Settsetse! The Pirate Nemesis

In contrast, inside the arena, the surrounding pirates, upon hearing Enel's taunts, showed signs of anger. Then, accompanied by a sudden gust of wind, a black steel blade sliced ​​through the air, aiming for Enel's neck from his blind spot.

Enel didn't even move his head, but slightly adjusted the angle of the golden staff in his hand, and then blocked the tip of the blade perfectly!

Observation Haki!

While Enel's Armament Haki, honed under Fujitora's tutelage, might not yet rival the true top fighters on the seas, his Observation Haki, due to his almost unbelievable talent, had reached a level that even Fujitora found astonishing—without opening his eyes, Enel could clearly materialize his surroundings in his mind using only Observation Haki, capturing even a fallen leaf or a gust of wind with perfect clarity!

With his Observation Haki greatly enhanced, coupled with the Rumble-Rumble Fruit's ability to receive radio waves, Enel's Observation Haki has now reached a level comparable to that of a fantasy character. He can detect the radio wave signals emitted by a computer to his body in an instant!

Just like now, after blocking the slash, Enel stretched out his finger and tapped the thunder drum behind him—accompanied by a flash of lightning and a thunderous roar, one thunder wolf after another sprang out of the thunder drum and, under Enel's control, charged towards the crowd that was besieging him.

"Hextech, the Wolves of Lightning!!"

With Enel's sinister grin, everyone finally saw that in the center of the Thunder Drum was a Hextech Crystal worth two billion, a priceless treasure. After targeted modifications, Enel's lightning could not only be stored through the Hextech Crystal, but could also be amplified and released through the specially modified Hextech Thunder Drum in Piltover!

Originally only one thousand volts, after being enhanced by Hextech Drum, it can reach a destructive force of nearly six thousand volts!

At the same time, he soared high into the air, his lower body transforming into a streak of lightning. One end of the golden staff in Enel's hand disintegrated in everyone's sight, transforming into a dazzling mechanical port—then, liquid plasma transformed into the shape of a spear. As Enel moved at high speed, wherever the high-voltage plasma passed, even the air was accompanied by a series of roars, leaving behind a foul odor of ionization!

They tried to resist, but even precious swords or heavy shields could only be shattered into fragments by this plasma spear, accompanied by a blazing white light.

High temperature, high pressure, and speed comparable to the Glitter Fruit!

The Rumble-Rumble Fruit, a terrifying power considered the pinnacle of Logia-type Devil Fruits, displayed overwhelming destructive power under the specialized training of Fujitora and Zephyr!

Even its only weakness—its reaction speed—has been compensated for by the Mind Network domain.

Confident in his own strength and knowing that Armstrong Castle wouldn't send weaklings to the competition and become a laughing stock, Marco in the first group simply stood aside dealing with the other opponents and didn't participate in the siege. Unlike those pirates who knew they were weaker than others, Marco knew he was strong enough to advance steadily, so he didn't need to risk provoking Armstrong Castle.

Even so, after witnessing this scene, Marco and the others still showed a solemn expression in their eyes—no matter what, in the upcoming matches, this madman named Enel would be a formidable opponent!

280 Trials

With a wild glint in his eyes, Enel unleashed overwhelming destructive power as he surveyed the crowd before him. His speed, strength, reaction time, and even defense were all at the pinnacle of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit among its kind.

But even more incomprehensible to the pirates was why Armou Castle could generate such terrifying revenue—although everyone knew Armou Castle was incredibly wealthy, even capable of offering a bounty of 60 billion—more than the combined bounties of all four Yonko crews. But now, knowing that Enel, a mid-level officer in Armou Castle who wasn't even as powerful as high-ranking officers like Fujitora or Zephyr, could generate such an astonishing ability to amass wealth…

I can't understand it.

It was visibly incomprehensible on the faces of both Whitebeard and Kaido. Especially Kaido; in terms of money alone, he should be the least lacking. Not only does he have his own team of biologists and Devil Fruit researchers constantly developing artificial Devil Fruits, but the annual sales of Seastone from Wano Country alone amount to an astronomical sum. However, in contrast, Kaido's castle doesn't openly sell anti-magic stones or Hextech crystals, so how does it generate such terrifying revenue?

