BOOM! The swamp cloud continuously disintegrated, sending chunks of mud splattering onto the ground.
The fist, wreathed in flames and lightning, pierced through the swamp cloud, relentlessly breaking through like a sharp spear.
However, the swamp was too thick and heavy. The electric fangs and flames shot through, tearing a large hole from the bottom to the top, but before the cloud could disperse, more swamp surged in from all sides, instantly filling the hole and continuing to press down.
The faces of the people below were filled with shock. Everyone tilted their heads back, staring with wide eyes at the scene in the distance, which looked like the sky itself was throwing a tantrum.
"What a terrifying cataclysm!"
"All troops, prepare!" Just then, Kizaru grunted, as if he had received some information. His voice echoed across the entire battlefield: "Annihilate the enemy!"
The Marines were taken aback for a moment, but then, without hesitation, they raised their arms with a roar, "Yes, sir!"
They drew their swords and firearms and launched an attack on the members of the Big Mom Pirates!
With Big Mom tied down, the tide of the battle instantly turned. The Marines were now pressing the pirates.
BOOM! Just then, a loud roar came from the sky. The swamp cloud that had been obscuring the heavens finally pressed down. In the eyes of the crowd, Big Mom's figure was completely submerged by the overwhelming swamp, looking incredibly tiny.
"Cough!" Wilder coughed, and to his surprise, he coughed up blood. His face turned a few shades paler.
Time is almost up. I have to seize this opportunity. Wilder knew that this level of attack would certainly not be a fatal threat to Big Mom. While she was temporarily engulfed in the swamp…
BOOM! The thought hadn't even fully formed when a roar erupted from below. Wilder's expression changed. He tapped his foot on the air and quickly retreated!
By a hair's breadth, a giant hand shot up from the swamp. Big Mom's body shot into the sky at high speed, her eyes already completely blood-red, a crazed and cold smile on her face.
As for the swamp, it was now scattering in all directions like a living monster.
"This is… the power of souls." Wilder looked at the swamp, his expression changing slightly.
Big Mom's Devil Fruit ability could give life to any object, and now, the swamp…
It seemed to have been affected by that ability.
"No, this is my ability." Wilder quickly looked closer. The swamp hadn't truly been affected by Big Mom's ability. It could only be said that after the swamp had completely separated from his body, it could be slightly controlled. After scattering, the swamp quickly became inanimate and could no longer move.
"That's not right either. If this goes on, this swamp will be completely controlled by Big Mom's ability. No, I can't hesitate!" Thinking of this, the steam around Wilder's body erupted again. He tapped his foot on the air, and BOOM! his body had already disappeared.
In the blink of an eye, Wilder reappeared below, standing in the swamp. The swamp quickly moved, flowing into his body.
Just then, Big Mom had already arrived. She was in front of Wilder, her fist, wreathed in flames and electric fangs, smashing down again!
"Swamp—Non-Newtonian Fluid Wall!"
A wall appeared in front of Wilder.
Big Mom's fist slammed into the wall. With a dull BAM!, the wall was fine, but the electric fangs actually passed straight through it, emerging from the other side!
"Is it because of the water? Damn it!" Wilder instantly understood the reason. His body quickly moved away from its spot. Fortunately, in that short time, he had already reabsorbed all the swamp into his body.
"Napoleon!" Big Mom quickly gripped her bicorne, which had transformed into a greatsword, and slashed at Wilder!
"Emperor Sword: Blade of Ruin!"
A sword wave, wrapped in extremely high-temperature flames and lightning, reached Wilder in the blink of an eye! Its range was too wide, its power terrifying, and Big Mom's slash came too timely, giving Wilder almost no time to react. BOOM! With a loud roar, the terrifying sword wave engulfed Wilder's body.
"Raging Swamp—Lake Spring!"
Suddenly, ripples spread across the ground. Wilder's figure coalesced on the other side, his palms pressed to the ground. The hundred-meter radius around Big Mom's body began to surge rapidly.
Layer after layer of ripples spread out. At this moment, the ground had become like the surface of a lake.
"Hmm?" Big Mom grunted, her brows raising. "Mamamamama… what is this?" She looked at the ground beneath her feet, which had taken on the appearance of a lake, a look of curiosity, interest, and surprise on her face.
