Rainy-Night Slaughter (II)

Even though this wasn't his first encounter with a so-called Half-Blood, the man before him had such magnificent Golden Pupils that Lu Mingfei couldn't help but marvel. Deep within them, golden mandrake flowers seemed to bloom.

After receiving King's orders, Kazama Ruri hadn't taken them to heart. He had simply assigned Sakurai Kogure to handle the matter.

But he hadn't expected such a coincidence: he would see his "younger sister," Uesugi Erii, here.

No, she was Gen Chisaki's younger sister. A replacement for him.

Was she the one receiving her older brother's affection?

Although she was the strongest Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, now that they'd met, why not give it a try?

Try killing her and see how her older brother reacted.

He just hadn't expected the man beside her to be a Half-Blood, too. Was he the one who'd lured Erii away?

"Erii, move farther away. Don't come near here."

Lu Mingfei handed Erii the umbrella, then yanked the silver necklace from around his neck and transformed it into a Zanpakuto.

When Erii saw Kazama Ruri, she felt a sense of familiarity. But she also knew that he wanted to kill her. She wanted to say something, but Lu Mingfei stopped her.

Rain kept falling on Lu Mingfei as he drew his blade and faced Kazama Ruri.

Kazama Ruri merely regarded Lu Mingfei with interest.

In the world of Half-Bloods, a stable bloodline meant that the proportion of Dragon blood in the body was below fifty percent. At most, it could approach fifty percent. Once it exceeded that threshold, the Half-Blood would quickly lose control and degenerate into a Dead Servant.

But the White King Descendants were different. They came into being differently from other kinds of Half-Bloods. When the Black King suppressed the White King, the White King personally bestowed his blood and bones upon his descendants.

Thus, among the White King Descendants, there were Half-Bloods known as Emperors.

An Emperor was a Half-Blood who had surpassed the critical blood limit yet could still retain their humanity completely. There were very few Emperors in each generation, and they were born only among the Snake Eight Families' three upper families. Gen Chisaki was the Emperor of this generation.

Kazama Ruri, by contrast, was an Oni of utmost wickedness.

So Lu Mingfei had only managed to pique his interest a little.

"By the way, do all Half-Bloods have to flash their Golden Pupils before a fight? Every time I see you guys, you're doing this."

As he spoke, Lu Mingfei closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his brilliant golden pupils blazed.

Those Golden Pupils were so dazzling that Kazama Ruri felt a trace of pressure from them.

His amused expression vanished. A man with eyes like those deserved to be taken seriously.

Beneath the curtain of rain, two pairs of brilliant Golden Pupils met. The next moment, they moved.

Their blades collided, and blinding sparks burst from the steel.

After just one exchange, both men retreated.

Their strength was almost evenly matched. Lu Mingfei was a little surprised.

Every opponent he'd encountered in this world had been taken down with a single strike. He'd hardly ever needed a second. Was this the true power of a Half-Blood?

Lu Mingfei was a little excited. A different power system, and an opponent with decent strength—he figured Sister Hana would be itching to test her skills if she were here.

He'd seen the desire for battle in her eyes when they sparred.

As her student of Zanjutsu, Lu Mingfei naturally wouldn't turn down a fight like this.

He charged forward again. In an instant, their weapons had clashed countless times, sending strings of sparks bursting from their blades.

I still underestimated him. As they shifted positions again and again, Kazama Ruri came to this realization.

Their exchange ended in less than ten seconds. It had begun and stopped just as abruptly, with no transition between motion and stillness.

They passed each other and stood motionless, like two statues.

Rain burst between them. A drop of blood slid down Lu Mingfei's blade.

Kazama Ruri looked down at his chest. His haori had been ripped open, and blood slowly seeped from the wound.

Lu Mingfei hadn't escaped unscathed, either. He wiped his neck, and a thin smear of blood came away on his hand.

If he hadn't kept his Spiritual Pressure coursing through his body, his neck would probably have been broken.

But he hadn't expected his strike to cut only slightly into Kazama Ruri's chest before something stopped it. He'd wounded him, but not badly enough to make much difference.

"You're strong." Kazama Ruri turned around and narrowed his eyes at Lu Mingfei. "How about this? Hand Uesugi Erii over to me, and I'll leave at once."

"Do you think I'd let you take that silly girl away?" Lu Mingfei turned around as well and retorted, blade in hand.

"It doesn't matter. I only thought I'd mention it. Since you've made your choice, let's continue."

Before his words had even faded, Kazama Ruri darted forward, his cherry-red blade flashing into Lu Mingfei's view.

Lu Mingfei raised his blade and slashed downward.

Dragon blood surged. Kazama Ruri suddenly released one hand. Even with one hand off his weapon, he wasn't overpowered by Lu Mingfei.

With his other hand, he slammed a fist into Lu Mingfei's chest.

"Cough, cough." Lu Mingfei staggered back two steps.

How had his strength increased, too?

With his Dragon blood surging, Kazama Ruri had become far more powerful than he'd been in his ordinary state.

He had unleashed the power of all the Evolution Drug he'd taken over the years, reaching this level.

Fine white Dragon scales emerged from his skin, forming a protective mesh across it—scales comparable to those of a pure-blooded Dragon.

"I see." From the changes in Kazama Ruri's body, Lu Mingfei could tell he'd gotten stronger. He hadn't expected a boss transformation to be an option.

Since this was no longer just a contest of Zanjutsu, Lu Mingfei stopped holding back.

He used Flash Step, instantly appearing beside Gen Chi-me. Holding his blade in his right hand, he slashed horizontally, and the air shrieked.

"What incredible speed!" Kazama Ruri was startled, but he still reacted in time to block the Zanpakuto aimed at his neck.

They attacked and defended without pause, and the road was almost completely wrecked.

Retreating again, Lu Mingfei cut down a streetlight at the roadside and kicked the severed pole.

The streetlight flew toward Kazama Ruri with a howl.

"Do you think that'll work?"

Kazama Ruri cleaved it in two with one stroke, then looked at Lu Mingfei through the rain.

"Not really. I just suddenly thought it would look pretty badass, so I did it." Lu Mingfei only smiled as he spoke.

His sword arm was a little numb. He'd been at a disadvantage in the fight just now. Ever since Kazama Ruri had grown those fine scales, his strength and reflexes had improved dramatically.

On top of that, his scales were incredibly hard—countless times harder than the metal gates Lu Mingfei had cut before. What a satisfying opponent to hack at!

"Warm-up's over. Round two starts now."