In response, Robin simply stated, "The purchasing power generated by a stable, prosperous, and orderly society is far greater than that of a society where the lower classes are oppressed, chaotic, and can only thrive in a brutal, survival-of-the-fittest manner."

Hearing Robin's seemingly pointed words, the other pirates merely scoffed disdainfully. Kaido, in particular, had always maintained a high-pressure policy towards Wano Country, strictly forbidding anyone from going to sea. Especially in education, even now, the smear campaign against the old-fashioned nobles of Wano Country has never ceased—though considering Wano Country's own state, it seemed it wasn't much better to begin with.

The battle continued, but having learned from Enel's example, the subsequent participants, especially those from the Sea Emperors, abandoned their siege of the Arms City fighters. The reason, as mentioned before, was that they were certain they had enough ability to advance and didn't need to risk antagonizing the Arms City guys.

Even in the second match, this tacit understanding remained. Especially since Urouge's karmic retribution had generated sufficient destructive power—after absorbing the enemy's attack, a single punch, amplified by the karmic retribution, unleashed an earthquake-like catastrophe. However, in the third match, a new change occurred—it was the large signboard of Kaido's subordinates.

Although only eighteen years old, he relied on his overwhelming strength to defeat the previous generation's top star, ranking third and known as the Drought, a fish-man pirate.

With a bounty of 800 million, the user of the Ancient Zoan type Mammoth Fruit, Elephant-Elephant Fruit, is a Fish-Man of the Saddleback Grouper race. This allows him to breathe freely even underwater, though he would be rendered powerless and unable to move, requiring rescue. In the Fish-Man race's value system, Devil Fruits are considered inferior abilities because they deprive them of their underwater powers and Fish-Man Karate skills. However, for Jack the Drought, these are irrelevant. To Jack, Fish-Man Karate is outdated; only overwhelming power is the foundation of dominance!

Only two of the Beasts Pirates' top members participated in the competition—King the Wildfire and Jack the Drought. Plague, being forty-seven years old, was ineligible to join.

Jack glanced at the unassuming and seemingly dull-witted Redus, a hint of disdain involuntarily creeping into his eyes. However, immediately afterward, Redus turned his gaze to Jack the Drought beside him—though dull-witted, Redus possessed an extremely precise sense of presence, and his intuition for danger in battle was almost as sharp as Enel's.

To this, Drought Jack scoffed, "Gladiator? I heard you can't even kill people here? Are you all useless trash who grew up in sugar water?"

As Jack said, modern gladiatorial arenas have evolved to the point where killing opponents is generally prohibited—after all, most people prefer to see thrilling battles rather than brutal and cold-blooded carnage. This is especially true for children, whose experiences during adolescence significantly shape their character. Due to factors such as future development and income prospects, gladiatorial arenas now prohibit killing opponents. Of course, even so, accidental deaths still occur from time to time each year… This can be prohibited, but a complete ban is impossible. After all, in actual combat, there are simply too many variables.

Redus glanced blankly at Jack, paying him no heed. But on the high seas, such behavior garnered no praise—or perhaps, the world itself was simply blatant. So-called mercy was often seen as weakness and incompetence by these great pirates.

Seeing this, Jack smiled and put his arm around Redus. Just as he was about to say something, he suddenly noticed that Redus, who had previously seemed dull and uninteresting, had instantly become incredibly solemn.

Seeing this, and glancing at the tadpole-like tattoos on Redus's body—not even thinking about what might be causing the tattoos to be covered up—Jack couldn't help but laugh and say, "Hahaha, you're not a germaphobe, are you! You're such a spoiled brat, getting stained with blood in the ocean is a common occurrence for you!"

"Take your dirty hands off."

Redus simply stared blankly at Jack. Those empty eyes sent a shiver of numbness and lingering fear through Jack, but after a moment, a wave of shame and anger washed over him. He then gripped Redus's shoulder with disdain and said, "Watch your mouth before you speak! I'm not some soft-hearted fighter who holds back!!!"

Upon hearing Jack's words, not only Redus, but even King, another prominent figure in the Beast Pirates, showed a serious expression. However, King quickly realized what was happening and turned his gaze to the VIP viewing area at the highest point.

Jack himself isn't stupid. The only person in the Beasts Pirates who could make Jack act this way is Kaido. Admittedly, Sett possesses terrifying power, but anyone with eyes can guess that Sett's berserk power cannot be released or easily controlled at will.

