The Great Voyage Begins with the Celestial Dragons

But then Gion's actions caused his expression to change slightly.

Gion, surprisingly, drew her sword under these circumstances and slashed straight at his chest with the Kinpira sword in hand.

If he turns to defend, his single sword will be no match for Gion, and the end result will be that both sides suffer minor injuries.

If he continues to chop, Gion will be injured much more severely than he is.

He could only gamble, betting that Gion's recovery ability was strong, but not to the point that such a serious injury could be cured.

Having figured this out in an instant, Kozuki Oden did not hesitate at all. His twin swords whistled down, completely abandoning any defense.

laugh! ! !

The two figures passed each other.

Even with Armament Haki applied to his chest, Kozuki Oden's chest was as fragile as paper under Gion's attack, easily torn open, leaving a deep wound from which blood gushed out like a fountain.

Upon seeing the blood spurting from his chest, Kozuki Oden's expression darkened.

The blood wasn't being absorbed, and he hoped it was because the battle was so intense that it couldn't be absorbed, rather than because the other side didn't need his blood anymore.

The latter could have far more terrifying consequences than the former...

On the other side, Gion also had a cross-shaped wound on her body, which was much more terrifying than Kozuki Oden's wound in both length and depth.

Both of them used Armament Haki to defend themselves, but compared to a swordsman's attack, the defensive bonus of Armament Haki is almost negligible.

Even the blood-stained robes constructed by Gion using her abilities could not withstand the slashes from Kozuki Oden, which were imbued with Conqueror's Haki.

Despite her injuries, Gion remained unfazed, even sporting a smile.

Seeing the two sides fighting to this extent, Luther, who had been watching from Jiuli the whole time, calmly gave his conclusion:

"It's over, Gion has won!"

"Yes, that woman's regenerative ability is almost unstoppable."

Sakazuki, with a cigar in his mouth, made the same assessment.

It is precisely because I understand the Vampire Fruit that I realize where the true power of this fruit lies.

The Vampire Fruit doesn't have any elemental abilities, nor does it provide any boost to physique or strength.

If it only provides a slight boost in speed and Observation Haki, it doesn't deserve to be called a top-tier Mythical Zoan-type Devil Fruit.

Its most powerful feature is its ability to absorb the blood of others during battle to accelerate the recovery of injuries and stamina.

This is still because Gion's fruit cannot awaken and can only be absorbed through contact with blood via Kinpira.

Once the fruit awakens, Gion can absorb and utilize any blood within a certain range.

Combined with the strength of a great swordsman, in battles of the same level, as long as the opponent bleeds faster than he does, there is no opponent he cannot defeat.

However, Sakazuki, as the owner of the Magma-Magma Fruit, is not worried at all.

If Gion is the counter to all strong close-combat fighters, then his Magma-Magma Fruit is also the counter to Gion.

Natural-type abilities prevent Gion from absorbing blood, and the high temperature of magma also prevents Gion from hiding blood packs on her body.

Even without Gion's regenerative abilities, Sakazuki is still confident of defeating his opponent.

Chapter 92 The Swordsman's Perseverance

Nozomi, wilderness.

Kozuki Oden's hand trembled slightly as he gripped the sword due to the wound on his chest.

At this moment, he was somewhat afraid to look at Gion's injuries.

Compared to his own injuries, Gion's injuries were undoubtedly more severe.

However, if the opponent can quickly recover half of their injuries, then he will be at a huge disadvantage.

Ultimately, however, there are some things we still have to face.

Kozuki Oden took a deep breath and looked up. When he saw the injuries on Gion's body, he gave a bitter smile.

"This ability is really a bit unfair..."

At this moment, he couldn't help but wonder if he should have eaten the Bird-Bird Fruit, Mythical Zoan type, Phoenix form, when he was with the Whitebeard Pirates.

Both fruits possess extremely strong regenerative abilities. If he had eaten that fruit instead of giving it to that brat from back then, the outcome might have been different.

But this thought only flashed through his mind for a moment before being rejected by Kozuki Oden.

He may be a bit careless about details in his daily life, but he is never someone who regrets things or can't accept defeat.

Whether it's the fruit or the swordsmanship that's lost.

These are all part of one's own strength; being one move behind means being just a little bit off.

Kozuki Oden stood quietly in place, holding his twin swords and gazing at Gion.

He watched as Gion's wounds healed at a visible speed, returning to full health in just a few dozen breaths.

Where are your limits?

