CHAPTER 38: CHAPTER 6: RIVAL

"What a pity, I thought it was another treasure chest."

Su Xiao tapped the ground with the long knife in his hand, his bare upper body already stained with a large amount of blood.

It was the blood of Beautiful Woman Li Shi. Earlier, he had slit her abdomen, causing a lot of blood to spurt.

"Aet, hold him off."

Duduo Liang’s voice was deep. Among the Bronze Tree, he was one of the few who knew Takatsuki Sen’s true identity.

"You all take Kamishiro Rize and go first."

Takatsuki Sen stared at Su Xiao, her eyes filled with intense expression.

Duduo Liang frowned.

"Is it necessary?"

"It’s necessary, this human is completely a monster."

Takatsuki Sen took off her shirt, her entire body wrapped in bandages, seemingly ready for a deadly fight with Su Xiao.

"Understood, we’ll go, Kirishima Ayato, Ye Lu."

Duduo Liang did not hesitate any longer. With Kirishima Ayato present, it was inconvenient for Takatsuki Sen to reveal her true form.

As for Ye Lu, he also knew Takatsuki Sen’s identity; he was Takatsuki Sen’s adoptive father.

"Hey, are we really escaping like this? This guy killed the Gecko."

Kirishima Ayato, in immense pain, was very unhappy. Earlier, Su Xiao nearly killed him.

Duduo Liang did not speak, simply looking silently at Kirishima Ayato. Kirishima Ayato felt somewhat unnatural under his gaze, finally giving a cold snort and turning his head.

"Crash."

The sound of breaking glass came through, and everyone’s eyes turned toward the source. It turned out that Li Shi, after partially recovering from her injuries, had chosen to escape by breaking through a window.

The distance from here to the ground was at least ten meters, and Li Shi was forced to choose to jump out of the building.

Being caught by the Bronze Tree wouldn’t be fatal, but the outcome wouldn’t be good. Being caught by Su Xiao, however, would certainly mean death, so Li Shi chose to jump.

"Bang."

A loud noise came from downstairs, followed by the sharp sound of a car alarm.

Su Xiao no longer paid attention to the others present and quickly ran to the window, just in time to see the stumbling footsteps of Kamishiro Rize.

Li Shi, having taken a hard fall, stubbornly escaped far away, quickly disappearing into a dark alley.

The prey that was in hand escaped.

The smile on Su Xiao’s face gradually disappeared as he gripped the hilt of the "Dragon Slash" in his hand with a cracking sound.

"It seems like~ we’ve pissed off this guy."

For some reason, a chill rose in Kirishima Ayato’s heart, making him instinctively retreat. However, the intense pain in his leg caused cold sweat to drip from his forehead.

Su Xiao coldly looked at the few people present, the veins on his forehead bulging.

Even if he couldn’t kill Kamishiro Rize, acquiring her Kakuhou would undoubtedly bring a rich reward.

But after the interference from the Bronze Tree, the benefits at hand ’jumped out the window.’

"She escaped, so you’ll have to substitute, Yoshimura Aite!"

After Su Xiao mentioned Yoshimura Aite’s name, the expressions of the three present changed, all except Kirishima Ayato, who was somewhat confused upon hearing the name for the first time.

"Take them away."

Takatsuki Sen’s voice was clear and cold, no longer the childlike voice from before.

Ye Lu’s Heko burst forth behind him, the fangs at the tip closing around Kirishima Ayato.

"Ye Lu, what are you doing, let go of me."

Kirishima Ayato struggled a few times, but the difference in strength was significant, so he couldn’t break free.

Ye Lu leapt from the shattered floor-to-ceiling window, apparently going to chase Li Shi.

"Need any help?"

Duduo Liang was somewhat wary of Su Xiao’s strength, as it was the first time he’d ever witnessed such a powerful pure human.

Ghouls had a highly acute sense of smell, exceeding even that of most animals.

Through the scent on Su Xiao, Duduo Liang judged that Su Xiao was purely human, a fact that shocked him.

Ordinary humans in the Ghoul world also have some Rc cells in their system, allowing ghouls to discern whether someone is human or ghoul based on Rc cell concentration.

But Su Xiao had no trace of Rc cell scent on him, not even a hint.

"No need. You go after Kamishiro Rize. She’s very important to me. Among my selected targets, she is the most ’excellent.’"

After Kirishima Ayato was forcibly taken away, Takatsuki Sen no longer concealed her true voice.

"The CCG is close, and our subordinates can’t hold them off for long. Let’s finish this quickly."

Duduo Liang jumped out of the window, leaving only Su Xiao and Takatsuki Sen in the room.

"Who exactly are you, and how do you know my true name?"

Although Takatsuki Sen was already 25 years old, her petite body was only about 1.5 meters tall.

The Kakuhou in Takatsuki Sen’s body began to activate. As the King of the One-eyed, she had 10 Kakuhous.

With the appearance of the Heko, the bandages tightly wrapped around Takatsuki Sen’s body loosened somewhat.

"Bai Ye."

Su Xiao’s simple answer left Takatsuki Sen stunned.

"What?"

Su Xiao didn’t speak anymore, his muscles slightly tensed, ready to fight.

