A Fierce Battle with Kaido! Moria's Escape

Seeing Lin Ye being so brazen, Kaido watched him with a hint of surprise in his eyes.

Conqueror's Haki erupted from both of them at once, and the ground beneath their feet suddenly exploded.

Their bodies, trailing long afterimages, crashed into each other.

Their weapons, wrapped in Two-Color Haki, collided solidly.

The clash of Conqueror's Haki once again scattered the thunderclouds Kaido had summoned.

For that instant, space itself seemed on the verge of shattering.

Lin Ye completely abandoned the fighting habits he had developed over the past year.

After taking two of Kaido's attacks head-on and realizing he could withstand them, Lin Ye gave up his former obsession with landing a single fatal blow.

That style of fighting was laughably effective against the weak, but far less useful against powerful opponents on his own level.

And now, the blade in his hand crashed head-on against Kaido's spiked club.

It was a contest of strength and Haki.

As the opponent whose strength had come closest to his over the past year, Kaido's fighting style certainly had merits worth learning from.

Lin Ye intended to use Kaido as his whetstone.

In this battle, he would find the fighting style best suited to him.

As for everything else, he could put it aside for now.

And Kaido finally confirmed the change in Lin Ye.

His previous focus on striking vital points had changed. There was not the slightest retreat now; Lin Ye was relying on his own Haki and strength to clash with him head-on.

Boom!

Boom!

Even so, their speed had already surpassed what ordinary eyes could perceive.

The thunderous clash of their massive weapons rang out one after another.

The shockwaves from those collisions alone wreaked absolute destruction upon the ground.

Across the shattered, chaotic earth, a faint black shadow was retreating.

After all, he was the strongest person here besides Lin Ye and Kaido, and his physique was monstrous as well.

He had survived the aftershocks of Lin Ye and Kaido's earlier battle.

But Moria had been utterly stripped of confidence by Kaido's heavy blow.

And the sight of this battle now left Moria trembling with fear.

He had never imagined that the child he had considered weak a year ago had reached a point where he now had to look up to him.

But he would let these monsters fight it out among themselves.

Moria stealthily slipped away with the help of his shadow ability, but he could not hide it from Lin Ye or Kaido.

Boom!

Lin Ye, gripping his blade with both hands, and Kaido, clutching his spiked club in both hands, locked weapons and strained against each other.

"Your captain is running away."

Kaido spoke to Lin Ye, a crafty gleam flashing through his eyes.

A captain fleeing should affect his crew.

Lin Ye's expression did not change.

"I was never his crewman, and I never considered myself one. That was merely a way for me to set sail. It would not have mattered if it had been another pirate crew."

"You little brat..."

Kaido froze for a moment upon hearing Lin Ye's words, then burst into laughter.

"Fuck your laughter!"

Lin Ye suddenly pulled back, shouted, and slashed Yingxue, wrapped in Two-Color Haki, across Kaido's neck.

The blade sank into flesh, only to be clamped between muscles wrapped in Armament Haki.

"Kid, you're strong, and you've got enough guts. But true power on this sea requires other things."

Kaido sneered as he swung his spiked club. Lin Ye released his grip on the blade and leaped back to evade the blow.

Kaido sneered as he pulled the sword trapped in his neck muscles free.

Lin Ye's expression did not change at the sight.

Having his blade taken proved that his mastery of the sword was still lacking.

But he still had his fists.

Armament Haki flowed over both fists.

Then Conqueror's Haki wrapped around them.

"I'll give you one more chance. Join forces with me, and there will be no more opponents for us on this sea. We can rule this world."

Seeing Lin Ye lose his blade yet wrap both hands in Two-Color Haki without yielding in the slightest, Kaido spoke again.

"I told you, defeat me first!"

After saying that, Lin Ye charged straight at him.

His fists followed no particular technique, but his maxed-out Conqueror's Haki and Armament Haki-coated fists, along with his Armament Haki-coated legs, greatly enhanced his mobility.

With the boost from Haki, Cat-Cat Leap became several times more effective.

Kaido was agile as well, and the speed of his body activated by lightning was extremely fast. Yet his massive frame still made him somewhat less nimble than Lin Ye.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Lin Ye raised a hand to press down the incoming spiked club, flipped over it, and slammed both fists heavily into Kaido's chest.

Several dents immediately appeared across the scale-covered chest.

A thin streak of blood ran from the corner of Kaido's mouth.

This was another application of advanced Armament Haki.

Kaido's physical defense was incredibly strong, but this use of Armament Haki could strike directly at the internal organs.

Still, judging by the current situation, Lin Ye felt that Kaido's title as the strongest creature on land, sea, and air was no exaggeration.

This guy's internal organs were tough too.

"Boom!"

Lin Ye raised an arm to block Kaido's incoming spiked club, only to be sent flying again.

"Whoosh!"

After landing a hit, Kaido abruptly leaned back and swelled his belly before blasting a mouthful of Heat Breath toward Lin Ye.

Lin Ye landed on both feet, bent his legs, and charged directly into the Heat Breath.

Armament Haki covered his entire body as he tore through Kaido's Heat Breath and lunged at him.

His body spun.

"Battle Axe!"

Lin Ye shouted as his legs stomped through the air with explosive booms, his right leg crashing down like a massive axe upon Kaido's head.

Kaido's body bent sharply, and a collision of Conqueror's Haki erupted above his head.

A feverish light filled Lin Ye's face as he pressed down with all his strength.

Boom!

The force traveled into the ground, and the earth beneath Kaido's feet violently exploded.

"There you go!"

Lin Ye shouted again and suddenly exerted force. Kaido was driven straight into the ground, smashing deep beneath the earth.

Using the rebound, Lin Ye flipped into the air and stood atop the air itself, gazing down at the utterly devastated land.

Beneath the fractured ground, red light shone through the cracks.

The earth split apart as Kaido fully underwent Beastification, transforming into a giant Dragon that shot into the sky and burrowed into the clouds.

Even the clouds could not completely conceal his enormous body.

The dragon's head emerged from the clouds and stared at Lin Ye on the ground below.

"Bad Wind!"

Opening his mouth, he sent countless azure Wind Blades flying toward Lin Ye below.

Lin Ye's Observation Haki captured everything, and his body flashed aside from the pursuing Wind Blades.

The already ruined ground was once more thoroughly ravaged by the Wind Blades.

Bubbles occasionally drifted up from certain spots.

They were probably people who had survived the earlier battle's aftershocks, only to be unlucky enough to get struck by Kaido's Wind Blades now.

"Thunder Dragon!"

Kaido roared again.

Purple lightning descended from the heavens.

It struck Lin Ye's body directly.

The lightning was too fast, and Kaido did not hold back his strength in the slightest.

Purple electricity coiled around Lin Ye's body. His shirt was completely destroyed, and Lin Ye tore off the remaining scraps before looking up at the sky, where lightning continued to fall.

Level nine Survival of the Fittest was still taking effect.