Chapter 832: Chapter 512: Bearing Sin
The appearance of the seven-colored halo made Hawkins and the other two’s faces twitch; their originally clear expressions sank into an even deeper calm, as if they’d lost all interest in everything, like they’d seen through the world.
Sage’s brows knit as he threw another punch, blasting it into Bode’s body.
The power of will broke through the ability, making more blood spurt out of Bode’s whole body, but that seven-colored halo once again covered him, propping up his body and keeping him standing.
"As expected, I can’t defend against Haki, but fortunately, I can still support my body to move... By the way, the desires I absorb won’t return even after I die. If I can trade my life for the ’conversion’ of a Four Emperors, then death is worth it."
He took a deep breath and raised his guard again, seven-colored light mixed with Haki shining on his fists as he stared straight at Sage. "Then, it’s my turn to strike."
His footwork shifted, leaving a streak of seven-colored light and a residual afterimage as he flashed in front of Sage and swung a hook.
"Sensory Overload!"
Bam!
His fist was casually caught by Sage. Sage let out a scornful chuckle. "Your Haki’s not bad, but that’s all it is."
"That’s not it."
Bode smiled mysteriously. "My techniques aren’t that easy to block. This punch can knock out your bodily desire, and it’ll make you lose control over your own body so you can’t perceive the outside. Even with Haki resisting it, you can’t completely shut out my ability. As long as I slowly grind away..."
Smack!
That warm, gentle smile was clamped by a big hand, cutting his words off in his throat.
"You’re not wrong. People with power do get to talk a bit more, but with your power, you’re only worth two sentences!"
Sage bared his teeth, revealing a mouthful of cold, white fangs. As he grabbed Bode’s face, white steam began to billow off his entire body.
"I’ve had enough of your bullshit. From now on, you shut up!"
Under the shroud of white steam, his body started to swell, becoming progressively more savage.
The knots of muscle twisted and bulged wildly, writhing and Coiling across his skin. His lean shoulders rapidly expanded, twisting and condensing, and as they kept rising, they looked like steel beams, connecting from left to right into the back of his neck. Outside those shoulders, two pieces of shoulder armor, one large and one small, formed from condensed muscle.
Sage’s voice turned deep and rough. "Someone like you isn’t qualified to see my Full Form. I’ll show you a stance I haven’t used in a long time instead! One hundred percent!"
Crack!
The sound of bone shattering rang out as Sage’s swelling fingers tightened, sinking into Bode’s skull, seemingly crushing it by brute force!
Boom!!
The next instant, Sage flicked his arm, hurling the man far away like he was throwing a shot put.
At the same time, he bent his knees. The ground beneath his feet instantly cracked and caved in, and his whole body launched like a fired cannon shell. The moment he left the ground, he started to spin.
The Coiling Haki around him turned him into a black whirlwind that rapidly swelled into a tornado, chasing down Bode before he could hit the ground.
"Hundred-Slit Heroic Spin!"
The black tornado dissipated, revealing Sage’s ferocious body, and that leg of his, snapping out like a whip, slammed into Bode’s chest.
Bang!!
With that one kick, Bode dropped like a cannonball, slamming into the ground and blasting out a huge crater, the rebound kicking his body slightly back up.
Whoosh!
In that brief moment his body bounced, Sage’s three-meter-plus frame appeared at his side. A rising kick struck Bode’s lower back; as his body bent backward, Sage’s leg carried him upward, flinging him up to Sage’s chest level.
Bam!
Then a snapping roundhouse kicked him straight away. As he flew, Sage turned into a blur again, appearing in the direction Bode was flying and launching another kick that sent him flying once more.
Bam bam bam!
Like he was playing baseball, Sage kept zipping at high speed to wherever Bode was sent, one strike after another knocking him away. Bode had no ability to counterattack, only bouncing around this space like a ball.
Until he was blasted off once more, his body flying upright into the distance—he hadn’t even gone three meters when Sage appeared at his flank. A vicious hand chopped down, a knife-hand strike cleaving into his throat.