A large amount of Heko appeared on Takatsuki Sen, enveloping her. The blood-red Heko surged, and soon, Su Xiao could no longer see Takatsuki Sen’s true form.

What appeared in front of Su Xiao was a monster at least two and a half meters tall. Two pale claws touched the ground, and behind it blossomed like a flower, a mass of sharp spikes—a concentrated form of Heko that provided strong defense and could also attack.

At this time, Takatsuki Sen was no longer an ordinary ghoul; she was in the form of a Ghoul Speaker.

Ghoul Speakers differ from ordinary ghouls. The creation of a Ghoul Speaker is very brutal, requiring the consumption of a large number of other ghouls before becoming one.

Takatsuki Sen did not know how many powerful ghouls she had consumed to reach her current form.

"Ha~."

In the form of a Ghoul Speaker, Takatsuki Sen opened her bloody mouth and exhaled a red mist.

"Hehehe, I’ve never seen such a pure human as you, you should be quite delicious."

Takatsuki Sen’s personality had drastically changed, her tone a little crazy.

The mental state of Ghoul Speakers is generally unstable. With the body filled with a large amount of Rc cells, these inherently violent Rc cells affect the ghouls’ brains.

Although Takatsuki Sen managed her emotions well, her personality became much more uninhibited.

Su Xiao became cautious. If the pressure from Takatsuki Sen before was a 5, it was at least a 13 now.

Taking a deep breath, Su Xiao calmed down, realizing he couldn’t let anger cloud his judgment during battle.

"Her strength increased a lot, and her personality changed significantly."

Su Xiao didn’t charge directly but sidestepped to the side, moving in circles around Takatsuki Sen.

Whenever Su Xiao circled a certain distance, Takatsuki Sen would turn her body, keeping him in view.

Su Xiao feigned a charge, and Takatsuki Sen’s claw lifted, ready to counter.

But Su Xiao didn’t rush forward, the feint ended, and he continued to wait for an opportunity.

Takatsuki Sen started becoming impatient, opened her bloody mouth, roared, and pounced on Su Xiao on all fours.

In the form of a Ghoul Speaker, Takatsuki Sen wasn’t the fastest, but her momentum was strong, akin to a charging armored vehicle.

A gust of wind blew towards him.

As she closed in on Su Xiao, Takatsuki Sen stood up, a pale claw reaching out, aiming for his head.

Su Xiao tilted his body, the claw brushed past his ear, the accompanying wind lifting his black hair.

Having just avoided Takatsuki Sen’s claw, Su Xiao saw the sword-like Heko on her shoulder slashing towards him.

With no room for evasion, Su Xiao chose to counter.

Gripping his knife with both hands, Su Xiao slashed at Takatsuki Sen’s Heko.

"Boom."

A loud crash ensued, and the tiles beneath their feet shattered, dust rising.

The immense force transmitted through his hands made Su Xiao’s expression change, but what followed surprised him.

The blue on the surface of "Zhan Long Flash" flickered, and the special energy converted by Blue Steel Shadow surged into Takatsuki Sen’s body.

Takatsuki Sen let out a screech, instinctively retreating.

Su Xiao wouldn’t miss such an opportunity; he swung his knife, severing one of Takatsuki Sen’s claws.

With one supporting claw severed, Takatsuki Sen’s body toppled to the side.

Su Xiao swung again, this strike landed on Takatsuki Sen’s back, shattering a large portion of the Heko, turning it into a flurry of fragments.

The Heko fragments, gleaming with a red light, looked especially poignant as they scattered in the air.

Enraged by such a severe injury, Takatsuki Sen endured the burning pain of the Rc cells in her body and thrust her remaining claw towards Su Xiao’s abdomen.

Su Xiao immediately leapt back but was slightly too slow. Deep claw marks appeared on his abdomen, with blood dripping to the floor.

His reaction was already swift; had he been slower, his intestines might have been pulled out by that claw.

"Huff, huff~."

Takatsuki Sen supported herself with one hand, facing Bai Ye, this man who felt both sharp and nimble to her.

She could no longer continue the fight; the sudden pain inside her left her at a disadvantage.

Takatsuki Sen quickly ran towards the window, and of course, Su Xiao was not about to let her go easily, covering his abdominal wound with his left hand while holding his knife with his right, following closely.

Takatsuki Sen leaped into the air, jumping out of the building.

Su Xiao stopped at the window, standing with his blade, coldly watching Takatsuki Sen.

In mid-air, Takatsuki Sen turned her head, the Heko on her head splitting to reveal her lower white cheek.

For some reason, Takatsuki Sen actually smiled at Su Xiao.

Su Xiao did not jump down; although his power and agility attributes were high, his stamina attribute was not. If he jumped from such a height, while he wouldn’t die, leg injuries were inevitable.

Today, too many ghouls from the Bronze Tree were present, and the terrain was not advantageous for Su Xiao, making it impossible for him to capture Takatsuki Sen.

Just as Su Xiao was preparing to temporarily give up and leave, he noticed a man in a suit standing not far away holding a metal box.

The man in the suit gaped, staring at him dumbfounded.

"Amon Koutarou?"

Su Xiao had just been chasing the King of the One-eyed, and this scene had been witnessed by Amon Koutarou.

This left Amon Koutarou a bit bewildered.