Why Aren't You Afraid (Seeking Recommendations)

Fang Cheng lifted his left hand in surprise; his middle finger had been severed as if by a sharp blade, the cut clean and blood gushing out.

"What the hell kind of ability is this? Words becoming reality?"

Caught off guard, Fang Cheng immediately lunged toward the young man with a short-range dash.

To his even greater shock, the dash failed entirely; he couldn't trigger it at all.

His formidable physical prowess had also vanished, leaving him to run on his own two legs like an ordinary high school student.

This speed was naturally non-threatening; no matter how hard Fang Cheng ran, the young man standing still ahead of him maintained a constant distance.

The young man remained smiling, saying to the running Fang Cheng, "Your right ear will be severed."

Fang Cheng's right ear immediately fell away, the wound smooth, the gushing blood staining half his face and shoulder.

The intense pain made Fang Cheng frown slightly, and to his dismay, neither wound showed any sign of Self-Healing.

Had his immortality failed? Or was his Self-Healing ability being suppressed?

A flurry of thoughts raced through Fang Cheng's mind; in the past, he might have panicked, but now he remained capable of calm reflection.

"Who are you?"

Fang Cheng stopped trying to pursue and asked instead.

As he spoke, he secretly attempted to activate Steel Blood—it, too, had failed.

It seemed all his abilities were nullified; in this moment, he had reverted to an ordinary human.

The young man before him pulled a cigarette from his palm as if performing a magic trick, placed it in his mouth, and ignited it with a flame from his fingertip.

He took a deep drag and exhaled a cloud of secondhand smoke.

The smoke transformed into a small bird, circling him joyfully.

After finishing these theatrics, the young man smiled. "You can call me Takeshi Takeyama. Nice to meet you, I'm a magician."

Fang Cheng asked curiously, "Do we have a grudge?"

"Of course not."

Takeshi Takeyama shook his head. "We've never met before today."

Fang Cheng thought for a moment, then asked, "Then did I accidentally sleep with your mother, and now you're here to settle the score?"

Takeshi Takeyama paused, his eyes turning cold. "Soon, you will experience having your hands and feet severed, being decapitated, and being cut in half—experiences rarely seen in a lifetime. These are complimentary performances, so look forward to them."

"How generous. Then I must offer you a free performance in return."

Fang Cheng smiled. "Like sleeping with your mother in front of you and your father; I'm quite skilled at that."

Takeshi Takeyama sneered, "You will regret provoking me, for it will only make your suffering last longer."

He pointed at Fang Cheng. "Your right arm will be torn off at the shoulder."

Fang Cheng's right arm was ripped away as if by an invisible, colossal force; bone, muscle, and fascia tore, and the entire limb hit the ground with a wet thud, blood splattering everywhere.

The agony only made Fang Cheng's face turn pale; he frowned slightly, his mind desperately searching for a countermeasure.

Takeshi Takeyama continued loudly, "Your left leg will be severed at the knee."

As if an invisible blade had swept across, Fang Cheng's left lower leg snapped off at the knee, blood pouring out like an open faucet.

Fang Cheng maintained his balance on his right leg, still finding the composure to stroke his chin with his remaining left hand, his gaze locked on Takeshi Takeyama.

"Why on earth do you want to kill me? Can you at least let me die knowing why?"

Seeing Fang Cheng still able to ask questions so calmly, a flicker of astonishment crossed Takeshi Takeyama's eyes.

He smiled. "Almost forgot. My employer told me to give you a message—I heard you're close with Asaka Akie. After you die, I'll take good care of her."

Hearing this, a name immediately flashed through Fang Cheng's mind.

Takeshi Takeyama didn't give him time to think, saying again, "Your right leg will be severed at the knee."

Fang Cheng's right leg flew off; he collapsed into a pool of blood, raised his remaining left hand, and gave Takeshi Takeyama the middle finger.

"Your left hand will be twisted off at the shoulder."

Fang Cheng's left hand was twisted like a rag, rolling away along with the middle finger.

Lying on the ground as a human torso, Fang Cheng laughed loudly, "Even without my hands and feet, as long as my little friend is still here, I can easily keep your mother happy and satisfied."

Takeshi Takeyama's face turned livid. He had killed many people, but he had never seen anyone with the sheer nerve of Fang Cheng, who could still talk and laugh while being reduced to a torso.

The pain of these severed limbs was real; it was enough to make anyone faint or go insane.

Takeshi Takeyama steadied his emotions and shouted, "Your neck will be severed right down the middle!"

Fang Cheng's neck was instantly sliced through, and his head rolled away.

Looking at the gruesome corpse on the ground, Takeshi Takeyama's tense expression finally relaxed.

"Done..."

He pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat that had involuntarily beaded on his forehead, letting out a soft sigh of relief.

He had only come to kill a high school student who was a bit good at fighting, yet the target had acted like a death-defying lunatic, forcing him to waste far more energy than expected.

After this trip, I'm definitely going to have to ask for a raise.

"Is that it?"

The sudden voice made Takeshi Takeyama stiffen.

He slowly raised his head, his pupils constricting sharply—Fang Cheng was standing there completely unscathed, and the severed limbs and blood on the ground had vanished.

Fang Cheng was also somewhat surprised, as the number in his field of vision remained: 2.

He had been decapitated by Takeshi Takeyama, yet after reviving, his resurrection count hadn't decreased.

This meant... either there was a bug, or everything that just happened was fake, and he hadn't died at all.

To verify his hypothesis, Fang Cheng strode toward Takeshi Takeyama, who was clearly showing a panicked expression: "I thought you were really that badass, but it turns out it was all fake. An illusion? A hallucination? Or hypnosis?"

Takeshi Takeyama snapped out of his shock and roared, "Your legs will be severed! Your heart will be torn to pieces!"

Fang Cheng's legs were sliced off, his body crashing to the ground as the heart within his chest shattered into pieces.

But it was as if time had been hit with a rewind button; the shattered heart mended itself, and the severed legs flew back to reattach.

Fang Cheng had revived once more, yet the resurrection count remained at 2.

Looking at the terrified Takeshi Takeyama, Fang Cheng laughed.

He already understood what was going on.

Takeshi Takeyama's ability must have extremely strict conditions for completion; if those conditions weren't met, Fang Cheng wouldn't truly die, and his destroyed body would simply restore itself.

Even his damaged clothes were returning to their original state—this wasn't something a simple resurrection could achieve.

Seeing Fang Cheng approaching again, Takeshi Takeyama shrieked at the top of his lungs, "Your arms will be cut off, your legs will be twisted off, you will be cut in half!"

His words still held the power of law, and Fang Cheng was easily killed, only to rapidly recover once more.

Amidst the endless cycle of unique deaths and resurrections, Takeshi Takeyama's face grew paler and paler, his sweat pouring down until it nearly soaked through his shirt.

The power behind his words was also unconsciously waning; his arms were only partially severed, and the cut to his waist only went halfway through.

More importantly, the distance between the two had shrunk significantly. Takeshi Takeyama stumbled backward, but Fang Cheng easily caught up to him.

"Don't come any closer!!"

He seemed to have a mental breakdown, screaming at Fang Cheng, who had already reached him: "Why aren't you afraid?! Why aren't you afraid?! Why?!"

With his left arm hanging by a mere strip of skin, Fang Cheng grabbed his own wrist with his right hand, tore the arm off, and swung it like a club.

"Why? Because I'm your daddy!"

His bicep acted like a hammer, slamming heavily into Takeshi Takeyama's face and sending him flying.

The moment he was sent flying, the surrounding darkness receded like a tide.