Wilder's deep voice came at just the right moment: "Wetland Undercurrent!"
SPLASH! The ground suddenly became like a rapidly flowing lake, the water all flowing toward the center!
And the spot where Big Mom was standing suddenly sank! A pitch-black, whirlpool-like thing abruptly appeared!
Big Mom's pupils shrank. Her body instantly lost its balance!
A suction force came from the whirlpool!
BAM! Big Mom's figure was instantly sucked in!
It's over.
The fiery red glow on Wilder's body was rapidly fading. He suddenly grinned with excitement, gritting his teeth and mustering the last of his strength to activate his ability!
"Swamp—Wetland Funeral!"
As Wilder's voice fell, the ripples on the ground surged rapidly. The sound of rushing water grew more and more intense. And then, suddenly, all the water sounds went from rapid to slow, the ripples weakened, and the ground gradually returned to its original state. The central whirlpool grew smaller and smaller as it churned, eventually disappearing completely, as if nothing had ever happened.
The ground… was unnaturally normal.
Wilder's body felt as if it had been completely hollowed out. He fell straight back, lying on the ground, his eyes wide open, staring at the sky. He couldn't even move a muscle, but a broken, excited laugh kept coming from his throat.
"Is… is it over?"
The sounds of battle on the field seemed to be infinitely minimized at this moment. To describe it as silent might be too unrealistic, but in this period of time, the sounds of breathing and fighting seemed to have been deliberately suppressed. Everyone on the Marine side looked at that area with a mix of anticipation and disbelief.
"Is… is Big Mom finished?"
On the scene, only Kizaru's brows were knitted together, his eyes fixed on that spot without moving.
"No."
As Kizaru's voice fell, as if in response to his words, the distant ground…
…came alive!
Like a living creature, the earth split open from the middle. That was its mouth.
A massive, obese figure, exuding an icy aura, stood within that giant mouth of the earth.
On her body, the bruises, blood, and a small portion of caved-in muscle from the compression and high-speed rotation were clearly visible.
In other words…
Big Mom was injured.
And because she was injured, this woman was about to go on a rampage!
"Aaargh!" A terrifying, strange cry echoed across the entire battlefield!
It was accompanied by the muffled thuds of bodies falling to the ground and the miserable howls of everyone clutching their ears in pain.
The sound wave, mixed with Conqueror's Haki, seemed to become tangible, sweeping across the entire field. Big Mom moved, walking step by step toward the fallen, immobile Wilder.
She had fallen into a state of mindless rage. Even as she walked, she continued to let out that sharp, prolonged, strange cry.
Damn it, my ears feel like they're done for.
Wilder's face was dark, incredibly ugly. A trace of pain still lingered on his face. He couldn't even move a single finger. He hadn't even been able to cover his ears during the sound wave attack just now. Now, he had tinnitus, and he could feel a warm liquid flowing from his ears. He didn't need to guess to know it was blood.
Feeling the vibrations from her footsteps getting closer and closer, Wilder also grew anxious.
Am I going to die here?
Someone!
Wilder gritted his teeth, struggling to regain control of his body, but found that he couldn't even make a sound.
Damn it! Is that guy Kizaru still trying to slack off in this situation?
Hurry up and kill Big Mom!
Wilder roared in his mind, but he didn't know that Kizaru was also suffering from the strange cry. He wasn't trying to slack off right now. This terrifying Conqueror's Haki sound wave had also made his body slightly sluggish. Even in his light form, he could still hear the strange cry in his ears. To maintain the cohesion of his light and not be dispersed by the strange cry, Kizaru had to push forward against the increasingly loud sound source. In this situation, his speed was severely affected, his light beams were very unstable, and the speed of his rescue naturally slowed down.
"How terrifying, this old woman," Kizaru said, a few beads of sweat trickling down his face as he watched Big Mom's figure get closer and closer to Wilder.
"Hold on, my dear brother Wilder." At this point, he wasn't hoping that Wilder could move, but rather worried that he would die on the spot from this wave of sound-based Conqueror's Haki.
It's too late, I can't wait any longer. Kizaru immediately abandoned the idea of breaking through to Big Mom's side in this way!
