"Bang!"
Just as the tension reached its peak, a massive hand stretched out from the abyss. It was pitch-black, like it had crawled straight out of hell itself. The hand slammed onto the ground, gripping the earth, and then a demon-god-like figure leaped out from the depths.
In an instant, a terrifying shockwave swept across the battlefield. The ground rolled violently as if the land itself was screaming. Ulti and the others had to raise their arms to shield their eyes, their bodies forced backward by the overwhelming pressure. When the storm finally settled, a towering figure blocked out the sunlight, radiating an aura so oppressive it felt suffocating.
He had thick black hair draped over his shoulders, two curved horns rising from his head, and a lifelike scaly tattoo running along his left arm. His upper body was bare, only a purple cloth hanging loosely from his waist. His lower body was wrapped in dark green trousers, with a thick shimenawa tied around his waist. His massive frame was packed with muscles, each one covered in scars that spoke of countless battles.
This was a devil that had crawled out of the abyss.
Just standing in front of him felt like facing a living mountain. The violent aura pouring off his body alone was enough to make an ordinary person collapse in terror.
"Who disturbed my sleep?"
Kaido's voice thundered like a dragon roaring. He scratched his head lazily, as if trying to remember something, and even let out a casual burp.
"Boss, someone's here looking for trouble."
Queen puffed on his cigar and glanced at Lucien, who had already landed on the ground. He chuckled, clearly not taking him seriously at all.
"Hm?"
Kaido finally seemed to notice Lucien. His bull-like eyes widened, and a murderous glint flashed within them.
"Was it you who disturbed my sleep?"
Being woken up had put Kaido in an extremely foul mood. He did not bother with any further words.
In the next instant, Kaido appeared right in front of Lucien, as if he had teleported. His thick, pillar-like arm tore through the air with a deafening sonic boom, smashing toward Lucien's head like a falling mountain.
It looked like he was swatting a fly.
He wanted to finish this quickly and go back to drinking.
Lucien lowered his gaze. His right arm transformed into black-red crystal, shimmering with a terrifying luster. His blood surged violently, every cell in his body screaming with excitement.
As the strongest creature in the world, Kaido did not disappoint him.
A fist the size of a millstone collided with a crystal fist no bigger than a bun.
The moment they met, a thunderous explosion echoed across the entire island. A circular shockwave erupted outward, tearing through the air and causing continuous violent detonations.
The force was like the sky collapsing.
Lucien frowned slightly as the ground beneath his feet caved in. The earth exploded repeatedly, and he was forced to slide more than ten meters sideways before he managed to stabilize himself.
Kaido also took two steps back.
His enormous eyes widened in surprise.
Lucien shook his numb arm, his amethyst eyes glowing with undisguised joy.
Kaido glared at him, clearly enraged that he had been forced to retreat.
King and the others had already withdrawn far away the moment the clash began. They would never interfere in a battle like this unless Kaido personally ordered it, and that was impossible.
"Boom…"
A terrifying aura erupted, forming a monstrous hurricane that darkened the entire sky. Dark red lightning tore through the clouds as Kaido's Conqueror's Haki burst outward, crushing everything in its path.
That tyrannical will descended from all directions, pressing down on Lucien like an invisible mountain.
Lucien felt a heavy weight on his shoulders. His lips tightened slightly, but his expression did not change.
Then, radiant flames ignited across his entire body.
He moved first.
The ground beneath his feet exploded as he flashed in front of Kaido. His black-red crystal knee shot upward, carrying terrifying explosive force.
Kaido responded with his own knee strike.
The collision sounded like a meteor smashing into the earth.
"Boom… crack… rumble…"
The already chaotic sky began to twist, forming a massive black vortex, like an inverted funnel swallowing the clouds. The entire cloud layer was dragged into violent rotation, moving as if the heavens themselves were collapsing.
The next second, the sky tore open.
A massive rift spread across the firmament, as black-red lightning roared wildly. The surrounding sea surged upward, forming towering waves that crashed against the coastline in unrestrained fury.
In the distance, King and the others stared in silence, their expressions completely serious.
