The Battle Reaches Its Fiercest

Teach kept bursting forward at full speed. More than a hundred people died at his hands every minute. He could clearly feel the muscles in his legs swelling, but he didn't stop. This was training, too.

As the killing continued, a faint bloodlust gathered around Teach and grew stronger.

"Awwooo!" A human pet charged at Teach. It was a wolf-like human pet, and the noble had even fed him a Devil Fruit—a type of Inu Inu no Mi. But against Teach's overwhelming strength, he was easily killed. He had been the noble's trump card, yet he had been defeated and killed just like that. The noble could hardly believe it. But Teach's blade was all that awaited him.

These nobles wanted perfect human pets. They didn't just raise them; they also fed them the powers of corresponding animals, allowing them to gain animal abilities and partially transform their bodies to look more like pets.

Pito was a perfect pet. The habits of a cat had been engraved into her very bones, along with its mannerisms. Though she was learning to stand and speak, some habits were impossible to change. Of course, Teach didn't insist that she change them.

When she slept, Pito liked to curl up like a cat. The cat ears on her head and the tail behind her would grow out on their own.

As nobles with the backing of the Kate Trading Company, it was easy for them to obtain Devil Fruits. Of course, they were all relatively common Zoan fruits.

Along the way, Teach had spotted eight human pets who had eaten Devil Fruits. He had also found three uneaten Devil Fruits: the Rabbit-Rabbit Fruit, the Fox-Fox Fruit, and the Inu Inu no Mi.

They were all ordinary fruits. The strongest had been the Wolf-Wolf Fruit from earlier, but someone had already eaten it. Teach didn't think much of them, but they were still treasures of the sea, worth a hundred million berries. He happily took them as spoils.

Teach had also found plenty of treasure, but he didn't have time to take it all, so he had to leave it for now.

Teach killed swiftly, giving his victims no time to react. Meanwhile, a commotion gradually arose where Mobius was, drawing attention. Many guards rushed toward him. Teach continued killing from behind while Mobius drew their attention. When Mobius saw people coming, he gripped his swords in both hands and fought the guards.

More than a dozen bodies lay on the ground—the guards' corpses. But Mobius seemed close to giving out. Surrounded by guards, he couldn't keep going. He needed a chance to escape. Snake Hand! he thought. He leaped with all his strength, stretched out his arm, and grabbed the top of the wall. With a push, he easily vaulted over it, escaping the guards' encirclement.

Mobius ran off to kill nobles somewhere else. Gradually, more and more nobles died. Their bodies were discovered inside their own homes, chopped down with blades. But what they didn't realize was that even more nobles had died than they imagined.

Mobius, who brazenly kept killing nobles even as he fled, naturally became a target. His actions were a grave provocation to the nobles. After killing so many of them, he had become a thorn in their side. They were furious, but also afraid, dreading that they might be next.

The entire royal palace had practically become a ruin, most of it brought down by Brady's giant beasts and other ferocious animals.

The battle was incredibly fierce. Countless beasts charged at Kaido without fear of death, but they couldn't hurt him. Yet, judging by the situation, Brady seemed to have the advantage. Those mighty giant beasts could use Haki, and their immense strength made them no weaker than Vice Admirals. There were so many powerful fighters that even Kaido couldn't ignore them. But Kaido was getting excited.

He slapped away a charging tiger. Then a gigantic elephant's foot came crashing down from above, stomping hard on Kaido and sinking the ground beneath him.

"Is he dead?" a spectator asked. Naturally, many people were watching such a fierce battle. The World Economic News Report had connected to all the networks in the New World, and the giant screens showed Kaido fighting Brady, the king of the Kate Kingdom.

The battle was being called the clash of the Beast Kings. A voice could also be heard commentating over the footage. "Oh! The giant elephant's stomp! Is Kaido going to die?" Morgans asked, his voice full of uncertainty.

Most people were wondering the same thing. But the answer came quickly. The elephant's foot lifted against its will, revealing a figure beneath it: Kaido, holding up the elephant's pillar-like foot with one hand.

"Look! Kaido's back! He really is a monster, with such incredible strength!" Morgans cried out.

Kaido was too strong. He stood there, supporting the elephant with one hand. The aura radiating from him filled the surrounding beasts with instinctive fear, keeping them from approaching. Even Brady's ability couldn't control them. But soon enough, he had them under his control again.

Seizing his chance, Brady attacked. He darted toward Kaido, his fist wrapped in Haki, and slammed it into Kaido's chest.

But Kaido's powerful body wasn't hurt at all. Looking down at Brady, who stood three meters tall, he sneered. "Are you tickling me?" At some point, he had picked up his gleaming black kanabo. He swung it at Brady. "Thunder Bagua!"

Feeling the terrifying power of the attack at close range made Brady's heart pound. He had badly underestimated Kaido's strength. He couldn't block this move; he'd be severely injured. He sprang backward, trying to dodge the blow.

He was fast, but not fast enough. The attack didn't hit him directly, but the powerful gust it unleashed slammed into him. He couldn't help spitting out a mouthful of blood as he was sent flying a hundred meters.

Seeing their master injured, the beasts and giant beasts grew furious. They roared and charged at Kaido. Kaido was already enormous, like a giant, but he was still several sizes smaller than these giant beasts.

An elephant's trunk whipped at Kaido. Behind him, a giant ape threw a powerful punch, while a gigantic Tyrannosaurus Rex opened its jaws and lunged to bite him.

Kaido seemed to be in danger. "Get lost, you bunch of idiots! Thunder Bagua!" he roared, fed up with them. Black and red lightning wrapped around his kanabo. It was Conqueror's Haki.

