Sword Intent Complete

"Don't worry, don't worry. From now on, you're our companion, so there's nothing to fear." Nami smiled and patted Conis's little head. At this moment, Conis was three years younger than in the original story, still a very beautiful little angel-like girl.

Watching Nami leave with a bewildered Conis, Lu Zhuo curled his lips helplessly. He then looked at Robin with a gentle smile and said, "Let's go. I'll take you to find the Poneglyph."

Robin's beautiful eyes sparkled. She gave a soft nod and followed behind Lu Zhuo as they re-entered the jungle.

Deep in the jungle, Wyper and his group had been soundly defeated by Enel. Even though Enel had already fought a battle and sustained some injuries, they were still completely outmatched.

Realizing they were no match for him, they decisively fled. Since the Four Priests and God's Squad had all been laid out by Lu Zhuo, Enel was unable to intercept everyone on his own, and half of Wyper's group managed to escape.

However, in his eyes, none of this mattered; these lowly mortals could not stir the slightest ripple in his heart.

With a flick of his mind, his body transformed into lightning. Simultaneously sensing Lu Zhuo's presence, he vanished from the spot in a flash.

Lu Zhuo had been thinking about how to take advantage of Robin when he was startled by Enel suddenly appearing. He instinctively placed his hand on his sword, his expression turning serious.

Having just finished another fight, Enel looked somewhat weary. He looked at Lu Zhuo and smiled faintly, saying, "I have no intention of fighting you. I merely wish to invite you to participate in my plan."

Hearing this, Lu Zhuo shook his head and replied indifferently, "Not interested..."

Are you kidding? He had nothing better to do than cooperate with Enel and head to the moon? That desolate, uninhabited ghost town didn't even have air—what was he supposed to do there, wait to kick the bucket?

"Uh." Instantly rejected, Enel's face looked as if he'd swallowed a dead child. He had expected Lu Zhuo to at least ask what the plan was, but the man hadn't even bothered to inquire before flatly refusing!

He opened his mouth, truly not knowing what to say. Enel shook his head helplessly, his body flickering as he vanished.

Watching him leave, Lu Zhuo let out a slight sigh of relief.

Robin, standing behind him, chuckled and said, "It's rare to see you so nervous."

Lu Zhuo feigned anger. "It's all because of you, girl. If you weren't here, why would I be afraid of him? Because you're here, I'm afraid he might hurt you while I struggle to protect you."

Hearing Lu Zhuo's words, Robin couldn't help but feel moved. Her pretty face flushed slightly, and she lowered her head in silence.

Seeing this, Lu Zhuo walked gently to her side and calmly took her hand.

"Let's go."

"Mm." Robin did not pull away. Her heart was in a flutter, and she allowed Lu Zhuo to lead her as they ran through the jungle.

After they had traveled some distance, Lu Zhuo's rudimentary Observation Haki sensed that Robin's heart was beating very fast. Having gained some experience, he naturally knew what to do, so he simply held her hand calmly without any other teasing or intrusive actions.

However, just as their hearts were beginning to draw closer, Lu Zhuo's expression shifted slightly.

The Kitetsu at his waist suddenly began to vibrate spontaneously.

The other Kitetsu was right here!

Lu Zhuo's eyes narrowed. Robin, noticing the change in his expression, recovered from her dazed state. Her face reddened, and she gently pulled her hand away from his.

As he sensed the surroundings, surprise gradually appeared on Lu Zhuo's face.

"It's actually inside its belly?"

The "it" naturally referred to the super-giant python from the original story, the Lord of the Sky.

Watching the surrounding trees shake and the ground tremble, Robin was startled and asked, "What is that?"

Lu Zhuo answered calmly, "Just a slightly oversized snake. Don't be afraid. The thing I want is in its belly; I'll go get it back."

With that, Lu Zhuo leaped up onto the branch of a giant tree and saw the head of the massive python ahead.

Looking at that gaping, blood-red maw, Lu Zhuo felt a bit disgusted. He really didn't want to be swallowed by this thing just to go into its stomach to find a fragment of the Kitetsu.

Well then, you'll just have to blame your own bad luck.

Lu Zhuo's expression turned cold as he slowly drew his sword with both hands.

Watching the giant mouth lunging toward him, Lu Zhuo leaped forward and landed on the snake's head. As he sprinted along its body, the Kitetsu in his hand vibrated faster and faster.

The Lord of the Sky shook its body in fury, but it couldn't shake Lu Zhuo off.

Its massive size was both an advantage and a weakness; although it was a flexible snake, it was still too difficult for it to bite Lu Zhuo while he was on its back.

Lu Zhuo sprinted all the way to the point where the sensation was strongest. His eyes flashed, revealing a powerful sword intent.

Charging up, Evil Light Slash!

Without hesitation, he used his strongest single-target move. To pierce the hide of this python, which possessed astonishing defensive power, Lu Zhuo put his full strength into the strike.

Crack!

A sound of scales bursting rang out. The python let out a miserable shriek and began to thrash about, forcing Lu Zhuo to jump away from its body.

However, his strike had already carved a half-meter-long, massive gash into the giant snake's abdomen. While not wide, it was deep enough to penetrate its body.

The next moment, a black sword glow flickered from the split in the Lord of the Sky's belly. A black, sheathless Kitetsu flew out, and like two magnets, it snapped together with the Kitetsu in Lu Zhuo's hand.

The Lord of the Sky's belly bled continuously; it writhed and fled without looking back.

Seeing this, Lu Zhuo breathed a sigh of relief. To be honest, this thing was too big. Although his Evil Light Slash had cut through its body, it was merely a small wound compared to its hundreds-of-meters-long frame.

Even though the creature was too large to be agile, if the fight had dragged on, Lu Zhuo feared he would have been exhausted to death before the snake was killed.

At this moment, Robin, who had been watching from afar, saw the python leave and hurried over.

"Is this the 'slightly larger' python you were talking about?" Robin looked at Lu Zhuo with a playful expression and a smile, then turned her gaze toward the two swords merging in the air, asking in surprise, "What is happening here?"

Lu Zhuo smiled. "My swords are Kitetsu. You should be familiar with that history."

Robin let out an "oh," her eyes filled with astonishment as she continued to watch the Kitetsu floating in the air. "To think that wasn't just a legend, but actual history."

Just then, the two Kitetsu fused completely into one. A pitch-black sword light erupted from the blade, which let out a soft, resonant hum.

Lu Zhuo caught the newly fused New Kitetsu, and a sword intent, several times stronger than before, surged forth. Carried by this intent, a powerful sword aura suddenly exploded from Lu Zhuo's body. Feeling as though she would be slashed just by getting near him, Robin hurriedly retreated a few steps.

A few seconds later, the sword aura around Lu Zhuo vanished, and he wore a look of fascination.

"So this is... the complete sword aura. Intermediate Swordsman, broken through with ease!" Lu Zhuo laughed heartily, his voice bright and cheerful.

"But... I have no idea what the path ahead looks like now. Oh well, there will always be a way when the cart reaches the mountain. I'll just focus on honing my sword aura to its peak for now."

Robin watched Lu Zhuo, her beautiful eyes shimmering. Had he really just become that much stronger?

Although Robin did not understand swordsmanship, she could still feel the change in the aura radiating from Lu Zhuo.

Lu Zhuo turned his head, looked at the stunned Robin, waved his hand, and smiled. "Let's go."