Inside the cafe, Oda Takikage lowered the reading glasses on the bridge of his nose and glanced at Xia Pingzhou across the counter.
He then slowly lowered his head to read the newspaper, speaking in a warm, deep voice:
"Tonight, the remaining three members will arrive in Tokyo. If you want to find someone to spar with, you can look for Number 5. Her name is Lan Duo Duo... she is relatively soft-hearted."
"No," Ji Minghuan shook his head, cutting him off. "I only want to spar with you. Forget about the other members."
According to the official data provided by Sakura Bud, Member No. 4 of the brigade, Oda Takikage, was classified as a Dragon-tier peak Esper.
The Japanese authorities might have some margin of error in estimating the strength of the other members, but Ayase Origami and Oda Takikage were individuals who had fled from a yakuza family. The Japanese government's understanding of them was undoubtedly far superior to their knowledge of the rest.
Even if there were discrepancies, they would not be far from their true strength.
Therefore, Ji Minghuan wanted to try fighting the Dragon-tier peak Oda Takikage...
To see with his own eyes exactly how vast the gap was between them.
There was another reason as well. Although Oda Takikage appeared tall, bulky, and heavily built, he was the type of enemy that Host Body Two struggled with the most: a speed-type ability user.
"Apologies, but I still have no desire to exchange blows with you. I do enough fighting and killing on a regular basis, it's rare to have some downtime..."
Oda Takikage kept his eyes lowered on the newspaper, his voice earnest and calm. "Number 12, why don't you calm your mind as well, sit down, and drink some coffee? You don't need to worry about the auction house operation. We will take responsibility for killing them all."
Despite claiming to be weary of slaughter, Oda Takikage was completely unruffled when he uttered the words "killing them all". To this ninja butler, taking a life was like clocking in for work—he couldn't be bothered to do it, but he was accustomed to the routine.
"Kitten, you're hissing."
Ayase Origami spoke indifferently, withdrawing her gaze from Xia Pingzhou's face to continue reading her Haiku Collection "Four-Leaf Clover".
Seeing that Oda Takikage remained unmoved, Ji Minghuan turned his head and looked at Ayase Origami with a blank expression. He stated solemnly:
"Not only is the kitten hissing, but he is also running away from home."
Pausing for a moment, he added, "I might as well go follow that long-lived Vampire Old Lady."
Ayase Origami looked up from her haiku collection and stared motionless at Ji Minghuan, just watching him for a while.
Her eyes were indifferent and hollow, giving off the same eerie feeling as a traditional Japanese doll sitting on a shelf in the dead of night. However, Ji Minghuan remained completely unfazed, quietly returning her gaze.
A moment later, Ayase Origami lowered her eyes back to the haiku collection and, without lifting her head, spoke to Oda Takikage:
"Takikage, be a cat teaser wand for a bit."
Although it was a distinctly vague phrase, Oda Takikage instantly understood the Yakuza Young Mistress's meaning. Without hesitating for even half a second, he slowly set his newspaper down on the table.
"Understood, Young Mistress," he replied in a flat tone.
"It isn't quite appropriate to exchange blows here. We can find a secluded, abandoned building nearby."
Ji Minghuan spoke without looking back, stepping out of the quiet cafe first. The bright sunshine rushed against his face, carrying the summer heat and causing a momentary daze.
Ten minutes later.
Ji Minghuan and Ayase Origami arrived near Tokyo Bay at a building whose construction had been halted halfway due to uncontrollable circumstances, and ascended to its top floor.
Last night, this was the exact spot where the legendary bandaged man fought a grueling battle against the terrifying clock tower figure. As a result, one could see that the already messy abandoned building had suffered even further, its walls riddled with horrifying craters.
It must have been an evenly matched battle.
Among them was a massive human-shaped crater, as if someone had been forcefully hammered into the wall like a nail. Just looking at the lingering scars on the building was enough to make one gasp in shock. One did not even need to think to know just how intense the battle had been.
Ayase Origami cast a sweeping glance over these marks, though she did not pay them much mind.
"Where is he?" Ji Minghuan asked aloud.
Too lazy to answer, Ayase Origami simply threw a glance at the ground not far away.
Immediately after, a puddle-like shadow drifted over from that spot, and a giant-like silhouette slowly surfaced from within the darkness.
By this time, Oda Takikage had changed into his pitch-black masked ninja attire, carrying a sword hilt on his back. His exposed eyes were sharp and frigid; compared to the earnest older gentleman in the cafe, it was as if he were an entirely different person.
"Young Mistress, it seems someone fought here," Oda Takikage said, turning his head to survey their surroundings.
"It doesn't matter. It won't affect anything."
Saying this, Ayase Origami raised her hand. Sketchbook pages shot out from the cuffs of her ochre-red kimono, sealing all the windows in the blink of an eye. This ensured they would not cause too much of a commotion, but it also instantly plunged their surroundings into darkness.
In the pitch-black environment where one could not even see their own fingers, Ji Minghuan and Oda Takikage locked eyes from dozens of meters apart.
Inside this abandoned building, a major ethical incident involving a "father viciously beating his son" had just occurred last night. If this place accidentally devolved into a large-scale "cat abuse scene" today, the sight would be simply too tragic to bear.
If both host bodies were damaged here, it would thoroughly prove that this location was an ominous place, making it unsuitable to ever set foot in again.
At this thought, Ji Minghuan suddenly turned his head to look at the gaping holes left on the walls. A moment later, he turned back to meet Oda Takikage's gaze.
As if viewing Oda Takikage as Ghost Bell and turning his grief and indignation into fighting spirit, his expression turned icy. He took a step forward.
Amidst the distinct sound of footsteps, a Celestial Drive was unleashed from Xia Pingzhou's body.
