As Brûlée used her ability to carry away the defeated Big Mom, the Battle of Totto Land entered its cleanup phase.
In Ren's plan, this battle had been a test of his own strength.
Big Mom was the weakest of the Four Emperors. From the perspective of the original plot, Kaido had been matched against Gear Fifth Luffy, while Big Mom could only fight Law and Kid.
Although the latter two had both awakened their abilities by then, in terms of narrative weight, they could not compare to Gear Fifth Luffy at all.
At the same time, there was a segment in the original plot where Big Mom spoke of the other Emperors with a certain tone and an instinctive ranking.
Big Mom herself, Kaido, Red-Hair, Whitebeard. That was clearly the order of the Emperors' strength in her own eyes.
And as luck would have it, the clever people on Big Mom's side had bitten the hook Ren had left during the Marineford War.
Thus came the battle on Kuja Island, and with it, another debt to settle.
Add in the natural talent of that Steel Balloon body, and there were even more reasons to choose Big Mom.
"There's no better punching bag than Big Mom, the weakest of the Four Emperors."
That had been Ren's thought at the time, and the results of the test were extremely pleasing.
Even when Big Mom used every trick she had, even when she paid the price of burning away her own lifespan to strengthen herself, she could not gain even the slightest advantage against him when he likewise went all out.
The act of drawing his sword, which signified him using his full power, had inflicted an almost devastating blow on Big Mom in less than a minute.
That was only natural, because the "light-like" Heavenly Might was, in essence, Ren using magnetic-field restraint, magnetic manipulation, and lightning-related abilities to indirectly raise the temperature.
It had reached a temperature close to the sun's corona.
This ability could still be improved further, even to the level of the "sun itself."
However, to do that, he would need the Gura-Gura no Mi and the Mother Flame.
Ren finished his review, and his Premonition Perception swept across a radius of one hundred kilometers.
This battle had destroyed eight islands, but Totto Land still had many, many islands, as well as members of the Big Mom Pirates stationed on them.
Although the most elite batch had been directly blown away by him, to the point where not even their ashes could be found, meat was still meat. Kuma had already made preparations to cooperate with the Angel Legion in recovering "materials."
"I just don't know whether those Homies count as living creatures…"
Ren shook his head and did not think too much about it.
Afterward, the Judgment arrived in the skies above Totto Land. Dense swarms of angels, led by Zoro and the others, went to carry out Ren's orders.
As for Ren himself, he dialed Morgans's Den Den Mushi.
Cooperation required a show of sincerity, so the incident in Totto Land was the first piece of exclusive inside news he offered.
Battles between peak powerhouses were rarely witnessed by anyone, especially when one of them was someone like Ren, a humanoid monster who casually unleashed massive AOE attacks and was no different from a mobile "nuclear warhead."
Without him providing information, the outside world would at most learn that Big Mom had been defeated and Totto Land had been destroyed.
But Ren was not gaining nothing from this.
Reputation was also something he needed. The collapse of an Emperor's force this time would be major news to the entire world.
It was the perfect opportunity to step on the remains of the Big Mom Pirates and have the force he had established truly make its debut!
"It's time to make the world change!"
Inside the Mirror World.
A witch-like woman was frantically trying to stop the bleeding, because Charlotte Linlin beside her had nearly been split in half.
One of the arms originally crossed in front of her body to block the blow was gone, and the severed arm, as massive as a roof beam, lay to the side.
Her chest, which was so tough it far surpassed steel and was nearly like Seastone, had almost been cleaved open. One could even see her beating heart!
It was a fatal injury, one that had never appeared on Mama's body in the past.
This made Charlotte Brûlée, who had transferred over through the Mirror World, feel a burst of relief.
She was grateful she had rushed over in time and saved Mama's life.
She was also grateful she possessed this Devil Fruit ability, allowing her to survive that battle, which could only be called a natural disaster.
Without the Mirror-Mirror Fruit's ability, she would have followed in the footsteps of those brothers and sisters back on Whole Cake Island.
In any case, she was still alive, and she could still do something for the family.
"Why is that monster so powerful?"
As Brûlée began treating Mama's wound, a trace of shock could not help flashing through her eyes.
What lay before her was a massive wound large enough to stuff several of her inside.
The deepest part was charred black, as if it had been scorched by extreme heat, which was why Mama had not bled out and died.
However, the problem was that part of her internal organs had also vanished. If not for her monstrous physique holding her together, an ordinary person would have died long ago.
Her limbs and other areas of her skin also showed severe burns.
One had to know that even when ordinary enemies attacked with Haki, it was extremely difficult for them to break through Mama's skin.
Steel Balloon was an affectionate description of Mama's body: as firm as steel, yet as resilient as a balloon.
And when Mama truly fought, she would definitely use Haki.
Yet in the end, she had still been reduced to this half-dead state!
The wounds were horrifying to behold. Brûlée pressed her lips together and began treating them, but fear rose in her heart.
Even though she understood she had already escaped, she could not help feeling terror at the destruction she had witnessed.
Absolute destruction had buried those powerful brothers and sisters of hers on Whole Cake Island.
