"That's right!"
The Golden Lion nodded.
"This technique is only mastered by top-tier experts on the high seas."
"In this world, Devil Fruit abilities are merely supplementary; only Haki can transcend everything!"
"Hmm?" Xia Chen tilted his head upon hearing this. It seemed that Teacher Kaido had said something similar?
As his thoughts raced, the Golden Lion said to Xia Chen, "Boy, let me see your strength. Let me see if you're qualified to reach the top of the world!"
"You'll see!" Xia Chen smiled faintly, then raised his stick and attacked the Golden Lion.
"Hahaha..."
"Come on, kid!"
After a period of time~
"Cough cough!"
Xia Chen coughed up a mouthful of blood, struggling to hold onto the stick to keep himself from falling. His body was covered in wounds, and blood was flowing all over the ground.
Moreover, all the injuries were deep-seated, because Xia Chen had already healed the shallower ones, and even with his recovery abilities, he couldn't withstand the remaining injuries.
Moreover, his physical strength is almost exhausted, and he's even becoming somewhat delirious.
On the other hand, aside from the injuries Xia Chen had inflicted earlier, the Golden Lion on the opposite side only suffered a few new injuries, and they were all minor.
However, his breathing was already becoming unsteady; the intense battle after pulling out the rudder had brought him to the brink of death.
This enormous gap in strength made Xia Chen realize the distance between himself and truly top-tier experts; indeed, he still had a very long way to go.
but...
A slight smile appeared on Xia Chen's lips; he hadn't come away empty-handed!
Xia Chen straightened up with difficulty and smiled at the Golden Lion, saying, "Of all the teachers I've ever met, you're definitely among the top!"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
The Golden Lion was completely bewildered by Xia Chen's sudden and nonsensical remark.
Xia Chen did not answer Golden Lion's question, but instead showed what he wanted to say through his actions.
Xia Chen gently picked up the stick in his hand, and gradually, black and red Inazuma began to coil around it.
Upon witnessing this scene, the Golden Lion looked as if he had seen a ghost and asked incredulously, "You've mastered Conqueror's Haki Coating?"
"Thanks to you, I managed to get away with it!"
Xia Chen now understood why Luffy and his crew were able to learn something new every time they faced a life-or-death crisis. It's true, they really did learn faster after being badly beaten!
The saying "Great opportunities lie between life and death" is indeed true!
The Golden Lion's expression suddenly became very strange, as if it were amazement mixed with resentment. After a long while, he looked at Xia Chen and said quietly:
"Your talent far surpasses mine! But... I won't go easy on you just because of that!"
That's exactly what I was thinking!
Xia Chen smiled, revealing bloodstained teeth. Then he slowly said, "This next move will be my last. After this, I will be powerless to fight again. Old Lion, don't die!"
"Come on, kid! Haha... let me see what you've got!"
Xia Chen didn't speak again. He mobilized the last bit of strength in his body and raised the stick in his hand high. Conqueror's Haki Coating around it, and black and red Inazuma shot out continuously.
In a split second, Xia Chen's eyes narrowed, and he shot forward, arriving in front of the Golden Lion almost instantly. Then he swung his staff down hard.
" Heaven-Pillar!"
Without a word, the Golden Lion brought forth the two swords on his legs in an instant, clashing fiercely with Xia Chen's staff.
"Boom!"
The two weapons did not clash, but rather collided from a distance, unleashing an incredibly powerful shockwave that ravaged the already overburdened land once more.
The clash between the two continued for some time, and suddenly, the Golden Lion began to vomit a large amount of blood.
"Can't hold on any longer, you old lion?" Xia Chen mocked.
"You're the one who's got power, kid. How much strength do you have left?" Golden Lion retorted without hesitation, then suddenly unleashed his power once more.
Xia Chen was instantly startled; he hadn't expected the Golden Lion to be able to unleash its power a second time under these circumstances.
He had no strength left and was swept away by the Golden Lion.
The scenery around him changed rapidly before his eyes until a sharp pain shot through his back, and Xia Chen realized that he had unknowingly flown more than ten kilometers away. He coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Xia Chen felt like he was going to get anemia. The amount of blood he lost in this battle would have killed an ordinary person countless times.
Struggling to lift his eyelids, Xia Chen saw the Golden Lion slowly floating towards him, and couldn't help but twitch his lips.
That old man who never climbs the ladder is really something!
Xia Chen roughly calculated that only about ten minutes had passed since the Golden Lion pulled off the rudder, and in such a short time, he had already beaten him into this state.
He had countless wounds on his body, and he didn't know how many bones were broken or how much flesh had been cut away.
Xia Chen was completely drained; his consciousness was already fading. But he knew he couldn't fall asleep now, or he would be finished.
Suppressing his last shred of consciousness, Xia Chen prepared to summon his Flying Nimbus; he had to escape! Otherwise, he would truly be done for today.
However, before he could take any action, he heard a sound of something falling to the ground. Xia Chen looked and saw that the Golden Lion had been lying on the ground at some point, and its aura was rapidly dissipating.
Seeing this, Xia Chen immediately abandoned his plan to run away. Instead, he gave a weak laugh.
"I won this battle!"
"That's right, kid, you win!"
Although Xia Chen was no match for Golden Lion, he was now seriously injured, while Golden Lion was about to die.
So, he won!
However, the Golden Lion's sudden roar in its final moments startled Xia Chen, almost causing him to run away again.
"Kid, go stand at the top of the world! You're the man who defeated me, the Golden Lion! Hahaha..."
The laughter grew weaker and weaker until it disappeared completely.
The legendary Golden Lion has come to an end!
After hearing these words, a smile appeared on Xia Chen's lips.
"I will!"
After saying that, Xia Chen could no longer hold on, his consciousness went blank, and he fainted.
--
After a period of time~
Some time had passed since the commotion subsided, and finally someone arrived at Xia Chen's location.
Luffy and his crew charged ahead, relentlessly searching for Xia Chen's whereabouts.
The other pirates who had followed couldn't help but swallow hard when they saw the mess before them.
"Is this really... something a human could do?"
What lay before them now was half of Jaya Island, almost completely destroyed, unrecognizable from its former state.
While the pirates were marveling at what they had just seen, Luffy and his crew found Xia Chen.
Xia Chen!
Luffy shouted loudly, then ran towards Xia Chen, who was lying in a pool of blood.