One Piece: Building the Roxas Empire

Darius stared at Ah Shen's appearance at the moment, and the corners of his mouth could not help but slightly rise, outlining a playful smile. He said leisurely: "That's more like it! As the leader of the Tianfeng Gang, and one of the three most famous strong men in Boluo City, I want to witness your true strength with my own eyes. Come on, use all your strength to fight!"

Upon hearing this, Ah Shen's face suddenly became ferocious, with a resolute light flashing in his eyes. He had already made up his mind that he must kill Darius today. As for the previous talk of recruiting Darius, if he could still survive by chance, it would not be too late to make plans later! "Humph, I will fulfill your wish!" He growled, and the muscles all over his body seemed to be stimulated by an invisible force and swelled up.

Then, Ashen's body underwent an astonishing change. His body, which was less than two meters tall, seemed to be injected with infinite power and expanded rapidly. In just a few seconds, he had turned into a terrifying half-human, half-beast creature. His human face was covered with the ferocity of a wild beast, while his body was covered with thick animal hair. His limbs became strong and powerful, clearly in the form of an extremely mighty wolf.

"The power of the animal-type devil fruit?" Darius saw this, and a hint of surprise and excitement flashed in his eyes. He knew very well that devil fruits were rare treasures in the sea, which could give people extraordinary power. What A Shen showed at this moment was the power of the animal type, and its form should be the wolf-wolf fruit!

At this moment, the corners of Ah Shen's mouth were drawn with a ferocious arc, and his sharp fangs were looming. The momentum emanating from his body was like a violent storm, several times more powerful than before. He laughed wantonly, and his voice was filled with unquestionable majesty: "That's right, this is the animal-type devil fruit that I snatched from a pirate group two years ago - the Dog-Dog Fruit, Gray Wolf Form."

"As a gangster boss, I have long been craving for devil fruits, but the secret treasures of the sea and the source of power are usually in short supply. As a former member of the Rocks Pirates, you must have heard of the existence of devil fruits! Then, you should know that the strength of those who eat devil fruits will increase dramatically!"

Darius' eyes flashed with excitement when he heard this. He tightly grasped the Black Cleaver in his hand, pointed the axe directly at Ashen, and said in a sonorous and powerful voice: "Well, of course I know this. Then, let's continue this unfinished contest!"

A Shen's heart was also filled with an unprecedented fighting spirit. This was the first time he had fought with all his strength since he obtained the Gray Wolf Fruit. Before that, only the Seven Purgatory Demons could witness his devil fruit ability. Because in Boro City, no one was worthy of his all-out effort, not even the Tyrant and the Rat King, who were also the "Three Kings" of Boro City.

Ah Shen was very confident in his current strength. He said contemptuously: "After seeing my gray wolf form, you still dare to fight an old man like me? Your courage is commendable! If you can survive this trial, I, Ah Shen, will grant you the position of deputy leader of the Tianfeng Gang." After speaking, he moved, like a gray wolf ready to launch a more fierce attack on Darius.

"Boss, take it!" Kuang Long shouted loudly at Ah Shen, and then he suddenly threw a three-meter-long giant sword and went straight to Ah Shen. Ah Shen's height was only 1.9 meters, not yet reaching the two-meter mark, which was perfect for controlling the short and powerful Rain Dew Sword. However, after he used the power of the devil fruit, his body suddenly grew to a huge five meters. The Rain Dew Sword that was once in his hand now seemed extremely thin, like a fine needle to a giant.

A three-meter-long sword slashed at him, but Darius was not afraid at all. In an instant, the two of them were caught in a fierce battle again. Under the catalysis of the devil fruit, A Shen transformed into a human-beast form. This power gave him unprecedented speed and strength, and every inch of muscle contained explosive energy. Different from the fantasy and changeable superhuman and natural devil fruits, the animal fruit is based on pure physical strength. It is straightforward, but also shocking.

