The Mad Slaughter

Ring Cut!

Luo Ya drew his sword, and a circular arc of flaming sword energy rapidly expanded outward with him at its center. Sizzle! Sizzle!

Accompanied by the sound of flames scorching flesh, several enemies were cut in half at the waist. Before the others could react, Luo Ya closed in and began slaughtering the enemies before him.

Even though Luo Ya was no weakling, surrounded by countless enemies, he was struck by several blades in an instant. Black Flame surged over his body, and his wounds healed as if they had never been there.

After a while, Luo Ya crouched on the ground, leaning on Scorching Cloud. Apart from the countless corpses littering the battlefield, only a werewolf remained, its fur soaked with blood as it braced itself on both hands and panted heavily.

Wounds covered Luo Ya's body, and fresh blood streamed from them. After all, he had first healed his severed head and hand, then endured such a fierce battle.

Luo Ya's stamina and mental strength had already hit rock bottom.

He was holding on through sheer force of will.

Huo Lun was an Awakening user of an Animal-type Devil Fruit. The unhealed wound across his waist and abdomen showed that he, too, was severely exhausted.

"Kid! I admit defeat. Treasure Tree Adam is yours. Ha! Ha!" Huo Lun panted heavily.

"Scarface, I acknowledge you. Everything except Treasure Tree Adam is yours." Leaning on Scorching Cloud, Luo Ya shakily got to his feet.

Huo Lun returned to his human form and wiped his face. He gave Luo Ya a solemn look, then turned to head for the dock.

Clang!

Luo Ya, who had just been staggering, and the exhausted Huo Lun clashed again.

Huo Lun's half-meter-long wolf claws met Scorching Cloud with a piercing ring.

"Kid! If I kill you, all the treasure on this island will be mine!" Huo Lun roared viciously.

"Heh. Scarface, I told you I needed to take you down first to work up my nerve before I did great things. Today, I'm taking your dog's head." Before he had finished speaking, Luo Ya drove a kick into Huo Lun's chest.

Then he closed in and swung down hard at Huo Lun's neck.

Crack!

Huo Lun caught Scorching Cloud in his wolf claws. Three of his five claws broke, but he still managed to catch the blade barehanded.

Perhaps his mental energy was too depleted. The flames of Ryujin Jakka had cooled sharply, greatly diminishing Scorching Cloud's sharpness.

After all, according to Dezi, unless Scorching Cloud's temperature could be raised, it wasn't as useful as a Skillful Grade Sword.

It had earned its place among the Great Grade 21 Swords because its previous owner had been a Mera Mera no Mi user.

With the two claws remaining on his left hand, Huo Lun clamped down on Scorching Cloud. His jaws gaped open as he lunged for Luo Ya's neck.

Crunch!

Huo Lun bit through Luo Ya's neck, and his body and head immediately "lost their network connection."

Ptooey!

Huo Lun spat out the bones and flesh from Luo Ya's neck. He threw back his head and howled, "Awooooo!"

The wolf's howl cut off abruptly.

Black flames surged over Luo Ya's body. Scorching Cloud glowed dark red as he cleaved Huo Lun in two from the forehead down!

Even in death, the wolf's wide eyes were still filled with terror and disbelief.

Exhausted to the point of collapse, Luo Ya saw Huo Lun's duodenum had been roasted black and finally breathed a sigh of relief. He couldn't be bothered with anything else and sat right down on the mountain of corpses, breathing heavily.

Pat. After regaining a little strength, Luo Ya slowly blew out a ring of smoke.

Scratching his scalp, he began to worry about what to do with Treasure Tree Adam.

"This got a little out of hand. There don't seem to be any survivors on the island. I guess I'll have to wait for a merchant ship to come tomorrow to haul it away," Luo Ya muttered.

Fortunately, dawn was already breaking. Naples Island was, after all, the stronghold of one of the West Blue's four great mafia families, and ships came and went every day.

On top of that, several battles had left Luo Ya utterly exhausted. He stood up, stamped out his cigarette, found an empty room, and immediately fell into a deep sleep.

"Heh, so I really can only enter this place when I'm completely exhausted. Come out, Stickman." Before Luo Ya had finished speaking,

the Stickman, its body made entirely of Black Flame, appeared before him.

The Stickman had appeared several times before, each time bringing Luo Ya a new technique. Support Slash, Castle Wall Flame, and Pine Torch Slash had all come from it.

The later techniques—Ring Cut, Fire Burning City Walls, and even Setting Sun Blade—were really just variations on a handful of moves.

Though their power and form all differed, they were still applications of Luo Ya's swordsmanship with Ryujin Jakka.

But this time, the Stickman was different from before. It didn't immediately attack Luo Ya as soon as it appeared.

Instead, it stared for a long time at the identical Black Flame covering Luo Ya's body.

"If you're not going to attack, I will." As he spoke, Luo Ya drew his sword and charged at the Stickman with a Support Slash.

But the Stickman didn't move at all, letting the Support Slash strike it.

In the past, even when Luo Ya hit it, its Black Flame merely dimmed and shrank.

This time, the instant the Support Slash struck, the Stickman scattered like fireworks.

Then, black serpents of flame surged toward Luo Ya from every direction.

Luo Ya swung Ryujin Jakka, sending out wave after wave of sword energy, but to no avail. All he could do was watch as countless tongues of flame poured into his body.

"Why does this feel like those TV dramas I used to watch, where someone gets possessed? The villain vibes are way too strong. Ah!"

Before Luo Ya could finish speaking, a wave of agony erupted in his mind, as if his 12G brain had been crammed with 248G of software.

After a long while,

Luo Ya finally recovered from the agony in his mind.

"So that's how it is. Hahahaha!" Luo Ya burst out laughing.