Chapter 49: Azure Dragon vs. Water Monster

Ao Xin touched his chin, standing by the riverbank in deep contemplation.

This massive creature had been slithering along the Yellow River. When it passed through the Luo River, a powerful expert from Shendu had attempted to slay it, only to be narrowly dragged into the depths.

It had been wreaking havoc in the Yellow River for a long time, causing immense suffering for the various factions that relied on the river to build their safety bases.

Yet, for the sake of water resources, these factions had no choice but to construct bases along the banks, even knowing it meant risking death.

Fortunately, the powerful monsters in the Yellow River were not overly numerous, and instead of lingering in one spot, they roamed various sections of the entire river.

People could only pray they would not cross paths with this monster.

Not only the Yellow River, but the Yangtze, the Huai, and other rivers as well, all saw the emergence of various monsters.

Some had been slain by humans, while others drifted down the rivers into the vast ocean.

And still others wreaked havoc within the waterways, ready to devour any living creature along the banks at any moment.

I need to find a way to kill this big guy.

Ao Xin pondered strategies, but no good ideas came to mind immediately.

In his past life, it was only in the later stages, once the non-Ability Users had grown stronger and learned to ignore the suppression of Seastone, that they could join forces to slay certain water monsters within the rivers.

Right now, however, anyone with combat capability was an Ability User.

Jumping into the water to slay a water monster was no easy feat.

Transforming into an Azure Dragon, he soared into the sky and looked down, spotting the faint, indistinct figure of a colossal creature amidst the churning waves.

This monster was no smaller in size than he was!

A resounding dragon roar echoed through the air, the sound waves piercing directly into the water's surface.

Underwater, the monster heard the dragon's cry and felt its dignity violated. As the ripples surged, its head broke through the water, a pair of crimson eyes locking onto the Azure Dragon in the clouds.

The Azure Dragon coiled its massive body, its own dragon eyes staring right back down at it!

The monster was nearly a hundred meters long, its body covered in pitch-black scales that flashed with a chilling gleam under the sunlight.

It was a gigantic python.

The head and neck alone of the python, poking out of the river, spanned twenty meters in length!

Roar!

The Azure Dragon roared and plummeted from the sky.

Showing no weakness, the giant python flicked its forked tongue, opened its cavernous maw, and lunged forward to bite.

"Thunder Roar!"

Amidst the dragon's cry, a bolt of lightning blasted forth from its jaws. The blinding flash was extraordinarily dazzling, and the tremendous thunderclap stunned the giant python.

Yet, how swift was the speed of lightning?

In merely an instant, the thunderbolt struck the giant python's head.

Potent electric currents coursed through the python's body, and its twitching, flickering tongue went limp, dangling weakly from the side of its mouth.

The electricity not only struck the python's head but also discharged into the river. Water being a conductor, a massive area of the river was covered by the electric current, causing numerous fish to flip onto their backs and float up to the surface.

"Heat Breath!"

Another torrent of searing flames spewed forth.

Although the Azure Dragon could command the three elements of wind, fire, and lightning, their raw destructive power did not match that of Logia-class Devil Fruits.

They could only serve as supplementary combat methods—for instance, imbuing weapons with elemental energy to enhance attacks.

Given how massive this giant python was, its scales were bound to be unimaginably tough, and he had never expected to annihilate it instantly with mere lightning and fire.

The scorching flames surged downward. Caught completely off guard while its consciousness was still numbed by the electricity, the giant python took the full brunt of the Heat Breath.

The high temperature vaporized the water, leaving the river surface shrouded in mist accompanied by a faint smell of burning flesh.

However, Ao Xin felt no joy.

Because that faint scent of burning was merely a few scales being scorched.

It had not injured the python's flesh beneath.

Taking advantage of the lingering paralysis from the electric current, he exhaled a blade of destructive wind once again.

