Ignoring the hostile looks around him, Bullet stretched slightly. His gaze passed over the crowd and landed on the captain of the Jackal Pirates, Heinrich Böll.
"Oh, a 70 million bounty?"
"Sounds pretty good. You're even a Zoan Devil Fruit user. You should be stronger than the trash under your command."
"Hmph, you're courting death!"
Heinrich Böll's expression changed abruptly, his face turning vicious as a puff of white vapor burst from his nostrils.
"Boys, kill him!"
At Heinrich Böll's command, dozens of his pirates charged forward in a menacing rush.
Facing the crowd's assault, Bullet kept his hands in his pockets and said with disdain,
"When you're out here making a living, you need strength and connections. What the hell is the use of having more people?"
Boom!
With that, he stepped forward and widened his eyes. Conqueror's Haki erupted instantly, an invisible pressure spreading outward with overwhelming force. The entire area fell silent.
The next moment,
Thud, thud...
The pirates closest to Bullet were the first to collapse. Then, like dominoes, the pirates around them fell one after another. In the blink of an eye, a dense mass of them was sprawled across the ground.
"So they're just a bunch of worthless punks." Bullet sneered.
Heinrich Böll stood rooted to the spot, his eyes blank as cold sweat poured down his face. His entire body was stiff, and the cigar clenched between his teeth fell to the ground. The terror in him was beyond words.
Just moments ago, they had been numerous and imposing. Now, out of the entire crew of dozens, he was the only one still standing, left completely alone.
Watching this, Xia Luo could not help feeling a little envious. Conqueror's Haki was one of the pinnacle powers among pirates. He had yet to awaken it, yet his little brother had mastered it first. It would be a lie to say he was not jealous.
Once he awakened Conqueror's Haki and learned Conqueror's Coating, his Thunder Bagua would truly live up to its name!
"Trash is trash. You're next, Jackal. I hope you can give me a good time!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Bullet became a blur and rushed toward Heinrich Böll at high speed.
At that moment, Heinrich Böll had yet to recover from the previous shock when Bullet sent him flying with a punch.
Boom!
Heinrich Böll's body shot away like a cannonball, smashing through several large trees before finally coming to a stop.
"Cough, cough, cough..."
Blood trickled from Heinrich Böll's mouth as he struggled to his feet. He looked at Bullet in terror and disbelief. "What was that just now? Just one look and..."
Bullet grinned viciously. "Want to know? Fine. Beat me, and I'll tell you. But if I accidentally beat you to death... heh heh."
Bullet's contemptuous gaze stirred Heinrich Böll's ferocity. He roared, "Brat, who the hell are you looking down on?! I'm Jackal!!"
Roar!
Heinrich Böll swiftly transformed into his Human-Beast Form. He had a human body and a dog's head, with orange-yellow fur covering his body. Sharp claws extended from his hands and feet, gleaming coldly.
He let out a furious roar.
"Brat, don't think that little trick can scare me. You've completely enraged me. Next, I'll make you understand the price of angering me!"
With a swish, Heinrich Böll appeared in front of Bullet, moving with incredible speed. His sharp claws tore viciously toward Bullet's heart.
"Not bad speed."
"But..."
Bullet grinned and quickly reached out, catching Heinrich Böll's wrist with a backhanded grab. He then turned with the momentum and slammed him hard into the ground.
"Still not fast enough!"
Bang!!
The ground instantly split apart, forming a massive crater.
"Damn it!"
Heinrich Böll climbed out from the bottom of the crater, his ferocity fully unleashed. He charged at Bullet again at full force.
Not far away, Xia Luo stood with his arms crossed, watching the battle between the two with great interest and no intention of interfering.
If this had been before Bullet ate the Devil Fruit, he definitely would not have been Heinrich Böll's match.
After all, Heinrich Böll had a 70 million bounty, and it was already the year 1489. He was no ordinary pirate.
According to the Marines' wanted posters, "Jackal" Heinrich Böll could be considered one of this year's Supernovas.
