The store manager stood still, as if deep in thought. He was actually considering whether to retreat. His goal was clear: to cover for Sifang Lian and the others and successfully rescue Jinmu.
A loud bang echoed nearby. The store manager turned his head and vaguely saw someone fighting.
"Is that Jinmu using that Hezi?"
A smile appeared on the store manager's face beneath his Hezi shell. Jinmu had successfully escaped, and his objective had been achieved.
"An opportunity."
Su Xiao flashed forward, appearing right in front of the store manager. The store manager was momentarily distracted, and Su Xiao seized the chance.
With a swift slash of his long knife, the store manager was forced to retreat repeatedly.
"This is bad."
Su Xiao's sharp strikes made the store manager wary. That brief moment of distraction had put him at a disadvantage.
A cold glint of the knife aimed straight for the store manager's forehead. Even before the blade reached him, he felt a sharp pain in his eyes.
He could not let this knife hit him; otherwise, it would be over. The store manager quickly raised his arms to block.
"Thud."
The Hezi wrapping around the store manager's arms was already battered and bruised. It couldn't withstand Su Xiao's "Dragon Slash," and the knife pierced through one of the store manager's forearms.
The blade not only broke through the outer layer of Hezi but also pierced the store manager's bone.
Su Xiao gripped the knife with one hand and pushed down on the handle with the other, driving the "Dragon Slash" into the ground.
"Clang."
Most of the blade was embedded in the ground, pinning the store manager's arm down.
Su Xiao kicked out, striking the store manager in the face with one leg.
With a loud crack, the Hezi mask on the store manager's face shattered, leaving fine cracks.
During the fight, Su Xiao used more than just the knife as a weapon; his entire body was a weapon. The long knife was his main means of attack, while his limbs could also deal damage at critical moments.
The store manager was hit hard by this kick, with the back of his hand pinned to the ground by the "Dragon Slash." The force of the blow caused immense pressure on his face.
Not only that, but a long crack appeared in the bone of the store manager's arm, making it temporarily unusable.
After kicking, Su Xiao didn't stop. He pulled out the "Dragon Slash" and aimed for the store manager's throat.
This shocked the store manager. If he got hit in the throat, he might not die, but he would definitely lose his fighting ability.
With his arm free, the store manager quickly stepped back, but his retreat was clearly slower than Su Xiao's knife.
Just as the blade reached his throat, the store manager surprisingly jumped up, and the knife that was supposed to strike his throat instead hit his collarbone.
The "Dragon Slash" broke through the store manager's defense with ease. It was clear that the defense provided by the Hezi covering his body was much weaker than that around his arms.
Blood gushed out, and the store manager frowned tightly.
Having fought all his life, the store manager swung his arm at Su Xiao even as he was injured.
This strike was powerful, and the store manager was determined to split Su Xiao in half.
Su Xiao quickly raised the "Dragon Slash" to block, gripping the handle with one hand and pressing the other against the back of the blade.
"Clang!"
The immense force hit the "Dragon Slash," bending Su Xiao's body. The concrete beneath him cracked, forming spiderweb-like fractures around him.
Using this powerful force, Su Xiao retreated several steps before steadying himself, his hand trembling slightly.
That hit was incredibly heavy. Su Xiao estimated the store manager's strength to be at least 15 points or even higher.
Since the battle began, the two had exchanged blows for less than five minutes, both sustaining injuries.
The store manager's Hezi shell was marked with large wounds, and he had injuries on one arm and his collarbone.
Considering the store manager's ghoul constitution, these injuries weren't too severe.
Su Xiao had exhausted a lot of energy, and his arms were numb, needing some time to recover.
Su Xiao had no external injuries, but as a human, any injury to a vital area would affect his fighting ability.
The store manager silently watched Su Xiao, blood slowly seeping into his body as his wounds healed quickly.
A sound like metal corroding echoed, and smoke began to rise from the surface of the "Dragon Slash."
Su Xiao quickly tore off a piece of cloth and wiped the blood off the "Dragon Slash."
In less than two seconds, the weapon lost 4 points of durability due to corrosion; there was something wrong with the store manager's blood.
The exact reason was unclear, but the store manager's blood was indeed corroding his weapon.
After regaining some strength in his arms, Su Xiao once again engaged the store manager in battle.
The blade flashed as Su Xiao created a network of slashes, attacking the store manager while also being cautious of his counterattacks.
Meanwhile, Yamen stood by, watching like a bystander, unable to do anything.
...
Far away from the Bronze Tree, on a steel suspension bridge, Takatsuki Izumi sat at the edge, her body wrapped in bandages, swinging her legs.
"Isn't it about time?"
Takatsuki Izumi looked at the distant Bronze Tree stronghold, her voice intentionally sounding empty.
"Yeah."
Motoharu stood behind her, pulling out a detonator.
"It’s time to retreat. Let’s start."
With that, Motoharu pressed the detonator without hesitation.
"Boom."
A muffled explosion rang out from the Bronze Tree stronghold, thick smoke billowing up as the building tilted slightly.
After the explosion, the stronghold fell into silence, with only a flock of crows startled into flight.
"Why didn’t the stronghold get destroyed? Was there not enough explosives?"
Takatsuki Izumi stood up, her strange tone gone, returning to her normal voice.
"Click, click..."
Motoharu pressed the detonator several times, but there was no response.
"The explosives were removed; only the two most hidden demolition points on the lower level are still intact."
Motoharu's eyes burned with killing intent. This was his plan, and now it seemed to have failed.
"Those suspicious guys mentioned before that the plan might fail. Is it their fault?"
Takatsuki Izumi began to doubt the ghouls' contractors.
The contractors from the ghoul faction were slow in completing their tasks, so they held a low status in the Bronze Tree and hadn’t gained Takatsuki Izumi's trust.
Su Xiao was different; he was a temporary member of Team Zero, invited by Maru Shusai for his strong combat ability. His words would not be ignored by Maru Shusai.
This was the advantage brought by 'strength + status.'
"That’s impossible. Those guys are even more eager to kill CCG than we are, going out every night to hunt down lone CCG members.
Moreover, I’ve been keeping an eye on them; they had no chance to leak information."
Hearing Motoharu's words, Takatsuki Izumi fell silent, but there was a hint of unwillingness in her eyes.
"That damn guy, he’s the one I want to smash the most. I’ll just have to look for another chance later."
Takatsuki Izumi turned and left, with Motoharu following behind.
...
On the rooftop of the Bronze Tree stronghold.
Su Xiao sat on the roof, a long wound cut across his abdomen, and there was a thumb-sized hole in his shoulder.
The store manager had escaped after heavily injuring him.
Just moments ago, the entire building had suddenly tilted, disrupting Su Xiao's fierce assault and giving the store manager a chance to seriously wound him.
Su Xiao fought with knife skills, relying on technique, while the store manager fought using his powerful defense and attack. So when the terrain changed drastically, Su Xiao took a significant hit.
Although the store manager had escaped, he had left something behind: a half-meter-long Hezi lay beside Su Xiao, which he had cut off from the store manager's back.
This was a lone Hezi, the store manager's feather Hezi.
PS: (Ahem, it's time to ask for a recommendation and collection.)
Ahem, many people thought the store manager would be killed, but this time it wasn’t because of a lack of mercy from the author; it’s just that the store manager is indeed strong, and the advanced ghoul world is about to arrive. The plot for the ghoul world has been planned for a long time by the author.
(End of Chapter)