WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Chapter 126 of Attack on Titan by Hajime Isayama, Dezi Sienty and Alex Ko Ransom, available in English from Kodansha now.
Attack on Titan fans know that, while short in stature, Captain Levi should never be underestimated. "Humanity's strongest soldier" has long been a one-man army, capable of dispatching hordes of Titans with frightening ease, and nearly besting the Beast Titan -- leader of the Warriors and one of the Nine Titans' strongest -- single-handedly during the reclamation of Shiganshina arc.
Levi has been somewhat sidelined in the manga while Eren's been busy accumulating more Titan powers, becoming the figurehead for a cult and, eventually, Attack on Titan's most powerful villain. But he was given a chance to remind readers just what he was made of in chapters 112-115 -- and he didn't waste a single page of it. As the situations the young Captain finds himself in became increasingly desperate, the more and more impressive his ridiculous feats of strength and durability become.
As Zeke, the holder of the Beast Titan power, revealed his true, true villainous intention in the chapter, the stage was set for Levi vs. the Beast Titan: Round Two. Zeke's roar activated the Titan serum he'd laced Levi's comrades' wine with, causing 20 pure Titans to suddenly emerge from the bodies of his fellow soldiers, while Zeke made a run for it. However, Zeke severely underestimated the Captain's predilection for emotional detachment. Incensed by the older Jaeger brother's inhumanity, an unaided Levi sliced his way through all 20 of his former companions before cutting the Beast Titan back down to human size, too.
If it hadn't been for Zeke's explosive suicide attempt, Levi could have called himself the victor of their ongoing feud. After blowing both himself and Levi up, Zeke survived, but only thanks to the mysterious spiritual intervention of his maker, Ymir, while Levi appeared to be have been left for dead when a shocked Hange discovered his bloodied body by the side of the road later on.
In Chapter 125, it's revealed that Levi also miraculously survived, though the extent of his injuries is left unclear -- hidden by Hange's copious bandaging to aid his recovery. The latest chapter, 126, has the Captain regaining consciousness to reveal that he's at least missing a couple of fingers now. In a flashback to the explosive moment, we also learn just how he was able to make it out alive: Instinctually, it seems, he put his nape-slicing blade underneath his body and crouched himself down on it -- using the implement as a shield to protect as much of his body as possible as the blast propelled him into the air.
It's easy to look at Levi's cut-up face and absent appendages and worry that Attack on Titan may have just lost the use of its best non-Titan warrior. But in a glass-half-full way, we can also view this series of events as further proof of Levi's credentials as the toughest human alive. This is thanks, as Hange notes, to his rarified Ackerman blood -- the result of genetic experimentation to create something similar to Marvel's super soldiers. Still, blood alone doesn't really put Ackermans on par with the raw power of the Nine Titans, and it remains incredible that Levi was able to live through the same explosion that was able to kill one of the Nine (a human who can regrow parts of his own body, let's not forget).
Not only is Levi alive, but it doesn't take long for him to reaffirm his vengeance mission against Zeke. The next time they meet, you can bet the hard-wearing Captain won't let the Beast Titan slip through his fingers again.