Chapter 177: Standing Upon the Earth

The sky-high flames that suddenly erupted at the center of Dongdao instantly drew everyone's gaze.

Kestda.

Chopper and the others had already evacuated most of the patients to ships at the river mouth, but were startled by the commotion in the distance; they all turned to look, their pupils instantly contracting upon witnessing this scene.

"What... is that?!"

"A sun... has risen at the center of Dongdao?!"

Kureha took off her glasses and stared blankly at the distance.

In her youth, she had a pirate experience and considered herself to have seen countless strong individuals, yet she could not believe, no matter what, that a human could achieve such a level.

"What a joke!"

"That is Mr. Gao Wen's battlefield with his enemy!"

Chopper's judgment was accurate, yet he secretly swallowed hard and couldn't help but worry for Gao Wen:

"Has Mr. Gao Wen's opponent already become this powerful?"

The scene before his eyes had exceeded his imagination of human power; it could even be said to have reshaped his worldview.

It gave him a new understanding of just how powerful a creature humans are, but accompanying that was worry for Gao Wen.

Nami saw this; although her heart also tightened with worry for Gao Wen, she subconsciously spoke to comfort herself:

"Captain Gao Wen is one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea!"

"In the past, whether it was Arlong who dominated the East Blue, powerful pirates of the Grand Line, or the former Fleet Admiral, none were his match!"

"That man... is the strongest!"

"He will not lose!"

Chopper was stunned, repeating the key words from Nami's mouth:

"Seven... Warlords of the Sea?!"

"Ah."

Kureha nodded and explained with a Solemn expression:

"Pirates recognized by the World Government, possessing the legal right to plunder."

"Many pirates view them as scum who Lean Toward the World Government, and countless others even take them as their targets."

"But among these people, few realize that the reason they can be recognized by the World Government and granted such power..."

"... is precisely because of their own immense strength!"

"It's just..."

"... this opponent is also an extremely powerful pirate; such a terrifying momentum is something I have never even seen before!"

Upon hearing this, everyone's hearts, which had just settled, rose again.

Especially when seeing the sky-high flames in the distance, which almost illuminated the entire Dongdao, it was even more so.

Battlefield.

Gao Wen, located at the center of Ace's attack, saw a world almost covered in flames.

As an Emperor's right-hand man, Ace is also among the strongest people in this world aside from the Emperors; his overwhelming combat power was undeniably displayed in this single move.

A Solemn expression, unprecedented, appeared on Gao Wen's face.

It was because the scene before him, controlling flames to such a degree, was something even the two Mera Mera no Mi users from the original work, before and after, could not achieve!

The Lunarian race's racial talent, even if only counting this flame-controlling ability, is not inferior to the natural-type Mera Mera no Mi.

Although he lacks the ability to elementalize, he also lacks the Mera Mera no Mi's greatest flaw: fear of seawater and fear of Sea Prism Stone.

At the very least, if he had to choose between the Mera Mera no Mi and the Lunarian race's flame-controlling ability, he would definitely choose the latter.

But with a powerful enemy right before him, Gao Wen had no mind to think too much...

In short, dogs wouldn't even eat the Mera Mera no Mi.

"Come on!"

Gao Wen roared, lightly tapping the hilt with his fingertip; immediately, a layer of pale blue fluorescence slowly wrapped around the blade.

Supreme Weapon activated.

The cutting power of Guanshi Zhengzong increased significantly!

The next instant...

Boom!

The ground suddenly surged upward; relying on extreme speed, Gao Wen charged directly into the sky-high flames before him.

He could feel countless flame beasts biting at the dragon scales on his body and crashing against his frame, yet they could not shake Gao Wen even a fraction!

The Demon Form perfectly inherited the physical amplification traits of the Human-Beast Form, which was perfectly proven here.

Moreover, the Red Dragon itself possesses powerful elemental resistance; although it falls far short of immunity, combined with the ability to absorb earth vein energy for self-healing, it is hardly different from immunity.

When Guanshi Zhengzong, accompanied by pale blue fluorescence, slashed through the sky-high flames right in front of Ace, the only expression on his face was unspeakable shock.

"What a joke?!"

Ace's defenses were completely broken on the spot.

He felt that Gao Wen's fighting style of bathing within the opponent's attacks was even familiar.

And extremely insulting!

"Even if Devil Fruit abilities are absurd, there must be a limit!"

Ace was shocked in his heart, yet his movements in hand were undeniably fast; the long sword in his hand was instantly covered in Haki, clashing hard against Guanshi Zhengzong.

Ssshh—!

What entered his ears was not the familiar sound of metal striking metal, but the sound of some object being continuously cut.

Jin stared at the long blade in his hand, the shock in his eyes reaching an unparalleled extreme.

To think this blade had accompanied him for many years, even clashing with those top-tier Great Grade Blades, yet never once had it been severed directly in this manner!

