Chapter 419

City Hall.

Gao Wen sat in his office, frowning as he watched Aokiji ride away on a bicycle from the harbor.

Robin’s judgment of those notes was confirmed by Vegapunk.

The situation was far worse than he had anticipated.

Even the Red Line would sink into the ocean only two years later than originally predicted.

Losing all land would be catastrophic for the world—except for the Sky Islands and the Fish-Men, the vast majority of humans would perish!

Britannias, and all who lived upon this land, would be affected.

Gao Wen reached out and opened a drawer.

The Paramecia fruit lay still within it.

If this world was destined to sink into the ocean, this Paramecia fruit’s value would be immense.

It could preserve land for human survival.

“Not just that—Tenghu’s Gravity Fruit, Nami’s Cloud-Cloud Fruit, could also achieve similar effects to some degree.”

“But…”

“It’s still too small!”

“Compared to the world’s vast population, individual power is ultimately insignificant!”

“Unless…”

Gao Wen lowered his head, gazing at the Paramecia fruit, his heart stirred.

If he broke through to Mythic status first, then ate this fruit, perhaps he could float hundreds of nations into the sky.

Unfortunately, he already possessed the Red Dragon Fruit; consuming a second fruit was beyond impossible.

After much thought, Gao Wen reluctantly abandoned the idea and turned his gaze back to the Martial Arts Tournament:

“We can’t wait any longer!”

“Only by rapidly integrating the world’s resources can we hope to confront the coming disaster!”

“Only by uniting everyone’s strength can we possibly survive the coming catastrophe.”

“As soon as the Martial Arts Tournament ends, begin immediately!”

“Whoever stands in my way, I’ll send them to hell myself!”

…

…

…

At the same time.

New World.

Elbaf.

Upon a tree of unimaginable size stood the kingdom of the giants.

Even the thousand-meter-tall elephant, carrying an entire city, seemed like an ant beside it.

And now, at this moment,

this ancient tree, nearly piercing heaven and earth, was bathed in flames!

Screams, wails, cries, howls of despair…

Countless desperate voices rose from every trunk, only to vanish instantly.

The world seemed to fall silent.

Only the sound of flames devouring the giant tree remained piercingly loud.

Im stood upon the trunk, gazing down at the hellish scene below, her expression calm—as if she had done something trivial.

Countless giants rose from the flames; though their bodies still burned, their faces showed no trace of pain.

Only savagery and malice!

Pure, ultimate evil!

Bat-like wings spread from their shoulders, goat-like curved horns extended from their foreheads into the sky, fangs bared, black smoke swirling around them!

They stood shoulder to shoulder behind Im, like loyal servants serving their god!

Seeing this,

even Blackbeard was utterly stunned.

“This is incredible!”

“With a single person’s power, he commands every giant in the kingdom, erases their selfhood, enhances their bodies, and elevates their battle spirit to the extreme.”

“The result? A monster utterly indestructible!”

“This is…”

“The King of the World?!”

Having followed Im for over two months, Blackbeard had gradually uncovered the identity of this man.

Above the Five Elders, at the apex of the World Government, the king who should not exist upon the Empty Throne—the very one who founded the World Government eight hundred years ago!

Even Blackbeard, who refused to submit to anyone, now felt an overwhelming urge to kneel and worship.

Nothing else.

This scene had surpassed all reason!

Among the countless flame-bathed giants, several auras made even him wary.

These giants’ strength already surpassed other races; the strongest among them rivaled Marine Vice Admirals—or even the Seven Warlords of the Sea!

And standing at the center of the crowd, a giant far taller than ordinary giants—named Loki—radiated an aura of sheer terror from head to toe!

His strength was already comparable to a Marine Fleet Admiral!

Now, after Im’s enhancement, Blackbeard could not even imagine what kind of monster he had become.

At least…

Even Blackbeard, empowered by two Devil Fruits, would not dare fight him.

Shiryu beside him broke into cold sweat:

“No matter how many times I see it, I still feel soul-deep trembling!”

“This is Im…”

“This is the King of the World?!”

“Even that knight, Gao Wen, might not be his match.”

“Ah.”

Blackbeard nodded, murmuring:

“If…”

“I mean, if I could steal this guy’s ability, the world would be mine.”

“You…”

Shiryu’s breath caught; when he turned to look at Blackbeard, he saw only a harmless, earnest face.

“Hehehehehe~!”

“Of course that’s impossible—I don’t have that kind of ambition, do I?!”

Watching Blackbeard’s boisterous laugh, Shiryu felt only soul-deep dread—as if he’d seen a venomous snake with hidden fangs!

“You…”

“Didn’t you say the same thing to Whitebeard once?!”

“Who knows?!”

Blackbeard rubbed his head:

“If Lord Im remains this powerful forever, serving him isn’t such a bad thing.”

Shiryu understood, and was about to press further when Im interrupted.

“The giants of Elbaf are now in our hands.”

Im spoke calmly, as if she hadn’t heard Blackbeard’s words.

Or perhaps, even if she had, she didn’t care.

How could a god care about the fantasies of ants?!

When the gap in power reaches a certain point, the boasts of the weak become laughable.

To Im, Blackbeard was merely a useful weapon.

Im gazed into the distance.

The sea churned with waves; the rainbow bridge encircled the burning giant kingdom, like a new sun rising above the ocean!

Im raised her hand, clenching it as if grasping the world, her eyes filled with supreme dominion.

No!

The world had always been in her hands—she had merely crushed a few crawling insects.

Aside from Britannias, that monster who had only revealed a sliver of its power in the Top of the Mountain War, no one else even merited her attention!

“Now…”