Powerful Combat Strength

No ferocious beasts dared to approach their dwelling on the island, so they temporarily settled there.

Xia Qiu also absorbed the Reinforcement Energy provided by Vergo.

As a vice admiral skilled in physical combat, without Devil Fruit Vice Admiral, and at the level of the base commander of a branch base in the Grand Line.

The amount of Reinforcement Energy he provided was extremely large, comparable to, and even slightly more than, that of veteran Vice Admiral like Garp and Onigumo.

Xia Qiu's physical fitness has improved to another level, making him stronger and more defensive.

His own body's defenses were already comparable to Cecilia's, who had just mastered Armament Haki.

In addition, Vergo possesses a strong Armament Haki, more than Vice Admiral Onigumo and about the same as Vice Admiral Garp.

After consuming it, Xia Qiu's Armament Haki increased to another level. Although it still couldn't cover his massive body, it was already several times stronger than that of a Vice Admiral.

"Little Qiu, you've changed a lot."

While the others were busy, Robin and Xia Qiu strolled around in the distance. Robin looked at his massive body with an unusual gleam in his eyes.

When she and Xia Qiu separated, Xia Qiu had a fish tail and crocodile legs and was relatively small, but now she is enormous and has become a ferocious Giant Beast.

"Robin, you've changed a lot too, you're even more beautiful than before."

Xia Qiu looked at Robin and said awkwardly.

Now, Robin has her hair up and her bangs open to reveal her forehead, making her look more dignified and beautiful.

What's even more striking is her chest; she's wearing a jacket with the zipper undone, revealing her full, fair breasts.

"Yeah?"

Robin smiled and then said, "I saw your news in the newspapers these past few days, and I was very worried about you. Now that I see you're alright, I'm relieved."

"I'm also very worried about you."

Upon hearing this, Xia Qiu extended her tentacle and patted Robin on the shoulder.

"But what you're about to do is very dangerous." Robin suddenly stopped and said seriously.

"Danger?"

Xia Qiu also stopped and looked at Robin.

Robin looked at Xia Qiu and said, "You want to kill Kaido? That won't be an easy thing for you. I'm not underestimating you, but he's just too strong. Maybe you should wait a bit longer."

In Robin's opinion, Xia Qiu's strength may not be comparable to Sabo, Ace, or even Law, one of the Shichibukai.

However, the gap between them and Kaido is enormous.

Whitebeard is known as the World's Strongest Man, and his powerful fighting strength is undeniable. However, Kaido's reputation is rising, and he is gradually being called the World's Strongest Creature.

That's someone Mr. Long warned us never to mess with.

Although Dragon agreed to help Sabo, he only agreed to let them distract Kaido's subordinates when it came to dealing with Kaido.

Their small team was simply no match for Kaido.

Don't worry.

Xia Qiu felt a warmth in her heart when she heard her concern for her, and said with a smile, "I know what I'm doing."

"Good."

Robin felt a little regretful upon hearing this, but still said, "But Little Qiu, I will help you no matter what."

"Thanks."

Xia Qiu nodded, just about to change to a lighter topic, when suddenly flames shot into the sky in the distance.

"What's wrong?"

Robin was somewhat surprised by the sight in the distance.

"Let's go back and take a look."

Xia Qiu and Robin rushed back immediately. As soon as they arrived, they found that the trees there had turned to ashes. Heckle and the others stood at a distance, while Ace and Sabo stood facing each other in a wide open space in the distance.

"What are they going to do?" Robin asked curiously.

"They plan to have a friendly spar and see how their training has gone over the years," Heckle said.

"Oh?"

Xia Qiu also looked towards the center of the arena, somewhat curious about Sabo's strength without a Devil Fruit.

"Come on, Sabo."

Ace said with a grin, "Let's have a spar again after thirteen years."

"Good."

Sabo looked at Ace and said, "I will definitely win this time."

"That's hard to say."

Ace replied, then raised his right hand and said, "President, please call 'start'."

"Good."

Xia Qiu nodded, looked at the two of them, and called out, "Begin."

As Xia Qiu spoke, Sabo stomped his feet on the ground and instantly appeared in front of Ace, his right hand curling into a claw as he reached for Ace.

"So fast."

Ace was startled. He tapped his feet and his figure vanished instantly, reappearing in the distance.

But just as his feet touched the ground, Sabo appeared in front of him again and lashed out with his claws once more.

"So fast."

Sabo's movement speed was surprisingly comparable to Ace's Shave.

Faced with this attack, Ace raised his right fist and threw it out.

boom.

