357 China Getting Excited

Takemiya Hiro was the last Sword Sage of Japan and an immortalized legend. In the eyes of Japanese martial artists, he might as well be the most powerful man on earth. It had been forty years since the last time he was in a fight. Even his disciple had become one of the four deadliest Kendo Grandmasters in Japan. Both Erika and Genkaza Takeda held the old man with the utmost reverence and veneration.

In Japan, he was the paragon of strength, a sanctified hero!

On the other hand, Chen Fan's fame seemed to have caught up with Takemiya Hiro within recent years after he had garnered interest and attention from the underground world. He had killed many Grandmasters and had even laid low four Grandmasters in one battle. He was feared even by the Hong Sect.

Soon after he was placed at first place on the Heaven roll, he was added to third place on the CIA's Dark Roll. The news of his battle against Takemiya Hiro made the entire East Asia seeth with excitement and expectation.

The Sword Sage of Japan was going to duke it out with the most powerful Grandmaster in China!

"It is Japan versus China."

There was no title more attention-grabbing than that.

Japan and China's relations were in tatters a hundred years ago when the Japanese invaded China and nearly succeeded in bringing China to its knees. The resentment between the two nations spilled into the martial arts world like it spilled into all other aspects of the societies. Rumor had it that the former Sword Sage, Watanabe Shirō had ventured into the Chinese mainland with only one sword. He defeated nearly all the powerful figures of the Chinese martial arts community and eventually forced the Lin Family to intervene. The battle between the two was remembered as the fight of the century.

After the War, animosity slowly subsided but with the rise of China, a new era of conflict between the two nations began as the two nations' interests clashed.

Due to the special political moment, the fight between Chen Fan and Takemiya Hiro was tainted by nationalism from both sides of the firing line.

It was no longer as simple as a duel between two powerful men, it was instead a showdown between the two nations.

As soon as the news reached China, the Chinese martial arts community boiled over.

Meanwhile, on a private online forum where martial artists hung out, discussions about the imminent battle dominated the forum and made up nearly eighty percent of all posts.

"Chen Beixuan went to Japan? When? Why does no one know about it?"

Someone asked.

"He has been there for a few days. I heard he has destroyed a Japanese Shrine and killed Kitaniwakawa, Genkaza Takeda and a Grand Onmyoji. He is stirring up quite a racket in Japan now. No wonder Takemiya Hiro had to intervene. " Someone replied.

"Damn! He is badass! How many Grandmasters has he killed now? Over a dozen I guess?"

Another netizen exclaimed.

A few more netizens replied with impressed emojis,

"Let me see: Lu Tianwu, Lu Tianwu, Blacksnake, Zhou Daoji, Theseus, Buck, Zoro, Park Kyung-hwan, Kitaniwakawa, Genkaza Takeda and Chizuru Masahiro. That would be twelve, thirteen if you count Takemiya Hiro." Username "LIttle Red Sparrow" commented.

"Little Red Sparrow, who are you? Most of us here haven't even heard of Zhou Daoji or Chizuru Masahiro." The one who asked the question asked again.

"Ah, right, does anyone know who Takemiya Hiro is? Why is he called Sword Sage? Is he powerful?"

The original poster asked.

It was followed by a few vague replies that couldn't really shed any light on the question.

Takemiya Hiro was active forty years ago and had almost disappeared since then. A few generations of Martial Artists had come and gone within that time and therefore, no one knew who the old man was. The men and women of the moment were not Takemiya Hiro, but Ye Nantian, Lei Qianjue, and Erika.

"Takemiya Hiro, born in 1910, was a Japanese Kendo genius who had reached the peak of Internal Force cultivation when he was only twenty. He followed the last Sword Sage, Watanabe Shirō to China and witnessed the battle of the century. After the great war ended, Takemiya Hiro returned to Japan and focused on his cultivation. He had reached the peak of Transcendent State when he was fifty years old. That made him one of the most powerful men in Japan and earned him the title of Sword Sage. He was also the last Sword Sage in Japan."

"He used to be listed on the Dark Roll when he was active. However, he had secluded himself from the world since the 60s. His name was also subsequently removed from the Dark Roll. However, rumor had it that he sparred with the former third place of the Dark Roll, Zeus the Thunder Lord, some twenty years ago, and the fight ended in a draw."

Someone typed a long paragraph. The user name was again "Little Red Sparrow."

"OMG! He had reached Transcendent State forty years ago? So is he in the Immortal State now? "

"I don't think so, we must have heard of his name if he was of Immortal State. Plus, he is over a hundred years old now, he couldn't even lift a katana."

"Little Red Sparrow, who are you? Why do you know so much about it? #Deepstate #Wikileaks"

Many more people joined in the conversation after that, but Little Red Sparrow had gone silent.

