Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 279 Bane: My body craves the power of the soul!

Charlotte Linlin, standing on Zeus the thundercloud, said with a somewhat displeased expression, "You're really not cute. You used to call me 'Big Sister'."

"Shut up, you old hag!" Kaido said with a rather unpleasant expression.

Charlotte Linlin didn't bother arguing with Kaido, her expression hardening as she said, "This is a life-or-death struggle, don't be so naive, Kaido!"

On the other side, Bane landed on the ground, clutching his other arm, which was covered in blood and charred flesh, and grumbled, "Ouch, that really hurt!"

Despite being the most seriously injured, Bane showed no sign of stopping. His eyes flashed with a crazed light, and with a stomp of his foot, he immediately accelerated towards Charlotte Linlin.

Charlotte Linlin didn't waste any words. She grabbed Zeus from beneath her feet and unleashed a soul ripple, roaring, "Thunder Shock!!!"

A dazzling purple lightning bolt erupted and shot towards Bane's figure.

Bane made no attempt to dodge, raising his badly charred arm and shouting, "Black Annihilation!"

The seemingly powerful Thunderclap crashed into the black curtain erected by Bane and quickly disappeared.

Charlotte Linlin didn't hesitate. Just as she was about to make another move, she suddenly felt a sudden stop and was involuntarily flying rapidly toward Bane.

"Come here!!!" Bane's charred arms emanated a dark gravity, and his other hand clenched into an iron fist as he threw a punch at Charlotte Linlin, who was flying towards him.

Although she was pulled by some inexplicable gravitational force and unable to dodge, Charlotte Linlin's other movements were not restricted. She crossed her arms in front of her, intending to block Bane's attack.

The next second, Bane punched Charlotte Linlin in the arm.

The moment the dark element on his fist touched Charlotte Linlin's arm, Charlotte Linlin felt her soul power suddenly become clear, as if she could feel nothing at all.

Then, the powerful punch pierced her arm. Her flesh, skin, and bones, which should have been strengthened, lost the support of her soul power at this moment. Bane's angry attack was quite powerful, and even Charlotte Linlin's normally indestructible body couldn't withstand it.

The firm muscles in his arm collapsed under the intense pressure, and then the inner arm bone made a soft cracking sound, as if it had split open.

This made Charlotte Linlin's heart sink, but she couldn't deflect the force at all, because she was still being pulled towards Bane by the powerful attraction. As a result, she couldn't deflect any of the force from Bane's punch and was going to take the full hit!

Just as Charlotte Linlin's arm bone was about to break under the pressure, Kaido's figure, wielding his spiked club, arrived beside the two.

"King Kong Kabuto!!!"

The attack was extremely fast; the spiked club was thrown from a distance, and before it even reached Bane's body, the explosive force slammed into Bane, sending him flying.

Charlotte Linlin was thus freed from contact with Bane and instantly felt the surging soul power within her again. Her fractured arm bone was repaired by soul energy almost in the blink of an eye.

He tumbled through the air a few times before landing awkwardly, staggering a few steps. Bane rubbed his shoulder, looking somewhat agitated.

His physical abilities have improved significantly during this period, not only in terms of strength, but also in other aspects. He has almost completely surpassed Charlotte Linlin in her normal state. The density of his flesh and bones is quite terrifying, so his defense is amazing.

Kaido's attack did not cause him any obvious injury.

However, he could still sense that fighting two against one was a bit too presumptuous. To be precise, he hadn't expected Charlotte Linlin to be this strong. At this moment, Bane personally experienced that Charlotte Linlin was now even more valiant than Kaido, who was known as the strongest creature!

Feeling his arm rapidly healing, but still feeling it was a bit slow, Bane pulled out an syringe, inserted it into the charred flesh of his arm, and injected the liquid inside.

Dr. Genus's potion, combined with Bane's Dark-Dark Fruit, worked together to cause new shoots to sprout from the charred flesh on his arm. It looked somewhat eerie, but the recovery speed was much faster.

Kaido and Charlotte Linlin had no intention of giving Bane any time; the two attacked fiercely from the left and right.

This time, Bane didn't fight head-on. He dodged and parried from time to time. After several exchanges, neither Kaido nor Charlotte Linlin gained the upper hand over him.

In just a dozen breaths, as Bane once again distanced himself from the two men, he grinned, patted his arm, and the charred residue quickly fell off, revealing a perfectly healed arm.

"I feel much better," Bane said, stretching his arms.

As he said this, his gaze was fixed on Charlotte Linlin.

I don't know what happened.

Before landing on this island, his main target was Kaido, but the moment he fought Charlotte Linlin—or rather, the moment he touched Charlotte Linlin—he felt his body was 'hungry,' as if he were craving Charlotte Linlin.

That wasn't appetite. As a gourmet, Bane could certainly discern his own appetite. That feeling of hunger wasn't about wanting to eat Charlotte Linlin, nor did it stem from the instinctive malice of the Dark-Dark Fruit towards its users.

It was his body, his flesh and blood, that wanted to seize Charlotte Linlin's power!

The power of the soul!

"So, my body wants the power of the Soul-Soul Fruit, or perhaps my body has reached its limit and needs the power of the soul to make up for its shortcomings?" Bane pondered to himself.

He had been considering eating a new Devil Fruit to further enhance his power.

Dr. Genus had also dissected and studied Teach's corpse and gained some insights. Originally, Bane's plan was to eat a new Devil Fruit after completely resolving the problems in this world and going to the other world.

However, he has never really thought about what ability to choose next.

Now it seems he already has the answer.

Trusting his instincts, he sought to gain the power of the soul!

The Soul-Soul Fruit is the best choice!

