Rayleigh's appearance made Luffy and the others sigh in relief. It seemed this old man was here to help them.
Akainu stopped and stared coldly at Rayleigh. "Dark King Rayleigh, you're here."
He was accompanying the Gorosei, Saint Saturn, to Sabaody Archipelago today, preparing to make a transaction with Luo Chen.
He hadn't expected to hear that Monkey D. Luffy had injured a Celestial Dragon at the Human Auction House. So he had moved out first and come here.
On the way, he encountered several Supernovas. So he casually took care of Urouge and Apoo.
Jewelry Bonney and Hawkins were also herded by him to the auction house. He planned to kill them along with Straw Hat Luffy and the others.
Rayleigh's appearance was unexpected.
"Hound Biting Crimson Lotus!"
Akainu threw a punch, his magma arm extending into the shape of a dog's head, rushing toward Rayleigh.
Any pirate who dared to appear before him would be shown no mercy.
As for the Straw Hat crew and the other Supernovas, they wouldn't be able to escape today either.
The warship carrying Gorosei Saint Saturn was circling around from the sea. Saint Saturn might not act personally, but Vice Admiral Doberman and numerous Marine elites were also on board. Combined with the dozen or so Pacifistas, it was enough to keep the Straw Hats and the others here.
Rayleigh casually picked up a long sword from the ground and slashed at the incoming magma dog head.
The two attacks collided with tremendous force. Armament Haki surged, kicking up a powerful shockwave that made the Supernovas' faces turn grave.
The level of these top-tier powerhouses far exceeded their own.
Jewelry Bonney panted, saying, "We have to break out now, while someone is holding back Akainu."
Hawkins fiddled with his tarot cards, calmly stating, "According to the divination, we will be fine."
Everyone couldn't help but look at him. 'Are divinations accurate?'
The next moment, a loud voice boomed from the direction of the distant coastline.
"All Marines on the island, listen!"
"Gorosei Saint Saturn is about to land on Sabaody Archipelago."
"All personnel below the rank of Commodore are forbidden from watching!"
"Repeat, Gorosei Saint Saturn is about to land..."
"..."
The loud voice spread across Grove 1 via the warship's broadcast.
Near the auction house, the Marines looked astonished. Who was landing? Gorosei Saint Saturn?!
Kid, Law, Bonney, and Hawkins, the Supernovas, all looked horrified.
A Gorosei—one of the Five Elders, the highest authority in the world—why would he come to Sabaody Archipelago?
That kind of VIP, 99.9% of the world's population would never see one in their entire lives. Today, one was actually landing on the island.
'Could he also be here for Straw Hat Luffy?'
They immediately looked at Luffy. They found that his group didn't look too good either, but they weren't entirely surprised.
Zoro said seriously, "Remember Luo Chen's deal with the Gorosei? I think it was supposed to be on Sabaody Archipelago."
"Is it today?" Carina quickly asked. She didn't remember.
Chopper counted on his fingers and nodded. It had been exactly seven days since the Summit War at Marineford.
Chopper suddenly looked up at the sky, his furry deer ears twitching. "Something is coming."
Usopp and Carina didn't sense anything.
Luffy's smile was gone. He said slowly, "There's definitely an oppressive feeling."
Sanji and Zoro also looked very grim.
Because at this moment, the sky, with its vast white clouds, rolled back and suddenly turned dark. The clouds turned pitch-black, and a great wind howled. It was as if a tsunami was about to arrive.
On the ground not far away, a blinding light suddenly erupted.
Everyone looked over. A magic circle with strange hues had appeared out of thin air.
"KRA-KA-THOOOM—!"
Pitch-black lightning erupted around the magic circle and within the dark clouds above. The ground was shattered by the strikes.
The numerous black lightning bolts fell continuously within a hundred-meter radius, like a punishment delivered by a thunder god.
A Pacifista was struck by the black lightning, smoked, and collapsed.
The Straw Hat crew, Kid, Law, and the others dodged in terror. They stared at the magic circle in shock and suspicion.
A wisp of black smoke was the first to appear in the magic circle.
Then the smoke immediately thickened, forming a tall, ghost-like, pitch-black figure.
Finally, the pitch-black figure solidified.