Fists and claws collided with a loud bang. Ace took a step back and shook his hand, "That's some real strength."

In terms of pure physical strength, the opponent is even stronger than him.

"What, your strength has weakened?"

Sabo reappeared beside Ace and launched an attack on Ace.

Boom, boom.

Ace threw two punches, but Sabo easily deflected them. However, as Ace stood up after retracting his fists, Sabo lunged forward with a claw attack.

Faced with this claw, Ace narrowed his eyes slightly and took a half step back.

Swoosh.

Sabo's hand brushed past Ace, and Ace punched Sabo in the cheek.

However, Sabo reacted quickly, crouching down and striking Ace's abdomen with his right hand.

Swoosh.

Ace, however, seemed to have anticipated this, and dodged the attack with a swift movement.

Boom, boom, boom.

Sabo kept attacking, but Ace could dodge every attack.

"Observation Haki".

Sabo quickly realized that Ace's speed was similar to his own, but his strength was somewhat lacking, and his physical skills were weaker.

However, it allows one to dodge in advance, which is a sign of Observation Haki.

"Very good."

Sabo leaped into the air, his hands forming claws, and attacked Ace from above.

However, Ace had anticipated this attack and leaped backward to dodge it.

Sabo missed his attack, but instead of withdrawing it, he channeled Armament Haki into his hands and continued to claw down, landing on the ground.

"Dragon's Breath"

boom.

The entire ground shattered and exploded; an invisible force directly destroyed the ground.

"What immense power!"

Ace swayed slightly, his body unsteady. He could detect the other's movements, but he couldn't predict the future. He hadn't expected the other to cause such a huge disturbance.

This attack was even more destructive than when Sabo killed the large Sea King.

But amidst the rubble, claw shadows swirled, and they were already close.

"There's no escaping it."

Ace anticipated the attack, but it was too late to dodge.

boom.

Just as he was about to be caught, Ace's head instantly disintegrated and turned into flames.

Swoosh.

Sabo's right hand passed through the flames. Although it contained Armament Haki, the opponent dispersed in advance, so the Armament Haki could not hit the opponent.

"Battle Axe".

Ace kicked out with his right foot, which transformed into a giant flaming axe and slashed towards Sabo.

Faced with this attack, Sabo immediately stopped and jumped, but he had just jumped into the air.

Ace's right arm had already been thrust out, transforming into a giant fiery fist that struck Sabo.

They transformed into two enormous Fire Dragon and attacked Sabo's location.

Dragon Claw Fist.

Sabo reached out with both hands and slammed into the Fire Dragon, the force of which dispersed the Fire Dragon. His Armament Haki prevented the flames from harming him, and Sabo landed slowly, asking in confusion, "Ace, why didn't you continue attacking?"

"You don't have a Devil Fruit, while I used one. That's not fair," Ace said, shaking his head.

Sabo looked at Ace and said, "But this is also your strength."

"I just want to fight you without using the Devil Fruit," Ace said, shaking his head.

"But it still takes time for you to develop the fruit, which should also be counted in your strength."

Sabo looked at Ace and said, "In terms of overall strength, I am indeed inferior to you. In this match, I have lost."

Without the Devil Fruit, Ace would be no match for Sabo and would be slightly inferior.

Having acquired the Devil Fruit, Ace 'Devil Fruit ability have been developed to their fullest potential, making him even stronger than Sabo is now.

"Wait a moment."

Before Ace could say anything more, Xia Qiu said from afar, "Ace you think it's unfair to use Devil Fruits, then let Sabo have one too."

"Hmm?" Ace was slightly taken aback.

Sabo looked at Xia Qiu and asked, "What does Mr. Xia mean?"

"Give him the Dark-Dark Fruit."

Xia Qiu looked at Mr. Christmas, who opened a door from his waist, took out a fruit covered in patterns, walked to Sabo's side, and handed it to him.

"Could it be Blackbeard's Dark-Dark Fruit?" Ace asked in surprise.

Xia Qiu said, "Sabo, here's the fruit for you. Consider it payment for your assistance this time. It might be the fruit in this world that's most compatible with you."

"Yeah?"

Sabo looked at the fruit, opened his mouth, and took a bite. "It tastes awful."

Sabo threw the remaining Devil Fruit on the ground, chewed it laboriously, and then swallowed it.

"Ugh, this tastes awful."

Sabo shook his head, and just as he was about to say something, he suddenly raised his hand.

call.

