The distance between Raiden Ei and the brawny man was not very far. As Raiden Ei moved her feet, the gap between them narrowed rapidly. At that moment, the brawny man pulled the trigger.
Brawny Man: "Taste the power of this Cannon!"
"Bang!"
A roar then erupted from the Cannon's barrel. The brawny man used all his strength to withstand the recoil of the Cannon, causing the ground beneath his feet to crack.
Following the explosive sound, a cannonball the size of a watermelon flew out from the muzzle, hurtling forward at high speed.
Raiden Ei continued forward with steady steps, showing no hint of fear despite the muzzle being aimed at her. As the roar sounded and a cannonball came straight for her, she did not yield; the demon blade zanmian in her hand was already raised.
The cannonball was upon her in an instant, but Raiden Ei remained calm. With a single downward swing of her blade, she easily sliced the cannonball in half. The severed halves flew past both sides of Raiden Ei, carried by their momentum.
Raiden Ei ignored the two much weaker explosions behind her and continued toward the two men. The shockwave from the explosion swept from behind, fluttering her short cape and purple hair. The cold light emitted by the demon blade zanmian in her hand intimidated everyone present.
Not far away, an old man's eyes lit up: "Clean and efficient. She's a master of the sword. I wonder if I can find a chance to spar with her; I haven't encountered such an opponent in a long time."
Several nobles on the opposite street also witnessed this scene and said excitedly, "They've started fighting! Get ready. When they are both exhausted, go over and gun down the two men, then capture the woman."
The brawny man and the Green-haired Man watched in shock. They never expected that this woman could slice through such a fast cannonball with just a blade. They couldn't even see the trajectory of the cannonball clearly. They knew they were in trouble, but at this point, retreating wasn't an option; they had their pride too.
"Heh, you're pretty capable! Let's see what else you've got!" Seeing Raiden Ei getting closer, the brawny man and the Green-haired Man decided to go all out.
The brawny man threw the Cannon to the ground, pulled out two short guns from his waist, and fired at Raiden Ei, who was still several meters away. His marksmanship was quite accurate. Forgetting what he had said earlier, he fired three shots from his dual guns: "Hah, die!" "Bang bang bang bang bang bang!"
The Green-haired Man didn't think the brawny man would hit her. Sure enough, the woman blocked all the bullets with just her blade. He put on his Hand Claws, the sharp claws fitting over his hands like those of a wild beast. There were still traces of blood on them, clearly showing they were lethal weapons: "Let me test your skills!"
Pushing off with his feet like a fierce tiger, he crossed the distance between himself and Raiden Ei in a single leap, the ground beneath him caving in from the force. He lunged directly for her neck and chest, his sharp claws inches away. If an ordinary person were hit by such an attack, they would likely be shredded into several pieces.
Raiden Ei sensed the attack with Observation Haki. She chose not to dodge and instead raised her demon blade for a downward strike. Zanmian crashed directly into the claws with a "Clang!" The sparks from the collision were like fireworks.
With just one move, the Green-haired Man was repelled by the demon blade, and several small nicks appeared on his Hand Claws. In contrast, Raiden Ei simply stopped her advance: "Is this all the strength you have?"
The Green-haired Man shook his hands dismissively and chuckled, "We've only just begun! I haven't even gotten serious yet!"
The brawny man shouldered the reloaded Cannon and aimed at Raiden Ei again: "You just got lucky. Let's see how you dodge this shot."
Raiden Ei pointed her long blade diagonally at them: "Is that so? Then I shall get serious as well." Stepping lightly on the ground, her figure rushed toward the two like a shadow, her demon blade ready to cut them down at any moment.
To the Green-haired Man and the brawny man, she looked like a shadow rushing toward them. The Green-haired Man stood in front of the brawny man and performed a wide sweep at Raiden Ei, hoping to force her back.
Raiden Ei naturally would not retreat. She swung her demon blade horizontally, intending to sever the Green-haired Man's hands directly.
The Green-haired Man turned to parry the demon blade that was already upon him and took the opportunity to drop low on all fours. He continued to pounce at Raiden Ei, his claws slashing upward toward her body.
Raiden Ei parried with her blade and swung the scabbard in her other hand. With a "Thud," it struck the Green-haired Man's head, sending him flying.
Another blast rang out. Sensing an incoming attack with Observation Haki, she saw a cannonball flying toward her. The distance was too close; even the brawny man and his partner were within the blast radius. Raiden Ei's eyes narrowed as she swung her demon blade horizontally, slicing the incoming cannonball in two.
Before it could explode, Raiden Ei rushed toward the brawny man. All of this happened in just a few breaths. The brawny man hadn't even had time to put down the Cannon. Seeing Raiden Ei charging at him, he raised the Cannon to ram into her.
"Ignorance is the final portrait of your life's end. Die! Slash." Raiden Ei murmured as she looked at this human-shaped target, her demon blade zanmian gradually becoming enveloped in Armament Haki.
In the instant they met, Raiden Ei completed the kill. Before the brawny man could even react, her blade had already sliced through both the Cannon and his body. Only then did the cannonball explode, the shockwave sweeping through and pushing the brawny man's corpse to the ground.
The corpse on the ground had not yet completely died. The brawny man's eyes were wide as he muttered, "How... is this possible? You're... a monster!"
Raiden Ei tidied her wind-blown hair with her hand and looked at the brawny man's companion, the Green-haired Man. He was mostly unharmed, though his face was swollen. Straightening his crooked Hand Claws, he said, "So it's just me left!"
His brother's death was a bit of a blow to him. The sea was full of dangers; if they weren't prepared to lose companions, they wouldn't have thought about going out to sea to become pirates. However, he was filled with resentment.
The Green-haired Man's emotions gradually spiraled out of control: "I'm the only one left! You bastard, die!" He rushed at Raiden Ei like a madman, his speed more than twice as fast as before.
Raiden Ei watched the crazed man, using her blade to block his attacks and forcefully repelling him. She swung her blade toward his neck, but he seemed completely indifferent to his own life. Instead of blocking her blade, he continued to attack her with his claws. If she followed through with the slash, the Green-haired Man would surely die, but she would also certainly be injured.
Raiden Ei decided it wasn't worth it. She pulled back her blade to parry his claws and swung her scabbard again, knocking the Green-haired Man away.
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