They had underestimated this unknown man.
"The… the sky was torn open…"
Black Maria murmured, her beautiful yet seductive face filled with shock.
"When did such a monster appear on the sea?"
"Do you know who he is?"
Queen asked while exhaling smoke.
"No idea. We'll need time to investigate."
At the very center of the storm, one large foot and one smaller foot were locked together in mid-air. Waves of pressure exploded outward continuously, tearing through everything around them.
Lucien vanished in a blur, leaving behind afterimages that ripped through the air. His elbow smashed violently into Kaido's broad chest.
Kaido crossed his thick arm in front of himself. Sparks erupted as the two collided.
Seeing his strike blocked, Lucien flipped in mid-air and landed on Kaido's head. His right foot came crashing down like a falling mountain.
Kaido punched upward.
Their attacks collided, producing another massive explosion.
Lucien was blasted high into the sky, while Kaido was driven straight into the ground. The impact caused the land within a ten-thousand-meter radius to tremble violently, as mountains shifted and the terrain collapsed.
Lucien hovered in mid-air, shaking his right foot slightly, feeling a sharp tingling sensation. Below him, Kaido climbed out of the massive crater without a single sign of injury.
No words were needed.
The two figures moved again, like meteors colliding in the sky.
One large, one small.
Two raging beasts.
Every punch and every kick carried enough power to shatter steel and pulverize stone, producing devastation on an unimaginable scale.
"Whoosh!"
A tearing sound ripped through the air. The entire island shook violently as endless cracks spread across the ground. Several barren mountains collapsed, and thick smoke and dust filled the sky.
Sunlight was completely blocked.
Kaido landed heavily on the island, his murderous aura rolling outward like a tidal wave.
"Cough… cough…"
From within the dust, Lucien walked out, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth. His clothes were torn, his body battered, but his eyes were burning with excitement.
Golden lightning flickered around him as his aura surged violently.
Kaido was strong.
"Crack… rumble…"
Dark red lightning continued to fall from the sky, making the world flicker between light and darkness. Any ordinary person entering this area would be crushed to death by the pressure of their combined Haki alone.
Kaido looked down at Lucien, his voice cold and domineering.
"State your name. I don't kill nameless nobodies."
Lucien did not answer.
Instead, he raised his hand and beckoned with his finger.
His posture was even more arrogant than Kaido's.
Kaido's face twisted in fury. The ground beneath his feet shattered instantly as he vanished again, appearing in front of Lucien. His massive thigh swung forward, compressing the air until it screamed, then exploded with overwhelming power.
Lucien transformed fully into crystal form, choosing not to dodge.
He chose a direct collision.
The atmosphere roared like a war drum as their right feet slammed together. The ground beneath them collapsed completely, forming a massive basin. The shockwave turned the surrounding land into a raging sandstorm.
Lucien's face paled slightly as he was sent flying backward, crashing straight into a distant mountain. The entire mountain shattered instantly, exploding into fragments.
Kaido took a few steps back.
His expression was furious.
"Whoosh!"
From the smoke and debris, Lucien shot forward again, sliding across the ground instead of retreating.
A punch tore through the air with a sonic boom.
At the same time, Kaido threw his own punch.
Their fists collided.
The impact was like two meteors crashing into each other.
The battlefield rapidly shifted away from the center of Onigashima. Everything in their path was annihilated, mountains collapsed, forests were erased, and countless pirates died without even having time to scream.
They were crushed into blood mist.
The entire island was in chaos.
At the center of it all, two figures, one demonic and colossal, the other shining with crystalline light, were like a demon god and a fallen deity, making anyone who witnessed the scene instinctively tremble.
"Boom… rumble…"
The sky continued to distort, clouds inverted, and that invisible tyrannical will swept across the land like divine punishment.
Kaido attacked wildly, his movements brutal and savage.
Lucien dodged sideways, barely avoiding a kick, then countered with one of his own.
In that instant, a piercing explosion ripped through the air.
The ground collapsed even further, rocks were flung into the sky, and an endless cloud of dust swallowed the battlefield once more.
===
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