Sure enough, he still lacked combat experience.
Lin Ye gripped Yingxue's hilt in reverse and drew the Fine Grade Blade. Its snow-bright blade looked extremely sharp.
Yet Yingxue, which had not been forged into a Black Blade, was even less durable than his previous weapon.
Lin Ye now understood that while his Haki was no weaker than Kaido's, he still fell short in combat experience.
In the end, he had simply not had enough time.
Though he had fought battles of all sizes over the past year, he had never encountered a true opponent.
Even Kozuki Oden before him had been the same.
Now that he was fighting Kaido, he had come to understand what he still needed to strengthen.
Traits could raise things like Haki to their maximum level, but they could not grant combat experience or adaptability.
He still needed to temper himself, to temper himself through battle.
"Whew!"
As he exhaled lightly, a puff of white vapor escaped Lin Ye's mouth. He looked calmly at Kaido.
[Destroy Divine Departure Level 10?]
"Yes!"
[Divine Departure Level 10 destroyed. You obtained 1022 + 200 Blank Traits. Current Blank Traits: 1225]
Divine Departure alone had yielded a full 200 Blank Traits when broken down, which showed just how precious that move was.
Yet Lin Ye felt not the slightest regret.
What belonged to others would always belong to others.
When he used that move, he was completely Gol D. Roger's shadow.
One day, he would possess his own Divine Departure.
That was what Lin Ye believed.
There were not many people on these seas qualified to serve as his sparring partners, and Kaido before him was definitely one of them.
[Upgrade Conqueror's Haki to Level 10. Cost: 512 Blank Traits. Upgrade?]
"Yes!"
[Upgrade Armament Haki to Level 10. Cost: 512 Blank Traits. Upgrade?]
"Yes!"
[Upgrade Observation Haki to Level 8. Cost: 128 Blank Traits. Upgrade?]
"Yes!"
Lin Ye directly upgraded all three types of Haki.
[Lin Ye] [Eleven years and one month old] [Abilities: Trait Pickup, Shatter Traits] [Conqueror's Haki: Level 10] [Armament Haki: Level 10] [Observation Haki: Level 8] [Strong Physique: Level 9] [Calmness: Level 6] [Mighty Arms: Level 7] [Cat-Cat Leap: Level 7] [Time Travel: Level 1] [Revival: Level 1] [Lunarian Flame: Level 1] [Survival of the Fittest: Level 9] [Blank Traits: 76] [...] [...]
Kaido watched as Lin Ye's aura became tranquil, resting his spiked club on his shoulder.
Kaido was actually deeply shocked.
He had joined the Rocks Pirates in his youth and roamed the seas with the crew.
He had seen countless geniuses across the ocean.
Some possessed astonishing talent, while others had astonishing comprehension.
But none could compare to the guy before him. Even aboard that ship back then, he had never seen a monster like Lin Ye.
His Conqueror's Haki and Armament Haki were no weaker than Kaido's. At his age, that was simply unbelievable.
Both his strength and speed were equally exaggerated.
He had even mastered Roger's slash, yet Kaido simply could not see through how Lin Ye had mastered it.
Even if Roger had taught him personally, how could he have mastered it to such a degree? It was practically a replica of Roger's slash.
Fortunately, he lacked combat experience.
Kaido had also noticed Lin Ye's lack of combat experience.
"Was it because his strength had grown too quickly, so he had never encountered an opponent?"
Kaido guessed inwardly.
He himself had been the same back then. Before joining the Rocks Pirates, he had rarely encountered opponents. Aside from his physique steadily growing stronger, everything else had improved slowly.
Only after joining that pirate crew and fighting more powerful opponents had his strength soared by leaps and bounds.
However, if possible, this little monster before him could not be allowed to leave Onigashima alive. He might become an obstacle in Kaido's path.
Having realized this, killing intent surged from Kaido's body.
He swung his spiked club in a full arc and stomped forward with his right foot. The ground exploded beneath his step as his body swept toward Lin Ye like a gale.
"Great Virtue: Thunder Bagua!"
Kaido's body distorted slightly from his sheer speed, but the thunderous spiked club wrapped in Conqueror's Haki was too fast for the naked eye to follow.
Boom!
The lightning-wreathed, Haki-coated spiked club smashed into the side of Lin Ye's face.
Haki flowed over Lin Ye's cheek, Armament Haki shielding half his face.
Lightning completely engulfed Lin Ye.
Lin Ye's body was sent flying sideways, numbness spreading through him.
It was lightning corroding his body.
But before Level 9 Survival of the Fittest, his body quickly adapted to the sensation.
Having landed a blow, Kaido moved even faster, lightning wrapping around his body.
Seeing Lin Ye get hit, Kaido could not understand why he had not dodged. But Kaido shot into the air, appearing above the sideways-flying Lin Ye.
He swung his spiked club with both hands until it became an afterimage.
"Falling Three Worlds: Ragnarok!"
Lightning and Haki crashed down once more.
Boom!
The spiked club struck the sideways-flying Lin Ye dead on, slamming his body into the ground.
The world seemed to fall silent for an instant. All of Ringo trembled violently, the ground cracked open, and underground water burst forth.
Steam rose from the heated water, white vapor spreading through the air.
After landing two direct attacks in succession, Kaido landed and stared at where Lin Ye had been smashed down.
His eyes were full of vigilance.
Although both full-force attacks had struck their target, his Observation Haki sensed that the other's aura had not weakened in the slightest.
What exactly was wrong with this guy?
Kaido remained highly vigilant.
At that moment, the ground shifted, and then a hand reached out from the rubble inside the crater, gripping the edge of a bluestone slab.
Smack!
The bluestone was crushed in that hand, and Lin Ye used the force to fling away the rubble burying him.
His clothes had been somewhat shredded by the previous attacks, yet the eyes he raised remained calm.
So this was what it felt like to get beaten.
Lin Ye looked at Kaido standing at the crater's edge and suddenly smiled.
"Ha ha ha! Hahahaha! Again!"
Boom!
As Lin Ye shouted, his entire body shot out like an arrow released from its bow. Only after his figure burst from the crater did the ground beneath where his feet had been explode.
His extreme speed dragged a long trail of dust behind him.
Kaido widened his eyes and watched as Lin Ye's fist reached his face.
Boom!
The fist wrapped in Two-Color Haki smashed fiercely into Kaido's left cheek.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Kaido's head snapped back, and his feet stomped heavily into the ground. He staggered back more than ten steps before finally stopping.
Raising a hand to touch his numb, swollen face, Kaido fixed his eyes on the charging Lin Ye.
This brat seemed somewhat different.
This guy seemed to have broken free from some kind of restraint and become even more free.
He still had a sword in hand, yet he had not swung that slash just now. Instead, he had used his fist.
"Kaido, let's fight to the death!"
Just as Kaido sensed the change in Lin Ye, Lin Ye pointed his sword at him and spoke with an unrestrained smile on his face.
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