Who is Hector Fujita, anyway? He’s Japan’s undisputed First Sword Saint—their ultimate kendo legend. In Japan, swordsmanship is treated with almost religious reverence, and earning the title of “Saint” is a once-in-a-century event. So Hector Fujita is hands down Japan’s strongest fighter, no contest.
He’s also Japan’s number one Saint King—one of the world’s top-tier powerhouses. Back when the World Dominion Society sent three Saint Kings to fight Guihai One-Blade, none of those guys could even compare to Fujita. There are levels to being a Saint King, and Hector Fujita is the king of kings. He’s an absolute legend—totally unbeatable!
He hasn’t fought in ages, just been grinding away at closed-door training, trying to break into the God Realm.
Pretty much every kendo disciple in Japan calls him Grandmaster. If you’ve got any connection to Hector Fujita, you can basically walk all over Japan.
His disciples are everywhere in Japan. Sword King Miyamoto might be his star pupil, but all of Japan’s current top ten kendo masters are his students. In Japanese swordsmanship, Hector Fujita is basically a living legend and a myth.
Ryan Ling challenging Hector Fujita? That’s like stabbing straight into Japan’s heart—an epic insult, even bigger than wiping out Chiba Shrine.
But Ryan’s move set off just as big a shockwave in China. Goldridge City is absolutely boiling over! Don’t forget, decades ago Goldridge suffered the worst Japanese massacres—300,000 innocent civilians killed. The hatred runs bone-deep; people here would eat Japanese flesh and drink their blood if they could.
Ryan’s whole crew, plus the entire Goldridge Military Region, is fired up. General Kenneth Li, the region’s commander, couldn’t care less about orders from above—he immediately has Gabriel Xue and every corps commander run live-fire drills in the East Sea theater, just to put Japan on notice.
Meanwhile, inside China, the Ironblood Forum is blowing up—Ryan’s anti-Japan exploits are all anyone’s talking about.
From leveling Chiba Shrine to slaughtering Japan’s three Sub-Saints, all kinds of live photos are somehow popping up on every major forum thanks to massive fan activity. Everyone’s calling Ryan China’s Number One Anti-Japan War God, and anything linked to him rockets straight to the top of the trending lists.
And now, with the duel against Japan’s number-one expert only three days away, this earth-shaking event has whipped up a tidal wave of anti-Japan fervor. Everybody’s fired up to the max.
At the same time, all the major martial arts associations—especially those in Jiangnan—are booking charter flights to Kyoto to back Ryan Ling in person. There’s so many people from Huaxia that, even though it’s technically Japan’s imperial capital, if the big Huaxia conglomerates want to, they can instantly turn it into Ryan’s home turf!
And it’s not just Jiangnan—even Jiangnorth is shaking. Ryan’s blaze has spread so wildly, it’s touching every industry across Huaxia.
One of Yan Capital’s strongest clans, the Nang Family, was first to step up and support Ryan. Every business they own is flying banners reading ‘Ryan Will Surely Win,’ and all their media channels are hyping him up, practically putting him on par with national heroes.
With the Nang Family leading the way, the Fortune Gate—the capital’s top underworld syndicate and the Nang Family’s pillar—also threw its full weight behind Ryan. Ryan’s earlier moves have already helped Fortune Gate’s growth, and now that national righteousness is on the line, they’re all-in for Ryan.
And as soon as Ryan announced his duel with Hector Fujita, every street in Yan Capital was decked out overnight with red ‘Ryan Victory’ flags. In a flash, patriotic passion exploded across the city.
And that’s not all—even the Huaxia Dragon Group stepped up. Several top members openly endorsed Ryan on their personal social accounts, pushing his reputation in Huaxia to an all-time high!
Meanwhile, in a secret high-rise in Yan Capital, several World Dominion Society bosses were reviewing fresh intel from Japan, all looking pretty grim.
