Chapter 77: The Final Slave Warehouse Showdown

As Karl stepped out of Slave Warehouse No. 1, he squinted into the sunlight.

In that instant, he felt as if his whole being had ascended.

Back on Blue Star, I could never do this. But here, as long as I’m strong enough, I can do anything I want.

Karl glanced down at the two traffickers who had guided him there.

“Let’s go. Next.”

The two men outside had heard the screams coming from inside long ago, but they didn’t dare to run.

The stronger Karl appeared, the less courage they had to leave.

A powerhouse like him would have no problem tracking them down on this island.

They weren’t thinking about any reward from Karl. All that mattered now was staying alive.

“Of course, sir. This way, please.”

With their guidance, Karl made it to Slave Station No. 1 in under an hour. Not wanting anyone to catch wind of his presence and escape, he simply took the two of them into the sky. The speed left their previous pace in the dust.

Of course, to make sure these two didn’t bolt while he handled business, Karl had broken all four of their limbs.

Meanwhile, the Navy followed the path of Karl’s rampage, scrambling to pick up the pieces he left behind—cleaning up corpses, ‘sweeping the floor’ as everyone called it—so they were moving much slower than Karl.

Most of the Navy didn’t actually want to catch up too quickly. They also wanted to take down the traffickers’ bases.

But none of them were strong enough to do it themselves. Now that someone had finally stood up and taken action, they were more than happy to give him time to turn everything upside down.

Warehouse No. 1.

Staring up at the massive building before him, Karl couldn’t help but feel shocked. The traffickers really had no fear of anything.

“This is the last one?”

“Yes, sir. This is the final one—and the biggest slave warehouse on the whole island.”

“When you see the King of Hell, be sure to tell him my name is Karl.”

“Sir, what do you mean by that?”

The two men didn’t really understand, but they knew it didn’t sound good.

“Relax. My methods are quick—completely painless.”

“Pa! Pa!”

Karl only saw the bewildered looks on their faces before swinging both hands once for each of them.

“Thud!”

Both headless bodies collapsed limply to the ground.

“Last stage. I can feel the presence of a true fighter now.”

“My blood’s pumping.”

Honestly, those guys before weren’t much of a fight.

They always went down after a hit or two. It was that irritating feeling—just when you’re about to string a combo together, the opponent drops. Frustrating.

At least now he’d get to spar with someone worth his time.

“Boom!”

“Crack!”

Same trick as before, except now there weren’t even any guards left at the entrance.

When he attacked Island 25, all the traffickers got the message loud and clear.

Most of them didn’t have time to move anything, so they simply waited where they were for Karl’s arrival.

A lot of them actually thought Karl wasn’t that strong, so they called some outside hands back to put up a fight.

But no one expected just how powerful Karl really was. He gave them no chance to raise the alarm.

“So you’re the mystery man.”

“We’ve been waiting for you.”

The tall, long-haired man who stepped forward was Anderson, the trafficking boss of the Sabaody Archipelago—well-regarded by the Celestial Dragons.

“Get him!”

Anderson barked at his men, unleashing them on Karl.

“You little brat—you even know who protects this place? It’s the Celestial Dragons!”

There wasn’t much to discuss—they all already knew he’d taken down every other warehouse.

Karl watched the mob rush at him, falling naturally into the opening stance of the Eight Extremities Fist.

“Crack!”

“Argh!”

“You hit me!”

“Whoosh!”

Karl tore into the crowd, unleashing moves from both the Eight Extremities Fist and the Tai Chi Fist.

Close combat—nothing beats good old martial arts. No wonder the ancestors trusted these killing arts.

Even when the gang tried to swarm him, Karl didn’t panic for a second.

Anyone who took a punch or kick from him either died on the spot or was left crippled.

In just five minutes, almost all the henchmen lay sprawled on the floor. The survivors bolted, terrified, out of the warehouse.

“Kid, I’ll admit you’ve got some skill.”

“But that’s nothing to get cocky about.”

“Roar!”

Anderson’s body swelled, black fur sprouting everywhere, claws extending from his hands and feet—he transformed into an eight-meter-tall black bear!

