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Chapter 26: Flame Dance Dual Sword Style! Jealous Silver Axe
Ever since Kaido and Lotte joined the ship,
Charlotte Linlin had paid close attention to them.
Among this batch of new recruits, only these two caught her eye. The rest, even if they grew stronger, would only serve as cannon fodder on this ship.
Initially, Charlotte Linlin had wanted to recruit Lotte.
But Golden Lion Shiki beat her to it. Later, Rocks' own interest made her temporarily shelve the idea.
It seemed even Rocks couldn't sit still when it came to a genius like Lotte.
With the captain himself blocking the way,
Recruiting Lotte into her division would be extremely difficult.
In that case, why not settle for second best?
Kaido's talent was actually no less than the cadres on this ship—it had simply been overshadowed by Lotte's recent brilliance.
This was undoubtedly a perfect opportunity to pull him in.
Charlotte Linlin was scheming when she suddenly heard gasps from the surrounding pirates. She snapped back and refocused on the training ground.
Neptune's strike missed and he didn't pause.
Instead, he charged at Lotte again without hesitation.
His beard fluttering and eyes glaring, Neptune swung his trident down fiercely.
At the same time,
He clenched his other fist, veins bulging as he thrust it forward.
"Fish-Man Karate—Four Thousand Tile True Punch!"
Boom!
The heavy punch, carrying tremendous force, came down alongside the sharp trident.
Lotte naturally didn't stand idly by.
He took a deep breath.
"Hoo—"
As Sun Breathing activated, Lotte's entire aura shifted dramatically.
Neptune's pupils contracted.
He sensed an extreme danger from the seemingly youthful man before him.
Something had changed in that instant!
Crackle—!
Lotte inhaled deeply.
In that moment, his right foot stepped forward, both hands gripping the sword hilts tightly.
Conqueror's Haki erupted like black-red lightning, and his Sun Breathing-enhanced body surged forward at astonishing speed.
"Sun Breathing First Form—Flame Dance Slash!"
In that instant,
The system voice rang out in his mind once more.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host has successfully comprehended Sun Breathing Sword Form!] [Upon detection—the current breathing sword form aligns with Flying Slash Swordsmanship. Fusion in progress.] [Fusion complete. Flying Slash Swordsmanship has advanced to Flame Dance Dual Sword Style.]
If Lotte had previously only imitated Golden Lion Shiki's swordsmanship superficially,
Then with the inheritance of Sun Breathing, the perfected proficiency in Flying Slash, and his system-enhanced terrifying sword talent,
He had fused them into an entirely new sword style.
Boom!
Flames blazed along the blades.
Unlike the previous golden slashes,
The swords carried bright yellow flames mixed with searing white fire. The dual blades transformed into curving flame-wrapped slashes that swept outward!
Clang!
In a flash,
The trident collided violently with the blades.
The tremendous force, combined with burning flames, caused Neptune's expression to change dramatically.
Bang!
His figure was sent flying back several meters before barely stabilizing.
Nearby, Golden Lion Shiki stared wide-eyed in disbelief.
"This is impossible?!"
"How could this kid reach this level?!"
Shiki's astonished voice immediately drew everyone's attention.
His face was full of incredulity.
To others, Lotte's attack might just seem impressive,
But to Shiki—who stood just one step away from great swordsman—
He clearly recognized the shadow of his own Flying Slash Swordsmanship in it!
But how had Lotte managed to evolve Flying Slash to this degree in such a short time?!
Even he couldn't do that!
At this moment,
Lotte unexpectedly chose not to press the advantage.
The flame-wrapped wooden swords in his hands suddenly snapped and fell to the ground, turning to ash.
Lotte showed a helpless expression.
"Looks like I really need better swords."
Neptune grinned broadly at the sight.
"Hohohoho! Kid, looks like luck wasn't on your side this time."
"I won't let you get away with it so easily now."
He had thought he would lose outright, but an opportunity had arisen.
Tree Demon Lotte truly lived up to his 500 million bounty—even in a short time, he'd pushed him this far. But without those dual swords now,
He had a real chance to win!
Lotte raised an eyebrow.
"Sorry, but I've already checkmated you."
With that,
He snapped his fingers lightly.
Neptune was still confused when
Countless brown vines suddenly erupted from the ground beneath him, wrapping around him at lightning speed.
Wood Release—Thorn Kill Technique.
Before Neptune could react,
He found himself tightly bound like a cocoon by the incredibly sturdy branches.
Only then did he realize
Why Marine Headquarters had given Lotte the title of Tree Demon.
Because Lotte's true strength wasn't the seemingly powerful swordsmanship—it was this mysterious, unpredictable Devil Fruit ability!
Neptune showed a helpless, bitter smile.
"Looks like I lost. The new generation of pirates is truly terrifying."
"This ability alone is unprecedented—no wonder the World Government fears you so much."
Neptune conceded wholeheartedly.
He had never imagined such a genius existed in this world.
"Just some tricks."
Lotte smiled as he released the Wood Release upon seeing the surrender.
Though Neptune was physically strong,
His mastery of two-color Haki was still too immature.
That's why Lotte had caught him off guard so easily.
Rocks watched the scene quietly, admiration flashing in his eyes.
Lotte's current power was already quite formidable within the entire crew.
Truly worthy of the kid he had high hopes for.
With the fight over,
The surrounding pirates were thoroughly entertained.
The grand banquet continued with even more excitement.
Lotte, Whitebeard, and Neptune toasted and chatted. The two veterans' insights were quite useful to Lotte, the transmigrator.
After a night of revelry,
The next day,
The Rocks Pirates set off again.
Lotte and Whitebeard also departed for the first half of the Grand Line.
But as they left,
Silver Axe's gaze followed them—filled with intense unwillingness and jealousy.
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