"Woooooo—"
A sharp, piercing roar erupted from deep within Mary Geoise, and even amidst the constant tremors and collapsing earth, it struck at the heart.
It cut through the furious roar of the tsunami, the thunderous crack of the earth splitting, and the tearing sound of the howling winds, capable of awakening the deepest discomfort and panic within people.
Beneath the boundless, dark, and wind-shrouded sky, Mary Geoise, a sacred place that for hundreds of years had represented the pinnacle of the world in wealth, power, and prestige, was suddenly shaken by an unprecedented force.
The sky seemed to be torn apart by an invisible giant hand, dark clouds gathered, and thunder rumbled, portending a disaster beyond imagination.
Garp, who had been jovial moments before, now had an extremely solemn expression.
The sound that suddenly came from deep within the Holy Land made even his powerful mind feel extremely uncomfortable, as if something was constantly gripping his heart, and then scratching it with its nails.
"What kind of ghostly cry is that? How can such a monstrous sound come from Mary Geoise?"
Sengoku's brow was tightly furrowed, but unlike Garp, who was clueless, he had a faint suspicion of who the owner of that sharp cry might be.
His voice was low, and the power of his Devil Fruit quietly began to circulate within him. "This should be… Imu, as Renji mentioned, right?"
"Imu!"
Akainu's body faintly glowed red, and the surrounding temperature rapidly rose. This was a precursor to activating his Mag-Mag Fruit ability.
"Renji!"
Akainu shouted, looking up at the figure of the young man with his Cloak of Justice fluttering in the sky, his eyes firm.
"Are you going to deal with the owner of that voice?"
Renji glanced at Akainu in surprise. At this moment, with the Heavenly Six Eyes, he could see that everything within the Gorosei had already been severed by the World-Cutting Slash of Domain Expansion: Malevolent Shrine.
Even the immortal power they relied on from Imu could not escape this world-cutting slash. Under that one strike, they all vanished into thin air.
In other words, the only unknown left that could challenge Renji was Imu, who had not yet appeared.
"Yes." Renji spoke softly.
Upon hearing this, Akainu clenched his fist and said with firm eyes, "Go,leave this place to us."
"Just a few Gorosei. We will win."
As Akainu's words fell, Sengoku and Garp stepped forward, their faces full of confident smiles.
Especially Garp, who excitedly cracked his iron fist, making loud popping sounds.
Sengoku analyzed more calmly, "Don't worry, Renji, the three of us can still hold them off."
"The Gorosei were… ravaged by you to this extent. No matter what, their combat power must have significantly decreased. Even in our current state, we might still be able to hold them back."
"It's just that Mary Geoise is now experiencing such a large-scale earthquake for some unknown reason. I wonder if it's related to the Sunlight Tree Eve."
As Sengoku said this, Akainu's expression changed slightly, and he said with some apprehension, "Regarding the Sunlight Tree Eve of Fish-Man Island, I just sent Kizaru there not long ago, but I haven't received any reply yet. Could it be…?"
Sengoku looked at Akainu with some surprise, then said, "With Kizaru's ability, there shouldn't be anything in Fish-Man Island that could threaten him."
"Such a big event has happened now, the commotion is even spreading across the world. If Kizaru is in Fish-Man Island, he should know by now, no matter what."
As Sengoku spoke, Akainu's brows furrowed deeper and deeper.
"According to Kizaru's speed, he should have appeared by now, but he's still late."
Renji's eyes slightly narrowed. Recalling the figure in the yellow striped suit in his mind, he had already made a decision.
"You all, leave Mary Geoise first. I will handle what happens here afterward."
With that, regardless of everyone's reactions, his figure instantly vanished.
He was so fast that even Akainu, Sengoku, and Garp could not see him clearly. It was as if he had disappeared into thin air, startling all three of them.
"So fast!" Sengoku exclaimed in surprise.
Garp laughed heartily and slowly walked towards the mass of blood and mud that had been cut in half.
"Very good, since Renji trusts us so much, we can't disappoint him."
"Come on, you bastard wild boars, this time I'm going to beat you so far away that you can never return here."
Garp's eyes burned with fervor, and his entire body radiated fighting spirit as he stared at the blood and mud.
Akainu was the same. He took a step, and hot magma dripped to the ground, making sizzling melting sounds.
"I swear on my dignity as Fleet Admiral, you will not leave today."
Buzz!
Golden light shone, and a giant Buddha suddenly expanded.
Among the three, Sengoku had arguably the most remaining Haki and Devil Fruit ability. Sensing this, he proactively became ready to act as the main attacker.
"You cover me, I'll do the damage."
Blocked by the golden Buddha, Garp was a bit annoyed, but knowing the situation was grim, he did not object. Though his mouth disagreed, his body honestly took a stance, preparing to help Sengoku mitigate the attack.
"Come on."
"..."
The rumbling of the Holy Land continued, with constantly falling rocks and cracking earth, telling Akainu, Sengoku, and Garp that the battle was far from over.
However, under their somewhat nervous gazes, the five clumps of blood and mud, after violently smashing to the ground from the sky, remained motionless.
Sengoku frowned, then a wise light flashed in his eyes.
Having long experience in battle, he immediately analyzed the situation and said with great certainty, "This is their trick. They want to quickly recover their bodies when we let our guard down, and then deliver a fatal blow to us."
"Everyone, don't fall for it, stay vigilant, and remain focused."
Sengoku's words made a lot of sense. Akainu and Garp dared not be negligent in the slightest upon hearing them.
After a while, the blood and mud on the ground began to turn into ashes. The bones were cut into unrecognizable fragments by the slashes unleashed by Renji, they also dissipated with the constantly blowing winds.
Garp: "???"
Akainu: "???"
The two looked at Sengoku with some confusion, seemingly wanting to find an answer on his face. However, Sengoku was also in a state of bewilderment at this moment.
"Isn't it an immortal ability? Why haven't they revived yet?"
Akainu said in a deep voice, "So the Gorosei are dead, solved by Renji alone. How did he do it?"
"Woooooo—"
Just in this instant where chaos and confusion intertwined, a sharp, bone-chilling roar, like lightning tearing through the night sky, suddenly erupted from deep within the Holy Land.
It was like thousands of years of accumulated resentment and unwillingness, the horn call of an ancient power awakening.
Deep within the Holy Land, in a room surrounded by various eerie runes and symbols, a long, dark figure was trembling violently. It gave off an extremely strong sense of discomfort.
From the long, narrow shadow, a strange liquid flowed from a blood-colored heavy wheel. Imu's mouth continuously emitted a piercing sound, as if cursing.
Or perhaps, unable to comprehend how this figure before him/her had appeared here.
"What's wrong? Does the lofty King of the World also get scared into this state?"
Divine light flashed in Renji's eyes. The smile on his lips was an endless mockery of this King of the World who had ruled this world for over eight hundred years.