Chapter 321: The Oriole

Clang!

A domineering slash, carrying unmatched momentum, pressed down on Gao Wen.

Yet, in the instant it drew near, it transformed into a ferocious hellhound.

Its central head bit down死死 on the blade of Guanshi Zhengzong, while the two side heads opened their jaws simultaneously, spewing two pillars of flame that forced Gao Wen beneath the sea surface!

Boom!

Where the raging flames met the seawater, massive amounts of steam erupted, spreading outward and, in the blink of an eye, nearly filling the entire harbor.

The violent commotion instantly captured everyone's attention.

They all turned to look at the battlefield on the sea, yet all that met their eyes was a vast expanse of mist and a scorching heat wave rushing toward them!

"Defeated in such a short time?!"

"It seems that single strike already exhausted his strength."

"How could someone of this caliber possibly be a match for the Golden Lion?!"

A member of the God Group raised his hand, deflected Zoro's slash, withdrew rapidly, and spoke with a tone of contempt:

"Merely impressive in appearance!"

"He completely lacks the qualification to contend with the Vice Captain!"

"After all, even that Emperor of the Sea..."

Before this member of the God's Knight Group could finish his sentence, the figure skillfully wielding three long swords in the distance attacked again.

This bizarre Three Sword Style possessed a power that forced even him to treat the situation with utmost caution, as one Cannot Be Taken Lightly.

In terms of combat power alone, that youth of seventeen or eighteen in the distance already wielded strength comparable to a Marine Vice Admiral.

Given time, he would surely carve out his own reputation on these seas.

Even for him, dealing with this opponent was no easy task.

"Your Captain has already been defeated; as a Devil Fruit user falling into the ocean, whether you can even save your life is now the question."

"And you show not a shred of worry?!"

"It seems the title and conduct of 'Benevolence and Righteousness' do not yield an equal return~"

These soul-piercing words did not cause the slightest change in Zoro's expression.

He surged forward, lifting his head slightly to reveal eyes flashing with scarlet light!

"Defeated?!"

"Don't make me laugh; if that man were only capable of this level, he would never have made it to today, nor would I have wagered everything just to surpass him!"

"God's Knight Group?! You aren't even worth a single hair of his!"

A sharp shout exploded beside the God Group member's ear, followed immediately by an extremely cold killing intent emanating from the attacking Zoro...

No!

It came from the sword in his mouth!

Bloodthirsty Asura qi rose around Zoro, becoming as tangible as solid matter!

In the eyes of this God's Knight Group member, Zoro had long ceased to look human, transforming instead into a three-headed, six-armed Hell Asura with a face like a evil ghost!

"Three Sword Style - Asura - One Mist Silver!"

Hiss—!

All nine long blades struck out; paired with Zoro's fully released killing intent, they instantly crushed this God Group member's body, yet not a drop of blood flowed.

Black smoke rose~

The God's Knight Group's body condensed once more; the look in his eyes as he gazed at Zoro held a hint of intoxication, while his face flushed with an abnormal ruddiness:

"Ah~"

"Truly nostalgic, the taste of death~"

"Do you understand now?"

"Gods are immortal!"

"No matter how many times you slice this body to pieces, you cannot harm me!"

He turned his head, yet he did not see the expression he desired on Zoro; instead, there was only an indescribable excitement that chilled the heart and bordered on the twisted.

The corner of Zoro's mouth curled up:

"So that means..."

"I can kill you as many times as I wish?"

Gulp—!

Zoro bit down even tighter on the hilt of Murasame, his entire aura becoming more ferocious, nearing madness!

In the next instant, the three blades struck again; an immortal opponent made him and his swords feel the joy of battle once more!

The God's Knight Group's expression also turned cold at this moment:

"Seeking death!"

He raised his hand, his fist coated in advanced Armament Haki clashing hard against the incoming blade edge, sending sparks flying through the air!

Amidst the exchange of attacks, the God Group member still did not forget his verbal offensive.

No!

That was not an offensive!

It was a fact laid bare before their eyes!

"Your Captain has already been defeated!"

"Resistance leads only to death!"

However.

A soft rebuke appeared in this God's Knight member's ear at that very moment.

"What foolishness are you spouting?!"

"This fellow might just be the strongest opponent I've ever faced!"

The God's Knight flushed with anger, turned toward the source of the voice, and instantly clamped his mouth shut.

For the speaker was none other than Xia Mu Luo Ke, slowly descending back into the harbor.

He gazed at the distant sea surface shrouded in water vapor, his brows knitting tightly together:

"An attack of this caliber cannot kill that fellow, yet his presence seems to have vanished completely."

"Did he flee?!"

"No!"

