Chapter 494 - 333

Chapter 334: Asura Descends, One Sword Severs Worlds to Insta-Kill LucciOn the ruins in the center of the arena, the battle had entered its final and most tragic stage.Rob Lucci, the former genius of CP9 and now one of the commanders of CP0, was standing on the edge of the most frantic cliff of his life.The pure white suit on his body had long since turned into tattered rags soaked in blood and dust, barely hanging onto his scarred body.Blood constantly flowed from his temples and the corners of his mouth, staining his exposed chin and neck red.At his neck, a ring of black flame clouds was spinning and fluctuating wildly, flickering as if it would collapse and dissipate at any moment, yet also as if it were brewing an even more terrifying explosion.'Why... Why!?'His heart was roaring, and his reason was like a candle in the wind, flickering and about to be extinguished in the cold wind called 'failure'.During these three months, what had supported him through the ordeal was a bone-deep hatred for Zoro, Sanji, and the Straw Hat!He turned it into nourishment, perfectly aligning with the Leopard-Leopard Fruit, and successfully awakened it, gaining the long-coveted 'Power of God'!He thought that when they met again, he would crush them and return the past humiliation a hundredfold!He would crush Roronoa Zoro's bones inch by inch and listen to his dying wails!But... what was the reality?This green-haired swordsman hadn't even used his famous Three Sword Style!With just one sword, relying on that powerful Haoshoku and that increasingly heart-palpitating 'momentum' that seemed capable of cutting through everything, he had pushed him to such a desperate situation!The peak Rokushiki techniques he was so proud of were like clumsy juggling in front of the opponent's unadorned swordsmanship!The peerless physical strength and speed after awakening actually couldn't gain the slightest advantage in a frontal collision!"I don't believe it... I don't believe it!!!!"Lucci suddenly raised his head, his bloodshot eyes staring fixedly at the green-haired swordsman holding a sword in one hand, letting out a roar like a dying beast."I, Rob Lucci... am the strongest in CP history! I am the chosen one, destined to stand above all living beings!!!""How could I possibly lose to pirate scum like you! How could I!!!"Amidst the roar, the black flame cloud at his neck suddenly surged! The color became deeper and pitch-black, as if it could swallow even light! His body began to undergo even more drastic changes!"Life Return: Limit Burn!! Zoan Awakening: Leopard King Form—!!!"Through the 'Life Return' technique, he forcibly overdraws all his vitality and potential, even burning part of his soul, to push the awakened power to its theoretical limit!At this moment, he was a true killing machine, a 'Beast King' who had discarded all reason, leaving only the desire to destroy everything in front of him!The price? He no longer cared.As long as he could kill Roronoa Zoro, as long as he could prove he was the strong one, even if he burned out his life and turned to ashes the next moment, he was willing!"ROOOAAARRR—!!!"The roar of complete beastification vibrated through the fields!Lucci was on all fours, his terrifying muscular strength exploding against the ground, turning into a streak of black lightning that was almost impossible to catch with the naked eye. Moving in a zigzag trajectory that completely defied the laws of physics, he pounced towards Zoro, carrying a suffocating wind of blood and killing intent!His speed was more than twice as fast as before!His power had expanded to a chilling degree!Zoro's gaze finally became completely serious at this moment.Lucci's figure rapidly enlarged in his pupils, and the wind pressure brought by the sharp claws had already sliced his cheek.Just at the instant those pitch-black claws were about to touch Zoro's throat!!Zoro... closed his eyes.Time seemed to be infinitely stretched at this moment.All the surrounding noise disappeared.In the world, there was only him, his sword, and that pouncing black shadow burning with everything."Nine Sword Style: Asura..."He murmured softly, his voice as light as a dream.The next moment—BOOM!!!!A greenish-black Oni Aura, seemingly from the nine levels of purgatory, erupted from Zoro's body like a volcano that had been dormant for ten thousand years!The Oni Aura was so thick it almost materialized, twisting and condensing wildly behind him, instantly turning into a giant, hideous Asuraphantom over ten meters tall!The phantom roared silently, its nine arms each clutching a twisted and massive demonic blade composed entirely of condensed Oni Aura!Terrifying killing intent, resentment, and the will to cut through everything swept out like a tsunami!Those with weaker strength in the arena felt their souls being frozen and torn apart just by looking at this phantom!Zoro opened his eyes.Deep within those golden pupils, a spark of reddish-gold fire suddenly exploded! It turned into a burning ocean of lightning!A reddish-gold light gushed out from the arm holding the sword!That was highly condensed, materialized, and contained supreme majesty and domineering will—Advanced Armament Haki Infusion!Reddish-gold electric light wrapped around the wado