Chapter 403: Come, Fight, Pain!

Four fists collided, smashing against each other in the air!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

The sounds of impact merged into a continuous roar.

The expanding shockwaves completely altered the terrain beneath their feet.

The earth sank, groundwater gushed forth, and under the moonlight's illumination, it resembled mercury flashing across the sky, only to shatter completely an instant later!

The exaggerated force of the two instantly dragged a radius of several hundred meters into the battlefield!

Zoro, Law, and the others immediately chose to retreat.

After all, with such terrifying destructive power, even they, standing in the core of the battlefield, risked being caught in the aftermath!

"This guy..."

Law raised a hand to adjust his hat, subtly wiping away the cold sweat on his forehead:

"He's strong!"

"Perhaps even stronger than Xiang Keluo, stronger than Issho!"

Then, as if remembering something, Law turned to look at Zoro, a mocking smile curling the corner of his mouth:

"It seems you can finally shed the title of 'eternal number five,' though, hearing what the Captain said, 'number six' isn't exactly a compliment~"

"Oh, wait."

"After Issho joined the crew, you were already number six, so does that make you number seven now?!"

Zoro's eye twitched; he shot a sidelong glance at Law:

"What?"

"As number nine, are you looking to challenge me?!"

Both men placed their hands on their sword hilts, eyes locked tightly on one another.

Although Fujitora was strong, the gap in strength between him and them was too vast; even if they fought, the trend would be almost entirely one-sided, making it hard to speak of any satisfying experience.

But Law and Zoro, both swordsmen, possessed combat power that was extremely close.

In that previous ranking battle, both had fallen to Bepo's hands one after another, and since then, they had never truly crossed blades.

Plus, with over two months having passed, both had grown significantly, naturally craving an opponent worthy of a fight.

Zing—!

Their blades left their sheaths almost simultaneously; the fighting intent in the air gradually soared, only to be blown apart by a burst of shockwaves erupting from afar just as it reached its critical point!

Gulp—!

A frenzied Conqueror's Haki erupted from Barrett, spilling out in all directions, blowing the surrounding trees askew and whipping up the clothes of Zoro and the other.

It was at this very moment.

The two noticed a figure clad entirely in black being blasted away from the core of the battlefield, crashing heavily into the rock wall of the valley.

"For real?!"

"Even Captain Ah Jin has been suppressed?"

Law's brows knitted tightly together; he secretly swallowed hard, the shock in his eyes impossible to hide.

Zoro, standing nearby, remained completely silent.

They had expectations regarding Barrett's combat power; after all, he was a powerhouse capable of fighting Xiang Keluo and even gaining the upper hand, placing his strength second only to Gao Wen himself within Gao Wen's ranks.

Even Fujitora would, at most, be on par with him.

Such combat power naturally surpassed Ah Jin's by a margin, yet the situation of the battle absolutely should not have unfolded this way.

This could only mean that Barrett's combat power exceeded their expectations even further!

If the combat power of Ah Jin, Xiang Keluo, and Fujitora was sufficient to contend with the Admirals and the Four Emperors, then...

"This guy... is even stronger than we anticipated!"

Sanji slowly approached, raising a hand to wipe the dust from his body, a few extra traces of caution appearing in his eyes:

"In that instant, even I felt as though my body was about to fall apart."

"Is this truly that crewmate of the Pirate King Luo Jie, an existence capable of standing on equal footing with the Dark King Lei Li?!"

Law adjusted his hat again; the corners of his mouth beneath the brim couldn't help but curl upward, his excitement utterly unmasked:

"If Captain Ah Jin has lost, then it should be my turn next."

"You guys don't have any objections, right?"

"No!"

Sanji shook his head, slowly took a cigarette from his pocket and lit it; after taking a deep drag, he felt the soreness throughout his body alleviate considerably.

All that remained was increasingly fervent fighting intent!

"The fight between me and that guy just now isn't over yet; I haven't been defeated."

Zoro curled his lip:

"A defeated guy shouldn't talk big!"

Sanji's expression stiffened:

"I can still stand up; how does that count as defeat? That was merely us probing each other!"

"No!"

Zoro shook his head, shook the pocket watch in his hand, and smiled:

"I timed it; you stayed down too long, you've already exceeded the limit."

"Cut it out; fighting isn't a boxing match."

"Hey, hey, hey!"

Luo's expression was displeased:

"Don't just ignore me on your own!"

"Bastard!"

The three argued without reaching a conclusion, all wanting to fight Barrett.

Even though they clearly knew they were most likely no match for that monster, not a shred of retreat was in them; only the battle intent in their hearts surged!

Failure means there is still room for improvement!

These were the exact words Gao Wen had left them, and they had always inspired the crowd.

Beville stood aside, watching the three bicker with a faint air, yet his eyes also held an unmistakable heat.

After two years of bitter cultivation, who does not long to fight a strong opponent?

After the initial shock passed, all that remained in their bodies was battle intent!

This scene left Barrett in the distance stunned.

He had fought countless pirates, yet even great figures who once dominated a region, upon witnessing an overwhelming gap between themselves and others, would not have the slightest desire to fight.

He had seen scenes like the one before him.

But that was already a distant past; the Luo Jie Pirates were not lacking in belligerent elements.

Lei Li, Jabba, and these others, though lax in cultivation, was there a single one among them who was not extremely confident, with eyes high above the ground?!

Yet what Barrett had not expected was that there were so many such people under Knight Gao Wen's command?!

What is wrong with these guys?!

They cannot feel the gap between them; this battle they are bound to lose, has...

Suddenly.

Barrett saw his own reflection in the crowd.

The posture with which he, back then on Luo Jie's ship, challenged that man again and again—how similar was it to these people under Gao Wen's command?

As if by ghostly guidance.

Barrett spoke, asking:

"What do you want?!"

The only answer he received was the crowd's roar, like a beast's bellow:

"The strongest!"

"Then come at me all together!"

Barrett bared his teeth in a grimace, his Conqueror's Haki roaring and sweeping across the entire valley!

Endless purple-black energy radiated from Barrett as the center, spreading outward; countless rocks and soil were assimilated, molded into a colossal giant over forty meters tall!

Medium Bullet!

Compared to the Large Bullet, which emphasizes ultimate destructive power, the Medium Bullet is much smaller in size, yet far more agile and capable of more precise operations!

In a sense, this is Barrett's true combat form!

Pure destructive power is far inferior to the Large Bullet, but overall combat capability leaves the former behind by more than a body length!

"Roar!"

Barrett threw back his head and let out a long cry; an invisible pressure bore down on all sides like a mountain, yet it could not shake the firm battle intent in the crowd's eyes!

In the distance.