In the center of the magic circle, stood an old man in a suit, leaning on a cane with both hands.
The old man had a burly figure, a scar carved into his fierce face, a bushy white beard, and curly white hair under a black flat hat.
He stood silently in the center of the magic circle, his gaze sweeping over them.
Meeting those eyes, which were filled with authority, the more timid ones like Carina, Chopper, and Usopp couldn't help but swallow.
Just from the eye contact, they felt an inexplicable pressure. They had an impulse to lower their heads in submission before the old man.
Trafalgar Law, Kid, Bonney, and the others looked grim. They couldn't help but glance at Hawkins.
"Hey, is your divination still 'safe' now?" Bonney couldn't help but scoff.
A Gorosei was here. How could they not be in trouble?
Sweat dripped down Hawkins' face. He activated his tarot cards to divine again.
He also felt his divination results were broken.
Gorosei Saint Saturn's oppressive aura was extremely strong, in no way weaker than that of Marine Admiral Akainu.
Facing two enemies of this level, he couldn't imagine how he and the others could survive.
This time, the result of the divination was still "Good Omen."
Hawkins was bewildered. 'Has my divination failed?'
Rayleigh was losing ground in his fight with Akainu.
His left cheek had a black scorch mark; he was already injured.
He hadn't fought a strong enemy in many years, and he had almost had the left side of his head melted by Akainu's punch just now.
'Why would a Gorosei appear here? Is he after me?'
Rayleigh looked grave, confused.
If it was to deal with Luffy and the others, Akainu alone was more than enough.
For a Gorosei to come in person, it could only be for him.
Saint Saturn scanned his surroundings. His gaze passed over the Straw Hat crew, the various Supernovas, and the Dark King Rayleigh, not pausing on any of them.
He was looking for Luo Chen.
This person had Observation Killing, which suppressed Observation Haki. For the moment, he couldn't be found.
Saint Saturn snorted coldly. Since his target hadn't shown himself, he would deal with the Straw Hat crew first.
One Luo Chen rebelling against the Celestial Dragons was enough. Straw Hat Luffy must be executed.
His burly body emitted an invisible aura.
Dozens of meters away, the Straw Hat crew, who had been trying to flee, suddenly froze in place.
Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, and the others roared, their faces turning red, but they still couldn't move.
Carina cried out in terror, "I can't move! It feels like something is pressing down on me!"
Usopp, Chopper, and Franky were also struggling.
But no matter how hard they tried, it felt as if they were carrying a mountain on their backs, so heavy that it pinned them in place.
Saint Saturn's sharp gaze fell on Luffy. A red light flashed in his eyes.
The next second, Luffy, dozens of meters away, screamed and was sent flying. He clutched his head, roaring in pain, as blood flowed from between his fingers.
This bizarre scene left Zoro and the other Straw Hat members shocked and furious.
Gorosei Saint Saturn had done nothing, yet he suppressed them with his aura alone, making them unable to move.
A single look had severely injured Luffy, who was made of rubber. How could they possibly fight against this kind of power?
The other Supernovas were horrified by this scene. They didn't dare to stay any longer and turned to run.
Saint Saturn's gaze swept over everyone.
The next moment, Kid, Law, Bonney, Hawkins, and all their crew members were pinned by the invisible force, unable to move.
A crimson, malevolent light gleamed in Saint Saturn's eyes.
One by one, the pirate crew members' heads exploded like watermelons.
Kid, Law, and the others roared. But their bodies were suppressed, and they couldn't even use their fruit abilities.
This result made the proud and arrogant Supernovas feel utter despair.
They had defeated countless strong Marine and pirate enemies on their way here, arriving at Sabaody Archipelago, full of spirit and ready to enter the New World.
But the appearance of a Gorosei shattered all their aspirations and arrogance.
'Is the gap... really this big?'
Saint Saturn hadn't even moved, yet with just his gaze and aura, he could easily take their lives.
How could anyone defeat an enemy like this?
Rayleigh wanted to save Luffy and the others. But Akainu's explosive attacks kept him suppressed, making it impossible to get away.
Just then, a commotion suddenly erupted from the Marines on the perimeter.
"It's... It's... Luo Chen! The Fifth Emperor, Luo Chen!"
"Why is he here?!"
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]