"The sense of crisis remains!"

"Where is that fellow hiding?!"

Xia Mu Luo Ke looked left and right but could not find Gao Wen's figure, until he turned back to gaze at the Lionheart Knight ship docked in the harbor, only then spotting a figure on the deck with an expression dark to the extreme!

At Gao Wen's feet lay a crowd of unconscious members of the Gao Wen Pirate Crew, yet the Ghost Man Ah Jin was nowhere to be seen.

Even his Observation Haki could no longer sense the Ghost Man Ah Jin's presence!

"Was this your doing?!"

Gao Wen's voice was icy cold.

Fine dragon scales slowly emerged, crimson wings unfurled behind him, and in an instant he activated his Demon Form, his aura surging several folds!

His wings flapped.

The water vapor blanketing the sea surface and the gray mist enveloping the harbor were all dispelled, exposing the crowd in the harbor fighting to the point of self-forgetfulness.

Whoosh—!

Crimson Conqueror's Haki spread out like a curtain of light, instantly expanding to cover the entire island!

Even the elite of the God's Knights felt their scalps go numb at this moment.

He had ignited his true fury!

He intended to slay a god!

The environment, previously humid and hot due to the water vapor, turned ice-cold once more.

Everyone even broke out in goosebumps, their minds clearing up instantly.

They all turned their heads to look at that figure on the deck, a trace of fear actually appearing in their eyes.

"Now."

"I give you two choices!"

"Return Ah Jin to me, or all of you will be fed to the fish!"

The members of the God's Knights instinctively felt surging rage.

They were the gods of Mary Geoise, to some extent even Gods above Gods surpassing ordinary Celestial Dragons; when had they ever suffered such a threat?!

In the past, for those who dared to offend them, there was only one outcome: execution.

But at this moment, even Saint Charlingorm had palms soaked in sweat, unable to utter a single word.

It was just that.

Besides the fear of Gao Wen, the faint, inexplicable abnormality he had sensed earlier, and the crowd's extraordinary fighting desire, now all had an answer.

A startled exclamation burst from Saint Charlingorm's mouth:

"No!"

"There is a third party involved in this battle! Someone is pulling strings from behind the scenes!"

A chill sea breeze blew through, making everyone in the harbor feel terrified, as if they were being manipulated like marionettes on strings.

Xiang Keluo raised his hand to adjust his glasses, finally recalling his own extraordinary fighting desire from just moments ago.

After all, for Gao Wen's group, the most effective and quickest way to resolve the issue was not fighting, but retreating!

But what about that moment of lost rationality just now?!

Puzzled in his heart, he looked up at the distant Gao Wen, only to find the latter looking up at the high sky in surprise.

Indeed, not only Gao Wen, but even Xia Mu Luo Ke was doing the same!

Xiang Keluo followed their line of sight, looked upward, and his pupils contracted sharply.

High above, the clouds parted; a giant eagle flapped its wings, hovering in the air, with two figures standing on its back, while a door leading to who-knows-where had opened in the void.

Ah Jin stood stiffly to one side, expressionless, like a living corpse.

One of them was Jeanne, dressed in a priest's robes and holding scriptures in both hands; her gaze was compassionate, yet carried an indescribable meaning:

"Ara~"

"Have we been discovered?!"

"As expected of the man called closest to the Four Emperors, and a leader-level figure of the God's Knights; such insight is truly awe-inspiring."

She pointed her finger at Ah Jin beside her and stated solemnly:

"This Mr. Ah Jin has hands stained with blood mist, bathed in sin, and requires purification by God."

"Stop joking!"

Xiang Keluo roared loudly, leaped into the air, and flashed toward the giant eagle in the sky, only to strike empty air as the door closed and Jeanne and the other two vanished without a trace.

He looked left and right but discovered nothing, save for the bloodshot threads in his eyes becoming increasingly obvious.

As the earliest-joined officer on Gao Wen's ship, and also the strongest officer at present.

Ah Jin and Xiang Keluo had once been enemies, but now they were the closest people on the ship, the ones who recognized each other most and could best understand each other's will and beliefs!

Yet now that his close friend had been taken away and he was powerless to stop it, he felt a nameless fire burning in his heart, not knowing at whom to vent it!

Gao Wen, however, had already understood!

"Captain, what do we do now?!"

"Captain Ah Jin over there..."

The crowd withdrew onto the ship, recalling their earlier abnormality, and all felt a pang of guilt in their hearts.

After all, if even one of them had maintained their sanity and noticed something was wrong, with Gao Wen's strength he would surely have reacted in time, and Ah Jin would not have been so easily abducted by the other party.

"The power of the Door-Door Fruit?!"

