Ryusho Ryusaki, currently 32 years old and unmarried.
He stands at one meter eighty-one and weighs eighty-five kilograms, currently in the prime of his life.
Not only is he unmarried, but he has never touched a woman.
He has truly exemplified the saying, "With no women in his heart, his sword naturally becomes divine!"
His mother was a dancer in the East.
His father was a boxing champion from America.
His father met his mother one night while visiting the East for a competition and exploring the nightlife.
That night, a thousand trees bloomed like a sudden spring breeze.
Ten months after his father left, Ryusaki Ryusaki, a product of East and West, was born.
At the age of four, he was accidentally discovered by a reclusive master who, astonished, declared, "Young man, I see you have peculiar bones and extraordinary talent. You are a rare martial arts prodigy, come with me."
And so.
The master, without notifying Ryusaki's mother, scooped him up from the street and vanished.
This master was Toriki Hachiman Gi, a figure of some repute in the East.
To train Ryusaki, Toriki Hachiman Gi found no less than thirty hidden masters from both East and West!
By the time Ryusaki was thirteen, Toriki Hachiman Gi had changed his prey from dogs, wolves, and even leopards, to humans.
The first person Ryusaki Ryusaki killed was a beautiful woman in her thirties.
This woman, fourteen years prior, had once experienced a sudden spring breeze with a certain American boxing champion.
Toriki Hachiman Gi made it very clear that to cultivate Ryusaki into the world's top martial arts master, all familial bonds must be severed!
He said it, and he acted upon it.
And Ryusaki's performance also satisfied him.
From the moment Ryusaki Ryusaki's gaze turned cold, and his hand, without the slightest tremor, cleaved the head of the woman in her thirties; no one, no force, could stop his march towards martial arts supremacy!
It has been exactly 19 years, 228 months, since he first killed a person.
In the past 288 months, one person has died at the hands of Ryusaki Ryusaki every month.
Killing one person per month—
This ensured Ryusaki Ryusaki's state was always at its best!!
Among those he killed were men and women, old and young.
Some he knew, while others were strangers he encountered during his travels around the world.
In short.
Ryusaki Ryusaki had to kill at least one person every month.
22 years ago, Li Xiao founded Longxu, one of the world's four major powers.
That year, Ryusaki Ryusaki was just ten years old.
No matter how formidable a ten-year-old child might be, he could not contend with Li Xiao; this was a certainty.
Therefore, the person Ryusaki Ryusaki hated the most was his mother!
If—
His mother had given birth to him more than twenty years earlier, how could Longxu possibly exist in this world?
The Li Xiao, who was now so widely praised, would have long since met his demise by Ryusaki's blade!
Ryusaki Ryusaki had no doubt about the outcome of this hypothetical scenario.
He was only consumed by the pain of hating his mother, almost irrecoverably.
He had considered storming Longxu alone, challenging Li Xiao to a duel to the death.
But Toriki Hachiman Gi did not allow him to do so.
The reason was simple—
If Ryusaki Ryusaki were to kill Li Xiao with a single blow, Longxu would undoubtedly launch the most vicious and bloody retaliation against the killer, especially those who trained Ryusaki.
"Child, you are destined for great things. I believe one day you will become the most dazzling person in the world. What you are doing now is simply waiting for the perfect opportunity to soar to prominence. Whether the global four-major-power structure can be shattered, becoming three global powers; or even five global powers, rests on your shoulders."
These earnest words, Toriki Hachiman Gi repeated to Ryusaki Ryusaki every month.
He remembered them well and never forgot them!
Finally.
Ryusaki Ryusaki welcomed the perfect opportunity to truly shine.
And so he came to Modu.
He would participate in a three-nation arena match, representing the East as a Judo master, alongside participants from the East, the East, and Hanseong.
Eastern Judo, Eastern martial arts (San Da), and Hanseong Taekwondo would clash on this stage.
While called a three-nation arena match.
In reality, this arena match, organized by a civilian entity, allowed contestants of any nationality (regardless of gender or age) to compete for the ultimate championship.
Let alone the prize money for the championship, just the appearance fee for the preliminary rounds would make impoverished individuals like Li Nanfang's ilk eager.
And the organizers' means of profit would naturally be the external broadcast rights.
Additionally.
Due to certain irresistible reasons, the tournaments from the top eight onwards would be relocated to Bangkok.
After all, the East would never permit bloody scenes where participants did not advance unless they died in the arena.
However, in Bangkok, such non-advancement-unless-dead matches were commonplace.
Enough preamble—
The old man in the duck-billed cap's eyes suddenly lit up after hearing Ryusaki Ryusaki speak.
He felt that Ryusaki Ryusaki was bragging a bit.
Yet, he also felt that Ryusaki Ryusaki might indeed possess such formidable combat prowess!
The old man in the duck-billed cap was silent for a long time before saying, "You cannot kill Li Qianfan. If he were to truly perish by your hand, our entire plan would be thrown into utter disarray."
Ryusaki Ryusaki coldly replied, "Then send someone else to face Li Qianfan."
The old man in the duck-billed cap asked, confused, "Why?"
Ryusaki Ryusaki replied indifferently, "When I make a move, someone will die. This is my rule, and natural law! I cannot violate my own rules, nor can I defy the laws of nature."
Huh?
The old man in the duck-billed cap was somewhat dumbfounded.
