Chapter 128: Xiang Keluo

Intense, extreme pain nearly shattered Jete's consciousness.

He barely kept from biting his teeth to shards, barely avoiding immediate unconsciousness—but when he looked forward, all he saw were the other contestants, equally bewildered.

Xiang Keluo, who should have been standing before him, had vanished without a trace.

"What the hell happened?!"

"A power user?!"

At this moment.

Jete's heart was in utter panic.

This wasn't supposed to happen.

This is the weakest Eastern Sea—how could something like this occur?!

"Is this a lie? Or am I still dreaming?"

He began to doubt whether what he saw was real—or a nightmare.

Only the bone-chilling pain in his chest and abdomen told him whether this was truth or illusion.

"It shouldn't—!"

Jete opened his mouth, but before he could finish speaking, he sensed a blinding light surging toward him from ahead.

Ssshh!

The same bloody scene unfolded once more.

With claws sharper than anything, and at a speed beyond human sight, Xiang Keluo severed Jete's arm clean off.

As blood gushed forth.

The crowd on the arena felt a chilling dread.

"That's the man called Hundred Strategies Xiang Keluo!"

Someone recognized him and cried out—only to be struck down instantly by the claw-blade.

"Is that guy attacking everyone indiscriminately?!"

"What speed is this… how are we supposed to fight back?!"

"Damn it!"

"Damn it!"

…

The crowd cursed helplessly, unable to stop Xiang Keluo's advance—one after another, they fell.

Abudela, who had earlier been arrogant, treating everyone as prey, snatched up Jete's body and leapt from the arena, barely saving his life.

When he turned back.

He realized that had he delayed even a moment, he would have fallen like the others, screaming on the arena floor.

Severely wounded, on the brink of death, with no strength left to resist.

"This isn't a battle—it's a one-sided massacre!"

"That man from the Eastern Sea… he's on a completely different level from everyone else!"

"He's too strong!"

"Strong enough to crush every single opponent on the stage by himself!"

In the spectator seats.

Everyone stared at the contestants falling one after another, their faces twisted in horror.

They hadn't come here expecting anything from the Eastern Sea.

But now.

First Jin, now this invisible Xiang Keluo—the Eastern Sea pirates' combat power had surged to a level they simply couldn't comprehend!

"Whoever says the Eastern Sea is weak again—I'll slap the bounties of Hundred Strategies Xiang Keluo and Ghost Man Jin right on their face!"

"I thought the second fight would be a bloody free-for-all—but now it's bloody enough, yet still one-sided… wait!"

"One man is still standing!"

"It's him!"

"Daz Bonis! The assassin from the West Sea! A monster with a bounty of seventy-five million!"

Someone realized Daz Bonis stood at the arena's center, untouched—yet sparks continuously flashed across his body.

"That guy… he's turned his entire body into blades, enduring Xiang Keluo's attacks?!"

"Monster!"

"Both of them are monsters!"

The crowd couldn't help but cry out in shock.

In barely a minute, everyone on the arena—except Xiang Keluo and Daz Bonis—lay screaming on the ground.

Hoo~!

With a rush of wind, Xiang Keluo reappeared on the arena.

He coolly flicked the blood from his claw-blade, his gaze settling on Daz Bonis far away:

"Your body turned to blades… a power user?"

"Next time, I'll have to add a bit more force—otherwise I can't cut through steel."

With that,

Xiang Keluo walked away on his own, gradually vanishing from everyone's sight.

In the spectator seats.

A deafening roar of cheers erupted instantly—the outcome had utterly shattered their expectations, and the match ended so fast it left them speechless.

Only Dazbonnes on the field, his face full of dread, looked toward Xiang Keluo.

Too fast!

This speed even surpasses the Navy's standard Six Powers: Soru!

This guy...

For the first time, he began to doubt whether he truly possessed the ability to win this match.

Even with the Slash-Slash Fruit ability. Even with a body tempered by a thousand hammers and combat experience accumulated from countless death matches, facing such speed...

He had absolutely no room to counter!

Sharing the same thought as him was Crocodile, who was currently watching this event.

The Grand Line, within the Bastan Realm.

Inside a small town, a sandstorm was raging.

Countless fine grains of sand rushed through the air; with the boost of high speed, they could instantly pierce human skin and tear away flesh.

On the street.

A crowd of commoners was frantically running toward the nearest buildings; many were even hit by the rushing sand on their skin, leaving behind streaks of scratches.

This sandstorm came suddenly and was far more dangerous than ever before.

Crocodile sat in the castle, regarding the sand and dust outside the window as nothing, for his entire attention was drawn to the Den Den Mushi projection screen before him.

Hoo!

A puff of smoke was exhaled.

Crocodile's brows were tightly furrowed:

"With Mr. 1's strength, facing the Ghost Man Kuro, there would still be some chance of victory, but facing this guy..."

