"How is that possible?!"
Ulti and the other Headliners stared in horror at the earth-shattering explosion. King, Queen, and Jack were deeply embedded in the ground, their bodies soaked in blood. King and Queen barely managed to crawl out, but Jack had already lost consciousness.
"He was clearly on his last breath just now, so why…?" Black Maria muttered in disbelief.
The man who had been on the verge of death not only recovered completely, his strength had skyrocketed to a terrifying level.
"What do we do now?!" Ulti swallowed hard.
Kaido was weakened, King, Queen, and Jack were no longer a match for him, and on top of that, Katakuri's group was also present. Did this mean the Beasts Pirates were about to be wiped out today?
Her vision suddenly blurred.
White flames ignited in front of her eyes.
A pair of amethyst, diamond-patterned eyes appeared inches from her face.
Ulti's breathing stopped.
She did not even see how he moved.
"I didn't expect the Beasts Pirates to have such a beautiful woman," Lucien said softly.
Eight black-red thorns erupted from Lucien's tailbone, swaying in the air like venomous serpents.
As far as the Beasts Pirates were concerned, Lucien only really knew Kaido and the Three Disasters. He was not very familiar with the Headliners.
The woman in front of him wore a short white skirt and high heels, her slender legs exposed. Even with the mask covering part of her face, it was obvious she was beautiful.
Compared to Ulti's petite frame, Black Maria standing beside her was much more voluptuous.
Yet even so, Black Maria's proportions were perfect, with full curves and a slim waist, a typical beauty of the One Piece world.
Whoosh!
The thorns tore through the air with sonic booms.
Resistance was meaningless.
All of them were pierced straight through the heart and lifted into the air.
The Tobi Roppo, Who's-Who, Sasaki, Ulti, Black Maria, and Page One, all struggled violently as dark demon blood surged into their bodies.
At that moment, Kaido appeared in front of Lucien like a human cannonball. In such a short time, not only had his injuries healed, even his stamina had largely recovered.
There was a reason Kaido was called the strongest creature of land, sea, and air.
Bang!
A violent gust exploded behind them.
Lucien calmly blocked Kaido's punch with just two fingers.
Before Kaido could even react, three more black-red thorns wrapped around his limbs, lifted him into the air, and then pierced straight into his body.
Kaido's current defense could not stop them at all.
With several heavy thuds, Ulti and Black Maria were thrown onto the ground, their bodies twitching violently. Blood-red patterns began to spread across their skin as they slowly transformed into demon forms.
"Damn it!" Queen cursed.
In the distance, King and Queen were surrounded by Katakuri's group before they could even intervene.
Whoosh, whoosh!
Eight black-red thorns stabbed into Kaido from every direction.
He struggled fiercely, but his body was completely restrained.
Demon blood poured endlessly into him.
Kaido's body was like a bottomless abyss, absorbing far more demon blood than Ulti, Doflamingo, Cracker, Smoothie, and the others ever could.
Minute by minute passed.
The amount of demon blood inside Kaido began to match Katakuri's, then gradually surpassed it.
"I want to see how much you can take," Lucien said with excitement.
If his strength had not skyrocketed, he would never dare to do this. Kaido was simply too dangerous to control.
Lucien's demon blood could only dominate those weaker than himself. If the target was stronger, it would backfire.
Before, Kaido was only slightly weaker than him.
That would have been a fatal risk.
But now, after his power surged, that risk no longer existed.
Lucien was stronger than Kaido.
In a direct one-on-one fight, Kaido was no longer a threat.
As more demon blood flowed in, Kaido's body began to twitch violently. When it reached a certain threshold, Lucien finally stopped.
Even if Kaido could continue absorbing, Lucien would not inject any more.
The demon blood inside Kaido had already surpassed Katakuri's level.
"Master."
King, Queen, and Jack were thrown in front of Lucien.
All three had taken a casual strike from him and were heavily injured. Facing Katakuri's group afterward, they had barely lasted four or five minutes.
Eight thorns pierced through their bodies, demon blood flooding in instantly.
"Go and turn the remaining pillars of the Beasts Pirates into demons," Lucien said, looking at Katakuri, Cracker, Doflamingo, and the others.
Onigashima was shattered, its terrain completely altered, but many Beasts Pirates were still alive.
"Yes!" Katakuri replied.
They spread their Observation Haki and shot off in all directions. Lucien only needed to wait.
Law, Mansherry, and Kuma remained beside him, along with Mondor.
"What did you do to us?!" Ulti shouted in horror a few minutes later.
Their cellular memories had already been overwritten. Souls, bodies, even thoughts, everything now belonged to this man.
They were no longer people.
They were slaves.
Even suicide was no longer an option.
"Put those thoughts away," Lucien said coldly. "They're meaningless."
They were already thinking about escape, even about killing him.
Lucien knew.
He could read their thoughts.
And if he wished, he could rewrite them too.
As the Ancestor of Demons, this was only natural.
"Go to hell!"
Who's-Who and Sasaki suddenly charged forward together, faces twisted with rage.
"Why can't I move?!"
Their expressions shifted from fury to terror.
Their bodies froze in place.
They were less than a decimeter from Lucien, yet no matter how desperately they struggled, they could not move an inch.
Lucien remained expressionless.
The cells on his right arm wriggled violently, transforming into a massive mouth filled with sharp teeth.
He swallowed both of them whole.
Crunch.
Blood, organs, and gore sprayed everywhere, splattering across Ulti and the others.
The screams stopped abruptly.
Lucien spat out a helmet and a sword.
His arm returned to normal.
Ulti and the others collapsed to their knees, trembling uncontrollably.
Even King, Queen, and Jack lowered their heads.
Without Lucien's permission, they could do nothing.
Not even die.
"It seems they were useless," Lucien said calmly. "Not even qualified to become secondary."
After devouring Who's-Who and Sasaki, the useless Golden Finger gave no reaction at all.
"Who exactly are you?!" Kaido roared.
He had finally regained consciousness, his aura not only restored but strengthened.
"Savior," Lucien replied calmly. "From today onward, I am also your master."
For now, he had no intention of killing Kaido.
Even if Kaido was a major villain, he still had value.
"You're asking for death!" Kaido exploded with rage.
He was one of the Four Emperors.
How could he accept this humiliation?
Kaido released his Haoshoku Haki violently. A storm of pressure swept across the battlefield, tearing up rocks and debris as it surged toward Lucien.
But it was meaningless.
Kaido froze in front of him.
Just like Who's-Who and Sasaki.
"It seems I need to fix you," Lucien said.
He extended a finger and gently pressed it against Kaido's forehead.
From that moment, Kaido's memories and thoughts were forcibly rewritten.
Ten minutes later, Kaido knelt on one knee before Lucien.
The wild arrogance was gone.
Only obedience remained.
Boom, boom!
Katakuri and the others soon returned, dragging or carrying dozens of people behind them.
These were all the remaining core members of the Beasts Pirates.
But what truly surprised Lucien was Kaido's daughter.
Yes.
Kaido actually had a daughter.
She was tall, slender, and beautiful, wearing a kimono. She had horns, a hairpin, and an imposing yet elegant presence.
Lucien was genuinely stunned.
This was a daughter.
Not a son.
And she was stunningly beautiful.
The genetics in the One Piece world were truly absurd.
===
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