Information about Takemiya Hiro unnerved Chinese martial artists. He was a Peak Transcendent State cultivator, a battle-hardened warrior. He had also proven that his power was on par with Zeus the Thunder Lord.

Chen Fan might be powerful, but he had never fought anyone who was on the top five list of the Dark Roll. CIA had ranked him the third on the list solely because of his illustrious battle results and his ability to use the hypersonic punch.

"Don't worry your pretty head about it. My teacher is a god. That Japanese dude couldn't compare." Someone with the username "Big Xiu-Xiu" put in.

"Your Teacher? Ha! Maybe we are sect-brothers." Someone replied sarcastically.

"Girl, half of the users on this forum wanted to be Chen Beixuan's disciple. You need to wait in line." Someone else jeered at the girl.

Most Martial Artists using the forum were people in their late twenty to early thirties.

These youngster's levity was not shared by the top dogs of the Chinese Martial arts community.

"We know exactly how powerful Takemiya Hiro is. He appeared to be living a peaceful retirement life, but in reality, underneath the facade, he challenged nearly all the top ten fighters on the Dark Roll: Zeus, Azure dragon, you name it. He seemed to have slowed down over the recent decade."

Inside the military base hidden inside the Kunlun mountain, Lieutenant General Xiao sat at the head of a table and announced with furrowed brows.

Sitting with him were a few deputy ministers, Red Sparrow, and other powerful soldiers. Since Chen Fan's battle with Takemiya Hiro had escalated beyond a personal matter, it had caught the attention of the Special Case Departments.

"He had a fight with Boss? How did it end?" White Tiger asked curiously.

"Azure Dragon told me that neither of them could best each other. But he said he could feel that Takemiya Hiro had held back his power a little, making Azure dragon feel like he was sparring with his teacher." Lieutenant General Xiao said heavily.

"What? Facing his teacher? Is Takemiya Hiro already an Immortal State cultivator?" Red Sparrow said incredulously.

She knew very well how powerful and deadly Azure dragon's Immortal State teacher was.

The difference between an Immortal State cultivator and those at Transcendent State was much greater than just one level.

Once he entered the Immortal State, he was no longer a mortal, instead, the cultivator would be considered semi-immortal. Lord Sasuno was an Immortal State Divine Soul. He was confined to his shrine, yet he was able to dominate the Kyushu Island. What if his movement was not restricted? How powerful could he get?

However strong Chen Fan was, he was no match against Immortal State warriors.

"Azure Dragon didn't think he was of Immortal State yet, but he was very close. All he needed was a push or stimuli in order for him to enter the Immortal State and became a living legend." Lieutenant General Xiao said heavily. "It is evident that he is going to use Chen Beixuan as the push."

His remarks made everyone's hearts feel heavy.

If Azure Dragon was right, then Takemiya Hiro must be the most powerful man under the Immortal State. He didn't fight Chen Beixuan because he had to, he did it to find the final enlightenment during battle.

"What worried us the most was that Chen Beixuan still had no clue what this fight was all about. I am afraid that he is going to underestimate Takemiya Hiro. That's a big no-no." Lieutenant General Xiao tapped the table and said.

"Just so. Chen Beixuan doesn't have as much intel as we do. He was working alone in Japan and lacked any assistant. Worse, Takemiya Hiro had disappeared from everyone's radar for forty years and by the, only the major intelligence institutes have his profile in the archives. "

White Tiger slapped his thigh and shouted: "Shit, Chen Beixuan is walking into a trap."

Red Sparrow's face changed colors as she internalized all the information. After a while, she snapped into action and darted out of the room, leaving a trail of clacking footsteps.

"Mr. Xiao, Little Sparrow needed to keep her impetuosity in check. The meeting hasn't adjourned yet, but look at her!" A deputy minister castigated with a scowl.

"Let her be. She must be rushing to Chen Beixuan to warn him. This silly girl never changed." Director Xiao shook his head and let out a faint smile.

Meanwhile, such conversation was carried out everywhere in China: Lu family, Gu family, Diamond Temple, Ba Ji Sect, Medicine God Valley Sect, and Hua Family of Zhong Hai.

This battle was going to be one of the highest-profile battles in the recent fifty years. It had caught more attention than the fight between Chen Fan and Lei Qianjue. After all, both sides drummed up the nationalism rhetoric, the fight had become heavily political.

Many martial artists and Grandmasters decided to fly to Japan to cheer for Chen Fan.

Meanwhile, Chen Fan had returned to Yukishiro family residence. He got an invitation for him written in Chinese characters with powerful brush strokes.

"Takemiya Hiro? Who is he?"

Violet and Yukishiro Sa were stunned after hearing what came out of Chen Fan's mouth.