"Hoo-hah... Hoo-hah..."
After unleashing that sword attack, Redfield was on the verge of exhaustion. He was drenched in sweat and breathing heavily, needing to use the bat-handled umbrella in his hand as a crutch to steady his trembling body and prevent his knees from giving out.
"Redfield, you can't escape today!"
Suddenly, a thunderous voice echoed through the air. Garp's expression was solemn as he shot forward like a rocket. His supersonic movement tore through the air, creating a violent gale as he rapidly closed the distance to Redfield.
"Damn you, Garp!"
Redfield gritted his teeth, forcibly wringing the last bit of stamina from his body. He wielded his bat-handled umbrella like a sword, thrusting it repeatedly at the oncoming Garp. The whistling sounds were so fast that they seemed to pierce the air, creating streaks of afterimages.
However, Garp did not back down. His fists struck out like heavy hammers, the immense force churning the surrounding air into a chaotic maelstrom. Each punch landed precisely on the tip of the umbrella.
Boom, boom, boom, boom...
For a moment, incredibly powerful forces collided continuously, creating a dense, deafening roar. The surrounding air became turbulent, forming a visible white shockwave that rolled outward like waves, kicking up a huge amount of dirt from the ground.
But it didn't take long. Redfield, whose stamina was already severely depleted, became noticeably sluggish and couldn't keep up with Garp's barrage of punches.
BAM!!
Immediately, Garp seized the obvious opening, mercilessly throwing a punch that landed squarely on Redfield's face. In slow motion, Redfield's face caved inward, and the surrounding skin and muscle tissue rippled in waves. Blood gushed from his mouth and nose, his eyes rolled back, and he was sent flying backward like a cannonball.
Rumble!
Propelled by the immense force, Redfield's body shot out as a black blur for several hundred meters, breaking through several expanding circular vapor clouds in the air. Finally, he slammed into the ground like a meteorite, creating a massive crater over twenty meters in diameter. He continued to slide for a long distance, shattering more than a dozen large rocks along the way and carving two deep, semi-circular trenches in the ground as if plowing a field.
A shockwave of dust and air rolled outward, spreading across the land like a yellow dragon.
"Be careful. He won't go down that easily!" Garp's expression was serious as he reminded Cross.
"I know. The sound has weakened, but it's still much stronger than that of a regular person..."
Cross paused here, secretly clicking his tongue in amazement. "After fighting Fleet Admiral Kong for a day and a night and defeating a man of his standing, he still has the strength to resist! This 'Aloof Red,' 'Red Count,' is incredibly strong!"
"Surtur, Violent Annihilation!"
"Understood, Master!"
At Cross's command, the ten-meter-tall giant Surtur let out a vicious laugh. He held the massive, flaming broadsword in both hands and swung it horizontally toward the front. In an instant, more than a dozen scorching fireballs, the size of a human head, flew off the blade, covering the end of the long trench.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The fireballs exploded with the force of large-caliber high-explosive shells, effortlessly blasting out one charred crater after another in the ground.
Rolling waves of scorching air and high-temperature flames ignited everything flammable within the area, including trees and weeds. In the next second, an incredibly fast crimson light, like a bolt of lightning, shot out of the raging, scorching sea of fire.
"Hoo-hah... Hoo-hah..."
However, as soon as Redfield escaped the sea of fire, he stopped, utterly exhausted. He was breathing heavily, his chest heaving like a bellows. Large beads of sweat rolled from his forehead down his cheeks, dripping from his chin, only to be instantly evaporated by the hot air with a sizzle.
As one of the world's strongest fighters, he was fearless of any power. Ordinary people were more insignificant than ants in his eyes; numbers meant nothing to him. One could even say that a being like him had already transcended most things and was no longer a component of order. He, Patrick Redfield, was a part of order itself.
Even a great power of the sea like the Marines or the World Government, which rules the world, would not dare to push a monster like Redfield too far, trying their best to avoid an all-out war with him.
As a monster-level lone wolf, if he got angry, he could single-handedly destroy a nation. His unrestrained actions could cause immense damage to both the Marines and the World Government.
Even the Celestial Dragons, who call themselves the descendants of the Creators, lived under the shadow of his deadly presence.
This time, if not for the deep-seated grudge between him and Kong, they would never have fought to such a degree. But to his surprise, while he had indeed defeated Kong, he was now cornered on the island by the Marines who followed.
