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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 119: The Ship Slayer
"Colonel Penn's Wave Slash was ineffective; Brigadier Madson's Gauntlet was shattered."
On the third battleship, Tina lowered her telescope, her expression one of shock. "Pern can sever the necks of Sea Kings over a hundred meters long, and Brigadier Madson can crush their skulls with a single punch. But now, facing that giant beast, it seems useless."
"Truly terrifying."
Tina waved her hand. "Continue pursuing Nico Robin."
"Yes, Colonel Tina."
The surrounding Navy personnel eagerly pressed on.
"Here it comes again."
Pern spotted the enormous shadow rising from the depths of the sea, his expression grave. He gripped his sword tightly. "The Sea Vessel has been breached; I can't let it continue. For the sake of my subordinates, I must confront it."
Pern fixed his gaze on the beast, sword in hand.
The power of Wave Slash lay in its direct strike; Brigadier Madson's punch had undoubtedly inflicted damage on the creature. If he could thrust with all his might at the spot where Brigadier Madson had attacked, he could pierce its skull.
As the beast approached within striking distance, Pern suddenly pushed off with his legs, leaping high into the air. With both hands gripping his sword, he descended forcefully, aiming to stab down into Xiaqiu's head.
Coming down?
Xiaqiu sensed Pern's movement. As he fell, instead of charging forward, he leapt upward, opening his massive jaws to bite at his opponent.
Clang.
The long sword of Pern clashed against the teeth of Xiaqiu.
Sizzle.
A harsh sound erupted as Pern's sword struck Xiaqiu's teeth, sliding down with the force of the impact. With all his strength, he ground away part of Xiaqiu's enamel and penetrated into the dentin, continuing deeper until he created a crack that extended halfway through Xiaqiu's tooth.
Crack.
But in the next moment, the sword shattered and was sent into Xiaqiu's mouth.
Pern then pushed off, stepping onto Xiaqiu's lower jaw, leaping high back into the cabin.
Spit.
Xiaqiu fell heavily into the water, crushing the broken sword with its bite before swallowing it whole.
The metal substance was too hard for it to digest, but it wouldn't cause significant harm either. During its consumption of humans, Xiaqiu had ingested quite a bit of metal.
He got away.
Xiaqiu felt a surge of anger; however, the momentum from its charge had dissipated. The damage inflicted on the ship was substantial, and there was no need to continue the attack.
In the distance, a second battleship approached Nico Robin's position.
So Xiaqiu turned around and charged out once more.
"Here it comes again."
Brigadier Madson's expression darkened as he witnessed the scene unfold. He had no choice but to order the cannons to fire, but it was futile.
Boom.
Xiaqiu crashed directly into the side of the battleship, creating a large hole before slamming into the keel.
This time, he sustained a head injury and did not create a crack in the keel. Instead of retreating, he pushed inward.
Crack.
Xiaqiu tilted his head to the left, and the left side of the ship's hull immediately exploded. He stretched his head out of the cabin at an angle, and with a powerful kick from his right forelimb, he shattered the hull before forcing his body inside.
The naval battleship was quite large, at least fifty meters long—only slightly longer than Xiaqiu—but wider than him.
Xiaqiu pressed forward from within, smashing through compartment walls and destroying the hull as he squeezed in bit by bit.
"Damn it, he's inside the cabin."
Brigadier Madson's face turned grim as he shouted, "Wales, take your team to transport explosives and oil. The rest of you follow me into the cabin. Signal for support!"
Madson led a portion of his men down into the cabin, charging toward Xiaqiu.
Bang! Bang!
Bullets struck Xiaqiu's body but had no effect whatsoever.
Seeing people coming down, Xiaqiu rushed closer and attacked them.
"Die!"
Madison's left arm tensed as he lunged at Xiaqiu, throwing a powerful punch.
Xiaqiu did not use his horns; instead, he opened his mouth wide and aimed to bite Madison.
Bang.
Madison's fist collided with Xiaqiu's teeth, producing a muffled sound.
Xiaqiu's teeth rattled slightly. Although they were strong, they still needed gums to hold them in place, and under the immense force, they shifted a bit.
However, Madison's fist shattered upon impact, sending sharp pain through his hand.
"Damn it."
Madison's face turned grim as he stumbled backward, running toward the cabin.
Bang, bang, boom.
At that moment, other weapons struck Xiaqiu's mouth and head.
But they had no effect whatsoever.
