"This demon... it looks familiar!" Ryuuto stared at the draconic demon before him, his voice low. It looked uncannily like the demon depicted in the Halley Divine Codex.
The storm of golden lightning spears had finally subsided. As the aftershocks of the explosions dissipated, the demon beat its wings with a deafening roar, instantly unleashing a violent gale that swept toward Ryuuto and the others. An overwhelming aura washed over them.
As the draconic demon flew toward them, its body began to swell. What had been only a few meters tall now loomed dozens of meters high after covering a few hundred meters, its presence growing more terrifying with every second.
"You're not taking another step!" Ryuuto roared, stepping in front of everyone. He flung the Kuilong Zan forward, and a surge of lightning transformed it into the Blade of the Thunder God. "Conqueror's Thunder Strike!"
Stomping his foot, Ryuuto shot forward like a bolt of lightning, swinging the colossal Thunder God's Blade down upon the draconic demon.
The collision was instantaneous. A golden slash of energy erupted, but the draconic demon made no move to defend itself. Instead, it reached out with its bare hands, aiming to catch the Kuilong Zan, which was wreathed in a torrent of Apocalypse Thunder.
With a defiant roar, the demon's claws closed around the blade. Ryuuto's pupils dilated in shock as his weapon was brought to a dead stop. A shockwave exploded outward. Ryuuto found his Kuilong Zan completely immobilized, held fast between the draconic demon's claws.
Arcs of destructive lightning flickered and sizzled, but the draconic demon ignored them completely, swinging its spiked tail down toward the group. Each of its movements seemed to possess immense physical power, as if it were immune to all forms of attack.
Ryuuto's eyes narrowed. With grave urgency, he released the Kuilong Zan and vanished in a flash of lightning. The demon's massive tail slammed into the ground where he had been, creating a deafening crash.
The moment Ryuuto reappeared, an arrowhead crackling with black lightning shot toward him with a piercing shriek. It was Imu, controlling Gunzi's body and using its tail as a weapon.
"This is endless!" Ryuuto cursed inwardly. He snatched at the air, and countless sparks of lightning coalesced into a blade in his hand. Coated in Haki, it erupted with streaks of black and red lightning.
The blade, formed of golden lightning plasma, clashed violently with Imu's arrowhead tail. The resulting shockwave was immense, and the two opposing energies fought for dominance, churning the atmosphere of Room Three into a chaotic blur.
Meanwhile, in Room Four, Kaido repeatedly clashed with Xebec. The impacts between his Hassaikai and the sword once wielded by the legendary captain sent waves of intense Conqueror's Haki rolling through the chamber.
Nearby, Yamato, who had previously been overwhelming Saint Jaygarcia Saturn, was now struggling. With Imu's arrival, the wounds Kaido had inflicted on the Elder had healed at an astonishing rate, restoring him to his peak condition. As a result, Yamato was now on the defensive.
Queen lay on the ground nearby, his round belly rising and falling as he stared helplessly at the ceiling. A battle of this caliber was far beyond him; he knew joining in would be pointless. King hovered in the air, seizing any opportunity to harass Saint Saturn.
The frozen landscape shattered under the force of their battle, sending shards of ice flying in every direction. It seemed the closer the God's Knights and the Five Elders were to Imu, the stronger their immortal regeneration became. Saint Saturn was living proof.
"Roaring Thunder Bagua!" Kaido roared, planting his feet on the ice and swinging his Hassaikai with all his might. A torrent of black-red lightning blasted toward Xebec, but his opponent met the attack head-on, deflecting it with ease.
The frustration in Kaido's eyes deepened.
Captain Rocks's sword... it's just too damn powerful, Kaido thought to himself.
In Room Five, Saint Figarland Garling was doing everything he could to stop Dragon from approaching a towering volcano. This room was a landscape of molten rock, dominated by a thousand-meter-high volcano at its center that constantly spewed lava. The closer one got to the volcano, the more intense the heat became.
Moreover, Dragon's powerful senses told him that the control core for the ancient weapon Pluton lay deep beneath it.
"Dragon, are you truly siding with Ryuuto?" Garling shouted from his position atop the volcano, looking down on his opponent. He was trying to use words to break Dragon's focus. "Don't forget, Garp died at Ryuuto's hands!"
His right hand trembled slightly, a trickle of blood seeping from it.
But Dragon was completely unmoved. "Enough pointless chatter. I know what I'm doing."
"Dragon's Fang Thrust!" he roared. Compressing the power of the gales to their absolute limit, he focused the energy into his right fist, forming a spiraling, vacuum-like shockwave. As he punched, the storm shot forward like a dragon's fang, possessing immense piercing power. Infused with a massive amount of Conqueror's Haki, it crackled with black and red lightning.
A single punch from Dragon could tear through a mountain; its power was terrifying. This was the might of the hurricane, one of the three great natural disasters, a force capable of reshaping the world.
Dragon's fist flew, and Garling met it with his own blade. In an instant, the two powerful surges of Haki collided with a thunderous crash. The entire fifth room trembled from the force of their struggle.
"You've gotten old, Garling!" Dragon bellowed. "Your era is over! Rain of Liberation!" The hurricane force in his right fist intensified, and a fresh burst of black-red lightning erupted, blasting Garling backward. The immense force sent Garling flying.
