"Crack-"
The Salted Fish Long Sword met the fist, producing several bolts of black lightning.
Yes, Conqueror's Coating again, a power that seemed to be everywhere these days, yet Xie Wen still needed the cats' help to master it.
Even without Conqueror's Coating, however, Xie Wen fought the old man to a draw, and the two remained locked in a stalemate in midair.
With a peculiar power like Armament Haki in existence, the old man's fist remained unharmed even though Xie Wen's blade was coated in flames. In fact, whenever Xie Wen let his attention slip, that fist could press a little closer, forcing him to give their contest his absolute concentration.
But compared to the old man's strength, something else concerned Xie Wen more...
As his blade remained locked against the old man's fist, Xie Wen soon sensed something slightly familiar coming from it-
It was somewhat like Garp's fist, yet distinctly different. At the very least, the two should have belonged to the same school.
Although Garp's fists were all about brute force, with no particular moves to speak of, Xie Wen still had that feeling. To put it in more mystical terms, he had sensed the old man's "fist intent."
It was thanks to successfully unlocking Bushido Style and taking a huge step forward in Idealist Swordsmanship that he had acquired this strange sensory ability, which was nevertheless a very common fictional concept.
A "fellow disciple" of Garp's, strength on par with an Admiral, yet someone Xie Wen barely remembered, plus that move name just now that sounded as though it had wandered in from another series...
Xie Wen quickly guessed the old man's identity.
The former Fleet Admiral of Marine Headquarters, now commander-in-chief of the World Government's armed forces-
"'Steel Bone' Kong?"
Though phrased as a