Chapter 63: Reason
Boom.
The Bronze Tree stronghold tilted once again, threatening to collapse at any moment.
The load-bearing walls on the lower floors had been blown apart, causing the entire building to gradually topple like a withered tree.
On the rooftop.
Kaneki Ken's kagune unfurled, the four tentacles looking somewhat familiar to Su Xiao, identical to those of Kamishiro Rize.
Su Xiao took a deep breath, stepped forward, keeping one hand pressed against his abdomen.
Kaneki Ken charged at Su Xiao as well, his kagune flailing wildly, stabbing toward Su Xiao from four directions.
A flash of blade light.
Su Xiao swung his sword, severing two of the kagune tentacles, then sidestepped through the gap between the remaining two, reaching Kaneki Ken.
Kaneki Ken instinctively raised both hands in front of his face, intending to block the blade with his bare flesh.
Even with his enhanced strength, Kaneki Ken's close-combat skills were still lacking. Becoming a qualified warrior required more than just a change in hair color.
At least compared to Su Xiao, Kaneki Ken's melee abilities were pathetic.
The long blade swept past, and Kaneki Ken only saw a white line before his arms went numb.
Both of Kaneki Ken's forearms, raised to shield his face, were severed cleanly, the cuts smooth.
Though his arms were gone, Kaneki Ken merely frowned. Compared to the torture he had endured, this pain was within his tolerance.
After severing Kaneki Ken's arms, Su Xiao's attack didn't pause. He kicked Kaneki Ken hard in the stomach.
Kaneki Ken flew backward uncontrollably, spitting out a mouthful of bile. As he hung in midair, Su Xiao carved several deep gashes into his body.
After just a few exchanges, Kaneki Ken's forearms were severed, and his body was crisscrossed with wounds deep enough to reach the bone.
"Thud."
Kaneki Ken hit the ground, rolling awkwardly several times.
Su Xiao stopped in place, adjusting his breathing. A pool of blood had already formed beneath him.
Not only was the wound on his abdomen worsening, but the gash on his shoulder had also widened.
He had to finish this quickly.
Biting back the pain from his injuries, Su Xiao dashed a few steps to Kaneki Ken.
Kaneki Ken was lying face down, his severed arms slowly regenerating, and the wounds on his body had already healed.
Su Xiao wouldn't wait for his enemy to recover. He raised the Dragon-Slaying Flash.
"Don't even think about it."
A kagune tentacle lashed out. Its owner wasn't very strong, and the attack seemed clumsy. Su Xiao immediately sidestepped to dodge.
Su Xiao's reaction was fast, but his injured body held him back. The muscles around his abdomen twitched uncontrollably, throwing off his sidestep.
"Bam."
Nishio Nishiki's kagune struck Su Xiao's back, leaving a bloody gash. Even Nishio himself couldn't believe he had landed the hit.
Seeing the blood beneath Su Xiao, Nishio adjusted his glasses and sneered.
"Mr. Black Reaper, you seem to be badly hurt."
Under normal circumstances, Nishio would have been instantly killed in a fight with Su Xiao.
But with Su Xiao injured, he could only burst out with his usual combat power momentarily, giving Nishio an opening.
Nishio rushed to Su Xiao, his kagune stabbing clumsily.
Su Xiao dodged the incoming kagune, only to face Nishio's wild, flailing punches.
After a series of missed hooks and jabs, Nishio looked annoyed.
Evading Nishio's barrage, Su Xiao tightened his grip on the Dragon-Slaying Flash, took a deep breath, and a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.
Pale blue arcs of electricity appeared on the blade's surface. Su Xiao pressed his left hand hard against the wound on his abdomen, forcing himself to burst out with his usual state.
The Dragon-Slaying Flash pointed straight at the ground, emitting a crisp ringing sound.
"Clang."
A white line flashed. Su Xiao's blade severed one of Nishio's hands.
Nishio stared in shock at his severed hand, not even realizing what had happened.
