"Hey, hey, ceasefire!"
Nearby, Ace suddenly shouted, his expression grave as he stared at the thousand arms crashing down from the sky. The attack range was terrifyingly wide. If he stayed here, he would definitely be caught in the crossfire.
The four Marine Vice Admirals, led by Gmil, said nothing.
They simultaneously put away their weapons, turned, and ran into the distance.
It was obviously too late to support Vice Admiral Onigumo now. Besides, "Fire Fist" Ace might not let them pass.
Just as the five of them had tacitly fled about a hundred meters, the world-destroying attack erupted.
A thousand giant fists, like a continuous, raging tide, bombarded the space above Crocodile and Onigumo.
The two's desperate, ferocious roars echoed across the great sandy desert.
The hundred-meter Sand Crocodile was the first to charge out, meeting the sea of black fists.
It was instantly destroyed, exploding into a cloud of yellow sand.
The sand pipeline at its abdomen still tried to draw in sand to reform its body, but the giant fists crashed down, crushing the pipeline.
Crocodile and Onigumo, like specs of foam swallowed by a tsunami, vanished into the sea of fists.
All that could be seen were the thousand arms, bombarding the desert with the force to topple mountains and overturn seas.
RUMBLE!
The colossal sound shook the heavens and the earth, as if countless bombs were being detonated.
With every punch that landed, the area where Crocodile and Onigumo were would erupt with yellow sand tens of meters high.
The desert within a thousand-meter radius trembled nonstop.
In the sky, on the small Wood Dragon, the pupils of Robin, Nami, and the others constricted.
Looking down from above, the desert area being bombarded by the thousand arms of the Guanyin statue was actually collapsing. In an instant, a deep pit had formed.
Luo Chen's attack had punched through the immeasurably thick sea of sand, even causing the bedrock below to collapse.
A continuous roar filled everyone's ears.
They witnessed the sea of sand overturn, flowing backward into the giant pit.
A long time later, the bombardment of the thousand arms ceased, and they slowly retracted to rest behind the Guanyin statue's head.
Luo Chen controlled the statue to extend another arm, scooping up from the bottom of the deep pit as if sifting through sand.
Grains of sand trickled down from between the statue's massive fingers.
Two blood-red figures lay motionless in the statue's giant palm.
In the distance, the faces of Gmil and the other four Vice Admirals were grim.
Onigumo was defeated.
He was so seriously injured that he couldn't move. The joints in his arms and legs were twisted at bizarre angles. White bone pierced through his skin, exposed to the air.
Now, he could only barely turn his head. His face was covered in blood, and his disheveled long hair was also soaked in it, stuck to the palm of the Guanyin statue.
Vivi, Nico Robin, Carina, Nami, and the others' eyes were wide.
It wasn't just Onigumo.
The Warlord of the Sea, Crocodile, had also completely lost his ability to fight.
He looked extremely miserable at this moment.
The fur coat he usually wore was reduced to a few strips of cloth hanging from his body. The golden hook on his left hand was broken, and the poison hidden inside slowly dripped out.
Every breath he took made him cough up blood, his face contorted in pain.
Robin took a deep breath, unable to hide the shock in her beautiful eyes. "This is the first time I've ever seen Crocodile in such a wretched state."
Vivi pressed her lips together tightly, her voice trembling. "Crocodile is finally defeated. He's gotten the punishment he deserves."
The defeat of Luffy and the others.
The distrust of the Vice Admirals.
It had once made Vivi despair, thinking that she would never be able to defeat Crocodile and save the people of her country.
But Luo Chen's appearance had turned things around, letting the dawn of hope shine on Alabasta and into her heart.
Thinking about how she had previously misunderstood Luo Chen, thinking he was afraid of Crocodile, Vivi couldn't help but feel ashamed.
Carina scratched her cheek, her expression a little strange.
"Nami, Luo Chen came to save you, right?"
Nami was taken aback. Seeing everyone looking at her, her pretty face couldn't help but blush. She said in a low voice, "He came to save everyone, I think."
Though she said that, she also knew that Luo Chen was not the type to be a world-saving saint. Since he had said before that he wouldn't interfere in the matter with Crocodile, he wouldn't have. If Carina and the others hadn't dragged her into it while they were fleeing, the two of them might not have gotten involved in this war with Crocodile.
'The premise is that Onigumo didn't show up,' Nami's gaze fell on the seriously injured, dying Onigumo.
From Luo Chen's previous actions, she already knew that Onigumo was the person behind Nezumi and Gal Locke.
Knowing that Onigumo was here, Luo Chen would definitely not let him go.
Coming to rescue her was, in a way, an unintentional success.
Vivi's smile was bright. "No matter what, it was Luo Chen who saved us and defeated Crocodile. He is the benefactor of Alabasta and of me."
An apologetic look appeared on Carina's face. "Indeed, Luo Chen saved all of us."
Usopp and Chopper hugged each other again, cheering with joy.
"Luo Chen is so strong!"
"Luo Chen is a brave warrior of the sea, just like me!" Usopp shouted, raising his hand, afraid that Luo Chen couldn't hear.
He was afraid that one day Carina would let it slip that he had badmouthed Luo Chen for being a coward.
On top of the Guanyin statue's head, Luo Chen's ears twitched, and he glanced in the direction of Usopp and the others.
With Usopp's boastful personality, for him to praise Luo Chen as being as brave as himself was probably very high praise.
Luo Chen's gaze shifted to the four Vice Admirals in the distance. He said in a loud voice, "Do you still want to fight?"
"If not, then get lost."
As his voice fell, the faces of Gmil and the others turned ashen.
As Marine Vice Admirals, when had they ever been so humiliated by a pirate? In the first half of the Grand Line, pirates had to run and hide when they saw them.
"We are no match. Let's leave quickly and call for reinforcements," Vice Admiral Dalmatian, whose face from the mouth up was that of a black-and-white spotted dog, said in a low voice.
If the four of them joined forces, they might be able to contend with Luo Chen.
But nearby, "Fire Fist" Ace was still watching them like a tiger.
If those two were to team up, they might not be their match. At the very least, their chances of winning were not high.
Gmil and the other two also knew that they couldn't force it. They exchanged a look and nodded in tacit agreement, preparing to withdraw.
Their expressions were all somewhat heavy.
Vice Admiral Onigumo had fallen into the enemy's hands, seriously injured and on the verge of death. The dozens of Marine officers they had brought with them had also been completely wiped out. The ones who were still alive before had been buried deep in the desert when Luo Chen's "Summit Enlightenment" had changed the terrain. It was obviously unrealistic to try and rescue them now.
Only the Logia-user Smoker, carrying Hina, was left, hiding in the distance.
This time, the losses were too heavy.
An elite Vice Admiral and dozens of Marine officers.
This fighting force was enough to annihilate any pirate crew in the first half of the Grand Line.
Today, however, they had all been lost at the hands of Luo Chen.
The four Vice Admirals' hearts were filled with hatred, but they could only rationally choose to retreat and request reinforcements. To continue fighting would only lead to more needless sacrifices.
Smoker and Hina landed beside the four, their faces extremely grim.
Too many people had died.
Luo Chen glanced at Gmil and the others, then flashed down to the palm of the Guanyin statue and picked up Onigumo.
"This day, this moment. Do you regret framing me?"
The four departing Vice Admirals, Gmil and the others, as well as Smoker and Hina, slowed their steps and turned to look at the palm of the Guanyin statue.
They exchanged a look, and their expressions all changed.
Why would Luo Chen say that Onigumo had framed him?
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]