Meat delivered to his door—Kael naturally wouldn't refuse. So that night he took Yakusha. As a mother who had borne children, Yakusha understood far better than young girls how to cooperate with Kael. At the very least, Kael was thoroughly satisfied.
His cultivation of demonic arts also advanced. Though still some distance from true entry, he had taken a firm step forward. Yakusha, too, benefited greatly. Her skin became smoother, her figure fuller, even her wrinkles vanished—she looked years younger. From the outside, it was hard to imagine she was the mother of two children.
While Yakusha puzzled over how a manga artist could know her, Kael's mind turned to something else. The author of Kengan Ashura had another work besides How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift? STAR: Strike It Rich. These three works shared the same universe, with characters crossing over. Since this crossover world included Kengan Ashura, it naturally included STAR: Strike It Rich.
Kael remembered its plot was the opposite of Kengan Ashura. If Kengan Ashura told of men's battles, STAR: Strike It Rich told of women's fights.
Its story was simple. Forced to retire from professional fighting due to retinal detachment, Nozomi Tenma worked in the underground fighting group "Losers Fight" to make a living. She was dismissed by her boss for having a style unsuited to the team. To survive in the male-dominated underground fighting world, Nozomi and her close friends from school, Iori Ichika and Mitani Hana, decided to form a new group specializing in women's combat. Through Ichika's introduction, they met Hongou Hina, adopted daughter of a fanatic religious sect leader. Thus, the new female fighting group "Valkyrie" was born, destined to stir up a storm in the women's fighting world.
Compared to Kengan Ashura, STAR: Strike It Rich was far less famous. Many didn't even know it existed. Kael had discovered it by chance.
He thought of it now because it featured many outstanding women—Nozomi Tenma, Iori Ichika, Mitani Hana, and the heroine Hongou Hina. If he could recruit them to help him cultivate, it might double his results. More importantly, Kael knew from the story that each had weaknesses.
Nozomi had been forced out of fighting by retinal detachment, not by choice. With Kael's power, healing her would be easy. If he offered to cure her, she would surely agree to cultivate with him. His dual cultivation could also strengthen her further.
Next was Ichika, a police inspector in the juvenile division, and Nozomi's longtime friend. Previously in the organized crime division, she was hot-tempered, foul-mouthed, a violent woman who smoked often. Though a cop, she secretly sold confiscated goods and gave favors to Hana's gang, violating police discipline. She never missed a chance for profit—even Nozomi and Kana called her a corrupt cop. Such a person would never refuse Kael if offered enough benefits. But her looks were far inferior to the others, so Kael decided to abandon the idea. Even in cultivation, he preferred beauty. Ichika's appearance was lacking—better to forget her.
Mitani Hana was born into the underworld. Her father was a former gang leader, her mother a mistress. She transferred to Nozomi and Ichika's school in middle school, forming a close trio. In high school, the three began training at a local MMA gym to lose weight. Later, Ichika and Kana quit, leaving Nozomi to continue. After graduation, Kana worked as a hostess, honing her keen observational skills. But when her father suddenly died, she was forced to inherit leadership of the gang, managing its industries.
As an illegitimate child, she lacked authority, and members left, weakening the group. She had to tread carefully around larger gangs. She had benefited from Ichika's police position, but after Ichika's transfer, she worried about the gang's future. Such a person wouldn't be hard to win over. Turning her into his woman would be easy.
After some thought, Kael told Yakusha: "I need you to investigate someone."
"Who?" she asked.
"Nozomi Tenma."
He gave her Nozomi's basic information. With the Kure Clan's resources, finding her details was no problem.
Indeed, by the next afternoon, Yakusha reported back. At that time, the plot of STAR: Strike It Rich hadn't fully begun. Nozomi had retired due to retinal detachment but still worked in Losers Fight. This underground fighting was bloody and sexual, meant to excite audiences. But Nozomi's style was neither bloody nor seductive, so she was eventually dismissed.
With her information in hand, Kael went to Losers Fight's base. As the saying goes—better lucky than good. He arrived just as Nozomi stepped into the ring.
The fight was unimpressive. She battled her opponent for nearly forty minutes. Though she won, the audience cursed and left in disappointment.