Chapter 309

"Ha ha ha… You're right—I broke the Iron Law, yet I might still be forgiven…"

Black Hu Zi laughed wildly, raising his right hand; a wisp of black mist seeped from his fingertip, quickly staining his entire palm and radiating an utterly evil aura.

He cackled almost madly: "Pursuit? I doubt you came here just to hunt me down."

"I suppose you've also heard the rumors about those fragments."

"Fragments?"

"What do you mean?"

At the sound of Black Hu Zi's voice, all the Magic Council mages of Ishgar, including Macao, froze in shock.

What's going on?

Could the true cause be more than just Ace and Black Hu Zi—could it be tied to some kind of fragments?

Before White Hu Zi could retort, Black Hu Zi went on speaking on his own.

"Of course—historical fractures exist in every world. The events of a thousand years ago are nearly forgotten by everyone."

"Why was the original world split into so many pieces? Why has it now reassembled? And why have people kept intruding into your affairs? Have you never once pondered these secrets?"

Boom—!

Black Hu Zi's words struck like a meteor, landing on everyone's hearts and igniting a colossal storm.

That's right!

Though they knew of another world, they had never questioned why it had only appeared now.

Could it be that something happened a thousand years ago?

But before the Ishgar mages could further ponder this, White Hu Zi stepped forward and spoke in a deep voice.

"Tichi, I have no interest in such things, and I don't want to know. I only want to know Ace's whereabouts."

"Still the same, old man—always saying you're not interested, yet knowing more than anyone else."

"If I hadn't already secretly learned it from you, you'd still be hiding it from me. What's wrong? Afraid I'll spread this news?"

Watching White Hu Zi's figure, Black Hu Zi couldn't help but sneer—laughing until he slowly calmed, fixing his gaze on White Hu Zi's eyes, he spoke coldly.

"Regarding the Omniscient and Omnipotent Great Will."

"Black Hu Zi, Marshall D. Tichi's…"

Seeing all eyes turn to him, Macao took a deep breath, turned toward the distant Council Hall, signaled everyone to step back, and gathered his magic.

The next instant, Macao transformed into a giant again, clenched his massive fist, golden magic surging over it, and punched forward with all his might into the Council Hall.

Though not as earth-shattering as White Hu Zi's power, the sheer force of the magic-laden fist was still devastating—it shattered the Council Hall, cracked the surrounding earth, and then a fissure appeared before everyone's eyes, spreading rapidly.

But clearly, this had not achieved Macao's intended effect.

"Step back."

Just as Macao prepared to strike again, White Hu Zi stood before him, clenched his fist, white light flaring forth, and punched forward.

Crack—!

The atmosphere cracked open, spreading rapidly—its extent exceeded Macao's destruction by more than tenfold!

In his Three-Star state, White Hu Zi's strength and abilities had risen to an utterly terrifying level; if he faced Serena the Sky God now, he could end the battle in a few punches.

As the atmosphere shattered, an unimaginably terrifying shockwave erupted.

Like invisible claws, it tore fissures across the ruined ground, quickly spreading beyond Macao's destroyed area, causing the entire battlefield to tremble violently.

The shockwave tore through the earth, spreading deeper downward.

Just as it neared the underside of the Council Hall, a massive figure burst out from the thick smoke generated by the shattered space and landed on the ground, accompanied by a piercing scream.

"Aaaah~ It hurts so much! It's going to kill me!"

…

"What is that?"

"Who is it?"

…

The Council Hall collapsed with a thunderous crash, dust and debris filling the sky.

Seeing someone emerge from underground, the mages who hadn't heard Macao and White Hu Zi's exchange also froze in shock.

Before they could speculate further, White Hu Zi's voice revealed the shadow's identity.

"Tichi!"

"Ha ha ha… Long time no see, old man—and all of you. Oh, old man, how's your health? I've missed you so much."

Rising from the ground, slowly brushing the dust off his body, the shadow stepped out of the smoke—it was none other than Black Hu Zi, the man every person present loathed.

"Black Hu Zi! You bastard!"

Before White Hu Zi could reply, Gullandoma's eyes burned with fury as he stared at Black Hu Zi's stubble, his toothless grin, and his wild laughter.

"Oh? Isn't that the Council President?" Black Hu Zi continued laughing. "The war's over—can I become a councilor now?"

"Wait… no, you can't even become a councilor. How about you give me the President's seat? If you hand over the President's seat to me, I'll tell you how to cross dimensions right now."

"How's that deal?"

As if deliberately, every word Black Hu Zi spoke was a sharp dagger stabbing straight into Gullandoma's heart.

Hearing Black Hu Zi's words, if Gullandoma weren't deeply burdened by his wounds, he would have rushed forward to tear off his flesh.

"Tichi!!"

White Hu Zi's deep voice echoed from afar to near, his fist shattering the atmosphere as another terrifying shockwave surged forth, spreading toward Black Hu Zi's position.

Visible waves of air shattered the earth and blew everything away.

Before this terrifying shockwave, Black Hu Zi—who had been so confident moments ago—grew visibly flustered and scrambled sideways.

Where he had stood just now, a deep trench now lay.

"Zehahahaha... you really don't hold back, do you? But then again, how could you possibly hold back?"

Blackbeard got up, still shaken, but looking at Bai Huzi, who had walked over at some unknown moment, the wild arrogance on his face did not diminish in the slightest.

"Hey, hey, hey, old man, was it really necessary to draw your blade the moment we meet? Was it really worth it?"

"You don't deserve to be my son, Teach."

Bai Huzi's tiger-like eyes were filled with murderous intent as he spoke in an exceedingly low voice.

"You violated the one iron rule of the ship. You not only killed Thatch, but you also captured Ace. No matter where you flee, you must die!"

"Zehahahaha... you're right. I, who have broken the iron rule, might indeed be forgiven......."

Blackbeard laughed wildly and raised his right hand. A wisp of black mist seeped from his fingertip, quickly dyeing his entire palm and emanating an utterly evil aura.

Only Blackbeard's nearly frenzied laughter was heard: "Pursue me? I'm afraid you didn't come just to pursue me, did you?"

"You must have also learned the news about those fragments."

"Fragments?"

"What does that mean?"

Along with the sound of Blackbeard's voice, all the Mages of Ishgar, including Makarov, were stunned.

What's going on?

Could the true triggering factor be not only Ace and Blackbeard, but also have something to do with some fragments?

Before Bai Huzi could open his mouth to retort, Blackbeard spoke up on his own.

"Indeed, the fault line of history exists in every world. The events of a thousand years ago are on the verge of being forgotten by everyone."

"Why was the original world separated into so many pieces, and why is it reassembling now? And why does someone always keep intruding upon your affairs? Have you never thought about these secrets until now?"

Boom—!

Blackbeard's words were like a meteorite, crashing into everyone's hearts and stirring up monstrous waves.

That's right!

Although they knew of the existence of another world, they had never thought about why another world had only now appeared.

Could it be that something happened as early as a thousand years ago?

But before the Ishgar Mages could continue thinking it through, Bai Huzi stepped forward and said in a heavy voice.

"Teach, I'm not interested in this kind of thing, and I don't want to know. I only want to know Ace's whereabouts."

"Still the same as ever, old man. Mouth after mouth saying you're not interested, yet you yourself know the most."

"If I hadn't secretly learned it from you, I'd probably still be kept in the dark by you. What, afraid this news would be spread by me?"

Gazing at Bai Huzi's figure, Blackbeard couldn't help but snort with laughter. But as his laughter reached the end, it gradually subsided. He stared into Bai Huzi's eyes and said coldly.

"It concerns the great will of omniscience and omnipotence."