"The Worm is surprisingly bold," Lu Li remarked, a faint smile playing on his lips as he looked down at the arena from the top-tier VIP corporate suite. "But I suppose it's their bad luck they ran into me."
Standing beside him, Erioh Kure stared down at the fighters, a blazing, undisguised killing intent swirling in his ancient eyes. "Raian... do not disappoint me."
Today's match was Yamashita Trading Co. versus Under Mount Inc. In many ways, it was a "father-son duel."
The true mastermind behind Under Mount Inc. was Kazuo Yamashita's estranged son, Kenzo Yamashita, though Kazuo was currently entirely unaware of this fact. As for the proxy fighters in the ring, it was Raian Kure, the current prodigy of the Kure Clan, facing off against Alan Wu, one of the five supreme executives of the Westward Faction.
Alan Wu possessed the transplanted ego and memories of "Wu Hei"—the absolute progenitor of the entire Wu lineage from 5,000 years ago. In a twisted sense, this was a battle between an ancient ancestor and his distant grandson.
The Westward Faction had never sealed away the ancient Wu Clan's forbidden technique, Huisheng. Through relentless psychological conditioning, they continuously passed down the memories and persona of the original Wu Hei to each successive generation. In the current era, they had successfully "resurrected" five separate "Wu Heis" to serve as the absolute commanders of the Westward Faction.
"Raian. Ignore the referee. Slaughter him," Erioh had explicitly ordered Raian before the match. That single sentence spoke volumes about the sheer depth of the Patriarch's hatred for the Westward Faction.
Not that Raian needed the encouragement. The manic, bloodthirsty Majin never intended to leave Alan Wu alive to begin with.
One look at Raian's face in the ring said it all. His grotesque, twisted facial expressions clearly broadcasted that he had found a worthy prey and was currently high out of his mind on adrenaline.
Look how happy the kid is, Lu Li thought, amused.
"Are you not going to watch the match, young friend?" Erioh asked, slightly confused as Lu Li turned around and casually sat down on the plush leather sofa.
"There's nothing to watch. The match is going to end in a flash. Raian won't get careless, and he certainly won't hold back. An artificial 'Wu Hei' like Alan is completely out of his depth," Lu Li replied casually. He was currently vastly more interested in deciphering the Worm's overarching strategy. A mid-tier brute like Alan was obviously a disposable pawn.
After enduring several days of brutal, ego-shattering spars with Lu Li, Raian was noticeably significantly stronger and more focused than before. There was absolutely zero chance of an upset here.
Sure enough, less than a minute after the bell rang, a unified, horrifying gasp erupted from the entire stadium.
Down in the arena, Raian Kure, fully enveloped in his purple-black Removal state like a literal demon from hell, had grabbed Alan Wu by his upper and lower jaws. With a sickening, explosive burst of kinetic force, Raian literally tore Alan vertically in half!
Raian's "bare-handed foreigner-tearing" execution was unspeakably brutal and excessively gory. Yet, even Karla—who normally found Raian deeply annoying—was aggressively clapping and cheering from the VIP suite. Raian had finally exacted a measure of bloody vengeance for the Kure Clan.
Meanwhile, inside the submarine hovering miles off the coast, the executives of the Worm and the Westward Faction watched the gruesome spectacle with absolute apathy. They even had the audacity to mock each other over it.
"Your Westward Faction is looking pretty pathetic right now. Wasn't Alan supposed to be one of your top executives? How did he just get literally ripped in half by some brat?" White Niko sneered, finally finding an opening to strike back. Edward Wu's relentless mockery of Setsuna Kiryu over the past few days had deeply infuriated him.
"Alan was the absolute weakest of the five Wu Heis. I merely used that Kure brat to take out the trash for me," Edward Wu replied, taking a slow drag from his cigar, a savage grin spreading across his face. "However, I get the distinct feeling that little Kure brat is trying to provoke me through the screen. It seems he still doesn't comprehend the absolute, insurmountable gap between him and a true powerhouse."
Down in the arena, Raian was indeed riding a euphoric high. Covered in Alan's blood, he screamed into the cameras, "Listen up, you Westward Faction pigs! Wash your damn necks and wait for me! I'm going to slowly butcher every single one of you!"
"Raian is as energetic as ever," Lu Li chuckled from the sofa. "But it seems this tournament is definitely going to give him the bloodbath he's been craving."
"Mr. Lu, do you suspect there are significantly more Worm and Westward Faction operatives infiltrated into the tournament roster?" asked Hollis Kure, the "Crying Demon," who was standing nearby.
The Kure Clan was naturally on high alert regarding the overarching security of this tournament and had conducted extensive background checks on the island. Yet, aside from the blatantly obvious target, Alan Wu, they hadn't identified many highly suspicious individuals.
"From where I'm sitting, there are quite a few highly suspicious 'powerhouses' on that roster," Lu Li said, pointing toward the massive digital bracket displayed on the wall screen. "The new fighter hired by the newly appointed CEO of Tenma Communication: Fei Wangfang. And the assassin deployed by Vice Chairman Hayami: Lu Tian. I'd bet my life they're both high-ranking Worm operatives."
Lu Li was purely utilizing his meta-knowledge from the canon storyline. He knew exactly who these two men were.
In the sequel manga, both Fei Wangfang and Lu Tian were officially introduced as "A-List Gladiators" for the underground martial arts promotion, Purgatory. Their combat strength was absolutely phenomenal.
