Let us turn our eyes back to the battlefield.
Boom!!!
A sonic boom tore through the air. Bullet's body blurred into a black afterimage, his speed more than doubling in an instant.
Facing a dive that felt powerful enough to shatter the world, the playful smile vanished from Reid's face.
Reid thought, I have to beat Bright and make him forge me a new set of gear.
He did not dodge.
He did not take on any exaggerated defensive stance.
He simply raised his right hand, fingers spread, and reached toward the roaring black meteor rushing straight at him.
A blood mist gathered.
It did not scatter, but condensed tightly in his palm, compressing, expanding, and spinning at high speed, forming a dark red vortex that seemed to devour light itself.
There was no earth shaking momentum.
No violent explosion of aura.
In the next instant, the black meteor and the dark red vortex collided.
Boom!!!
Time seemed to freeze.
The expected explosion never came.
Bullet's all out strike, powerful enough to shatter mountains, vanished the moment it plunged into the dark red vortex.
All of its force and killing intent were swallowed and crushed by that bottomless spiral.
Bullet's pupils shrank violently. For the first time, disbelief appeared on his face. He could feel all of his power being mercilessly broken down and absorbed by that tiny vortex.
"How is this possible?!"
Reid stood before the throne, one hand raised. The dark red vortex spun in front of his palm, devouring Bullet's full powered attack.
He glanced at Bright's twisted face only inches away, the annoying grin returning to the corner of his lips as he spoke softly.
"Too expensive."
"Paying five billion just to buy your life is way overpriced."
"Tch. That is a losing deal. I am not interested."
The moment the words fell, Reid clenched his fingers.
The dark red vortex that had swallowed Bullet's attack stopped spinning, then erupted in reverse with terrifying force.
Boom!!!!!
A horrific shockwave, fused from Bright's Hell Dive and Reid's own power, slammed straight into Bright's chest, with Reid's palm at its center.
"Waaah!!!"
Bullet did not even have time to process what had happened before he was blasted backward at even greater speed than when he charged in. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he turned into a black streak cutting across the sky above Golden City.
Crystal wineglasses shimmered in the light. The world seemed to fall silent.
From Bright's imposing entrance, to him throwing away the treasure chest and unleashing his killing blow, to being sent flying by Reid with a single casual strike.
Reid had raised only one hand from start to finish.
The entire exchange lasted barely ten seconds.
Some of the observing allied kings, whose strength was unclear, could not help muttering in awe, "That guy looks incredible. No wonder he is someone special."
Yet figures like Whitebeard and Garp wore tense expressions.
Reid, however, showed a hint of interest. He knew that although the strike had landed cleanly, a warrior like Bright would not be truly weakened by something like this. If Bright went down so easily, Reid would be deeply disappointed.
If Bullet was not strong enough, many of Reid's plans would have to change.
With a thunderous crash, Bullet burst out of a massive crater on the island. His dark armor was dented and scraped in several places, but the fire in his eyes burned even brighter. He stared at Reid on the throne of Golden City, chest heaving, not from exhaustion, but from pure exhilaration.
"Not enough! Still not enough, Reid! Is that all you have? That was nothing more than a tickle!"
Bullet roared and stomped his foot again. The faint glow of the Combination Fruit flared, and he shot forward like a cannonball toward Golden City once more.
This time, he was even faster. His power was more tightly focused. The aura coating his gauntlet almost solidified into black red lightning.
Reid watched Bright charge again, a flicker of thought passing through his eyes. He remained where he was, not even taking on a clear fighting stance.
Just as Bullet's devastating punch was about to land.
Reid's body shifted slightly.
"Watch closely. Cool is a feeling."
Boom!!!
Bullet's fist grazed Reid's clothing and smashed into the golden ground before the throne. The solid golden floor shattered instantly.
"He dodged?!" Bullet's pupils contracted, but his battle instincts kicked in. He twisted his body and slammed his elbow toward Reid's head.
"Take this. My Mamba Elbow!"
But Reid's figure blurred again, like a phantom made of blood mist. The elbow passed straight through the image and struck nothing but air.
"An illusion?" Bright froze for a split second.
The next instant, a sharp pain exploded across his side.
Slash!
A blade formed from highly condensed blood mist cut silently across his armor, sparks flying.
Reid muttered, "Ghost, ghost. If you do not use the Black Tide Greatsword, you cannot even break through, can you? I want it even more now. Are you showing off on purpose?"
"Gah!" Bright growled and turned toward Reid, who had appeared at another position beside him. The figure that had been struck by the elbow slowly faded away.
"You bastard! Using dirty tricks like this!"
Bullet roared as the thrusters on his back flared again. He charged like a hurricane, his fists pouring down in a storm of blows.
"Combination Technique: Hundred Fist Barrage!"
"Ora, ora, ora!"
Countless aura coated fists flooded the space around Reid. They moved too fast for the naked eye to follow, sealing off every path of escape.
At last, Reid truly moved.
He did not meet the attack head on.
He did not fully retreat.
Instead, he swayed like a small boat in a violent storm, his body moving in an eerie, delicate rhythm.
"Paper Arts."
Paper Arts, like Iron Body, if you look at it that way.
His movements did not seem fast. They even looked relaxed. Yet he always slipped past the most lethal edges of the blows by the narrowest margin.
The beauty of Paper Arts revealed itself.
When he could not avoid an удар, he formed thin shields of凝結 blood mist before his body, or used non vital parts like his arms or shoulders to block.
Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang.
The dull thuds of flesh colliding rang out again and again. Reid's body was struck repeatedly, yet his expression never changed.
The more Bullet attacked, the more panic and irritation twisted his face.
It felt like every ounce of his strength was striking air, or being neutralized in some bizarre way. His opponent was like a living fog. He could not grab hold of him, nor could he break through him. Every strike that seemed to land gave him no real sense of impact or progress.
"Are you only going to dodge, Reid?!"
Bullet roared, landing what looked like a solid blow that sent Reid staggering back.
Then, suddenly, he crossed his arms tightly.
"Super Combined Force: Binding Shackles!"
The armor on his arms morphed and extended, transforming into countless barbed black metal chains that wrapped around Reid and tightened instantly. This time, they felt solid.
"Got you!"
Bullet's face twisted into a cold grin as he poured all his strength into tightening the chains, determined to crush Reid completely.