They say you can judge a nation's strength by the vibrancy of its traditions.
Ye Liang now saw the truth in this saying.
Take the Land of Snow, for instance. Though remote and bitterly cold, it exuded energy and vitality due to its people's martial spirit.
Yet it's just a small nation? Ye Liang muttered in confusion.
The Naruto world often centers on Konoha's tales, overlooking the significance of these lesser-known nations. While each may seem insignificant alone, together they might not be weaker than the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
"This is the Sword Cemetery?" Ye Liang said in shock, staring at what lay before him.
Countless long swords jutted from huge boulders. Along with spurting lava everywhere, the temperature here was unbearably high!
A stifling heat filled the air.
"The deeper you go, the hotter it gets—but the better your chances of finding a great sword," Kasuka Kazahana panted, sweat now slowly streaming down her forehead.
This exam surprised Ye Liang.
He had expected the samurai examination to involve martial duels, but today's challenge was different!
Treasure hunting!
Swords!
For a samurai, a blade is more than just a weapon—it's like a second self.
Through the ages, many a samurai has died defending their blade.
"Lord Ye Liang, I can only accompany you this far," Kasuka Kazahana came to a helpless stop.
Today's task was to find the finest sword among countless others here.
But entering the Sword Cemetery of the Land of Snow wasn't easy. Not only did one have to sneak past the guarding soldiers, but also withstand the brutal natural conditions.
The outer perimeter was covered in snow, yet inside burned scorching lava—because the cemetery was built atop an active lava plain!
Ye Liang stepped onto a hot rock, already beginning to sweat.
Finding a blade to determine one's score!
Though he was surrounded by blades, none looked like top-tier weapons. According to Kasuka, the Sword Cemetery had seven levels—the deeper one went, the hotter it became, but the higher the sword quality.
Damn it, are you all targeting me?!
Ye Liang dodged an incoming stone projectile with a quick turn of his head.
Currently in the third level of the Sword Cemetery, the temperature had already climbed close to fifty degrees Celsius!
"Hahaha, who told you to mock our Prince? Don't even think about escaping!" Several ragged samurai quickly surrounded Ye Liang, who was unarmed.
By their intent, they clearly meant to end him here today.
"Mr. Ye Liang, we'll go ahead first!" A few powerful samurai took advantage of his distraction and rushed deeper inside, including Mifune from earlier.
Damn it! If it weren't for this ban on ninjutsu, I'd have dealt with you by now! Ye Liang angrily cursed.
He couldn't use ninjutsu right now!
That was very important!
It wasn't that his abilities were gone.
This exam explicitly forbade the use of ninjutsu. Because if he used chakra within the Sword Cemetery, Kasuka Kazahana would immediately lose her qualification as heir!
Welcome to the Land of Samurai!
Ye Liang knit his brow.
Right now, he only had access to Taijutsu without Sage Transformation.
But his Taijutsu skill wasn't great—barely Level 5.
Although he was slightly stronger than Mifune, well...the guy didn't know any Jutsu at all!
Was he really going to use Night Guy against these weaklings?
That would be insane.
"Hah! Die, Ye Liang!" Several Snow Country samurai wielding katana immediately slashed toward Ye Liang.
They were probably using sword techniques unique to the Snow Country. While not as fast as Mifune's instant draw style, their moves were solid and precise.
Ye Liang barely dodged.
Without entering Sage Transformation, his speed had dropped significantly, and since it was his first time participating in such a competition, the scorching fifty-degree heat nearby was definitely affecting him.
[Cross Slash!]
[Sword Draw Slash!]
[Mountain-Shattering Earth-Splitting Slash!]
Several samurai shouted their techniques as they charged at Ye Liang.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Ye Liang kept dodging, but the ground behind him was already slashed up with multiple gashes by these samurai!
These guys are only Level 3 in Taijutsu—what the hell!
"I'm going all out on you bastards!"
Ye Liang suddenly charged straight toward the samurai. Although the blades before him were sharp, Ye Liang didn't think his body was that weak!
Sidestepping along the blade's edge, he rammed his shoulder into one samurai's chin. The man cried out as his teeth shattered, then collapsed onto the scorching ground, unconscious from the heat!
The other samurai froze in shock.
They knew Ye Liang struggled with the environment, but none had expected him to go all-in like this.
That sword strike was fast—but instead of stepping back, Ye Liang chose to close the gap and charge head-on.
They all realized—if Ye Liang had miscalculated even slightly, he'd be cut clean in half right then!
"This guy doesn't care about his own life anymore!"
The surrounding samurai panicked.
The strong fear the fierce, and the fierce fear those who don't care about dying—the rule applies across all eras!
One samurai nudged his comrade.
"You...you go!"
"No...you should do it."
They hesitated, clearly backing down.
Though they were the Prince of the Snow Country's dogs, even dogs valued their lives—they didn't want to die either!
Seeing them retreat, Ye Liang finally relaxed.
Actually, just now, he was taking a gamble—gambling on successfully taking down an opponent!
As long as he eliminated one opponent with such an extreme method, the others would definitely scatter away in panic.
This was the thug's universal law.
Back in his past life, Ye Liang often watched Hong Kong gangster films like *Young and Dangerous*.
Hooligans always stuck together, looking ferocious—but once someone dies, everyone disperses like birds and beasts. This was exactly why Ye Liang dared to play so recklessly.
Then came the fifth floor.
Ye Liang looked at the distant location and quickly dashed toward it.
At this point, the crowd around had thinned considerably.
Reaching the fifth floor was no longer something ordinary samurai could endure.
The ambient temperature here had already reached sixty degrees.
The ground was even hotter; if an egg were placed on it, it would cook instantly.
Ye Liang swept his gaze around.
There weren't any other samurai nearby; after all, he'd been stuck dealing with those punks for far too long.
"There's something!"
Ye Liang suddenly spotted a red metallic figure crawling out from behind a distant rock. It stood over three meters tall, and not only was its body robust, but its speed was among the fastest he'd ever seen.
As soon as it spotted Ye Liang, it charged straight at him within half a second.
"It's a Puppet!"
Ye Liang recognized it immediately.
The world of Hokage consisted of many countries—apart from the Land of Iron that produced weapons, there was also the Land of Craftsmen that manufactured machines. A mere mechanical Puppet wasn't particularly impressive.
Even though he thought so, he still stayed extremely cautious.
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