Luo Tian vs Garp!

Along the trajectory of the slash, a hundred-meter-long pitch-black rift appeared, the space at its edges fracturing like a shattered mirror.

The sea surface below split open, creating a bottomless chasm.

The seawater on both sides of the chasm rose like towering walls, only to be filled back in by the rushing water a second later.

In just an instant, the ocean had been cleaved in two!

[I hope readers will remember our domain name, Taiwan Novel Network is super convenient, t̆̈̆̈w̆̈̆̈k̆̈̆̈̆̈ă̈̆̈n̆̈̆̈.c̆̈̆̈ŏ̈̆̈m̆̈̆̈ for easy reading]

Garp's pupils constricted sharply.

The power of this strike... had already surpassed the realm of an ordinary Great Swordsman.

No, it was even more dangerous than the slashes of Shiki.

Because what it contained was not just sword intent, but a power capable of tearing through space itself.

However, it was not over yet; before Garp could fully steady his stance, his Observation Haki alarm blared once more.

Not one, but five!

Five pitch-black slashes struck simultaneously from above, below, left, right, and behind, sealing off all his paths of retreat.

Even more bizarrely, the trajectories of these slashes were not straight lines; they bent, changed speed, and even intersected in mid-air, forming a three-dimensional web of death.

Facing the relentless, repeated onslaught from Luo Tian, the fury in Garp's chest erupted like a volcano!

"You brat--!!!"

He roared, his fists instantly coated in jet-black Armament Haki.

Garp chose the most direct, brutal method—the one that best suited his style—

Head-on collision!

His fists blasted out like cannonballs!

Whoosh—Boom!!

The Fist collided violently with the slashes, each impact detonating a ring of shockwaves.

The pitch-black sword energy and dark red Haki tore at each other, annihilating and exploding in the air.

In just a few seconds, all five slashes shattered, dissolving into a sky full of black light particles.

But Garp did not come away unscathed.

A needle-like stinging pain radiated from his knuckles.

That was the damage from the space-tearing power within the slashes, which had seeped through his Armament Haki.

Although it wasn't serious, it made Garp's heart skip a beat.

This kid's slashes... are strange.

"Brat! Since you've come—"

Garp's voice was like rolling thunder as he glared at the figure slowly descending from the clouds:

"Then spend the rest of your life in Impel Down with me!"

Fury churned in his eyes, but a trace of unconcealable surprise flickered there as well.

He had assumed the Rocks Pirates would send Whitebeard or Shiki to intercept him, as those two were close to him in strength and were the most suitable candidates for the task.

He had not expected it to be Luo Tian.

A newcomer who was not even twenty years old and had only recently joined the Rocks Pirates.

And this was precisely what had completely ignited Garp's rage.

Luo Tian's previous actions, especially the severe injury he inflicted on Tsuru, had crossed his bottom line.

Now, to dare to actively intercept him was nothing short of a blatant provocation.

"Is that so? Then let's see you try!"

Luo Tian remained expressionless, stepping on the empty air.

Just a moment ago, as he was about to retreat to the pirate ship, the system had suddenly issued a mission.

"Ding! Temporary mission: Intercept Garp!"

"Mission reward: Advanced Observation Haki, Ryuo Haki mastery!"

"Hmph!"

Garp said no more. He stomped his left foot hard against the air, the Geppo creating a sonic boom, and launched himself toward Luo Tian like a cannonball, leaving no room for error.

His right fist pulled back to his waist, Armament Haki coiling, compressing, and compressing again until the air around his knuckles began to twist and collapse unnaturally.

"Fist Crushing!"

Facing Garp, who lunged at him like a ferocious beast, Luo Tian lowered his stance.

The Black Dragon blade was shrouded in spatial power and Haki as he swung it down to meet that iron fist.

Zzz! Zzz—!

The moment the fist met the blade, there was no explosion, no roar, only the ear-piercing sound of friction and arcs of black and red lightning spraying outward.

Their gazes met in mid-air like sharpened blades.

