https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-676-Today-the-Star-of-Death-Shines/13464680/
Chapter 677: Cooldown
Chapter 677: Cooldown
A rapid spiral beam, entwined with red lightning, flashed through the air and accurately collided with its target.
Clang!!!
A massive metallic clang accompanied the sparks from Griffin's blade as Sagel's attack, after a brief moment, was deflected like a baseball, transforming into an unstable, black-red compressed singularity that shot towards the sky.
With a single hit, Red Hair's arm visibly stiffened, but only for a moment. The next instant, he was about to swing his blade again.
However, before he could even move his arm, a leg came into his field of vision.
The leg, like a whip and a heavy hammer, struck Red Hair's head with great force.
Bang!!
The leg nearly embedded itself in Red Hair's face, and with the powerful gravity and inertia, Red Hair's entire body was thrown backward, flying straight into the air.
But whether it was the time it took to resist the attack or the brief moment of Red Hair's hesitation, it gave Sagel enough time to complete his next move.
After the kick, he extended his index finger again, and the black-red spiral beam began to gather once more.
This move was highly compressed, so there was a brief interval after its release. Otherwise, he could have simply used a single, powerful burst to finish Red Hair.
But it wasn't too late.
"Boss!"
Lazlo, with his gun raised, fired a dangerous shot. As he shouted, the trigger was pulled, and a barrage of bullets, imbued with Haki, rushed towards Sagel, who had just extended his finger.
"Oh, almost forgot about you."
Sagel glanced, and although his finger didn't move, Beckman broke out in a cold sweat at the sight. He couldn't help but yell, "Lazlo! Get out of the way!!!"
In a moment, he saw Lazlo being pierced!
The instant Beckman saw this, he gripped the gun barrel like a hammer handle and the stock like a hammer head, trying to rush to Lazlo's side to defend against the scene he foresaw. He kept his eyes fixed on Sagel's extended finger.
It had to be that move!
As long as he watched Sagel's finger, he could block it like Shanks did.
This guy couldn't continuously release it; there was a slight interval, which was enough for them to make a move.
Whether it was to fight...
Or retreat!
Whoosh!
But before Beckman could even take a step, just as his muscles and nerves tensed, a spiral beam flashed past his eyes.
It pierced through something as fragile as paper and tofu, making no sound. He could only watch helplessly as the spiral beam emerged from Sagel's shoulder and directly penetrated Lazlo's forehead, the intense force even breaking through the rocks behind him and reaching the sea.
A deep hole formed on the sea's surface, though only as thick as an arm, it took a long time to be filled by the water.
There was no need for a finger attack; Beckman saw clearly that with a slight push of his shoulder, the spiral beam was released.
Beckman instantly understood that Sagel, as a top-tier physical combatant, could release his moves at will, not needing to use his hands like traditional power users. That was just a misconception.
"Beck, Beckman..."
As Beckman's thoughts formed, Lazlo shakily extended his hand towards him, the wound in his forehead beginning to crack, like sand or shattered glass.
"It's a bit of a shame I can't cook for the boss anymore."
As he spoke, his head turned to ash, and then his body, disintegrated into the air with the wind.
"Hey! Don't joke around!!!"
Crocodile and the others, watching from a distance, broke out in cold sweat.
When Sagel first used the Demonic Cataclysm, they weren't too concerned, as they had seen this move before. Although its power had increased significantly, the Four Emperors were still the Four Emperors, and it would be strange if they didn't grow stronger.
But the use of this so-called 'Demonic Devastation' truly shocked them.
What was that move?
What kind of penetrative and destructive power was that?
Even Red Hair found it difficult to resist?
And Lazlo, when hit...
He didn't even have a chance to be injured, only to die?
The level of annihilation was even higher than Crocodile's ability, which represented 'drought.'
"Extreme compression..."