Dragon didn't pause. He thrust his fist toward the sky, sending the hurricane's power upward. It condensed high above, transforming into a storm of countless vacuum wind lances that rained down in a wide, precise barrage. The tips of these lances shimmered with a dark light. They were coated in flowing Armament Haki. This was one of Dragon's ultimate attacks.
Garling dug his right foot into a slab of cooled lava to halt his momentum. His expression was grim as he looked up at the descending storm of wind lances. This was the true power of the strongest Logia-type Devil Fruit. He swung his sword, sending a sweeping arc of energy into the sky.
Seizing the opportunity, Dragon transformed into a gust of wind and darted toward the volcano's crater. From the very beginning, his only target had been Pluton's control center.
Back in the corridor, Ivankov and the other Revolutionaries were rushing toward Room Three.
"Captain Ryuuto!" Belo Betty shouted as she ran, her voice full of urgency.
Ryuuto and his crew were now in a perilous situation. Under the assault of the draconic demon, Hancock and the others were completely outmatched. Not only was the demon immune to Devil Fruit abilities, but it could also melt into the shadows, striking with unpredictable speed. Before long, Hancock and the others had all sustained various injuries.
Ryuuto had reclaimed the Kuilong Zan and was serving as the main force, clashing wildly with the draconic demon. The golden lightning plasma erupting from their impacts seared the demon's flesh, producing a constant sizzling sound. But just as quickly, the demon's wounds would heal, leaving it unharmed.
"Huff... is this Imu's true power?" Ryuuto gasped, propping himself up on one leg. He could tell that this demon was fundamentally different from the others.
"How interesting," Imu mused, its eyes glowing red. It hadn't expected Ryuuto to last this long. This was essentially Imu fighting directly, a power far beyond that of its useless minions.
"Kill him," Imu commanded, its eyes narrowing.
A red light flashed in the draconic demon's eyes. Its form solidified, and with a powerful beat of its wings, it closed the distance to Ryuuto in an instant. Ryuuto had no time to react. A series of whistling sounds cut through the air as he was struck again and again, lightning plasma spraying from his body as the immense force sent him flying.
"Captain!" Vivi and the others cried out, rushing forward to help.
But Imu's attack was faster.
A volley of arrowheads shot toward them. With several loud impacts, Vivi and the others were sent flying, adding to their already severe injuries.
Imu glanced back at the approaching Belo Betty and her comrades, then spun the pentagram in its hand. Instantly, their bodies froze. A magical circle materialized beneath their feet, pulling them down into the floor. Imu intended to turn them into demons.
"What's happening?"
"I can't control my body!"
Belo Betty and the others panicked, shouting in terror. As flames began to consume them, they felt a domineering consciousness invade their minds. With a low hum, they were completely swallowed by the pentagram.
Ryuuto spat out a mouthful of blood. He held the Kuilong Zan defensively in front of his chest, staggering backward under the relentless assault of the ferocious draconic demon.
"It's no use! I'm completely outmatched!" he thought, ignoring his own wounds. Even in his elemental Thunder God form, the draconic demon's attacks seemed to be imbued with some kind of fundamental law, allowing them to injure him directly.
So this is the power of the "God" who stands at the pinnacle of the world. For the first time, Ryuuto felt truly powerless.
Not far from him, Hancock and the others were struggling to their knees, blood trickling from their lips. Further away, Belo Betty and the Revolutionaries had emerged from the pentagrams. Horns now grew from their heads and fangs jutted from their mouths as they let out savage roars. They had been twisted into demons.
But the draconic demon was not finished with Ryuuto.
Before the horrified eyes of Hancock and the others, the grotesque dragon unleashed a torrent of fire, aimed directly at Ryuuto's towering, ten-meter-tall golden Thunder God form. The flames erupted in an instant, engulfing him completely.
"So hot!" The searing heat forced Ryuuto's eyes shut. But soon, he felt a deeper heat, a burning that seemed to sear his very soul.
"What is this?!" he cried out in alarm. On pure instinct, he unleashed a storm of golden lightning, forming countless spears that bombarded the draconic demon.
Fire and lightning clashed. Both Ryuuto and the draconic demon were lost in the blinding explosion at the center. A powerful shockwave swept outward, leveling all the stone huts in Room Three. But even in the heart of the blast, the draconic demon did not release its grip. It endured the relentless barrage of Apocalypse Thunder, continuing to spew flames, determined to incinerate Ryuuto once and for all.
"Captain!" "Ryuuto!" Hancock, Nami, and the others screamed, watching in horror.
Imu watched the scene with cold indifference.
Meanwhile, the newly transformed Belo Betty and her demonic comrades charged at Hancock's group. In Imu's eyes, these people were too weak to warrant its personal attention. With guttural roars, Hancock and the others forced themselves to their feet, clashing once more with their former allies.
The sounds of battle echoed through the room. Imu gave the scene one last, long look, then dissolved into a black line, speeding toward Room Five. As far as it was concerned, Ryuuto was already dead. Now, it was time to eliminate the other destabilizing factor: Dragon.
In the center of the explosion, Ryuuto was enduring unimaginable pain. The terrifying flames were steadily diminishing his powerful Apocalypse Thunder, and an expression of agony was etched on his face.
Soon, his consciousness began to fade in and out.
Ryuuto could feel his life force slipping away.
His eyes slowly fluttered shut.
The surging Apocalypse Thunder finally died out. Ryuuto reverted from his Thunder God form, and his black-haired body was pinned to the ground beneath the draconic demon's foot, helpless as the horrifying flames roasted him alive.
He felt like he was dying.
...