In the eyes of Luo Tian was a focus as dense and cold as iron.

In the eyes of Garp was a fury capable of boiling the seas and scorching the heavens.

Neither side had any intention of backing down.

The stalemate lasted only a few seconds.

And then—

BOOM—!!!

In an instant, the point where the fist and blade collided erupted with a white light so blinding it left everyone momentarily sightless!

Both figures were completely swallowed by a pillar of light that connected the sky to the earth.

A massive explosion swept across the sea surface, the shockwave spreading outward like a white ring of light.

Wherever it passed, the clouds were sliced cleanly apart, and the sea was pressed into a hemispherical depression two hundred meters in diameter!

"No, impossible! That man... can actually fight Vice Admiral Garp to this extent?!"

"Is that kid really under twenty years old?! A collision of this magnitude is already approaching Admiral level, isn't it?!"

"Damn it... when I was his age, I had just graduated from the Naval Academy and had only been promoted to Captain..."

"Damn! Why would such a monster appear on the side of the pirates?!"

The marines stared fixedly at the pillar of light exploding in the high sky, exclaiming in disbelief.

"That kid... he's simply a monster."

Zephyr crossed his arms and gazed at the fierce battle, muttering to himself.

Although he was unwilling to admit it, Zephyr knew clearly in his heart: in the battle just now, he had indeed been suppressed by Luo Tian.

It wasn't a gap in Haki, but the combination of that bizarre Devil Fruit ability and exquisite swordsmanship that had kept him constrained at every turn.

Beside him, Sengoku clenched his fists tightly; his rage toward Luo Tian was in no way inferior to Garp's.

The meticulously laid trap to annihilate the Rocks Pirates had involved most of the Navy's high-end combat power.

And the result?

Everything had been thrown into chaos by that young man.

If not for Luo Tian holding back Zephyr and Tsuru, Shiki would never have been able to seize the Heavenly Tribute so easily.

If not for Luo Tian severely wounding Tsuru, the Navy would not have had such a gap in their high-end combat strength.

On the other side, the Rocks Pirates.

Shiki and Whitebeard looked at the celestial phenomena triggered by the high-altitude battle, their faces also showing shock.

Although they knew Luo Tian was strong, to be able to fight Garp to this degree...

"That kid has gotten stronger again." Shiki narrowed his eyes.

As the person who sparred with Luo Tian the most, Shiki knew the speed of this kid's growth better than anyone.

When he first boarded the ship a month ago, Luo Tian's swordsmanship was still slightly green, and his use of his Devil Fruit ability was quite rough.

Now, he could face him head-on without falling behind, and in some aspects, he was even superior.

This speed of growth could no longer be described simply as "genius."

He was a "monster."

Amidst the smoke and dust of the explosion, a figure suddenly broke through the fog.

Garp stepped on the air using Geppo, his face gloomy as he stared at the other side.

At the moment of the collision between the fist and the blade, Garp felt not only sword energy and Haki coming from the blade, but also some kind of bizarre tearing force.

If his Armament Haki hadn't reached the realm of "internal hardening," that single strike would have been enough to cripple his entire arm.

"Damn it... what kind of fruit is that?"

Alarm bells rang in Garp's heart.

On the other side, Luo Tian rotated his body three times in mid-air, neutralized the impact, and stood steadily in the sky.

Garp's Fist was indeed worthy of its reputation.

But, it wasn't over yet.

Luo Tian raised his right hand, spread his five fingers, aimed at Garp a hundred meters away in the air, and softly spat out:

"Spatial Imprisonment—"

"Banshō Ten'in!"

An irresistible gravitational force, like an invisible giant hand, swept rapidly toward Garp.

When Zephyr, on the distant warship, saw the moment Luo Tian raised his hand, his expression changed drastically, and he roared hoarsely at Garp:

"Garp! Get out of the way!!"

As soon as the words fell, Garp felt a powerful gravitational force suddenly envelop his entire body, and immediately after, his body flew uncontrollably toward Luo Tian.

No matter how much Garp struggled with all his might, it was to no avail.