The court lackeys of the eight-hour workday

Chapter 536 The Battle of the Idols

boom! ! !
No sooner had Yukimori Yamanaka finished speaking than a figure descended from the sky, crashing down like a meteorite!

"grown ups!"

Lu Wushuang darted out of the dust cloud, and just as he called out, Nanako screamed as she was flung into his arms. At the same time, Li Miao's leisurely voice came from within the dust cloud.

"Go take a break, I'll come find you after I'm done killing people."

Lu Wushuang gritted his teeth, picked up Nanako, and turned to leave.

Yamanaka Yukimori glanced at them and then let them leave.

He knew about Li Miao's past deeds and knew that taking hostages would not work on Li Miao at all. Instead, it would make him lose his arrogance and focus on killing them... So he simply let them leave to avoid any further complications.

As soon as Lu Wushuang's figure disappeared into the forest, a loud bang suddenly came from the smoke and dust, followed by a huge explosion of air that pushed away the smoke and dust in the air.

Yukimori Yamanaka raised his hand to shield his face, and only lowered his hand to look closely after the smoke and dust had passed by his side and reached behind him.

Amidst the shattered boulders, two people were gripping each other's arms, locked in a struggle.

One is Li Miao, and the other... calling him a "person" is a bit of a stretch.

This man was nine feet tall, his imposing figure almost completely obscuring Li Miao. He wore his hair in a bun, a crown, and ancient-style divine robes. His face was solemn and kind, yet under the moonlight, it radiated a warm, lacquered sheen.

It's less like a person and more like a statue.

Moreover, anyone in Izumo Province could tell that this was the main deity enshrined at Izumo Taisha Shrine, Ōkuninushi-Ōkami! Both the clothing and the appearance were incredibly lifelike!
The two men locked in combat had contrasting postures. One held a black cloak casually in his left hand, while the other gripped a massive katana in his left, which hung limply to the ground, and the enormous bow on his back remained untouched.

Although their arms were trembling as they struggled, it was clear that neither of them was using their full strength.

The four swordsmen from Izumo Taisha slowly approached and surrounded the center.

Li Miao glanced at the group of people, then turned back to look at the "statue" opposite them.

"sad."

He shook his head and scoffed.

"Practicing martial arts cultivates character; cultivating one's nature is cultivating oneself. What's the point of striving to turn oneself into a clay or wooden sculpture? Is it satisfying to be worshipped and fed incense ash?"

Li Miao couldn't read a trace of emotion in the statue's eyes. During the struggle, he also channeled his true energy into the opponent's body, although it was quickly expelled, he had already roughly grasped the opponent's physical condition.

This person is no longer human.

Not only had he lost his mind, but his body no longer resembled flesh and blood; instead, it was like a mixture of wood and metal, with even his eight extraordinary meridians completely gone. The only difference between him and a statue was that he could move and fight.

Even Li Miao was now somewhat uncertain: was this Japanese tradition the undiscovered path of sexual cultivation, or a completely different path from the martial arts of the Central Plains?
If your meridians are gone, can you still call it martial arts?

If you lose your mind, can it still be considered sexual practice?
Even if this is indeed the lost art of sexual cultivation, it would be the most unique of the six paths of martial arts, its wonder even surpassing that of Xuanlan and Jizhao.

Now, let's get back to the present.

The two right arms, which were locked in a struggle, were completely different, yet they remained locked in a stalemate, neither shifting to the other side.

Yamanaka Yukimori's gaze sharpened.

"Even the Great God of the Great Nation couldn't overpower him in terms of strength... This Li Miao is probably the 'Buddha-Demon' who has appeared in the Central Plains this generation!"

"We must not let him reach Izumo Taisha Shrine, we must not let him see that statue! Even if it costs us our lives, we must surround and kill him here!"

Yamanaka Yukimori suddenly shouted.

"Honor God!"

Before he finished speaking, the four Venerable Swordsmen who came to kill Li Miao all turned serious, and a strange, sticky sound came from their bodies.

Then, under Li Miao's cold gaze, the four swordsmen's figures began to twist and change shape, becoming unrecognizable in a few breaths.

One was tall and brave, with red hair and angry eyes.

One was wise and calm, wearing a bird hat.

One is a dwarf with a mocking expression.

One is rude and arrogant, with a ferocious appearance.

Jianyu’s famous god, Shidai’s main god, Shaoyan’s famous god, and the eighty-year-old god.

The four deities under the command of the legendary Great God, Okuninushi, seemed to have stepped out of mythology and appeared before Li Miao.

Judging from appearance alone, the Takeminakata-gami transformed by Yamanaka Yukimori is the most lifelike, with even the wrinkles on his face being exactly the same as in the legend, and it is impossible to see any of his own characteristics.

