Chapter 29: Killing at the Dojo.

"Stand up!" Zhou Ming put away his foot and commanded again.

This time, the warrior obediently stood up, looking at Zhou Ming with a bewildered expression.

"Tell me your name."

"Takeuchi Seita."

"Are you and those people all practitioners of the Takenouchi-ryu? Your last name is Takenouchi, what is your relationship with this school?"

"Kotaro, Yamashita, Horiuchi, and Matsuda, we are all members of the Takeuchi Danshui-Ryū. The head of the dojo for this generation of the Takeuchi Danshui-Ryū school is my father."

In this state, Takeuchi Seita answered Zhou Ming's questions without hesitation, and soon Zhou Ming obtained a lot of information from him.

It turned out that Takeuchi Seita was the youngest son of Takeuchi Shun, the current master of the Takeuchi Danshui-Ryū school.

With two older brothers above him, Takeuchi Seita was doted on by his father from a young age, as he had little chance of inheriting the Takeuchi dojo. His father did not force him to practice the martial arts of the Takeuchi Danshui-Ryū school and was willing to spend money to cultivate his interest in painting.

However, all of this changed a year ago.

There are many martial arts schools in this world, and it's almost common for disputes to arise between different schools.

However, due to the demands of the ruling powers, large-scale battles between schools are not possible, and the most common way to resolve disputes is through personal combat.

A year ago, Daishi Kamikaze-Ryu, the arch-nemesis of Takeuchi Danshui-Ryū, produced a genius who reached the level of a Menkyo in just six months after starting training. Afterwards, this person was brought by Daishi Kamikaze-Ryu, to challenge Takeuchi Danshui-Ryū.

The result was brutal. Takeuchi Seita's eldest brother was killed on the spot, and his second brother, although lucky to have survived, was left paralyzed and unable to stand up again.

In this fight, the Takeuchi Danshui-Ryū school was not only defeated, but the more serious problem was the vacant position of the next master of the dojo, as both legitimate heirs were dead or disabled.

According to tradition, either the original third-in-line heir, Takeuchi Seita, would inherit the position, or an excellent disciple would be selected from the dojo to be the successor.

To prevent the position of master from falling into the hands of outsiders, Takeuchi Shun forced Takeuchi Seita to abandon painting and switch to martial arts training, pushing him into the position of successor.

Takeuchi Seita had always been weak-willed and lacked a competitive spirit, unlike his elder brothers, who were born to be strong and outgoing.

He also lacked talent in martial arts, and even though Takeuchi Shun taught him everything he knew, his progress was very slow.

This made Takeuchi Shun increasingly disappointed and irritable, and he became more and more forceful in forcing him to practice martial arts. Whenever Takeuchi Seita did not meet his expectations, he would lash out at him verbally or physically.

However, this kind of harsh education only made Takeuchi Seita more repelled by martial arts training and more careful in his words and actions, lest he accidentally provoke his father's anger. Over time, his character became even more cowardly and timid.

So that's why, as a samurai, Takeuchi Seita did not even have the courage to draw his sword against Zhou Ming, and begged for mercy in such a smooth way.

And so we have the scene today. As a samurai, Takeuchi Seita didn't even have the courage to draw his sword against Zhou Ming and begged for mercy so smoothly.

"What do you mean by Mokuroku and Kai-den? Are there levels of martial arts proficiency?"

"Yes, my lord. They are unified standards set by the dojo to assess the martial arts level of disciples. They are divided into four levels: Kirigami, Mokuroku, Menkyo, and Kai-den."

Takeuchi Seita quickly explained.

Kirigami refers to entry-level disciples who have just begun to learn the martial arts of the school and are not allowed to disclose the name of their school when they go out to fight, for fear of embarrassing the dojo if they lose.

Mokuroku is the level after passing the entry-level stage and starting to learn techniques and moves, which is equivalent to formally teaching real skills.

After a long period of training at the Mokuroku level, and upon the teacher's recognition, a disciple can achieve the Menkyo level and is eligible to proudly declare the name of their school and challenge others.

Kai-den is the highest level, which means that the disciple has learned all the techniques of the school and is a true master of the school, a pillar figure, and there are usually only a few people who have reached this level in a school.

"Take me to your Takeuchi Dansu-ryu dojo."

Zhou Ming ordered, and Takeuchi Seita, who was confused, immediately led the way.

Zhou Ming stepped over the bodies on the ground and ignored the terrified eyes of the people around him who were trying to escape. He walked forward at a fast pace along the street, and everyone along the way gave way, fearing that if they blocked his path, he would kill them with a single stroke.

