"No, no, Daddy! I'm your son!"
Blackbeard cried out in terror, feeling the sense of danger washing over him.
However, at the word son, Whitebeard's fury only intensified. The next moment, a terrifying tremor erupted.
With a rumble,
the entire ground collapsed.
Dust enveloped the area.
"Ah! It hurts! It hurts!"
As the dust cleared, Blackbeard could be seen writhing on the ground in agony. As a user of the Dark-Dark Fruit, while this fruit was undoubtedly the most vulnerable of the natural types, it also inflicted double the pain.
"Teach!"
Whitebeard's voice rang out again.
His expression was calm, yet tinged with immense fury, as if he hadn't expected Blackbeard to still be alive. He was about to strike again.
But Blackbeard had read Whitebeard's thoughts and roared without hesitation. "Kill him, kill him!"
The Blackbeard Pirates, who had been well prepared behind him, roared with grim laughter and attacked without hesitation.
Whitebeard himself was severely wounded, his body covered in wounds, several of them fatal. He had held on until now solely through sheer willpower.
Facing a group attack, in his prime, he could have crushed them all.
But now, two fists were no match for four.
Slashes,
gunshots,
punches…
all sorts of attacks rained down on Whitebeard, a sight that brought tears to the eyes of the Whitebeard Pirates in the distance.
"Dad!"
"Damn it! Let me get through! I'm going to kill them!"
"Damn them!"
When the attack ended, the Blackbeard Pirates paused, and Blackbeard looked at Whitebeard, seemingly convinced he was dead. Whitebeard's body was now covered in wounds and blood. Blackbeard grinned fiercely. "Dad, your era is over. Next comes Blackbeard's era, hahahaha!"
"Teach!"
Whitebeard's eyes widened as he suddenly exclaimed.
"W-what? Not dead yet?" Teach retreated, seemingly startled by Whitebeard's voice.
But then he burst into a broad grin. "As expected of a dad, you've persevered until now solely through willpower?"
"Teach,"
Whitebeard said gravely, his gaze blazing at Blackbeard. "This era has never belonged to me, and you have absolutely no right to enter the next. There's a mountain you can never cross."
"Black Crow!"
"Remember this name. You're lucky you didn't die at my hands, but you will eventually die at Black Crow's hands, and the name of the next era will also belong to Black Crow!"
"Black Crow?!" Blackbeard's face darkened as he thought of that figure, his eyes filled with deep fear and dread.
"No matter how powerful that guy is, he's no match for me," Blackbeard roared.
"You'll regret this."
Whitebeard gazed deeply at Blackbeard, his voice cold. "You'd be luckier to die by my hand than by his. Facing him would only bring you despair!"
…
Mio was completely oblivious to what was happening at Marine Headquarters.
Mio was already suffering from numerous injuries.
Im could see clotted blood on many areas, the wounds Mio had inflicted earlier, now festering.
Even though Im's recovery ability was considerable, his all-out battle drained his stamina rapidly, and healing from injuries also consumed his energy. This was why some of Im's injuries hadn't fully healed. The reason for this was that Im didn't want to waste energy.
As long as the injury wasn't fatal, he wouldn't waste it healing.
Now, he preferred to save his energy for dealing with Mio.
With a huff,
Im took a step forward.
Without any warning, he appeared in front of Mio, his palm transformed into a sword, with armed Haki and various elemental powers superimposed, slashing towards Mio.
Seeing this scene, Mio's expression was extremely calm, without the slightest panic.
Even when facing Im's attack, he did not even think of dodging, but simply clenched his hands and burst out with momentum.
Puff.
Im's attack hit Mio's chest hard, and a bloody wound suddenly appeared, blood gushing out.
Mio, however, also took advantage of this opportunity and punched out with both fists, hitting Im's ribs on both sides.
The powerful force burst out, and in an instant, Im's mouth spurted out a mouthful of blood. His face turned pale, and it was obvious that he had been seriously injured.
At the same time, a flicker of surprise crossed Im's eyes, as if he hadn't expected Mio to trade injuries.