Lu Tian was one of White Niko's most successful disciples—a genuine, hardened survivor who had clawed his way out of the horrific Gu ritual. He had even managed to master a bastardized version of the Kure Clan's Removal technique. He was a terrifyingly complete fighter, possessing both overwhelming numerical stats and elite technical mastery.
As for Fei Wangfang... he was even more absurd. Lu Li considered Fei to be White Niko's absolute masterpiece. Fei had successfully synthesized the Niko Style's [Advance] (Possessing Spirit) and [Fallen Demon], creating an apocalyptic third transformation: [Divine Demon].
As an explosive, stat-boosting buff, it was no exaggeration to say that the absolute kinetic output of Divine Demon completely eclipsed a 100% Removal.
However, the biological backlash of Divine Demon was equally catastrophic. In the canon storyline, Fei Wangfang literally died from abusing his own power.
In Lu Li's professional opinion, Fei Wangfang's death was pure, unadulterated "plot-induced stupidity." Fei had already completely dominated and overwhelmed the superhuman Takeshi Wakatsuki. Yet, purely out of arrogant hubris, he insisted on keeping his transformation active at maximum output just to engage in a completely pointless contest of raw physical strength against a biological mutant.
Furthermore, the fact that Fei stood there casually chatting with his opponent while his heart was literally tearing itself apart at maximum RPM was an absolutely brain-dead tactical decision.
Lu Li genuinely believed that if Fei Wangfang fought seriously and didn't arrogantly play with his food, he would undoubtedly rank among the absolute top-tier fighters in the entire Kengan universe. Unfortunately, he had been heavily manipulated and brainwashed by White Niko, and his combat IQ was surprisingly low when it mattered most.
As the tournament rapidly progressed, it was soon Lu Li's turn to enter the ring again. His opponent this time was Lu Tian.
This violent, unhinged man who possessed the Removal clearly didn't view Lu Li as a legitimate threat. The result? Lu Li knocked him out cold with two punches and a single kick.
Lu Li deliberately chose not to kill Lu Tian. It wasn't out of some noble sense of martial honor; it was purely pragmatic. He reasoned that Lu Tian's highly anomalous, Gu-tempered soul would yield a massive chunk of Growth Progression for Qiu Mo. Butchering him bare-handed in the arena would be an absolute waste of a premium resource.
"This new Fang of Metsudo, Lu Li... he's genuinely quite skilled. Lu Tian might be a defective failure, but he shouldn't have lost that easily, right?" Inside the submarine, Xia Yan watched the replay, his interest genuinely piqued.
"According to the bracket, he will face Fei Wangfang very soon. I will instruct Wangfang to properly test this Lu Li's true depths," White Niko sneered.
He was highly satisfied with his disciple, Fei Wangfang's, raw combat power. However, his disciple would never realize a cruel truth: no matter how hard he trained, he could never become the true "Tiger's Vessel."
The "Tiger's Vessel" wasn't a title awarded based on martial strength. Furthermore, mastering the Niko Style didn't automatically qualify someone for the position. The true "Tiger's Vessel" had to be a direct, genetic clone of the Connector. Specifically, a clone cultivated from the left hemisphere of the Connector's brain—the persona known as "The Tiger." (A/N: If you want to mock the absurd pseudo-science of the Kengan universe, feel free.)
The next day. The Quarter-Finals.
Exactly as predicted, Fei Wangfang stepped into the arena to face Lu Li.
Looking at the deeply serious expression on Fei Wangfang's face, Lu Li bared his teeth in a feral grin. "Come on. Activate Divine Demon."
Fei Wangfang's eyes widened in profound shock. The existence of the Divine Demon technique was an absolute, highly classified secret. How the hell did this man know about it?!
Lu Li casually spread his arms wide. "Come at me with your absolute maximum output. Don't worry. I promise I'll leave you alive."
Fei Wangfang stared at the man standing before him. A faint, almost imperceptible, yet suffocating pressure radiated from Lu Li. In his entire life, Fei had only ever felt this specific, terrifying aura from one other person.
The moment the thought crossed his mind, he immediately dismissed it as utterly absurd.
Impossible. How could this Lu Li possibly be compared to That Man?!
He stared at Lu Li's completely relaxed, open-armed stance. It looked as if Lu Li was completely riddled with fatal openings, yet simultaneously... it felt as if he possessed absolutely zero openings at all.
Trapped in this bizarre, contradictory cognitive dissonance, an invisible, crushing weight settled over Fei, making it genuinely difficult to breathe.
"Since you're so eager to die... I'll grant your wish! Witness the absolute zenith of the Niko Style!" Fei Wangfang roared.
In the next instant, he violently tore off his upper garments. As the fabric fluttered into the air, his flawless, athletic musculature explosively bulged. His skin rapidly shifted into a deep, boiling crimson red.
Thick, pulsing veins erupted across his entire body. The terrifying, rapid-fire pounding of his violently over-clocked heart echoed through the arena like a revving super-engine. The sheer, radiating body heat caused his sweat to instantly vaporize into steam, generating an upward thermal draft that caused his long hair to stand on end.
Sensing the catastrophic, explosive surge in his opponent's kinetic output, Lu Li's grin widened into a manic smile.
"That's exactly what I'm talking about. Come. Let me enjoy this."
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