Boom! Faced with Kaido's blow, the three giant beasts collapsed and passed out. But they were only three of the many giant beasts. Each of them had tremendous vitality, and Kaido's strike couldn't kill them.

The battle continued without pause, showing countless civilians and pirates a clash between monsters and beasts.

People weren't just marveling at Kaido's strength. They were also in awe of the fearsome power of Brady, the king of the Kate Kingdom. They knew he could tame pets, but they had only ever seen him control ordinary beasts. They hadn't imagined he could tame so many terrifying giant beasts. With a beast army tens of thousands strong, he commanded enough power to sweep away everything.

People couldn't help placing Brady among those who must not be provoked—or must be eliminated. His ability was simply too threatening.

At the same time, they paid even closer attention to the battle, eager to see who would win.

The battle had reached its fiercest stage, and Kaido didn't want to waste time. He made Brady his direct target. As long as he took down the king, the giant beasts and other beasts wouldn't be a threat. Their combined strength was terrifying. One after another, they fell, only to recover before long and return to the fight.

Ignoring the other beasts and giant beasts, Kaido charged straight at Brady. For the first time, Brady's eyes showed fear as he watched Kaido approach. The earlier Thunder Bagua had left him deeply shaken. Giant beasts rushed to stand between Brady and Kaido, blocking his path and attacking him nonstop.

Everyone saw the shift in the battle. Kaido's tremendous strength had given him the advantage. If he defeated Brady, victory would be his.

But Kaido couldn't ignore the strength of so many giant beasts. With the beasts constantly slowing him down, the battle would end either when Kaido ran out of strength or when Brady was killed first.

The Marines were watching the battle, too. They knew Kaido very well. He roamed the seas alone all day and often caused trouble for the Marines. Watching him fight, one Marine Vice Admiral remarked, "Kaido's gotten even stronger."

"Shouldn't we be more concerned about the power of the Kate Kingdom?" another Vice Admiral retorted. "How can an ability like that be so terrifying? Does it have no limits? With power like this, he could wipe out Marine Headquarters. If war broke out, everyone except the top fighters would die." He looked at Brady with deep apprehension.

"Mm. One ability alone is enough to build a top-tier force." Tsuru nodded. "This ability should be placed under close watch."

"I remember the last person who ate this fruit was a circus ringmaster, wasn't he? He tamed all kinds of animals and beasts to perform in his circus," one Marine remarked, recalling something.

What a difference. They couldn't help sighing at the thought.

Kaido knew this wasn't working, so he transformed into a dragon hundreds of meters long and soared into the sky. The beasts were as bothersome as flies, and they seemed impossible to kill. Though they couldn't hurt him, they were irritating. So he needed to deal with them first.

"Dragon Breath!" Waves of scorching dragon breath poured from Kaido's mouth. Like a dragon bringing about the end of the world, he engulfed huge groups of beasts in flames, killing them, along with some of the giant beasts.

"Die! Today is your last day!" Kaido roared as he charged straight at Brady from above, sailing over the giant beasts. In midair, his body transformed back into human form. Brady could only hide beneath the giant beasts. "Boom!" Kaido smashed his kanabo into the head of a giant ape, killing it. Its massive body collapsed. Brady moved quickly, fleeing as one giant beast after another rushed in to hold Kaido back.

Brady wasn't weak, but Kaido's attacks were too powerful. He knew perfectly well that running away wouldn't work. While the giant beasts fought Kaido, he kept looking for openings to attack. He fought alongside one giant beast after another, repeatedly enduring their attacks. Even Kaido couldn't keep taking hits forever.

He craved war. Battle made him stronger. He had already figured out Brady's capabilities. After colliding with him several times, Kaido knew Brady's attacks couldn't penetrate his defenses. Brady was no match for him. So Kaido shifted from defense to offense. He still intended to kill Brady, but he could let him live a little longer. For now, Kaido wanted to enjoy a good fight.

Brady didn't know what Kaido was thinking, but he saw a chance of victory. Kaido's Dragon Breath had wiped out most of his beast army, but one or two thousand remained. His giant beast army was his true trump card, and it had lost only a dozen or so beasts. He was confident he could wear Kaido down.

The battle reached its fiercest stage, and Brady showed his own strength. His powerful martial arts strikes kept crashing into Kaido. Though they couldn't break Kaido's defenses, he managed to force Kaido back several times. With the giant beasts shielding him, Brady could seize opportunities to attack and dodge Kaido's blows. Still, he had suffered some injuries.

The great battle had lasted well over an hour, but it still wasn't over.

In the western district of the royal city, Teach panted, his legs trembling slightly. Beside him, Mobius had collapsed from exhaustion, completely drained and soaked in sweat.

Unlike Teach, Mobius was covered in blood, which mingled with his sweat. He also had several cuts, and his right shoulder had been hit by two bullets. He'd been careless and hadn't noticed a noble hiding in the shadows with a gun. The bullets had struck him.

Teach had removed the bullets and bandaged the wounds. They weren't fatal. Mobius only needed a doctor to treat them, then he could wait for the wounds to heal.

By then, not a single living soul remained in the entire noble district except for the two of them. Everyone was dead. Mobius had killed relatively few—only a few hundred—but that was more than ten times the number he'd killed in his entire life up to that point. It was enough to completely transform his state of mind.

Teach, meanwhile, had once thrown up where Mobius couldn't see him. He had killed too many people. Though Teach was determined to kill and had long prepared himself for it, cutting people down one after another had taken its toll. His senses were exceptionally sharp; he could clearly feel the way the nobles and guards died. At first, he hadn't felt anything. He was used to killing and never spared his enemies. He had killed too many people before. But it had all built up, and eventually Teach couldn't hold it in anymore. He threw up. If he hadn't, it might have damaged his mental state.