Chapter 284

…………

The Five Elders, stationed at the highest point of Pangu City, stood by the window, gazing down at the entire battlefield, silently waiting for the right moment.

On one of the massive fragments of land floating above Mary Geoise, Mihawk and Zeff stood side by side.

Mihawk took a sip of wine and laughed.

"The Five Elders really have patience—still not planning to act?"

"Even the old man in the sky has moved—where's Karp? … Looks like he's firmly decided not to join the battle," Zeff remarked.

Zeff sighed.

"Isn't that good? I don't want to face Karp's iron fists."

Mihawk laughed, took another sip, then handed the wine flask to Zeff beside him: "Never thought I'd fight shoulder to shoulder with Black Arm Zeff."

"And it'll be the only time."

Zeff took it and drank deeply: "Good and evil intertwined—that is chaos. On this sea, good and evil have always been blurred; pirates and marines have no absolute justice. Thanks to that kid, I finally understood this."

……

A one-armed man in a black cloak climbed atop the Red Line, a long sword strapped at his waist, walking step by step toward Mary Geoise, where roars and earthquakes continuously erupted.

Deepest within Pangu City.

Above the twenty Void Thrones, each representing one of the twenty former kings, Im raised her gaze upward.

Her deep, silent gaze pierced through layers of architecture, reaching all the way to the ten-thousand-zhang height above Mary Geoise.

Above the clouds of Mary Geoise.

Luo En, clad in black, his black hair swirling, stood alone upon the cloud sea, hands behind his back, expression calm. His blue Reincarnation Eyes surveyed Mary Geoise and Pangu City with quiet stillness.

He had already sensed Im's presence and aura.

Im had also noticed him.

Above and below, they gazed at each other from afar.

246, Heaven Falls, Earth Collapses (Combined)

Marco the Phoenix and Ace fought Akainu together; though at a disadvantage, they still managed to hold their ground.

Sabo, who had eaten the Gura Gura no Mi, fought against the Tyrant Buggy; due to Buggy's Bear Paws absorbing shockwaves, they held the upper hand.

Empress and Guina faced Tenghu.

The CP0 Chief faced Dragon.

Kuzan and Steelbone Kong confronted Kaido in his dragon form.

The battle raged with heaven overturned and earth reversed.

The ground trembled continuously.

One by one, ancient, opulent buildings within the Sacred Land Mary Geoise were destroyed.

The Red Line's surface, made of rock as hard as iron, gradually cracked and shattered under the powerful attacks of these warriors.

Cracks spread in all directions.

The war had reached its boiling point.

Kaido, in dragon form, spat a bolt of lightning that shattered Kuzan's ice pillar, but immediately afterward, Steelbone Kong struck him with a heavy punch.

Kaido endured the force of Steelbone Kong's punch, feeling the pain, his dragon eyes filled with madness and exhilaration.

"Hahaha, this is the war I wanted!"

"War is truly exhilarating!"

Under the solemn gazes of Admiral Tsuru and other Marine officers.

He slashed out a wind blade, sending Steelbone Kong flying, then coiled his massive dragon body like a spirit serpent, stirring up violent hurricanes.

"The Four Emperor Kaido… truly a troublesome fellow."

One of the Five Elders, with curled whiskers, stared coldly at the giant dragon.

"Steelbone is getting old."

The Five Elder with long straight whiskers stroked his beard.

"But at least only Kaido among the Four Emperors has joined the battle—if more had come, things would've been worse."

The golden-haired Five Elder spoke, then his expression suddenly changed.

The other four also tensed, turning their eyes to the sky.

"Is there another force still lurking?!"

In their solemn gazes,

A massive slash, charged with overwhelming dominance, descended from the sky, splitting Akainu directly into the ground before his widened eyes.

Another air cannon shot toward Zero, who was fighting Dragon; Dragon did not miss this opportunity.

"Lei Long's… Breath!"

A powerful claw, wrapped in thunder and dominance, slammed Zero from the air deep into the ground. The earth jolted violently, forming a massive crater.

The CP0 Chief, codenamed Zero, lay within it, his white mask shattered, revealing the face of a middle-aged man. Blood trickled from his lips, his aura weak; even though he had activated Iron Body in time, his internal organs had ruptured under the two consecutive powerful attacks.

Now he used the advanced technique of Life Return, exhausting his life force to repair his wounds as quickly as possible.

But he needed time.

When Zeff and Mihawk appeared on the battlefield,

Many were shaken inside.

"That's… the former Black Arm Admiral?!"

"And Mihawk the King of the Sea."

Many Marine officers, including Kuzan, stared at Zeff in utter disbelief.

"Zefa… Teacher…"

"Liar—how could this be possible…"

Internally shaken, Zhen Guo slammed a palm forward, pushing back Sabo before him, and roared at Zefa in fury: "Zefa, you were once a former Marine Admiral—how dare you side with pirates against the World Government?!"

Zefa looked at him and sneered: "Zhen Guo, you haven't changed a bit."

"You bastard…"

Zhen Guo glared at him, teeth clenched.

Lei Li, clad in a gray-white coat and wearing round spectacles, held a long sword atop the ruined Mary Geoise, gazing at the ancient city: "What Luo Jie never finished, I shall complete for him."

He drew his sword and slashed remotely toward it.

A massive crescent-shaped sword qi, entwined with potent Armament Haki, charged forward without pause toward the ancient city.

"Audacious!"

A roar erupted from within the ancient city.

Then.

A sharp slash, thick with dense ghostly energy, shot skyward from within the ancient city.

It collided with the vast sword qi.

In an instant.

Swordlight blazed across the sky.

The heavens were split in two by a sprawling crack.

Standing atop the ancient city, a bald Five Elder Star clad in Daoist robes, wielding the original Kurotachi, stared coldly at Lei Li.

"Lei Li, do you know what consequences you face for taking part in this?"

"Consequences? Hahaha."

Lei Li laughed heartily: "I'm an old man with nothing left to lose—what consequences could possibly frighten me?"

"Is that so…"

The bald Five Elder Star fixed him with a chilling gaze; dark, terrifying energies coiled around the original Kurotachi in his hand, and a decaying, life-sucking sword aura radiated from him, instantly engulfing all of Mary Geoise and sending chills through many who felt it.

Guina's expression turned grim.

As a top swordsman who had reached the Grand Sword Sage realm, she could feel the immense strength of the old man's sword aura.

Equal to Hawk-Eye.

Immediately, two more Five Elder Stars appeared beside him.

The golden-haired Five Elder Star and the mustached Five Elder Star.

Gazing at the three Five Elder Stars standing atop the ancient city, the dragon King Kaido narrowed his dragon eyes.