An inexplicable dread suddenly washed over Marshall D. Teach, the pirate known as Blackbeard.
Out of nowhere, his heart began to pound with erratic panic. Zoran had merely pointed a single finger; he hadn't even unleashed an attack yet. But the Dark-Dark Fruit, the ultimate power that Blackbeard had always relied upon, the absolute gravitational pull that no living soul had ever been able to resist, suddenly sputtered out like a dying flame. It couldn't even rustle the hem of Zoran's robe.
It was only then that Blackbeard realized what kind of terrifying, concentrated force resided within the entity before him.
Standing on the deck of his rapidly disintegrating ship, Teach instinctively opened his mouth to speak, but time had already run out.
A monumental force swept over him instantly, carrying a suffocating pressure that struck sheer terror into his soul. Already burdened by the excruciating pain-amplification side effect of his own Devil Fruit, he couldn't stop himself from letting out a low, agonized roar.
The attack blanketed every square inch of the vessel. It was an absolute command to tear apart, sink, and crush. There was nowhere to hide.
Under the opposing forces of attraction and repulsion, the crew of the Blackbeard Pirates wailed in agony as they were flung mercilessly into the sea. The faces of these notoriously vicious criminals suddenly contorted with profound torment, twisted into expressions of desperate pleading toward the terrifying being standing above them.
As the flagship, colors still flying, completely submerged beneath the waves, Blackbeard stared in utter horror at his crewmen thrashing wildly in the water.
He didn't actually care whether his crew drowned or not. After all, as a man who had murdered a comrade and betrayed the Whitebeard Pirates just to steal the Dark-Dark Fruit, he was a thoroughly selfish creature. If an unstoppable, fatal attack were flying toward him, his first instinct would undoubtedly be to use his crew as human shields or simply run away.
But the reality unfolding before him defied all his calculations.
The attack was indeed directed entirely at him, yet he could neither block it nor flee from it. At this very moment, he was suspended and pinned rigidly in midair. Even the simple act of struggling was a luxury far beyond his reach.
Unhurriedly, Zoran summoned the Tianyuan Cauldron from his sleeve.
Once something caught the eye of the Moon Demon, an invisible mark was branded upon it from that very instant, meaning it could never escape.
The Tianyuan Cauldron spun gracefully through the air, hovering for a brief moment. In the next second, it expanded rapidly against the wind, growing into a colossal, monolithic structure that slammed down to suppress the turbulent sea.
The crew members who had still been desperately treading water were instantly driven down by the overwhelming weight of the Tianyuan Cauldron, sinking permanently into the abyssal depths.
"Don't be nervous. There is nothing to fear, is there?" Zoran chuckled, gesturing with a flick of his finger toward the terror-stricken Teach. "After all, it's not like I'm some kind of man-eating demon."
With a soft laugh, a strand of dark Demon Chi coiled through the air and lunged directly at Blackbeard. d
The moment the dark energy enveloped him, Teach felt everything suddenly slip away. His power, his ambition, his grand dreams... Everything granted to him by the Dark-Dark Fruit vanished into thin air in the blink of an eye.
Though he couldn't fathom how it was possible, Zoran had cleanly drained his power away.
A wispy trail of black smoke separated from Teach's body. With a gentle nudge of Zoran's finger, the stolen essence was guided straight into the Tianyuan Cauldron.
Zoran couldn't help but marvel internally once again.
As it turned out, learning a specialized craft was truly one of the most vital and correct decisions he had ever made. At the very least, when traveling across the countless worlds of the multiverse, he would never have to worry about "starving" to death.
The Dark-Dark Fruit was deposited into the Tianyuan Cauldron in a swift, seamless process. Throughout it all, Teach never managed to utter a single word.
As for the man himself, Zoran lost all interest.
Not far away, a massive surge of water swelled upward, sculpting itself into a chillingly familiar silhouette. It was the Water Demon, Bai Tza, drawn over by the resonance of Zoran releasing his Demon Chi.
