The sudden appearance of several figures made Su Xiao halt his actions. He had been searching for the "kakuhou" (the organ that stores a ghoul's power) inside Rize's body for a while but had not found it.
Su Xiao withdrew his left hand from Rize's abdomen, causing her to visibly tremble as she lay flat on the ground, looking a bit broken and defeated. If Rize managed to escape, Su Xiao would likely haunt her memories as a nightmare.
"Aogiri Tree."
The newcomers were no small fry. Based on Su Xiao's memory, the small figure wrapped in bandages was none other than Eto Yoshimura, the leader of the Aogiri Tree, also known as the One-Eyed Owl.
Eto Yoshimura usually disguised herself as Takatsuki Sen, a novelist living among humans. As one of the few half-ghouls in the world, her strength was undeniable. Although not at the very top of the SSS-rated ghouls, she was still a formidable force.
The others standing by her included the SS-rated ghoul Tatara, the SS-rated ghoul Noro, and the S-rated ghoul Ayato Kirishima.
Tatara, wearing a red mask and a white coat, had his face half-covered, making his appearance hard to discern. Noro, on the other hand, was completely wrapped up except for his hands. Ayato Kirishima wore a mask as well, his red eyes staring defiantly at Su Xiao.
Their goal was obvious: to capture Rize Kamishiro. The previous appearance of Yamori was also for the purpose of capturing Rize.
"Let her go, or die."
Tatara's voice was calm, without any hint of threat, but his Kagune had already emerged.
Yamori's headless corpse was still lying nearby, and although none of them feared Su Xiao, they also didn't underestimate him. After all, Su Xiao had defeated two S-rated ghouls, showing his strength. However, they also suspected that perhaps Yamori and Rize had severely weakened each other, and Su Xiao had only taken advantage of the situation.
"Looks like I'm in for some luck today." Su Xiao said as he wiped the blood from his left hand on Rize's clothes, ignoring her now.
Before extracting her kakuhou, Su Xiao couldn't let Rize die, or the world's storyline might deviate, and the consequences could be unpredictable. He didn't want to take that risk.
This was something Reincarnation Paradise had clearly warned him about earlier.
Standing before him were one SSS-rated ghoul and two SS-rated ghouls. Su Xiao could feel the pressure. As for Ayato Kirishima, the S-rated ghoul, he was of little concern to Su Xiao.
Su Xiao was confident he could easily defeat S-rated ghouls now. As for SS-rated ones, he believed he could handle them, too. The true test lay with the SSS-rated ghoul, whom he had never fought before, so he couldn't draw any conclusions.
Whether or not he could defeat these foes required a real fight to determine.
Even if he wasn't their match, Su Xiao was confident he could escape. He knew they couldn't catch him.
Dragon Slayer pointed diagonally at the ground as Su Xiao slowly advanced toward the members of Aogiri Tree.
From a distance, the other Contractors had only one thought: Su Xiao was insane.
Facing the top-tier ghouls of this world, including the powerful Eto Yoshimura, Su Xiao intended to fight head-on? And with multiple ghouls present?
The Contractors didn't wait any longer. They scattered and fled in all directions, unwilling to risk their lives by staying to watch. If Su Xiao lost, they would die. Even if he won, the danger wouldn't be over.
The Aogiri Tree members noticed the fleeing Contractors but paid them no mind after a brief glance.
"Ayato, kill him."
Tatara's position within Aogiri Tree was higher, so he directly ordered Ayato to kill Su Xiao.
As a rebellious teenager, Ayato didn't openly defy Tatara's order, but he did give a disdainful snort, showing his displeasure.
"Human, I'm in a good mood today, so I'll give you a chance to walk away." Ayato said arrogantly.
Although the group had sensed that Su Xiao's strength might be considerable, they didn't think too much of it.
The main reason was that Su Xiao wasn't holding a quinque, the primary weapon used by CCG investigators to fight ghouls. Instead, he wielded a long sword.
Without saying a word, Su Xiao continued walking forward, unconcerned by their underestimation of him. In fact, he considered it an advantage.
"Tch, if you want to die, I'll send you on your way." Ayato scoffed as his Kagune appeared. From the left side of his back, a wing-shaped, irregularly shaped Kagune spread out. This was his ukaku-type Kagune.
Ukaku ghouls, known for their speed, explosive power, and ranged attack capabilities, had a major weakness: they lacked endurance. If they couldn't finish a fight quickly, they tended to lose.
Ayato wasn't dumb, though. He knew Su Xiao excelled in close combat, so he kept his distance.
His Kagune flared, and numerous red, diamond-shaped crystals shot toward Su Xiao with great speed.
A whistling sound filled the air as the projectiles zoomed toward Su Xiao, showing their deadly force.
Su Xiao stopped walking, his black eyes fixed on the incoming red crystals. With his heightened agility, his dynamic vision had significantly improved.
His sword moved in a blur, leaving white streaks in the air.
"Clang, clang, clang!"
Every red crystal that neared him was shattered, turning into a cloud of fragments.
Ayato was startled, surprised that Su Xiao had so easily neutralized his attack.
In that split second of Ayato's shock, Su Xiao accelerated, closing the distance in just a few strides.
"He's fast!" Ayato's pupils shrank as he instinctively tried to jump back, but his feet hadn't even left the ground yet.
Could someone escape after letting Su Xiao get so close? Absolutely not.
Su Xiao took a small hop forward, kicking Ayato's shin with precise force. A loud crack echoed as Ayato's shinbone snapped backward into a V-shape, with the broken bone piercing through his skin.
A scream of agony erupted from Ayato as his attempt to retreat was interrupted. He stumbled backward in pain.
A grin spread across Su Xiao's face as he mercilessly swung his blade toward Ayato's throat.
This was Su Xiao's fighting style: if he struck, he aimed to kill.
Before the blade could connect, Ayato felt a sharp sting in his neck, knowing that if the strike landed, it would be fatal.
Ayato deeply regretted his earlier recklessness. He had been too rash, underestimating this unknown enemy.
Just as Ayato was about to lose his life, a large Kagune blocked the attack.
The Kagune was massive, with fang-like bone structures at its tip—it belonged to Noro.
Su Xiao's strike was not so easily deflected. Noro's Kagune was sliced in half, and Dragon Slayer deeply embedded itself in the Kagune.
However, the resistance felt strange, like cutting through thick rubber, reducing the damage done.
Su Xiao's Azure Steel Shadow activated, and blue energy surged into Noro's Kagune, causing Noro to grunt and immediately retract it.
Su Xiao knew a bit about Noro. This ghoul was incredibly powerful, with body tissues similar to those of Kagune, giving him near-immortal regenerative abilities.
Ayato, now gasping for breath after escaping death, was filled with terror. He had thought he was doomed when Su Xiao had swung at him.
Now, no one dared underestimate Su Xiao. Tatara and the others moved in, forming a circle around him.
(End of Chapter)
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Translator's Note :- I am Not that familiar with a lot of the fictional worlds mentioned in the story. So if I make a mistake naming something please correct me by writing a paragraph comment on the mistake. Thank you.