There had been especially few Supernovas in recent years. There used to be at least seven or eight every year, sometimes even more than a dozen. Yet this year, there were only five in total, all from the North Blue and South Blue. Not a single one came from the West Blue or East Blue.
There was no helping it. The West Blue and East Blue had repeatedly been "plowed over" by Xia Luo and Garp, leaving both seas without even one noteworthy great pirate.
It was truly miserable.
But back to the point.
As the saying went, thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river. After eating the Tyrannosaurus Fruit, Bullet's strength had long since undergone a tremendous transformation. Even in his normal state, he was a notch stronger than Heinrich Böll.
"Hahaha, that felt great!"
Bullet had thoroughly enjoyed this battle. At last, he had vented the frustration he had been holding in for the past few days. Though Heinrich Böll had left several bloody wounds on him, it was no big deal.
"Hmph, it seems you're nothing special after all. Keep this up, and you'll definitely be the one who dies!"
Heinrich Böll spoke harshly. Though he was more heavily injured than Bullet, he was a Zoan Devil Fruit user. Not only could he take a beating, but his recovery ability was stronger as well. He could wear his opponent down to death.
"Jackal, you're celebrating too soon!"
Bullet shouted and activated his power, transforming into his Human-Beast Form.
In Human-Beast Form, Bullet's height shot up to five meters, close to Xia Luo's height in his own Human-Beast Form. In Beast Form, Bullet's body length would reach nearly sixteen meters, with a height of around seven meters—larger even than the legendary Tyrannosaurus!
After transforming into his Human-Beast Form, Bullet's legs became those of a Tyrannosaurus, a tail grew from behind him, and claws sprouted from his hands. His upper body retained its human shape, but his skin turned bluish-green and was covered by a thick layer of keratin, giving him astonishing defense.
Xia Luo had long seen Bullet's Human-Beast Form. His assessment was that Bullet was a half-dragon man: human on top, Tyrannosaurus on the bottom. Wasn't that exactly what a half-dragon man was?
As an ancient overlord, the Tyrannosaurus possessed no elemental abilities and none of those flashy tricks. What it had was an ultimate physique and unrivaled strength.
"Fuck! You're a Zoan Devil Fruit user too?!"
Heinrich Böll was utterly stunned. His plan was on the verge of collapsing. He had originally intended to drag the fight out and wear Bullet down, only to find that Bullet had not shown his true strength from the very beginning!
"Alright, the warm-up is over. Now for round two!"
A delighted smile appeared on Bullet's face. This was exhilarating.
However...
"Brat, I'll admit defeat this time. Leave some room for others, and we'll meet again someday. How about we end things here?"
Seeing that the situation was unfavorable, Heinrich Böll actually chose to back down. He pulled away from Bullet, his eyes filled with wariness as he forced a stiff smile onto his face.
Backing down on the spot during a battle between pirates was extremely humiliating. Heinrich Böll believed he had already shown the other side plenty of respect, but he had miscalculated.
"End things here? What kind of joke is that? I'm having a damn good time!"
Naturally, Bullet had no intention of stopping. He said arrogantly, "Hey, don't tell me you're scared? A Supernova with a 70 million bounty is actually scared?!"
"Tch, what Jackal? You're clearly just a cowardly mutt!"
Heinrich Böll's face darkened. He had not expected the other side to refuse him so completely, even mocking him to his face by calling him a cowardly mutt.
But when he thought of Bullet's strength, Heinrich Böll had no choice but to force down his anger and grit his teeth.
"Brat, don't think I'm afraid of you. I just don't want us both to get badly hurt and let someone else reap the rewards for free."
"Besides, there's no deep grudge between us. You've already vented your anger in that fight just now. Why not stop here? What do you say?"
Seeing that Bullet seemed unmoved, Heinrich Böll put on a fierce front to hide his weakness. "Brat, don't push your luck. If we really fight, it's still uncertain who'll come out alive!"
Before you continue