Chapter 318: Destined Saintess, the Fruit of the Mind!

"However."

"This also makes it easier for us to control."

Xia Mu Luo Ke nodded:

"To complete the Immortality Ritual and reshape an undying, indestructible body, this woman's ability is essential."

"According to the intelligence we've obtained, after leaving Fish-Man Island, Knight Gao Wen and his group are rushing at full speed toward Britannias. This aligns almost perfectly with our previous deductions."

"Though the Red Dragon is powerful, to exert his combat strength to its limit, he relies heavily on the battlefield conditions."

"The scale of Gao Wen's group has also reached a point where establishing a solid rear base is necessary."

"Britannias is their only choice."

"What we need to do next is strike early to seize control of Britannias, and then wait for our prey to walk into the trap."

To the side, Saint Kiringomu, displaying his half-human, half-kirin hybrid form beneath a transparent spherical helmet, leisurely reclining on a beach chair, slowly sat upright, an unmistakable solemnity emerging in his eyes:

"That old bastard Wales possesses unknown abilities, but merely his fearless Crusaders under him are already troublesome enough."

"Among them are even figures at the level of Navy Vice-Admirals; the leading Hawk Knight Beville, and that eccentric Saintess Jeanne, who seems shrouded in mist, will likely prove difficult to deal with as well."

"It doesn't matter."

Xia Mu Luo Ke shook his head, his gaze falling upon the large woman beside him who was frantically devouring sweets:

"Even someone as strong as one of the Four Emperors of the Sea is no match for me, let alone these two."

"Once I free up my hands, those two won't be an issue; the real trouble is that old bastard Wales."

Although Saint Kiringomu did not reply, he simply fixed his gaze on Xia Mu Luo Ke.

As the youngest vice-captain in the history of the God's Knights, and possibly even the most powerful.

Xia Mu Luo Ke lacked most of the bad habits common among the Celestial Dragons; in the past, he always gave people the impression of being steady, reliable, and radiating a confidence that suggested he controlled everything.

Yet for some reason.

At this moment, Saint Kiringomu saw in Xia Mu Luo Ke a sense of urgency he had never witnessed before, along with a trace of conflict hidden extremely deep.

Saint Kiringomu's gaze sharpened slightly; suddenly thinking of something, he asked:

"The actions on the Captain's end..."

"Red Hair escaped; Father sustained some injuries, but it's nothing serious."

"Although Father has not received Lord Im's blessing, the others all possess immortality, capable of instantly recovering from any injury."

"Even that Red Hair could only choose to flee."

"However, according to Father's account, that fellow's strength is far greater than we anticipated."

"Perhaps he has already approached the level of Luo Jie from back then."

Xia Mu Luo Ke's expression gradually grew cold.

Although Saint Kiringomu did not clearly understand the reasons behind this, looking at Red Hair's face, which bore ninety percent similarity to Xia Mu Luo Ke's, he understood what was happening.

There are many mixed-blood descendants of the Celestial Dragons scattered outside Mary Geoia; given the Celestial Dragons' inherently extreme and debauched conduct, this is perfectly normal.

But a pure-blooded Celestial Dragon wandering outside? This is the first time in history.

After all, since this concerns the bloodline of the Figarland family, it is no wonder Xia Mu Luo Ke lost his composure.

However.

Mentioning Luo Jie.

A trace of fear involuntarily flashed through Saint Kiringomu's eyes.

The scenes of the Battle of God Valley floated before his eyes, causing him to subconsciously grab the long axe beside him.

"Back then, did Luo Jie manage to decipher the ability granted by Lord Im's blessing..."

This was the question he truly cared about!

If the immortality of the God's Knights cannot be deciphered, no matter how strong the opponent is, they cannot pose a substantive threat to them.

But once such an ability emerges, or even falls into the hands of a top-tier expert like Red Hair, the blow to the God's Knights would be fatal!

Why were the Four Emperors of the Sea in this era able to establish a firm foothold?

Because apart from Red Hair, the other three were all eyewitnesses to the Battle of God Valley; during that great battle years ago, many elites of the God's Knights lost their lives at the hands of these very individuals!

Fortunately.

Saint Kiringomu received the answer he hoped for from Xia Mu Luo Ke.

"No."

Xia Mu Luo Ke shook his head.

"That's good."

Saint Kiringomu immediately relaxed, gently setting down his long axe and returning to his earlier relaxed posture:

"As long as the opponent cannot decipher the blessing, they cannot inflict substantive harm upon us..."

Halfway through his sentence.

