Chapter 384: The End of the Old Era

The voice landed.

Blackbeard's expression changed abruptly, his heart shocked beyond measure.

This fellow knows the secret hidden within the Dark-Dark Fruit!

The Dark-Dark Fruit is the starting point for all his future arrangements; only with its ability to transfer Devil Fruits can he subsequently build up his own crew.

But now that his trump card has been seen through, making his future actions proceed smoothly... will be difficult!

What terrified Blackbeard even more was Gao Wen's unmasked killing intent.

That single strike from Gao Wen just now had directly dismantled his combat power; at this moment, he could not even resist and could only await slaughter!

"You..."

Blackbeard had just begun to speak when an extremely sharp silver light appeared before his eyes—the radiance refracted by Guanshi Zhengzong!

Brilliant and dazzling, blindingly bright, yet carrying a killing aura cold enough to freeze a person's soul!

At this moment, Blackbeard felt his entire body go cold, an indescribable chill surging up from the soles of his feet; he had never felt death so close.

Even Whitebeard back in the day had never made him feel this way!

This fellow...

Is this fellow truly a human, and not a god from myth and legend?!

From any angle, such power is too exaggerated!

At the critical moment, a streak of Jin Guang rushed swiftly across the ice, stepping firmly onto Gao Wen's blade.

Clang—!

A fierce impact radiated outward, cracking the glacier, splashing seawater, causing the entire Marineford to tremble at this moment!

"You want to stop me?!"

Gao Wen frowned, looking at Kizaru who had blocked his slash.

The latter's face flushed red, fresh blood already seeping uncontrollably from the corners of his mouth; the laziness on his face had vanished completely, replaced only by solemnity and seriousness!

"This fellow is a dangerous criminal who attacked Impel Down; before clarifying the beginning and end of matters, he cannot die yet."

"At the very least, the Marines must know exactly how many factions invaded Impel Down."

Kizaru's tone was filled with helplessness.

Having forcibly taken Gao Wen's slash in a moment of urgency just now, he had already been injured by the incredibly powerful Haki on the blade; at this moment, his internal organs felt as if they were burning with fire.

If earlier he was merely an observer, now he truly felt just how terrifying the power capable of suppressing Whitebeard head-on really was.

Absolutely invincible by human strength!

"Just consider it..."

"Doing me a favor!"

There was already a hint of pleading in Kizaru's voice, yet no one would find anything wrong with that.

The strength Gao Wen displayed was of a historical level; at least in the intelligence the Marines possessed from the last hundred years, no one had ever achieved this degree—this was already a power capable of shaking the world!

"Is that so?!"

Gao Wen's expression remained unchanged; the killing intent on his person, far from dissipating alongside Kizaru's pleading words, instead grew even more intense!

Zeng—!

Guanshi Zhengzong trembled with a hum, responding to Gao Wen's killing thought.

Unmatched Conqueror's Haki exploded from Gao Wen, directly forcing Kizaru and the surrounding crowd backward.

Immediately after, Guanshi Zhengzong, carrying this momentum, slashed once again toward Blackbeard, who had already lost the power to resist.

Song—!

Two consecutive sounds of breaking the air exploded; Aokiji and Akainu stepped forward side by side, one on the left and one on the right, joining forces to block Gao Wen's slash!

As the violent force vented itself.

Garp and Sengoku had already arrived at the center of the battlefield, yet the instant they faced Gao Wen's aura directly, both could not help but sweat in their palms!

Only when facing Gao Wen directly did one realize what level of pressure Whitebeard had faced back then.

But with countless prisoners having escaped Impel Down at stake, they had no room to retreat!

Leaving aside the prisoners from the first five levels for now, since even if they escaped they couldn't stir up much trouble, the deadly issue lay with the death row inmates of Level Five.

Every single one of those fellows was a death row criminal who had once plagued one or even several nations; once they regained freedom, even the World Government would suffer an impact.

Therefore, even if it meant fighting another battle, or even confronting the number one in the current era, the Marines had absolutely no room to compromise.

Garp stated decisively:

"If you want to make trouble, I'll keep you company!"

Whoosh—!