Xiaqiu pushed off with his legs and lunged forward again, snapping his jaws wide open.
Crunch.
Xiaqiu bit into two Sailors, severing their upper bodies cleanly.
"How terrifying! Our attacks are ineffective."
"Run, run!"
The Sailors scrambled upwards, but Xiaqiu wanted to pursue them. Blocked by the ship's planks, it had no choice but to break through them.
"Distress signal?"
Colonel Penn spotted the signal flags and shouted, "Brigadier Madson is in trouble! We need to assist him."
"Is Colonel Penn heading over?"
Tina noticed Pern's ship steering towards Madison's direction. She narrowed her eyes; with Colonel Penn joining, the two of them should be able to hold off the beast. Even if they couldn't defeat it, they could buy enough time for reinforcements to arrive.
On the contrary, if they could keep the beast occupied, Nico Robin wouldn't have to worry.
Tina thought for a moment and suddenly waved her hand. "There's a Navy Admiral over at Brigadier Madson's side, so I don't need to go there. I'll continue pursuing Nico Robin."
"Understood."
The Sailors quickly adjusted their course, with the Battleship heading towards Nico Robin.
Xiaqiu smashed through a layer of deck and continued charging upward. Suddenly, an explosion erupted with a deafening roar, and a massive shockwave blasted before it, flames rushing toward it.
It was futile.
Xiaqiu closed her eyelids, the protective membrane shielding her from the impact. The flickering flames were of no concern; she was determined to press forward when suddenly something began to flow down from above.
Boom, boom.
The flames erupted violently, blocking the space in front of Xiaqiu.
"It's so hot."
Xiaqiu felt the scorching heat wave hit her, along with a burning sensation as liquid dripped onto her head, igniting upon contact.
She decided against advancing any further and instead retreated. The destruction was nearly complete; if she followed the same strategy as before and made another pass, both this ship and that one would surely be sunk.
However, upon entering the water, Xiaqiu noticed the first Battleship approaching her direction while the third Battleship was chasing after Nico Robin.
"You stay here."
Seeing this scene unfold, Xiaqiu charged forward, intending to maneuver around the first Battleship and pursue the third.
"I can't let it catch up to Tina. If it crashes into Tina's ship, then Nico Robin will escape."
Pern witnessed this and took up a spare longsword, gripping it tightly in anger. "Having destroyed eight Battleships and killed Shichibukai Crocodile, we can't let Nico Robin get away."
With that, Pern ordered the Sea Vessel to change course, positioning itself diagonally in front of Xiaqiu.
"You bastard."
Xiaqiu scoffed at the sight before her; there was no way to advance now—she couldn't sink this ship.
Xiaqiu planned to swim directly underwater, bypassing his Battleship.
But in the next moment, Pern leaped into the sea, lunging at Xiaqiu. "Though I cannot defeat you, I am willing to give my life to stop you, as long as I can capture Nico Robin and avenge my fallen Navy comrades and the attacked civilians."
Not only that, but a group of Sailors also jumped into the ocean, charging toward Xiaqiu.
"This group of people..."
Xiaqiu did not expect that there would be Navy members willing to sacrifice their lives to thwart him.
He looked at them, somewhat surprised.
It was him.
The Naval Colonel known as the Ship Slayer, Pern.
He was one of the few righteous figures in the Navy, with the motto of doing a hundred good deeds each day.
He was willing to give his life to stop evil and led by example.
In the Navy, justice was interpreted in various ways: Dark Justice, ruthless justice, lazy justice.
But Pern's belief was one of duty-based justice, insisting on fulfilling his responsibilities from the Navy's perspective.
However, standing from the Navy's viewpoint meant that the definition of evil itself could be flawed.
He used the charges brought by the Navy against Nico Robin to arrest her.
Nico Robin certainly possesses her share of sins, but whether it was the destruction of eight Battleships or the killing of Crocodile, those were not actions taken by her.
In the attack on Rapeseed Flower City, neither she nor Xiaqiu harmed a single person.
The dead were killed by the iss Dual Hands, and it was the enemy who struck first.
However, from the perspective of the crowd, it was Nico Robin who attacked Rapeseed Flower City, and they genuinely felt threatened by her.
Different viewpoints lead to entirely different conclusions.
From Xiaqiu's perspective, he was merely thwarting his enemies.
"Since you seek death, then I shall kill you."
Xiaqiu charged forward, eliminating the threat before turning to stop the Battleship.
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