Chương 30: Crocodile's Defeated Flight

"Armament Haki, and those blue flames... you're definitely not from the first half of the Grand Line!"

As one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, although he is not good at using Haki, Crocodile naturally knows about Haki.

The so-called "Haki" doesn't mean that people in the first half of the Grand Line don't possess it; it just means that in the seas that are like the beginner's village, you can hardly see anyone using Haki.

If you haven't been to the New World, an ordinary newbie in the first half of the Grand Line would never know about Haki, let alone be able to use it.

Furthermore, the blue flame chains binding his ankles were clearly also Devil Fruit abilities, but this was obviously not the Devil Fruit of that sword.

So that means this is Yang Cheng's own Devil Fruit ability, and the other party is also a Devil Fruit user!

Furthermore, judging from the eerie blue flames, Crocodile could even conclude that the Devil Fruit the opponent had eaten was definitely not an ordinary one!

Seeing the longsword getting closer and closer to his head, and his legs being bound by azure flame chains, preventing him from transforming naturally, Old Sand unleashed his ultimate move at that moment.

"The Cycle of Erosion—!"

The large amount of sand and gravel formed a sandstorm tornado, which acted as a windbreak wall to protect Crocodile.

The ground beneath its feet was rapidly drying up, and the surrounding vegetation began to wither and die. Large areas of the ground began to crack and turn into decaying gravel as the moisture was completely washed away.

The azure flame chains possessed some unknown power, making it impossible for him to break free naturally.

In that case, he could simply turn the ground he was standing on into sand!

"boom------!"

"One-Sword Style: Bursting Blade—!"

As the longsword slashed towards the sandstorm tornado, the power of the Boom-Boom Fruit instantly created a massive explosive shockwave.

As light and heat burst forth, the sand and gravel were instantly blasted into the air by the shockwave generated by the explosion.

While protecting himself from the sandstorm, Crocodile was broken through by the explosive slash, and finally turned the surrounding ground into sand, breaking free from the restraints of the blue flame chains.

But just as he was about to step back, a fist with a metallic sheen began to grow larger in his line of sight.

"Thump—!"

The "Friendship-Breaking Punch" struck directly at Old Sha's face, which resembled Frankenstein's monster.

The cigar that was previously in his mouth was crushed flat by Yang Cheng's punch, and even smashed into his face.

Then, under a shockwave, the opponent's body, which was at least half his height, was sent flying backward along with the burst of air, crashing through two wooden houses in Whiskey Town.

Meanwhile, watching Old Sandman being blasted away by Yang Cheng's punch, Nico Robin, who had been watching the whole thing as a spectator, and Vivi and the others were completely dumbfounded.

Leaving aside Weiwei for now, at only fourteen years old, she has lived in the palace for many years and rarely comes into contact with the outside world, so she doesn't have a clear understanding of Yang Cheng and Lao Sha's strength.

However, Robin and Mr. Valentine are different; they have a certain understanding of the strength of Crocodile, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

As a legitimate pirate used by the World Government to intimidate the seas, Crocodile was undoubtedly a powerful figure in their eyes who could easily control the life and death of others.

But now, such a big shot is being suppressed by a bounty hunter from the first half of the Grand Line!

"Kid, who exactly are you?! There's no way someone like you could exist in the first half of the Grand Line!"

Armament Haki can indeed inflict heavy damage on Logia-type Devil Fruit users, but it's highly unlikely that Crocodile could defeat them with just one blow.

A sandstorm swept up, and as the ruins of buildings rose into the sky, Old Sha, looking somewhat disheveled, emerged once again.

However, compared to before, Lao Sha now clearly no longer treats Yang Cheng as an ordinary kid.

Armament Haki, a bizarre Devil Fruit ability, and information about Hades.

In Crocodile's eyes, Yang Cheng is now full of mystery, and he firmly believes that Yang Cheng could not possibly be a newbie in the first half of the Grand Line.

Just kidding. With the strength Yang Cheng has shown at his current age, he's already quite a figure, even in the New World.

If the first half of the Grand Line were full of monsters like this, what would Crocodile have to do with it?

"You don't necessarily have to be born in the New World to master Haki."

Even though you might not believe me, the truth is I haven't been to the New World yet.

As for why I know so much, bounty hunters travel all over the world; you can understand it as me having my own special intelligence sources.

Crocodile didn't believe a single word Yang Cheng said.

But looking at Yang Cheng in front of him, he was also in a bit of a dilemma.

I originally thought he was just an ordinary kid, and that I could easily take him down with my bare hands.

But now that he's made a move, he realizes that his opponent is a tough nut to crack.

If it were a desert country like Alabasta, Crocodile felt confident he could take down Yang Cheng, but now, he could only guarantee he wouldn't be killed by the other party.

"Super Sandstorm—!"

"One-Sword Style: Nuclear Explosion Blade—!"

The enhanced sandstorm collided in mid-air with an explosive slash imbued with azure flames.

With a violent shaking of the ground, the entire whiskey town was instantly reduced to ruins under the impact of the sandstorm and heat wave.

The battle between Yang Cheng and Crocodile lasted from day to night, and ended with Crocodile being injured and forced to flee.

Yang Cheng considered taking care of Crocodile decisively, but unfortunately, Crocodile was one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea and a Logia-type Devil Fruit user.

He can defeat Old Man Crocodile, but with his current strength, it's too difficult for him to completely eliminate him.

If they were to pursue him to Alabasta, Crocodile's Sand-Sand Fruit ability could allow him to manipulate the sandstorms there, and he might very well end up being the one who suffers the most.

Don't doubt Crocodile's strength. After the Seven Warlords system was abolished, Crocodile's bounty skyrocketed from 81 million Berries to 1. 965 billion Berries.

If it weren't for Luffy's protagonist aura, which allowed him to escape death from Crocodile's clutches several times, plus the fact that it was a murder mystery game...

Luffy, who hasn't mastered Haki and hasn't even developed Gear Second, isn't even worthy of carrying Crocodile's shoes.

Old Sand fled in defeat, and in his haste to escape, he even abandoned his secretary, Nicole Robin.

Vivi and Mr. Valentine were overjoyed to see that even Crocodile was no match for Yang Cheng.

The former pleaded with Yang Cheng to help them in Alabasta, while the latter believed that even the mastermind behind Baroque Works was no match for Yang Cheng, so they could completely dominate the first half of the Grand Line.