Luke was stunned when he saw the news. People liked to joke that Kengan Ashura was really the story of the Demon Lance, but Ohma Tokita was still the protagonist.
In the original first part, Ohma Tokita was defeated by the old master, Kuroki Gensai, and ultimately burned out and died on Kengan Island. But he was resurrected in Part Two and still had plenty of scenes afterward.
Luke had loved the manga back then precisely because it was more of an ensemble fighting series. The protagonist's plot armor was not so blatant. In the final match of the first Kengan tournament, Ohma fought Master Kuroki. If he could not win, then he could not win. No last-minute power-up or cheat could change that. It felt real.
And throughout the entire series, Ohma's strength could hardly rank among the top five. Yet even so, he was still the protagonist. How could a protagonist die? Wasn't that why Part Two had practically pulled off a deus ex machina just to revive him?
Then Luke suddenly realized something.
This was a real world, not a manga.
And in the real world, there were no absolute protagonists.
He calmed himself and read through the public channel's discussion, gradually piecing together the circumstances of Ohma's death.
There was no conclusive evidence, but Ohma Tokita had most likely been killed by a Rulebreaker.
He reached that conclusion because the comments from some Explorers in the public channel gave a rough indication of their strength. Those Explorers had been constantly complaining about how difficult this world was. They had not wanted to enter the Kengan world at all.
There were two reasons. First, their attributes did not give them much of an advantage here. After all, this world had plenty of inhuman freaks with utterly ridiculous stats. Second, if their attributes were equal, they would most likely lose to this world's fighters in a barehanded fight.
At first, Luke had found that absurd. How could Explorers lose to ordinary fighters? After all, many ordinary fighters did not even have particularly high attributes.
But after thinking about it a little, he understood. Not everyone had been a martial arts grandmaster before entering Endspace, like him.
First-tier Explorers were people who had not been in Endspace for long. Judging by this world's level, every Explorer who entered it was below Level 7. That meant they had not experienced many worlds yet and had not fully adapted to combat.
And in terms of combat specializations, those ordinary Explorers with no foundation probably had not even reached Expert-Level Martial Arts Mastery by now. How could they possibly be a match for the powerful fighters of this world?
Frankly speaking, some Explorers might be utterly crushed by fighters with lower attributes than their own. The Explorers' advantage was their stats; this world's fighters' advantage was skill.
Luke was different. He had the advantage in stats, and against most fighters, he also had the advantage in technique. That was why he had been able to defeat Raian Kure.
So, could there be someone among these Explorers strong enough to kill Ohma Tokita? Luke would not completely rule it out, but even if such a person existed, he did not think they would kill Ohma at this point.
As the protagonist of Kengan Ashura, Ohma had countless unresolved connections tied to him. Killing him would cause massive plot deviations and make the mission world far more dangerous. Naturally, the person who killed him would be the first to bear the consequences.
That did not fit the usual principles of a first-tier Explorer, nor did it serve their interests. Killing Ohma brought an Explorer no benefit at all.
But Rulebreakers were different. For a Rulebreaker, the muddier the waters, the better.
"Is this supposed to be a provocation...?"
Luke sneered inwardly. "I hope you're someone who can take a cut."
Ohma Tokita's death sounded an alarm for him. The Rulebreaker had already begun moving. With Ohma's death, undercurrents were about to surge.
The Westward Faction, the Worm, and other shadowy forces would surely make their moves. The coming Kengan Annihilation Tournament had become even more unpredictable.
And for Luke, there was an even worse possibility.
The Origin Seed might have been on Ohma Tokita.
If that was the case, the Origin Seed might already be in the Rulebreaker's hands. If the Rulebreaker found somewhere to hide, Luke would be unable to complete either of his missions. All he could do then was wait to die.
Luke pondered for a moment, then decided it probably would not be that bad. Ohma Tokita was too conspicuous a target. Any Explorer near him would have gone to investigate, so the Origin Seed's location would soon become clear. The mission could not be that simple.
No matter what, he had to pick up the pace. He could not remain with the Kure Clan for too long.
Luke looked toward Fusui Kure as she approached him, then rose to his feet. "Let's go. It's time to begin our martial arts exchange."
Fusui blinked, then smiled. "I came to call you for breakfast."
...
"An ordinary person can only exert one-third of the human body's strength. The rest remains dormant within the body. In truth, that is a restriction imposed by the brain to protect the body..."
Inside the training hall, Erioh Kure explained the principles behind the clan's secret technique to Luke. "...Our secret art, Removal, removes that limiter and releases more of the body's strength."
His aged eyes scrutinized Luke from head to toe. "Though you are a once-in-a-millennium genius in martial arts and possess formidable physical strength, learning this secret art should not be difficult for you. But I fear you will not be able to release much of your potential."
"Oh? Why is that? Because I'm not a member of the Kure Clan?"
Luke asked.
Erioh shook his head. "No. The Kure Clan has a long legacy and has continuously married into outside families. There is no such thing as pure blood for us. The ability to use this secret art depends entirely on the bodies we have refined over thirteen hundred years. Our constitutions are stronger and can withstand greater power."
After a moment's thought, Luke understood what the old man meant. From Endspace's perspective, the Kure Clan members all possessed Constitution attributes far higher than their base Strength attributes.
When they used Removal, the limiter in their brains was lifted, releasing more strength. Under normal circumstances, that force would damage their tendons and bones. But because the Kure Clan had gained higher Constitution attributes through generations of bloodline refinement, they could withstand that greater strength.
"So... the reason I can't release more 'strength' is because my body is too balanced?"
Luke summed it up.
Erioh nodded. "Exactly. I can tell that as a martial artist, you have achieved perfect physical balance. Your Strength and Constitution are equal. So even if you use Removal, you cannot release too much more power. Otherwise, your body will collapse first."
Luke understood. In the future, he could consider prioritizing Constitution when allocating attribute points. Strength could be explosively boosted through an ability like Removal.
"Now that you understand the basic principle, do you still want to learn it? If you regret this now, you may choose to keep your own secret technique."
Erioh spoke as he stared straight into Luke's eyes.
Luke grinned. "You underestimate me, sir. Even if I couldn't learn it, I'd still give you what I promised. Besides, I don't believe I'm incapable of learning it."
"Hahaha... I'm beginning to admire you more and more. Perhaps..."
Erioh trailed off, then shook his head. No. No matter what, he would not let his precious great-granddaughter end up with Luke.
Luke did not ask what the old man was thinking. He took out a handwritten manual he had compiled before going to sleep the night before. "The theory and core techniques behind my secret art are all in here. Please take a look. With your insight, I'm sure you'll know I'm not deceiving you. It's genuine."
Erioh took it and gave it a cursory read. A sharp gleam flashed in his aged eyes. "This is the ultimate martial art. I never imagined strength could exist in such a form..."
He solemnly put away the notebook and looked at Luke with a grave expression. "Then I shall begin teaching you how to train in Removal."
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