Chapter 40: Shiryu of the Rain p2
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Almost all the people who witnessed the Immortal Phoenix ability were shocked one by one.
The blue regeneration flames deeply stimulated everyone's vision, like a visual feast. The blue flames flickered as Marco's body underwent nirvana-like regeneration, and even a terrifying figure like Shiryu of the Rain—with his blood-infused demon sword Raiu—couldn't bypass the flames or inflict damage at close range!
"It's incredible! That blue flame… is it really immortal?!"
Someone exclaimed in astonishment.
The crowd marveled at the rarity of the Mythical Zoan abilities, which were even scarcer than Logia types. Marco's involvement in battles was rare; aside from the events of the Marineford War, few had experienced the Immortal Phoenix ability up close.
Almost everyone present was witnessing the power of the Immortal Phoenix for the first time, and the resulting visual impact created an inner storm, shaking everyone intensely and leaving them unable to settle for quite some time!
The street, once again ravaged by the smoke and dust, had become unrecognizable, littered with debris and ruins. Countless cracks crisscrossed the ground, with some forming deep chasms where flames flickered and wisps of white smoke rose slowly.
"Every time the Immortal ability is utilized, it requires such astonishing consumption."
Marco felt a twinge of concern. He understood that by 'ignoring' the slash from Shiryu of the Rain, the energy expenditure had been substantial, enough to frighten him. "Fortunately, my regenerative flames can continuously generate energy; such a tremendous consumption isn't necessarily detrimental to me."
Previously in battles, Marco hadn't had the opportunity to employ this regenerative flame and had no need for the healing ability; he had been worried that without sharpening it in battle, the ability wouldn't improve.
However, being slashed by Shiryu of the Rain and utilizing an extensive amount of the Immortal ability was ultimately a benefit for Marco in the long run!
"No one's growth should occur for no reason, and the same applies to myself." Marco realized that facing Shiryu of the Rain was an excellent opportunity to enhance his Immortal abilities. It was precisely because of Shiryu's strange slash and immense lethality that Marco felt the need for improvement. "I can't afford to be careless; after all… he is Shiryu of the Rain!"
If Shiryu of the Rain was not strong, he wouldn't hold the position of captain of the Blackbeard Pirates' second ship!
Such a ruthless individual, whose body count was countless, deserved no underestimation from Marco!
"Ding!"
"In the previous two life-and-death battles, the super auxiliary mechanism was activated. During the fight, the simultaneous use of Armament Haki by both the enemy and the host has allowed the host to experience significant growth in the use of Armament Haki. Please take advantage of this opportunity to improve your Armament Haki."
As the system prompt rang in his ears, Marco's eyes brightened.
His mastery of Armament Haki had gained an incredible opportunity for improvement!
This was certainly a positive outcome for him; not only had he eliminated two powerful sub-captains of the Blackbeard Pirates, Abaro Pizarro and Shiryu of the Rain, but he had also elevated his understanding and strength of Haki!
Marco turned his palm, and a red and blue flame spear materialized. Along with it, a powerful surge of Armament Haki burst forth from his palm, enveloping the spear. This infused the entire weapon with a lustrous black light intertwined with the red and blue flames, creating a mesmerizing spectacle.
This weapon… was now immensely powerful!
Marco marveled at the transformation. Being able to inscribe the power of Armament Haki onto a weapon was remarkable enough. However, the fact that he could cloak his newly formed weapon with flames using Haki significantly amplified its lethality!
"Ding!"
"After the host utilized a considerable amount of the fruit ability 'immortal,' the auxiliary mechanism has activated, granting the host a deeper understanding of the 'Immortal' ability. The host is encouraged to develop and enhance this ability independently."
The system's voice echoed once more, offering guidance regarding the Immortal ability!
Perfect!
Marco thought about the benefits he was gaining from the immense energy consumption!
During this brief scuffle with Shiryu of the Rain, Marco experienced two extreme crises.
The first was the strange and deadly demon sword Raiu possessed by Shiryu, the Red Mountain Blood Blade!
Enhanced by Armament Haki, Raiu possessed a slashing power that was hard to resist. This was why it could turn Marco's arm to pulp!
In response to this slash, Marco had used his deep blue regenerative flames to reshape his wounds!
The second crisis came from the abundant sword qi unleashed by Shiryu of the Rain, a relentless downpour of slashes. Despite their formidable destructive power, they couldn't compare to the lethality of Raiu empowered by Armament Haki. So—
Marco had employed a different tactic to counteract Shiryu's attack.
To outsiders, it appeared as though Marco had dodged with some logia ability, rendering the deluge of slashes powerless. However, Marco knew it wasn't a logia ability; it was far from the effortless elementalization typical of Logia users!
At most, it could be termed a "quasi-logia ability," or a simulation of elemental behavior. He gained the advantage by quickly transforming specific parts of his body into blue flames, mirroring the way natural abilities function in repelling attacks.
This technique was similar to Katakuri's!
It required a significant amount of time for a natural ability user to elementalize fully; Marco's approach was more taxing, as it depended on 'reading' his enemy's attack in advance.
In order to dismantle Abaro Pizarro, Marco had to prepare beforehand to achieve such an effect.
In other words,
By maintaining strong Haki, he could actively use this combat style!
"Observation Haki… Katakuri…!" Reflecting on Katakuri evoked a sense of excitement within Marco. After all, that was the strongest individual with Observation Haki! "Fighting him… is truly exhilarating!"
Though all of this may sound lengthy, it was merely a quick passage of thoughts racing through Marco's mind, transpiring in but an instant.
Thundered~~!
At that moment, on the other side, the gigantic building that Shiryu had crashed into suddenly erupted with several blood-red lights flickering from the walls surrounding it. Then, a violent explosion resounded—
The massive structure, illuminated by the blood-red light, shattered like a piece of tofu, disintegrating into countless fragments!
With a resounding crash, the towering building collapsed, and smoke erupted into the sky!
Stomble!
From within the billowing smoke, a blood-red light surged forth. As the crowd witnessed it clearly, their pupils dilated——
That blood-colored gleam originated from the demon sword—Raiu—in Shiryu of the Rain's hand!
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