Saint Kiringomu couldn't help but turn to look at Xia Mu Luo Ke, opening his mouth slightly, yet he did not speak the following words, instead awkwardly changing the subject:

"Earlier, Manticores sent back intelligence; he has successfully infiltrated the vicinity of Britannias. Next, we only need to locate that woman named Jeanne."

"All we lack now is the power of the Bone-Bone Fruit."

Xia Mu Luo Ke merely nodded, saying nothing further.

The Den Den Mushi in his arms, however, suddenly emitted a series of urgent ringing sounds.

"Buru Buru—!"

"Buru Buru—!"

After connecting.

A sudden panicky voice erupted from the receiver.

"Lord Xia Mu Luo Ke, something has happened!"

"A few hours ago, the Captain led the team to launch an operation against Red Hair and his group."

"Unexpectedly, the other party had already mastered a method to break the blessing; several key members lost their lives, and Saint Garling suffered heavy injuries, falling into a coma. Given his physical condition, I fear he cannot hold on much longer."

"Even if he recovers, it will be difficult for him to restore his former great power."

"At present, only Lord Im's blessing is the sole solution. Lord Garling has refused this for so many years, but the time has come when it is absolutely necessary."

"What do you think..."

"Impossible!"

Xia Mu Luo Ke tightly clenched the Den Den Mushi in his hand, rejecting it without the slightest hesitation.

The next instant.

He realized the impropriety and explained:

"Lord Im once said that every member of the God Knights has the freedom to choose whether or not to accept the blessing."

"This matter should be decided by the Captain personally; first stabilize the injuries on his body, and we can discuss the rest after he wakes up."

"Suspend your mission over there for now; do not approach Red Hair temporarily."

"Yes!"

The God Knight on the other end of the line clearly breathed a sigh of relief.

The call ended.

The urgency in Xia Mu Luo Ke's eyes was almost impossible to hide; he immediately summoned all God Knight members into the conference room.

"The plan formulated earlier must be changed."

"We have no time for gradual schemes; we will act directly and seize the Bone Fruit ability user from Knight Gao Wen!"

"Additionally, have Manticore accelerate their actions; they must obtain the new ability at the fastest possible speed."

Everyone exchanged glances, all somewhat unable to understand why Xia Mu Luo Ke had suddenly become so urgent.

"Deputy Captain, forgive my presumption."

"Whether it is Gao Wen's group or the Britannias, both can be described as thorny problems."

"After all, according to the internal assessment of the CP organization, the high-end combat power of Gao Wen's group is already comparable to that of the Four Emperors."

"The Britannias are even more mysterious; previously, the Manticore squad suffered setbacks there, with only Captain Manticore and his adjutant emerging unscathed, while the rest vanished without a trace."

"We cannot take risks!" As soon as these words were spoken, they immediately drew agreement from the crowd, who could not help but speak up to dissuade Xia Mu Luo Ke.

Boom!

Xia Mu Luo Ke slammed his fist onto the conference table, bloodshot veins appearing in his eyes:

"This is an order!"

"You have all received Lord Im's blessing; under normal circumstances, you will not die in battle. An operation against Gao Wen's group is merely a matter of expending a little more effort."

"It is rather the side with Manticore that should be careful!"

As his voice landed.

Although everyone remained puzzled, they understood that Xia Mu Luo Ke was right.

Im's blessing granted them vitality unimaginable to ordinary people; without a way to break it, even if the opponent were a figure of the Four Emperors' level, it would be absolutely impossible to breach them head-on!

Yet, having debuted for only a few short years, despite possessing great combat power, there is a huge gap in experience compared to veteran Four Emperors like Whitebeard.

Do you think it is possible that he has mastered a method to break the blessing?!

Even Xia Mu Luo Ke held a negative view on this question.

"This old skeleton of mine is probably going to die a few more times~"

"And who isn't?!"

"However."

"I now even find myself missing that feeling of nearing death; I just don't know how many times I will be able to feel it this time."

"Your peculiar habits are becoming increasingly perverted."

"Strangely enough, neither the Captain nor the Deputy Captain has ever accepted Lord Im's blessing."

"Is there anything wrong with an immortal body?"

"Who knows?!"

At the same time.

Within the borders of Britannia.

Towering giant trees were everywhere; at a glance, it resembled a green ocean, and at certain nodes, one could even see a pale blue glow.

Dreamlike and illusory.

If Gao Wen were present, he would certainly recognize at once that those pale blue glows were precisely overflowing ley line power.

The ley line power here was so abundant that it had reached the point of being visible to the naked eye!

Suddenly.

From the dense forest in the distance came a rumbling sound.

Countless huge flying birds and beasts, as if startled, dashed out from the dense woods.