"Dear brother?" She looked toward the Tianyuan Cauldron, her voice tinged with curiosity. She wasn't entirely sure what kind of concoction Zoran was brewing inside that massive vessel.
Bai Tza's tone carried a light, cheerful cadence; it was obvious she was thoroughly enjoying herself. She was beyond satisfied with this world, the gift Zoran had handpicked for her.
This place suited her perfectly.
For a fleeting moment, Bai Tza even harbored the thought of never returning to their original world. Here, vast oceans covered the entire planet, and under her deliberate cultivation, a brand-new clan of aquatic servants loyal only to the Water Demon was already being born.
Now, it wasn't just a matter of her magical energy recovering at an accelerated pace. She could completely utilize the global oceans of this world to nurture her essence, and even push her original limits to ascend to greater heights of power.
By binding her existence to the sea, once she fully integrated herself with all the oceans of this world, she would essentially become the manifestation of the planet's very will. A single gesture, or even a solitary thought, would be enough to reshape the entire world.
Anticipating this brilliant future ahead of her, Bai Tza felt a wave of profound comfort wash through her entire being. Ever since she had been banished and sealed away in the Netherworld, this sense of pure ecstasy had been absent for far too long.
Now, it had finally returned.
Consequently, the gaze she directed toward Zoran grew significantly more respectful. This brother of theirs, the eldest among the eight Sorcerers, had done far more than simply fulfill his promise to break their seals. He had gone so far as to thoughtfully prepare an entire world tailored for each Demon.
There was no longer any need to squeeze into their original world like before, fracturing the globe into eight fiercely contested territories. Compared to the magnificent grand scale the Moon Demon was operating on now, the glorious days of their ancient past suddenly seemed trivial and small.
Reining in her wandering thoughts, she quietly awaited Zoran's reply, her eyes narrowing as she focused on the Tianyuan Cauldron.
Beneath the cauldron, Bai Tza instantly recognized the swirling, blistering aura acting as the heat source. It was unmistakably the Fire Demon Chi of their brother, Shendu.
It appeared that before she had been broken out of prison these past few days, her younger brother and their eldest sibling had shared quite a history. In Bai Tza's memory, Shendu was never the type to willingly part with such a massive concentration of his Fire Demon Chi. During the ancient era when the Eight Demon Sorcerers ruled the Earth, Shendu had been a relentless battle maniac who hoarded every shred of his power like a dragon guarding its treasure, completely consumed by endless warfare against rival sorcerers and demons.
It looks like Brother Tso Lan has already thoroughly 'tamed' Shendu, Bai Tza couldn't help but muse.
Right on cue, Zoran spoke up with an easy, relaxed smile. "Can't you tell? While I was traveling through another world with Po Kong, I picked up a few culinary skills."
Demons were creatures fond of dry, dark humor, so Bai Tza certainly wasn't naive enough to believe Zoran was literally cooking a meal. It was glaringly obvious that some form of raw power was being refined and distilled inside that cauldron.
She lowered her eyes in contemplation, and after a brief pause, she murmured softly, "My dear brother, even when it comes to cooking, relying solely on fire simply won't do."
"Oh? And what do you suggest?" Zoran's eyes lit up as he turned his gaze toward her.
Bai Tza gracefully extended her arm toward the piping-hot Tianyuan Cauldron. A massive strand of pure Water Demon Chi separated from her body, drifting through the air like a vibrant blue ribbon toward the vessel.
"How can one cook properly without adding a bit of water?" she asked with a smile, slanting a knowing look at Zoran.
Zoran caught her drift immediately. He nodded, his lips curling into a warm, amused smile.
Setting aside whether the Water Demon Chi would actually benefit his "culinary" endeavors, the mere fact that Bai Tza, who had just escaped the Netherworld and was actively drawing upon the world's source code to restore herself, was willing to proactively offer a portion of her personal core energy carried a far more significant meaning.
It was a token of profound gratitude, or rather, a declaration of alliance.
Who says the Demon Sorcerers are difficult to manage? Zoran thought to himself, thoroughly amused. Aren't my younger brothers and sisters proving to be exceptionally sensible?
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