"So fast!!!"
Luo Xia pressed a hand to his forehead, his expression unprecedentedly grave.
As a transmigrator, he possessed complete knowledge of Kaido's abilities.
Yet even with this forewarning and full preparedness, he'd nearly suffered the same fate as Gear Fourth Luffy mere moments ago. His instincts screamed that had Kaido's club strike landed true, he'd have been instantly knocked unconscious with a single blow.
It wasn't that Kaido had underestimated him—rather, he'd underestimated Kaido. The gap between his current Fire Dragon Slayer Magic and the level of an Emperor or Admiral remained significant.
At this stage, forget about refusing beef—he'd struggle to even decline scallions in his noodles.
To truly stand against top-tier combatants like the Four Emperors or Navy Admirals in this pirate world...
His Fire Dragon Slayer Wizard abilities needed to ascend further—perhaps by entering... the Flame Dragon King Mode.
"Urororororo! To dodge that strike—seems I did indeed underestimate you," the Beast Kaido grinned widely.
"Likewise, I misjudged the weight behind your attack," Luo Xia rose to his feet. "Let's continue this dance."
"Come at me with everything!" Kaido roared, hefting the Spiked Club Eight Precepts across his shoulders with domineering arrogance.
Whoosh~
Flames erupted from Luo Xia's palms positioned behind him, generating tremendous propulsion.
Zing~ Zing~
A zigzagging trail of fire cut through the primal forest.
Luo Xia intended to disrupt Kaido's perception with erratic high-speed movements, yet the Emperor didn't even bother tracking him visually.
Kaido left his center completely undefended, as if inviting the attack.
Though suspicious of the tactic, Luo Xia seized the opportunity—his Fire Dragon's Acceleration Iron Fist smashed upward into Kaido's jaw.
The seven-meter-tall demonic figure actually lifted off the ground from the impact, blood spraying from his mouth.
Yet mid-air, Kaido's left hand shot out, clamping onto Luo Xia's forearm.
BOOM!
The earth trembled as they landed.
Leveraging his Hulkesque size advantage, Kaido swung Luo Xia like a ragdoll—"Loki-style"—crashing him brutally into the ground.
Guh-urk!
Blood spewed from Luo Xia's mouth. Before Kaido could slam him a second time, his right arm erupted in searing flames, forcing the Emperor to release his grip.
Simultaneously, Luo Xia launched a spinning kick—flame-propelled—driving his heel into Kaido's ribs.
Fire Dragon's Hook Claw!!!
Whoosh!
CRASH!
The mountainous Beast Emperor catapulted backward like a cannonball, flattening swathes of forest in a mushrooming dust cloud.
Luo Xia steadied his breathing while maintaining razor-sharp focus.
Without warning, a perfect cylindrical void materialized through the dense foliage—ancient tree trunks appearing as if bitten by some invisible force.
Instinctively arching backward, Luo Xia barely avoided the terrifying pillar of compressed air that sheared past his scalp, carving another tunnel through the wilderness behind him.
Vajra - Exiling!!!
One of Kaido's four signature "Dharma King" techniques.
By swinging the Spiked Club Eight Precepts, he launched long-range "Club Aura" strikes akin to sword projectiles.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Multiple new voids exploded through the forest as concentric shockwaves encircled Luo Xia.
With flawless agility, he threaded through the narrow gaps between the devastating waves.
The first nine shockwaves of Club Aura were all dodged, but the tenth and final one was unavoidable, forcing him to take it head-on.
Just as Luo Xia was sent flying through the air by the last Club Aura impact, a massive shadow suddenly loomed over him.
At some point, Kaido of the Beasts had appeared directly above him, his Spiked Club Eight Precepts raised high with black-and-red Conqueror's Haki lightning crackling around it.
"Trailokyavijaya—Induction, Naraka!!!"
BOOM!!!
A strike even fiercer and more devastating than the previous Thunder Bagua came crashing down.
The air shrieked sharply where the spiked club passed, and the sheer force of the attack was already pressing down before it even landed.
Normally, a person in mid-air wouldn't be able to evade effectively, but Luo Xia had mastered his "Flame Jet" skill to perfection.
At the critical moment, high-temperature flames erupted from his palms, propelling him out of the way of Kaido's direct strike.
BOOM!!!
The island trembled violently as a crater dozens of meters wide exploded into existence.
Luo Xia landed a hundred meters away, his expression grim, once again feeling the gap between himself and an Emperor.
Right now, Kaido was only using his human form. If it had been the faster, stronger half-beast, half-dragon Kaido, he might not have been able to dodge.
Dragging out a prolonged battle against Azure Dragon Kaido, who had top-tier endurance, was clearly not a wise choice. Success or failure would hinge on the next move.
"Wororororo! All you know how to do is run, brat!"
Kaido of the Beasts laughed heartily, resting his spiked club on his shoulder.
"Warm-up's over. Now comes the main event."
Luo Xia opened his mouth wide, taking a deep breath.
The next second, flames from all directions surged toward his mouth.
In moments, the forest fires ignited during their battle were extinguished.
"Now that's interesting. I never knew a Flame-Flame Fruit user could eat fire. Are you a Mythical Zoan too?" Kaido asked.
When he first saw Luo Xia unleash fire attacks, Kaido had instinctively assumed he was a Logia-type Flame-Flame Fruit user.
But in this world, fire attacks weren't exclusive to Flame-Flame Fruit users—Mythical Zoans could also wield elemental attacks.
For example, as the Azure Dragon, he could unleash flames, wind, lightning, and more.
Moreover, during the entire fight, Kaido hadn't seen Luo Xia use elemental intangibility even once.
He could've easily avoided the Club Aura by turning into flames, but he didn't—or more likely, couldn't.
Meaning Luo Xia wasn't a Logia but a Mythical Zoan like him, possibly even dragon-related.
The thought excited Kaido even more, his gaze locking onto Luo Xia like he was staring at a naked, peerless beauty.
"Damn, I didn't know Kaido had these kinds of interests!"
Feeling the excitement and greed in Kaido's eyes, Luo Xia shuddered in disgust.
"Come on, brat. Show me what else you've got." Kaido pointed at him imperiously.
"Dragon Slayer Secret Art—"
Without wasting words, raging flames erupted from Luo Xia's body, engulfing him entirely.
His arms transformed into two solid blades of fire, slashing mercilessly toward Kaido.
"Crimson Lotus Blast Flame Blade!!!"
The scorching crimson lotus flames spun at high speed, eventually forming a fiery tornado that ravaged the battlefield.
BOOM!
CLANG!
The Beast Kaido relentlessly swung his spiked club, clashing head-on with Luo Xia's Dragon Slayer Secret Art.
"Without the BGM boost, the power just isn't enough..." Luo Xia couldn't help but think to himself.
At this stage of the battle, continuing further held little meaning.
After another exchange with the spiked club, Luo Xia used the recoil to leap back, triggering an explosion of crimson flame tornadoes. He didn't expect this attack to defeat Kaido—it was merely to create chaos and buy himself some time.
Yet, in the very next moment, a monstrous draconic figure burst through the flames with lightning speed, closing the distance between them in an instant.
"Roaring Thunderous Bagua!!!"
BOOM!
A deafening thunderclap seemed to split the heavens as the pitch-black spiked club loomed larger in Luo Xia's vision. This time, there was truly no dodging it.
"Password—"
Luo Xia barely managed to utter two words before—
CRACK!
The thunderous strike of the club slammed into him.
Darkness swallowed his sight in an instant.
His consciousness began to fade.
The world slipped away from him.
"You said you wanted to slay what dragon?"