Chapter 404: Barrett: I Was Still Too Young

"Another... a monster of extraordinary potential!"

"Equally young, equally showing the aptitude to reach the peak of legend; no, they are only one step away from legend!"

"Gao Wen actually has gathered so many new-generation talents who are young yet possess limitless potential!"

"Is this a concentration camp for monsters?"

"How did he do it?!"

Barrett was shocked in his heart, but his movements were as swift as a thunderbolt; the Medium Bullet threw a punch, knocking Zoro back face-to-face once more.

The flowing purple substance quickly filled the gap in the Medium Bullet.

With its massive size and sturdy outer armor, even after being breached repeatedly, the Medium Bullet still exuded an overwhelming pressure, yet it no longer possessed the momentum of being invincible as it had moments ago.

Facing the siege of most of the elite Round Table Knights, Barrett felt pressure for the first time.

Any single one of them, if taken out individually, would be qualified to be the second-in-command or even a vice-admiral of a Yonko-level pirate crew; even excluding the few besides Akin who have already touched the level of Admiral, they are very close to the Admiral level.

But what truly shocked Barrett was the fearless gaze in their eyes.

"Truly a group of madmen!"

Although he said this, the expression on Barrett's face was smiling.

Unlike when he was in Luo Jie's pirate crew, where he had to constantly suppress his nature, even feeling a strange sense of loneliness.

At this moment, standing around him, one by one, they were all of the same kind!

Bloodthirsty, warlike, monsters craving to be the strongest!

"Come!"

"Fight me to your heart's content!"

Boom—!

The Medium Bullet moved.

Barrett changed his defensive stance from before and faced the entire Round Table Knights head-on.

Arms exceeding thirty meters in length swept through the air, leaving afterimages, pressing down from the sky like a tide towards the distance.

Even the air currents stirred by the fists alone raised a wild wind around them, whipping up dust and sand.

The few standing side by side were swallowed in an instant, yet in the next instant, they burst out from the sky-high dust and smoke, each displaying their abilities to attack and kill towards Barrett!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

In the valley, the ground cracked continuously; flames, slashes, flying rocks, and flowing black-purple substance erupted wildly, changing the color of heaven and earth for a moment!

At this moment, the only one who could stand calmly aside was Xiang Keluo alone.

He looked at the battle in the valley which was gradually becoming white-hot and couldn't help but let out a sigh:

"Truly a monster who can rival the Dark King Lei Li."

"Facing a Lower Legend alone, plus several Gold Limits, yet still remaining at ease, even subtly gaining the upper hand."

"However."

"This battle can be considered the final exam for two years of cultivation, right!"

"Truly..."

"Even I feel a bit itchy to fight~"

After hesitating for a while, Xiang Keluo ultimately did not enter the fray.

Barrett's combat power was roughly between the Mid-Legend and Upper-Legend; facing one Lower Legend plus four Gold Limits, he could still barely maintain the balance.

If one like himself, who is close to the Mid-Legend, were added, the balance of the battle would instantly tilt; the battle in the valley continued for three days and three nights.

Three days later.

Deep night.

Until Akin also collapsed from exhaustion, the only one still standing in the valley was Barrett alone.

He was covered in blood, his steps were even a bit unsteady, obviously his stamina had approached the limit.

Yet those eyes, amidst the continuous battles, had become even brighter, frighteningly bright.

"It seems the one standing to the end is me!"

As the voice fell,

Barrett felt his vision go black, then he crashed down with a thud, his entire body unable to muster a shred of strength.

It was at this very moment that Zoro's voice rang in Barrett's ears.

"Next time... I'll blow you up!"

"No, the one who will defeat that guy is me!"

Zoro, unwilling to yield, struggled to sit up; in his eyes, there was only endless fighting spirit.

Zoro, Law, Bever, and Akin were the same.

A crushing defeat did not shake their confidence; instead, it sharpened the sharpness within their bodies even more, making it fully exposed!

This group of guys...

They cannot be broken!

Barrett suddenly felt this in his heart.

No matter how many times they fail, they will stand up again, until the day they achieve their goal.

How similar!

It was just like seeing another, younger version of himself in a mirror!

Barrett closed his eyes, the cold, hard corners of his mouth lifting slightly:

"Then you must be quick."

"After defeating that man, I will leave this place."

Suddenly, a burst of loud laughter rang out from all around.

While Barrett was still bewildered, Xiang Keluo descended from the high sky, standing beside him, a trace of inexplicable amusement on the corners of his mouth:

"Then you must be quick; that fellow Gao Wen won't wait for you in one spot."

"By the way, what do you think is Gao Wen's greatest strength?"

Barrett blurted out:

"Strength, overwhelming strength!"

Barrett's voice carried a tone of admiration.

He had also seen countless supreme experts who roamed the seas, from Luo Jie and Whitebeard to the Red Count and Golden Lion; in any other era, they all possessed the potential to become kings.

But never had anyone given him the kind of oppressive feeling with no end in sight that Gao Wen did; he was simply so strong he seemed like a monster from another dimension.

"Wrong!"

Xiang Keluo shook his head, denying Barrett's guess, indescribable astonishment rising in his eyes:

"It is his speed of growth."

"From having nothing at all to reaching this current step, he spent only three years."

"Three years ago, when I first encountered him, we were both at the Bronze level, but now he has already touched the ceiling of the Legendary realm and begun contemplating how to cross the insurmountable barrier between man and god."

"But..."

"Mastering Haki in a few months, piercing through the Six Styles of the Navy with a single glance, and even being able to use Empress Big Mom's Kokoku after seeing it just once."

"Do you truly believe you can catch up to Gao Wen?"

Barrett froze for a moment.

For some reason, the restless, uneasy heart he had originally felt calmed down in this instant.

Does an insurmountable goal also equate to a journey that will never end?

Barrett's mind suddenly recalled the news from his final challenge against Luo Jie, when he was told that Luo Jie was already afflicted by a grave illness and had little time left to live.

At that time, his first reaction was not anger, but panic.

The foothold he had just found, the sense of identity he had just built, all collapsed with a crash alongside Luo Jie's fall.

It was also at that moment that Barrett, for the first time in his life, felt fear and an indescribable emptiness.

When the goal you have been chasing all along falls, who else is left for you to challenge?

Only everything that Luo Jie once conquered!

But how could one possibly surpass Luo Jie by stepping in his footprints?

After a long silence.

The expression on Barrett's face relaxed; his breathing became even, his qi grew more stable, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

Neither a smile nor not a smile.

"A goal that can never be surpassed, a journey that can never end, means there will always be a road ahead."

"Isn't that wonderful?!"

Xiang Keluo paused slightly, his gaze falling upon Barrett.

Moonlight poured down, shining upon Barrett's massive body; his cold, hard face actually appeared somewhat gentle at this moment.

While Xiang Keluo was lost in thought, Barrett had already struggled to his feet, turned, and walked toward the distance, murmuring under his breath:

"Rest tomorrow, the day after..."

"Continue!"

Having said this, Barrett took a step forward, yet at this very moment, a slightly puzzled voice reached his ears.

"Rest?!"

"What rest?!"

"How could such a thing possibly exist on the path to becoming stronger?!"

"Barrett... are you being so slack?!"