"Bellamy, come out and die!"
Onigumo leaped from the warship, his eight swords swirling around him like a cyclone.
Eight-Sword Style: Tornado Storm!
He unleashed a wide-ranging slash without any hesitation. Knowing full well that it might harm bystanders, but desperate to seize the initiative, Onigumo attacked without a second thought. The storm of sword energy instantly swept across the entire port district, threatening to level the area.
Just then, a familiar voice suddenly sounded from ahead.
"You're the one who's going to die."
A small vacuum sphere suddenly leaped out of the void and slammed into the center of the storm. In an instant, countless streams of sword energy shot out in all directions, as if trying to riddle the very air with holes.
"Bellamy!"
Upon hearing that voice, Onigumo's killing intent could no longer be suppressed.
"Onigumo."
Bellamy, looking like a harmless teenager, leisurely strolled out from around a corner. The moment Onigumo saw Bellamy's current appearance, his pupils contracted sharply.
"What is this!"
Why had Bellamy suddenly become younger? Onigumo subconsciously sensed that something was wrong.
"You... you truly cannot be left unchecked!"
His battle-honed instincts allowed Onigumo to keenly sense the meaning behind this new appearance.
Bellamy had gotten stronger again.
"Then come and kill me!" Bellamy retorted. "What's all this talk about being left unchecked? Who do you think you are?"
He couldn't help but feel the urge to let out a roaring laugh. Onigumo, with a sharp clang of his swords, charged forward without hesitation.
"I'll grant your wish."
Eight-Sword Style: Purgatory Demon Slash!
An incomparably cold aura quietly rose from the blades. Vaguely, Bellamy felt as if he could truly hear the howls of purgatory demons. This murderous swordsman seemed to have actually tapped into some kind of malevolent power.
A dark purple slash cut through the void, vowing to slice everything before it in two.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
A fist, completely clad in Armament Haki, suddenly appeared in the air, stopping the sword slash dead in its tracks.
"Not strong enough, Onigumo!"
Bellamy forcibly pressed against the blade of Heavenly Feather, actually pushing it back, bit by bit. His strength was clearly far greater than in their last encounter. Caught off guard, Onigumo was forced back half a step.
"You bastard!"
To be at a disadvantage in the initial exchange left Onigumo both shocked and enraged. What was wrong with this mad dog? How had he grown this much in just a few months?
"Hah!" Onigumo furiously shook his sword, forcing Bellamy back. Only then did he fully realize that in this battle, he could no longer hold anything back.
Demonic Aura: All-Encompassing!
His eight swords fanned out behind him like a peacock's tail. Streams of dark purple, malevolent energy emanated from his body, as if trying to transform the surroundings into the depths of hell itself. The entire essence of Onigumo's swordsmanship was contained within this demonic domain.
Sword Aura is a special ability that swordsmen naturally grasp after reaching a certain stage of training. For example, Mihawk's greenish-black sword aura, or Zoro's dark purple sword aura. Onigumo's sword aura looked very similar to Zoro's, yet it was fundamentally different. His blades were steeped in a sense of cruelty and ruthlessness, a special aura that only those who had been cut by him could truly discern.
Bellamy was extremely sensitive to this aura. "That last cut you gave me really hurt," he said. But was he really planning to use the same move again? If there were no new tricks, he would be very disappointed.
Onigumo was clearly unaware of Bellamy's arrogant thoughts. His aura had already locked onto all of Bellamy's vital points. In an instant, countless sword phantoms merged into a single flash of light as Onigumo slowly sheathed his blade.
Demonic Aura Iai: Flowing Light Soul-Devouring Slash!
A swordsman's slash is not necessarily more powerful the flashier it is. This slash from Onigumo cut through the air like a stream of light. In that instant, the slash, condensed to its absolute limit, seemed as if it would shatter the very void.
But how could Bellamy be caught unprepared by the same move twice? During his days of meditation, Bellamy had run through countless simulations of how to counter this exact move.
As Onigumo's sword once again hurtled towards his vital points, Bellamy fiercely protected his head but left an opening at his chest, adopting a luring stance, drawing the sword in.
Onigumo subconsciously realized something was wrong, but the most exquisite part of the Flowing Light Soul-Devouring Slash was its supersonic speed. By the time the thought had just formed in his mind, the sword had already pierced Bellamy's chest.
"Gyahahahaha!"
The next second, Onigumo heard Bellamy's roaring laughter.
Not good! Heavenly Feather!
Onigumo finally realized what Bellamy was trying to do. But by then, it was too late to withdraw his sword. Half of the blade of Heavenly Feather was firmly stuck inside Bellamy's body. No matter how hard Onigumo pulled, he couldn't move it an inch.
"You lunatic!"
He had never encountered such a crazed opponent. Bellamy's madness left him in a state of constant shock and fury.
"Die!"
With the famous sword Heavenly Feather stuck in Bellamy's body, Onigumo unhesitatingly slashed down with his other swords. But Bellamy's Immortal Body had a defense even more terrifying than his previous Iron Body. The frenzied slashes of the swords only managed to create small cuts on his skin.
Just then, Bellamy's Armament Haki erupted, his entire right arm turning jet black.
"Break for me!"
An all-out punch slammed fiercely into the blade of Heavenly Feather. In this world, apart from a few extremely rare Black Blades, no weapon could withstand such a blow.
CRACK.
Heavenly Feather snapped in two. Half of the blade remained inside Bellamy's body, while the other half was held tightly in Onigumo's hand.
"Bellamy, was this the clever trick you prepared?" Onigumo looked at the broken sword in his hand, his tone filled with a cold, grim finality.
Bellamy casually slapped his chest. The broken half of the blade shot out, and a torrent of blood gushed forth.
"You know," Bellamy said, "my greatest weapon right now... is my body."
Before the words had even faded, the gaping hole in his chest began to heal at a rapid pace. In the span of a single breath, the massive wound had vanished without a trace.
Looking at the perfectly smooth skin on Bellamy's chest, it was as if he had never been injured at all. Even more terrifying, despite consuming such a vast amount of life force, Bellamy's aura hadn't weakened in the slightest.
"How is this possible!"
This scene could no longer be described as merely miraculous. Onigumo stared in disbelief at the monster before him. At that moment, he suddenly realized that killing Bellamy was no longer something he could accomplish.