Chapter 10

10. It's time to kill.

Liu Hao's voice was gentle, but his words placed himself in a position where Goina had to quickly get Koushiro to save him. This was equivalent to giving Goina a daunting task, not letting her abandon him and run away, but telling her that if she could quickly call Koushiro, he would be fine.

Goina didn't have time to think much; her small body instantly ran towards the dojo, her face filled with determination.

Liu Hao watched Goina run away and smiled. "Kids are so easy to deceive!"

"I don't know if I'll die, but who cares? After all, I've already gained a lot, haven't I?"

"Come on, let me see how terrifying pirates can be?"

"Really caught off guard! I have to start killing so soon. They say the first time you kill is very uncomfortable. I wonder if I'll vomit later. I have to hold it in; if I vomit, I'll be easily killed!"

"Speaking of which, have I already developed the resolve of a swordsman, carrying a sword even while shopping? I guess I really am suited to be a swordsman!"

"Here they come? Why am I so calm seeing my first killing? Are these pirates? They don't follow any rules at all! Don't they usually spout a bunch of nonsense before killing? What a lousy villain! But that's right, these are just minions!"

"Come on, minions!"

Thoughts flashed through Liu Hao's mind one after another, his thoughts jumping wildly, but his face remained unusually calm. With each breath, he adjusted his state to the best possible.

"Ha ha ha, there's actually a swordsman! Killing him will be so satisfying!"

A tall, muscular pirate raised his knife and ran straight towards Liu Hao, spouting trash talk and a sinister expression on his face.

The tall pirate ran to about two meters in front of Liu Hao, and the knife in his raised hand began to slash down. Clearly, he was an experienced killer, well aware of the distance he needed to cover while running.

At this moment, Liu Hao suddenly took a step forward. At the same time, his right hand swiftly drew the sword from its sheath and raised it upward.

A flash of sword light, and the pirate's entire arm, including his shoulder, was severed. Before his scream could spread, Liu Hao's raised sword slashed down, the blade aiming straight for the pirate's head. In an instant, a large head rolled down the slope, and the headless body spurted a gush of dark red blood and fell backward.

This scene made the subsequent pirates hesitate. The first kill was completed in a flash, and surprisingly, Liu Hao didn't feel the slightest discomfort.

A faint smile appeared on his calm and indifferent face, which seemed somewhat eerie. To a certain extent, it also intimidated the rampant pirates, making them realize that there was not only a lamb but also a tiger here.

The pirates didn't move, and neither did Liu Hao. He needed to buy time. By now, Goina had run far away and should have reached the Ichin dojo soon.

"Kill him..."

A pirate who looked like a minion leader reacted first. His shout woke up the other minions. They were all seasoned killers and weren't easily scared by Liu Hao. If they were, they wouldn't be pirates.

Liu Hao saw the minions react and knew that waiting any longer might result in being surrounded. It was better to strike first. Thinking this, he acted immediately.

His body moved sideways, and he swung his sword. Before the nearest minion could fully react, he was killed with one strike.

This strike shocked the other minions, who instinctively took a step back. Liu Hao pressed his advantage, lunging forward and stabbing precisely at the throat. This was the result of countless basic sword techniques, executed flawlessly.

Liu Hao's position was quite advantageous. He was at the top of the slope, and the bodies of the killed pirates rolled down the small hill, disrupting the pirates' formation and rhythm.

This also gave Liu Hao an opening. The new batch of pirates hadn't reached the top of the slope, so the first group of pirates couldn't take advantage of their numbers. Seizing this opportunity, Liu Hao's movements sped up, slashing and thrusting, making the pirates flail and their sinister expressions turn to fear.

In a short time, Liu Hao found an opening and killed one, disarmed another, and cut off the arm of a surrounding pirate. He felt a sense of relief.

One-on-three, in a few breaths, he killed one and severely injured another. This gave Liu Hao confidence, and his movements didn't stop.

He pursued the severely injured pirate, cutting off his head, and then lunged forward, thrusting with a relentless momentum that made the last surviving pirate stiffen and fall into darkness.

The first six pirates who climbed the small hill were all killed. Liu Hao took a deep breath to calm his accelerated heartbeat and surveyed the second batch of pirates. This group was larger, and more pirates were rushing from a distance. There were already about thirty in his line of sight.

Liu Hao kicked a nearby corpse, which hit a pirate and sent three of them rolling down the hill, affecting the others. He used the terrain to his advantage.

This scene made the subsequent pirates more cautious, creating a buffer between the second and third batches. Liu Hao's eyes lit up; he needed to act quickly. He jumped and delivered a powerful slash, splitting a pirate in half. Once he landed, he made a horizontal cut, sending a head flying high.

The continuous killings brought a killing aura around Liu Hao. Without pausing, he charged into the pirate group, thrusting and slashing, and by the time he reached the top of the slope, only one weak pirate remained, trembling. Liu Hao didn't hesitate, and with a swift strike, blood splattered.

The consecutive annihilation of two batches of pirates made the subsequent pirates hesitant, and the scene became tense.

Soon, a roar came from the port. Liu Hao looked up and saw a man over two meters tall with a shoulder width of one meter, wielding a large cleaver. As he shouted, he split a pirate in half.

The tense atmosphere was broken. These pirates knew their captain's unpredictable temper. If they didn't charge, they might be killed by their own captain. Compared to the captain's build, Liu Hao looked much thinner.

Liu Hao knew a new battle was about to begin. He kicked two corpses to avoid being surrounded. The new batch of pirates was even larger, and the effect of the kicked corpses was better. Seeing this, Liu Hao kicked another corpse towards the largest group.

