Chapter 698

A light breeze brushed by.

Tattered clothing slid off the boy's body and fell chaotically at his feet.

Under the sunlight.

Golden halos spilled down.

Illuminating the boy's upper body, which was covered in muscular contours.

Veins, grotesque as centipedes, sprawled across the bulging muscles, each muscle harboring terrifying power.

A demon's back,

Like a pattern stamped by a devil.

Grotesque,

Terrifying.

Imposing endless pressure.

Too fearsome to look upon directly.

Upon closer inspection,

Aside from the ground beneath his feet, riddled with holes, the boy's entire body showed not a single scratch!

Yes!

Not a single wound marred his body.

Not a drop of blood oozed out.

He remained in perfect condition as always.

"This move is truly powerful."

"Even I felt considerable strain."

Sensing the numbness spreading through his arms, Lu En couldn't help but sigh.

Though unharmed,

Even after fully activating Armament Haki, his arms still went numb from Xiong Zhi's Xiong's Impact, tingling with a sharp, bone-deep ache.

Clearly,

Xiong Zhi's Xiong's Impact had been blocked and neutralized head-on by Lu En.

And neutralized without a single injury!

Without sufficient strength, it would be impossible to absorb Xiong's Impact without harm.

Remember,

This was Xiong Zhi's ultimate technique!

Yet in the end, Lu En had blocked it.

"Young Master…"

"Truly terrifyingly strong!"

"Strong as a monster."

"No wonder he's the most fearsome monster of the sea."

Seeing Lu En still unscathed, Xiong Zhi spoke with genuine awe.

At this moment,

Lu En earned Xiong Zhi's heartfelt respect through his overwhelming combat power.

If the Young Master is this strong…

Then I can rest easy.

The leader can rest easy too.

Now,

The Young Master's strength has reached a level where no threat exists upon this sea!

Thus,

The leader no longer needs to worry about the Young Master's safety.

"The Young Master is indeed strong."

"Even my strongest attack was effortlessly blocked and neutralized by the Young Master."

"Truly admirable."

Xiong Zhi spoke.

He retracted the power of his Devil Fruit and put his gloves back on.

Clearly,

This battle had come to an end.

It was merely a sparring match.

No need for life-or-death combat.

Lu En's immense strength gave Xiong Zhi a clear, direct understanding.

Therefore,

He believed,

There was no need to continue fighting Lu En.

Lu En was incredibly strong!

If he hadn't pushed himself to the limit, he truly could not have suppressed Lu En.

As for defeating Lu En?

That made it all the harder!

It might take a full three days and three nights of fighting.

Only then would he have a chance to defeat Lu En.

Moreover,

He would have to pay an extremely bitter price.

Even—

The price of his life!

As far as testing went, in Bear's view, that was already enough.

No need to keep the standoff going.

He had already gotten the answer he wanted.

"You're being modest."

"Your strength is far, far beyond just this level."

Lu En gazed deeply at Bear, then smiled faintly.

Hearing this,

Bear did not reply.

He truly had not gone all out.

After all.

This was only a sparring match.

He had only wanted to test Lu En—nothing more.

His relationship with Lu En was not adversarial; they stood on the same side.

Although Lu En was a Marine.

Bear still did not think,

That Lu En—as the leader's own son—would be an enemy of their Revolutionary Army.

The battle was over.

Lu En also retracted the activation of his dual-colored Haki.

Simultaneously unleashing Observation Haki and Armament Haki was an extremely draining affair.

And during the exchange between Lu En and Bear.