"There is not the slightest hope."

"Now, looking at the regular channels, we can no longer obtain that Fruit..."

"Then we must resort to some abnormal means."

Saying this,

Crocodile's gaze fell upon the tall woman wearing a felt hat beside him, and he said faintly:

"Miss All Sunday, besides Mr. 1, who else do we have in the East Blue?!"

"That is not our area of operation, so manpower is scarce, but there is one person who fits the current requirements."

"Who?!"

"Feng... no, it is Mr. 2."

"That is perfect."

Crocodile nodded, a hint of a smile involuntarily appearing at the corner of his lips:

"That guy's strength is secondary; the key lies in his ability, which is truly too suitable for infiltration."

"Let him make his move; directly obtain that Fruit before this Martial Arts Tournament ends!"

The tall woman nodded:

"Understood!"

"Hmm, after this matter is settled, we can accelerate our operations in the Bastan Realm; there is no need to worry about the World Government's gaze anymore."

Saying this,

Crocodile turned his head to look at the tall woman and said:

"Do not forget your value, Nico Robin!"

"I understand!"

East Blue.

Within the Raven Port, in a corner of a casino, people were gathered in a crowd.

It was because Fujitora, sitting at the corner of the gambling table, had entered in the afternoon and kept winning until now.

The cash that had merely passed through his hands had reached ten million Belly.

The casino owner sat nearby, his face turning almost green; the money the casino lost in just this afternoon was nearly equal to an entire month's profit.

A man who looked like a thug walked to the owner's side, a trace of ruthlessness flashing in his eyes:

"Boss... how about..."

He made a cutting motion across his neck; the meaning was too obvious.

The owner merely glanced at him faintly, a hint of a smile appearing on his face, and asked:

"Who did you come in with?!"

Seeing the owner smile, the man said with secret joy:

"I was brought in by Brother Tony."

"Very good, then both of you must now go find new jobs!"

Saying this,

The owner's expression changed; the gaze he directed at the latter was filled with disgust.

He grabbed the man's head and said coldly:

"Don't you know the rules established by Captain Gao Wen?!"

"If you bet, you must accept the loss; we are open for business; the other party did not cheat; winning is a matter of skill!"

"If you can't handle losing, why open a casino?!"

Having spoken, the boss waved to the side, and several casino enforcers immediately understood, ignoring the man's struggles and dragging him away.

The sounds of begging for mercy and screaming gradually faded into the distance.

The boss's gaze turned back to the crowd in the distance, involuntarily revealing an expression of deep regret.

Unexpectedly, Fujitora, who was sitting at the gambling table, suddenly stood up, a hint of a smile on his lips, and said:

"Then let's stop here."

"I have also had enough fun."

Having spoken, Fujitora asked the dealer beside him to exchange all his chips for cash and pack them into a leather suitcase.

Having finished all this.

Fujitora turned and walked toward the door.

Seeing this, the boss's eyes lit up, thinking inwardly that he had finally sent this omen of disaster away, and instinctively spoke:

"Won't you play a little longer?!"

"Then play a little longer?"

"Uh..."

The boss's eyeballs rolled, adhering to the spirit that if everyone loses, it's as if I haven't lost, and whispered to Fujitora:

"I'll offer one million, please go to the casino across the way; it's larger and you can win more!"

Fujitora laughed helplessly, took a stack of cash from the box and put it in his pocket, then threw the leather suitcase to the boss, saying indifferently:

"Consider this a tip for you."

"However, I am somewhat interested in that man called Gao Wen; the first thing a subordinate of the Pirate Church teaches is actually to follow the rules?!"

The boss's expression instantly turned cold.

Not just him.

Even many gamblers at the tables put down their chips and cards and gathered around.

"Mr. Gao Wen is not a pirate!"

"He has twice saved this port from a certain death situation; he should be remembered as a hero, not a pirate!"

"If you intend to make a move against him, we will not let you leave!"

"That's right!"

The voices of the crowd gradually grew louder.

Surrounded by the crowd, Fujitora showed not the slightest panic on his face, only an indescribable surprise and joy.

With his eyes blind, his perception ability relied more on hearing and Observation Haki to compensate.

This also made him exceptionally proficient in Observation Haki, especially skilled at sensing other people's emotions.

And the crowd appearing in his perception at this moment all represented red, red with enthusiasm and gratitude, red enough to burn, red enough to inspire awe.

"Oh my~"

Facing the crowd's harsh words, the smile on Fujitora's face became even more impossible to conceal.

He had traveled all the way from the Grand Line, traversed the entire world, and witnessed countless commoners under various kingdoms.

There were the wealthy, and there were the suffering.

But never before had there been a place like Raven Port where commoners felt a heartfelt respect for a group of pirates ruling over them.

"I am not a bad person..."

(End of this chapter)