Mihawk's face remained calm, but his voice was tinged with reflection. "Originally, it was a combination of various techniques, but now it's compressed into a single strike. The force that explodes upon impact is truly difficult to withstand, let alone block."
A simple piercing wouldn’t be much of an issue. After all, it’s just a hole. Some people could even survive a hole through their skull if they were lucky.
The resilience of people on the high seas had reached an almost exaggerated level. Unless the attack was clearly intended to kill, targeting vital areas and ensuring those parts were severed—like a decapitation, a waist-cut, or a heart removal—it was hard to say if the person was truly dead.
Even if the skull was shattered, the spine broken, and every bone in the body fractured, given enough time, they could still recover.
The only sure way to confirm death was to see the head cut off or the body cleaved in two, and to witness the lifeless body with your own eyes.
A simple hole, in comparison, was nothing.
The key was the explosive damage that followed the initial impact. It shattered every cell and caused a massive explosion. Only at this level could someone be completely annihilated.
Even Mihawk couldn’t withstand the damage from such a strike.
Haki could counteract each other, but to endure the full force of the attack and then resist it with Haki would only result in injury and a depletion of Haki. This would leave the attacker, in this case, Sagel, in a better state to press the advantage.
No wonder this technique was so rapid, so powerful, and carried such a formidable presence. Even if one could foresee the future and see it coming, it would be difficult to react in time.
Even if you did react, you might still fall into Sagel’s trap.
He was a pure physical combat expert.
"Sa! Ge!!"
A massive smoke ring spread through the air as Red Hair rushed in, his eyes blazing red and his face taut with fury. He loomed over Sagel, lifting his blade with a single hand and bringing it down with a vengeance, the red lightning on the blade glowing even brighter.
Clang!!
A Haki-infused hand deflected the blade, but before the stalemate could hold, Red Hair quickly withdrew his blade and attacked from another angle.
Clang!
Sagel bent his leg to block the second strike, and Red Hair’s form shifted to continue his assault.
He didn’t linger on any single attack, pulling back after each strike to prevent Sagel from trapping him. He moved with the agility of a fish in the sea, using the Moon Step technique with great precision. Each strike and each step created a smoke ring, allowing him to adjust his position in the air.
"Your subordinates’ deaths didn’t fully enrage you, did they? You’re still maintaining your composure."
Sagel raised his hand to block Red Hair’s blade, and in an instant, his fingers tightened, like an eagle’s talons, reaching for Griffin. But Red Hair quickly dodged.
He didn’t even want to engage in a grapple.
First, in terms of strength, he couldn’t match Sagel.
Second,
"Did you figure it out?"
Sagel chuckled. "As expected of one of the Four Emperors. Your title is well-deserved. Red Hair, you discovered the weakness in my technique with just one strike?"
Red Hair continued his relentless attacks without responding to Sagel’s words. Instead, he called out to his subordinates below:
"Beckman! Jesop! Attack! Keep attacking! Don’t give this guy more than two seconds of rest!"
"Of course, you found the cooldown time", Sagel laughed. "Very good, Red Hair!"
The Demonic Devastation, or any of his full-power attacks, had a single weakness: the immense power and the complete depletion of Haki meant that his Haki recovery couldn’t keep up.
He needed at least two seconds to recover.
Especially with the highly compressed Demonic Devastation.
Other techniques could be adjusted to reduce the power and control Haki output, maintaining a balance with his abnormal recovery rate, allowing for continuous use. For example, a simple Haki wave could be sustained indefinitely if Sagel chose to.
Combining physical techniques with Haki did increase the consumption, but it didn’t significantly affect his Haki. The main drain was on his physical energy.
The only exception was the highly compressed Demonic Devastation. Due to its extreme nature, it required full power. Even though he could use it on any part of his body at will, it had to be at full strength.
If the power was reduced, it would become a simple piercing wave.
Only by using it at full, unrelenting strength could it transform into the Mystic Light Cannon, a technique with such powerful penetration that it could annihilate weaker opponents without the need for charging.
