Sailing: I was falsely accused of watching Nami bathe, but I'm blind.

The opponent's defenses were too strong, and their stamina seemed to be more abundant than mine.

You must find the opponent's weakness as soon as possible, or create an opportunity to win with a single blow!

He began to use Observation Haki more carefully, not only to predict the opponent's attacks, but also to sense the energy flow and structural weaknesses inside the opponent's body.

While Zoan-type Devil Fruit users possess strong defenses, they are not without weaknesses.

In a fierce exchange, Mr. X2911 made a mistake, luring him into launching a full-force attack.

Just as those massive claws covered in thick keratin were about to strike his chest, Kai twisted his body at an incredible angle, narrowly avoiding a fatal blow. At the same time, the "Tranquility" cane knife in his hand, like a venomous snake, precisely stabbed into the joint between Mr. X's arm and shoulder!

That area is where the stratum corneum is relatively thin, and it is also a key node for the transmission of force!

puff!

This time, the blade didn't just leave a white mark; it successfully pierced through! Although not deep, it was enough to damage the joint structure!

"Ah!" Mr. X let out a painful groan, and his right arm movement visibly faltered!

This is the opportunity! A cold glint flashed in Kai's eyes (and heart)! He didn't draw his sword, but instead poured all his strength and will, even the still unstable Armament Haki within him, into the hilt of the sword, and then pressed down hard!

Click!

A sickening cracking sound of bones breaking rang out! Mr. X's entire right arm had been forcibly ripped off his shoulder by Kai!

The intense pain caused Mr. X to let out a heart-wrenching scream, and his body staggered backward due to loss of balance.

Kai pressed his advantage relentlessly! Like a leech clinging to a bone, he followed closely, his cane-knife flashing coldly once more, this time targeting his opponent's relatively vulnerable neck!

However, just as the blade was about to touch the target's skin, a powerful sense of crisis suddenly enveloped Kai! He sensed an even more violent and dangerous aura erupting from Mr. X's body!

A Zoan-type Devil Fruit user awakening?! Or is it some kind of trump card, a desperate, last-ditch effort?!

Kai didn't have time to think it through; almost instinctively, he abandoned the attack and retreated!

Sure enough, the moment he stepped back, Mr. X's remaining left arm suddenly swelled and deformed, the keratin layer covering it became even thicker and more ferocious, and he slammed it hard into the ground in a self-destructive manner!

Boom!

A deafening roar! The entire ground trembled violently! Countless sand and stones shot into the sky like fountains, forming a massive sandstorm barrier that instantly engulfed Mr. X's figure and also hindered Kai's senses!

At the same time, a powerful shockwave swept in, accompanied by a cloud of sand and dust!

Kai immediately covered his head with his arms, while simultaneously raising his senses to the limit, alert to any possible attack from any direction.

The sandstorm gradually dissipated.

Kai sensed that Mr. X's aura had become unusually weak, but it hadn't disappeared. Instead, it was... fleeing rapidly towards the entrance of an underground passage deeper into the ruins!

This guy actually created chaos in this way and then took the opportunity to escape!

"Don't even think about escaping!" Kai shouted, immediately following the faint scent! He absolutely couldn't let this prey, worth 75 million Berries, slip through his fingers!

The chase begins again.

This time, it was in a narrower, darker, and more dangerous underground passage.

After a thrilling chase and a final, deadly battle, Kai finally succeeded in defeating the cunning and powerful Baroque Works senior agent, Mr. X.

The battle was exceptionally fierce.

In the narrow underground passage, Kai's sensory advantage still exists, but his space for dodging is greatly limited.

Despite losing an arm and suffering severe injuries, Mr. X unleashed a frenzied and savage frenzy, like a cornered beast fighting for its life.

Using his familiarity with the underground environment, he constantly set traps, launched sneak attacks, and even went so far as to cause small-scale collapses in an attempt to bury Kai inside.

Kai also got really angry.

He no longer held back, pushing his Observation Haki, physical skills, and swordsmanship to their limits.

At a crucial moment, he even managed to cover the "Tranquility" staff with his still-unskilled Armament Haki. Although it could only be maintained for a few seconds, the powerful destructive force that burst forth in that instant finally shattered Mr. X's last defense!

When Kai finally struck Mr. X hard on the back of the head with the hilt of his "Tranquility" cane knife, knocking him completely unconscious, he himself was almost exhausted and collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

His body was covered with wounds of all sizes.

Some were torn apart by sharp claws, some were injured by falling rocks, and some had muscle strains caused by forcibly activating their unskilled Armament Haki... Blood almost soaked through his clothes, and intense pain kept coming like waves.

The cost was indeed considerable.

But looking at (and sensing) the once arrogant but now unconscious senior agent at his feet, Kai felt an indescribable sense of satisfaction and...reassurance.

He did it! Relying on his own strength, he successfully hunted down a formidable enemy with a bounty of 75 million Berries! This not only means a huge bounty that will allow him to live comfortably for a long time, but more importantly, it is the best proof of the results of his secluded training! His strength has indeed reached a new level!

Kai didn't treat Mr. X immediately. Instead, she forced herself to check her injuries and used the medicine and bandages she carried with her to give them basic treatment.

Then, he began to search Mr. X carefully.

He found a special metal badge engraved with the logo of the Baroque Works, which should be an important token to prove his identity.

He also unexpectedly discovered an encrypted booklet that seemed to contain intelligence about the Baroque Works' operations within Alabasta, including the locations of some outposts, personnel lists, and even records of secret contacts with certain kingdom officials!

Chapter 56: You accuse me of spying? Today I'll do it openly and honestly! And I'll involve the Navy too!

