Chapter 136: Extreme Thunder
Chapter 136: Extreme Thunder
"It's rare to find someone who knows about my race." The tall man said indifferently, "When the people of Qinghai see me, they only call me an angel and worship me."
He glanced at Lily and said, "As expected, the pirates are more informed. You must be Bi Endeta Lily, the pirate with a bounty of 86 million berries. I am Cham, the Royal Guard of the Anu Kingdom, sent here by the king to deal with you."
As he finished speaking, the stone statue knights behind Lily rushed forward, surrounding her.
Lily glanced back, and just as her lips began to tremble, Cham shook his head and said, "You're trying to gather information even at a time like this. But you'll be dead soon, so I might as well tell you. This is the ability of our king—you cannot be killed because you are already dead."
Lily's pupils constricted as she tightened her grip on her White Thunder.
She had indeed wanted to ask about these stone statue knights to gather some intelligence.
Prediction?
Heart-reading?
Could this be...
"Kenbunshoku? So that's what the people of Qinghai call 'Heart-Cord'? However, it doesn't seem like you possess it, which is quite surprising," Cham interjected, almost as if he had anticipated Lily's thoughts. "Now that you understand, you should be aware that every move you make can be divined by me."
"Is that so?" Lily's eyes turned icy, and she thrust White Thunder forward, her feet moving swiftly as her figure turned into an afterimage, carrying a sword glow like thunder, and rushing straight at Cham.
"Left side." Cham's lips curled up, and the weapon in his hand quickly blocked to the left.
Clang!
A spark flew as the iron mace, with eight sharp blades along a single iron rod, parried the thin sword blade, blocking the attack.
Swoosh!
Lily's figure flashed again, her sword glow swirling around Cham as she continued her assault.
"Right side."
Clang!
Cham simply blocked to the right with the iron mace, parrying Lily's sword once more.
"Above."
Clang!
"Straight ahead."
Clang!
No matter which direction Lily attacked from, Cham seemed to predict her moves, parrying with the iron mace. As long as he blocked in advance, her attacks couldn't reach him.
After a throat-piercing strike from the front was blocked, Lily withdrew, quickly moving to the back. She sheathed the White Thunder's blade, drawing it back into its scabbard, and assumed a iaido stance.
"Break the air."
Clink!
"Slash!"
A black thunderbolt suddenly appeared and rushed towards Cham, about to slice through him.
But just before it could reach him, in the instant Lily's figure disappeared, Cham forcefully swung the iron mace straight ahead, colliding with the black thunderbolt.
Clang!!
A crisp sound reverberated through the empty corridor. The iron mace firmly blocked the thin sword blade, causing a look of astonishment to appear in Lily's eyes.
At this moment, the blade of the White Thunder was covered in a layer of pitch black.
Was it possible that Busoshoku Haki couldn't cut through this weapon?
"Of course it can't!" Cham sneered, twisting the iron mace in his hand. The gaps between the eight blades caught the sword blade, causing Lily's movement to pause momentarily. Taking advantage of this, Cham exerted force on the mace, sending it toward Lily.
Lily's eyes widened as she instinctively twisted the sword hilt, freeing it from the mace's hold, and her figure leaped backward.
"Useless!" Cham shouted as he brandished the iron mace. "I know where you're going to land! Whip Dance!"
As the iron mace was swung, it seemed to melt and elongate, transforming into a whip. It lashed out toward the spot where Lily had moved, coiling like a rope and striking her.
Sizzle!
A few drops of blood splattered onto the ground.
Lily's figure flashed, stopping at another spot. She turned to look at the wound on her shoulder, her expression turning calm.
Her shoulder armor was shattered, and on her ivory-like skin were several cuts. Similarly, the outer side of her thigh was also exposed, her skirt armor torn and stockings pushed aside, revealing wounds identical to the ones on her shoulder, bleeding profusely.
