Chapter 289

Boom—!

The sharp claws, trailing sparks, pierced through the air and struck them heavily. Their clothes instantly tore like fragile fabric, emitting a harsh, grating sound, yet—strangely—no blood splattered.

The dark shadow landed.

It instantly dissolved into blue smoke, as if it were merely some kind of illusion.

Only then did such a thought faintly emerge in his mind.

A glance from the corner of his eye.

There was actually a dark shadow, skimming rapidly along the mirror-like surface above, heading straight for Locke in the distance to launch an attack.

"My lord!"

Lei Ounai's pupils constricted.

In the blink of an eye, with no time to think, she lunged backward, moving like an agile cat, transforming into a streak of yellow light and covering a vast distance in an instant.

She could even hear a sonic boom-like sound whistling in her ears.

No hesitation.

No doubt.

She threw her body directly in front of Locke.

Zzzzt—

The dark shadow pounced.

A black blade slid from its sleeve, shooting toward the target.

But Lei Ounai, having arrived in a flash, acted as a human shield, blocking all the attacks head-on; no matter how stealthy or swift the ambush was, it had to get past her defensive line first.

Puchi!

The black blade pierced the air and plunged into her chest.

Although Lei Ounai managed to avoid her vitals in time, the lethal strike still caused her significant injury.

Splash—

Blood flowed down from the wound.

An assassin with such fierce offensive power would not be weak.

The power erupted in an instant, reaching even quasi-Admiral level, perhaps even faintly touching the Emperor-level standard. Given that in the world of the Pirate King, even the strongest are human and can die, even an Emperor-level powerhouse would not fare well if stabbed through the heart like this; for some monstrous individuals, it wouldn't even be impossible to be directly incapacitated.

"You're courting death!!!"

Locke was furious.

The power he had been gathering instantly poured into his fist.

"Rigid Fist—"

"Form-Will: Dragon Soars!!"

The boiling Qi and blood were unleashed by Locke in a single punch, vibrating with rolling sound waves, directly transforming into a towering phantom of a divine dragon that shook its head and tail as it struck the dark shadow.

The speed was extremely fast.

In an instant, it reached the target, and the power erupted.

The force of ten thousand jun gathered at a single point.

Boom—

The entire figure was instantly washed away by the immense force, torn to pieces and blasted into dust.

The momentum of the attack did not diminish, even forming a massive shockwave behind it that swept across dozens of meters, scouring everything in all directions like a passing typhoon.

It was unclear what material these mirrors were made of; under such residual force, they remained completely unscathed, even clearly reflecting the figures. If these had been blue bricks, thick tiles, or even giant stone slabs, they would have been shattered to pieces under such powerful wind pressure, and even iron blocks would have been scoured with wind marks.

However.

Locke clearly had no mood to investigate this now.

His face was tense.

He took a few quick steps to Lei Ounai's side: "Lei Ounai! Are you alright?"

"How is the injury?"

"Did that strike just now hit a vital point?"

Locke's face was full of worry.

Having come to this world alone, besides the head butler couple who raised him in Noxas, the only people Locke cared about were the Teigu users he had summoned himself.

They were comrades, partners, and even more—a different kind of... family.

"I-I'm fine!"

"You're not fine, your face is pale!"

Locke kept a straight face, feigning anger, and pointed at Lei Ounai's pale little face.

On her chest, the glaring wound and the crimson blood flowing from it didn't look like she was fine at all.

"Hehehe..."

"I'm really fine, my lord!"

Lei Ounai's face was slightly pale, but the spirit in her eyes was quite lively, and she playfully winked at Locke: "My lord! Have you forgotten my Teigu ability!"

"That's the Undying Fire Lion King, you know!"

Zzzzt—

As Lei Ounai finished speaking, the undying lion king fire instantly burned on her body.

Like the ability of the 'Mythical Zoan: Phoenix' fruit, the wound that had been bleeding continuously just moments ago recovered instantly after the appearance of the undying flames; never mind the wound, even the scar was invisible.

Her skin was smooth and flawless, just as supple as before.

It was as if the injury she had just sustained was merely an illusion everyone had seen.

"Heehee!"

"I told you I was fine!"

Lei Ounai stood with her hands on her hips, looking quite smug.

Undying Fire Lion King!

Even severed limbs could be easily regrown; it was said that as long as her head wasn't cut off, she wouldn't die. After evolving through devouring a large amount of fruit power, how could such a 'small injury' affect her?

Even if her heart were blown apart, it wouldn't take long to recover as before.

Locke...

Was purely worried to the point of confusion.

"Hehehe~"

"I was just too agitated!"

Locke scratched his head, rarely showing a foolish smile. Only in front of the few Teigu users he had summoned himself and regarded as family would he, who was always arrogant and domineering, show such a big-boy side.

"It's good that you're fine, it's good that you're fine."

Locke waved his hand.

His expression first relaxed, but the next moment, it became serious again.

"Even so, this kind of thing must not happen again!"

"Using a woman to block a blade or something."

"I, Locke, am not weak to that extent! With these two fists, I am enough to break through everything!"

"If there is such a thing again, if it's too late, leave it to me. You must trust your lord, trust my strength!"

Locke held his head slightly high.

His face was full of firm determination.

His words were resolute and allowed no refusal.