"Tsk!"

"We were played by that woman, thoroughly甩 off!"

Xia Mu Luo Ke's face turned iron-green.

He had never expected that Britannias would actually take the initiative to strike against even members of the Holy Knights!

There were only two possibilities.

Either the operation on the Manticore side had failed, their identities exposed by the other party, prompting a retaliatory strike from the Tianjue Church, or they too coveted the Immortality Ritual.

And the most terrifying scenario was that both were true.

"The Ghost Man Ah Jin has already been captured by them; continuing this fight holds no meaning whatsoever."

"Fortunately, the abilities of Blood, Flesh, and Soul are still in our hands; the immediate priority now is to reclaim the abilities of Bone and Heart!"

"Retreat!"

Qilingemu Saint reacted instantly.

He activated his ability, and a sturdy ship emerged from the gray mist, lifted by clouds, floating in mid-air.

The members of the Holy Knights leaped up in unison, landing steadily on the deck.

"Did I say you could leave?!"

It was at this very moment.

Gao Wen, who had remained silent until now, suddenly clenched the blade in his hand, his tone cold and sharp, like a malicious ghost.

He too had recognized that the person who had just abducted Ah Jin was using precisely the Door-Door Fruit.

And this ability possessed the function of long-distance teleportation, meaning that directly chasing down those three people was now impossible.

But the Holy Knights were right before their eyes!

Having dared to make a move against his own subordinate, and against the utterly loyal Ah Jin at that, Gao Wen had no intention of letting them go!

Zzzzt—!

A crimson Lei She flickered in mid-air.

A frenzied Haki that made one's scalp numb surged through the air.

When the members of the Holy Knights turned around, all they saw was a silver torrent right before their eyes, seeming ready to swallow everything it touched!

At this moment, even Xia Mu Luo Ke felt a trace of terror; his back was instantly soaked with cold sweat as he drew the long blade at his waist, summoning a three-headed dog to shield himself within.

The surrounding members of the Holy Knights were nearly frightened out of their wits.

"Don't joke around!"

"Even Charlotte Lingling back in the day couldn't achieve this level!"

"Monster!"

"Damn monster!"

More importantly, from this slash, they sensed an aura of death they had almost forgotten.

"This is... this is just like the Rocks Pirates!"

"No!"

"Don't!"

Boom!

Curses and pleas born of fear were all shattered by that silver-white slash which filled their entire field of vision.

Pure white blade light illuminated heaven and earth, slicing through the harbor, slicing through the island, slicing through the distant vast ocean, racing all the way to the horizon and crushing everything it touched!

The seawater churned, exposing the seabed.

The seawater swept up countless shipwrecks, washing them back ashore.

The Lionheart Knight Ship beneath Gao Wen's feet did not shake in the slightest, yet the crowd standing on the deck could not feel the slightest sense of stability.

There was only restlessness!

An immense restlessness, ready to swallow everything!

"Gao Wen, no, Captain, this time I'll listen to you!"

"Ah."

Gao Wen slowly, inch by inch, returned the Guanshi Zhengzong into its sheath:

"If they dare to make a move against us, dare to abduct my people, then I have no choice but to send them to hell."

Regarding the identity of the attacker, Gao Wen had a vague suspicion.

Like the Holy Knights, their target was clearly Ah Jin, which meant those two were most likely also after the legend of achieving immortality through Flesh, Blood, Bone, Heart, and Soul.

And the place where this legend originated was none other than Britannias!

In other words.

There was a high probability that the attackers hailed from Britannias.

And if their goal was indeed that legend, then at least until all five elements were gathered, Ah Jin was unlikely to be in any life-threatening danger.

It was also at this time that a voice confirmed Gao Wen's words.

"They are subordinates of Wales!"

Morgan hurried out of the cabin and spoke up to remind them.

She possessed no combat ability, so she had been arranged to stay inside the cabin when the battle began, yet she happened to witness that scene just now.

"Their faces, I will never forget them for as long as I live!"

"Jeanne, the Saintess of the Heavenly Awakening Divine Sect, consumed the Fruit of the Mind and possesses powerful hypnotic abilities; with but a slight movement, she can completely hypnotize her opponent."

"For ordinary people, her danger level is far higher than that of Pope Wales."

"A hypnotic ability sufficient to control even Ah Jin?"

Gao Wen frowned, feeling an inexplicable sense that something was amiss.

In terms of willpower alone, Ah Jin was one of the strongest on the ship, and his combat strength had already reached the mid-tier of the Golden Realm; even among the Seven Warlords, he would not be considered weak.

And yet such a person was hypnotized by the other party in an instant?!

(End of Chapter)