A fierce cold wind howled, suddenly intensifying, yet in the next moment, it was crushed outright by the violent Conqueror's Haki emanating from Gao Wen!

Countless elite Marines lost consciousness on the spot; only those with the combat power of Vice Admiral level or above could barely stand firm, yet even they were pressed down until they staggered.

"Monster!"

Smoker bit tightly on the cigarette butt in his mouth, his originally narrowed eyes widening now as he looked at Gao Wen, who stood at the center of the battlefield facing the Marines' strongest five.

What met his eyes was a crimson figure with wings growing from its back and dragon horns atop its head.

Ferocious, domineering, majestic, eerie...

Various qualities that could be called contradictory merged almost perfectly on that person, like a demon god descending upon the human world.

It was not until this moment that everyone finally remembered.

Gao Wen... is a Devil Fruit user!

A Zoan-type, Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Mythical Model: Red Dragon form user!

And during the battle between Gao Wen and Whitebeard just now, he had suppressed Whitebeard, who had returned to his peak, without even displaying his ability once; so now, with Gao Wen going all out...

How terrifying would that be?!

No one dared to think it, nor did anyone even try.

The surviving Marine Vice Admirals stood almost numb behind Sengoku and the others; what sustained them now was no longer the will to fight, but their duty as Marines.

"After Whitebeard... is it the entire Marine force?!"

Hancock, standing aside, could not help but be moved.

She had become a pirate in her teens, witnessing and hearing of countless powerhouses, many capable of rivaling an Admiral or even one of the Four Emperors, yet never had a single person achieved what Gao Wen had.

This man was born to rule the seas!

For some reason, such a feeling arose in Hancock's heart, and for the first time, she felt curiosity toward a man:

The so-called...

The most righteous man of the East Blue?!

What kind of past could possibly forge such a hero?!

And it was not just Hancock.

Bartholomew Kuma, Katakuri, and even the rank-and-file Marines, watching Gao Wen face the Navy's five strongest forces alone, felt not only awe but also curiosity in their hearts.

Many present had been Zephyr's students.

The turning point of Zephyr's drastic change in temperament was that incident in the East Blue, when he was captured by the Knight Gao Wen and used as a bargaining chip in a deal with the World Government.

What exactly Zephyr experienced during that time, no one knew.

But what they knew clearly was that the culprit behind Zephyr's decision to split the Marines was, most likely, the Knight Gao Wen standing before them.

"En heh heh heh heh—!"

"This truly makes one's blood boil!"

"The world's strongest after Whitebeard, facing the entire Marine force alone?!"

"Such a thing is simply unheard of!"

Doflamingo crouched atop a high platform, casting his gaze downward, veins bulging on his forehead, feeling as though his entire being was about to ignite.

Charging alone into Marine Headquarters was not something no one had ever done; Shiki from twenty years ago was one such example.

However, the Marine force Shiki faced was entirely different from what Gao Wen confronted.

Back then, the only ones Shiki truly needed to cautiously deal with were Sengoku and Garp, whereas Gao Wen faced not only those two but also the three Admirals in their prime, along with countless Vice Admirals.

The difficulty between the two situations was simply not on the same level.

"Hm?!"

Doflamingo suddenly sensed something.

He tilted his head slightly.

There, Hawk Eyes had already stepped forward into the battlefield, holding his blade in one hand, standing shoulder to shoulder with Gao Wen!

The meaning was self-evident!

In this battle, he stood on Gao Wen's side!

"Could it be?!"

"That arrogant and untamable Hawk Eyes would actually do such a thing?!"

"If Knight Gao Wen dies here, wouldn't he be able to reclaim the title of the World's Strongest?!"

"No!"

Kuma, who had remained silent until now, slowly spoke:

"If Knight Gao Wen dies here, then he will never be able to reclaim the title of the World's Number One."

"Ho?!"

Doflamingo raised an eyebrow, a flash of surprise passing through his eyes:

"I thought you fellow had been completely transformed into a machine; I didn't expect you still retained your self-awareness?!"

"Vegapunk has been wanted by the World Government, and many of his research projects have already come to a halt."

Kuma explained:

"My modification was carried out entirely by his own hand; the other scientists of the World Government do not possess such talent."