Kaido is no pushover—especially since his team of scholars has repeatedly explained to him the immense value contained within the Hextech Crystal. Simply competing for the ranking rewards would be far too difficult, given that the other Emperors' pirate crews are not to be trifled with. So, let's see if we can just take a bite out of the Tyrant of Armstrong Castle!

Sensing Kaido's subtle message, Sett wasn't angry. On the contrary, when Whitebeard and the others looked at Sett, they saw an arrogant, flamboyant, and wild smile on his face.

"Is this how it should be! The first two rounds were so boring I almost peed myself!" Sett showed no anger at being provoked—in fact, for Sett, the so-called gladiatorial combat was a process of releasing his rage. The thought of someone suppressing their true nature in a place like this, painstakingly plotting and scheming, was enough to make Sett nauseous!

Seeing this, Sett picked up the microphone and said, "I'm in a good mood right now, so I'll add a new rule—the first person to challenge and defeat the Sett City fighter will receive an extra five Hextech Crystals and 100 grams of Anti-Magic Stone! Even if they lose, they'll get an extra 200 million Berries! The bounty for the winner will go to the second person in line, until someone defeats the Sett City fighter!!!"

Upon hearing Sett's words, Robin shook her head and sighed, feeling helpless at Sett's behavior of giving out rewards whenever he felt like it—while Kaido and the others were once again struck by Sett's extravagance and volatile personality.

Faced with provocation, they showed no anger whatsoever; instead, they seemed to crave even more chaos and frenzy…

Inside the arena, upon hearing Sett's words, Jack the Drought's eyes gleamed with wild joy—in that instant, the fighters of the City of the Arms were no longer simply participants, vying for a spot in the arena. It was a more blatant allure of money and fame—like the first kill of a world boss, it represented enormous profits!

With this thought in mind, Jack the Drought turned his murderous gaze toward Redus beside him—he had assumed that upon hearing his temptation increase, Redus would be filled with despair and rage. After all, to others, this was essentially equivalent to their leader throwing them into the air, even offering a bounty on their shoulders.

However, somewhat unexpectedly, neither Redus nor Enel and Urouge, who had already secured their spots in the next round, showed any surprise on their faces; in fact, they all wore expressions of expectation.

Clearly, this isn't the first time Sett has done this kind of thing in the arena—using bounties to drive challengers even crazier is a common tactic for Sett, or perhaps for Sett's City!

These words carried even greater weight in Redus's ears—and almost instantly, under everyone's gaze, Redus's eyes filled with tears. Not from sadness, but from an indescribable joy—even a morbid joy.

A deep emotion welled up from a face contorted with a smile, a face that was dull and hollow. Looking at Jack, Redd opened his arms.

"Ah...this is a trial!!!" His excitement was palpable.

"This is a trial sent down by God!!"

281. Praise

Upon hearing that his bounty had been increased, Redus showed no anger, panic, or despair at being betrayed. On the contrary, a sickly flush rose to his face.

This strange fervor, combined with his lifeless eyes—as dull as a dead fish, unmoving even by a fly landing on them—created an eerie contrast. Centered on Redus, an indescribable unease began to spread outwards. His body, covered in tadpole-like tattoos, twisted and contorted, each muscle seeming like a separate entity.

There wasn't much terror involved; Redus gave off an impression of being a product of chaos at that moment.

One could clearly sense Redus's almost fanatical faith in his words—as a user of the Devotion-Devotion Fruit, Redus's way of thinking had been irreversibly distorted, either because of the fruit or because of the Celestial Dragons' abuse. With so many anomalies combined, Redus now seemed more like a shell controlled by twisted instincts.

Looking at Redus, Whitebeard and the others couldn't help but turn their gazes to Sett beside him—they couldn't quite imagine what methods Sett had used to achieve such a deep level of brainwashing.

Sett was also helpless about this... He deeply resented being deified, but Redus was simply too unique. It wasn't just others who felt the same twisted feeling. As the object of worship, Sett felt the most awkward... And yet, Redus practically treated the Codex as his lifeblood, upholding it. This led to Redus rarely making major mistakes, but constantly committing minor ones. Incidents like being severely beaten for mistakenly mentioning Sett's name were commonplace.