Feeling the power coursing through him, he pounded his chest and bellowed at Karl.

“Time for you to die!”

“Interesting, an Animal-Type Devil Fruit user.”

Now Karl was interested—Animal-Types were supposed to be tough as nails, right?

He kept Bone-Shrinking Art active, body size holding steady just a little over four meters.

“Swoosh!”

When Anderson’s bear paw slammed down, Karl simply stepped back.

Anderson missed and howled with rage, dropping to all fours to charge Karl.

“Tai Chi Cloud Hands!”

Karl grabbed the bear’s head and spun him around, slamming him into another wall.

“Boom!”

Anderson’s head crashed straight through the wall. He yanked himself out, bricks and dust falling everywhere.

“Crash! Crash!”

He shook off the rubble and dust.

“Pathetic trick.”

He didn’t think Karl’s attack was anything special.

“You’re dead!”

Anderson leapt high, his enormous body threatening to flatten Karl like a mountain.

“Heaven-Piercing Cannon!”

Karl saw his chance—he located the bear’s head and, in a flash, unleashed a classic Eight Extremities Fist move.

“Bang!”

A dull thud rang out!

Anderson’s giant body spun 180 degrees in the air before crashing into the ground, dust billowing everywhere.

“Ugh, that hurt, worm.”

Anderson staggered upright, head spinning from the impact.

He still didn’t realize how serious the situation was.

“Worm? Are you talking about me?”

Hearing such an insult, Karl’s anger flared—he was done holding back.

His body swelled to a full eight meters, back to its original size.

“You’re the first person who’s ever called me that.”

Anderson was dumbfounded. Was this another Devil Fruit ability?

He’d never seen a power that let you just grow bigger at will.

But while he froze in shock, Karl didn’t give him a moment’s rest.

Fury burned in Karl’s eyes.

“Die!”

With one lunge, Karl grabbed the bear’s head and slammed it hard into the ground.

“Bang!”

Anderson was dazed by the blow, barely registering what happened.

Karl moved fast, planting himself on the black bear’s belly, raining down punch after punch.

“Boom! Boom! Boom!”

The earth shook with every blow, dust swirling through the air again.

Soon, the pounding stopped and the haze began to clear.

The enslaved people finally saw the aftermath. The scene was terrifying.

Karl had beaten a crater into the floor—twenty meters across, five meters deep.

As Karl stood from the pit, his hands dripped blood and chunks of flesh. Just looking was enough to make anyone sick.

Karl climbed out, found some clean clothes, and began to wipe down his hands.

Only now did everyone get a clear look—the black bear’s upper body was nothing but mangled meat, more mush than man.

Yet somewhere in Anderson’s heart, a trace of stubbornness lingered.

“They’ll never let you get away with this.”

Just as Karl exhaled, Anderson’s words reached him.

“Is every Animal-Type this tough to kill?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll send all of them to join you soon enough.”

“Armament Haki!”

Karl’s right hand glowed with Armament Haki. If fists alone could not end it, then he’d make it final.

He jumped into the pit and, with a Haki-coated punch, smashed the bear’s head for good.

The bear’s body slowly shrank, revealing Anderson’s original form—a headless corpse.

“That’s got to be the end of him, right?”

Karl eyed the corpse—no bear form, no heartbeat—then glanced at his bloody hand.

“Dirty again. Guess I’ll have to wipe it down one more time.”

“Rustle…”

As Karl cleaned up, the enslaved people watched him in silence, pressed up against their cages.

Word was, wherever he cleared a warehouse, he always freed the people inside. They were eager for that moment.

Still, nobody dared make a sound. The last thing they wanted was to annoy this strange, powerful man.

“I’ll say this again.”

“I’ll set you all free. If you want to follow me, come find me at Beehive Island in the New World.”

Karl got up and started unlocking every cell.

But he didn’t hurry out—instead, he sat facing the entrance.

Even with their doors open, no one rushed out. They just stared dumbly at Karl, not sure what it meant.

“Step. Step. Step!”

Suddenly, the sound of frantic footsteps echoed from outside the door.

“Stop! Get back inside!”