Can You Still Fly with One Wing Missing?

Lin Ye pulled back, his gaze settling on King as he landed in a burst of fire.

To conceal his racial traits, King still wore that black outfit that covered his entire body, though the enormous wings on his back were exceptionally conspicuous.

Lin Ye sheathed his sword and sized King up.

King was sizing Lin Ye up as well.

"I told you to stop!"

King spoke with killing intent thick in his voice. This man actually dared to ignore his command.

At that thought, killing intent surged from King's body.

Especially when his gaze fell upon the headless corpse on the ground, his anger intensified.

The thing he least wanted to see had truly happened.

He did not care whether Kurozumi Orochi lived or died, but that man was still useful. Kaido's plan required him; at the very least, Wano Country could not fall into chaos at this time.

Kurozumi Orochi might have been foolish, but he was still obedient enough.

But now that Kurozumi Orochi was dead, Wano Country would surely descend into chaos. Sorting out Wano Country's internal affairs would likely take quite some time.

At that thought, King's eyes behind his mask brimmed with killing intent as he directly raised a hand to grip his sword hilt.

Lin Ye sneered when he heard King's words.

"Hmph. You alone aren't enough. It would be different if Kaido came himself."

The moment those words left his mouth, King's killing intent erupted violently. Lin Ye's words had clearly enraged him.

What did that mean?

Was he looking down on him?

Those who followed someone for too long would inevitably develop a similar temperament.

After escaping the World Government Research Facility with Kaido, King had remained by Kaido's side ever since. Naturally, he had picked up some of Kaido's traits.

Whoosh!

The massive blade cut down with an afterimage, directly striking toward Lin Ye from above.

The blow was powerful and heavy, as though it would split Lin Ye in half with a single slash.

Lin Ye's sword, which had just been returned to its sheath, was wrapped in Conqueror's Haki as he held it horizontally to block the descending strike.

Airwaves rolled outward, yet Lin Ye's body did not even sway.

King, who held his sword with one hand, was startled. The anger filling his chest subsided somewhat.

This guy blocked my attack so easily?

Kozuki Oden's near-total lack of resistance before him had made Lin Ye realize that his current strength was no longer weak.

The change in strength brought a change in mindset.

And that mindset, in turn, allowed him to bring out his strength more perfectly.

It was difficult to say whether Level 6 Calm played a role in that.

But Lin Ye could clearly feel that when facing certain matters, it was difficult for him to become emotional. Or rather, his emotions no longer swayed his judgment.

His strength had increased rapidly, yet he had adapted to it just as quickly. That mentality was an enormous help as well.

And now, although he was far shorter than King, his aura overwhelmed King's.

That was without even unleashing his Conqueror's Haki.

"You bastard!"

King's voice turned grave. He abruptly withdrew his sword and retreated, taking up a guarded stance.

"Then take a slash from me too!"

Seeing King draw back, a smile appeared on Lin Ye's face as the Black Blade in his hand swept sideways.

Boom!

A black slash shot forth.

King's pupils suddenly contracted. He gripped his sword with both hands and slashed with all his strength at the incoming attack.

Boom!

King's massive body was sent flying backward, smashing through more than a dozen houses before being buried beneath the rubble.

The next moment, a ball of fire shot straight into the sky.

King stood in midair with his sword in hand, his wings spread wide as orange flames appeared over his wings and above his head.

This was the racial talent of the Lunarian Tribe. They possessed extraordinary vitality and could instinctively generate a certain kind of high-temperature flame.

It was precisely because of these racial traits that the Lunarian Tribe had been targeted by the World Government and nearly exterminated.

As far as anyone knew, King was the only Lunarian Tribe member left.

Looking at King, who was surrounded by flames, Lin Ye suddenly felt a little emotional.

"As expected of the Flame-Flame Fruit. Even dogs wouldn't eat it."

Although many people claimed there were no weak fruits, only weak users, the Flame-Flame Fruit, despite being a Logia, truly had not displayed the power it should have possessed.

The various powerhouses of the New World all knew a trick or two involving flames.

Or perhaps Ace's usage of it had simply been too shallow.

That thought suddenly surfaced in Lin Ye's mind, only to vanish immediately.

"Flame-Flame Fruit? This isn't the Flame-Flame Fruit."

After hearing Lin Ye's words, King snorted.

"I know. The Lunarian Tribe, right? The tribe the World Government nearly wiped out."

Lin Ye waved a hand and spoke as though he did not care.

"You... why do you know that?"

King completely lost his composure. Even his voice changed, making his emotional turmoil obvious.

"With such obvious traits, it would be hard not to know. Or are you planning to kill me here to keep it secret?"

Lin Ye narrowed his eyes at King high in the air, his tone deliberately mocking.

"You bastard, you must die here."

In an instant, King recalled the torment he had suffered at the World Government Research Facility.

He did not even want to remember those days.

King had yet to acquire the composure he would possess twenty years later. Lin Ye exposing his identity had directly shattered his calm.

Tankyūdon!

The flames around King flared brightly. Then, his entire body transformed into an enormous Pteranodon, his body fully covered in Armament Haki. His wings resembled two giant blades as he dived toward Lin Ye.

He was too fast.

In the blink of an eye, the massive flaming body had arrived before Lin Ye.

Its huge, sharp beak, wrapped in Armament Haki, was already right in front of Lin Ye.

Lin Ye raised his sword upright. His body slid slightly along King's charging angle, brushing past the sharp beak. Then, King's blade-like wing came sweeping toward him.

A smile remained on Lin Ye's face. He raised his left hand, wrapping it in Level 9 Armament Haki, and grabbed the edge of the outstretched wing. Lin Ye's left arm suddenly swelled in size, then he twisted and seized hold of King, who was about to fly away.

King tried to flap his wings, but it was too late.

Gripping King's enormous wing, Lin Ye spun once before violently smashing him toward the ground.

Boom!

The entire Flower Capital shook.

The ground exploded open.

The strike looked terrifying, but it did limited damage to King.

After all, when King used Tankyūdon, his body was still wrapped in Armament Haki.

But in the next moment, Lin Ye had already raised the sword in his hand.

The Black Blade wrapped in Two Types of Haki came slashing down.

Blood sprayed into the air as King's enormous left wing was severed by the blade in Lin Ye's hand.

Armament Haki was indeed tough, but it had encountered a Black Blade wrapped in Two Types of Haki, along with a slash whose Armament Haki was of even higher quality.

King let out a miserable scream. His remaining right wing flapped wildly as his body tumbled away irregularly.

After overturning several houses, King dropped to one knee.

His body had returned to human form. The left wing on his back had been cut off at the root, and bright red blood streamed from the wound.

After flicking the blood from the Black Blade in his hand, Lin Ye turned to look at King, who was kneeling on one knee and trembling uncontrollably.

"Originally, with the advantage of your wings, catching you would have been quite inconvenient."

Lin Ye walked toward King as he spoke.

"But now, with one wing missing, can you still fly?"