Chapter 319: The Divine Group Attacks

The Eagle Knight Bevil slowly descended to the ground, yet he did not immediately approach; instead, he stood at a distance, gazing faintly at Jeanne.

He raised his hand to soothe the restless giant eagle beside him, then spoke slowly:

"The enemy invaders are already bound; please, My Lord Jeanne, extract intelligence from them as soon as possible. This is already his second infiltration of Avalon, and it will not be the last."

"For any evil rebel who dares to stain the Shengcheng with dust, only by granting them death can the wrath of the Shengcheng be quelled."

Jeanne slowly lowered her hand, looking toward the distant Bevil with great interest:

"Even the most valiant knight of Britannias fears me so much?!"

"A knight who serves God yet fears the will of God—this is a crime comparable to blasphemy."

Silence fell over the surroundings for a moment.

Their gazes met.

One was cold, like an unsheathed sharp blade.

The other was lazy and indifferent in posture, yet exuded an inexplicable divinity.

A long while passed.

Bevil took the initiative to speak:

"I have never said that what I serve is the god you speak of; I serve only Britannias!"

"Whether it was the once tyrannical Wang Zu or the current Tianjue Divine Sect, they are all merely fleeting passersby."

"Only Britannias, only Avalon, and only the people living on this land endure endlessly."

"Heh..."

A disdainful laugh erupted from Jeanne's mouth, and her originally benevolent gaze turned sarcastic in that instant:

"So, while spouting such words back then, you plunged the sword in your hand into the monarch's heart?"

Hiss—!

A flying blade swept past, slicing off the corner of Jeanne's garment.

Several strands of hair drifted down through the air.

The giant tree behind Jeanne was nearly split open by this single strike, with ferocious slash marks spreading for dozens of meters.

Yet there was not the slightest change in the expression on her face; she spoke word by word:

"I will relay your words exactly as they are to the ears of His Holiness the Pope."

"I shall await that day."

Bevil raised his hand to press down his helmet, then leaped onto the back of the giant eagle, which beat its wings and soared high, vanishing into the horizon.

Seeing this scene, the corners of Jeanne's mouth instead curled into a slight smile:

"The struggle of human nature?!"

"How truly interesting!"

"Hahahahahahaha~"

Several light laughs spread out, and countless giant beasts lingering nearby instantly bowed their heads, as if paying homage to a leader, or as if awaiting the favor of a god.

Jeanne, however, did not spare them a single glance; to her, all that had just occurred was merely a form of entertainment. She reached out again, touching the ear of the Manticore:

"Let me see what purpose drove you to incur such a great cost to infiltrate Britannias."

The Manticore's memories, like a tidal wave, unfolded before Jeanne, and one keyword after another was pryed open by her.

Divine Knight Order, Garin Holy, Immortality Surgery, World Government, Mary Geoise, Lion-Scorpion Fruit, Undying Blessing...

At a certain moment.

Everything Jeanne saw before her eyes shattered, and a pair of scarlet eyes appeared within her mind, nearly occupying everything.

"Wrong!"

Jeanne's whole body trembled; she stumbled back several steps, blood tears flowing from her eyes, and her entire aura withered significantly.

The giant beasts prostrate on the ground all around regained clarity in their gazes at that moment, fleeing panic-stricken toward the rear.

Boom-rumble—!

The earth trembled, the sound like rolling thunder.

"What... what is this thing?"

Jeanne murmured, yet her voice sounded rough and gloomy, nothing like the benevolence and divinity she had displayed earlier, but instead revealing an extremely suppressed emotion.

The corners of her mouth curled up slightly:

"I remember who you are."

Jeanne raised her hand to wipe away the fresh blood seeping from the corner of her eye, looking at the Manticore before her with great interest, the corners of her mouth curling slightly:

"However."

"Even for an existence standing at the peak of the world, dominating a colossus like the World Government, are there not subordinates unwilling to remain eternally subservient?!"

"Truly interesting~"

"Flesh, blood, bone, heart, and soul—five elements. They have already gathered three of them, so what is needed next is merely me and Knight Gao Wen's group, is it?!"

"It's just that..."

"Eternal life, an undying body—I, no, Lord Wales, also very much desire to obtain them."

Jeanne's voice slowly faded, and his figure gradually vanished into the moonlight.

Only the Manticore remained standing in place, like a walking corpse.

A long while passed.

Only then did the Manticore's eyes regain clarity; he felt his mind was muddled, and many memories had become blurred.

He could not remember his mission, nor could he recall what he had experienced after entering Britannias, yet somewhere in the depths of his consciousness, a voice urged him to leave this place!