ichimonji in his hand!It also dyed the six Oni Aura demonic blades in the hands of the Asura phantom behind him with a layer of flowing reddish-gold!The blade hummed, and space trembled!With Zoro as the center, the air within a radius of dozens of meters began to distort and collapse because it couldn't withstand this power, emitting a low-pitched hum of being overwhelmed!Lucci's incredibly fierce pounce was actually forcibly stalled for a moment in the face of this suddenly erupting, terrifying 'momentum' that mixed extreme Oni Aura and kingly Haki!It was just this moment.Zoro gripped the wado ichimonji with both hands.Behind him, the Asura phantom's six arms merged into one, its movements completely synchronized with his."Secret Technique..."He spoke, his voice calm, yet seemingly carrying the weight of judgment."...Advanced Armament Haki: One Sword Severs Worlds: Asura—"The sword was raised.The reddish-gold light was so intense that one couldn't look directly at it, as if he were holding not a sword, but a sun of destruction!A reddish-gold line, condensed to the extreme, flashed and vanished in the air.The black beast shadow began to silently annihilate from where that reddish-gold line passed.The claws covered in top-tier Armament Haki, annihilated.The incredibly tough awakened beast body, annihilated.The boiling, burning black flame clouds, annihilated."Uh...?"Lucci's last remaining shred of consciousness only had time to emit a short syllable.He maintained his pouncing posture, frozen in mid-air.The madness in his beastly pupils receded like a tide, leaving only endless emptiness, confusion, and a hint of... unbelievable relief?So... the gap... was this big?So what I chased, hated, and viewed as my lifelong goal... was from the beginning a precipice I could never climb?He lowered his head, wanting to look at the slightly cool spot on his chest.Then—Pshhh—!!!!Indescribable blood, like a fountain, shot out wildly from that tiny reddish-gold mark in the center of his body!"Cough... Gwah—!!"Blood mixed with fragments of internal organs gushed out from Lucci's mouth and nose!He lost all his strength and fell forward like a pile of mud.Zoro maintained his posture after swinging the sword and slowly sheathed it.The wado ichimonji returned to its scabbard, making a soft "clink" that was exceptionally clear in the dead silent arena.The sky-reaching reddish-gold Asura phantom behind him also slowly dissipated.He glanced at the fallen Lucci, his voice flat and emotionless:"Your 'Way' is too narrow.""So narrow... that it only fits hatred and your own shadow."After saying that, he gave a light kick to Lucci's side.Lucci's broken body was pushed by this force, sliding across the ground. It moved faster and faster, sliding straight across the cracked sand of the arena and disappearing into the darkness and chaos of the outside streets.Life or death, it's up to the heavens!!Only after doing all this did Zoro sway slightly, as if he had lost some strength, but he immediately stabilized himself.Continuous high-intensity combat, especially the final strike that fused the complete 'Advanced Armament Haki' with the Oni Aura secret technique, was also a huge drain on him.The arena fell into an unprecedented dead silence.Everyone's gaze was frozen on the green-haired swordsman standing there with his sword sheathed.The pupils under King's mask vibrated violently, staring fixedly at Zoro as if trying to see right through him."This level of Haoshoku... that kind of 'momentum' that cuts everything... this is definitely not power a normal Yonko Commander level could possess!""This has already touched the realm of an 'Emperor'! The combatant of the Straw Hat actually hides such terrifying strength?!"Katakuri's face under his scarf showed clear solemnity.His Observation Haki could briefly foresee the future, but at the moment Zoro struck, the future fragment he'saw' was a blank, or rather, a future destined to be cut!Sabo's hand holding Rebecca's tightened unconsciously for a moment.He had seen countless strong people, including his teacher Dragon and Four Emperors level combatants.But what Zoro showed with that strike just now was not just power, but a realm, an ultimate sublimation of fusing one's own will, Haki, and swordsmanship!'Luffy, your partner... has already grown to such a terrifying level?'Bartolomeo, this fanatical fan of the Straw Hat Pirates, was now completely speechless.He knelt on the ground, his hands tightly covering his mouth, fearing he would make a sound and ruin this holy and shocking scene.'Look! This is my idol! Senior Luffy's first mate!''One strike! Just one strike! He insta-killed that CP0 officer who looked so impressive!''So cool! So strong! He's strong to the point of breaking the rules!!!'Rebecca forgot to cry, her small mouth open, staring blankly at Zoro's back.Kid's face was terrifyingly gloomy, his left arm creaking, his knuckles turning white from the force.He had always seen Luffy as a goal he must surpass and other Supernovas as competitors.But at this moment, the overwhelming power Zorodisplayed gave him a sense of cold suffocation.This kind of gap... Eustass Kid will never acknowledge it!The dead silence continued.But this silence was soon broken by another, even grander'sound'...