The Kyogokuya collapsed with a thunderous roar, finally snapping the courtesans and patrons out of their stupor. They fled into the streets, bleeding and screaming. The massive commotion shook the entirety of Yoshiwara, forcing even the most stubborn "thick-headed" individuals to realize that death was at their doorstep.
The sudden, unnatural onset of night had already unsettled many; now, absolute panic boiled over. The crowds scrambled toward the outskirts of Yoshiwara, desperately chasing the natural sunlight beyond the artificial veil.
Lu Li pivoted in mid-air, landing on the roof of a building adjacent to the ruined Kyogokuya. He looked down at the five remaining Explorers and the bifurcated Daki.
"Not bad reaction speed."
Lu Li's gaze fell on Daki. Her comprehensive attributes weren't significantly higher than the deceased Steel Cannon's, yet she had managed to react. It seemed that even an pampered demon like Daki had developed some level of combat instinct over several centuries, making her sharper than an average Tier 1 Explorer.
"Ahhh—it hurts! Damn it!"
Daki shrieked in a high-pitched wail after being cleaved in two. She tried frantically to pull her upper and lower halves together, only to find the wound stubbornly refusing to close.
In the past, she had fought many demon hunters. Even when facing a Hashira, as long as her head wasn't severed, she could easily reconnect limbs or survive a bisection. But this time, for some reason, her regeneration was incredibly sluggish.
"Fuck, there's a smurf on the other team!"
The Explorer who had charged with the tower shield spat out a curse, finally realizing how wrong things had gone.
They had long felt this world was a bit strange. The Terminus Space wouldn't hand out a "welfare world" for free. The Muzan Faction held a massive natural advantage, and with 33 Explorers choosing that side—eleven times the number of the Demon Slayers—it should have been a stomp.
Now it seemed that wasn't the case. While the Demon Slayers only had three Explorers, they likely consisted of "monsters" like the man standing above them.
How many days had passed since the start? He had already mastered Thunder Breathing? And he used it with such proficiency that he cleaved a three-story building in half with one strike!
"Steel Plate, don't back down! Trust your tankiness!"
The white-clad swordsman landed beside the main tank, looking up at Lu Li with a grim expression. "He's only one person, no matter how strong. We have the power of team coordination."
"But he's too fast! My Blood Demon Art can't even lock onto him!"
Mole, the team's mage—a woman with a seductive figure—crawled out from the rubble, her brow furrowed. She thought receiving the demon bloodline meant she was set for a smooth ride in the Hub, but she had immediately hit a brick wall.
Muzan's bloodline was one of the best early-game picks for low-tier mages. High regeneration and resistance drastically increased their survivability, and the attribute boost compensated for the mage's typical physical frailty.
She was a top-tier Tier 1 mage with 30 points in Spirit, the team's primary damage dealer. Yet, she was mortified to find that her spells simply couldn't touch Lu Li.
"Brother Yu, Thunder Breathing is a hard counter for us. It's too difficult to track him," the sniper added from a distance, his voice tense.
"It's fine. Steel Plate, support me. We'll pin him down, then the rest of you unleash everything," the swordsman, Brother Yu, said as his aura surged. Beneath the moonlight, the numbers in his pupils glowed: [Upper Rank 9].
"So, it's just the five of you left," Lu Li remarked with a hint of disappointment after sensing the surroundings.
Following his opening move, the crowds had fled to the outskirts; there were hardly any humans left in the vicinity.
Though he had sliced the Kyogokuya in half, he had used his perception to deliberately avoid the civilians inside. Since it was a wooden structure, it didn't collapse into a solid mass of stone; there were plenty of air pockets, and while injuries were inevitable, no one had been crushed to death yet.
At that moment, several figures scrambled out of the broken windows and bolted toward the exit without needing a second warning.
"Well then, the stage is cleared. Time to start the harvest."
Lu Li stood atop the roof, the moonlight illuminating his silhouette. His Zanpakuto hummed softly. A purple-black mist began to seep out, and chains coiled around his right arm like aggressive vines. [Shikai] was active.
To the Explorers below, Lu Li's presence suddenly seemed to grow. A mountain of pressure crashed down on them; an invisible, murderous aura made their legs tremble involuntarily.