"Yata no Kagami!" A golden light converged into a vague, humanoid shape of light. A mirror-like object made of light appeared in front of Kizaru.
Then, the mirror shot out a beam of light of the same diameter. Kizaru's body also turned into a golden light and was sucked into the light path, instantly arriving in front of Big Mom.
"Lightspeed Kick!" Without any warning, before Kizaru's body had even fully formed, one foot had already swept up from below in an inverted arc, striking Big Mom squarely!
BAM! With this kick, Big Mom's body was thrown backward, taking several steps back. A wound actually appeared on the spot where Kizaru had kicked her. The wound was cauterized, the blood stopped before it could even flow.
"Aaargh!" The strange cry continued unabated. Big Mom had no reason now, only attacking the target in her mind. Kizaru's interruption made her even more furious. Her blood-red eyes swept over, and Thundercloud Zeus, Sun Prometheus, and her bicorne Napoleon flew out on their own, launching an attack on Kizaru!
And Big Mom herself moved even faster than before. In the blink of an eye, she was in front of Wilder. The sinister smile that appeared unconsciously made her look even more terrifying at this moment. She looked down at Wilder, her thick arm already raised high.
VMMMM! Armament Haki instantly spread across her entire arm. Electric fangs and flames coiled around it. The two different lights of heat and lightning were reflected on Wilder's ugly face.
Damn it!
Am I really going to die here?
Even at this point, Wilder had not given up on the idea of regaining control of his body. He gritted his teeth, and a low growl came from his throat as his body tensed unconsciously.
WHOOSH!
Before the fist arrived, the wind it generated had already blown into Wilder's ears.
My ears… I can hear?
Wilder's eyes were wide open, watching the fist get closer and closer in his vision. A strange feeling came from deep within his body and instantly spread throughout his entire being.
A layer of black substance emerged from the surface of Wilder's body, covering every part of it.
This is…!
Wilder's pupils widened, his eyes filled with a mixture of excitement and disbelief.
Armament Haki!
The excitement was hard to contain, but it was more than that—it was elation!
Armament! Full-body Armament Haki! And from the looks of it, it's more than one layer!
Is this a blessing in disguise?
Wilder almost laughed out loud with excitement, but soon, he couldn't laugh anymore, because Big Mom's fist, wrapped in flames and electric fangs, had already smashed heavily into his face!
Blood squeezed out from the gap between his caved-in face and her fist like ketchup. Wilder's mind went blank. The power of this punch was beyond his imagination. His consciousness was rapidly dissipating, and with it, the Armament Haki receded like a tide.
Big Mom raised her fist again. With this next punch, there was no doubt that Wilder's life would likely end here.
But it would not stop its downward trend for that. The airflow from the fist had already touched Wilder's bloodied, mangled face. His one half-open eye could only watch helplessly as the fist drew closer and closer…
Why does it feel a little hot…
Is this what death feels like?
How unwilling I am.
Death… at the very least, it should wait until I've stomped this fat pig to death…
His consciousness grew more and more blurry. Wilder felt something strange. Why had the air suddenly turned red?
Is it a hallucination?
It's even distorting…
As expected… it's a hallucination.
Wilder thought with a self-mocking laugh. In the most blurry moment of his consciousness, he seemed to see a tall, fiery red figure appear in front of him.
And at that moment, his consciousness finally faded into darkness.
"Dark Hound!" A seasoned, steady, and indifferent voice came. Then, a tall, fiery red figure appeared in front of Wilder, earplugs in his ears. With a gurgling sound, dark red magma erupted and collided with Big Mom's fist!
A wave of heat swept out! The tall man, chewing on a cigar, stood firm, not even a trace of expression on his face, only his eyes were incredibly sharp.
"The Marines will remember today's events. King of Morass—Wilder, leave the rest to the Marines."
The battlefield was instantly plunged into silence.
It was as if something was stuck in everyone's throat. They stared at the tall figure standing in opposition to Big Mom, too shocked to speak.
The pirates were completely frozen. They stared at that figure, their pupils trembling uncontrollably.
The heat wave washed over their faces, but they seemed not to feel it. Their minds were filled with deep confusion and disbelief.
He…
…why is he here?!