Chapter 70: Serpent's Fang vs. Silver Blade
The battlefield blurred into background noise — screams, lightning, rifle fire, the clash of blades. Yet at its center, two titans faced one another.
Arthur's silver hair whipped in the forge's winds, Sriyo humming with Armament Haki so dense the blade shimmered black. Across from him, Viper Drakkon crouched low, his torso coiled, gauntleted arms poised like twin serpents ready to strike.
Neither spoke. For a moment, even the battle seemed to hold its breath.
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Drakkon struck first — his body snapping forward like a released spring. His right arm lashed out, gauntlet chain extending with a metallic hiss.
"Serpent Fang: Guillotine Lash!"
The whip carved the air, jagged fangs aiming for Arthur's throat.
Arthur's Observation Haki flared, his muscles moving before conscious thought. He twisted sideways, Sriyo slicing clean through the gauntlet's tip. Sparks burst, steel fragments raining down.
Drakkon's grin widened. "Good… GOOD! You can dance in the serpent's den!"
His left arm snapped forward, this time coated in blackened Armament Haki.
Arthur brought Sriyo down in a vertical slash. The clash boomed like a cannon, shockwaves splitting the ground beneath their feet.
He's not just flexible. He's deliberately breaking and resetting joints to extend reach. Pain doesn't even register for him…
Arthur's eyes sharpened. Then I'll push beyond pain too.
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Drakkon suddenly shed his serpentine whip form, lunging directly into close quarters. His arms tightened around Arthur like constricting coils.
Arthur felt his ribs creak under the crushing strength. Drakkon's teeth gnashed inches from his face.
"Boa Constrictor Grip!" Drakkon roared, tightening with monstrous force.
Arthur's veins bulged, breath strained. If I let this close, I'll suffocate. Break free. Break his flow.
He let Sriyo drop slightly, coating his free hand in Armament Haki. With a sudden surge, Arthur drove his knee upward, smashing into Drakkon's ribs. The crack was audible.
Drakkon grunted, but his grin didn't falter. "YES! Show me the beast beneath your calm!"
Arthur snarled and twisted, slamming his forehead — coated in Haki — directly into Drakkon's nose. Bone shattered. Blood sprayed. The serpent loosened.
Arthur shoved him off, panting. He likes pain. He feeds on it. The more I hurt him, the more savage he'll get.
Drakkon wiped blood from his face, eyes gleaming with primal joy.
"You're strong, Arthur… but snakes aren't felled by a single cut. They strike until prey collapses."
His body shifted unnaturally, his spine cracking. The gauntlets merged, scales spreading across his chest. Muscles bulged, skin hardening.
Arthur's eyes narrowed. Devil Fruit… Zoan?
Drakkon hissed, his voice layered with inhuman rasp.
"Hebi-Hebi no Mi: Model Anaconda!"
His torso lengthened, muscles expanding as his lower body twisted into a massive serpent tail. He loomed ten feet tall, half-man, half-serpent, scales glistening with Armament Haki.
He lunged, tail whipping with the force of a battering ram. Arthur crossed Sriyo in both hands, blocking — but the impact hurled him back into a crystal pillar, shattering it.
Arthur coughed dust, but his eyes burned with fire. Zoan users… they mix durability with ferocity. But even serpents bleed.
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Arthur steadied his breathing, silver aura flickering around him. Conqueror's Haki rippled outward, lightning crackling as weaker enemies collapsed unconscious.
Drakkon's slit eyes widened. "Yes… that's it! Drown me in that storm, Arthur!"
Arthur charged, feet exploding crystal shards beneath each step. Sriyo slashed upward in a blinding arc.
Drakkon met it head-on with both scaled arms. The impact split the battlefield, wind shrieking as crystal spires collapsed.
Arthur pivoted, abandoning brute strength for speed — sliding low, blade humming with silver Armament. He cut across Drakkon's thigh, sparks and blood spraying.
The serpent howled, tail whipping. Arthur ducked beneath, rolling forward, slashing again across Drakkon's ribs.
Precision. Don't fight the beast head-on. Carve him apart piece by piece.
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Roaring, Drakkon slammed both arms into the ground. Crystal shards erupted upward like jagged fangs, forming a cage around Arthur. His serpent body coiled, enclosing him in darkness.
"Serpent Fang: Crushing Maw!"
The coils tightened, ground groaning as the walls shrank inward.
Arthur felt the cage closing, pressure threatening to crush him alive. His blade vibrated with his Haki, silver light crackling.
I won't be caged. Not by this man, not by this world. I'll tear every chain until the storm is free.
He closed his eyes for half a second, listening — the future whispered. The faint opening, the instant of weakness.
Arthur exhaled.
"Silver Tempest: Severing Gale!"
He unleashed a full-circle slash, Conqueror's Haki lacing the blade. A storm of silver energy erupted, shattering the serpent cage, cleaving through Drakkon's coils.
Drakkon screamed, his form splitting, blood spraying in fountains. He collapsed to his knees, chest heaving, half-man, half-serpent bleeding into the crystalline ground.
Arthur stood tall, Sriyo dripping with blood, silver hair glowing in the forge's light. His voice was calm, resolute:
"Your fangs break here. The storm moves on."
Drakkon's grin, blood-stained, lingered even in defeat. "Good… then may your storm swallow the world…"
He collapsed unconscious.
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✨ End of Chapter 70
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