These giant beasts, merely by running, were sufficient to trigger an earthquake, yet they found it difficult to shake the surrounding giant trees, which stood hundreds of meters tall and dozens of meters thick.

In the sky, knights riding falcons galloped away at high speed!

In the distance.

A strange figure with wings growing from its back and a long tail tipped with a stinger like that of a poisonous scorpion was fleeing for its life.

It was the Manticore, which had infiltrated Britannias on Xia Mu Luo Ke's orders.

His speed was extremely fast; the flapping of his twin wings was enough to whirl up withered leaves from the ground, and the distance between him and the beast herd gradually widened.

Yet after merely a few breaths, the Eagle Knight in the sky had nearly closed in right before him.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

The Eagle Knight swung his sword, releasing several aerial slashes that struck the Manticore, leaving wounds deep enough to expose bone.

However, such injuries clearly could not affect the Manticore, who had received Im's blessing; in an instant, black smoke rose from the wounds on his body, and they healed at tremendous speed.

"Hiss—!"

The Manticore drew a deep breath, turned his head, and spewed a fan-shaped flame covering an area of several dozen meters.

Boom!

The Eagle Knight, along with the giant beasts all around, was forced back.

Only then did the Manticore barely gain a moment to catch his breath.

"This is troublesome."

"Two consecutive infiltrations; my identity, appearance, and even my aura were completely different, yet I was detected in an instant both times!"

"The first time, I could say it was because I did not understand Britannias well enough, but the second time I did my homework thoroughly, yet I was still exposed instantly."

"Perhaps they possess means capable of monitoring the entire nation!"

The Manticore lowered his eyes and began to consider how exactly he could escape.

Although members of the Divine Knight Corps had received Im's blessing and he possessed a certain degree of immortality, he was still a Devil Fruit user and could be restrained by seawater and Seastone.

Once exposed to either of those two, he might face eternal imprisonment.

That fate would be worse than dying right here.

Yet at this very moment.

On the ground ahead, shadows of beasts swarmed, closing in to surround the Manticore.

In the sky, countless giant eagles spread out, extending their sharp talons like predators hunting prey, swooping down to seize him!

Yet these giant beasts, enough to make ordinary people tremble with fear, could not arouse the slightest interest in the Manticore; what truly captured his interest was the woman riding a white horse in the distance!

She wore a white priestess's robe, a hood upon her head, clutching a Bible in both hands; her features were soft and beautiful, her gaze filled with benevolence, as if she could embrace everything, yet it also radiated compassion.

This was a woman exuding an aura of motherhood—no, an aura of divinity.

At this moment, the Manticore longed nothing more than to prostrate himself directly at her feet, kiss the instep of her foot, and swear loyalty like a servant!

"No!"

The Manticore shook his head violently, and his previously somewhat blurred consciousness returned to normal.

When he looked again at that woman in the distance, he felt nothing but sheer terror; beneath that perfect skin lurked some kind of monster that could not be called human!

"Heaven's Mandate Saintess, Joan of Arc!"

The Manticore recognized the woman's identity, abruptly halted his steps, and in his eyes there was nothing but unspeakable Solemnity.

In terms of pure combat ability, he ranked among the top within the captains of the Divine Corps.

But the knight riding the eagle behind him was not weaker than himself in the slightest; he could even completely suppress him with a single knight's sword.

In the battle just now, if it were not for his immortality, he would have died many times over; clearly, his opponent's strength was far above his own.

And the woman riding the white horse in the distance made him feel even more terrified; this was not suppression through power, but a sensation arising from instinct.

That benevolence might very well be fatal!

"Refusing God's loving mercy?!"

"What a rebellious child."

In the distance.

On Joan of Arc's face still remained that benevolent, soft smile that made one unable to resist wanting to draw near upon seeing it.

Her voice, too, was like her countenance, filled with acceptance and love.

"But God will forgive your rebellion and actively walk toward you."

Joan of Arc took a single step forward.

The Manticore instinctively wanted to retreat, yet his body seemed as if filled with lead, impossible to move even a fraction.

No!

No, it was this body that was yearning, that was responding to that woman!

This abnormal influence... was the effect of the Mind-Mind Fruit!

The Manticore suddenly recalled the records regarding the Mind-Mind Fruit that he had seen in the internal intelligence of the Divine Knight Corps.

Granting selfhood to non-living things, dominating the will of living beings!

The next instant.

A pure white, slender finger, tender like the white of a spring onion, pressed against the Manticore's forehead, and his consciousness became completely blurred at that very moment.

"It seems your body is far more honest than your heart!"

(End of Chapter)