Repeating the Same Trick?

Luo Ya slashed sideways, sending a wave of flame cutting energy through the air. He quickly drove the two men back and opened up some distance.

Principle and Honey Badger were both skilled martial artists. As soon as the flames died down, they rushed in to attack from either side.

Castle Wall Flame!

The blade of Scorching Cloud was wreathed in bright yellow flames as Luo Ya slashed, forcing Principle back. But Honey Badger seized the opportunity to land a punch on Luo Ya's left shoulder. A sharp crack rang out as the bone broke.

Luo Ya grunted. The flames wrapped around Scorching Cloud rapidly shrank, and the blade turned dark red. He followed through with a diagonal slash at Honey Badger.

Honey Badger was a ruthless man, too. He gathered all his Armament Haki and compressed it into his right arm, which gleamed with a glossy black sheen. He had clearly reached the level of Hardening.

Even if I take this slash, I'll only be injured. I'll use this chance to smash your head in! Honey Badger thought. He tapped his feet against the ground, his left fist poised and aimed at Luo Ya's chin, ready to end the fight with an uppercut.

Splurt! Honey Badger was split in two from his right shoulder down, like butter sliced by a hot knife. His powerful arms went limp, and his eyes widened in disbelief. The eyes Honey Badger had always dreamed of opening as wide as possible finally did so when he died.

Blood and entrails sprayed all over Luo Ya. He wiped his face and gasped for breath, his eyes fixed on Principle, who stood frozen nearby.

"Brat! I'll crush every bone in your body, then cut you into mincemeat piece by piece!" Principle roared, unable to believe what he was seeing. Honey Badger was Principle's right-hand man, and his strength had always been second only to Principle's.

Seeing him cut in half enraged Principle beyond measure.

Bang! Eyes bloodshot, Principle charged at Luo Ya. Luo Ya swung his blade without hesitation. Principle was still stronger than Honey Badger. Though wary of the Setting Sun Blade's power, he struck Scorching Cloud's blade with both fists with uncanny precision, completely deflecting Luo Ya's attack.

He unleashed a fierce flurry of attacks at Luo Ya, followed by elbows and knees, as if his entire body had become a deadly weapon.

Luo Ya was no longer the same as before, either. Though driven back step by step, he relentlessly counterattacked Principle.

At last, Luo Ya seized an opening and drove a straight kick into Principle, forcing him back.

Luo Ya leaned on his sword and crouched on the ground, gasping like a leaky bellows. "Ha, ha, ha." He couldn't tell whether the liquid running down his forehead was blood or sweat.

Principle was in bad shape, too. His elbows, knees, and fists were protected by Armament Haki Hardening, but his flesh was still torn open, exposing pale bones.

With the Setting Sun Blade enhancing it, Scorching Cloud's blade was three thousand degrees hot. It burned Principle so badly that he kept sucking in cold air, making his contribution to global warming.

"Whew, whew. I'll send you to join Honey Badger with my next strike!" After speaking, Luo Ya sheathed his sword.

He stepped forward with his left foot and took a stance for a draw cut, then drew a deep breath and closed his eyes.

A needle-sharp sense of danger blared through Principle's entire body. This strike could very well kill him!

I can't dodge. Turning my back on a powerful swordsman is no different from suicide. Principle's mind raced. Every muscle in his body tensed, his fists clenched. Ignoring the searing pain of his burns, he searched for a way out, staring intently at Luo Ya for an opening.

Luo Ya sank lower and lower, eyes shut and breathing steady. The air between them seemed to freeze.

Flash Draw!

Luo Ya opened his eyes and instantly drew Scorching Cloud, slashing at Principle's waist. Principle let out a lion's roar! The powerful sound waves made the air tremble.

It was Principle's signature move, Lion Roar! He had used it to defeat countless gangsters and earn his current position.

The roar suddenly shook Luo Ya so violently that blood streamed from his eyes, nose, and ears, making him falter.

Principle seized the chance to retreat a step, narrowly avoiding Scorching Cloud's scorching blade. The heat instantly set the fur on his chest ablaze.

But he couldn't afford to pass up this rare opportunity, despite the pain of being engulfed in flames. He suddenly swung both claws at Luo Ya's ears.

Even someone in perfect condition would be knocked unconscious and bleed from every orifice if struck on both ears. And Luo Ya was barely clinging to life.

Imagining the result of a successful hit, Principle grinned savagely.

A normal draw cut would have been unable to escape this move. Unfortunately for Principle, this was Maynard's unique double draw cut, a dirty trick that Luo Ya had plagiarized and named Flash Draw.

Just as the force of Principle's palms was about to crush Luo Ya's face out of shape, a powerful pull from behind Principle made him pause.

A dark red blade slashed diagonally down from the right toward his neck. Splurt! An instant later, a headless corpse dropped to its knees in front of Luo Ya, blood gushing out in torrents.

"Zoan really does toughen up the body! You're gushing like a fountain. Anyone who didn't know better would think you were the older brother of Zhu Dachang, that guy with the guts that spilled out through his back and belly."

Luo Ya wiped the blood and sweat from his face, then kicked Principle's headless corpse over. He picked up the head lying nearby, its eyes wide open.

"Oda, you misled me! Damn, even a West Blue gang boss is this strong! In the original story, there weren't this many buff guys who knew Armament Haki. Ugh!"

Luo Ya spat out a large mouthful of blood and slowly looked down at the sword tip protruding from his chest.

A familiar-sounding woman laughed coyly behind him. "Fire Ghost, I'll gladly take your heads off your hands. If I get the chance, I'll visit your grave someday, hehe. But that nickname of yours is awful."

Thud! Before she could finish speaking, Luo Ya was kicked to the ground. The newcomer picked up Principle's head, which had fallen onto the ground. Then she reached for Scorching Cloud in Luo Ya's hand. She tugged at it twice, but Luo Ya still had a death grip on the hilt.

She grabbed Luo Ya by the hair and lifted him up, then chopped off his right hand, the one gripping the sword. Luo Ya struggled to raise his head and saw a shock of bright red hair. The person before him was Amilisa, the auction host from earlier.

"I was going to try to leave your body in one piece, you know. After all, you helped me out so much." Amilisa smiled and raised her long blade high, bringing it down hard on Luo Ya.

Crack! Luo Ya's eyes flew wide open! His headless body dropped straight to its knees, then fell face-first to the ground with a thud.