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"BOOM!!!"
A giant ring of explosion manifested high in the sky.
Accompanied by an ear-splitting, indescribable roar that made eardrums tremble.
"Rumble rumble..."
Terrifying aftershocks swept out in all directions.
The massive black shadow, blotting out the sky, suddenly collapsed downwards! The entire island shook violently! The giant lion's head had already completely shattered!
"Huff huff... Huff huff..."
The earth continuously crumbled; powerful air currents rampaged wildly, impacting in all directions!
Trees, weeds, rubble, buildings, etc., were forcefully sent flying by the strong airflow! Shocking fissures spread out relentlessly!
Large swathes of smoke and dust directly enveloped the space, a hazy grey expanse obscuring vision.
"Boss!!"
"Raging Tiger" Boris, "Steel Drill" Blair, and Dr. Indigo – the three executives – couldn't help their expressions changing drastically.
"Bang!!", "Bang!!"...
In mid-air, two figures, one gold and one black, continuously battled together.
"Huff... huff... I am the Golden Lion! How could I possibly lose to a brat like you!!"
His entire body panting slightly, Golden Lion Shiki's face was savage. Somewhat hysterically roaring, he continuously kicked out one blazing sword ki slash after another, fiercely attacking Ichiji opposite him, who was shrouded in darkness.
"Useless, Golden Lion. You're old..."
Ichiji, lingering in mid-air, had a cold expression. His figure, like a ghost, directly dodged the violent sword ki slashes.
"Boom boom..."
Powerful slashes continuously struck the ground below, causing booming explosions, making the ground collapse incessantly, dust flying everywhere.
Darkness continued to spread. His entire being was like a human-shaped gap appearing in the sky, swallowing light and everything else. His pitch-black right hand, carrying wisps of bizarre black smoke, aimed at Golden Lion! "Kurouzu! (Black Vortex!)"
"Ugh!"
Golden Lion's entire body jolted violently! He involuntarily flew towards Ichiji, fundamentally unable to maintain balance!
"Damn it! This ability again...!"
Cursing somewhat wildly, Golden Lion was pressed by Ichiji's bizarre ability to the point of wanting to vomit blood. Relying on the power of the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi, he still couldn't break free from that gravitational pull, his entire body continuously being dragged over.
"Shishi: Senjindani! (Lion: Thousand Deep Valley!)"
The sharp famed swords, Oto and Kogarashi, fixed onto his legs, flashed with cold light, continuously tearing through the atmosphere!
"Swish, Swish..."
Astonishing sword ki, carrying terrifying power, poured towards Ichiji opposite him!
"Rankyaku: Bōfūu! (Tempest Kick: Rainstorm!)"
Legs like the wind, kicking out one crescent moon-shaped slash after another, meeting Golden Lion's sword ki head-on!
"Boom boom..."
"Shigan: Kikanjū! (Finger Pistol: Machine Gun!)"
"Zanpa!! (Slashing Wave!!)"
...
Back and forth, the two continuously clashed fiercely in mid-air.
Unable to take down the opponent after repeated attempts, Golden Lion's strength truly made Ichiji somewhat apprehensive.
One must know, he had already estimated the opponent's combat power as highly as possible, yet unexpectedly still somewhat underestimated him.
The former ruler, even having lost his fangs and claws, his remaining might was indeed intimidating enough.
From beginning to end, Golden Lion Shiki had only used two sword techniques, lacking the variety of other swordsmen.
Abandoning those complicated moves, seeking only practicality, he was strong to a somewhat terrifying degree. Even the Rankyaku Ichiji unleashed with full power was completely unable to withstand it head-on.
Seeing the leopard through a single spot!
Without question, the Golden Lion at his peak, even just considering swordsmanship alone, was absolutely terrifyingly strong.
Wounds continuously increased on both their bodies; even Ichiji was already covered in blood.
But Golden Lion wasn't faring much better either. Both his hands were basically crippled, his shoulders directly gouged with two huge bloody holes.
With continuous injury and blood loss, coupled with the constant use of his ability, his stamina was greatly consumed. The aged Golden Lion somewhat couldn't hold on anymore; the sword ki he kicked out could now be completely defended against by Ichiji's Rankyaku.
It was just that Golden Lion was unwilling to accept this cruel reality; his inner pride and self-esteem still made him grit his teeth and hold on.
"Damn it!!"
"Boss..."
Witnessing all this, "Raging Tiger" Boris, "Steel Drill" Blair, and the others all became somewhat anxious.
"Damn it! Why at this time!? Just a few more years, and the boss would have completely recovered...!"
Dr. Indigo was filled with unwillingness. If the Flying Pirates hadn't suffered heavy losses back then under the siege of the Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates, how could Germa, which had declined for hundreds of years, dare to provoke them?
Not mentioning others, just the 1st Division Captain "Wind Demon" alone would absolutely not be much weaker than the current Germa! A pity he died back then at the hands of that monster Kaido!
"What you should be worried about is yourself..."
"What?!"
"Shigan! (Finger Pistol!)"
Hit by the previous swarm attack from Dr. Indigo's so-called Collective Body: Magic Arts, Bode flashed like lightning before him, index finger covered in Haki fiercely stabbing out: "Shigan!"
"ROOM: Shambles!" Expression changing drastically, Indigo, before he could even dodge, was enveloped by a semi-transparent sphere. A sharp katana slashed directly over!
"Beauty Sword: Blue Bird!"
Cavendish's speed was somewhat astonishing; the sword strike stirred up intense airflow!
"Ah——"
"Ugh, ugh..."
Shigan pierced through his chest! The sharp Western sword directly pierced through his back heart! Law even cut off his head!
"Indigo!!"
"Steel Drill" Blair, who had been suppressing Byrne but unable to finish him off, witnessed this scene, his entire being incomparably furious, killing intent raging to the extreme: "Damn it!!"
"Indigo died! IQ's research is interrupted, unable to continue! So many years of painstaking effort, directly wasted?" "Raging Tiger" Boris's eyes looked fit to split, filled with rage. He roared furiously.
Then their years of forbearance and effort, even initially giving up revenge against Kaido, Big Mom, and others for the sake of this plan to evolve animals, wasn't it all meaningless?
"Roar——"
He roared towards the sky, an incomparably fierce and sinister aura making one shiver involuntarily: "I'm going to tear you all apart alive!!"
"Roar..."
Immense power shattered the ground! His entire being shot out at unbelievable speed, actually directly abandoning Gin, his opponent, and furiously rushing towards Bode and Law!
"Careful!!"
Gin, in mid-air, had a drastic change in expression, shouting a warning towards Law and the others.
"Rankyaku: Ittensen! (Tempest Kick: Single Line Sky!)"
A massive crescent moon-shaped slash, blazing and fierce, instantly cut through the atmosphere, shooting towards "Raging Tiger," who had already dashed several tens of meters away in an instant!
...