Black smoke billowed in his hand as he stared blankly at the fruit and asked, "This fruit is a bit strange."

"This is the Dark-Dark Fruit, one of the Logia Devil Fruit."

Xia Qiu said from a distance, "But unlike other Logia Devil Fruit, it cannot be elementalized. However, it has several characteristics. The first characteristic is that it can absorb damage. It can absorb all kinds of damage, whether it is sword or spear attacks or thermal Shockwave."

As Xia Qiu spoke, Ace fired a Flame Beams at Sabo.

Sabo immediately raised his hand, and the black mist enveloped the Flame Beams, Flame Beams then vanished without a trace. However, Sabo couldn't help but cry out, "It hurts!"

"I forgot to mention, this fruit will double the suffering."

Xia Qiu said with a smile, and then added, "The second feature is that it can attract ability users to its side and nullify their abilities."

As Xia Qiu spoke, black mist billowed from Sabo's right hand, reaching out to grab Ace.

A tremendous gravitational force appeared, Ace flew through the air and landed next to Sabo. Sabo then placed his right hand on Ace, preventing the latter from becoming elemental.

Ace chuckled and said, "Sabo, your appeal is still too weak, even weaker than Blackbeard's back then. If you don't continue to develop it, many people will be able to break free."

As Ace spoke, he stepped forward and leaped away, leaving the area of Sabo's smoke. Flames rose up as he regained control.

"They actually managed to do that." Sabo was utterly astonished.

"That's a really powerful ability."

Seeing this from a distance, Koala couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement.

Xia Qiu continued, "The smoke you release can contain a powerful gravitational pull, drawing objects in and then releasing them back out. It's just a matter of the outcome."

As Xia Qiu spoke, wisps of smoke drifted into the distance, reaching the trees not far away.

Bang.

The trees were gradually sucked into the smoke and disappeared without a trace.

Then Sabo suddenly waved his hand, and the trees reappeared, only to be reduced to countless fragments.

"The inhaled objects will be crushed."

Xia Qiu said, "You still need to develop its other abilities. Aside from emitting an attraction, the smoke itself has no offensive power. But that's precisely why it's so suitable for you."

"Yes, Sabo is extremely skilled in hand-to-hand combat, which makes him a perfect match for this Devil Fruit," Robin couldn't help but say.

Sabo possesses formidable physical skills, having mastered the Dragon Claw Fist. He can easily crush Vice Admiral Bastille's Shark Cutter and then instantly kill him.

He possesses Armament Haki, which grants his arms immense defensive power and hardness.

The Dark-Dark Fruit can both attract ability users and nullify their abilities, creating an environment conducive to close combat.

However, it can also absorb the opponent's attacks, preventing itself from being harmed.

In the original story, after obtaining the Flame-Flame Fruit, Sabo could fight an Admiral to a draw for a short period of time, but he would feel some pressure.

Now that we have the Dark-Dark Fruit, with some time to develop it, it will be no weaker than Admiral.

Sabo, without a Devil Fruit, is slightly inferior to Ace at this stage.

However, after becoming familiar with the Dark-Dark Fruit, he actually surpasses Ace, since the Devil Fruit ability is a counter to Ace's.

If Ace is pulled in, even if it's just to restrain him, the effectiveness of Ace Observation Haki will be greatly reduced.

Sabo's Armament Haki and physical skills surpass those of Ace.

Therefore, if developed properly, Sabo's combat power will increase dramatically.

"A fruit that can nullify abilities, how terrifying."

Standing at a distance, Law thought that if he were to fight him, he would be too reliant on his Devil Fruit ability and would be completely powerless against him.

"Thank you, Mr. Xia."

Sabo walked up to Xia Qiu and said seriously.

"You're welcome."

Xia Qiu looked at Sabo and said, "But I hope that you can do your best in the upcoming battle."

Don't worry.

Sabo smiled and said, "Even if you don't give me the fruit, I will still do my best. But if you give me this fruit, as long as it doesn't harm the interests of civilians, if you need anything, just let me know and I will come to your aid."

"Good."

Xia Qiu nodded. Being able to receive such a huge help was quite a gain.

"Then let's have another match once you're familiar with the fruit."

Ace walked over and put his hand on Sabo's shoulder.

"Ace, you won't be a match for me then," Sabo said with a smile.

"That's hard to say."

Ace clenched his fist and said, "I will become stronger then."

"Alright."

Xia Qiu had no interest in the brotherly affection between the two and said, "I'm hungry. Prepare some food for me. Then bring Caesar to me; I have some questions for him."