"Hey, no, no, no, I'm not Aladdin's lamp. I don't have the power to grant wishes. If you're the one who can grant wishes, then you've come to the wrong person!"
Xia Chen directly refused.
Are you kidding me? Is he the kind of person who would grant wishes to a dying person?
Generally speaking, these so-called dying wishes are the most troublesome. They either involve finding someone for the deceased or passing on something.
In short, none of them were simple matters, and he naturally wouldn't agree to such troublesome things!
As for whether Whitebeard will die with regrets? Well, let him die with regrets. Who dies without any regrets?
Xia Chen's string of words left Whitebeard speechless, unable to say anything more.
" Xia Chen, Pops wants is to fight you one last time before he dies. That shouldn't be too difficult for you, right?" Jozu asked Xia Chen thoughtfully.
"That's obviously... huh? What did you say? Fight me?"
Xia Chen subconsciously answered halfway through when he suddenly realized something, and the expression on his face gradually became puzzled.
"Yeah, what else did you think it was?" Jozu continued to ask, but Xia Chen's gaze wasn't on him, but on the Whitebeard.
"It's not about helping you find someone, nor is it about passing on any kind of legacy?"
" Xia Chen, what are you talking about? Why would I need your help?" the Whitebeard asked, puzzled.
"Oh, it's nothing! Haha! Since you want to fight me, that's easy, you should have just said so!" Xia Chen said with a laugh.
Upon hearing this, the Whitebeard couldn't help but feel a little resentful. Did you even give me a chance to speak, given how you acted just now?
After successfully changing the subject, Xia Chen looked at the Whitebeard and asked:
"Are you sure you want to fight me? With your current physical condition? You might just be dead after the fight!"
"I was already at the end of my rope, what was the point of living? I've lived long enough in this world, and now I have nothing left to cherish!"
"The only thing I want right now is not to die peacefully. Even if I have to die, I want to die in battle!"
Xia Chen:...
Everyone else seeks a peaceful death, but you, old man, think peace is a bad thing?
But thinking about it, it makes sense Whitebeard was a fiercely competitive man throughout his life, so it's understandable that he chose a different path in death than others!
"Since you've made up your mind, then let's go. Although you're far from your peak now, being able to fight the former World's Strongest Man will fulfill one of my wishes!"
"Perhaps... this might not be the worst time!"
"Um?"
--
Some time later, on a deserted island, Whitebeard and Xia Chen stood facing each other, several dozen meters apart.
In the distance were the Whitebeard Pirates watching the battle, including Marco and Ace.
At this moment, they were all staring intently at Xia Chen and Whitebeard. They knew this would be their Pops's last battle, so they didn't want to miss a single second.
Xia Chen looked at the imposing Whitebeard not far away, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.
Although he had never witnessed Whitebeard's peak strength, the aura currently emanating from Whitebeard, even if not at its peak, was certainly not far off.
This was Whitebeard's peak condition for a short period of time, achieved at the cost of his life force!
All of this was achieved thanks to Marco's Devil Fruit ability; even Xia Chen didn't know Marco possessed this ability before.
Since it was never shown in the original work, its effect is actually similar to Ivankov's Tension Hormone, only stronger.
" Xia Chen, I've traded a day of my life for these last ten minutes. I hope you won't let me down!"
The Whitebeard looked at Xia Chen and laughed loudly, unleashing his Conqueror's Haki as if it were free.
In response, Xia Chen was not going to back down. He smiled slightly and released a Conqueror's Haki that was even more powerful than Whitebeard's.
The two Conqueror's Haki intertwined and collided in the air, producing countless black and red Inazuma.
Seeing this, Xia Chen's lips curled up slightly. With his current strength, even if Whitebeard were at his peak, he wouldn't take him seriously at all.
If he had met the current Whitebeard six months ago under normal circumstances, he might have been able to have a serious time playing with him, but now...
Xia Chen could only say, "Why don't you play with the kids for a bit?"
But Xia Chen still felt a little excited, not for any other reason than the sentiment!
Fighting Whitebeard, even though Whitebeard's strength is far inferior to his now, is still a peak duel between men against a character he couldn't get along with in his childhood in his previous life!
He hadn't mentioned this to Whitebeard before because, firstly, Whitebeard's strength had declined significantly, and secondly, his injuries were so bad that he would soon be going to see Roger, at which point Ace would probably kill him!
As for now, it's exactly what he wanted!
Thinking of this, Xia Chen's mind raced, and the familiar iron rod reappeared in his hand. He then swung it fiercely towards the Whitebeard, launching the first attack.
A massive, dark red blade of energy hurtled toward Whitebeard.
"Good timing!"
Seeing the approaching air blade, Whitebeard roared and raised his Murakumogiri to meet it.
"Boom!"
The instant the Murakumogiri and the spirit blade made contact, an incredibly powerful shockwave erupted from between them, spreading outwards in concentric circles like a halo.
When Ace and the others, who were some distance away, felt the shockwave, their expressions turned solemn.
The aftershocks alone were this powerful; if they were in the center of the battlefield, they would probably be wiped out in a single exchange!
While Ace and the others were still in shock, Whitebeard suddenly exerted his strength, shattering the black and red energy blade in front of him, which then dissipated into the air.
Then, Murakumogiri himself up on the ground, his chest rising and falling slightly. Looking at the dozens of meters of tracks he had plowed in front of him, the Whitebeard's eyes were extremely solemn. His gaze was fixed on Xia Chen, who was slowly walking towards him not far away.
"Your attack was far more powerful than Roger's Divine Departure!"
"Of course, my hardware configuration is better than his, so it's normal for my attack to be stronger than his," Xia Chen replied calmly.
Xia Chen continued walking forward, stopping about ten meters away from the Whitebeard. He slowly raised the stick in his hand towards the Whitebeard and said:
"You, who were once called the Strongest Man, can't possibly have this much strength? If that's all, then I'm a little disappointed!"
"Gurararara! I've really been underestimated!" The Whitebeard laughed loudly, only stopping after a long while. Then, without saying another word, he charged towards Xia Chen, wielding the Murakumogiri.
" Xia Chen, you little brat, I'm Whitebeard!! Show me some respect!"