The aura around the two of them continued to climb, and purple sparks and arcs of lightning began to crackle around their bodies.
To most people outside the New World, an "aura" was something ethereal and intangible. But in reality, it was a very real force, existing somewhere between the tangible and the intangible. A powerful enough aura could even have effects similar to Conqueror's Haki.
While it couldn't directly overwhelm a person's mind and cause them to faint like Conqueror's Haki, its physical impact was by no means small. A powerful aura, when unleashed during an attack, could even intimidate an opponent, affecting their body's movements.
The aura now emanating from Smoothie and Katakuri was exactly that. The surrounding people, snapping back to their senses, stared at the two of them in horror.
About fifty meters away, Wilder watched the transformation, his brow furrowed.
This was... getting a little tricky.
"Heh heh... Katakuri's angry now. The outcome of this battle is decided," the Candy Minister, Perospero, said from a short distance away. He had just dodged an attack from Claire and glanced in their direction, a wicked smile spreading across his face. He looked back at Claire, his tone taunting.
Claire also glanced over before her gaze returned to Perospero. Though her heart was filled with worry, her expression remained calm and cold. "That's right," she said, her voice like ice. "The outcome is decided."
Their words were the same, but their meanings were diametrically opposed, a clear challenge to one another.
"You don't believe me?" Perospero seemed dissatisfied with Claire's reaction. He licked his candy cane with his long tongue and chuckled. "Well, I suppose that's to be expected. This is your first time here, after all. It's normal not to know how terrifying Katakuri can be."
As he spoke, he glanced over again. Katakuri and Smoothie had just taken a step, about to make their move.
Perospero looked away, continuing his low chuckle. The sound of it filled Claire with disgust, but that didn't stop him from wearing such a repulsive expression.
He licked his candy, his smile still radiating a nauseating quality. "You don't know how terrifying Katakuri is, so let me tell you. He is the strongest Sweet Commander. Countless famous pirates, with bounties of five, six, even seven or eight hundred million, have challenged him. And... without exception, they all died."
Perospero's smile was sickening, yet he shamelessly stuck out his tongue and licked his lips. "Do you understand now? Wilder is certainly strong, but the two of them have never been on the same level. Once Katakuri gets angry, Wilder will not be able to withstand his wrath. And what's more, Smoothie is there too."
"So..." Perospero lowered his head and looked up at Claire with a sinister grin. "I really can't understand where you people get the courage to challenge Mom..."
"Are you finished?" Claire's voice was perfectly calm. Perospero's smile froze for a moment. His gaze shifted to her face and met a pair of icy eyes.
"If you're finished... then shut up." As her cold words fell, Perospero's smile froze completely. His expression changed, and then he saw Claire's body vanish.
The next moment, a foot suddenly appeared before his eyes. He had no time to react. His pupils dilated, and then he felt as if his face had been hit by a ship. A sharp, intense pain made tears stream from his eyes, and he could almost hear the sound of his nose bridge cracking.
"Aaargh!" The Candy Minister let out an inhuman scream. A graceful arc of tears flew through the air as the shoe connected squarely with his face. His entire body was sent flying backwards, crashing through several crates.
"You don't believe me?! Then watch! Hahahaha! Just watch what happens to Wilder! Watch how you all die!" Perospero struggled to climb out of the broken crates, wiping the blood from his face, yet still managing a smile.
Without waiting for Claire to react, or perhaps fearing another attack, Perospero kept his smiling face aimed at her while pointing his candy cane at the battlefield where Wilder and the others were fighting. "Watch. You'll see soon enough. None of you... will leave here alive."
Claire looked at him without a word. This guy's fighting ability wasn't high, but his cockroach-like tactics made it difficult for her to land a decisive blow and take his head.
Hearing his words, Claire couldn't help but look over, her heart filled with worry. Those are two Sweet Commanders!
Having briefly clashed with Smoothie, she was keenly aware of just how powerful a Sweet Commander was. Now, even with her immense faith in Wilder, seeing him have to face two of them at the same time made her break out in a cold sweat for him.