As the referee, who was growing increasingly uncomfortable, gave the order, without the slightest pause, Redus's body suddenly bulged up, large chunks of muscle reflecting an eerie crimson red, thick veins like tree roots densely wrapped around his arms, and then, his thighs, as thick as logs, slammed into the ground, the powerful impact causing cracks to spread, their irregular shape resembling haphazardly sliced ​​blue pizza.

Under the impact of the reaction force, Redus, whose body was covered in scalding steam, turned into a blur. Before Jack could react, a heavy punch shattered the air and, accompanied by a rapid air explosion, struck Redus's broad abdomen.

"Well!!!"

Even with some preparation, Jack still couldn't help but let out a deep groan the instant he felt the impact—without the protection of bones, his soft abdomen could only absorb the impact through fat and muscle. His internal organs were instantly thrown into chaos; stomach acid churned, and an uncontrollable urge to vomit assaulted Jack's nerves.

But as someone who became the top member of the Emperor of the Sea Pirates at the age of eighteen, how could Jack be just an empty name? In the next moment, Jack forcibly suppressed his urge to vomit, and then raised the scythe-like blade in his hand high and slashed fiercely at Redus's body.

"I'll kill you!!!"

Sensing Jack's undisguised killing intent, Redus unexpectedly did not back down an inch. His entire upper body was visibly stained with a jet-black color that reflected a scarlet halo. Then, he stretched out his arms wrapped in gauntlets and, under everyone's gaze, steadily caught the two swords that were slashing down in a cross pattern!

Without the slightest thought of dodging, Redus's eyes were filled with a frenzied intensity—the Devotion Fruit allowed him to maintain a high level of concentration for extended periods. In this state of heightened focus, Redus's physical abilities and hormone levels would surge dramatically, much like Sett in his prime. In fact, even within Armor City, the fact that Redus was the closest to Sett in combat was common knowledge!

Alternatively, one of the abilities of the Devotion Fruit is that when the user learns the behavior of their "object of faith," they can enter the state more quickly, even to the point of complete imitation... However, there is a drawback: the development of this ability depends entirely on one's own faith. If one's faith is in a pacifist or a weak being, then one's own power level will not increase significantly... But that's the problem. Redus's faith wasn't even in Sett, but in that berserk beast that went berserk and completely lost its mind in the Holy Land of Mary Geoise!!!

Just like Jack's attack, if Redus had wanted to, he could have easily executed a much faster dodge and counterattack. However, Sett's berserk state was deeply ingrained in his mind—in terms of pure strength, Redus was definitely one of the most likely contenders for a top-three spot in the arena. But that's the problem. Once in that state, just like Sett, Redus wouldn't even consider dodging!

Redus, however, did not possess immortality comparable to Sett—in fact, even in terms of sheer strength, Redus was far from Sett's level. Just like now, sensing the threat, Jack the Drought's body swelled rapidly. In a mere few seconds, it grew from its original six-meter height to nearly eight meters. Simultaneously, thick, coarse brown mane sprouted from its body. Each hair, its fibers resembling rough hemp rope, was thick and coarse.

When Jack unleashes his Zoan-type Devil Fruit—in his half-beast form—not only is his strength greatly enhanced, but his agility is also completely unaffected!

Raising his head high, under everyone's gaze, Jack's head was also stained with a layer of Armament Haki, making it appear jet black. Then, like a hammer, he brought it crashing down onto the back of the crossed swords!

The immense pressure emanating from the heavy twin swords caused Redus's upper body to hunch slightly—but if that was all, it wouldn't be a problem for him!

Stimulated, his flesh and blood awakened once more. The tadpole-like tattoos, previously blurred by the influence of Armament Haki, began to bleed under the immense pressure. His previously exhausted body seemed to be infused with new vitality in that instant; before anyone could react, his hands lashed out violently. The moment his fingers closed, the once-hard machete shattered.

Driven by inertia, the broken twin blades slashed down vertically, but due to their length, they couldn't harm Redus's body in the slightest. At that moment, Redus's spine arched, his upper body leaned back, and his thick right arm was taut behind him, giving the impression of a bowstring ready to be released—under any other circumstances, Jack would have been able to react in time.

Unfortunately, in that brief moment, Jack was far too complacent—simply because he had struck Redus's body, he unleashed an unrestrained barrage of power. Now, with the blades shattering, Jack the Drought was utterly unable to control his descending twin swords!

