When Kurosaki Rei saw this piece of information, he was stunned.
People often joked that Kengan Ashura was really "The Legend of the Magic Spear," but Tokita Ohma was still the protagonist, no matter what.
In the original story's first part, Tokita Ohma was defeated by the master known as the Magic Spear, Kuroki Gensai, and ultimately burned out and died on Kengan Island. Yet in the second part, he was revived and continued to play an important role.
Kurosaki Rei had liked this manga a lot back in the day precisely because it leaned toward an ensemble cast. The protagonist's plot armor wasn't that obvious. In the Kengan finals of Part One, Ohma lost to Kuroki fair and square—no amount of last-second power-ups or explosions could change that. He simply couldn't win, and that felt realistic.
Across the entire series, Ohma's strength was hard to place in the top five. Even so, he was still the protagonist. How could the protagonist just die? Didn't the second part even use a deus ex machina to bring him back?
Then Kurosaki Rei suddenly realized something.
This was a real world—not a manga.
And in the real world, there was no such thing as an absolute protagonist.
Calming himself, Kurosaki Rei scrolled through the public channel discussions and gradually pieced together what had happened to Ohma.
Although there was no conclusive evidence, Tokita Ohma had most likely been killed by a Violator.
The reason for this judgment lay in what some Explorers had been saying in the public channel. From their complaints, Kurosaki Rei could roughly infer their level of strength. Many of them were lamenting how difficult this world was and how much they didn't want to be sent into the Kengan setting.
There were two main reasons.
First, their attributes didn't give them much of an advantage here. After all, this world also had plenty of inhuman, over-tuned monsters with absurd stats.
Second, even when attributes were similar, most Explorers simply couldn't beat the fighters of this world in barehanded combat.
At first, Kurosaki Rei had found this absurd. How could Explorers lose to Kengan fighters? Many ordinary fighters didn't even have particularly high attributes.
But after thinking it over, he understood.
Not everyone was like him—a martial arts grandmaster even before entering the space.
First-tier Explorers were people who hadn't been in the space very long. Judging from the world level, all Explorers entering this world were below level 7. That meant they hadn't experienced many worlds and hadn't fully adapted to combat yet.
From a combat-specialization standpoint, Explorers with no foundation probably hadn't even reached the Expert level in hand-to-hand combat. How could they possibly contend with the elite fighters of this world?
To be blunt, some Explorers could very well be utterly crushed by fighters whose attributes were actually lower than theirs. The Explorers' advantage lay in raw numbers, while the Kengan fighters' advantage lay in technique.
Kurosaki Rei was different.
He had the numerical advantage and the technical advantage against most fighters, which was why he could defeat Wu Raian.
So among the Explorers, was there someone capable of killing Tokita Ohma?
Kurosaki Rei couldn't completely rule it out. But even if such a person existed, they wouldn't choose to kill Ohma at this stage.
As the protagonist of Kengan, Ohma was tied to many unresolved plot threads. Killing him would trigger massive changes to the storyline, making the mission world far more dangerous. The one who killed him would naturally bear the brunt of that danger.
That didn't align with the typical behavior of first-tier Explorers, nor did it make any sense from a benefit standpoint. Killing Ohma brought no advantages whatsoever.
But Violators were different.
For them, the more chaotic the waters, the better.
"So… is this a provocation?"
Kurosaki Rei sneered inwardly.
"I just hope you're tough enough to be cut down."
Ohma's death rang a loud alarm bell in his mind. The Violators had already begun to act. With Tokita Ohma dead, undercurrents were bound to surge.
The Western Wu faction, the Worm, and other shadowy forces would surely move. The upcoming Kengan Annihilation Tournament had become far more uncontrollable.
And for Kurosaki Rei, there was an even worse possibility—
What if the Origin Seed had been on Tokita Ohma?
If that were the case, then the Violator might already have obtained it. If they hid somewhere afterward, Kurosaki Rei would be unable to complete either of his two missions and would be left with nothing but death.
After pondering for a moment, Kurosaki Rei felt things probably weren't that dire. Ohma was far too conspicuous. Any Explorer nearby would at least go check on him, meaning the location of the Origin Seed should become clear fairly quickly. The mission wouldn't be that simple.
No matter what, Kurosaki Rei needed to pick up the pace. He couldn't stay with the Wu Clan for too long.
Seeing Wu Fengshui walking toward him, Kurosaki Rei stood up.
"Let's go. It's time to start the martial exchange."
Wu Fengshui froze for a moment, then smiled.
"I came to tell you it's time for breakfast."
...
"Ordinarily, humans can only exert about one-third of their body's strength. The rest is sealed within the body—this is a restriction imposed by the brain to protect the human form…"
Inside the training ground, Wu Hui Li'ang was explaining the principles behind their secret art to Kurosaki Rei.
"…Our technique, Release, removes that limiter, allowing more physical power to be unleashed."
His aged eyes examined Kurosaki Rei up and down.
"Although you're a once-in-a-millennium talent in martial arts and possess formidable physical strength, learning this technique shouldn't be difficult. However, you likely won't be able to Release much of your potential."
"Oh?" Kurosaki Rei asked. "Is that because I'm not from the Wu Clan?"
Wu Hui Li'ang shook his head.
"No. The Wu Clan has a long lineage and has intermarried with outsiders countless times. There's no concept of 'pure blood' here. The ability to use this technique depends purely on the body we've refined over thirteen hundred years. Our physiques are stronger and can endure greater power."
After thinking for a moment, Kurosaki Rei began to understand. From the space's perspective, the Wu Clan's members all had exceptionally high Constitution attributes—far higher than their base Strength.
When Release lifted the brain's limiter, more power was unleashed. Normally, that power would destroy muscles, tendons, and bones. But because the Wu Clan's Constitution had been refined over generations, they could withstand it.
"So… I can't Release more 'power' precisely because my body is too balanced?"
Kurosaki Rei summarized.
Wu Hui Li'ang nodded.
"Exactly. I can tell that, as a martial artist, you've achieved perfect physical balance. Your Strength and Constitution are equal. If you use Release, you won't be able to unleash much more without your body collapsing first."
Kurosaki Rei understood. In the future, he could consider prioritizing Constitution when allocating points, letting abilities like Release explosively amplify Strength.
"Now that you understand the fundamentals, do you still wish to learn?"
Wu Hui Li'ang asked, staring directly into Kurosaki Rei's eyes.
"If you regret it now, you may keep your own secret technique."
Kurosaki Rei grinned.
"You underestimate me, senior. Even if I couldn't learn it, I'd still give what I promised. Besides, I don't believe there's anything I can't learn."
"Hahaha… I'm liking you more and more. Perhaps—"
Wu Hui Li'ang trailed off, then shook his head. No. No matter what, he wouldn't allow his precious great-granddaughter to get involved with Kurosaki Rei.
Kurosaki Rei didn't press him on his unfinished thought. Instead, he took out a manuscript he had organized the night before.
"The theory and core techniques behind my secret art are all written here. Senior may take a look. With your insight, you should be able to tell that I'm not deceiving you—this is the real thing."
Wu Hui Li'ang accepted it and skimmed through the contents. His aged eyes began to shine.
"This… this is the ultimate form of martial power. To think strength could exist in such a way…"
He carefully put the notebook away, then looked at Kurosaki Rei with solemn seriousness.
"Very well. Then I will begin teaching you how to cultivate Release."
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