Chapter 355: Bet Once More!

A burst of cheerful laughter immediately rang out across the scene.

A moment later.

Everyone's gaze shifted back, once again focusing on the distant battlefield.

Kuro.

Gin.

The two stood silently facing each other.

Air currents surged all around, pouring forth an invisible pressure that made many of the onlookers unable to help but tremble.

At this moment, fewer and fewer people dared to remain in the arena.

The instinctive longing for slaughter and combat within their minds was completely suppressed by the great terror between life and death.

"We can't stay here!"

"The battle between those two monsters has already surpassed our limit of endurance; anyone caught in the fallout will surely die!"

The crowd surged, flowing toward the entrance of the Round Table Colosseum.

At the same time, a figure sped in from the distant sky and steadily took a seat in front of Zoro and the others; it was Xiang Gaowen, who had come to watch the fight.

As the earliest subordinates to follow Xiang Gaowen, Kuro and Gin now stood with one having just entered the Legendary realm to become a top-tier powerhouse on the seas, while the other had one foot already stepping into Legend; to say Xiang Gaowen was completely unconcerned was absolutely impossible.

"Captain, who do you think will win in the end?"

Law looked at Xiang Gaowen, his eyes filled with anticipation, yet also carrying a trace of curiosity.

Not just Law; Zoro, Sanji, Bepo, and the others all turned their heads to look at Xiang Gaowen.

They felt that the person appearing before their eyes was nothing special aside from his appearance, someone who seemed like he could be knocked down with a single move.

But the instant they truly formed the thought of striking out, what they perceived was something as deep as the eternal sea...

Awe!

After that battle several years ago, Xiang Gaowen had rarely fought.

His most recent engagement was still over half a year ago, when Kaido attacked, infringing upon the borders of Britannias and attempting to tear a huge chunk of flesh and blood from Xiang Gaowen.

That battle between Xiang Gaowen and Kaido took place on the seas outside Britannias, so even Kuro and the others did not know the outcome.

But what they did know was this.

After that battle, the Beasts Pirates, who had been cutting a path of destruction all the way into Britannias, directly withdrew from the territory.

In the recent half-year, the Beasts Pirates, who had previously stirred up chaos everywhere on the seas, had unusually fallen silent.

Rumors quietly circulated on the seas that Kaido had been heavily injured in that fight, but ultimately, these were unverified hearsay not to be taken as truth.

Yet this also made everyone in Xiang Gaowen's crew increasingly curious about just how strong Xiang Gaowen's power truly was.

Some speculated that his combat strength was no inferior to Whitebeard's, while some even believed Xiang Gaowen was already the undisputed strongest in the world!

"Just watch slowly."

Xiang Gaowen did not answer directly, merely stating calmly:

"Gin is only one step away from Legend; if luck is on his side, this battle will be his opportunity to step into the Legendary realm."

"Sooner or later, you will all reach this stage; witnessing Gin's transformation can serve as a reference for you."

"Physical cultivation and growth require watering with blood and sweat, but breakthroughs of the mind and advancements in Haki often happen in an instant!"

"But that represents a difference between heaven and earth!"

Hearing this, everyone's expressions involuntarily turned solemn as they all turned their heads, staring intently at the center of the distant arena.

It was also at this moment.

The restless wind in the air suddenly choked, as if a giant hand had grabbed hold of every heart!

"Interesting!"

Kuro's mouth stretched into a grin, his fighting spirit surging even more high-spirited.

That Gin could reach this stage had completely exceeded his expectations.

He had originally thought that after entering the Legendary realm, he would be able to completely pull away the gap between himself and Gin, yet he never expected that in just over a year, Gin would follow the path he had walked, step by step, gradually catching up!

There was one thing Kuro had to admit.

At this very moment, although there was still some gap between Gin and himself, this gap was smaller than it had been back in Alabasta.

In other words.

This man had truly relied on his own footsteps to catch up, bit by bit!

No one knew exactly how much sweat Gin had expended.

They only knew that within the giant pit outside Britannias, the sound of roaring had never ceased day or night!

That was Gin engaging in the cultivation of hammering rocks!

That mountain peak, originally towering high, had now become flat!

"As expected, only you are my opponent!"

"Only you!"

"You want to use me as a whetstone, do you? Then let me see where your limit lies!"

The next instant.

The air currents around them suddenly surged wildly, yet unlike before, this was not chaotic; instead, they crazily converged toward Kuro's palms, coiling around the five fingers of both his hands to form visible emerald-green air blades.

That was airflow compressed to the extreme, moving at speeds pushed to the limit!

Xiang Gaowen, sitting at the edge of the field, paused slightly, then revealed an expression of keen interest:

"Although Kuro hasn't focused specifically on cultivation this past year, it's not like he hasn't grown either~"

Xiang Gaowen's tone was relaxed, exuding a sense of calm indifference.

Yet Bepo and the others beside him wore faces full of solemnity, even fear!

"I have a feeling that thing might be able to cut through anything!"

Luo's brows furrowed slightly as he spotted a clue:

"By manipulating air currents to gather massive amounts of high-speed flowing gas at his fingertips, trading for greater killing power?!"

"If you add Mr. Xiang Keluo's Haki to that, I'm afraid..."

Hiss—!

Before Luo could finish speaking, Xiang Keluo on the battlefield had already moved!

Ultra-high-speed flowing gas erupted from behind him, and combined with the super-fast movement speed brought by Shave and Tekkai, it instantly pushed Xiang Keluo's Su Team to an entirely new realm!

Ah Jin in the distance hadn't even had time to think before he was already struck by Xiang Keluo's Storm Leg Claw!

Boom—!

The earth trembled; cracks spread from Ah Jin's chest all the way to the ground behind him, leaving five fissures in the arena that extended straight beyond its boundaries!

Even the cloud layers high in the sky were sliced open!

Patter!

Patter!

Patter!

Threads of fresh blood slid down Ah Jin's chest.

The pitch-black bone armor on his chest had been sliced open by Xiang Keluo, yet it had also offset most of the slash's power, injuring only flesh and skin without damaging bones, muscles, or internal organs.

Ah Jin's mouth filled with a bloody sweetness, and his eyes held nothing but indescribable shock.

This was originally his trump card, pinned with high hopes, even the capital to challenge a Legend; now it had been ruthlessly crushed by Xiang Keluo.

"This is..."

"Storm Leg Claw!"

Xiang Keluo lifted his chin slightly, carrying a hint of pride:

"In this past year, you aren't the only ones who have grown."

"Compared to you, I chose another path, devoting more energy to thinking, to experimenting, to exploring the upper limits of the Kamakama Fruit, and the Storm Leg Claw is the result."

"If your Armament Haki represents the pinnacle of Armament, then the Storm Leg Claw is the pinnacle of the Kamakama Fruit!"

"This is a technique born purely in pursuit of killing power."

"If your resolve is only at this level, you are no match for me."

"Give up or continue fighting; you choose!"

Ah Jin fell silent.

His gaze fell upon the emerald air blades swirling between Xiang Keluo's ten fingers; they felt strangely familiar, so similar to the claw blades Xiang Keluo had used before?

Back then in the East Sea, Xiang Keluo had defeated him relying on Shave's god-speed combined with claw blades.

Now Shave remains, further enhanced by the Kamakama Fruit, and the claw blades have been replaced by the Storm Leg Claw, sharp countless times over!

Three years have passed; many things have changed, yet nothing has changed.

"Heh~"