"Take this!"
Qin Yang had little experience in close combat. He simply followed instinct and threw a punch.
For the bald captain—still half-stunned by fear—there was no time to dodge.
The shadow before him radiated an eerie, suffocating dread. His pupils shrank as he took the blow head-on.
Bang!
The impact twisted his face grotesquely. His body flew backward and crashed near the tavern entrance.
"Captain!"
The crew cried out in alarm.
"Not bad," Qin Yang muttered. "Far stronger than an ordinary civilian… but…"
Before he could finish—
A flash of steel cut through the air.
"Die, monster!"
A pirate lunged from the side, thrusting a blade toward Qin Yang's chest.
The attacker wore a smug grin—
Which vanished in the next instant.
Thud.
The sword pierced straight through Qin Yang's chest.
No blood.
No resistance.
The blade passed through his shadowy body as if stabbing smoke.
"Logia-type?!" someone gasped.
It was the same pirate who had earlier warned his crewmates about causing trouble.
Qin Yang arched a brow.
"You know about Logia-types? Impressive."
The man swallowed hard.
"Who are you?"
Qin Yang ignored the question and instead looked toward the bald captain, who had staggered back to his feet.
"You attacked me," Qin Yang said calmly. "It's only fair I retaliate. Let's test something… can I solidify?"
He focused.
His shadow condensed further.
The bald captain's eyes widened as he stumbled backward, overturning a table.
Before him stood a figure blacker than ink, solidifying from head to toe. It had no face—only two glowing eyes piercing through darkness. Black smoke continuously drifted from its body.
"So this is what solid form feels like…"
Qin Yang flexed his fingers experimentally.
"Seems I can't maintain it for long."
He raised his gaze to the captain.
Suddenly—
He moved.
His right hand clenched into a fist, black smoke swirling violently around it.
The captain barely had time to react before the punch landed.
Crash!
He flew once again, crashing through chairs and splintering wood.
"Captain!" the crew shouted again, panic spreading.
Qin Yang tilted his head.
"Strength is acceptable… though nothing special."
Suddenly—
Steel flashed again.
Another pirate slashed from behind.
"Go to hell!"
This time, Qin Yang didn't even bother turning.
The blade passed through him harmlessly.
The pirate's sword fell from his trembling fingers.
"Definitely Logia-type!"
Fear spread through the tavern.
Qin Yang chuckled.
"If that makes you feel better, you may call it that."
He glanced down at the dropped sword and picked it up casually.
By now, the bald captain had regained his footing, fury and fear mingling in his eyes.
"Who are you? Why target us?" he demanded, his tone fierce but wavering. "We are the Battleaxe Pirates! State your name!"
Qin Yang lazily tested the sword's balance.
"Didn't you say you'd kill Whitebeard? I just wanted to see what seventy-five million Berries can really do."
The captain's face darkened.
He had merely boasted while drunk.
How had that invited this nightmare?
Still, in front of his crew, he could not show weakness.
"Don't think being a Logia-type makes you invincible! Offend the Battleaxe Pirates and you won't leave here alive!"
"Enough talk."
Qin Yang lunged forward, thrusting the borrowed blade in a lightning-fast strike.
The sword flashed like a shooting star aimed straight at the captain's brow.
"Fine! If you want to die!"
The captain roared and met him head-on, cleaver raised.
Clang!
The sound rang sharply through the tavern.
The sword in Qin Yang's hand snapped cleanly in two.
"…What a terrible blade."
He glanced at the broken weapon. Its former owner wore a pained expression.
"Hahaha! My blade is forged from refined steel!" the captain roared triumphantly.
Without hesitation, he swung downward, cleaver splitting Qin Yang's shadow from head to toe.
The Shadow Demon divided into two plumes of smoke—
Then reformed instantly.
"Damn Logia!"
The captain's face turned ashen.
Up to this point, every pirate present believed Qin Yang possessed a Logia-type Devil Fruit.
Only Logia users could turn into flowing elements, rendering ordinary physical attacks useless.
"Logia?" Qin Yang shrugged. "Believe what you like."
He murmured to himself,
"Ordinary steel won't do. I'll make my own weapon."
He raised his hand.
Black smoke gathered and condensed.
In seconds, a jet-black blade materialized in his grasp.
He now understood the Shadow Demon's two primary abilities.
First: instant traversal through shadows.
Second: manipulation of his shadow body—solidifying, forming weapons, reshaping at will.
With his newly formed shadow blade, Qin Yang attacked again.
He lacked formal swordsmanship—
But he had seen enough fights to imitate the basics.
The black blade slashed forward.
The bald captain's expression shifted sharply.
"I can't block! He's immune to my attacks—this is a battle of attrition I can't win!"
If he took damage, he would bleed.
If Qin Yang took damage—
It meant nothing.
Grinding his teeth, the captain chose to dodge.
For someone with a seventy-five million Berries bounty, evasion was not impossible.
Qin Yang's first strike missed.
"Don't run," Qin Yang teased. "Fight me."
He swept horizontally.
Again, the captain twisted away.
"He's not a trained swordsman," the captain realized. "But his attack angles are unpredictable!"
A third strike—
A fourth—
Finally—
Qin Yang stopped.
"This is boring."
The captain felt relief begin to rise—
Only for Qin Yang to suddenly hurl the black blade.
Whoosh!
The projectile flashed like lightning.
Too fast to follow.
Thud!
Pain exploded in the captain's left foot.
He looked down.
The shadow blade had pierced through his foot, pinning it firmly to the tavern floor.
"AAAH!"
He screamed, cold sweat pouring down his face.
"I was only testing my swordsmanship," Qin Yang said casually. "There are far easier ways to kill you. But you kept dodging. That made things inconvenient."
The captain stared at him in disbelief.
You're trying to kill me and complaining that I dodge?!
What kind of logic was that?
Qin Yang sighed lightly.
"Seventy-five million Berries… I assume you earned that through plenty of crimes."
He glanced around at the trembling crew.
"Take some advice. Don't go to the New World. At your level, you'd barely qualify as cannon fodder."
The tavern fell silent.
No one dared move.
Qin Yang's gaze drifted toward a corner table.
An old man sat there quietly, drinking.
Without another word, Qin Yang waved his hand.
His body began to fade.
"Farewell. Perhaps I'll visit again."
Seeing him vanish, the captain gritted his teeth and shouted through the pain,
"Who are you?! State your name! I'll remember this!"
Qin Yang paused.
After a brief thought, he smiled.
"My name is Shadow Demon. I belong to the Dream Pirates. If you want revenge, come find me."
Dream.
Elusive. Untraceable.
He had decided—
All future transformations would appear under that banner.
"Dream…" the captain muttered. "Fitting. Appearing and vanishing like a phantom. Fine! Shadow Demon! You must be one of their officers! One day I'll avenge this humiliation!"
Qin Yang laughed.
"Me? I'm just an errand boy. If you want to challenge our officers, you'd better bring someone at Admiral level."
His gaze flickered once more toward the old man in the corner.
"Old man. Next time, I'll come for you."
With that—
He vanished completely.
The bald captain trembled.
"A powerful Logia-type… just an errand boy? What kind of crew is this Dream Pirates?!"
In the corner, the old man lowered his drink slightly, eyes narrowing thoughtfully.
"So he noticed me… Dream Pirates? Never heard of them. Where did they come from?"