The whip suddenly retracted, shrinking back into the iron mace. Cham grinned, "What's this 'Busoshoku'? No wonder it's so much stronger. You can even cut through steel. Indeed, it's very powerful. But no matter how strong it is, it's still no match for this weapon, a gift from the king himself. It's made of extremely high-density iron, impossible to cut through with ordinary swords."
"You are not my match, and you cannot escape. Just obediently wait here for death!"
The stone statue knights had surrounded the area behind her, leaving this woman with no chance of escape.
"Who do you think I am?" Lily asked coldly. "As a swordsman, I do not flee from battle. On the contrary, I am glad that you are the 'strong enemy' that Sage spoke of. I will cut through that weapon and sever your head!"
Only a strong enemy was worthy of a deadly battle!
And only through deadly battles could one's strength grow!
"Oh? You're not afraid to die?" Cham laughed. "But that's nothing to be proud of. Whether you fear death or not, the result will be the same! Whip Dance·Spin!"
Whoosh!
The iron mace transformed into an iron whip, vibrating and dancing rapidly as it rushed towards Lily under Cham's swinging arm.
Lily's figure flashed to another spot, but the whip seemed to be waiting for her there. As it danced, the eight sharp blades spun and struck Lily's left arm.
Sizzle!
The rapidly spinning blades acted like a buzzsaw, and even though Lily dodged at the moment of contact, it still grazed her arm, drawing blood.
No matter how she dodged, the whip seemed to predict her movements, finding her landing spot and striking her.
Sizzle! Sizzle!
Even when Lily tried to block with her sword, it was as if her movements were predicted. No matter how fast her sword was, it couldn't hit this flexible, serpentine iron whip. In just a few seconds, several more wounds appeared on her body.
Although the injuries weren't deep, her skirt armor was shredded, and her skin was grazed.
"You can't escape! I can hear your heart, and I know where you'll go next and where your sword will strike. I just need to avoid it in advance!" Cham shouted, his expression becoming more and more hideous.
In terms of speed, he was indeed slower than this woman. However, it didn't hinder his attacks. This weapon, bestowed by the king, was not only extremely strong but also capable of extending.
With Lily surrounded by stone statue knights and limited in her movements, any action she made would be met by Cham's attacks.
Amid the chaotic dance of the whip, Lily relentlessly employed her 'Shave' technique to maneuver, attempting to evade Cham's strikes and create opportunities for counterattacks. However, each time she made a move, the whip would obstruct her intended thrust, forcing her to abandon her offense and resort to evasive maneuvers. The more this pattern repeated, the more trapped she became in a vicious cycle.
It wasn't that she lacked the resolve to face death head-on, but she was well aware that the whip's sharp edges and force could injure her with the slightest touch, and even if she concentrated her Busoshoku Haki on her body to force a breakthrough, it would be futile. Moreover, if she were entangled by that whip, her entire Busoshoku Haki would be exhausted.
This guy was indeed a formidable foe.
Yet, the more challenging the opponent, the calmer and more focused Lily became, her mind racing with thoughts.
Sarge was getting stronger, but her own training progress seemed stagnant.
She didn't need to master all six styles; proficiency in 'Shave' and 'Moonwalk' was sufficient for a swordsman like her. Techniques like 'Paper Art' were unnecessary; while they could help dodge attacks, they also immobilized the user like an 'Iron Block.'
Using 'Iron Block' would render her unable to move.
'Paper Art,' being a technique that dissipates force throughout the body, would leave her unable to strike back immediately after evading, which was a disadvantage for a swordsman.
As a swordsman, the ability to counter-attack swiftly was of paramount importance, so 'Paper Art' wasn't suitable for her.
As for the other styles, she was better off focusing on perfecting her swordsmanship.
Having decided against mastering all six styles, her options were limited to improving her speed and delving deeper into the history of swordsmanship.
However, while her proficiency with Busoshoku Haki was growing more refined with use, it wasn't enough to cut through steel yet, and she hadn't made any progress toward the 'Sword-breaking' realm.