"Senior Nishio."
Kaneki Ken had recovered from his injuries, leaped up from the ground, and rushed over to support Nishio.
But it was too late.
Su Xiao's second strike had already been unleashed.
The blade cut through flesh. Nishio suddenly felt dizzy, a ringing in his ears, and then everything went black.
With a thud, the body hit the ground. Even while severely injured, Su Xiao had killed Nishio in two strikes.
"Nishio!"
Touka, lying on the ground, saw the scene before her and her eyes widened in fury. Nishio was also a member of the Anteiku, and after spending time together, Touka and Nishio had developed some friendship.
"Senior Nishio."
Kaneki Ken's voice was low, his head drooping.
"Again... again, someone important to me has been taken. This is unforgivable."
Kaneki Ken's shoulders trembled, drool dripping from the corner of his mouth. Su Xiao suspected that Nico's torture had left him mentally unstable, at the very least.
Kaneki Ken pressed his thumb against his index finger, producing a crisp cracking sound.
"I'll kill you."
As Kaneki Ken muttered to himself, Su Xiao had already stepped over Nishio's corpse and charged at him.
Time was life now. Su Xiao was losing blood rapidly and couldn't hold out much longer.
When his body began to feel weak, he would have no choice but to retreat. For now, he still had the strength to fight.
Before him stood the protagonist of the Ghoul world. He wanted to see what he would gain by killing Kaneki Ken.
Killing specific enemies in derivative worlds could yield generous rewards.
For example, the king he had killed in the One Piece world. The guy was weak, but as a ruler of a nation, the treasure chest he dropped contained items of extremely high value.
A white chest represented the owner's strength; the [World Tree Ring] was obtained because of the target's status.
Su Xiao rushed at Kaneki Ken, whose mental state was now highly unstable, putting Su Xiao on alert.
"What's one thousand minus seven?"
Kaneki Ken suddenly looked up, staring straight at Su Xiao.
But what greeted him was a gleaming blade.
One thousand minus seven? It equaled one slash!
Su Xiao put all his strength into this strike. The long blade cut across Kaneki Ken's chest, carving open a horrific wound.
The moment the wound appeared, Su Xiao could even see Kaneki Ken's beating heart.
Hit with such a devastating blow, Kaneki Ken spat out a mouthful of blood.
Su Xiao's eyes narrowed, and he remained silent.
Normally, he would taunt his enemies during battle, but not now. He was seriously injured and needed to end this quickly.
Having severely wounded Kaneki Ken, Su Xiao didn't stop. He swung his blade rapidly.
"Shlick, shlick..."
After several strikes, Kaneki Ken's chest, throat, and other vital areas were covered in terrifying wounds.
Massive blood loss caused Su Xiao to feel slightly dizzy, and the force of his slashes noticeably weakened.
Despite such heavy injuries, Kaneki Ken showed no signs of falling. Instead, he lunged at Su Xiao, throwing a punch at his face.
From this punch, it was clear Kaneki Ken had received some combat training, but that was all.
Though Kaneki Ken had transformed from an ordinary person into an S+ ranked ghoul, he was still far from being a true warrior.
Su Xiao reversed his grip on the sword, blocking the punch with the blade.
The clash between blade and flesh had predictable results. Several of Kaneki Ken's fingers were severed.
Kaneki Ken lacked combat experience, but his regenerative abilities were formidable. As long as his head wasn't severed, he wouldn't stop fighting.
Kaneki Ken's kagune was now wrapped around his neck to prevent decapitation. It seemed Nishio's brutal death had taught him a lesson.
Though Kaneki Ken appeared to be having a psychotic episode, he still retained some reason, knowing to protect his vital points.
A strange scene unfolded on the rooftop. Su Xiao, wielding his blade, was dominating Kaneki Ken, but his face grew paler by the second.
It was now a test of endurance: would Kaneki Ken be chopped to pieces first, or would Su Xiao lose too much blood and collapse?