen".

  As one of the Yagyu Sanada, Yagyu Munenori's son Yagyu Munefuyu said after teaching his disciples sword techniques: "I can only teach you this much. If you want to make further progress, you must seek it in Zen."

  In Kendo, Heiho is a strategy to deal with the enemy, while Zendo is an elevation of one's own state. The techniques of Heiho can be learned from a clear teacher, but Zendo must be understood by oneself.

  Miyamoto Musashi once summed up his lifelong swordsmanship as the heart of the way of the sword, like a bright mirror in a quiet pool! Now that the precious mirror of Uesugi Shigenaga has been clouded by dust, how can one clearly see the vast world from the quiet pool?

  Li Xiao sat back in his seat, facing Suishin's intense stare with a faint smile.

  In the midst of everyone's waiting, a corner of the curtain was slowly lifted, and Shiga Ibuki walked in. Shiga Ibuki had just fallen asleep when he was called awake (people in ancient times went to bed early), so he didn't look very spirited.

  But as a swordsman, his original cultivation and temperament were still there. Shioka Ichiya slowly walked in front of Li Xiao, bowed and asked: "What are your orders, sir?"

  Is this the subordinate that Li Xiao specifically designated to compete with Kamakura's Uesugi Hidetsuna? The Northern Army generals looked at each other curiously and whispered among themselves, seemingly unable to see anything special about him. Did the Ming country warrior send such a subordinate to compete with the famous swordsman of the Hojo family, Uesugi Hidetsuna?

  Li Xiao whispered a couple of sentences to Shi Gong Yiyu. After nodding, he removed the two knives from his waist and replaced them with wooden ones. He then walked to the center of the arena, bowed to Kamizono Shūen, and said "Please instruct me."

  Shioka Ichimon and Kamiizumi Hidetsuna both studied kenjutsu under Tsukahara Bokuden, making them fellow disciples. Later on, they both became renowned masters of their own schools, one founded the Ittō-ryū and the other was the ancestor of the Shinkage-ryū.

  However, at the moment, Shioka Iu is still under thirty years old and has not yet reached the peak of his life in swordsmanship when he created the Iu style. In comparison, Ueshima Shinaga is already over fifty years old and has long been famous, and his reputation as "Ueno's One-Book Gun" is well-known throughout Kanto.

  Although Moroka Ikkō's swordsmanship is still not as good as Kamiizumi Hidetsuna's at present, in terms of seniority, although Moroka Ikkō and Kamiizumi Nobutsuna are about the same age, Kamiizumi Nobutsuna should be called "Shishu" by Moroka Ikkō.

  Thinking of this, Li Xiao looked at Jozen Shuuen on the field and sneered secretly, thinking that since this stinky brat was so arrogant, he would let his master take his father's place to educate him properly and make him understand the principle of "there is a heaven beyond the sky and a person beyond the person".