At the edge of the battlefield.
The Revolutionary Army's Commanders lay behind a dirt slope, peeking out cautiously to observe the battle.
"So strong!"
"Of course!"
"That's the Supreme Commander of Hoenn—a monster with a bounty exceeding 5 billion Berries , one of the strongest beings in this world!"
The Commanders chattered excitedly.
In this era, Kaido was widely acknowledged as the strongest, but Gurd, the rising star, was also regarded by countless people as the strongest!
Gurd's claim to "strongest" wasn't just due to his overwhelming power, but also because he had established the most formidable organization outside the World Government, wielding absolute influence in the New World.
By comparison, Gurd was even more terrifying than Kaido. While provoking the Beasts might leave some room for survival, provoking Gurd meant there was no refuge in either the underworld or the light.
The three God's Knights who had given them such a hard fight were swiftly defeated by Gurd within minutes—completely outclassed.
Gurd stepped on Saint Sommers' body, dark lightning crackling beneath his feet, disrupting Sommers' regeneration and mobility.
His gaze shifted to Gunko.
Gunko's wrist was regenerating—likely because she had neutralized his Haki. After all, without continuous reinforcement, the amount of Haki was finite.
It was only a matter of time before it was exhausted.
"Chikara!"
"Yes!"
Chikara rushed over, holding Sea Prism Stone Shackles!
"Damn it!"
Gunko's expression changed as she tried to stop Chikara, but sharp stone pillars erupted around her, forming a cage that trapped her inside.
"Something like this?!"
Her Arrow Bandages coiled into a fist, smashing against the stone pillars!
Boom!
The pillar dented but didn't shatter as expected!
"So hard!"
Gunko's pupils contracted.
"That cage is made of ultra-dense ore from deep underground—harder than steel. Don't think you can break it so easily."
Gurd smirked, then signaled Chikara to restrain Saint Sommers. Once the Seastone handcuffs were locked on, Sommers' abilities would be sealed.
However, it was uncertain whether the powers granted to him would also be nullified.
"Hmm?!"
Suddenly, a dark Pentagram Magic Circle appeared beneath Gurd's feet, dragging Sommers' body into it.
"Trying to escape?!"
Gurd's eyes turned cold as he drew his greatsword and stabbed it into the magic circle, infusing it with Conqueror's Haki. Black lightning surged outward from the blade!
Zzzzt!
The magic circle distorted and expanded!
Without even looking up, Gurd barked,
"Chikara, hurry!"
"Yes!"
Chikara lunged forward, attempting to shackle Saint Sommers. But just before she succeeded, Sommers suddenly let out a piercing scream, black smoke billowing from his entire body.
"No, I—"
Gurd's expression shifted as he yanked Chikara back in a swift leap.
BOOM!!!
A blast of dark Haki Thunder erupted!
When the dust settled, all that remained of Saint Sommers was a skeleton—utterly lifeless.
"Imu!"
Gurd held Chikara protectively, his gaze icy.
Clearly, someone had destroyed the evidence to prevent him from taking Sommers as a hostage. That someone had to be Imu.
"Saint Sommers!"
"A God's Knight… is dead?!"
Witnessing Sommers reduced to a skeleton, Gunko, Saint Killingham, and the Revolutionary Army Commanders all paled in horror.
The Commanders were utterly stunned.
Judging from the sudden death of Saint Sommers, it was clearly not Gurd's doing. So who was responsible?!
"Lord Imu!"
Gunko and Saint Killingham couldn't suppress the fear welling up in their hearts.
Especially Saint Killingham, who now only had his head remaining. If the enemy came for him, he might end up the same way as Saint Sommers.
"Bzzzt!"
Suddenly, Gunko's body stiffened, and her aura underwent a dramatic transformation. Black lightning began radiating from her.
Killingham's face twisted in horror.
"Lord Imu?!"
It was Lord Imu!
Western battlefield of the island.
"This aura!"
Shamrock, who had been fighting Dragon, quickly created distance and stared in shock at the black lightning emerging from the eastern part of the island.
Lord Imu had descended!
"What an evil aura!"
Dragon, Akainu, and Fujitora.
All three stopped fighting and turned toward the Conqueror's Haki erupting from the east, sweat dripping from their foreheads.
Even at this distance, they could feel the terrifying pressure. This was definitely not the aura of a normal human!
Eastern battlefield, sky.
Gunko's back sprouted massive demonic wings, with an arrow-like tail extending from her rear. A Devil Trident appeared in her hand.
Not just her aura, but her appearance had undergone a radical transformation.
"A demon?"
Gurd stared intently at Gunko.
There was no doubt—the woman's current form matched the legendary demons. But Gunko's ability was supposed to be arrow manipulation.
And this completely different aura!
"Possession, perhaps?"
Gurd pondered.
Ever since facing the Five Elders, he'd been contemplating the source of the immortality Imu granted them.
Magic circles, immortality, flames.
And now this demonic form!
The answer was becoming clearer!
Even if Imu's true power wasn't that of a demon itself, it was undoubtedly demon-related.
Imu hovered in the sky as her tail rapidly extended toward one part of the battlefield, retrieving something before immediately withdrawing.
It was the Kirin man's head!
Under the influence of her Haki, the Kirin man quickly purged Gurd's Haki and began regenerating his body.
"This Haki... it's strong!"
Gurd felt the pressure.
The Haki this woman displayed was the strongest he'd ever witnessed—more chilling even than Kaido's or Red Hair Shanks' Haki.
Imu stared coldly at Gurd and spoke.
"Mortal, Imu shall show you... the dominion of a god!"
Infinite black lightning spread out, enveloping the entire island!
"Ugh!"
Chikara's eyes rolled back as she collapsed into Gurd's arms.
Gurd was stunned again.
"Hey, are you serious?"
He could sense the entire island was blanketed by her Conqueror's Haki. Such an enormous range of intimidation was unheard of!
Fine, fine, everyone's using cheats now, huh?
Extending his Observation Haki toward the shore, Gurd quickly located Speed: "Speed, get everyone onto the ships!"
"Understood!"
Speed immediately sprang into action, transporting the unconscious crew members to the vessels.
Battlefield.
The Army Commanders gazed at the demonic Imu.
"What's with that woman?"
"There actually exists Conqueror's Haki this powerful in the world?"
"I nearly passed out just now!"
Even they had suffered intense mental impact moments ago. They'd never witnessed such exaggerated power before.
Only a fool wouldn't realize the situation had turned dire—the demon woman in the sky undoubtedly possessed terrifying strength.
"What do we do?"
Everyone exchanged glances and nodded silently.
They would fight the enemy to the death!
Earlier, the enemy was no match for Gurd, so they didn't need to intervene. But now, facing an unknown powerful foe, they couldn't let Mr. Gurd fight alone!
"Let's go, hehe!"
The Army Commanders gathered behind Gurd.
"Mr. Gurd, we're here to help!"
"Huh?!"
Gurd looked at the odd group. Apart from the Eastern Army Commander Betty, who was quite pleasing to the eye, the others together looked like a chaotic mess.
Are they sure they're not here to cause trouble?
Wait, these guys might actually be of some use.
Gurd pointed at Imu in the sky.
"You go first!"
"Eh?!"
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