"Hiss!"
The serpent finally sensed the danger and whipped its head around, its vertical pupils reflecting Rhode's airborne figure holding the sword.
Instantly alarmed, its scales stood on end like a bristling cat. Just as it tried to retreat, Rhode swung his sword with a calm command.
"Slash!!"
Nothing could describe the sharpness of this strike!
The slash seemed capable of splitting the heavens and earth in two. To all who witnessed it, only the image of a thunder god's sword illuminating the night sky remained.
The thunder sword left a trail of afterimages as it cleaved through the air, slicing cleanly through the serpent's head.
The serpent, having grown through countless molts, had a body as thick as a barrel and scales harder than steel. Yet, under the thunder god's sword, it was as fragile as paper, parting like tofu under a blade.
"Screeeech!"
The serpent let out a blood-curdling shriek.
Its head slid off as the sword passed through, and a fountain of blood gushed from its body, the wound charred black.
"Boom!"
The head and the serpent's massive, ten-meter-long body crashed to the ground, shaking the forest and kicking up a cloud of dust.
This serpent, which had lain dormant for decades and had sent Captain Nia scrambling in panic upon its emergence, had been slain by Rhode in a single strike.
"…"
Nia stood below, completely stunned. Who was saving whom here? And how was Rhode this strong?
Wasn't his Power Level only 249?
And what was up with that insane Thunder Power?
Was Rhode a Rumble-Rumble Fruit user? A flood of questions overwhelmed her, making her question reality. Her iron staff clattered to the ground, but she didn't even notice, her face still frozen in disbelief, unable to process what she had just witnessed.
Yet the serpent's severed body, still exuding an intimidating aura, served as a constant reminder of the earth-shattering feat Rhode had just accomplished.
Even Koala and the others in the monitoring room were left speechless.
"That Thunder Power… it's ridiculously strong," Koala muttered to herself.
Could Sword Intent really reach such a level? She wasn't sure and couldn't help glancing at Hatchan.
"I'm not sure either."The fish-man Hatchan shook his head slightly. Sword Intent was an advanced concept, already very close to the legendary realm of a swordmaster. Even as a reserve instructor for the Revolutionary Army, he only had a limited understanding of it.
As for the other Revolutionary Army soldiers, they all showed a hint of awe.
Earlier, when Rhode had slain the black ape with a single sword strike, they had merely marveled at his talent and potential.
But now, his ability to kill such a massive serpent with one strike proved that this young man already possessed strength on par with theirs.
"Only sixteen years old!" The group fell silent, feeling somewhat disheartened. Even Sabo hadn't been this strong at sixteen.
Meanwhile, Rhode, having exhausted his strength, slowly descended from the sky. He remained motionless, his expression calm, as if he had done something utterly insignificant.
"Such a show-off," Nia muttered under her breath, annoyed by Rhode's composed demeanor.
"Using Thunder Power at full strength combined with swordsmanship—this is roughly the result, huh?"
Rhode's eyes flickered slightly as he assessed the power of that strike.
The destructive force was undoubtedly immense.
After all, both swordsmanship and thunder were formidable forces on their own. Combined, they naturally produced a result greater than the sum of their parts.
"Still, this is only effective against large, sluggish beasts. Against human opponents of the same level, landing a hit would be much harder."
The strong in the pirate world not only had vitality akin to cockroaches and immense strength but also absurdly fast speeds. In battle, ordinary people couldn't even track their movements.
Take Nia's use of the Navy Six Styles' Shave, for example—that terrifying speed was something Rhode couldn't match yet.
"Besides, stamina consumption is also an issue."
That ultimate strike had drained a significant portion of Rhode's stamina. In a real fight, such limited endurance would be far from enough.
"I need to intensify my lightning tempering. Even if I can't refine my internal organs directly yet, strengthening my muscles and bones will still improve them indirectly."
As he pondered his future plans, Rhode slowly approached the serpent's massive corpse.
"Hmm, it's too big. Grilling it will be a challenge."
Nia, who had just walked over, immediately developed a few dark lines on her delicate forehead upon hearing Rhode's remark. She snorted and turned to leave.
"Hey, not staying to eat together?"
"I'm not—"
Before she could finish the word "hungry," a faint growling sound suddenly escaped her stomach.
"..."
Nia's face flushed red with embarrassment. She wished she could vanish into the ground right then and there.
Clearly, her stomach wasn't happy with her answer and had no qualms about betraying her.
In truth, Nia had been running for her life, frequently using the Six Powers, which had drained her stamina considerably. On top of that, she hadn't found much food during the day while searching for the black ape, so it was only natural she was hungry now.
"Let's eat together. I can't finish this alone anyway."
Rhode chuckled. He had observed her actions earlier—her character wasn't bad, and she seemed like someone worth befriending.
Nia really wanted to leave, but the serpent, which had likely lived for centuries, was undoubtedly a delicious dinner. Her feet refused to move, so she stood there, pretending to admire the scenery.
"Hey, it's pitch black. What scenery are you looking at? Come help start the fire and grill this thing," Rhode called out, mercilessly exposing her act.
Soon.The flames rose high as Nia watched Rhode conjure up a large amount of seasonings like salt and honey as if performing magic, leaving her utterly stunned and deeply impressed.
"The way of a foodie—I still have a long way to go," she thought.
The giant serpent, its age unknown, had surprisingly tender and delicious meat. After careful roasting, the taste was unbelievably good, earning endless praise from the two of them.
But the serpent's body was simply too massive.
Even though both Rhode and Nia could be considered big eaters, they were reaching their limits, leaving quite a bit uneaten.
"Wasting such delicacies would truly be a sin," Rhode said with a pained expression, his longing for a spatial ring flaring up once again.
Just then, a crisp, playful voice suddenly came from behind.
"Mind sharing some with me?"
The two turned to see Koala standing on a tree branch, smiling brightly.
Moonlight cascaded like water, accentuating Koala's already exquisite features, making her appear even more ethereal—so much so that even Nia felt a twinge of envy.
Rhode, too, couldn't help but marvel. "Girls from the 2D world really are as beautiful as paintings."
However, in the very next second, that pristine, otherworldly aura underwent a sudden transformation.
Like an immortal descending to the mortal realm—well, lured down by delicious food—she instantly turned into a voracious eater, consuming even more than Rhode and Nia combined.
"The ancients didn't lie—women and petty men are indeed the hardest to please," Rhode thought, his mind echoing this sentiment.