Redemption of a Born Demon

Chapter 218 - 197: The Hero’s Way: Not Victory or Defeat, but Valor

The Japanese people watching from a hundred meters away were also shaken by the scene. The oppressive aura emanating from Yi Beidou was momentarily dispelled.

"Way to go, Li Mountain Association! Defeat him!!"

"Take down that arrogant fool!!"

"Victory! Victory! Victory!"

"..."

Cries rose up from all around.

This was Japan’s home turf.

Yi Beidou looked up at the sky, feeling that vast momentum gathering, and a look of satisfaction appeared in his eyes.

Then, his gaze fell, landing on Ookubo Hei, who was walking toward him step by step.

"So you’re the first to face this tribulation?"

Yi Beidou asked.

"Ookubo Hei, of the Li Mountain Association."

Ookubo Hei said calmly.

However, despite his calm exterior, Yi Beidou saw through to his core with a single glance.

"Your Life Magnetic Field is trembling. That’s a sign of a weak will. It seems you understand you have no chance of defeating me. Back down."

Yi Beidou said, his expression placid.

"It is precisely because I know I cannot defeat you that I must stand before you now."

Ookubo Hei declared in a deep voice, his eyes filled with resolve.

Hearing this and seeing the determination in the other man’s eyes, Yi Beidou was momentarily stunned.

Then, a smile touched the corners of his lips. The Demon Flame on his body erupted, soaring to the heavens like a signal fire. A scorching magnetic field churned the surrounding air, and the rising currents blasted his black hair skyward, making his aura even more imposing.

"For those words alone, I acknowledge you."

Yi Beidou’s voice boomed.

Ookubo Hei did not respond, his expression incredibly grave.

「The next moment.」

He braced his hands on his thighs, lifted one leg high into a standing split, and then slammed it down.

BOOM!!

The concrete ground shattered as a shockwave erupted. Ookubo Hei’s shirt burst apart, revealing his massive physique.

His muscles bulged to their absolute limit as red and white stripes appeared all over his skin. He instantly grew nearly fifty centimeters taller. His face became ferocious and domineering, the intersecting red and white stripes on it almost resembling a demon’s mask.

Although Ookubo Hei’s physique appeared large and bulky, it wasn’t fat, but rather an extremely specialized type of muscle.

The human body possesses two types of muscle fibers.

Red muscle and white muscle.

Red muscle excels at endurance, while white muscle excels at explosive power.

However, the ratio of red to white muscle is innate and cannot be changed.

That is why some people are born with greater endurance, while others are born with more terrifying explosive strength.

This is a matter of natural talent.

But Ookubo Hei was different. At the time of his Ascension, he fused his red and white muscle fibers, creating an entirely new form of muscle.

It possessed both terrifying endurance and immense explosive power.

It had the composure to remain still for ten thousand years, as well as the ferocity to erupt in an instant.

This was the "Heroic Physique" passed down through the Li Mountain Association.

Yet this was not the true essence of the "Heroic Physique."

"I have only one strike."

Ookubo Hei said in a low voice.

Then, his body began to change once more.

The red stripes within the entwined pattern on his skin began to spread, covering more and more of his body until they accounted for seventy to eighty percent of its surface.

His entire body was now shrouded in a faint, crimson glow.

This was the true secret of the "Heroic Physique."

The red-white transformation.

Ookubo Hei’s unique muscle structure allowed him to rapidly alter the ratio of white to Red Muscle in his body. This meant he could switch between the attributes of explosive power and endurance at will.

Right now, facing a formidable enemy like Yi Beidou, he was unleashing his most explosive form: "Red Muscle Mode."

Blood Heroic Strength!!

The instant his body’s transformation was complete, Ookubo Hei suddenly used Emitting Force.

BOOM!!

The ground exploded, and a ring of crimson light blasted outward. His massive body shot through the air like a cannonball, creating sonic ripples as he moved. The sound was deafening.

His momentum was so incomparably fierce that it shook the hearts of the spectators. They felt that even a steel fortress would be blasted to smithereens by this single blow from Ookubo Hei.