"The level gap is too wide..." the sniper stammered. He was certain that this man had been a killer long before entering the Space. His combat proficiency level was high, and his aura was fundamentally different from theirs.
Even with the bloodline attribute boost, they couldn't suppress this man. They thought they were hunters waiting for a rabbit, only to find a tiger had walked into their trap.
"What is happening? I was cut, but why can't I heal?!"
Daki also felt the crushing pressure radiating from Lu Li. Her voice was sharp with a hint of newfound terror. She no longer cared that these "New Moons" had intruded on her turf; she just wanted this man dead so the feeling of impending doom would vanish.
"Brother! Someone's bullying me!—"
She cried out in a spoiled, wailing tone. Suddenly, a lump bulged from her back, and a second demon manifested from her body.
Unlike his sister's breathtaking beauty, the brother—Gyutaro—was hideous.
His sclera were yellow, and the characters for 'Upper Rank' and 'Six' were etched into his irises. His hair was a mottled black and green, and his shallow-grey, shirtless torso was hunched. Red-and-black sashes were wrapped around his spindly arms.
Lu Li used his [Reconnaissance] skill and received Gyutaro's detailed status:
[Twelve Kizuki: Upper Rank 6 - Gyutaro]
Constitution: 36
Strength: 33
Agility: 33
Spirit: 20
Charm: 2
[Note: Because your Spirit is significantly higher than the target's, you have obtained partial details on skills and bloodline.]
High-Grade Eater Demon Bloodline: Grants extreme physical regeneration. Unless decapitated by a solar-aligned power or exposed to sunlight, the user can regenerate from any physical trauma almost instantly.
Blood Demon Art: Flying Blood Sickles: Gyutaro can transform his own blood into razor-sharp, poisoned blades. They can be fired and redirected mid-flight by his will.
Blood Demon Art: Rampant Arc Weaving: A circular defensive technique using blood slashes to deflect large-scale attacks.
Lu Li scanned the panel and understood why the Upper Moons had survived for centuries. Gyutaro alone had killed fifteen Hashira.
The Upper Moons' base numbers were simply too high. Combined with refined Blood Demon Arts and centuries of combat experience, ordinary Hashira were simply no match for them.
The Hashira who successfully killed Upper Moons in the original story were genuine miracles. They had developed their human bodies to the absolute limit using Breathing Styles, and through Total Concentration: Constant, their burst attributes could briefly rival those of the demons.
But with the exception of the Stone Hashira, most of them—at their absolute peak—could only touch the numerical floor of Upper Rank 4. The rest of the gap had to be closed through teamwork and specialized techniques.
Lu Li's comprehensive attributes before entering the world were already around 27. His highest stat, Constitution, was 31 with his titles, and his Spirit was 30.
Strictly in terms of raw numbers, with Qiu Mo's Shikai active, he wasn't that far behind Gyutaro.
"Don't cry. You have such a pretty face; it would be a waste to ruin it with tears."
Gyutaro detached himself from Daki. His raspy voice was lazy as he stroked his sister's cheek. "It's just a bisection. Just put it back together."
"But Brother, it's so hard to reconnect..." Daki sobbed. "I worked really hard while you were away! But this guy came here early this morning to bully me and cut me like this!"
Gyutaro patted her back, channeling his own power to help her mend her torso. Then, he looked up at Lu Li. "You're pretty capable, aren't you? Wounding my sister while surrounded by all these people..."
His raspy tone was dead flat. "...My empty-headed sister really received a lot of 'care' from you."
"Brother, it hurts so much... even after putting it back, it still hurts." Daki wiped her tears, whether out of genuine pain or a desire for attention.
"Yes, yes... it truly is an unforgivable sin..."
Gyutaro's voice rose in pitch, his murderous intent climbing alongside it. He locked onto Lu Li. "Everyone who bullies my sister... I will kill them all."
Invisible killing intent clashed in the air. Lu Li watched the crowds disappearing in the distance and bared his white teeth.
"Is that so? Then let me 'bully' her a bit more..."
With a crackle of lightning, roof tiles shattered and flew behind Lu Li as he lunged.
A god-speed strike, buffed by Thunder Breathing, aimed straight for Daki's slender, pale neck!
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