Gusion was shocked after seeing this piece of intel.
In the original work, in the first part, Tokita Ohma is defeated by his master, the Devil Lance Kuroki, and finally dies on Kengan Island after burning out. However, he's resurrected in the second part and has plenty of scenes afterward.
Back then, Gusion liked this manga because, as a fighting manga, it focused more on the ensemble cast. The protagonist's aura wasn't so overwhelming. When Ohma faced Master Kuroki in the Kengan finals and couldn't win, he just lost—no amount of power-ups could change that. It was very realistic.
Throughout the work, Ohma's strength is hardly even in the top five, but even so, he's still the protagonist. How could the protagonist die?
Gusion suddenly realized something—this is a real world, not a manga.
And in the real world, there's no such thing as an absolute protagonist.
He calmed down and read through the discussion on the public chat, piecing together how Ohma had died.
Although there was no conclusive evidence, Tokita Ohma was likely killed by a rule-breaker.
The reasoning is this: from the way some explorers spoke in the public channel, you could roughly deduce their strength. These explorers kept complaining about how hard this world was; they didn't want to enter the Kengan world at all.
There were two reasons: first, their attributes weren't all that advantageous here, since there were plenty of non-human monsters with superhuman stats. Second, under similar attributes, they were mostly no match for the fighters here in hand-to-hand combat.
Initially, Gusion thought this was ridiculous—how could these explorers lose to the fighters here? After all, many ordinary fighters didn't even have high stats.
But then he thought further and understood—not everyone was like him, already a martial arts master before entering the End Space.
First-tier explorers are all newcomers. According to the world level, those who enter this world are all under level 7, so they haven't experienced many worlds or fully adapted to combat.
From a combat specialization perspective, these ordinary, zero-foundation explorers probably haven't even reached an expert level in fighting skills. How could they possibly be a match for the powerful fighters in this world?
Frankly, some explorers might get completely crushed by fighters with lower stats than themselves. Their advantage is in numbers, but the fighters here have the advantage in technique.
Gusion was different. He had the advantage in stats, and against most fighters, also had the advantage in technique, which is why he could defeat Raian.
So among these explorers, could there be someone strong enough to kill Tokita Ohma? Gusion didn't dare rule it out entirely, but he felt that even if such a person existed, they wouldn't kill Ohma at this point.
After all, as the protagonist of Kengan, Ohma had a lot of plot threads around him. Killing him would cause all kinds of trouble, create massive storyline shifts, and make the mission world much more dangerous. Whoever killed Ohma would be the first to get caught up in it.
That doesn't align with the way first-tier explorers usually do things, nor is it in their interest. There's no benefit to killing Ohma.
But it's different for rule-breakers. For them, the more chaotic things get, the better.
"Is this a provocation…?"
Gusion sneered inwardly. "I hope you're tough enough to take a beating."
The death of Tokita Ohma was a wake-up call for him—the rule-breakers had already started acting. With Ohma's death, an undercurrent was about to surge.
The shadowy factions like the Westward Faction and the Worm would make moves. The upcoming Kengan Annihilation Tournament would become even more unpredictable.
For Gusion, the worst-case scenario was that the Origin Seed was on Tokita Ohma!
If that were the case, then the rule-breaker might already have the Origin Seed. If they hid it somewhere, neither of his two missions could be completed; he'd just have to wait for death.
Gusion thought for a moment and felt it probably wouldn't be that bad. Ohma was too obvious a target. Any explorer nearby would check him out, so the location of the Origin Seed should quickly become clear, and the mission probably wouldn't be that simple.
Either way, he had to pick up the pace and couldn't stay with the Kure clan for too long.
Gusion looked at Fusui, who was walking toward him and stood up. "Let's go. It's time to start the martial arts exchange."
Fusui was momentarily stunned, then smiled. "I came to call you for breakfast."
...
"Most people can only use one-third of their body's strength—the rest is dormant within, a limit set by the brain to protect the body…"
In the training ground, Erioh was explaining the principle behind their secret technique to Gusion. "The Removal technique is about removing that limiter, unleashing more of the body's power."
His aged eyes scrutinized Gusion up and down. "Even though you're a martial arts genius not seen in a millennium, with a very strong body, learning this secret technique shouldn't be hard for you. But you probably won't be able to unleash much potential."
"Oh? Why is that? Because I'm not a member of the Wu clan?"
Gusion asked.
Erioh shook his head. "Not at all. The Wu clan has a long lineage, with constant intermarriage with outsiders. The purity of blood isn't an issue. The ability to use the secret technique comes from the physique we've developed over 1,300 years of refinement, allowing us to withstand more power."
Gusion thought for a moment and understood. From a system perspective, the Wu clan all have the highest physique stats, much higher than their base strength.
After using Removal and removing the brain's limiter, more power is released, which would normally damage tendons and bones. But due to generations of bloodline improvement, the Wu clan's higher physique allows them to withstand this extra power.
"So… I can't unleash more power because my body is too balanced?"
Gusion summed up.
Erioh nodded. "Yes. I can tell you've achieved perfect physical balance as a martial artist—your strength and physique are equal. So even if you use Removal, you can't unleash much more, or your body will collapse first."
Gusion understood. It seemed in the future he should focus on improving his physique stat, and use techniques like Removal to explosively boost strength when needed.
"Now that you understand the basics, do you still want to learn? If you regret it now, you can keep your secret technique to yourself."
Erioh looked into Gusion's eyes.
Gusion grinned. "You underestimate me, senior. Even if I can't learn it, I'll still give you my technique. Besides, I don't think I'll fail to learn it."
"Hahaha… I like you more and more. Maybe…"
Erioh said, then shook his head. No, he absolutely wouldn't let his precious great-granddaughter be with Gusion.
Gusion didn't press further. He took out a manual he'd compiled the night before. "All the theory and core techniques of my secret art are in here. Take a look. With your insight, you'll know I'm not lying."
Erioh flipped through it, his old eyes shining. "This is the ultimate martial art… I never imagined power could exist in this form…"
He carefully put away the notebook, then looked at Gusion with a serious expression. "Alright, I'll start teaching you Removal."