Chapter 336: The Soldier

"Do you still have the confidence to make a move against that monster now?!"

"Don't be naive!"

"Even if you possess the power of the Red Dragon, even if your combat prowess is formidable, far surpassing Arthur of years past."

"But unless you are prepared to slaughter every single believer of the Church of Su Xing, it is absolutely impossible to defeat Wales."

Beville offered a bleak smile, his eyes holding nothing but despair akin to sinking into an abyss:

"Therefore..."

"This country no longer holds any hope."

"You are a good person; you should not have been dragged into this."

"Flee."

"Flee as far as you can."

As his voice landed,

the surroundings instantly fell silent.

Morgan, standing nearby, was nearly stupefied.

Regarding Wales's abilities and the current state of Britannias, she had already harbored suspicions in her heart, yet she never expected the reality to be so shocking.

"Such a monster..."

Morgan opened her mouth, finally understanding why Arthur, the previous user of the Red Dragon Fruit, had met such a tragic end.

Even if Beville had not betrayed them back then, the outcome likely would not have been much better.

She turned her head to look at Xiang Gaowen, and the firm belief in revenge she had held in her heart wavered for the first time.

It was not merely because of Wales's overwhelmingly invincible abilities, but also because she saw Arthur's shadow in Xiang Gaowen.

Equally young and powerful, equally possessing a warm and benevolent heart.

Such people are pure enough, yet also easily plotted against.

While lost in thought,

Morgan raised her head, looked into Beville's eyes, and asked word by word:

"You still haven't stated the reason for your betrayal of Arthur."

Beville closed his eyes:

"Between hundreds of thousands of civilians in Avalon and Arthur alone, I could only choose the former."

"I feel guilt in my heart, but I have no regrets."

Morgan fell silent for a moment; she took a deep breath, and the fury she held toward Beville seemed to subside slightly at that instant.

She turned her head to look at Xiang Gaowen:

"Mr. Gao, the affairs of Britannias have nothing to do with you; if..."

"I have already said it."

Xiang Gaowen shook his head, his eyes showing not a shred of wavering:

"Britannias is something I am determined to obtain."

"This is where we have set foot; no matter what obstacles we face, they must be leveled."

"No matter how strong Wales's abilities are, he will ultimately be restrained by the sea."

Beville shook his head:

"We have also attempted such methods before, but Wales's strength is not lacking; under conditions where he is deliberately on guard, forcing him to sink to the bottom of the sea is simply an impossible task."

"Even Seastone, the natural enemy of Devil Fruit users, is difficult to bring into contact with Wales."

"It is useless."

"Abandoning this country and abandoning the people here is the best choice for you."

"Arthur has already died in battle; I do not wish to see another man similar to Arthur die at Wales's hands!"

"You..."

Amidst these words,

Beville raised his head, meeting Xiang Gaowen's resolute gaze, as well as a gathering of powerful individuals emitting strong auras.

"Be quiet!"

"Muramasa!"

Zoro pressed his hand against the long blade at his waist, his tone chilling:

"In Avalon, there will be sufficiently powerful enemies for you to slay!"

The villagers' unrest gradually subsided.

Yet the shock in Beville's heart had only just begun.

It was not only Zoro.

There was Ah Jin, whom he had once captured; Xiang Keluo, whose gloomy aura radiated a sharpness like the edge of a blade; Sanji, silently smoking; and Law, quietly wiping his hat...

On none of these people could be found even a trace of fear in the face of a powerful enemy; there was only eager battle intent, and he could even hear the restless ringing of blades in his ears!

Beville believed he had explained Wales's abilities clearly enough; that was definitely not an existence that could be defeated by normal means.

Yet these people...

Did these people not understand how to weigh pros and cons?

"To pursue their own ambitions, knowing they will surely die, yet still proceed with such actions? How utterly mad!"

"Mad?!"

Ah Jin lowered his gaze to look at Beville, a hint of barely perceptible anger appearing in his eyes:

"So, you fellow simply do not understand what kind of existence a Captain truly is!"

"His goal is to give everyone in this country a chance to survive."

The voice landed.

A glint of understanding flashed in Morgan's eyes.

As expected!

This man possesses a heart of gold!

The so-called search for a foothold, the so-called unchangeable predetermined goal, were nothing but excuses he fabricated to convince himself.

His true goal has always been to help more people!

