Old Qin, the Gatekeeper

At that moment, Yun Zhinnan was facing off against a Marine soldier who called himself Old Qin.

Yun Zhinnan had already exchanged several rounds with him. Although his opponent was not as fast as he was, for some reason, whenever he was about to land an attack, Old Qin always dodged it or blocked it with his hand.

"Young pirate, if this is all you've got, then you can only stay here!" Old Qin said after blocking Yun Zhinnan's attack once more.

"Fine! Old man, I admit you're strong, but it's not like I haven't improved at all lately!" Yun Zhinnan said, stopping a short distance in front of Old Qin.

Whirlwind Kick

After saying that, Yun Zhinnan began spinning in place. Before long, a small whirlwind formed where he had been standing.

"Go!" As Yun Zhinnan's voice fell, the whirlwind broke away and hurtled toward Old Qin, while Yun Zhinnan remained where he was.

Before the whirlwind could reach Old Qin, Yun Zhinnan vanished from his spot again.

"Not a bad way to attack! But it's still lacking. Iron Body!" Old Qin's muscles suddenly swelled, bursting through the loose Marine uniform he wore and exposing his upper body.

Bang! The whirlwind and Yun Zhinnan, who had suddenly appeared behind Old Qin, struck him at the same time.

Although Yun Zhinnan's kick landed solidly on Old Qin's back, it felt as though he had kicked a block of iron, with no effect at all.

The whirlwind in front did not achieve much either, but it did scrape some skin off Old Qin's body.

"Not bad indeed, but still not enough. Finger Pistol!" As Yun Zhinnan's old momentum faded and his new momentum had yet to rise, Old Qin thrust a finger at him.

Though Yun Zhinnan reacted quickly, the attack still grazed his shoulder, leaving a gash there.

Shave!

Seeing Yun Zhinnan vanish again, Old Qin did not stay where he was this time. He used Shave and chased after him directly.

Yun Zhinnan had only just come to a stop when he was visibly startled by Old Qin suddenly appearing before him.

"Kid, you're fast, but it's still not enough!" Old Qin attacked Yun Zhinnan again with Finger Pistol.

This time, however, Old Qin did not hit him. Yun Zhinnan kicked his hand aside.

"Speed?" Yun Zhinnan muttered after deflecting the attack.

"Old man, be careful. The next move won't be so easy to block."

Threefold Speed God Kick! Yun Zhinnan charged at Old Qin again, moving even faster than before.

"Not bad. Now this is getting interesting." Old Qin smiled as he watched Yun Zhinnan vanish again, then used Shave as well to meet him.

For a time, the two clashed continuously in midair. The shockwaves from their battle sent the Marine soldiers who had tried to approach flying.

"Ha! Ha! Ha! Young people these days are truly impressive. You've actually managed to fight this old man for so long." After separating once more, Old Qin panted as he spoke to Yun Zhinnan, who had also steadied himself across from him.

"Old man, you're not bad either. You're so old, yet you can still fight like this. But you'd better be careful from here on out."

Fivefold Speed God Kick!

With that, Yun Zhinnan attacked Old Qin again.

"Even faster than before? But this old man isn't slow either!" Old Qin merely laughed and followed him directly.

This time, however, it was obvious that Old Qin's speed was beginning to fall behind Yun Zhinnan's. Though he could still barely keep up, Yun Zhinnan seized many openings and struck him repeatedly.

The old man was formidable as well. He used Iron Body to withstand Yun Zhinnan's attacks head-on, and it caused him no trouble at all.

"Ha! Ha! Ha! Kid, I admit you're very fast, but your attack power is still lacking." Old Qin spoke to Yun Zhinnan while enduring his attacks and preparing to counterattack.

"Hmph!" Yun Zhinnan said nothing, only snorted coldly.

After another exchange, Old Qin seized an opportunity and kicked Yun Zhinnan away.

Yun Zhinnan did not possess a defensive technique like Iron Body. Although he had recently learned how to use Haki, he had not had enough time to become proficient in it. Moreover, true qi and Haki differed somewhat. Haki was energy generated within the body, and using it was basically like having an extra limb.

True qi was different. It was natural energy absorbed from the outside world. Though its effects were somewhat stronger than Haki's, and it could be used just as swiftly, it required constant practice.

Though Yun Zhinnan had used true qi to mitigate some of the damage after being sent flying, blood still trickled from the corner of his mouth.

"What? Can't go on anymore, kid?" Old Qin asked as he looked at Yun Zhinnan, whom he had sent flying.

"It's still far too early, old man." Yun Zhinnan slowly climbed to his feet and wiped the blood from his mouth.

"Oh, you're quite tough, kid. But no matter how fast you are, you can't defeat this old man without enough strength."

"Strength? Fine! Then let me show you whether my strength can defeat you." Yun Zhinnan replied.

"Oh! Then this old man would like to see it."

"I won't be able to hold back with this next move. After all, even I can't control just how powerful it is!"

Tenfold Speed God Kick!

In an instant, Yun Zhinnan vanished from where he stood, while the floor beneath his feet was directly shattered by the impact of his movement.

"Faster again? But it's useless. Iron Body!" Old Qin used Iron Body once more.

Bang! The moment Old Qin activated Iron Body, Yun Zhinnan's attack arrived and kicked him flying.

"What?!" Old Qin, who had been sent flying, had never expected Yun Zhinnan's strength to suddenly become so great.

At that moment, only the whites of Yun Zhinnan's eyes remained. He looked as though he had lost consciousness. He did not answer Old Qin, instead directly catching up to him as he flew away.

Then he continuously kicked Old Qin through the air, keeping his body suspended as blood constantly poured from his mouth.

"How could this..." After speaking those final words, Old Qin fainted.

Yun Zhinnan also recovered from his previous state at that moment. He spat out a large mouthful of blood, then fell to his knees.

"Speed is strength. As long as I'm fast enough, my strength will keep growing stronger. Cough! Cough! Cough!" Yun Zhinnan spat out several more mouthfuls of blood.

"Looks like my body still can't handle this speed..." After saying that, Yun Zhinnan collapsed.

The surrounding Marines saw Yun Zhinnan fall and wanted to rush forward to finish him off. But at that moment, Big Bear, who had just finished his battle, and Second Bear, carrying Panda on his back, arrived and stood in front of the Marines.