But all of that required luck.
Lin Ye had even considered that if he obtained a Devil Fruit in the future, he could find someone to eat it before making his move.
That way, he could gamble on the odds.
Especially Logia types, or Paramecia types with particularly outrageous abilities.
Of course, he was not picky.
Even a trash ability would be a positive upgrade for him.
The two people he had set his sights on this time both possessed heaven-defying abilities, yet were incredibly weak themselves.
One had a time-related Devil Fruit ability, while the other had a Devil Fruit ability that granted multiple lives, but neither had used their powers as they should have.
Lin Ye, who had been lost in thought, suddenly turned his head.
From all directions, the samurai of the Flower Capital and Orochi's ninjas surrounded him once more.
And this time, there were several hundred of them.
It seemed his arrival had truly frightened that bastard.
Lin Ye rested his hand on the hilt at his waist and calmly watched the people closing in around him.
Ever since he had begun letting people go to report back, more than a hundred had come to deliver themselves to him.
Having them come one after another was indeed far easier than searching for them himself.
After all, if he went looking, he still had to distinguish between them. It was far too troublesome.
But now, anyone who came here could be killed.
Behind a dirt mound in the distance, several figures crouched and watched Lin Ye's situation.
"Is that the man from the intelligence reports? Did he really kill more than a hundred of Orochi's subordinates along the way?"
One person poked his head out, took a glance, and asked softly.
"That's right. I followed him all the way here. Everyone who blocked his path died."
"Could he be Lord Oden's friend?"
Another person spoke.
Kozuki Oden had sailed the seas for a time and met many powerful people. It was said he had even been aboard One Piece's ship.
"That's unclear. But this man is ruthless and never shows mercy. I examined those people's wounds—they were all killed with a single slash.
Many had been cut in two."
The speaker swallowed hard.
"As expected of a strong man. But this is great news for us. It looks like that bastard Orochi has provoked a powerful enemy this time.
Maybe Orochi will be killed by this man."
The first speaker looked excited.
"Lord Oden..."
Before he could finish, the woman beside him, dressed in a bodysuit, spoke in a somewhat dejected tone.
Kozuki Oden dancing in nothing but a loincloth in the Flower Capital was also a humiliation to them.
"Orochi is just too despicable. If he hadn't threatened Lord Oden with the lives of civilians, how could this have happened?"
The woman's words made the faces of the others twitch.
These samurai valued loyalty and honor above all else.
Yet the person they served was dancing naked in the Flower Capital. It was simply the greatest disgrace.
"Shh, they've started."
One person suddenly spoke. The others immediately fell silent and poked their heads out to look.
The surrounding samurai roared as they charged forward with their swords raised.
Slash!
A dark sword wave shot out.
Whoosh!
The upper bodies of twenty or thirty people flew into the air at once.
Even after being cut apart, they seemed not to realize it, still waving their swords with savage expressions.
Only after their bodies rose into the air did they realize what had happened. Their expressions shifted from savagery to pain, then to terror.
Gulp!
Behind the dirt mound, it was utterly silent. Even the sound of swallowing seemed painfully loud.
Meanwhile, the battle outside continued.
Lin Ye's swordsmanship was extremely simple.
Over more than a year of fighting, Lin Ye had abandoned all those flashy sword techniques.
Though they were dazzling, they offered Lin Ye no real improvement.
He had never practiced any swordsmanship before. As for martial principles and such, he could talk about them a little, but when it came to actual application, he was useless.
His fighting style had been forged through the countless battles, large and small, of the past year.
How could he reap lives in the fastest way possible?
Naturally, by driving the weapon in his hand into the opponent's vital point as quickly as possible.
A smile rested on Lin Ye's face as the sword in his hand harvested the lives of the surrounding samurai.
Lin Ye was very pleased.
Because the people who had come this time were clearly elites.
Every single one of them had actually mastered Armament Haki.
Oh, right. Here in Wano Country, it was called Ryuo.
From their exchanges, these people's Armament Haki cultivation was clearly not very high. They could not withstand his flowing, coating Haki.
But among the prompts for the bubbles he collected, Armament Haki accounted for an extremely high proportion.
What a wonderful place.
He could come here often to harvest another batch.
Such a thought suddenly arose in Lin Ye's mind.
Yet the sword in his hand showed not the slightest mercy.
"Hah!"
A fierce shout rang out from nearby.
Then two slashes crossed through the air toward Lin Ye.
The slashes resembled azure Wind Blades, incredibly fast, reaching Lin Ye in the blink of an eye.
Lin Ye lightly tapped the ground beneath his feet. It appeared he had used little strength, but the earth below suddenly exploded.
Massive cracks spread in every direction as countless clumps of dirt surged upward, flinging away the surrounding samurai and corpses.
Lin Ye's figure seemed to teleport, appearing above the man who had launched the Flying Slashes.
Seeing the colorful ninja outfit on his body, Lin Ye's eyes turned cold. While still in midair, he raised his sword high before bringing it down violently.
"Aah!"
Wind Blade, an Oniwabanshu ninja, watched Lin Ye's descending slash from above. He raised his twin blades in a cross, trying to block the attack.
But the instant their weapons collided, terror flashed through Wind Blade's eyes.
An immense, irresistible force surged through his weapons.
He couldn't block it!
The moment that thought surfaced, Wind Blade's body split in two, and a cloud of blood burst apart.
The remaining force of the slash flew onward, cutting down everyone in its path. The ground split open, and the sword mark stretched into the distance.
After landing the blow, Lin Ye tapped down once more. Even the air beneath his feet distorted, followed by a massive sonic boom.
Lin Ye's figure flickered away, appearing once again before several people dressed in ninja outfits.
They were all Orochi's Oniwabanshu ninjas.
Lin Ye knew of these people from his memories of One Piece, but he had little impression of their individual members.
But none of that mattered.
Lin Ye had not bothered to think about their identities at all. As long as they had come here, they had only one identity—dead men.
All Three-Color Haki activated.
Boom!
An indescribable, immense pressure suddenly descended.
The vigilant ninjas below and the terrified samurai around them were cowed by Conqueror's Haki, while Haki coated Lin Ye's blade.
Dual Haki Coating.
Conqueror's Haki and Armament Haki coating.
This was a slash Lin Ye had imitated from Divine Departure.
Terrifying Haki burst from the blade like lightning, its powerful aura battering the clouds overhead.
Huff!
With slight control, Lin Ye exhaled a wisp of white vapor, then gripped his sword in his right hand and spun.
Boom!
This slash flew out in a ring, seemingly carrying deep purple lightning.
Boom!
As though a tremendous explosion had occurred, everything around Lin Ye was destroyed.
The surrounding samurai, ninjas, trees, and soil were all cut apart and blasted away.
A huge number of bubbles appeared in an instant, surging toward Lin Ye.
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