The crowd nearby held views nearly identical to A-Jin's.

"Exactly!"

Chopper nodded vigorously:

"The Captain is the kind of man who cannot ignore suffering!"

"Along this journey, he has saved countless lives, from the Drum Kingdom, to Water Seven, and then to Fish-Man Island..."

"Witnessing everything, saving everything!"

For a moment, flames flickered in the eyes of the crowd.

Originally, they had only a vague impression of what Xiang Gaowen intended to do; now, hearing Chopper's words, they suddenly understood.

Sanji flicked the ash from his fingertips, murmuring lines he had seen in a movie:

"Only by staying alive is there hope?!"

"What a pure man, consistently upholding the will of Wang Fei..."

Miss Kalifa's eyes turned into red hearts, her face flushed; Nami curled her lips into a gentle smile, for she understood Sanji and the others' words even more deeply and believed in all of this even more firmly.

"What nonsense..."

Xiang Gaowen's eyebrow twitched wildly; his gaze swept around, meeting only pairs of increasingly fanatical eyes.

For a moment, he was speechless.

He intended to explain, but such matters only become clearer the less one explains them, so he simply stopped paying attention; seeing that Bevil's mindset had been completely shattered by Wales, he couldn't be bothered to ask for further details.

One could only say: let the soldiers come and the generals block them, let the water come and the earth dam it.

Xiang Gaowen was not the Arthur of those years, not that simple; when it did not concern his core interests, he did not mind lending these people a hand.

But the moment they raised their blades against him, Xiang Gaowen would strike without a shred of hesitation.

Bevil's gaze fell upon Xiang Gaowen, and for a moment he felt dazed.

He still remembered.

Back then, Arthur too had gathered around him a group of loyal knights, expanding territory and repelling enemies alongside him.

At that time, he had stood by Arthur's side as his most trusted deputy.

Alas, their journey ultimately ended at the hurdle of Wales; of the entire knightly order, only he had survived.

After a long silence.

Bevil's Adam's apple bobbed up and down as he said:

"Since you are seeking death, count me in!" "Good!"

At the same time.

The border of Britannias.

Black smoke billowed upward.

A pitch-black pentagram emerged upon the earth, and several figures materialized from the black smoke.

The leader was a slender young girl wearing headphones.

Her face was wrapped in white bandages, with only her forehead and eyes exposed, her entire being exuding an eerie and dangerous aura.

Whoosh—!

The sea wind howled, churning the black smoke.

Two members of the God's Knights stepped forward, positioning themselves half a pace behind the young girl, their tones respectful, even betraying a hint of fear.

"My lord Gunzi, according to Lord Im's plan, our next objective is to enter Britannias and locate that monster who has been hidden for many years."

"The era of its existence may predate even the World Government!"

"It poses a tremendous threat to us, and to Mary Geoise!"

The young girl seemed oblivious, tapping her fingers to the music from her headphones.

"Yo-hohoho~ Yo-hohoho~"

"Bring Binks' sake~ to your side~ Like the sea wind, at will~ Riding the waves~"

"My lord Gunzi!"

The two members of the God's Knights exchanged glances and raised their voices, but before they could finish speaking, Gunzi interrupted them:

"I know."

"But Lord Im also said this was merely a whim of his, a desire to see what form that monster, who has lived for over a thousand years, currently takes."

"What truly interests him is the man named Knight Xiang Gaowen!"

"Lord Im suspects that fellow truly possesses the ability to overcome the weaknesses of Devil Fruits."

"You should understand how valuable this is to us ability users; the day this world completely sinks beneath the sea is not far off."

The two men's gazes hardened, yet they offered no rebuttal.

The end of the world is imminent; everything will sink beneath the sea.

This was no secret at all in Mary Geoise.

Many Celestial Dragons, after leaving the Red Line located at the world's highest point, would don diving suits.

The root cause was not some notion that gods and humans cannot breathe the same air, but a fear of the world's silence etched into their very bones!

Junzi glanced at the two and said indifferently:

"Therefore, our primary objective must first be to ascertain Knight Xiang Gaowen's abilities, rather than focusing on that monster from Britannias."

"A thousand years have passed, and it has failed to stir up any waves; even if it awakens, it poses no threat to us."

"In any case..."

"It is merely a mass of flesh and blood that has lost its self and knows only how to devour everything."

"Yes!"