Crack!
The massive impact bent Bode’s cervical spine; his head and torso were driven forward in the same direction by the hand chop, like a dying candle flickering in the wind.
As that blow landed, Sage’s knife-hand instantly opened, grabbing Bode’s face again and hoisting him high.
"Ugh..."
Bode squeezed out a hoarse sound from his crushed throat, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth. His body was already riddled with holes, dents everywhere.
"Oh? Still not dead..."
Sage grinned savagely. "The sins you’re carrying don’t seem to cut it. Your will doesn’t cut it either. You can withstand my Haki, but you can’t withstand my attacks."
Bode’s Haki level was quite good; in Sage’s eyes, it counted as a strongman of the sea. That so-called "sinful desire" he held seemed to have boosted his willpower.
As for Sage, his Haki right now was mid-tier among the Four Emperors. Not the apex, but...
Every one of his hits was at max gear!
Bode could resist the initial shock, and he could handle Sage’s normal blows, but the moment Sage added just a bit more force, he couldn’t endure it at all.
His Physique, in Sage’s eyes, really was flimsy. Forget doing sit-ups—he could barely take a few hits at this level.
If not for that ability propping him up, he’d have stopped moving a long time ago.
"Impossible..."
The seven-colored halo grew even thicker, maintaining Bode’s body and forcing sound out of his shattered throat.
"I clearly ripped out your bodily desire, so why are you still this strong? My ability should be working..."
"Of course it has an effect..."
Sage smiled wickedly. "Probably about the same as a mosquito bite. Extract my desire... My desire is infinite!"
Bode forced his ruined arm to move with his ability and threw another punch into Sage’s shoulder.
"Even if it’s sin itself, I still want to..."
Rumble!
He didn’t finish. From the gloomy sky, a bolt of Thunderbolt crashed down, striking Bode’s body dead-on. At the same time, a burst of flame exploded from Sage’s hand, turning Bode into a man of fire within the lightning.
"I told you, you should shut up!"
Sage snarled, baring his teeth. "You get a few abilities and think you can change the world your way. Not a bad idea, and your will’s not awful either. But you still can’t see the real truth of this sea—that fists being hard is the only law. And that law doesn’t stop at having just enough power to open your mouth."
"The simplest way is to beat your enemies to death, and people will naturally speak for you. You don’t have the strength to kill me, but I have the strength to kill you! Hoh hahahaha!"
Pat...
As Sage laughed wildly, a fist suddenly appeared in front of him, pressing against his brow.
"Convert you..."
In the flames, Bode forced out the words he hadn’t finished.
Sage’s brows jerked up. His muscles bulged again, his body swelling to over five meters tall. The muscular shoulder armor became three layers, and two more muscle-formed exhaust ports opened at his shoulder sockets, blasting out white steam.
"Nngh!!"
Sage grunted low, slamming Bode down into the ground. As he did, the Golden Bracelet on his hand swelled and warped, transforming into a Pirate Saber, which he brought down in a single slash.
With Haki Coiling its edge and the blade’s sharpness, even abilities couldn’t block it. With a hiss, this bizarre Monk was cleaved cleanly in two at the waist.
"I really..."
Bode’s upper half flew away from his waist, but the seven-colored halo didn’t fade. There was even a wry smile on his face. "Underestimated how strong a Four Emperors really is..."
As he spoke, his upper body, briefly separated by the cut, suddenly reached out and pressed a hand to Sage’s chest, a hint of viciousness flashing in his eyes.
"If you won’t understand, then I’ll let you experience how heavy these sins are! Take it all!!"
The seven-colored halo surged with his hands, all pouring into Sage’s chest, making Sage’s body go slightly rigid.
Only then did Bode’s upper body finally hit the ground. He spread both hands on the earth, looking up at Sage with clouded eyes, still wearing a smile:
"Take it all... all the desire I absorbed. Maybe then, you’ll finally understand how important world peace really is."