This is an absolute delight! The value of this intelligence is probably far greater than the bounty of 75 million Berries!

Kai carefully put away the badges and booklets.

As for Mr. X himself, Kai did not kill him, but instead bound him tightly with ropes.

He needs to use this prisoner to collect the bounty.

After doing all this, Kai dragged his badly injured body and his unconscious prey away from this abandoned ruin filled with death and conspiracy.

Over the next few days, Kai found an extremely secluded place (perhaps some forgotten ancient ruin deep in the desert, or simply a dry cave) and began to focus on recovering from his injuries.

The combat intensity of the high-bounty targets far exceeded his expectations.

This injury is more serious than any of the previous ones.

He had almost exhausted all his medicine and it took him several days to barely regain his basic mobility.

During his recovery, he also began to learn about the earth-shattering events that had recently occurred in the Kingdom of Alabasta through various channels (mainly the loose intelligence network he had previously established, and news he occasionally "eavesdropped" on by sneaking into nearby towns).

He heard the story of Princess Vivi infiltrating Baroque Works to expose Crocodile's conspiracy, and how she eventually joined forces with a group of "strange pirates" to rise up in rebellion.

He heard about the fierce battle that had broken out in the capital, Albana, where the royal army, the rebels, the Baroque Works, and the pirates were all fighting each other, turning the entire city upside down.

He also heard that, in the end, it was that young captain wearing a straw hat, whom he had deliberately avoided, who defeated the powerful Shichibukai Crocodile in an almost unbelievable way, thus ending the huge conspiracy that swept the country and saving the entire Alabasta Kingdom!

When Kai heard this news, his feelings were extremely complicated.

On the one hand, he was naturally pleased to see Crocodile, the treacherous and cunning Shichibukai who treated human life like dirt, defeated.

This indirectly confirms that his actions in hunting down Baroque Works agents were on the side of "justice".

On the other hand, he felt an indescribable awkwardness and resistance towards Luffy and his crew, who once again saved a country in that reckless, turbulent, and even "nonsense" way.

He had to admit that Luffy's pure determination and drive to give everything for his friends and promises did indeed have an amazing infectiousness and the power to change the world.

This power even stirred a subtle, almost imperceptible sense of admiration within him.

But at the same time, he also realized more clearly that the "freedom" and "chaos" represented by the Straw Hat crew were precisely what he was now trying to distance himself from and distance himself from.

Wherever they went, they were always accompanied by great turmoil and destruction. Even if the final outcome was good, the process was full of uncertainty and great risks.

This is completely different from the more cautious, goal-oriented, and control-focused style of doing things that he is pursuing now.

"Perhaps... we were destined to be on different paths from the very beginning."

"Kay thought to herself, and the ripples in her heart caused by the 'brush past' seemed to have calmed down a bit.

He became even more determined in his chosen path—to stay away from them and forge his own unique path.

However, Kai did not know that even if he deliberately avoided it, the threads of fate would sometimes reconnect him with his past in unexpected ways, and even...weave new and more complicated misunderstandings and rumors.

Although Kai deliberately kept a low profile during his operations in Alabasta, the major event of hunting down Baroque Works' senior agent, Mr. X, could not be completely concealed.

Especially against the backdrop of Crocodile's downfall and the destruction of Baroque Works, Kai's existence and achievements were quickly noticed by some interested individuals and began to circulate in Alabasta's underworld and surrounding intelligence circles.

Because Kai's actions occurred around the same time Crocodile was defeated, some people who were unaware of the facts began to connect the two events.

Some speculate that this mysterious "blind hunter, Zen" might be a secret weapon sent by a hidden powerful force (such as the Revolutionary Army? Or an underground organization hostile to Crocodile?) specifically tasked with secretly eliminating key members of Baroque Works?

Some have even bolder speculations that the Straw Hat crew's victory over Crocodile wasn't entirely due to the Straw Hats. The mysterious "Quiet Mind" might have played a crucial, unseen role in the defeat. (After all, the Straw Hat crew looks too young and acts too recklessly, making it hard for many to believe they could defeat a Shichibukai on their own.)

These speculations, though absurd, have to some extent enhanced Kai's mystique and "strength assessment."

At the same time, negative rumors about Kai himself began to spread quietly.

His efficient, ruthless, and cold-blooded hunting style, characterized by a lack of close relationships and a vicious approach (although he was not bloodthirsty, the results of his battles were often tragic), became synonymous with "cold-blooded and heartless" and "money-grubbing" in the eyes of some.

Some say that he would stop at nothing to get the bounty, and would even steal the prey of his fellow hunters (the truth about the last castle incident may have been distorted and spread).

Some say that he has a withdrawn and eccentric personality, never communicates with others, and may be a psychopathic killer.

Some people even dug up his "stain" of being abandoned by the Straw Hat crew (although the details are unclear, some people may know that he was once a member of the Straw Hat crew and was expelled), and fabricated stories that he was driven away because he betrayed his comrades and committed unforgivable evil deeds, and that his current status as a cold-blooded bounty hunter is a manifestation of his true nature.

Some of these negative rumors stemmed from jealousy, some from misunderstanding, and some were deliberately spread by individuals with ulterior motives (such as the remnants of the pirates he defeated, or people associated with Baroque Works).

These rumors and speculations, good and bad, true and false, began to sprout and spread quietly in every corner of the Grand Line, like seeds.

These labels, like invisible tags, were attached to "the blind hunter Jingxin," making his image more complex, more mysterious, and more... controversial.

Kai himself may have heard about it, but he still doesn't care.

He was already used to being misunderstood and talked about.