The members of the God Group knelt halfway on the ground, not even daring to look directly at Junzi before them, simply because they all knew of this person's extraordinary connection to Im.

"Let's go!"

Junzi waved a hand, took the lead, and sped off toward the distance.

Seeing this, the others immediately followed.

Within a few breaths, they vanished without a trace, and even the black five-pointed star formation behind them disappeared along with them.

Several days later.

In the underground ruins of the Old City, on the outskirts of Avalon.

Roar after roar erupted from underground, startling birds and beasts in all directions into flight. Cracks appeared across the earth's surface, like a localized earthquake.

Yet this roaring sound was entirely different from an earthquake; it was highly rhythmic.

Rather than an earthquake, it was more like...

The heartbeat of some monster!

"Found it!"

Underground within the ruins.

Jeanne gazed at the pure white figure crouching within the vast underground palace, her eyes filled with an indescribable madness and triumph!

"The first monarch of Britannias!"

"The only immortal outside Mary Geoise!"

"The White Dragon!"

"Fafnir!"

"Hahahahaha—!"

A distorted laughter surged from Jeanne's throat, her vision completely dominated by the massive figure in the distance!

Even while crouching on the ground, its shoulder height still exceeded one hundred meters, propping up the entire underground ruin to the point that a hill had risen on the surface above!

Countless pure white feathers fell before Lin Li in front of the White Dragon, deeply embedded in the surrounding rock layers, possessing sharpness comparable to blade edges.

The longest among them exceeded thirty meters, while the shortest were still several meters long!

And that heartbeat sound, similar to an earthquake, was indeed emanating from the monster before their eyes.

Even though it remained asleep, and even though several chains pierced through its body, the terrifying aura emanating from the White Dragon remained impossible to conceal!

Even Jeanne's consciousness became somewhat blurred at this moment; she even felt an impulse to prostrate herself in worship!

"The aura unconsciously leaked while asleep carries such pressure; if you were truly to awaken, no one within Britannias would be my match!"

"My years of lurking under Wales were not in vain!"

Jeanne could not help but step forward, reaching out to gently stroke the feathers on the White Dragon; the touch, cold as steel, spoke of the most violent power.

Her consciousness traveled along her fingertips into the White Dragon's body, yet what she perceived was nothing but void.

All consciousness, all sense of self, had already dissipated; all that remained within the White Dragon was biological instinct.

Eating and sleeping.

The part belonging to Fafnir had long since completely dissipated during that ritual.

"As expected."

"My line of thinking is correct; Fafnir's immortality ritual went wrong, or rather, the legend of flesh, blood, bone, heart, and soul could never achieve true immortality—it could only create an undying body, not an imperishable soul!"

"What determines a human's lifespan has never been the body, but the soul!"

"When the soul reaches its limit, it will completely dissipate; an undying body, having lost its self, is left with only the purest instinct for survival!"

"But for me, this is the best news..."

Jeanne's fingertips wandered over the pure white feathers, and the corners of her mouth gradually curled upward:

"As long as I transfer my own consciousness into the White Dragon's body, everything Fafnir once possessed will be mine."

"Britannias—no, the entire world—will crouch beneath my feet!"

"As for the method to achieve immortality..."

Before her eyes floated the young face she had inadvertently seen when attacking Xiang Gaowen's pirate crew:

"He is in this country right now!"

"However, the consciousness transfer requires a certain amount of time; before then, that fellow Wales must not be defeated by Knight Xiang Gaowen!"

After a brief moment of thought, Jeanne formed a plan.

She walked out of the ruins, leaped onto the treetops, spread her arms, and a low chant issued from her mouth.

Her voice was not loud, yet in an instant, it spread throughout the wilderness.

Numerous massive beasts froze in their tracks, abandoning prey that was nearly within their grasp, as if they had lost their souls.

Very soon.

Their bodies began to swell, muscles knotting throughout, veins crisscrossing everywhere; their already immense forms grew even more massive and burly,

Their entire beings brimming with the most primal savagery and ferocious power!

Roar—!

Deafening howls erupted from all corners of the dense forest.

The earth itself seemed to boil in an instant; the thunderous rumble of colossal beasts charging was deafening!

The very ground seemed to tremble!

Such a tremendous commotion was even visible to Welsh, standing within Avalon City; his eyes relaxed slightly at that moment.

(End of Chapter)