Swords flashed and swords clashed continuously. As the battle continued to heat up, both sides were left with scars of varying depths. Darius, a veteran on the battlefield, wielded the Black Cleaver while skillfully incorporating punches and kicks, layering on the Conqueror effect. Time passed like water, and in a blink of an eye, he had accumulated to the twelfth level of Conqueror, and his attack power soared, like a tiger with wings.

A Shen was even more anxious. He thought that the blessing of the devil fruit was enough to make him invincible, but he never expected that Darius's strength was beyond imagination. Even after transforming into a human-beast form, he still couldn't gain any advantage. Instead, he felt the opponent's increasingly powerful aura.

At the beginning, the two were evenly matched. Ah Shen was full of confidence, thinking that his opponent was just a spent force. After all, as an animal-type ability user, his physical strength recovery speed was much faster than that of ordinary people. A protracted war would undoubtedly be beneficial to him.

However, the development of the situation far exceeded his expectations. Darius did not show any signs of fatigue, but became more and more courageous, and his strength seemed to grow as the battle progressed. This change made A Shen feel frustrated. He no longer insisted on defense, but instead adopted a head-on strategy, slashing out with the long sword in his hand like a storm. In his human-beast form, his strength was no longer comparable to the past. Even if Darius used the armed color domineering to protect himself, it was difficult to withstand this overwhelming attack.

"Ha ha ha, it's so good, so good! I haven't felt so good in a long time, let's see who can laugh last!" Darius laughed wildly, his face filled with bloodthirsty excitement. Although he was seriously injured, the blood seemed to be the catalyst for his strength, allowing him to find unprecedented pleasure in this battle. He abandoned all his skills and the power of the devil fruit, and only relied on his body and will to start the most primitive contest with A Shen.

Black Cleaver whizzed down again, hitting Ashen accurately, and the axe blade flashed red, which was a sign that Blood Rage was activated. After five consecutive axe attacks, Blood Rage fully erupted, and Darius's attack power once again reached a new peak.

This time, when Darius activated the power of "blood rage", red flames appeared on the axe blade. Suddenly, his heavy and sharp axe, with destructive power, ruthlessly chopped down A Shen's abdomen again.

This blow not only sent Ah Shen flying like a kite with a broken string, but also caused a stream of blinding blood to gush out of his mouth. His eyes turned white due to severe pain, and he almost fell into the abyss of unconsciousness.

However, Ah Shen, who had experienced life and death time and time again, had a strong willpower like an unyielding flame burning in his heart, supporting him to barely stand firm. He staggered back a few steps, holding the shocking wound on his abdomen tightly with both hands, staring at Darius with disbelief in his eyes, and uttered with difficulty: "You...you guy, you actually hide such an amazing power..."

"Ha ha ha, I've only just finished warming up!" Darius laughed up to the sky, a ferocious arc appeared on the corner of his mouth, and his bloodshot eyes flashed with crazy fighting spirit. Since leaving the Rocks Pirates, he hasn't encountered such a hearty and exciting battle for a long time.

Even though he had several knife wounds on his body at this moment, the pleasure from the battle was like strong liquor, making him intoxicated and his blood boiling. He longed for such a duel and enjoyed this ultimate release.

"Come on! Don't stop! Keep fighting!" Darius roared, like an enraged beast, and charged towards Ashen again desperately.

Facing Darius, who had almost turned into a fighting machine, A Shen couldn't help but feel a little fear in his heart. The opponent in front of him seemed to be getting braver and braver with each fight. Every time he swung his axe, his strength surged, which was beyond common sense, making people wonder if he was still a human being.

The axe blade and the knife blade collided fiercely again, sparks flew everywhere, and every collision made the air buzz. Ashen could clearly feel that Darius's power was rising at an alarming rate, and he was becoming more and more powerless. He could only barely maintain a defensive posture and was completely trapped in a passive situation. This battle had become extremely difficult for him.