Invisible Conqueror Haki swept outward.
For a time, buildings collapsed, the island split open, and thunder seemed to detonate in the sky itself.
Black and red lightning flooded Hot Spring Island. Even the volcano at the island’s center began to tremble, faintly showing signs of eruption.
The scene was magnificent.
The Executioners were blasted backward one after another, crashing into buildings across the town. Kukured had no choice but to release his own Conqueror Haki and force it against Caelum’s pressure.
"What kind of joke is this?"
For a moment, Kukured found the whole thing absurd. His teeth clenched as disbelief slipped into his voice.
"How can anyone have Conqueror Haki this powerful?"
It was too much.
Far too much.
Even he, who had mastered the advanced use of Conqueror Haki, could only endure with difficulty. And from the look of Caelum, the man had not even started taking this seriously.
Trouble had arrived.
After one exchange, Kukured was the only one still standing in front of Caelum. The other Executioners had not even gotten a chance to attack.
That alone was enough to chill the blood.
Hot Spring Island kept shaking under Caelum’s Conqueror Haki.
At the shore, Tekular and the others watched the terrible scene from afar.
"This..."
A cold feeling crept through Selene.
"What is happening?"
Tekular’s voice sank.
"Conqueror Haki."
"Owl’s Haki? Is that not a bit too frightening?"
Cedran let out the breath he had been holding, then laughed.
"That kid’s strength is far beyond what we imagined. Looks like we worried for nothing this time."
On the other side of the island, the commander of the Norvind Legion, who had come with the Executioner Unit, was already soaked in sweat.
The enemy’s strength seemed to differ slightly from what the upper ranks had expected.
Before Haki this powerful, even he felt his heart tighten. Fortunately, he was far enough away. Otherwise, he would have lost consciousness long ago.
"This is very bad."
"Hah..."
Caelum had not moved a single step from beginning to end.
Kukured, however, was nearly suffocating under the pressure of Caelum’s Conqueror Haki. His eyes locked hard onto Caelum’s figure.
He did not dare relax for even an instant.
Even then, he still failed to keep up with Caelum’s speed.
Caelum flickered.
With the impact force of Armament Haki as propulsion, he shot forward at almost teleportation like speed and appeared directly before Kukured.
Kukured’s face shifted at once.
"Impossible!"
His Observation Haki had already reached the Realm where he could see ten seconds into the future.
Yet at this moment, it seemed to have lost its effect.
If he had to rely only on his eyes and reactions, he would be thrown completely onto the back foot.
Black and red Haki lightning tangled in front of him.
At the critical instant, Kukured drew his blade and blocked Caelum’s strike.
Only for a moment.
In a clash of Haki, the side with superior quality took the advantage.
The strength of Kukured’s Haki was ten times weaker than Caelum’s. How could he possibly withstand Caelum’s attack?
In the blink of an eye, the blade in Kukured’s hand shattered completely.
His Armament Haki defense broke apart on contact.
Luckily, he had managed to block with his blade first. Otherwise, Caelum’s stroke would have almost split him in half.
Even so, Caelum’s immense power still sent him flying.
Kukured streaked across the air like a meteor and smashed into the volcano at the center of the island, leaving a huge field of cracks in the rock.
"Cough!"
Blood burst from his mouth.
Pain came crashing in.
Kukured lowered his head and glanced at his chest. A blade wound deep enough to expose bone ran across it, blood flowing without pause.
To be fair, Kukured absolutely belonged among the top class of fighters.
Anyone else would never have survived Caelum’s slash.
Kukured had not blocked it either, not really.
But at least he was not dead.
The gap was too large.
Even now, Kukured still found it impossible to believe. It felt like a nightmare. He had been cut into serious injury by a single stroke?
They were both top level Conqueror Haki users. Why could Caelum’s strength surpass his by this much?
Why had his Observation Haki failed to predict Caelum’s attack?
It was absurd.
Observation Killing.
That was why Kukured’s Observation Haki had failed against Caelum.
Caelum’s Conqueror Haki was powerful enough to suppress his own life presence. Once that happened, others could no longer use Observation Haki to read his aura and foresee his attacks.
Caelum, however, could still use Observation Haki on others.
From afar, he sensed Kukured’s presence and swung his blade with relaxed ease.
In an instant, an invisible slash cut straight through half the volcano’s summit.
The severed mountaintop slid down and crashed onto the island. The ground shook violently, and the already restless volcano finally erupted.
Red magma shot into the sky.
Thick smoke rolled upward with it, scattering fire and ash toward every corner of the island.
It looked like the end of the world.
Selene stared at the sight, lips parted.
"If they keep fighting like this, will the whole island sink?"
Tekular rushed straight into the town.
"I will get the civilians out. You two protect the others nearby."
"No problem."
"Understood."
Scorching magma fell into Bathing Town like rain.
Amid the unending roar, whole stretches of buildings quickly collapsed into ruins.
Then came a series of roars.
"Roar!"
"Roar!"
"Roar!"
Several giant beasts burst out from the wreckage, unleashing savage animal ferocity without restraint. Their roars carried a brutal force that rolled across the island.
Caelum paused.
"Bloodline inheritors?"
They were clearly those Executioners.
He was a little surprised.
Could bloodline inheritors truly return to their ancestral form this completely?
Remi had never mentioned anything like this to him.
What was happening before him should be called awakening.
The more complete the awakening of a bloodline inheritor, the stronger their power became. Their features would naturally draw closer to Danger Beasts as well.
A full ancestral return, transforming into a Danger Beast, allowed them to draw out one hundred percent of the Danger Beast power hidden in their bloodline.
Only a very small number of people could accomplish such a thing.
Caelum’s interest stirred.
"Looks pretty impressive."
The giant beasts stared at him like predators.
The next instant, they charged. Everything in their path was crushed apart.
Caelum raised his blade and took the opening stance.
"Roar!"
Brilliant light flared over the beasts’ bodies.
They gathered all their strength into their throats, then unleashed breath attacks with astonishing force.
At the same time, Caelum vanished.
Several afterimages appeared in front of the giant beasts at once, and Cloudrend burst with cold blade light.
In that instant, the breath attacks were split apart by a single stroke.
The beasts themselves were cut in half by Caelum’s afterimages.
After a few agonized roars, every giant beast crashed to the ground.
Cloudrift Style, Ninety Nine Instant Kill.
This was Caelum’s first time using a Cloudrift Style sword technique in actual combat.
Only a battle of this level could make him bring out his real strength.
After the giant beasts fell, the slashes Caelum had released did not fade away.
They intertwined into a grid and cut the entire Hot Spring Island into more than a dozen pieces.