Although the other three each had their own strengths and weaknesses, it was clear from their appearances that their level of "Divine Sword Technique" far surpassed that of Kaguteda Yasutsugu.

Li Miao was well aware that after their transformations, each of these four individuals would surpass those offered by the imperial court. The statue currently wrestling with him was even comparable to Zheng Anqi from Nanjing.

"Four opponents with two and a half lanes and one opponent with three lanes combined?"

Li Miao's gaze swept over the group, and a slow smile spread across his lips.

"I'm kind of looking forward to seeing what kind of opponents I'll encounter when I get to Ise Grand Shrine."

"Come!"

Before he finished speaking, he suddenly raised his hand and punched the statue in the chest and abdomen. The statue also suddenly raised its hand, and the huge katana held in its left hand swept out a piercing sonic boom, slashing towards Li Miao's left fist!

Li Miao suddenly smiled.

"It's fierce enough, but not aggressive enough."

Before the fist and sword could clash, he suddenly changed his fist into a palm, and like a butterfly flitting among flowers, he pressed himself against the blade and lifted it up sharply!
Although the statue possessed astonishing brute strength, it had lost its mind and relied solely on instinct to fight, naturally lacking in adaptability in battle. Meanwhile, as his left hand moved upwards with the katana, he exposed a vital spot under his armpit!
How could Li Miao let him off the hook? He changed his palm into a claw and suddenly grabbed the statue under the armpit, then pulled it with a sinister grin!
Tear!

Before the statue could defend itself, Li Miao took advantage of the momentum from turning around and tearing it apart, and kicked him in the chest!
boom!
The statue flew backward, its feet off the ground, yet its form remained intact and its expression unchanged. After flying several meters, its immense weight pressed it back to the ground, its feet carving two deep furrows in the earth.

Li Miao did not pursue, but instead raised his hand to examine the clump of flesh torn from under the statue's armpit. After a thorough look, he coldly threw it to the ground.

The mass of flesh and blood slammed into the stone with a resounding thud.

There wasn't a drop of blood flowing from under the statue's armpit. Li Miao's claw strike would be fatal to anyone, but for a "person" who felt no pain, didn't bleed, and weighed a thousand pounds, it wasn't a big problem.

At this moment, four "followers of the gods" also attacked Li Miao.

The blades flashed, and four katana were drawn!

"Pay up!"

"Likou!"

"Ramache!"

"Wow!"

In Shinto legends, Takeminakata, Kotoshidai, and Sukunahiko are all human gods. Only the Eighty Gods are beings similar to savages... After transforming, they lose even the ability to explain their techniques and can only let out a strange cry.

It sounds ridiculous, but its power is no less than Yun Zelin's last desperate strike on Mount Tai back then!
Four blades flashed and intersected.

The god Takeminakata, transformed from Yamanaka Yukimori, had a cold gaze. Unlike the statue, he still possessed consciousness even after transforming, and the formation that surrounded and killed Li Miao today was led by him.

Seeing Li Miao standing still, he was shaken.

"Judging from his past deeds, he only goes all out against opponents who can fight him, while he often plays tricks on opponents who are far inferior to him."

"This person loves to drag out battles to a bitter end and doesn't care about getting injured... so he won't defend against this move!"

"One strike, just one strike!" Before setting off, the group had already discussed their strategy, and now they had coordinated without needing to say more—the strike was aimed at Li Miao's eyes, not to attack vital organs, but simply to block Li Miao's vision.

The other two slashes were aimed at Li Miao's chest and abdomen, attempting to restrict his movements.

Yamanaka Yukimori, on the other hand, could slow down the speed of his sword strikes.

He wanted to wait for the moment when Li Miao attacked and repelled his companion, then silently slash at the back of Li Miao's hand, leaving a wound and drawing a drop of blood.

As long as Li Miao sheds even a single drop of blood, the Great God of the Great Nation will have a chance to win!

A slight smile appeared on Yamanaka Yukimori's face.

But before he could fully curl his lips into a smile, Li Miao's laughter rang out amidst the flashing blades.

Do you think I'm an idiot, or are you the idiot?

"Have you forgotten what I do?"

clang!clang!clang!
The three sword lights stopped in mid-air.

The protective inner energy surged and wrapped around the three katana swords.

At the same time, a fist, like a large spear, suddenly swept horizontally!

The three divine swordsmen were sent flying backwards.

Yamanaka Yukimori's pupils suddenly contracted, and before he could react, the fist struck his chest in the next instant.

"Do you know how many people I've interrogated? Do you know how many powerful sorcerers I've fought? Three of them feigned an attack to obscure my vision, and another was preparing to leave a wound on me."