Sagel couldn’t charge it either.
The so-called "charging up" is merely a way to increase power. For external force, it's about technique, while internally, it's about stacking Haki.
Many people need to charge up because they can't release all their Haki at once. They have to use strange methods like charging, warming up, or pre-attack movements to try and stack their Haki to a certain level, which is why the concept of charging exists.
Even the highest swordsman here, Mihawk, wouldn't dare claim he can wrap and release all his Haki in one go.
Kaido, who specializes in explosive attacks, can't do it either.
Just like a normal person throwing a punch, no matter how much force they use, at what angle, or how they twist their waist, that punch won't leave them completely drained.
The idea of someone collapsing in exhaustion after a single punch is absurd.
There's a limit to it.
Even Haki can't break this limit.
In this world, only Sagel can do it!
His peak physical skills allow him to instantly concentrate all his strength, and even temporarily suppress the recovery of Haki after an attack. The "Bad Sky Fist" is dangerous, but it's also a technique.
Sagel is a man with the power of "instant full strength." Because of this, his moves are now particularly hard to defend against.
Red Hair noticed this and began attacking fiercely to deplete Sagel's Haki.
He knows Sagel's unique trait, the terrifying rate of Haki recovery, which allows him to release Haki as recklessly as he acts.
And that move was likely a full-strength attack.
It contained a perfect "extreme."
But to counter it, one just needs to prevent Sagel from maintaining full Haki. Even a slight loss makes it imperfect. As long as he's constantly being drained, no matter how fast he recovers, he can't fully recover after using that terrifying move, which leaves his Haki recovery lagging behind.
The proof is that when Sagel first used that move and was blocked, the follow-up kick didn't contain Haki.
It's not that he didn't want to; Sagel, though sadistic, isn't that foolish.
It's just that his Haki recovery didn't keep up, but he found an opportunity and attacked.
Red Hair, who was relentlessly slashing with his sword, radiated a cold aura. "Sagel, no, Worldslider! My Pirate crew has been destroyed by you, and you will pay the price. If balance can't be maintained, at least I'll take you down with me, disappearing in this sea!"
It's undeniable that
his spirited Red Force and the elite crew he recruited are now gone.
Even Lazlo is gone!
He was one of his "Three Musketeers", his right-hand man!
"Pirate battles are like this. If your Pirate crew isn't destroyed, then mine would be. I said I would return the favor!"
Sagel punched away Red Hair's sword, grinning. "Your daughter is the favor! She's not dead yet, and whether she can be saved depends on how quickly I finish you off. Don't worry, I'll make a tombstone for you. I'll leave your body intact. You're a top-notch clown, but also a top-notch hero. I'll visit your grave often!"
It's not a threat.
Sagel doesn't need to use Uta as a threat.
He genuinely believes it, and he's confident he can annihilate Red Hair's Pirate crew before Uta dies, then save her.
The last part is just a precaution.
But no matter what, these guys won't escape this time!
"What a hassle."
Sagel continuously blocked Red Hair's sword attacks while dodging and deflecting Beckman's and Jesop's assaults.
Red Hair, agile like an eel, was using a strange fighting style despite his abundant Haki.
What is this?
Trying to drain my stamina?
Sagel punched away Red Hair's sword again, suddenly smiling. He extended his finger, pointing at Beckman and Jesop.
It looked like he was getting impatient.
"Opportunity! Divine Avoidance!!"
With a flash of red lightning, the "Divine Avoidance" sliced through the air, leaving a trail of color as it struck Sagel. The blade hit Sagel's waist, deeply embedding itself and pushing further in.
But as the blade struck, Red Hair's eyes widened. Instead of seeing shock or anger on Sagel's face, he saw a grin of satisfaction.
The black-red glow from his finger suddenly transferred to his mouth. As his tongue extended, he unleashed a spiral beam!
(End of Chapter)
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