To defeat this opponent, she needed to attain the 'Sword-breaking' realm with Busoshoku Haki and combine it with the power of Kenbunshoku Haki, achieving a dual 'Sword-breaking' state.
The more she thought about it, the calmer her mind became, and she faintly heard a familiar voice in her ear.
Not the voice of the shadowy figure from her hazy memory, but Sarge's.
"Kenbunshoku Haki? First, you must maintain absolute calm in battle, then focus. Concentrate all your attention, just as people sometimes discover details when they focus. Absolute concentration transforms into willpower, and then into Kenbunshoku Haki. Lily, you're doing very well in this regard; you're calmer than I expected, and you should have already reached the 'Touch' state. Now, pay close attention to this historical text and use all your concentration to cut it down!"
His words still rang in her ears, prompting Lily to close her eyes instinctively, disregarding the wildly lashing whip that aimed to brush against her.
"You're delusional, woman!"
Cham had heard her thoughts loud and clear.
Cham laughed boisterously, "Breaking through during a battle? Drawing strength from a life-or-death struggle with a formidable foe? Such notions will only hasten your demise. Who do you think you are? You're just a pirate! Shinei!"
He swung his arm, and the iron whip, which should have struck her torso, coiled towards Lily's neck. If it grazed her throat, there was no doubt that she would die.
Such foolish beliefs would be the end of this woman who heeded any and all words!
Heart Thread was not something one could easily master!
A gust of deadly wind brushed past her neck, but Lily's mind remained unperturbed, devoid of any panic at the prospect of death. Instead, a sense of calm and focus grew within her.
Who was she? She was Bi Endeta Lily, a swordswoman who dreamed of a world free from oppression. She was a navigator who sailed alongside Sarge, sharing his ambition. She was a member of the Heavenly Disaster Pirate Crew! She was someone who followed closely in Sarge's footsteps.
And she was unafraid of death.
If she couldn't meet these basic requirements, she would never be able to accompany Sarge into the New World or fulfill her own dreams.
Death?
What was there to fear?
Clang!
Amid its frenzied dance, the whip was pierced by a black light, swaying to the side and leaving an opening.
"Absolute will begets absolute resolve."
Lily sheathed White Thunder, which was still enveloped in Haki, bending her knees slightly as she fixed her gaze on Cham. "So, who do you think I am?"
Swoosh!
As the iron whip continued to swing outward, Lily sprang into action, her sword glowing like black lightning as she swiftly closed in on Cham.
Cham, however, anticipated her move and retracted the whip, transforming it back into an iron mace, which he held vertically and twisted to block.
He intended to trap her sword once more, then turn it back into a whip to lash out and finish her off!
Lily charged forward, her eyes fixed on the iron mace as if the rest of the world had ceased to exist, the surroundings fading to white except for the mace.
On the mace, where there had been nothing before, a faint light began to shine in the middle section.
Lily felt her breath quicken, and along with it, a sense of intense focus caused the light to spread, illuminating the entire iron mace.
Each glimmer of light represented a potential point of attack, a place where she could cut.
Now, all she had to do was...
"I see it."
Beneath the black lightning, Cham heard a chilly voice in his ear. He saw a pair of pupils, glowing with crimson dots, appear before his eyes.
Sssss!
The black lightning streaked past the iron mace and Cham's body.
Lily appeared behind Cham, crouching slightly as she slowly sheathed White Thunder, its Haki fading away. She stood up straight and gently touched her forehead.
Cham blinked, a cold sweat forming on his brow. He reached for his neck, his lips curled in a sinister grin as he turned and brought the iron mace down with full force.
Clank!
The sound of a sword being sheathed rang out as Lily calmly stated, "Extreme Thunder."
Smack!
The iron mace, now in two pieces, clattered to the ground along with Cham's head, his face frozen in a grimace.
She had done it! Lily swayed slightly, her hand brushing her temple as a delightful curve formed on her luscious lips. She murmured, "I didn't let you down, Sarge."
(End of Chapter)
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