On the battlefield, Smoothie and Katakuri finally made their move.
BOOM! A ring of air blasted out from under their feet. The ground beneath them caved in, forming two circular craters as they both vanished, reappearing in front of Wilder.
FWOOSH!
Without a word, Smoothie, her expression cold, raised her greatsword and swept it horizontally. The blade cut a razor-sharp line through the air, which hummed with a sharp cry as a massive sword wave shot forward.
Mochi erupted from Katakuri's hands, instantly turning pitch black as it was coated in a thick layer of Armament Haki. With a boom, the mochi poured out, instantly filling the surrounding area. The ground was covered in a thick layer of mochi, which then rose up like a giant tidal wave, crashing down on Wilder.
Seeing these two attacks coming straight for him, Wilder's expression grew serious. He didn't dare to take them head-on. With a single step, he began to leap backwards, retreating continuously.
As he did, Wilder continued to release large amounts of swamp, swallowing up the soldiers who were still in a daze.
At this moment, no one stopped to wonder why he was still doing this, because everyone's attention was captivated by the two attacks.
The combined assault caused a series of dull roars to echo across the area. As the sword wave and the mochi tsunami closed in on Wilder, the environment itself began to be affected.
Wherever the sword wave passed, the stones on the ground shattered. The fragments seemed to be affected by a shifting magnetic field, floating up into the air before shattering again.
Crack! Crack...!
A dense cracking sound filled the air as the boulders and earth on the ground withered and dried up before exploding completely.
The mochi rolled forward like a raging flood, burying everything in its path. The Armament Haki crushed the rubble beneath it, and many large boulders were swept up and stuck within the sticky mass.
The surrounding soldiers were horrified by the scene.
"This... is the power of a Sweet Commander?"
"It's completely unstoppable! An attack like this... it's a natural disaster!"
The soldiers stood with their mouths agape, their eyes filled with shock and disbelief.
SWISH!
Faced with these two terrifying attacks, Wilder continued to retreat, his figure flickering, leaving only afterimages. But the attacks were getting closer and closer.
"Seven hundred and eighty-two..."
"Seven hundred and ninety-one..."
As Wilder dodged and retreated, his face remained calm. He muttered to himself, his voice audible only to him.
He continuously fired off swamp projectiles like cannonballs, his Observation Haki already covering the entire area. The swamp cannonballs landed on the soldiers who had failed to react, taking out at least five or six with each shot. Upon impact, the projectiles would rapidly spread out, covering them and then flowing back into Wilder's body.
"Seven hundred and ninety-seven..."
"Eight hundred and sixty-two..."
From time to time, Wilder would also release a large-scale wave of swamp to press down on large groups of soldiers who were clustered together. He no longer cared if, due to the pressure of the situation, he occasionally made a mistake and sacrificed one or two of his own men.
Because it was worth it.
Wilder would not forget them. After this was over, he would give the families of every soldier who died an extra compensation, enough to live without worry for the rest of their lives.
As he felt the power within him continuously growing, Wilder's sense of it became clearer and clearer.
It felt as if he could grab it at any moment, hold it tightly in his hand, and make it his own.
But not yet. Wilder felt that he was still missing something. He knew that this something required another hundred or so people to fill.
"Eight hundred and ninety-nine..."
"Nine hundred and sixteen..."
"Nine hundred and eighty-three..."
Wilder continued to retreat, and at the same time, he continued to reap lives. He had released large-scale swamp attacks multiple times, and he could already feel his stamina beginning to drop.
But his heart was filled with excitement.
Soon...
Soon! Just a dozen more!
BOOM!
His Observation Haki locked onto a group of people. Wilder's eyes snapped open, his face contorting into a somewhat ferocious expression as all the swamp in his body surged towards them.
The group of soldiers, who were in the middle of a fight, suddenly felt the sky darken. They looked up, and their eyes filled with terror as the black, oppressive swamp descended mercilessly upon them.