"Damn it!"

While Jin was distracted, a broken fragment of the blade sliced past before his eyes; Guanshi Zhengzong followed through, striking his body directly and leaving a line of blood across his chest.

The long-forgotten sting caused Jin to withdraw and retreat violently; the surrounding flames vanished in an instant, and he stared blankly at the wound on his own chest.

A shallow line of blood stood out starkly against his previously unblemished chest.

The wound was not deep, merely breaking the skin and flesh, yet for Jin, this was already something incomprehensible.

"How did you do it?!"

Jin blurted out the question unconsciously, then immediately noticed the long blade in Gao Wen's hand, which emitted a faint glow, causing his pupils to contract repeatedly:

"This blade..."

"Guess!"

A smile played on Gao Wen's lips, though in his heart he was already cursing like mad.

Too hard!

Too damn hard!

The internal energy of the Demon Form, far stronger than in human form, combined with the Ultimate Weapon's specialized armor-piercing ability, Gao Wen's swordsmanship and Haki, and the supreme sharpness provided by Guanshi Zhengzong.

All these factors combined, and yet they only left such a tiny wound on Jin?!

I take back what I said earlier.

The most ideal starting point in the Pirate World is the Lunarian bloodline.

Although there's a risk of being taken for experiments, this thing is truly damn ridiculously overpowered!

Jin touched his chest, feeling the long-forgotten sting, and a hint of distortion actually surfaced in his eyes:

"Ever since following Big Brother Kaido, it has been a very long time since I felt this sensation."

"You... are quite good!"

It had been a very long time since he had felt this kind of threat to his life.

The near-immortal Devil Fruit ability, the powerful attack force that nearly breached the Lunarian tribe's talents head-on, and the Observation Haki capable of foreseeing the future...

With so many abilities gathered in one person, he finally realized clearly that the combat power of the Gao Wen before him was likely no weaker than his own!

This battle had been different from what he assumed from the very start; a single carelessness could truly cause him to flip over and crash.

"As expected."

"Fear is not the obstacle to survival; arrogance is!"

Having said this.

Jin glanced at the long blade in his hand; seeing that only the tip was missing and it did not affect combat, he raised his head to look at Gao Wen:

"Fight!"

Jin roared angrily, flames surging behind him as he maxed out his spirit once more and charged forward to kill again!

Gao Wen's mouth stretched wide, grinning ferociously.

We are both mechanic monsters; currently, I still hold the advantage on the field, so who fears whom?!

"Fight!"

Gao Wen stomped heavily with his foot, propelling his body as he charged explosively toward Jin.

One large, one small.

Two pitch-black blades met in midair, emitting a piercing tremor, only to separate upon contact.

Clearly having learned from the previous lesson, Jin now understood he could not clash head-on with Gao Wen, yet this battle was ultimately unavoidable.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

In an instant, the battlefield between the two expanded to cover a surrounding area several kilometers in diameter.

One possessed monster-like racial talents and absolute defense.

The other possessed heaven-defying Devil Fruit abilities, nearly infinite health and mana, and furthermore wielded large-scale AOE dragon breath.

Thus, from the very beginning, this battle was destined to proceed in the most cruel and bloody manner, trading injury for injury.

Flames surged into the sky, countless silver aerial slashes flew about, and accompanied by the roars of two monsters, everything around them was completely detonated.

Trees, rocks, and even the rivers formed by melted snow water were destroyed; several villages that had already evacuated their people were also ruined by the aftermath of the two men's battle.

But even though both were monsters, Jin was ultimately different from Gao Wen, who relied on the entire ley line energy of Dongdao; his racial talents prevented him from being injured, yet his stamina was ultimately limited.

As time passed.

The situation of the battle, which had initially been evenly matched, or even slightly advantageous for Jin, began to reverse.

Gradually.

More and more slash marks appeared on Jin's body; his upper garment was shredded, a corner of his mask was sliced off by Gao Wen, and a feeling that made him feel extremely uneasy surfaced in Jin's heart.

If we continue fighting... will the loser be me?!

The proud racial talents of the Lunarian tribe have actually been broken here?!

How is this possible?!

Jin could not believe the scene before his eyes, yet he found it difficult to reverse the disadvantage brought by his draining stamina; most critically...

He is using the fighting style I am best at to knock me down head-on?!

What kind of ridiculous nonsense is this?!

Jin's mouth twitched involuntarily, yet he knew he could not allow the current situation to continue developing.

For him.

Ever since that man had rescued him from the laboratory back then, he had already entrusted his entire being into that man's hands.

As long as he could carry out his will, he would not hesitate even at the cost of his life; if a frontal assault could not secure a quick victory, then he would attack the mind.

"Hey~"

"Gao Wen, you still have a group of companions by the seaside, don't you?!"

"That fellow Who's-Who has already gone to deal with them."

