The ghoul with the clown mask slowly retreated, his eyes full of menace, clearly confident in the power of the Tsukiyama family name.
Su Xiao knew a bit about the Tsukiyama family. They held significant influence in both political and business circles, with extensive connections and resources.
For most people, the Tsukiyama family might be intimidating, but would Su Xiao care about something like that? He wouldn't hesitate to kill even Tsukiyama Shuu, the heir to the family, let alone the ghoul standing before him.
Moreover, the most terrifying force in the world of ghouls was the CCG, the organization Su Xiao belonged to, though not many knew the true extent of their power.
"The Tsukiyama family, truly terrifying," Su Xiao mocked, his tone light as he approached the ghoul, katana in hand.
The clown ghoul tensed up, realizing the situation.
"I'll give you 1 billion yen, just let me go," the ghoul offered.
The Tsukiyama family indeed lived up to their wealthy reputation, offering a huge sum of money in desperation.
Su Xiao continued to advance, ignoring the offer. The clown ghoul wasn't stupid and quickly realized Su Xiao had no intention of sparing him.
"If I survive today, I swear my family will hunt you down until you're begging for death!" the clown ghoul threatened, his kagune—tail-like and red—emerging.
It was a bikaku, thick as a thigh, though not very long.
Bikaku type ghouls were generally well-balanced in physical attributes but lacked explosive power, with a particular emphasis on leg strength.
The clown ghoul clenched his fists and assumed a fighting stance.
Bikaku-type ghouls were often skilled in close combat, but this clown clearly wasn't one of them. He looked like a spoiled rich kid, inexperienced in battle. His eyes constantly darting around showed his inability to focus.
Su Xiao decided to finish this fight in under a minute—there were tougher enemies waiting.
In the auction hall, most of the fleeing ghouls had stopped and were now glaring at Su Xiao, their eyes filled with killing intent.
Tapping the ground with his katana to distract the clown ghoul, Su Xiao suddenly dashed forward without warning.
The ghoul froze, momentarily paralyzed by fear.
A flash of the blade appeared before the clown ghoul's eyes, and he instinctively used his kagune to block, but Su Xiao had only feigned the attack. Using his free hand, he punched the ghoul hard in the stomach.
The ghoul doubled over in pain, letting out a strange cry.
"Ugh~."
To Su Xiao's surprise, the ghoul started crying. Had his punch really made the ghoul cry? What a pampered child. Su Xiao wondered how this guy had even become an S-rank ghoul.
But Su Xiao showed no mercy. He followed up with a brutal kick to the ghoul's leg.
"Crack."
The sound of bones snapping echoed as the ghoul's shinbone broke through the skin.
"Ahhh!!"
A scream that sounded almost feminine filled the air as the ghoul, terrified out of his wits, tried to hobble away.
But escaping was impossible—the auction hall had been sealed off. Running during a fight only invited death.
"Thud."
Su Xiao's sword pierced the clown ghoul's back, ending his escape.
The clown's mask fell, revealing a handsome but twisted face.
"I don't want to die. I still have so much money..."
With a final thud, the ghoul collapsed, dead. There was no loot drop, not even a treasure chest.
Considering how weak the ghoul had been, it made sense there was no reward. Su Xiao doubted this guy could even beat a seasoned B-rank ghoul.
Su Xiao withdrew his blade, flicking off the blood, and removed his night-vision goggles.
The auction hall was in chaos, lit by the flames from chairs some ghouls had set on fire, creating a bonfire.
Turning around, Su Xiao set his sights on the group of ghouls that had gathered together.
"Now, let's have some real fun," he said with a grin, a red glint flashing in his dark eyes under the firelight.
There were about a hundred ghouls in the room. Most were B-rank, with over twenty A-ranks. If they attacked all at once, even Su Xiao could be in danger of dying.
"Kill him! Even if we can't escape today, we can at least drag him down with us."
"Yeah, this whole thing is his scheme!"
The hundred or so ghouls' eyes turned blood-red, their kagune appearing.
Ukaku-type, Koukaku-type, Rinkaku-type, Bikaku-type—their varieties were all on display.
There were many ways Su Xiao could eliminate them, but those methods would take too much time and effort, and wouldn't yield many contribution points.
The CCG agents outside could rush in to support him at any moment. Such an opportunity was rare.
He wanted to test his limits.
"Enough talking. If you want to fight, let's fight to the death. If you kill me, maybe you'll have a chance to live."
The sight of over a hundred ghouls revealing their kagune was a terrifying scene.
"Get him! Kill him!" someone shouted, and all the ghouls charged at once.
Su Xiao took a deep breath and charged into the crowd.
"Clang!"
His first swing cleaved a ghoul in half at the waist. Su Xiao plunged into the mass of enemies.
Activating Azure Steel Shadow, Su Xiao used his sword techniques to their fullest extent, fighting with everything he had.
His blade, now coated with a faint blue energy, crackled with arcs of electricity, making the already razor-sharp weapon even deadlier.
"Slash, slash, slash!"
Three heads flew through the air as Su Xiao cut down three ghouls in quick succession.
His eyes, glowing faintly red, locked onto another ghoul, who froze in terror.
A swift slash to the throat, and Su Xiao moved on to the next target.
Suddenly, a heavy blow struck him from behind, causing him to stumble forward.
Su Xiao couldn't identify which ghoul had hit him, though he had sensed the attack. But with so many enemies, he couldn't avoid every strike.
Blood oozed from a wound on his back as he tore off his already tattered shirt.
The attack had cost him 6% of his health—not a serious injury.
Surrounded by ghouls, Su Xiao dodged most attacks, only taking hits when there was no way to avoid them.
His agility was at 13 points. Agility didn't just increase speed—it also boosted reflexes.
Despite his injuries, the ghouls suffered far worse. Any who came within range of his blade were either killed or maimed.
Under the weight of fear, the ghouls became hysterical.
"I smell human blood! He's human! His stamina will run out eventually!"
"He's injured again! Don't give up!"
The ghouls had formed an impromptu alliance during the fight.
Su Xiao barely dodged a Bikaku-type kagune, grabbing a nearby ghoul by the throat. With a crack, his 13-point strength snapped the ghoul's neck.
He used the ghoul's body as a temporary shield as he continued to fight the rest.
Three minutes later, 70 ghouls remained. Su Xiao's health was at 72%.
Five minutes later, 40 ghouls remained. His health was at 46%.
After ten minutes, only 10 ghouls were left, and Su Xiao's health had dropped to 28%.
Breathing heavily, blood dripped from Su Xiao's mouth. Fighting off over a hundred ghouls was entirely different from battling a single SSS-rank ghoul.
With so many enemies, blind spots would appear, and he had to rely on his instincts and hearing to evade attacks.
If the ghouls had not all attacked head-on, Su Xiao wouldn't have been in such a dire state. There had been moments when he was on the brink of death.
That's how battles were—the smallest difference could mean life or death.
This was Su Xiao's first time fighting such a large group, and he lacked experience. But it felt incredibly rewarding to grow and learn during the fight.
The remaining ghouls looked at Su Xiao with terror in their eyes.
"N-no, stay away! We surrender!"
The ghouls were so terrified they actually wanted to surrender.
But at this point, there was no chance of surrender. This was a fight to the death—either they died, or Su Xiao did.
Raising his blade, Su Xiao charged at the ghouls. A flurry of screams and the sound of flesh being cut filled the room, until finally, the auction hall fell silent.
(End of Chapter)
*********************************
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.