If Ryusaki Ryusaki did not participate, who among the people sent by the East, Hanseong, and the Island Province would have the capability to ambush Li Qianfan under the guise of the arena match?
After all, not everyone could, while desperately fighting Li Qianfan in the arena, also use the entanglement to precisely insert a specially prepared hollow steel needle into his spine and extract his spinal cord!
It was only by obtaining a biopsy of Li Qianfan's spinal cord that a significant task could be accomplished.
Firstly.
Li Qianfan's biopsied spinal cord could be sold to International Ruixue at an astronomical price.
Secondly.
Southeast Asian dark arts could be used to modify the original 209 within Li Qianfan's spinal cord.
Lastly.
Li Qianfan's biopsied spinal cord could be utilized in a certain formation, offering hope to break through the "Four Phoenixes Circling the Pillar" scenario!!
To put it bluntly, Li Qianfan's biopsied spinal cord was of utmost importance to the three regions.
Especially since Li Qianfan's original 209 would be most active during his fights in the arena.
For these three reasons, the three regions were willing to pay any price.
To this end.
Miss Cai did not hesitate to activate the important hidden chess pieces of Modu's Ma family and Siji's Yao family.
Yet—
Ryusaki Ryusaki, on whom great hopes were pinned, refused to violate his self-imposed rule: "If I'm not allowed to kill Li Qianfan, I won't participate!"
The old man in the duck-billed cap tried his best to persuade him for a long time.
Ryusaki Ryusaki remained unmoved.
"Alas, it seems we can only wait until Toriki Hachiman Gi finishes the top-secret meeting he is currently attending, and then ask him to reason with Ryusaki Ryusaki. Hmph, these truly top-tier masters are too arrogant and disregard the bigger picture."
Seeing that it was getting late and the old man in the duck-billed cap also wanted to go home, he secretly snorted and bid farewell to Ryusaki Ryusaki.
"Wait a moment."
Ryusaki Ryusaki coldly called out to the old man in the duck-billed cap, who was turning to leave.
The old man in the duck-billed cap asked, "Is there something else?"
Ryusaki Ryusaki's eyes, in the darkness by the river, flickered with a terrifying gleam, and he said slowly, "I haven't killed anyone this month according to my rule yet."
Bang!
The old man in the duck-billed cap's heart suddenly pounded.
He quickly retreated and hoarsely asked, "What, you want to kill me!?"
It was already half past ten at night.
To ensure they wouldn't be noticed, the place they agreed to meet was far from any popular tourist spots.
The streetlights were distant.
It was quite dark by the river.
There was almost no one around.
The old man in the duck-billed cap, having already seen a short sword hidden in Ryusaki Ryusaki's sleeve, even experienced intense hallucinations as he hoarsely asked the question.
The river breeze blew—
Ryusaki Ryusaki drew his sword—
A cold glint flashed in the darkness—
The old man in the duck-billed cap's head flew off—
Plop, it fell onto the river surface, drifting with the current—
"Heh, why would I kill you? A sneak like you is not worthy of soiling my blade."
Ryusaki Ryusaki sneered, turned away proudly, and walked swiftly westward, "I just wanted to give you a free show of how I kill."
Ah?
Oh, oh.
Hu—
Only then did the old man in the duck-billed cap breathe a sigh of relief, his legs went weak, and he collapsed onto the ground.
However, he did not forget to look at Ryusaki Ryusaki's retreating back, a silhouette that only appeared when peerless masters departed.
Then.
Using the distant lights, the old man in the duck-billed cap saw a young girl in a "fox costume" from anime, wagging a very lifelike white fox tail, holding a phone in her left hand and talking to someone as she strolled eastward.
Modu was currently holding its spring anime event.
It was normal for a girl in an anime fox costume to appear by the river tonight.
Even.
The old man in the duck-billed cap could tell that the girl was not only beautiful but could even see a natural vixen-like charm on her small, oval face.
"What a pity, she's going to be Ryusaki Ryusaki's sacrifice for this month, killed by the river."
Reacting instinctively to beauty, as the old man in the duck-billed cap sighed softly, he saw a flash of cold light before his eyes!
Ryusaki Ryusaki, who had no prior acquaintance with the fox-tailed girl, suddenly attacked her as they passed each other, with only a meter and a half between them.
That incredibly sharp short sword (though called a short sword, it was still forty centimeters in total length) flashed like lightning towards the fox-tailed girl's slender, graceful neck.
Unfortunately.
As the old man in the duck-billed cap inwardly exclaimed his regret once more, he saw!!
The fox-tailed girl, without any defense, suddenly lowered her head at the last moment and dodged Ryusaki Ryusaki's sure-to-hit blade.
Was that all?
No.
The old man in the duck-billed cap saw very clearly—
As the fox-tailed girl dodged the blow, her right hand shot out and grasped Ryusaki Ryusaki's throat!
Then.
The old man in the duck-billed cap heard the crunching sound, the sound made when a throat is crushed by the fox-tailed girl's grip!!
Instant kill.
Ryusaki Ryusaki, who dreamed of challenging Li Xiao and refused to take the stage because he couldn't kill Li Qianfan, was not only dodged by the fox-tailed girl when he suddenly swung his sword at her without any warning.
He was also instantly killed by the fox-tailed girl in one move!!