Black and white halos swirled around him, forming a Möbius strip. Along the ring, chess shadows orbited him like satellites, emitting a faint glow that illuminated their surroundings like fireflies.
At the same time, a perspective akin to a chess player looking down at a chessboard appeared in Ji Minghuan's mind.
This overhead view allowed him to clearly see everything within a thirty-five-meter radius centered on himself. As Host Body Two's mental attributes increased, the range of the "chessboard" seemed to have faintly expanded as well.
Oda Takikage remained unmoved, standing silently in place like a statue, seemingly wanting to let the newcomer make the first move.
Extending his right arm, Ji Minghuan raised his hand to touch the chess shadows on the black and white ring.
Immediately after, one chess piece after another was fully summoned, standing around him like a formidable legion, while he was the commanding general upon the battlefield, exuberant and bold.
Two Rook chess pieces, three Ironclad Soldiers, one Queen Colossus, and one King Colossus—this was the entirety of the combat power currently at Xia Pingzhou's disposal.
The three Ironclad Soldiers wielded greatshields and tightly gripped longswords, forming an imposing human barricade at the forefront.
The two black iron Rook chess pieces loaded their ammunition with a mechanical "Clack-clack", sparks sputtering from their muzzles.
In the darkness, the King Colossus held high the scepter that symbolized authority. A layer of interlaced black and white halos flowed from the scepter, forming a barrier that enveloped Xia Pingzhou within it.
The Queen stone statue held a short dagger in its left hand and a long dagger in its right. It silently glared at Oda Takikage in the darkness, eerie blue flames burning within its slender eye sockets.
Right at this moment, Ayase Origami, acting as a bystander, suddenly spoke.
"The chess pieces," Ayase Origami asked concisely. "Why are they different from last time?"
She could tell that compared to the last time she saw Ji Minghuan use his ability, the scene presented before her eyes had many differences. Furthermore, these were not subtle, hard-to-detect changes, but obvious things that could be noticed at a single glance:
First was the quantity. The number of soldier pieces had changed from one to three, and there was an extra Rook chess piece.
Second was the appearance. Every Ironclad Soldier's left arm was now equipped with an enormous shield.
Taking advantage of the fact that the fight had not officially begun, Ji Minghuan unhurriedly explained to the Young Mistress:
"My Celestial Drive can be upgraded by killing people. That day when we went to the amusement park to meet the Blood Progenitor, she yielded the nine Commander-tier Espers she had captured to me. After killing those Espers, my Celestial Drive underwent an evolution."
After a moment of silence, Ayase Origami suddenly said, "Next time, you are not allowed to look for that Vampire Old Lady. Look for me."
Expressionless, she emphasized each word clearly:
"My cat, I raise."
Hearing this, Ji Minghuan stared at Oda Takikage, and without turning his head, let out an icy cry:
"Meow."
He did not know if he had read too much of Natsume Soseki's "I Am a Cat" or if he had simply been beaten stupid by his old man right here last night, but Ji Minghuan realized that this time, he genuinely wanted to meow from the bottom of his heart.
'Clinging to someone's coattails is truly a joy,' he thought. 'Who would want to tangle with those two Calamity-Tier overlords, Ghost Bell and Blue Arc? Whoever likes it can go play house with them.'
He was constantly getting pinned against the wall and viciously beaten by that stubborn donkey of an old man, experiencing the taste of an iron fist from a father, all as if to make up for the fatherly love missing over the last eight years.
Make up for it, my ass!
It was honestly much more enjoyable to act as the favored little kitten of a ruthless Yakuza Young Mistress who could kill without batting an eyelid.
Of course... in another month's time, this little kitten was going to transform into a fierce tiger.
"Good kitten," Ayase Origami said.
At this moment, the distant Oda Takikage did not speak.
It was also his first time seeing Xia Pingzhou's Celestial Drive. Upon seeing the series of colossuses surrounding the boy, a flash of astonishment inevitably crossed his eyes, and his expression unconsciously grew grave.
After a long while, Oda Takikage sighed in lament, "So that is how it is... Such a uniquely functioning Celestial Drive, and a rare Evolving Celestial Drive at that. Just like Miss Ripper. No wonder... the commander allowed you to join the brigade."
Before this, he seemed to have consistently underestimated this boy. He felt that the aura exuding from him was completely different from the rest of the brigade, as if a kitten had wandered into a pride of lions.
But now, he realized he had been wrong...
Perhaps, this boy was an absolute monster through and through.
Oda Takikage stated profoundly, "If you were not a member of the brigade, speaking from personal experience, I might have considered smothering you in the cradle to prevent you from growing up and posing a threat to the Young Mistress."
"What a pity then," Ji Minghuan said expressionlessly. "Members are strictly forbidden from killing one another. Naturally, a sparring match like this shouldn't be a problem."
He understood clearly in his heart that with Ayase Origami acting as a referee on the side, the kimono-wearing Young Mistress would use her abilities to prevent their sparring match from becoming life-threatening if necessary.
A Near-Calamity Tier referee could not possibly fail and watch her own kitten get decapitated by a ninja, right?
Because of this, Ji Minghuan could fight Oda Takikage with peace of mind, without fearing that he might violate the brigade's rules.
"Indeed... I am quite fortunate that a young man with such potential is one of our own."
Pausing, Oda Takikage slowly drew the long saber from his back, meeting Xia Pingzhou's gaze. "Number 12, you want to know just how strong your Celestial Drive has become after its evolution. That is why you are so eager to spar with me, correct?"
"Correct."
"Then I... am honored to be your opponent."
The moment his words fell, Oda Takikage's figure merged into the shadows beneath his feet, vanishing in the blink of an eye.