"Let me teach you a lesson—next time, don't bar your teeth before you've bitten the other person's throat!"

clang!
Yamanaka Yukimori barely caught up with Li Miao's speed, holding his katana horizontally in front of him just before the fist struck his chest. With a loud bang, the katana shattered, and he was sent flying backward.

"Discovered."

"But...you still underestimated your opponent!"

Yamanaka Yukimori felt a sweet taste in his throat and spat out a mouthful of blood in mid-air.

But there was no sign of dejection in his eyes; instead, there was a certain joy.

Because in the corner of his eye, he saw that the "Great God of the Great Nation," several feet away, had taken the opportunity of Li Miao's battle with the four people to remove the giant bow from his back and draw the bowstring towards Li Miao.

The next instant—clang!

The bowstring twanged, but no arrow was released.

But Li Miao, who was walking towards Yukimori in the mountains, suddenly stopped, frowned, and looked down at his chest.

The clothing was undamaged.

The celestial sphere's operation is also unaffected.

But Li Miao suddenly felt something was wrong... Although there was no actual evidence, he believed in his instinctive feelings after cultivating the Profound Insight.

"What did he do?"

Li Miao turned to look at the statue.

The bowstring of the idol has been drawn for the second time.

This bow was enormous, seemingly cast from pure iron, with even the bowstring made of twisted metal wire, making it extremely difficult to draw. But judging from the strength the statue displayed when it wrestled with Li Miao earlier, he could have drawn even a piece of pig iron into a thread.

But he found it extremely difficult to draw the giant bow.

It took a full breath from drawing the bow to releasing the string.

For someone of Li Miao's level, if left unguarded, it would be enough to tear the statue to pieces.

"So, those four Japanese just now had two plans. One was to make me injured and bleed. If that didn't work, they would use the time I was playing with them to make the statue draw its bow?"

"What kind of method is it to make me bleed?"

"What method did the statue use to draw its bow just now?"

Li Miao frowned slightly.

Although he enjoys toying with his opponents, he won't allow them to do as they please without knowing their true strength. If he were to be caught off guard and brought down by some petty villain, he'd rather just kill himself.

So he darted off and chased after the statue.

But he had only darted out ten feet when the four Japanese men who had transformed into gods surrounded him again.

This time, they were clearly trying to slow Li Miao down. Four blades slashed at Li Miao's legs and feet at the same time, and their figures moved directly towards Li Miao. They were obviously willing to be punched through by Li Miao in order to delay Li Miao for a moment!
"roll!"

Li Miao blocked with a single punch!
Bang! Bang! Bang! Clang!
The head of the Eighty Gods was smashed with a single punch, and the headless corpses twitched on the ground; the God of the Lesser Gods was struck in the chest and abdomen, as if slashed by sharp claws, his belly opened wide, and blood and flesh fell out with a clatter; the God of the Primordial Gods had his weapon shattered, metal fragments embedded all over his face, and his eye sockets burst open, red, white and black fluids flowing out and drooping under his eye sockets.

Only the Takeminakata deity, transformed from Yamanaka Yukimori, blocked the remaining force of the punch with his weapon, but his right arm holding the sword bent and broke, hanging swaying below his shoulder.

But he was all smiles.

Because the statue behind them had already released its right hand from the bowstring.

Zheng!
The empty bowstring was struck again.

clang!
A metallic clang suddenly rang out in the air in front of Li Miao.

With that sound, Li Miao actually took half a step back.

"Tsk... I see."

He raised his hand and stretched it to his chest.

"I generally understand."

"Your swordsmanship and Shinto traditions in Japan are just a type of martial arts from the Central Plains."

"Most likely, it's that lost art of sexual cultivation."

Li Miao suddenly curled his fingers into a claw, dug one claw into his own chest, grabbed, twisted, and tore, and with a whoosh, he ripped a chunk of flesh from his chest.

He casually tossed the lump of flesh onto the ground, then activated his healing technique to heal the wound on his chest.

"What you shot was not an arrow, but true energy."

"As far as I know, you, this so-called 'Great God of the Nation,' should have two weapons. One is called the Nama-Tachi, and the other is called the Nama-Yū-Yū (or Nama-Kyu-Yū). In your Japanese legends, both are divine weapons that can bring life back to life."

"So, the true energy you release is also like that."

As Li Miao spoke, the flesh and blood he had casually tossed on the ground suddenly twisted and grew to 50-60% larger in a few breaths, before collapsing and falling silent.

"If I hadn't laid down protective true qi, and the arrow had buried true qi and then detonated, right in my chest, I probably would have really suffered a loss."

"Not bad, not bad, very interesting."

Li Miao shook his neck and bent his wrist.

"Anything else? Take them all out and let me see."

(End of this chapter)