"Kid, you're getting too arrogant!" The gigantic rhino's eyes glowed crimson as it suddenly erupted with terrifying speed, charging towards Longinus, destroying the ground in its path.
Facing Alex's savage charge, Longinus calmly leaped into the air, landing perfectly on the rhino's back.
Alex was momentarily stunned, then a wave of immense humiliation surged through him. He frantically bucked and jumped, trying to throw Longinus off his back. But Longinus's legs were as steady as a rock, as if rooted to his back, rendering all of Alex's struggles futile.
Seizing a momentary opening in Alex's chaotic rage, Longinus punched towards Alex's vulnerable eyes.
"Moo!"
The rhino cried out in pain, no longer daring to maintain its beast form. In an instant, it transformed into a half-human, half-beast state, resembling a grotesque minotaur with horns growing from its nose.
Longinus, seizing the opportunity, landed on the ground. Before Alex could adapt to the changes brought by his altered physique, Longinus's long leg swept like a whip, striking Alex's waist and sending him flying hundreds of meters, crashing through countless trees along the way before finally stopping.
"Gulp!" The invading pirates swallowed hard, a chill rising in their hearts. Could it be that even their captain, after transforming, was no match for that kid?
"Ahhh!" Alex's eyes were bloodshot, and white mist billowed from his nostrils, indicating he was enraged to the extreme.
Seeing Alex charge again, Longinus frowned slightly. The Animal-type Devil Fruit provided too much of a boost to a person in the early stages. This Alex had fully acquired the thick-skinned and tough-fleshed talent of a giant rhino, which was why he had successfully evaded numerous navy captures.
Even in his half-beast state, Alex was over three meters tall, his muscles coiled like cast iron. When he charged, he resembled a granite golem trampling the earth.
But in front of Longinus, this berserk minotaur was as powerless as a paper toy. First, Longinus kicked his knee to pieces, then a massive force struck his waist, forcing him to kneel on one leg, roaring in anger.
Although the Devil Fruit had endowed Alex with physical talent, it clearly didn't enhance his agility much, allowing Longinus to toy with him effortlessly.
However, Alex fought to the death, refusing to retreat. He knew his advantage was enduring blows. Even if it meant taking a hundred injuries for one opportunity, it was worth it. Moreover, when it came to stamina and attrition, he never believed that the kid opposite him, an Animal-type Devil Fruit user, could outlast him.
Alex crossed his arms, tightly shielding his face, and a fierce glint appeared in his shadowed eyes. As Longinus kicked his chest, he forcefully swallowed the metallic taste of blood in his throat and, with his large, fan-like hands, grabbed Longinus.
"Kid, I've got you!" Alex gripped Longinus's fists, as if half-kneeling on the ground, engaging him in a wrestling match.
"No, I've got you!" Longinus slowly broke free, like continuously pushing down an opponent's hand during an arm wrestle.
"Your strength… how could it be…" Alex's mouth hung open, as if using exaggerated acting to conceal his inner shock.
"Whoosh!" A silver bullet grazed Longinus's face.
"Not bad for a sniper. Do you have any other trump cards?" As if he had eyes in the back of his head, when the sniper bullet, trailing a narrow plume of smoke, rapidly approached the back of his head, Longinus suddenly tilted his head, dodging the fatal blow.
"This is impossible, absolutely impossible! How did you do that?" Alex's eyes bulged, no longer able to hide his horror.
If the previous shock was to lower Longinus's guard and create an opportunity for the sniper, then Alex now truly couldn't believe his eyes. How could anyone predict danger from behind? That sniper bullet had come from an absolute blind spot!
And Quincy, who was nominally a swordsman but actually a sniper, was even more incredulous. How could anyone, while fighting the captain, still be distracted enough to guard against a sneak attack? Moreover, his sniper rifle was a high-grade item from the North Blue, and the bullets were supposed to be completely silenced!
As if to vent the fear in his heart, Quincy, under immense pressure, fired all the bullets in his gun without stopping.
However.
"Interrupting my fight… means you must be prepared to die!" Longinus easily avoided all the bullets, even tilting his head to glance with his peripheral vision.
As if stared at by the gaze of the Grim Reaper, Quincy felt all the blood in his body freeze. Under the gaze of all the pirates and townsfolk, he dropped his sniper rifle and fled in a panic.
Alex was so angry he nearly burst a lung. His first mate actually didn't trust him that much. And this kid was still in his grasp… Wait, how did he seem to be flying through the air?
"First Mate, look out!"
"Mr. Quincy, beware of projectiles!"
Hearing the exclamations of his pirate subordinates, Quincy couldn't help but look back, then his pupils contracted violently. This was the most despicable and vicious projectile in the world—the Alex Missile!
Thrown by Longinus at extreme speed, Alex, under the influence of mass and velocity, generated enormous kinetic energy, appearing to everyone like a solid cannonball.
"No… don't… ah…"
Boom!
The Alex Missile perfectly hit its target, directly crushing Quincy into a flattened meat patty, making everyone present swallow in horror.
Alex, getting up, saw Quincy's gruesome death and, driven by fear, also felt the urge to retreat.
"Kid, you're good. I'll let you off the hook this time!" Alex said, turning to retreat towards the coast.
"After killing so many people, you think you can just leave after a threat?" A gentle voice sounded from behind, making Alex's body stiffen.
"Kid, don't push your luck. Your strength is good, but you're still a bit short of killing me. At worst, I'll fight you for a day and a night. Then we'll see who dies first?" The anger in Alex's heart, in turn, suppressed his fear.
"Eliminating evil completely—that's a truth I understood a long time ago!"
Longinus charged again. Although he still suppressed Alex as before, Alex's repeated falls and subsequent recoveries actually gave him confidence.
"Idiot, I told you long ago, you can't kill me!" Alex sneered, threatening, "You just wait. When your stamina runs out, I'll kill those pigs one by one in front of you, and then I'll end your life!"
Longinus's figure suddenly stopped, and he said quietly, "Haven't you noticed the change in your surroundings?"
For some reason, hearing Longinus's deathly quiet voice, Alex felt a chill rise in his heart, as if the gentle and easygoing kid from before had suddenly become someone else, like a demon crawling out of hell.
Composing himself, Alex looked around and found that their battlefield had, unknowingly, shifted to the seaside.
"So this is your confidence? Although the sea is indeed a Devil Fruit user's bane, I'm not so foolish as to be forced into the sea by you." Believing he had seen through his enemy's intentions, Alex relaxed instead.
Seeing Longinus charge without a word, Alex skillfully protected his eyes, clearly preparing to push his "tanking" strategy to the extreme.
Suddenly, a sharp pain struck. Alex couldn't help but look down, horrified to find a long sword piercing his chest.
"Idiot, what I meant was, once we're here… no one will discover my secret!" Longinus's voice echoed softly in Alex's ear.
"You… why…" Alex couldn't understand why that kid had suddenly produced a sword out of thin air, or why the giant rhino skin, which even bullets couldn't penetrate, had been pierced as easily as paper.
However, he could no longer ask these questions. His body crashed down, blood seeping into the patterns, and his soul was also devoured, the sword blade shimmering with a crimson light.