"What kind of look is that?" Charlotte Linlin noticed Bane's malicious gaze and said angrily.

As a fellow "foodie," Charlotte Linlin could certainly sense the meaning in Bane's eyes—he saw her as delicious prey!

This made her very unhappy!

Bane didn't argue with Charlotte Linlin. Instead, he took a deep breath and looked at the two of them, saying, "As expected, it was too arrogant of me to think I could defeat you two by myself. You two are indeed the strongest on the high seas. I have to admit that even if we continue, I'm afraid I won't be able to win."

As he spoke, Bane took out a signal flare from his pocket, raised his hand and fired it into the air, where it exploded into a firework.

Seeing this, Sakazuki on the warship gleamed with a murderous glint in his eyes and said, "Looks like that guy's had his fill."

Although he couldn't see the fireworks, Yixiao knew the situation. He stroked his staff sword, Gambler's Line, and said, "As expected, even someone as strong as Bane couldn't win against the combined forces of Kaido and Charlotte Linlin."

Without exchanging many words, as soon as they finished speaking, Sakazuki and Ichisho leaped out of the warship and headed towards Butter Island.

On the island, Kaido and Charlotte Linlin naturally noticed the change in the situation. After exchanging a glance, they did not rush to attack Bane. Instead, they quickly closed the distance between them and stood together.

Bane made no attempt to stop them, standing calmly in place, waiting for the halftime break to end and for his two reinforcements to arrive.

Soon, Sakazuki and Issho arrived on either side of Bane. The three of them stood still, looking at Kaido and his companion opposite them.

"It seems the Grand Inspector isn't planning to get involved for the time being," Bane clicked his tongue.

"It's alright, the three of us working together are enough," Sakazuki said firmly.

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

Yixiao then asked, "What's the arrangement? Are we sticking to the plan, with you dealing with Kaido and the two of us handling Charlotte Linlin?"

"No!" Bane immediately declared, "I'll deal with Charlotte Linlin. You guys just hold off Kaido for me."

After a slight pause, Bane said with a confident smile, "Trust me, it won't take long."

Sakazuki didn't care at all about Bane's last-minute change of heart. Lava was already dripping from his hands, hissing as it fell to the ground. His expression was resolute as he said, "It doesn't matter, anyone will do!"

The moment he finished speaking, Sakazuki's body erupted with magma and sparks. From a great distance, he punched Kaido and Charlotte Linlin, growling, "Great Fire Breath!"

A massive, mountain-like fist of magma swept over Kaido and his companion.

A glint of light flashed in Charlotte Linlin's eyes, and she slashed forward with her Emperor's Sword, shouting, "Mother's Visit Cannon - Three Thousand Miles!"

The power of fire, lightning, and soul instantly erupted from the blade of the Emperor's Sword, transforming into a gigantic female phantom that crashed into Sakazuki's massive fire-breathing attack.

The moment the two forces collided, Sakazuki's massive fireball exploded first.

This is not because Sakazuki is weaker, but because his ultimate attack has a second stage!

As the giant volcano exploded in the air, it evolved into several magma bullets the size of warships. Its power was not diminished; on the contrary, because the essence was concentrated, it became even more ferocious, completely covering the area where Kaido and Charlotte Linlin were, like a saturation attack.

At the same moment, Sakazuki called out, "Smile!"

"Understood!" Issho drew his staff-sword, and an inexplicable gravity rapidly spread out, accelerating the falling magma bullets from the sky and further enhancing their power. At the same time, it quietly locked onto Kaido and Charlotte Linlin, applying an invisible gravity to them and suppressing their movements.

Feeling the immense gravity enveloping his movements, Kaido remained calm. His eyes darkened, and his body underwent a dramatic transformation. In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a colossal dragon, breaking free from Kaido's gravitational pull. Simultaneously, scorching flames erupted from his body as he roared, "Fire Dragon Torch!"

The enormous dragon's body spiraled up and crashed into the magma bomb that was falling from the sky, causing a series of explosions. Smoke and debris from the magma bomb obscured everyone's vision.

The moment Kaido and Charlotte Linlin's figures were completely obscured by the smoke and dust, Ikko slipped and, like a tiger unleashed from its cage, plunged directly into the dusty land.

Then, Bane turned around and saw that Sakazuki was nowhere to be seen, only a patch of still-burning lava remained.

Even so, Bane still did not take any action; he seemed to be waiting for something.

A few breaths later, a roar erupted from the dust, accompanied by a loud laugh: "Gravity Blade - Fierce Tiger!"

A tiger's roar echoed, and a surge of gravity swept everything away, dispersing the smoke and dust in the arena. At the same time, it pressed down on a figure, forcing him to step out.

The figure was none other than Charlotte Linlin.

Ignoring Kaido's current state, Bane grinned and said, "Women who want to become the Queen of the Seas, come and fight!!!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Bane suddenly exerted force with his feet, and his figure rushed towards Charlotte Linlin, who was standing on Zeus the Thundercloud and struggling to adjust her posture against the gravity blade.

In the blink of an eye, Bane had caught up with Charlotte Linlin, who had been swept away by the gravity blade. With a smug smile on his face, he swung a punch at Charlotte Linlin.

Caught off guard by the force of the impact, Charlotte Linlin, who had no time to dodge, also became enraged and made no attempt to defend herself, throwing a backhand punch as well.

Then, Bane punched Charlotte Linlin in the chin, nearly sending her flying off Zeus the thundercloud.

Then, Charlotte Linlin took the punch, a fist almost the same size as Bane's body, and covered Bane from all sides, slamming it into his body.

After a brief stalemate, both seemed unable to withstand the other's strength and were simultaneously knocked away.

(End of this chapter)