Seeing this, Kozuki Oden couldn't help but ask the question.

“My limit... I don’t know, but it’s clear that your knife doesn’t reach my limit.”

Blood-red robes rose up from Gion's body once more, enveloping her once smooth skin.

At the same time, she completely stopped concealing her abilities and entered the half-beast form of the Vampire Fruit. With sharp fangs, mysterious facial markings, and perfectly placed bat wings, she resembled a succubus emerging from hell, possessing a unique charm amidst her eeriness.

She flung the golden sword in her hand, and a layer of blood mist wrapped around it, making it look like a demonic blade.

After completing the transformation, she slowly raised her head and said in a calm voice:

"I was once attacked by a Conqueror's Haki attack from another top swordsman. He struck me so hard that I was unable to fight anymore, and it took me a long time to recover."

When the Red Earl struck her with that blade, she lost almost all her ability to resist; she even had difficulty moving her fingers.

This is partly due to her becoming stronger, but even more so because Kozuki Oden wasn't strong enough.

If the Red Countess's attack strength was 1500, and her strongest attack at this moment could reach 800, then Kozuki Oden's sword attack, which was entangled in Conqueror's Haki, was only 1000.

While it's not bad, it's still far from the very top tier.

"Turns out I wasn't strong enough after all, hahaha!"

Knowing that Gion has its limits, Kozuki Oden let out a carefree laugh and nodded in deep agreement.

He wasn't an ignorant person; he could roughly estimate that the person who had fought Gion before was probably of the level of Roger or Rayleigh.

He is indeed much stronger than when he first went to sea.

Even now, he dares not say he can compare to Roger or Rayleigh; in fact, it is precisely because of this understanding that he knows he is far from being a match for them.

If his and Gion's strength is roughly at the early Admiral level, then Rayleigh, the vice-captain of the Pirate King, is roughly at the high Admiral level, and Roger is at the peak of the Admiral level.

"Again!"

Although he knew he was likely to fail, Kozuki Oden had no intention of surrendering.

He slowly raised the two swords in his hands and charged towards Gion once again.

Neither swordsmen nor samurai have the right to surrender if they are not strong enough!

Seeing Kozuki Oden rushing towards them, Gion, wielding the Kinpira sword, engaged him in battle once more.

Compared to before, her knife work remained steady and fast.

However, Kozuki Oden's sword moved much slower.

Faced with such a Kozuki Oden, Gion abandoned its greatest advantage: speed.

She simply covered herself with blood-stained clothes and Armament Haki, and mercilessly slashed at Kozuki Oden with each strike.

At this moment, Kozuki Oden seemed to understand something as well. He laughed twice and almost gave up dodging, slashing at Gion with his sword.

One cut, two cuts...

Wounds appeared on both of their bodies.

Gion's original clothes were already damaged, and she was wrapped in a blood-stained robe made of congealed blood. Combined with her half-beast form as a vampire mythical beast, she looked like a succubus from hell, both eerie and alluring.

"Gion-neechan is really ruthless when she kills..."

Robin, who was watching the battle, swallowed hard, feeling somewhat reluctant to watch the fight in the distance.

Although Gion can recover from the injuries caused by Kozuki Oden very quickly, the pain he inflicted was very real.

Having abandoned the advantage of speed, Gion may suffer even greater damage than Kozuki Oden.

Despite the brutal fighting, Gion maintained a smile throughout, a sight that terrified Robin.

"A meaningless contest."

Sakazuki, far away in Kyuri, offered his assessment of the battle.

If it were him, with Kozuki Oden injured, he would have slowly worn down his opponent to death much faster, instead of using this kind of trade-offs.

Physical injuries do not affect Gion, but repeated injuries will eventually lead to mental exhaustion.

"No, it's different. Do you remember the Red Earl?"

Luther, however, sat up straight and watched Gion, who was engaged in fierce fighting, with some appreciation.

"The Red Earl? I see."

Upon hearing the name, Sakazuki nodded in realization.

He was also a participant in the operation to capture the Red Earl.

What has always frustrated the Red Earl is undoubtedly his own inability to defeat Roger and his companions head-on.

Meanwhile, Gion, who had a training path almost identical to that of the Red Earl, was facing a swordsman of the same level who followed the same path as Roger.

Compared to the Red Earl, who could not win without speed, Gion had many more ways to win.

The difference between the two is only one Mythical Zoan fruit.

"Gion, she has always been a persistent swordswoman."

Luther smiled slightly and revealed Gion's thoughts.