“How did that guy’s strength spike so fast? In such a short time, he’s already killed three of Japan’s Sub-Saints! It’s insane! He’s getting more and more out of control. Damn it, if not for Guihai One-Blade getting in the way, I’d have chopped him up already. If this keeps up, we’ll never finish the Venerables’ mission!”
“Exactly. Ryan Ling’s totally out of control. We have to act. The World Dominion Society can’t let that punk hog the spotlight!”
“Heh, he’s already famous. If you go kill him now, people will call us out for it. If we butcher the Anti-Japan War God, the whole country will come for our heads! And he’s not just tied to Fortune Gate—he’s got connections to the Huaxia Dragon Group too. We can’t just strike at him whenever we want anymore!
“What’s there to be afraid of? We’ve got Venerables backing us. We can wipe out anyone—openly or in the shadows!”
“You can’t just go against the whole world right now. The current situation…”
...
“Enough arguing. It’s not time to make a move yet. Besides, do you really think Ryan can beat Hector Fujita? Word is, Fujita might actually break into the God Realm. I’ve sparred with him before—his sword-dao is overwhelming, like it sweeps all under heaven. And he’s been training hard for over a decade. Who knows how strong he is now?” The old man stood up, rolling two iron balls in his hand. As he rose, everyone else stood too.
“Boss is right. I fought Hector Fujita myself once—his strength is not just fierce, it’s weird. When he unleashes his sword-dao, it’s just unreal, like he could sweep the whole world in a flash. And now he’s been grinding away for over ten years—who knows how strong he’s gotten?” Another powerhouse chimed in, clearly a Saint King.
“Here’s the plan. You guys head to Japan right now and deliver a little something to Hector Fujita—give him a hand!” The old man said, pulling out a scarlet pill from his coat.
“Wait, is that a Divine Origin Pill? Boss, you’re really going all in!” Another Saint King gawked, swallowing hard as he stared at the pill.
“The Venerable gave me three of these. Spending one to wipe out that punk is worth it. If we don’t, not only will we fail the Venerable’s mission, but we’ll lose Jiangnan for good—and Fortune Gate will seize the chance to expand, leaving us with nothing! Like Third Brother said, we absolutely can’t risk a public move against Ryan Ling right now. Everyone knows we’ve got beef with him, so letting Hector Fujita finish him off is the best play!” The old man’s eyes were steely as he spoke.
“Boss, you’re brilliant! I’ll get it done!” The Saint King snatched up the fragrant Divine Origin Pill on the spot.
...
Back in Chiba Prefecture, Wendy ‘Wako’ Chiba led Ryan Ling back to the Mitsui clan’s estate. Chiharu Mitsui had already sorted out all the family affairs, and when she saw Ryan return, she threw herself at him, calling him ‘Master’ with extra affection.
“This perv—he’s bagged one Japanese girl after another. Seriously…hmph!” Watching the scene, Sophia Long shot Ryan a fierce glare, her little fists clenched tight.
“Find them a place to stay,” Ryan said, glancing at Sophia.
“No need. We’ll just find somewhere ourselves!” Sophia snorted, clearly annoyed.
“Captain, I think it’s safer to stay here. All of Japan knows we’re with Ryan now. If we leave him, we might be in danger. Plus, we’re all injured—we need a safe place to heal up!” Ethan Yong quickly chimed in.
“Captain Long, don’t be so distant—we’re all compatriots here!” Ryan joked, as Chiharu Mitsui stood on his left and Wendy Chiba on his right.
“Hmph, who’s a compatriot with you, you perv!” Sophia shot back, biting her lip as she headed into the Mitsui estate.
“No words.” Ryan shook his head. He didn’t have time to argue with the stubborn ice queen right now, so he let Chiharu Mitsui lead him to his quarters.
Three days left till the big fight. Ryan was confident about handling Hector Fujita, but every bit of extra power counts. His eyes fell on Wendy Chiba again—after their quick ‘battle’ earlier, that sultry Japanese widow had gotten the upper hand. Tonight, he swore, he’d make her beg for mercy…