Leave Britannias!

Thus, this body broke into a run, carrying an indescribable fear and panic that made even its breath tremble, yet the speed of its feet was so fast it could not stop.

Even though what appeared before his eyes was already a vast, boundless sea.

……

……

……

Time flashed by; half a month later.

After Gao Wen and his group entered the New World, they went full throttle, advancing at maximum speed toward Britannias; now, only a few days' voyage remained to the mainland of Britannias.

During these few days, Gao Wen also learned from Morgan about the situation within Britannias.

Or at least, the situation within Britannias as it was when Morgan left.

At this moment.

On the top deck, inside the conference room, Gao Wen and the others had gathered.

The lamplight flickered, yet the expressions on everyone's faces held a degree of solemnity.

"Several years ago, Morgan's younger brother, Arthur, the original new king of Britannias, once stirred up a revolution within the country, aiming to seize the power to rule the nation from the hands of the Church of Divine Awakening, rather than becoming a puppet like the monarchs of previous generations."

"But he ultimately failed due to a rebellion among his subordinates."

"The Wang Zu of Britannias, led by Morgan, was also exterminated at that time; only she survived, fleeing across the seas."

When Gao Wen was halfway through his speech, Xiang Keluo could not help but curl his lips:

"Truly... an excessively clichéd script."

Gao Wen's eyelid twitched, yet he did not refute; he glared at Xiang Keluo and continued:

"According to the intelligence provided by Morgan, the one currently dominating Britannias is precisely the Church of Divine Awakening."

"If we are to enter Britannias and establish a main base there, friction with them will be unavoidable."

"To put it even more bluntly, battle is almost inevitable."

Yet on the faces of the crowd, there was not a trace of fear.

From the East Sea to the New World.

They had already faced countless enemies alongside Gao Wen, among whom were even the Seven Warlords of the Sea, the Four Emperors, and legendary figures from the past—such top-tier powerhouses.

Their vision was high,

their spirit soaring.

The temperature in the conference room seemed to have risen significantly.

Gao Wen observed this scene but paid it no mind.

In the New World, there are many powerful forces, and even hidden ruthless characters of legendary caliber are not lacking.

Just like Aramaki, the Green Bull, who was unknown before joining the Marines.

Enough to satisfy their wish to be brutally beaten by someone.

However.

For Gao Wen and his group at present, the truly important matter was still to first enter Britannias and establish a stable base. Seeing that everyone had no major objections to this, Gao Wen concluded this small meeting.

In the days that followed.

The already absurd intensity of cultivation among the people on the ship increased by several notches, to the point where even Gao Wen found it unbearable to watch.

Looking at the increasingly deep dark circles under everyone's eyes, he truly feared these brats would play themselves to death here, so he simply established a rule: from one o'clock to five o'clock in the morning would be mandatory cultivation time.

Only then did the crowd quiet down slightly.

However, during this period, Miss Kalifa, whether she had business or not, would wander around in front of Gao Wen wearing her tight professional attire, leaving people quite speechless.

The subsequent voyage was bumpy.

On the deck, there was a group of madmen, while inside the cabin, Miss Kalifa and Morgan competed in showing off their beauty; it was only after Gao Wen hung a "Do Not Disturb" sign outside the captain's quarters that things calmed down a bit.

Nami, watching the drama unfold, was nearly going crazy from the spectacle.

Several days later.

Gao Wen and his group stopped at a port located in a sea area approaching Britannias.

While taking a short rest, they also prepared to replenish the ship's supplies.

Woo—!

A whistle sounded.

The Lionheart Knight slowly docked into the port, yet no workers came forward to meet them.

Only gray mist drifted within the port, faintly exuding an ominous aura.

"This smell..."

Bepo stood on the deck; his sturdy figure towered a good half-head above everyone else, his two small eyes scanning everywhere as his nose twitched:

"Decaying ships, dilapidated buildings, and also, also..."

"The stench of corpses!"

"We can already see it."

Law murmured, his gaze falling upon the port.

All that met the eye was desolation; not a single living person was in sight.

"Captain..."

"Something is probably wrong here!"

Gao Wen nodded, gazing at the distant port, his eyes narrowing slightly; he activated his Observation Haki to its fullest, yet still failed to sense the presence of any living beings, though an ominous premonition arose inexplicably.

In this area approaching Britannias, there were too many unknowns.

Recalling the encounter in the Drum Kingdom previously, a desire to retreat arose in Gao Wen's heart; he had just raised his hand, preparing to issue an order.

Unexpectedly, a figure suddenly darted out from the gray mist in the distance!