The corpse was split by the pirates and hit a few of them. It wasn't entirely ineffective. Liu Hao decided to wait and see. Charging down the slope would be difficult, so it was better to defend from the top. He kicked the remaining corpse towards the subsequent pirates, letting the first wave face the battle and dealing with them one by one.

After killing over ten, Liu Hao was now more adept. He knew how much force to use to kill an enemy without exerting full strength with each strike. He also gained a new understanding of how to maximize damage and target vital points.

Standing at the top of the slope, he used the corpses to buy time, letting a few pirates through. This made the pirates come in waves, and soon, they left another seven corpses, giving Liu Hao more weapons to use.

The pirates, seeing this, were intimidated. Even the foolish ones could see Liu Hao's strategy. The remaining pirates became hesitant, moving more slowly as they climbed, wary of the corpses being thrown at them. They also learned to spread out, leaving space to dodge.

Liu Hao surveyed the pirates and realized he had already killed more than half. From the top of the slope to the port, there were fewer than twenty pirates left. However, the pirate captain approaching from the port made Liu Hao's slightly proud heart calm down. No matter how many minions there were, the real battle was just beginning.

Kururu considered himself a great captain. Since setting sail, he had been invincible, never encountering a true opponent. On the last island he raided, a swordsman had killed many of his crew, but so what? There were plenty of crew members, and their deaths didn't matter. That strong-looking swordsman was no match for him, taking only two strikes.

From that experience, Kururu believed the legends of swordsmen in taverns were exaggerated. His immense strength was unmatched, and the swordsman he had split in two was the best proof.

Today, the swordsman in front of him would be no different. It was time to show the remaining pirates his true power, proving his strength and ensuring their loyalty.

With this thought, Kururu quickened his pace and roared, "Get out of the way, you trash!"

Kururu's words relieved the hesitant pirates. Now they wouldn't have to die, as their invincible captain was finally taking action.

"Kill him..."

"Kill him..."

The pirates, with the background of extras, stepped aside and cheered for their captain, creating a tense atmosphere.

Liu Hao narrowed his eyes, looking at the giant in front of him. He felt some pressure; the man's build alone showed his immense strength.

Liu Hao knew his own strength. He wasn't as strong as Zheng Zhi, let alone this pirate captain who looked over 300 pounds, like Shaquille O'Neal.

Brute force was not the way to go. He needed to rely on speed and skill, maximizing his advantages and minimizing the opponent's.

Kururu, carrying his large cleaver, approached the top of the slope with a confident, sinister smile, unaware that Liu Hao had no intention of matching his strength.

From confidence to arrogance was a thin line. As Kururu approached, Liu Hao had already formulated his strategy. He knew that a man of Kururu's build had a significant weakness: slow turning and less fluid movements.

When Kururu was about three meters from Liu Hao, he swung his large cleaver with great force, his eyes filled with excitement. In his mind, the opponent would be split in half with one strike.

Seeing Kururu swing his cleaver, Liu Hao didn't retreat but charged forward, seemingly heading straight for the blade. However, his speed was faster than Kururu's, and before Kururu could strike, Liu Hao had already passed by, a flash of sword light cutting Kururu's foot tendons.

Liu Hao's strike severed Kururu's foot tendons, causing him to fall backward, almost losing his grip on the large cleaver.

Liu Hao, after the strike, was already three meters away. Kururu's fall created a loud thud.

This unguarded backward fall was severe, causing a momentary dizziness. Unfortunately, Liu Hao's momentum was downward, and he couldn't stop, charging all the way to the port before stopping.

The remaining pirates were shocked by Kururu's fall. They didn't see the details, only that Liu Hao and their captain had passed each other, and their captain had fallen. This was too strong!

Liu Hao stopped, seeing the pirates in shock. He couldn't afford to hesitate, and his sword flashed, quickly taking down a few. The remaining pirates finally reacted, scattering in fear.

Liu Hao seized the opportunity, pursuing and killing a few more. The pirates were now gone, and Liu Hao panted heavily, having used up most of his energy.

Regarding Pirate King Kururu, Liu Hao wasn't in a hurry. A man with one foot unable to support him couldn't stand, let alone move.

At this moment, it was better to deal with the pirates left on the ship first. A pirate crew, no matter how poor, would have a lot of money, which was a godsend for Liu Hao, who was severely lacking in beli.

Liu Hao boarded the pirate ship, spent a few minutes searching, and dealt with the four pirates left on board before leaving the ship.

At the port, Koushiro and the others had arrived. The unfortunate Kururu never understood why that tall, thin swordsman, with a light, distant swing of his sword, had plunged him into darkness.

"Teacher Koushiro, six pirates have scattered and fled!"

Liu Hao had counted several times and remembered the number of fleeing pirates clearly. If these pirates weren't found and dealt with, they could cause a tragedy.

Koushiro nodded at Liu Hao. Before reaching the top of the slope, he had already activated his Observation Haki, and Liu Hao's entire battle was within his range. The fleeing pirates couldn't escape Koushiro's eyes.

Koushiro was very satisfied with Liu Hao's performance. He knew Liu Hao's strength and that he had no combat experience before. In a short time, Liu Hao had gone from a combat novice to someone who could control the entire situation, exceeding Koushiro's expectations.

"The calm and wisdom in a life-or-death battle; is this the demeanor of a king?"

Koushiro thought to himself, his eyes involuntarily drifting towards Goina.

"Senior Goina, thank you for informing the teacher so quickly!"

"Hmph!"

The young Goina, feeling a bit dazed but proud, lifted her head. She had done a good job.

Koushiro, however, patted Goina's head and smiled.