"Im, it's my turn," Mio declared gravely, a cold glint in his eyes. Without hesitation, he unleashed a punch, a powerful aura erupting.
Enduring the excruciating pain, Im twisted his head slightly, dodging the blow.
Mio grinned, and with a thought, dozens of massive wind blades suddenly erupted from a distance, sweeping towards Im.
The sound of piercing air echoed continuously.
Im twisted his body, and the next moment, he suddenly appeared in the distance, dodging the wind blades.
However, Mio, with his full Observation Haki, had anticipated this. As Im appeared, Mio followed closely behind him and delivered another punch.
Boom.
Blood gushed from Im's mouth again, his face paler still.
His body flew backwards like a kite with its string cut, falling heavily in the distance.
"Huh."
With a deep breath, Mio took a step forward, following closely behind, not giving Im any chance to relax. Even before Im could get up, Mio arrived, delivering another powerful punch.
Boom.
The entire ground seemed to shake.
Dust rose.
The force of the punch caused the ground to collapse.
Im bore Mio's blow once again, his face pale as snow, blood oozing from the corners of his mouth, and his breath weakened.
"You can't escape."
Armament Haki blanketed his hands, Mio grasped Im's neck and lifted him into the air, his expression icy. "It's time to end this fight, Im."
"You're right." Im's eyes flickered, and he glanced around with difficulty before sighing. "Kill me. You're too strong, I'm no match for you. Even if we continue, it won't change the outcome."
As he had said at the beginning, he was already exhausted.
Unlike Mio, although he was the ruler of the World Government, eight hundred years had left him feeling utterly alone and lonely.
He was alone. He
had always been alone.
His earliest friends and family were long gone.
He had single-handedly created the World Government and ultimately seized control of the Void Throne. He had long felt lonely.
But no matter what, he could not personally cultivate a second Immortal within the World Government.
He trusted no one else.
The sole ruler of the World Government could only be him, and he trusted no one else.
With a second Immortal, he would lose complete control.
Therefore, he felt exhausted and lonely.
He had even begun to tire of it.
He had long awaited this war: either victory or defeat.
Victory would allow the World Government to conduct a final reckoning, then he would arrange everything and pursue his own destiny.
Defeat…
then he would find the freedom he longed for.
His feelings were unmatched.
"But… even if you ultimately rule the world, perhaps years from now you'll end up like me," Im said calmly. "Feeling loneliness, loving it, and finally, loathing it, yet unable to escape the very existence of the world I built."
"No, I'm different." Mio sneered, his voice heavy. "I've never been alone."
"But your proactive approach to killing you saves me a lot of effort."
"The outcome is already determined, so why not be more proactive? At least you won't slowly feel despair in battle."
"That's true."
Mio nodded gently.
Power erupted from his hands.
Crack.
Im's neck was snapped.
Blood flowed from Im's mouth again, and then he grinned. "One more blow, come on."
Mio didn't reply. Instead, he clenched his fists and hammered at Im's head, punch after punch, without stopping. The powerful force shook the ground like an earthquake,
attracting the attention of many.
Punch after punch, Mio's fists gradually began to stain with blood. It wasn't his, but Im's.
And at that moment—
Whoosh.
Behind Mio, a sound of blood piercing the air echoed.
Yagi's eyes flashed with extreme coldness and murderous intent, and he charged at Mio with thunder, aiming for the back of his head, as if about to deliver a fatal blow.
But the next moment…
BOOM.
A figure suddenly appeared in front of Yagi, with a look of disdain on his face. He slashed with a sword, and Yagi flew out directly. A wound was cut on his chest, and blood spurted out.
The Red Earl said calmly. "I'll help you deal with this person, and I won't owe you anything in the future."
"Of course." Mio responded without turning his head, and the bombardment action did not stop until a moment later, then he stood up and retracted his fist.
In front of Mio, a huge deep pit had been smashed into the ground.
Im, who had been smashed beyond recognition by Mio, lay in it, lifeless, and turned into a complete corpse.
The real ruler of this world.
Im.
The master of the World Government.
At this time, when most of the World Government's attention was focused on the war with the Marine Headquarters, he died at Mio's hands.
He died willingly and with relief.