Countless wind blades shredded through the air, scraping away the scales that had been scorched by the lightning and fire, and cutting further into the python's flesh.

By this time, the python had shaken off the numbness of the electric shock. Overwhelmed by searing pain, it grew utterly furious.

More of its massive body lifted out of the water; it was determined to drag the Azure Dragon down into the depths!

"Still acting like a reckless fool?"

Seeing that the giant python not only refused to flee but charged upward like a mad beast, Ao Xin was instantly overjoyed!

His original plan had been merely to drive the python away so it wouldn't disrupt the construction of his base, planning to deal with it later when an opportunity arose.

Since the python chose not to escape, he could slaughter it right here and now!

The Azure Dragon swooped down, abstaining from further elemental attacks of wind, fire, and lightning, as those techniques consumed too much stamina.

Extending his talons, he lunged toward the python's head.

Armament Haki coated his claws, the dark talons flashing with a lethal gleam.

The giant python spat a stream of venom from its poisonous fangs, shooting it like a sharp arrow directly at the Azure Dragon's eyes.

Another puff of Heat Breath evaporated the venom completely.

The dragon's talons seized the giant python's jaws, but the python's venomous fangs simultaneously sank into the dragon's claws.

"Roar!"

Armament Haki fully concentrated and coated the dragon claws to resist the piercing fangs.

Even with his Iron Bone realm cultivation and formidable Armament Haki, he could still feel a sharp pain radiating through his claws.

Fortunately, they were not pierced through; the Armament Haki held firm against the assault of the python's fangs.

"Hmph! Since you can't bite through my claws, it's my turn now!"

The razor-sharp dragon talons plunged straight into the serpent's mouth. Even though its scales were as tough as the Azure Dragon's own, the inside of its mouth was ultimately soft.

Three of the dragon talons pierced right through the giant python's lower jaw, while the remaining two hooked firmly onto the scales on the outside of its chin.

"Get up for me!"

Ao Xin roared in a deep voice, physically hoisting the nearly hundred-meter-long giant python straight out of the river.

The python's massive body thrashed and coiled wildly, attempting to break free from the control of the dragon talons.

Yet Ao Xin's strength far surpassed its own, lifting it completely clear of the water and soaring a hundred meters up into the air!

Down on the riverbank, a tiny handful of people still hiding inside cars or inside abandoned shops heard the dragon's roar and witnessed the battle through their windows.

A gigantic Azure Dragon had snatched a massive python right out of the river.

No matter how frantically the giant python struggled, it could not escape the Azure Dragon's iron grip.

These people were left utterly dumbfounded.

Someone immediately recorded the scene on video and uploaded it to the Divine Grace Space, titling it "The Battle of Dragon and Serpent"!

"A hundred-meter giant python has suddenly appeared in the Bian River! It is locked in an epic clash with an Azure Dragon! Yet, unable to match the Azure Dragon, it has already been captured!"

This video accumulated over ten million likes in a remarkably short time!

Countless netizens flooded the comments section:

"An Azure Dragon? Could this be the legendary Azure Dragon big shot?"

"Oh my god! A hundred-meter python—even those three-star corpse-ghoul things that can easily wipe out a military unit probably wouldn't stand a chance against this monster!"

"I heard the Azure Dragon big shot is a native of Bian City. The uploader said this was filmed in the Bian River, so there's a huge chance it was actually the Azure Dragon big shot making a move!"

"Isn't this a bit too exaggerated? I still have to be extremely careful just killing an ordinary zombie, and other people are already fighting monsters of this caliber?"

"Hey, do you guys think that giant python might also be an Ability User? Like the Snake-Snake Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Basilisk Model?"

Someone let their imagination run wild and proposed a bold theory, which immediately won the support of many internet users:

"I think that's entirely possible! The Devil Fruits appearing worldwide nowadays have long surpassed the ones in the manga. This is most likely a turf war between two top-tier powerhouses fighting for supremacy!"