Amidst these words.

Jin's voice was indifferent; for such behavior, he genuinely felt contempt from the bottom of his heart, but to carry out Kaido's will, he had no choice but to resort to this inferior strategy.

Let it be despicable then.

"That guy's strength, although there is some gap between him and me, well, it shouldn't be something those small fries under your command can handle!"

Gao Wen's brows furrowed, yet his hand techniques showed not a trace of panic; he merely lifted his eyes and looked coldly at Jin:

"If they truly die because of this, then I will kill everyone in the Beasts Pirates; I do what I say."

"Moreover, in battle, using such means to attack the mind, regardless of the purpose, means you have already lost!"

"Jin!"

"You are not my match!"

"And Who's-Who will not be a match for Ah Jin and the others either!"

Jin's expression changed instantly, becoming exceedingly ugly; he spat out a mouthful of saliva and said coldly:

"Tch!"

"Then I'll just keep you here directly!"

Having said this.

Jin took a deep breath, stepped forward once more, and engaged Gao Wen in a new round of deadly combat.

Possessing the bloodline of the Lunarian tribe and being a Zoan Ancient Type, he had absolute confidence in his endurance for a prolonged battle.

Gao Wen, furthermore, did not harbor even a shred of fear!

The deadly combat between the two continued until late at night.

Gao Wen had gone from holding a slight advantage at the very beginning to dominating the situation with overwhelming force.

Amidst the high-intensity battle, Jin's physical stamina declined increasingly severely.

No matter how unwilling he was to admit it, it was undeniable that he no longer had the strength to win this battle.

"Continuing to fight this battle any further has no meaning."

"Before understanding this guy's abilities and finding his weakness, even an opponent one level higher than him would find it difficult to secure a victory in a short time."

Jin conceived the intention to retreat, muttering these words aloud.

Yet as he spoke these words, he only felt a sense of familiarity.

Wait a moment...

Aren't these evaluations someone else made about me in the past?!

Speaking thus, Jin's mouth twitched; after taking one last look at Gao Wen, he had no heart to continue fighting.

The twin wings behind him flapped, erupting with all his remaining stamina to release one final large-scale flame attack; after temporarily forcing Gao Wen back, he switched to his speed form, spread his wings, and soared high, vanishing without a trace in an instant.

Below.

Seeing this, Gao Wen did not continue the pursuit.

Although Gao Wen had held the advantage for most of the battle since its early stages, he had been unable to inflict fatal damage; continuing to fight would only result in futile exhaustion.

Jin's tenacity exceeded even his expectations.

The Lunarian tribe's innate talent was so perverted that, let alone Gao Wen, even Big Mom would find her teeth aching just looking at it.

The reason why an existence like Jin could not reach the Emperor level was not a lack of innate defense, but rather a deficiency in Haki and the development of his abilities.

Furthermore, with the Red Dragon high up in the sky, it could not draw upon ley line energy at any time to replenish its body; instead, it would only expose its own weaknesses, making the loss outweigh the gain.

However.

This battle also gave Gao Wen an accurate assessment of his current combat power.

"At the level of an Emperor's right-hand man, there is still a certain gap before reaching the Admiral level, but as long as I stand upon the earth, as long as I am not instantly killed, I can exchange a few moves with anyone who comes."

"Over at Drum Castle, with Xiang Keluo there, there should be no problem."

"First, I'll go support Ah Jin."

Saying this.

Gao Wen formed a plan in his heart; he flapped his wings, confirmed the direction, and flew toward the location where Ah Jin had anchored his ship.

On the other end.

The battle near the Raven had already entered its final stages.

Ah Jin, Roubo Luqi, and Zoro joined forces to rotate fighting Who's-Who, yet they remained at a disadvantage, their bodies bearing numerous wounds.

One of Roubo Luqi's arms was already twisted, hanging limply at his side; covered in blood, his will and physical stamina had both reached their limits.

"Damn it!"

"Even with the three of us joining forces, we still can't win?!"

Roubo Luqi gritted his teeth, his voice revealing deep unwillingness.

"Hahahahaha—!"

Fuzufu laughed wildly, his expression growing ever more ferocious.

The wounds on his body were no fewer than those on Roubo Luqi and the others; slashes, cannon blasts, and even the injuries left by Roubo Luqi's Six Styles covered him densely, nearly turning him into a man of blood.

Yet the vitality of an Ancient Zoan-type far surpassed that of Roubo Luqi's ordinary Zoan-type, not to mention Ah Jin of the Paramecia type or Zoro, who had not even consumed a Devil Fruit.

"I am the winner!"

Fuzufu let out a triumphant cry, but in the next instant his head snapped backward, and his body froze suspended in midair.

Just as Ah Jin and the other two stood stunned, the sound of a gunshot finally reached their ears.

Bang!

(End of Chapter)