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Chapter 32: The Location of the Heavenly Tribute! The King's Death
Hearing this,
A highly amused expression appeared on Lotte's face.
"Really? But what if what I want is your life—what then?"
Kamael Saint's face froze.
Before he could even react, a flash of red light streaked across his vision.
The transparent air bubble shattered instantly. The flame-wreathed blade, carrying howling hot wind, ignited the branches in a single moment.
Sizzle—!
The unrelenting flames instantly wrapped around Kamael Saint's entire body along the branches.
Terror flooded his heart!
The searing heat quickly burned away his clothes. Bathed in flames, Kamael Saint let out an incomparably miserable scream!
"No... no! Aaaahhh!!!!"
The wretched, blood-curdling cry turned the royal family members' faces deathly pale.
These pirates were madmen!
To treat a noble Celestial Dragon this way!
Kamael Saint, engulfed in flames, struggled and howled desperately.
Lotte dug in his ear casually and glanced sideways at Whitebeard with boredom.
"These Celestial Dragons scream just like dying dogs, huh."
"Newgate, finish him off."
Whitebeard grinned widely.
He strode toward Kamael Saint and clenched his right fist.
Boom!
Veins bulged along his arm as terrifying energy gathered.
The entire massive palace shook even more violently, fine debris raining down from the ceiling.
Whitebeard's towering figure reached the burning silhouette.
Under Kamael Saint's gaze filled with absolute terror,
Whitebeard calmly raised his right fist.
Then, with lightning speed, he unleashed a strike carrying the full might of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit!
Bang!
Kamael Saint's eyes reflected extreme fear and the descending fist.
Before he could scream for mercy again, the punch sealed his mouth.
The terrifying power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit
Ripped visible cracks through the very air.
Lotte watched the astonishing scene and couldn't help but feel a touch of awe.
Truly worthy of one of the top cadres on Rocks' ship—no wonder he would later be called the World's Strongest Man. The destructive power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit
Was indeed extraordinary!
Sizzle—!
Under the extreme distorting force of the atmospheric tremor,
The flame-engulfed Kamael Saint was pulverized by the blow—his body reduced to a mist of blood.
He fell to the ground, not even leaving a complete corpse.
Not only that,
The entire massive palace could no longer withstand such terrifying force
And finally split in two with a thunderous crack.
The leading king of Lulusia stared blankly at the scene.
He swallowed hard instinctively.
Gulp—
Lotte glanced at the king.
Before he could say anything, the Lulusia king dropped to his knees with great discernment.
"Esteemed lords! The Heavenly Tribute is hidden in the underground secret chamber of the treasury! We only beg that you take the Heavenly Tribute and spare our lives!"
"It's all that Celestial Dragon's fault! Otherwise we would have handed it over long ago!"
"Please have mercy, lords!"
Seeing their bootlicking display, Lotte narrowed his eyes.
He ordered his clones to head to the treasury. As the king said, they indeed found vast hidden wealth in the underground chamber.
In sheer quantity alone,
This treasure was worth nearly 10 billion berries!
Just one kingdom's Heavenly Tribute amounted to this... it was enough to imagine the terrifying financial power behind the World Government collecting such tribute every year!
But that had nothing to do with Lotte.
As long as he could obtain this Heavenly Tribute, he could select the Supreme Grade Sword he wanted from Rocks' treasury.
Lotte looked up at Whitebeard.
"The king wasn't lying—the Heavenly Tribute is indeed there."
"Since we've already killed a Celestial Dragon, let's leave quickly. No need to waste time elsewhere."
Lotte would bet Whitebeard's beard
That the World Government and Marine Headquarters would never let them kill a Celestial Dragon and walk away unscathed.
There was likely a fierce battle waiting on the return journey.
But that suited Lotte just fine.
Only in battle would his strength grow faster.
With him and Whitebeard fighting together now,
Even an Admiral's arrival wouldn't faze them.
Whitebeard coldly glanced at the Lulusia king.
For a moment, he lost interest in killing him.
He knew that even if he killed these royals, their successors would likely continue oppressing the people—perhaps even more harshly.
"Do as you please."
Whitebeard said concisely, turned, and left the shattered palace.
Lotte shrugged and gave the king a playful glance.
"I'm actually a pretty nice guy."
"You ended up like this because of your own stupidity."
With that, he followed Whitebeard's steps.
They exited the palace interior.
The king of Lulusia stared blankly at their departing figures.
Only after Lotte and Whitebeard walked out the palace doors did he finally gasp in relief, as if surviving a catastrophe.
"Hah... we finally survived those two demons!"
"We must report this to the World Government!"
"No matter what, we can't let those two take our kingdom's Heavenly Tribute!"
Hatred burned in the king's eyes.
That Heavenly Tribute had taken him immense effort to accumulate.
How could he willingly let two pirates take it?!
He pulled out the Den Den Mushi from his coat and dialed without hesitation!
Buru buru buru—
After a brief pause,
A voice came from the other end.
"Hello?! Is this the king of Lulusia?! What happened over there?!"
Hearing the hurried question,
The Lulusia king's face twisted with obvious resentment.
"Celestial Dragon Kamael Saint has been killed by Whitebeard and Tree Demon Lotte!"
"Not only that! They even stole our Lulusia Kingdom's Heavenly Tribute! This is outrageous!"
"You must help us get justice!"
"Those two bastards..."
Before he could finish,
A flame-wreathed blade pierced through the door.
In an instant, it nailed the Lulusia king's head to the wall. Blood poured from his slumped body.
The surrounding royals saw this and their eyes widened.
They screamed in terror!
Only the bewildered Den Den Mushi continued calling the Lulusia king's name.
"Hello?! What happened?!"
"Answer me!"
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