Are you humiliating me?

Wind God Dragon.

The largest prehistoric flying creature, king of the sky.

Its colossal body, exceeding seventeen meters, was indeed terrifying.

At least at this moment, the Colonel had completely lost his composure: "How is this possible? Pterodactyls should have been extinct long ago!"

"Idiot."

But at this moment, Brigadier General Lan Li had already stepped forward: "Look at its head."

Head?

The Colonel was stunned upon hearing this, and then he noticed.

On its head, which was very small compared to its massive body, it clearly wore a strange Rooster Mask—the mask extended with its beak, appearing somewhat bizarre.

But without a doubt, that proved one thing.

"This guy is an Ability User."

Brigadier General Lan Li softly reached his conclusion.

"Ability User? You mean—he's human?"

The Colonel almost blurted out: "Could it be the one who attacked Master Port?"

"That, I don't know."

Lan Li chuckled, then slightly raised the Great Katana in his hand: "You go."

"Go? What are you talking about?"

The Colonel was stunned upon hearing this, then tightened his grip on the Flintlock: "Since we've confirmed the opponent is the attacker, of course I will fight alongside you."

"Idiot! This guy is not someone you can handle."

Lan Li merely glanced at the Colonel and waved his hand: "Leave immediately and check the damage and casualties at other bases—this guy is mine."

"But."

The Colonel was clearly still hesitant.

But at this moment, Lan Li let out a roar: "No buts—in my hometown, obstructing a man from challenging a strong opponent is a capital offense!"

"."

So where exactly is your hometown?

The Colonel mentally complained, but still decisively obeyed the order and turned to flee.

And so, within the forest.

Brigadier General Lan Li was left alone, looking up at the colossal creature in the sky.

"You're not stopping him from leaving?"

He gripped the Great Katana in his hand, a smile spreading across his face.

"There's no need."

At this moment, the colossal creature in the sky actually laughed as well.

"My mission is to take the Celestial Gold from here, so-- I only need to deal with you."

Hearing this, Brigadier General Lan Li's smile grew even wider. "You sure talk big."

As he spoke, his right hand already covered the hilt of his sword.

"If you want to deal with me, ask this 'Nagahikari' first!"

The next moment.

"Clang!"

A crisp sound echoed, silver light flashing.

That was the glint of the blade.

"Volcano Style · Flying Sky Slash!"

Accompanied by a sword cry that tore through the air, the tip of Lan Li's Great Katana, 'Nagahikari', had clearly unleashed a massive silver-white Giant Slash.

The slash emerged from the sword tip, soaring straight into the sky!

This silently demonstrated Lan Li's strength.

A flying slash, and condensed to this extent-- looking across the seas, he was a genuine top-tier Swordsman!

"Swoosh!"

In an instant, the flying slash accurately struck the colossal right wing of the Wind God Dragon.

And so, a curve formed on Lan Li's lips.

"Having too large a body isn't a good thing."

He knew very well-- his slash was enough to cut through a small Ship.

"I just need to wait for him to fall from the sky, and then I..."

He was already contemplating how to deal with the opponent next.

But in the very next moment, his thoughts and smile froze simultaneously.

Because at this instant—

"Boom!"

As the dust settled, Lan Li clearly saw.

The giant wyvern was still soaring high in the sky.

The giant wing that had been struck bore no wounds.

Its smooth wing membrane, under the sunlight, gave off a cold, hard luster like rock, with only a shallow white mark indicating the existence of the previous slash.

"It's actually this tough."

Lan Li's expression became completely solemn.

With just this one slash, he realized this battle would be difficult.

His Flying Slash couldn't injure the opponent, and the opponent's own aerial ability meant that most of his other sword techniques would be hard to land.

Ultimately, this was the greatest advantage of the Flying-type Devil Fruit.

"Huh!?"

But just as Lan Li was contemplating a solution, he saw the colossal creature in the sky move!

Its massive wyvern body rapidly shrank and transformed before Lan Li's astonished gaze!

In the blink of an eye, the sky-obscuring giant shadow disappeared.

In its place, a figure landed with a thunderous impact.

"Thump!"

The heavy landing sound shook the ground, stirring up a wave of air.

Appearing before Lan Li was a humanoid monster nearly three meters tall.

He still wore the iconic Rooster Mask, his body retaining the basic human silhouette, but he was covered all over in rock-like, blue-gray Dragon Scales.

His arms had transformed into thicker Dragon Claws, equipped with sharp talons and wing membranes, and his legs had become powerful, Reverse-Jointed Beast Feet.

A thick Dragon Tail swayed slightly behind him.

That was Luo Yi's Human-Beast Form from the Wind God Pterosaur Fruit.

"You bastard."

Seeing this, Lan Li felt extreme anger surge within him.

The hand gripping his sword even bulged with veins from the sheer force.

"Are you humiliating me!?"

Actively giving up the advantage of aerial control was clearly a humiliation!

"Quite the opposite."

Luo Yi said softly.

"I just feel that you can let me stretch my legs a bit."

As he spoke, he twisted his neck, emitting crisp 'crackling' sounds.

Then, he smiled at Lan Li, "Ready? Let's begin!"

"You..."

Lan Li wanted to say something more at this moment.

But a moment later, he swallowed his words back down.

Because in the next instant, he found that the other party had already disappeared.

"Soru!? So fast!"

Lan Li was shocked, but he didn't have time to think further.

His Observation Haki had already captured the immense, violent power by his side.

"Volcano Style: Iron Defense!"

Without hesitation, Lan Li used his Great Katana as a shield, blocking towards his side.

And on the Great Katana, an invisible power covered it.

That was one of the strangest powers on this sea—Armament Haki!

The next moment, a giant wing claw slammed into the Great Katana.

"Clang!"

A resounding clang, like metal striking metal, and intense sparks erupted. Lan Li's figure was instantly blasted away, heavily smashing through and breaking the trunk of a giant tree.

"Armament Haki combined with Iron Body? And integrated into sword techniques?"

At this moment, Luo Yi said with great interest, "This is Vice Admiral Huoshan's sword technique, Volcano Style. Truly remarkable!"

And it was precisely as his words fell

"You fellow, don't get too arrogant!"

From within the tree trunk, Lan Li's figure charged out once more.

"Since you've actively chosen close combat, don't expect me to hold back. Volcano Style: Ten Violent Storms!"

His figure also disappeared from his original spot with a 'shoo' sound—as a Navy Brigadier General, his use of Soru was naturally not bad.

The next moment, his figure appeared beside Luo Yi.

His Great Katana, wrapped in Haki, transformed into streaks of silver Silk Stream, wildly slashing towards Luo Yi's vital points with extreme speed and cunning angles.

"Not holding back?"

Luo Yi responded with a light chuckle, "That's exactly what I wanted."

And so, the great battle began!