The acrid smell of gunpowder spread across the sea in the blink of an eye. One by one, pitch-black cannon muzzles spewed blazing flames, launching powerful shells forward with immense force.
"Whoosh!"
A shrill, air-splitting sound broke the tranquility of the sea.
"Jason!" With a loud shout, the longsword in Rojen's hand was already unsheathed, and his entire figure soared into the sky like a great bird spreading its wings.
"Dugu Nine Swords!"
A piercing screech rang out as Rojen's figure flickered rapidly. In the blink of an eye, with the aid of his internal energy, his silhouette had already spread all throughout the air.
"Shunpo!"
His pupils shrank as his body twisted again, and he vanished from where he stood. In the next instant, Rojen reappeared in front of the first wave of cannonfire.
The dark cannonballs carried terrifying potential energy and kinetic force; a single touch would trigger a devastating explosion. Against such an onslaught, without incredibly formidable means, no one could hope to survive.
Yet despite the heavy atmosphere, Rojen's expression showed no panic.
With a wave of his right hand, Rainbow Abyss sparkled with countless sword flowers, dazzling and elegant in the air, there was a unique, striking beauty in the spectacle.
"Xiū Xiū Xiū Xiū!"
With a strange flash of sword light, he stabbed directly at the center of a cannonball.
At that exact moment, the two-tomoe in Rojen's eyes spun rapidly. His longsword shimmered once again.
"Shuā Shuā Shuā!"
Three consecutive sword thrusts followed, striking nearly simultaneously at three other cannonballs not far from the first one.
"Buzz--"
For a split second, space itself seemed to freeze. The three speeding cannonballs suddenly halted, suspending midair.
Rojen sheathed his sword, his body twisting as he disappeared once more.
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"
A series of explosions erupted the next instant, roaring flames shooting into the sky, sweeping outward and triggering secondary blasts among the incoming cannonballs.
Elsewhere in the void, Rojen's figure flashed constantly. With the help of his Sharingan, he precisely identified the trajectories of the cannonballs, swinging his sword to freeze each one before massive explosions followed.
In just five to six seconds, Rojen flickered back onto [The Logan].
Lifting his gaze slightly, he watched the chain of explosions in front of him. His expression grew sharp and serious.
These cannonballs packed tremendous impact, they exploded upon contact and were even hard to deflect or redirect. This alone showed the extraordinary origins of their attackers. Clearly, these were specially designed shells, different from the ones typically used by Marines or regular pirates, and far more destructive.
Aboard the enemy pirate ship, the crew looked startled as the cannonballs exploded before even reaching their intended range.
"Not bad… Draw your weapons. Prepare for boarding combat!"
The pirate who had given the original command spoke coldly.
"Clang, "
With cruel grins, the pirates stood, drawing their long blades or pistols.
With a muffled "whoosh," a torch was lit on their ship, instantly illuminating the sea in a fiery glow.
"Kill!"
A blood-curdling war cry tore through the night sky, echoing all the way to [The Logan], rousing Rouge from her rest.
"What's going on?"
She was about to get up and step outside to look, but just then, she saw Lordling shaking his head at her with a serious expression.
In that moment, Rouge understood.
No matter what was happening outside, if she went out at this moment, she would only become a burden to Rojen and the others, and could easily distract them during battle.
"We can't let the fight be drawn to our ship. Captain, hold the line here, I'm charging ahead!"
Jason shouted loudly. Seeing the enemy less than ten meters away, he bent his knees, and a terrifying burst of power exploded from him, causing [The Logan] to dip slightly under the pressure.
In the very next second, he soared into the sky, directly crossing the ten-meter gap and arriving above the enemy ship.
Then, Jason let out a low shout:
"You punks have guts, huh? Daring to sneak attack your Lord Jason's ship!"
His enormous build and explosive motion made his speed shocking, before the enemy could even react, he had already arrived.
Hearing the thunderous voice from overhead, the pirates were stunned and quickly looked up.
And in the next moment, BOOM, the entire deck of the ship shattered like it had been hit by a cannonball.
"Die!"
Standing atop the fractured deck, Jason's feet had left a crater. Around him, the pirates wore terrified expressions, some hadn't even processed what just happened.
"Were we just hit?"
"My god, what just fell from the sky?"
"Get out of there, fast!"
With Jason's weight and the terrifying explosive force of his landing, a ten-meter radius of the ship's deck caved in and cracked violently, causing the entire ship to tremble.
"Jason really is a strategic weapon... I never realized how strong he actually is," Rojen said in surprise.
He rarely saw Jason fight. And when he did, it was usually a clean instakill. Such raw, explosive violence was rare even for him.
With his sword in hand, standing on the bow of [The Logan], Rojen closely observed the enemy's movements.
After being hit by Jason's surprise strike, the enemy ship's bow was nearly destroyed, and the pirates onboard were thrown into chaos.
Then, from within the smoke and dust, Jason's massive form slowly stood upright, rising tall.
Suddenly, he reached out with both hands, left and right, and grabbed two pirates who hadn't managed to escape.
"Ha!"
With a loud roar, Jason swung the two of them like weapons, spun them in three wide circles, and then flung them outward.
The two pirates crashed into over a dozen nearby enemies, and the immense force of the throw made them all spit blood and fly backward. It was a terrifying sight, clean, efficient, and brutal. Nearly twenty people were taken down in a flash, sending chills through the remaining pirates.
As the dust slowly cleared, Jason's figure became fully visible.
That cold expression, that towering build, the thick arms, and the overwhelming aura he exuded from just now, it all made him look like a demon standing proud.
"You guys... think you can just mess with us?"
His deep voice carried thunderous fury, making the pirates tremble.
"Y-You... who the hell are you!?"
The strength he showed had caught them completely off guard. All of their carefully laid plans had been destroyed by just one man, his sheer presence overwhelming.
"Mad or not, who cares! Get him! Captain's watching!"
The cold man who first gave orders roared once again.
Hearing this, the pirates snapped out of their daze, tightened their grip on their weapons, and rushed forward again.
"He's just one guy! Get him, brothers!"
With a unified battle cry, the pirates charged at Jason.
"You've got guts!"
Seeing they still dared to come at him, Jason bellowed, unleashing his power once more.
"BOOM BOOM BOOM!"
The ship trembled violently, and the deck around Jason began to tear apart once again.
"CRACK CRACK CRACK!"
Fissures spread rapidly, and the pirates, seeing this horrifying scene, began to retreat in panic.
But at that moment, Jason had already pulled out his legs and started striding forward.
(End Of This Chapter)
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