Absolute power had left even Mama unable to resist, reducing her to this dying appearance.
But what Brûlée did not understand was this: according to the intelligence, that man named Ren had clearly not been this powerful.
When Brother Katakuri left, he had said that he would definitely win beautifully.
But now… not only was Brother Katakuri dead, even Mama was on the verge of death.
She did not know why things had turned out this way. All she could do was try her best to preserve Mama's life.
But it was difficult. Truly difficult.
Brûlée forced herself to finish the most basic treatment.
Then, through the mirrors and mirrored spaces set up all across Totto Land, she brought over some doctors and medicine.
Fortunately, the other areas had not yet been attacked by the enemy for the time being.
The process was fairly smooth. A group of ship doctors who did not understand what was going on, along with a large amount of medicine, barely managed to preserve Mama's life.
"Her life should be saved, but whether she can wake up…"
The ship doctor hesitated, seeming rather pessimistic.
Brûlée frowned, but she also understood that these ship doctors she had brought over had already done their best.
However, at that moment—Charlotte Linlin, whom the ship doctor believed would find it very difficult to awaken, suddenly opened her eyes. A vicious aura erupted in an instant, and the pressure of Conqueror's Haki made everyone except Brûlée collapse to the ground.
Her enormous body sat up. Expressionlessly, she stared at the panicked Brûlée.
"Mama…"
"You did well."
Big Mom suddenly reached out and crushed the doctors' heads.
The terrifying wounds inside her riddled body healed at astonishing speed, and the price was her hair turning gray-white and her body rapidly growing thin.
"This…"
Brûlée stared in shock at Mama's changed appearance. That thinner figure reminded her of Mama from long ago.
Probably the way she had looked in her twenties. It was so long ago that Brûlée had nearly forgotten Mama had once been an exceptional beauty as well.
Only, with Mama's current age and original condition, returning to her past physique was not a good sign.
Because the deficit she needed to repair was too great, Charlotte Linlin had made up for it through consumption.
That sacrifice allowed her to recover to seventy percent of her peak state in less than a minute.
"Brûlée, forget what you saw just now."
Charlotte Linlin did not fly into a rage, nor did she react in any particular way because of her previous defeat.
Instead, she was extraordinarily cold and calm. After healing herself, she stood up and stared at the child before her, perhaps the last one remaining.
"Then use your ability and bring the Den Den Mushi here."
Her voice was terrifyingly cold, making Brûlée hurriedly nod before doing as she was told.
After Brûlée left, Charlotte Linlin stood within the vast mirror space—and released a fierce, suppressed shriek that had finally been let loose.
It was a monstrous sound powerful enough to pierce eardrums and make blood pour from all seven orifices, directly shattering the mirrors within several hundred meters.
This was venting. Venting the negative emotions in her heart.
After finishing that act of release, Big Mom calmed down once again.
She did not impulsively leave the mirror space to continue fighting Ren or challenge him to the death.
Her defeat was already decided.
"I have to admit, right now, you're stronger."
Charlotte Linlin gritted her teeth. Within her sunken eye sockets burned a pair of eyes ignited by rage.
"But don't think I'll just lose and exit the stage like this!"
As someone who had climbed to the peak of piracy and become one of the Four Emperors, and the only woman among them at that, Big Mom had never lacked spirit, willpower, or other abilities.
If she could not beat him, then she could not beat him. There was nothing she could not admit.
Besides, it was not as if she had no other methods!
"Kaido…"
That voice echoed through the mirror space.
At the headquarters of the World Economic Journal, a conversation that would soon have an enormous impact on the world was taking place.
"Cross Guild? It doesn't seem necessary to promote it, does it?
"It's a simple matter. You've already defeated the Big Mom Pirates. Rising to power by stepping on them will naturally bring you enormous fame."
"I want the Four Blues and the entire world to clearly understand Cross Guild's declaration."
"What declaration?"
"Beneath the crosshair, all lives are equal."
Ren's voice sounded from the receiver.
"Though at this stage, it will probably be aimed at pirates.
"Within Cross Guild's territory, the crosshair will hunt all pirates. No matter who they are, even if they are one of the Four Emperors, they will not be allowed to exist."
"…"
Morgans gripped the receiver. After a moment of silence, he let out a strange laugh.
"Hahahahaha! What a mad and daring declaration.
"Ren, if not for the information you gave me proving that you truly defeated Big Mom and occupied Totto Land, I absolutely would not help promote your force. Do you know how absurd this is?
"To think you're placing bounties on all pirates in the New World, even including the current Four Emperors! I've never heard such a crazy declaration before!
"Big Mom has been defeated, but there's still Kaido, Red-Hair, and Whitebeard—though perhaps he doesn't need to be considered.
"But once you do this, who knows how many pirates will see you as their mortal enemy!
"The Navy doesn't even dare to interfere too much in the New World, yet you want to turn it into Cross Guild's territory.
"This is truly—utter madness!"
"Isn't that good?"
Ren's soft laugh rang out.
"Only news like this is eye-catching enough. Only this is shocking enough, isn't it?"
Morgans said pointedly, "A joke is not news."
(End of Chapter)