CRACK!
Wilder's foot landed on a stone, which cracked under the pressure. His eyes were now bloodshot, and he watched with excitement as the swamp pressed down on the twenty-odd people.
At the same time, the two terrifying attacks had arrived.
BOOM!
A deafening roar echoed far and wide. A flash of sword light, a pinkish-purple glow, illuminated half the sky with its brilliant color, a beautiful sight to behold.
But the light was fleeting. When clarity returned, all that was left were the thousands of shattered boulders and the ground covered in dry, cracked fissures, giving the entire scene a disastrous feel.
Gurgle...! Gurgle...!
A moment later, the cracks in the dry earth were filled with black mochi, a dark, oppressive mass that swept over everything.
The mochi rolled forward like an avalanche, crushing everything in its path.
The huge commotion naturally attracted the attention of people on other battlefields. One by one, they turned to look.
When they saw the scene, they were all stunned.
"Simply... a monster...!" one of Big Mom's sons said, his lips dry as he let out a dazed exclamation.
"Boss..." Claire stared at the spot, her palms sweating with nervousness, her heart filled with worry.
On the various battlefields, everyone on Morass's side was searching for Wilder. But even after the rolling mochi had come to a stop, they couldn't find any sign of him.
"No... it can't be," Vice said with a stiff smile on one battlefield, his eyes fixed on the area where he was fighting Oven.
Oven, on the other hand, briefly looked away from the area and back at Vice. He let out a vicious laugh. "Hahaha! He's dead! Is there even a question? How could he possibly survive an attack like that!"
"Morass is finished today!" he said with an excited and thrilled smile, then charged at Vice, and the two of them clashed once more.
"That guy... he couldn't be dead, could he?" Crocodile leaped to avoid an attack, glancing at the area, his brow furrowed as he muttered to himself.
Of course, he wasn't concerned about whether Wilder lived or died. It was just that if Wilder died now, things would become a little difficult for the rest of them.
But until the dust settled, some people remained calm. But everyone on Morass's side couldn't help but search the area, trying to find any sign of Wilder.
Their biggest fear was that Wilder had been engulfed by that black, oppressive mochi. Everyone had just seen what that mochi did to everything in its path. A giant boulder was crushed into fine pieces just by being lightly rolled over. One could only imagine what would happen to a person if they were caught in it.
But the more they searched, the more their hearts sank. As time passed and there was still no sign of Wilder, no movement at all, no one could remain calm.
"Boss..." The people of Morass clenched their fists, their palms sweating. None of them could maintain their composure any longer, and a sense of panic began to set in.
The result was that Big Mom's side seized the opportunity of their wavering spirits to launch an attack. In an instant, several of Morass's officers were caught off guard and seriously injured.
When the dragon's head is gone, the body is in disarray. Wilder was their pillar, and now, the pillar's fate was unknown. This threw everyone into chaos.
In contrast, Big Mom's side was ecstatic. They continued to shout, attacking the morale of their opponents, trying to further disrupt their minds.
"Hahaha! Don't wait! Wilder is dead! You're next!"
"Under an attack like that, so what if he's Wilder? It makes no difference!"
"And you thought you could be our enemies?"
"No matter what, Mom never took Wilder seriously from the beginning. And it's true. Wilder couldn't even get past Brother Katakuri and Sister Smoothie. Does he even have the right to try? To defeat Mom? Pfft! Don't make me laugh! Hahaha!"
The verbal attacks unsettled the people of Morass, and they gradually began to lose ground.
Seeing this, the people on Big Mom's side became even more excited.
"Hahaha! Give up! Wilder is already dead!"
As one of Big Mom's subordinates shouted this, the battlefield suddenly fell silent. Smoothie, Katakuri, and the other powerful individuals who were watching the fight all had their expressions change simultaneously, their gazes falling on the mass of mochi.
A cold, ominous aura, as if carrying death and plague, began to spread from it, covering the entire battlefield. Everyone couldn't help but feel a chill run down their spine, and their faces changed.