He couldn't even forcefully dodge, because in that instant, the violent reaction force would directly twist and shatter his spine!

But just as Redus's devastating punch, capable of easily knocking Jack the Drought unconscious in the shockwave, was about to land on his head, a streak of fire accompanied by a flash of black light, and a dark figure streaked through the air. Sharp claws struck Redus's iron fist squarely. The trajectory was swerved, and the heavy blow landed on Jack the Drought's enormous, twisted tusks, a result of his half-beast transformation.

With a loud bang, the ivory shattered into countless flying fragments, and Jack the Drought himself was propelled by the impact to the edge of the arena.

He nearly fell and lost his chance, but luckily he regained his senses at the last moment and firmly inserted his palm into the crack in the ground, which barely brought his flying body to a stop.

Descending from the sky to participate in this competition alongside Jack the Drought, Flame Disaster Ember calmly glanced at Jack behind him, then at the bloody claw marks on Redus's arm, and coldly said, "You can't even control your own power... Watch out, brat. If there's a next time, I'll personally break your tusks and send you back to your hometown."

"Okay, okay, big brother!"

The once arrogant Jack showed no displeasure after hearing King's reprimand; instead, his face was filled with fear. Clearly, even among the three calamities, who are all members of the Beasts Pirates, there is a distinct hierarchy. At least, even as one of the calamities, Jack could only act like a subordinate when facing the other two, Flame and Plague.

Ignoring Jack's reply, Jhin stared intently at Redus beside him—who, despite being struck by Jhin's claws, showed no sign of pain. On the contrary, after feeling the sting, a sensual expression appeared on Redus's face. Then, his hands slashed from his abdomen down to his chest and finally to his face. Thick blood gushing from Jack's tattoos left a trail in the process, mirroring the path he had taken.

The face, which was originally just dull, became even more eerie with the addition of these scarlet patterns.

"This is a trial... a trial from the past." His eyes were filled with deathly stillness, and as he spoke, the claws on Redus's arm slowly healed. The same aura continued to spread, making even Enel, who was watching, feel nauseous.

"Only by overcoming one's immature past can one grow... Praise them!! Praise them!!!!"

Suddenly, Redus let out a fierce roar, raising his head towards Sett at the highest point, as if he wanted to tear his vocal cords apart: "Praise my lord!!!"

282 · Glory Duel

With a frenzied roar, Redus looked at Jhin in front of him, his eyes revealing a ferocious killing intent—at that moment, the referees on the side were on high alert, their eyes showing a solemn expression.

One of the main reasons why Redus's ranking is only in the top ten is that once Redus gets into a state of focus, his goal is to kill the enemy. Based on this, whether it is preventing the opponent from killing Redus or Redus killing the opponent, these are the most important things for the referees to pay attention to!

Sensing Redus's hostility, the face beneath Flame Calamity Jhin's mask furrowed slightly—although Redus had just displayed formidable destructive power, that alone wasn't enough to justify his provocation. At least, Jhin was confident he wouldn't be defeated by Redus before him.

As a user of the Dragon-Dragon Fruit - Ancient Zoan - Pteranodon form, King's ability to fly alone is something Redus could not possibly attempt to exploit.

Just as Jack was about to stand up, a chilling killing intent flashed by in the distance. Accompanied by the slight hum of a vibrating bowstring, a sharp arrow left a dazzling silver trail in the air. There was no aura, not even much sound. It wasn't until it was less than a meter behind Redd that Redd barely sensed its sharpness.

This wasn't a one-on-one arena, but a battlefield where over 120 people were mixed together! Just moments before, because Redus and Jack the Drought were entangled, the archers hadn't been able to aim and fire. But now, seizing that fleeting opening, the arrows shot through the air. The archers were confident that even if Redus reacted, at this distance, his body couldn't keep up with his reaction speed; at most, the arrows would miss vital organs!

Unfortunately, even in this chaotic world, there will always be people who choose to follow their own sense of justice and suppress their own greed.

With a whooshing sound, a deep blue figure flashed out from the side. Its massive body displayed unimaginable agility; its broad hands clenched in mid-air, like a baseball thrower, one leg supporting its body while the other was raised high in a split. Instantaneous and violent, the fish-man's webbed hands compressed the air within reach into a ball in its palm.