The Giant didn't immediately attack more ferociously. Instead, it raised its head and let out a deafening roar as its body underwent a shocking transformation. Its originally towering 400-meter frame rapidly compressed. Energy surged wildly within its body, and its aura intensified.
After a brief compression, the Giant's body shrank by half, now standing at 200 meters tall, its terrifying presence erupting.
Ye Yu could clearly sense that although the Giant had halved in size, the power it exuded was even stronger than before. Its once massive and somewhat cumbersome body now appeared more compact and refined, with every muscle contour more pronounced. It looked stronger, faster, and more resilient.
This sent shockwaves through the world.
"That wasn't even the Giant's strongest form earlier?"
"There's no way Ye Yu can pass now."
"Yeah, whether he dies or not is uncertain, but he definitely won't succeed."
…
At this moment, the people in the safe zone were the most worried. If Ye Yu failed, they were doomed. Moreover, they genuinely feared for him—after all, he was saving them. Without his involvement, they would have been finished long ago.
"Without Ye Yu, we'd have no chance of resisting."
"Right? And now it has an even stronger form."
"Ye Yu knows Moon Walk—why doesn't he just fly high into the sky where the Giant can't reach him and wait it out? Even if time running out doesn't count as passing, at least he'd survive."
"Yeah, maintaining Moon Walk in the air for three hours is tough, but it's still easier than facing the Giant."
…
They all wanted Ye Yu to avoid the fight by taking to the skies, but he chose to press on. It was a challenge, and deep down, he still hoped to succeed. Though it was undeniably difficult, he had to try.
Meanwhile, Jin Mo and the others were aware of Ye Yu's mastery of Moon Walk—he could easily ascend beyond the Giant's reach. But seeing that Ye Yu didn't take that route, they relaxed.
Jin Mo sneered coldly, "Since he's choosing to fight, Giant, don't give him a chance to escape into the sky. Seize this opportunity and finish him quickly—break his legs first if you have to."
After compressing its body, the Giant launched a frenzied barrage of punches at Ye Yu. Countless massive fists filled nearly every inch of space around him, making evasion nearly impossible.
Ye Yu slashed out one Slash after another, the attacks clashing relentlessly against the dense storm of fists.
While striking, Ye Yu swiftly dodged, slipping through the gaps like a needle threading a seam. Many fists grazed past him, their powerful wind pressure stinging slightly.
For anyone else, even the wind pressure alone would have torn them apart.
The Slashes collided with the fists repeatedly, but the Giant's hands remained unharmed in the short term—its defenses had indeed grown stronger.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Ye Yu landed as the relentless fists pounded the ground, rapidly carving out deep craters. The earth upheaved, debris flew, and countless fissures spiderwebbed outward.
The Giant snorted, "Stop dodging, you damn rat."
Frustrated, the Giant realized that even after compressing its body for greater speed, landing a hit was still difficult. Even when it seemed close, Ye Yu's Slashes would block the way. It was baffled—how could such straightforward slashes possess enough power to rival its fists?
The Giant's stamina was also draining, and it frowned.
"Fine, I'll destroy the city first."
The Giant felt a tinge of humiliation—it was still on the shore, not a single step closer to the city.
Seeing the Giant completely ignoring him and moving towards the city, Ye Yu's voice turned icy. "Annoyed? Then I'll make sure you can't even get close."
The Giant laughed heartily. "Hahaha, how ridiculous! You think you can stop me from approaching the city? Impossible. If I want to get close, you can't stop me."
The Giant prepared to charge, but what Ye Yu did next shook the world.
Ye Yu began removing the small iron plates strapped to his body, sighing lightly. "I've been carrying these all along. Now it's time to take them off. Even I don't have full confidence in getting through this, so I must go all out."
The Giant noticed but scoffed. "What's the point of taking off these little iron plates? As if each one weighs anything significant..."
Yet, in the next moment, the Giant's words abruptly cut off.
Ye Yu removed over a dozen small iron plates and dropped them to the ground. Instead of falling slowly, they instantly slammed into the earth, triggering deafening explosions.
BOOM!!
CRACK—CRACK—CRACK...
The ground caved in, fissures rapidly spreading as the entire earth trembled. It was as if not small iron plates but massive boulders weighing thousands of pounds had crashed down.
The Giant stood frozen in shock.
The world fell silent. Everyone gaped in disbelief, especially those in the safe zone.
"My god, how heavy are those things?"
"I heard the Dominant Feather Pirate Crew has someone who can increase an object's weight."
"No wonder each of those small plates is so heavy."
"This is insane. He's been moving around with all that weight? You'd never tell."
"The Giant has a stronger form, but Ye Yu is now serious too."
...
Their eyes gleamed with excitement.
Meanwhile, Jin Mo and the others frowned, shaken and unbalanced. They exchanged uneasy glances, all wondering the same thing: Had Ye Yu been carrying this weight during their previous battle? If so, then...
The thought was too bitter to acknowledge.
"There's no way he was weighted back then."
"Right, facing so many prodigies, he must've taken them off beforehand."
"Yeah, his speed was already insanely fast."
...
They comforted themselves with these words—but the truth was, Ye Yu had indeed been weighted during that fight.
The Giant snorted. "A slight surprise, but at best, it just makes you faster—turning you from a mouse to an electric mouse. You still can't stop me."
Having gathered momentum, the Giant prepared to charge.
WHOOSH!
But in the next instant, Ye Yu's blinding speed carried him directly in front of the Giant.
The Giant's eyes widened. "So fast!"
Not only was he fast—Ye Yu was already gripping Black Blade Night with both hands, swinging it down, Conqueror's Haki coiling around the blade.
The Giant knew he had to halt his charge and counter. Ye Yu's movement speed was terrifying, but his attack speed was even faster. This strike felt overwhelmingly powerful.
Jin Mo and the others watched as dark-red lightning enveloped the blade, instantly recognizing the technique—the very one that had filled them with dread before.
Ye Yu's low shout confirmed their fears as Black Blade Night slashed horizontally.
"Divine Departure!"
The Giant clenched his right fist, gathering strength before launching a devastating punch. The two attacks collided mid-air, still some distance apart.
BANG!
BOOM!
A shockwave erupted, shaking the surrounding atmosphere. Had it exploded on the ground, the aftermath would have obliterated everything within a kilometer.
Divine Departure clashed with the terrifying force of the Giant's fist, erupting in a shockwave of energy. The two forces remained locked in a stalemate until, with a deafening roar, the Giant's expression twisted in shock—his fist had felt pain. Amidst the explosive sound, his right hand was severed uncontrollably, flung backward to the right. His body staggered three steps back, and though it was only three steps, the Giant found himself at the very edge where land met sea, nearly stepping into the water.
Far from advancing toward the city, he had been forced to retreat, plunging the world into silence once more.
Meanwhile, Ye Yu glanced at the time. Though the battle had been described in detail, only a minute and a half had passed. There were still thirty seconds left before the phantom version of himself from the photograph would appear.
Anticipation stirred in Ye Yu's heart: Thirty seconds more, then I'll use that combo move.
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