"I'll ask you again, what is this territory? Whose domain is this?"

As they walked, Zhou Ming continued to ask the next question.

"Uh." Even under the effect of the confusion spell, Takeuchi Seita was somewhat stunned, wondering why Zhou Ming would ask such a well-known question.

However, he didn't stay stunned for long and quickly answered Zhou Ming's question, "This is Jōyama Castle, which belongs to Lord Oda Hirakura's territory..."

With Takeuchi Seita's description, the image of the lord Oda Hirakura gradually became clear.

He was 34 years old, inherited his territory, liked beauty and gourmet food, and his soldiers were not particularly strong. He had not shown any ambition and seemed to enjoy his current life.

Although Oda Hirakura did not enforce any harsh laws to exploit the people, there were terrifying rumors circulating, such as "ordering the beheading of the chef because the food was not good" and "demoting a family to slavery because a mischievous child did not avoid his convoy in time".

But whether these were just rumors or actual events, or if he acted differently in public and private, could not be determined just by hearing from others.

"In this era, the country has laws, and each lord's territory also has its own laws. There are obvious class divisions, and the law imposes different requirements on different classes..."

"A commoner who murders in public is likely to face the death penalty. If a samurai kills in public, it depends on who and why they killed. If a samurai loses a duel and dies, it is likely to be handed over to their respective dojo to resolve, rather than be judged by the law."

"If a samurai kills a commoner and his reputation is damaged by an insult, the right to retaliate and kill in self-defense, known as "kiri-sute gomen," allows him to be acquitted without penalty, at most he would have to pay some compensation to settle the matter."

"As for nobles killing people, well..."

"What a backward and chaotic era!" Zhou Ming exclaimed.

"However, it is precisely because of this era and this world that reincarnators can act with fewer scruples and unleash their actions freely!"

Zhou Ming looked up at the building in front of him and the sign on the gate that read "Takeuchi Danshui-Ryū," sneering inwardly.

Then he took a big step forward, crossed the threshold, and walked into the dojo.

"Stop, who are you? Huh? Takeuchi-san!"

Two samurai saw Zhou Ming entering and hurriedly approached to ask questions.

"Tell them I'm here to challenge Takeuchi Danshui-Ryū and ask their dojo master, Takeuchi Shun, to come out," Zhou Ming said softly to Takeuchi Seita, rather than directly addressing the two men.

Takeuchi Seita quickly and reverently announced Zhou Ming's message in a loud voice, as if reading a royal decree, and his voice echoed loudly throughout the dojo.

"What's wrong with you, Takeuchi? As the inheritor of the Takeuchi family's martial arts, how can you say such things?"

"Bastard!"

"You demon, did you use evil magic to control Takeuchi?"

Two samurai looked at Takeuchi Seita with anxiety, while the other drew his sword angrily towards Zhou Ming.

"Hehe, you have the courage to draw your sword at me—not bad. Then let's start with you!"

Zhou Ming's sword flashed, and with a crisp sound in the air, the sword in the samurai's hand was only half left, with the other half bouncing twice on the ground before lying still.

Zhou Ming held the long sword against the samurai's neck and asked, "Do you surrender?"

The samurai stared dumbfoundedly at his broken sword, seemingly unable to believe that his sword was so easily cut in half.

"Bastard, are you bullying the Takeuchi family?"

The other person yelled angrily, shouting at the top of his lungs, trying to call more of his companions over.

Suddenly, a group of samurai rushed out of the dojo, quickly surrounding Zhou Ming in three concentric circles, each with a fierce look in their eyes.

"What, do you want to attack me? Is this the martial spirit of the Takeuchi family?"

Zhou Ming sneered and deliberately mocked them loudly.

At this moment, a voice came from outside the crowd.

"Move aside, make way for me!"

The crowd opened up a path, and three young men escorted a middle-aged man inside.

"Young man, I am Takeuchi Shun."

"Are you trying to challenge the Takeuchi family by barging into our dojo like this?"

The middle-aged man spoke with a low, commanding voice, his eyes sharp and imposing.

"Challenge? Haha, I'm just here to seek justice!" Zhou Ming waved his hand and called Takeuchi Seita forward. "Tell your dojo master what happened."

"Yes!" Takeuchi Seita obediently followed orders and recounted how he and his companions provoked Zhou Ming and were killed one by one.

However, Takeuchi Shun did not listen to a word his son said and felt ashamed and angry, so he raised his sword and stared fiercely at Zhou Ming.

"Whatever your purpose may be, since you have entered my dojo, everything will be settled under my sword!"

"Good, that's what I like to hear!" Zhou Ming laughed heartily.