If it had only been Garp, it would've been one thing, but with a Marine brat here too, was this their plan to use his reputation as a stepping stone?
"Brat, you're looking for death!" Redfield's face was covered in blood, his eyes shadowed, and his voice as hoarse as a demon's. He let out a furious growl, "Solitary Crimson!!!"
Shh—!
A magnificent crimson sword energy immediately burst forth, creating a fierce gale as if splitting the skies and earth. It tore apart the clouds of dust and smoke and created straight fissures in the ground with an invisible, sharp energy. His target was still Cross.
Redfield knew that in his current state, he was no match for Garp and had no chance of escaping him. Therefore, his only path to survival was to defeat Cross, the promising and infinitely potential youngster in the Marines, and take him hostage to force Garp to retreat, allowing him to escape the Marine encirclement.
As for why he didn't attack "Steel Bone" Kong, who had already been defeated, perhaps Garp wouldn't give him the chance, or perhaps it was his pride, an unwillingness to strike a defeated opponent who had lost to him in an open battle. Or perhaps he feared Kong was secretly conserving his stamina, waiting for a chance to strike back at a critical moment.
Of course, Redfield may have considered all these possibilities. After all, to him, both a peak Garp and a defeated Kong were more of a threat than the youngster, Cross.
"Let me handle this!"
Garp grinned, stepping forward to block Cross. He even mocked him, "Attacking a junior brat is a pretty low move!"
"Meteor Fist!"
He picked up a head-sized rock from the ground, weighed it in his hand, and then threw it forward like a baseball pitcher.
Whoosh—!
The rock, like a cannonball, screamed through the air and collided with the immense crimson sword energy in an instant. A blinding white light exploded, followed by a deafening 'BOOM' that nearly burst their eardrums with its tangible sound wave. Following that, the ground shook violently, and a fierce storm, like a natural disaster, swept across the sky and land, kicking up countless rocks and dust.
"To still be able to unleash this much power... he's too much of a monster!" Cross's expression was one of shock, his Marine coat of justice flapping loudly in the hurricane-like wind. Even Surtur, with his flaming body, couldn't stand still and was nearly blown away.
"Stop with your pathetic struggles! It only makes you look more desperate and cowardly!"
Garp roared, stomping his feet on the ground repeatedly until he seemed to vanish into thin air. When he reappeared, he was already in front of Redfield, creating a whirlwind around him.
"Nani?!"
Redfield, who was still drained, saw Garp right in front of him and his face changed drastically. He instinctively tightened his grip on the bat-handled umbrella, swinging it like a sword at his opponent.
Unfortunately, his body was not only riddled with wounds but his stamina was completely depleted. His movements were slow enough for a normal person to see the trajectory, let alone an existence like Garp.
"Fist of Iron!!!"
At this moment, Garp's expression was exceptionally calm, and his eyes were perfectly clear. His sandbag-sized fist, hardened with Armament Haki, swung out ruthlessly, striking the face of the Red Count like an iron hammer.
BAM!
With a dull thud, a visible white circle of air vibrated outward. Redfield felt his mind go blank, almost losing consciousness. His body, without any resistance, was sent flying horizontally. A large amount of blood gushed from his mouth and nose, leaving a discontinuous trail of blood in the air.
"Go!"
At the same time, Cross's expression was solemn. He gripped the renowned blade Shusui in a reverse grip and threw the long sword like a javelin. This was a sword technique he learned from Rear Admiral Gobert, a surprise finishing move.
Pfff—!
Shusui cut through the air like a bolt of lightning, effortlessly piercing Redfield's abdomen. The immense force even dragged his body down from mid-air, nailing him to the ground.
"Puah!"
Redfield was critically injured. He lay on the ground spread-eagled, his eyes rolled back, and he coughed up another large mouthful of blood.
Rumble!
Simultaneously, lightning flashed fiercely in the sky. Marduk unleashed several bolts of lightning, forming blue-white thunder serpents that circled Redfield's body.
"Whew..."
Seeing this scene, Garp let out a long sigh of relief, his eyes complex as he said, "It's finally over!"
"Yes, it's over!" Cross walked forward, standing side by side with Garp. A gust of wind blew, causing the coats of justice on their backs to flutter, the word 'Justice' waving proudly in the wind.
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