A flamingo feather cape, a ferocious smile, pink sunglasses, and sharp four-line patterns everywhere!

"Donquixote Doflamingo?!"

"How is this guy here!"

Law's expression was utterly stunned; subconsciously gripping Onigiri at his waist, his eyes turned blood-red.

Although Gao Wen had briefly clashed with Donquixote Doflamingo previously on the Sabaody Archipelago, Law was not present at that time.

Thus, only now, after many years, did Law once again see that demonic figure from the past!

Alongside the anger in his heart, there was even more fear that he himself had not realized!

Hiss!

Onigiri unsheathed; just as Law prepared to strike, he was firmly pinned down by Xiang Keluo beside him.

"Calm down!"

"Law!"

"Although Donquixote Doflamingo previously bore a grudge against us, given his character and conduct, he would absolutely never choose to attack when he clearly knows his opponent is far stronger than himself!"

"There must be a trick in this!"

Law calmed down.

The moment he raised his eyes.

He saw that the attacking Donquixote Doflamingo had already been struck by Gao Wen's blade, dissipating into a cloud of gray mist, only to condense again from the gray mist in the distance the very next instant!

Completely unaffected!

"This is..."

"A Devil Fruit user?!"

Law reacted instantly, and a trace of gratitude appeared in his eyes as he looked at Xiang Keluo.

At this moment, everyone else also assumed combat stances.

Only Gao Wen, standing at the front of the deck and facing the threat directly, wore an expression of deep contemplation.

However, the attacker did not intend to give Gao Wen any more time to think.

Merely the next instant.

Countless figures darted out from the gray mist.

Arlong wielding a massive shark-toothed sickle, the Jin Shizi soaring like twin dragons with crossed swords, even Vinsmoke Judge clad in the Germa 66 battle coat brandishing a battle spear, along with various ghosts and monsters that existed only in legends...

Dense and innumerable.

Forming a vast momentum, they pressed down upon Gao Wen and his group!

At this moment, even Xiang Keluo's brain suffered a momentary crash, his face shocked to the extreme:

"Impossible!"

"Arlong and the Jin Shizi are dead; they absolutely cannot appear here!"

"This scene... is it a Devil Fruit user?!"

Amidst these words.

The enemy's offensive had almost pounced right before Gao Wen and his companions!

Everyone saw the things they feared most, so much so that for a moment, they all fell into a daze.

Until a sharp blade qi erupted from Gao Wen's body.

Zzzzt-zzzzt-zzzzt—!

Crimson Lei She danced wildly, spreading across most of the sea surface; invisible shockwaves churned, blowing away the attacking gray mist, and the sky became clear in this instant.

Silvery blade light nearly illuminated the entire night sky!

It also allowed Gao Wen to clearly see the several figures hidden within the harbor!

"Calm down! With the opponent's ability, they are materializing the things you fear most!"

Gao Wen shouted sharply, instantly waking the distracted crowd; raising their eyes to look into the distance, they realized the things they feared most had completely dissipated.

They immediately let out a long breath, feeling grateful yet also an indescribable sense of relief.

Relieved to have saved their lives, and also relieved to have followed the right person.

However.

Gao Wen's expression could not relax; it was instead filled with an indescribable Solemnity.

Creating projections of powerful individuals with combat capabilities.

As far as Gao Wen knew, only two Devil Fruits possessed such heaven-defying abilities.

The first was the Inu Inu no Mi, Mythical Zoan Type, Model: Bake-danuki.

However, if this fruit existed, it should have already been consumed by someone, would not appear here, and there was no reason for it to seek trouble with him.

The other was the Ryu Ryu no Mi, Mythical Zoan Type, Model: Qilin, possessed by Holy Knight Chillingham of the God's Knights.

Not only could it turn dreams into reality, but it could also reflect the existence an opponent feared most and manifest it as an assistant!

Connecting this with the intelligence sent back by Roubo Luqi, the identity of the attacker was about to be revealed!

Tap!

A crisp footstep sound came from the gray mist in the distance.

A face ninety percent similar to Red-Haired Shanks, yet with eyes hiding ambition and arrogance, slowly appeared before Gao Wen and his group.

"Knight... Gao Wen!"

Xia Mu Luo Ke looked at the figure on the deck, a trace of wariness in his eyes.

Even though it was their first meeting, the instinct of a strong warrior gave him an intuition:

This fellow is even stronger than Charlotte Linlin; it's even possible that fellow Shanks might not be his match!

He slowly spoke:

"Let's make a deal."

"Lend me the user of the Bone-Bone Fruit for a while."

"As compensation, I can satisfy you with fame, power, and status!"

(End of Chapter)