章 33: Chapter 33: Backblade · The Sword of Immortality, The Undead Monster!
Corpse!
Rotting, worm-covered corpses lay strewn about, the stench unbearable, like fish rotting in the dog days of summer.
Leno, Luwell, and Kuina covered their noses simultaneously.
There were four or five corpses in front of them, still clad in the uniforms of a sword shop assistant.
"Ugh!"
The sight was too much to bear.
Luwell and Kuina bolted outside, retching violently.
Leno held his breath, his sharp gaze falling upon a desiccated corpse in the corner.
Strange!
An instinctual suspicion gnawed at Leno, compelling him to study the mummified figure.
Unlike the others, this body was not decomposed, its skin shriveled and dry as though drained of blood—eerily similar to the cases reported in the newspaper.
"This corpse… was it killed by a demon sword?"
"But why?"
"The body is naked, as if something was deliberately hidden."
Speculation brewed in Leno's mind.
"Kaze killed his assistant to forge a sword. Someone came to investigate, found out, and was slain by the demon sword."
This was mere conjecture, pieced together by reasoning.
Squinting, Leno approached the corpse, carefully examining the wound. It ran through the back, and from the narrowness of the blade, he deduced it was a sword.
Leno mentally sketched out the sword's design based on the wound's edge.
Suddenly, a sense of danger overwhelmed him.
Observation Haki warned him just in time to avoid an attack—a withered hand, glowing with a sinister red light.
The red light condensed into a sword, strikingly similar to the sketch in Leno's mind.
The difference was that this sword had a reverse blade.
The figure wielding the sword was a dried, dead body, its eye sockets bleeding—a truly horrifying sight.
In the next instant, Leno shattered it with a hardened fist, the blow disintegrating both the undead figure and the ominous reverse blade.
"The demon sword can suck blood and control the corpses it kills?"
"Kaze knew about the evil nature of Dragon's Gold. He forged the Reverse Blade to avoid killing, but now it's out of control?"
The world of pirates is rife with evil.
In the Grand Line, there exists a cursed demon sword, which shares similar malevolent properties.
Wanokuni's Enma is no less dangerous.
Although Kozaburo didn't explicitly say so, it's highly likely some Dragon's Gold was used in its creation.
Their family's departure from Wanokuni was not unrelated to Enma.
"Kaze left with the Shimotsuki family. He must have known that Kozaburo used Dragon's Gold to forge Enma, and warned me on purpose."
Leno exited the shop, feeling nauseous as he thought of the corpse inside.
"The wind is coming!"
With a mere thought, a breeze rose from nowhere.
It swirled around them, sweeping away the stench.
"Huh, wind?"
Luwell, surprised, reached out to touch the wind, glancing suspiciously at Leno. She wondered if he had eaten a Devil Fruit.
Kuina, however, wasn't surprised. She had seen Leno demonstrate his wind-controlling swordsmanship before.
The talent of Wind's Blessing is remarkably convenient.
For forging, a blower is required.
But Leno has no need for one; he can control the airflow himself.
Practice makes perfect.
Constant use is the most effective way to harness talents.
This holds true for swordsmanship, Devil Fruit abilities, and more.
"Did you find anything?"
"Two things! First, more people have died under the demon sword than expected."
"Second, those who are killed or slashed by the demon sword fall under its control."
Luwell was shocked, "Wait, you're saying the demon sword controls them? Then Kuro..."
"Yes, if nothing else, Kuro had an accident."
Leno's tone was somber.
In a world where Kuro was injured, such an outcome was inevitable.
"Are there any others who have been slashed by the demon sword?"
"A few! Should we find them?"
Leno replied, "No need, they're already here!"
"What?"
Luwell turned, following Leno's gaze, her hair standing on end as her scalp tingled.
Night had fallen.
Glass Ball Island was plunged into darkness, and on the street, pairs of red eyes glowed with a sinister light.
Dozens, hundreds of figures, wielding blood-colored reverse blades, gathered towards them, like the undead.
Luwell's breath caught in her throat; the scene was terrifying.
"How could it be? The demon sword cut down so many people?"
"It's contagious. Those slashed by the demon sword, if they cut others, also fall under its control."
Leno thought for a moment, then released his Conqueror's Haki, directing its invisible pressure towards the front row of figures.
After extensive training, Leno could now control his Conqueror's Haki, targeting specific individuals.
A wide-scale release would be indiscriminate, affecting Luwell and Kuina as well.
"Sure enough, it's useless?"
The figures in the front row merely trembled before continuing their advance.
Leno frowned.
"These people, under the demon sword's control, can still move even if they faint. Conqueror's Haki is ineffective."
His expression grave, he warned, "Don't let them slash you!"
Luwell drew her twin guns and fired immediately.
Kuina bent her knees slightly.
She drew her sword and slashed!
A wave of sword energy was unleashed.
She had stepped into the realm of a swordsman!
Leno didn't draw his sword. Instead, he charged into the crowd, sweeping his leg, and a gust of wind knocked several people to the ground.
However, it was futile.
Even when hit by bullets or slashed by swords, these people showed no signs of pain and continued their advance.
Their strength wasn't overwhelming, but their sheer numbers and unrelenting advance created an oppressive atmosphere, like that of undead monsters, solely focused on cutting you down.
Moreover, their numbers kept increasing.
It was evident that Leno's discovery had enraged the demon sword, causing it to spread its power, aiming to kill Leno and his companions.
Luwell, having run out of bullets, transformed using her Devil Fruit ability into a half-human, half-spider form.
Her spider form was far more elegant than Ruen's.
Her upper body, still human, was encased in a sleek spider armor, which, combined with her spider lower body, exuded a strange, enchanting beauty.
Her spider tail lashed out.
She spun webs, ensnaring groups of people in the sticky threads.
Seeing those trapped in the webs, an idea sparked in Leno's mind, "Luwell, you know how Ruen did it, right?"
"Huh? Yes!"
"Kuina, lead them to the Spider Casino. Luwell, use your webs to control them. I'll go find the demon sword's main body."
"Got it!"
With the plan set, Leno flexed his arms.
[Wind's Blessing]!
A wild wind surged from behind him, pushing forward, clearing a path.
Kuina and Luwell immediately dashed towards the Spider Casino.
Leno bent his knees slightly and leaped, landing on the roof of a building over ten meters high. He stepped on the wind beneath his feet and ascended further.
From that height, he overlooked the entire island, noticing that battles were raging in other areas too.
The demon sword couldn't act so recklessly without leaving some trace. It had to be on the island, hidden among the crowd.
Leno released his Observation Haki.
He closed his eyes and listened.
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