Chapter 24: People Die When They Are Killed
The Armament Haki attacks were ineffective; even when he shattered her head, the opponent's body could still move.
However, as Nereus switched to attacks infused with Conqueror's Haki, the situation changed.
The Manmeyer Celestial Dragon didn't continue moving freely after losing her head like before. Instead, she collapsed straight to the ground.
Nereus could sense that the headless corpse before him was still alive, but the speed of its self-healing had slowed significantly.
Just moments ago, the Manmeyer Celestial Dragon had fully regenerated in only three seconds. This time, a full 30 seconds passed before the lost head even began to regrow.
Moreover, the regeneration speed wasn't instantaneous like before; it was proceeding slowly.
"No problem. Conqueror's Haki can suppress the regeneration of this ability. Theoretically, the stronger the Conqueror's Haki, the stronger the suppression effect, and the slower her regeneration speed should be.
This intensity isn't enough. Let's try increasing it a bit."
Thinking this, Nereus didn't continue attacking immediately. Instead, he waited for the opponent to complete her self-regeneration.
"You bastard... are you treating me like a toy?!"
Although her regeneration ability hadn't been nullified, compared to the initial attacks, the speed of recovery was obviously slowing down.
Furthermore, she could clearly sense that the quality of Haki contained in the opponent's attacks was gradually increasing.
Under the influence of long stretches of time, the Celestial Dragon group had ingrained arrogance deep into their bones. The God's Knights were no exception; they were inherently the most arrogant among the Celestial Dragons.
It was just that their brains hadn't atrophied yet, so they didn't act like those low-intelligence fools.
Being toyed with like this filled her heart with unwillingness and rage. But if emotions alone could change everything, the Celestial Dragons would have been the first group to go extinct from this world.
"Didn't I say earlier? These are just some simple tests."
"You..."
BOOM!
Another powerful straight punch was unleashed. This time, the force of the attack was far greater than before. The Manmeyer Celestial Dragon's entire upper body was blasted apart, and even the ground behind her was gouged out into a deep trench.
"Correct. Strong enough Conqueror's Haki suppresses the regeneration speed, but this isn't enough to truly kill them. Does that mean... relying solely on Haki would require intensity on the level of Joy Boy?
Also, the regeneration abilities possessed by different Celestial Dragons might vary. A control experiment can't rely on just this one person."
Nereus still recalled the Haki of Joy Boy sealed within the knot on the robot Emeth in the original timeline.
Even after hundreds of years, that sealed Haki released on Egghead was enough to scare Imu, who was far away in Mary Geoise, into falling to their knees and screaming.
Although Joy Boy failed in terms of results, there was no doubt he left an indelible memory on Imu.
Moreover, when Joy Boy's Haki was released, it directly disrupted the Five Elders' teleportation ability.
According to Nereus's own speculation, the source of those abilities was Imu. Since Joy Boy's Haki could destroy that mysterious teleportation, theoretically, it could also thoroughly break this immortality.
After all, a certain someone once said, "People die when they are killed." Celestial Dragons were the same. If they couldn't be killed, it just meant the method hadn't been found yet. As long as the method was correct, the goal could naturally be achieved.
Otherwise, the Celestial Dragons would have nothing to fear at all.
Nereus's attack this time made the opponent's regeneration speed extremely slow. For a short time, she wouldn't be meddling in the affairs on God Valley.
Having gained a rough understanding of the regeneration situation of these Celestial Dragons, Nereus didn't waste any more time on her. Instead, he turned and walked toward the nearby forest.
After he intercepted that Celestial Dragon earlier, some people had fled in this direction.
Getting these people safely out of God Valley wouldn't be easy. The surrounding waters were filled with Marine warships and pirate vessels. If Nereus personally escorted a ship, there would be no problem.
But he still had things to do now and no time for that. Letting these people hide on the island first wasn't a good choice either.
However, at this moment, Nereus keenly sensed something flying away from here at high speed in the sky.
"If you don't want to die here, follow me."
Calling out to the people on the island, Nereus walked in another direction.
The natives of God Valley and the slaves brought here looked at each other, seemingly unsure of what to do, but in the end, they followed him.
In this environment, he seemed to be their only lifeline.
...
Meanwhile, in the forest of God Valley.
A bald boy, looking quite large but with a childish expression, was constantly waving his palms.
Every time the paw pads on his palms touched a person, that person would vanish into thin air.
Taking advantage of the massive chaos earlier, Kuma and Ivankov successfully stole the Devil Fruits prepared by the Celestial Dragons. Although a small mishap resulted in them only eating one fruit, it gave them hope for escape.
At this moment, Kuma, who had eaten the Paw-Paw Fruit, was sending these people away one by one.
"Thank you so much!"
"We were just waiting to die. It's all thanks to you."
"Alright, no need to thank me. Hurry up."
Pop... Pop... Pop...
As the Paw-Paw Fruit's ability activated, people were sent away one by one with Kuma's help. Within the desperate situation of God Valley, the sound of joy seemed to bloom silently.
Countless despairing people regained hope.
Rustle...
"Oh no! We've been found! Kuma! Faster!"
A noise came from the nearby woods, making the crowd that had just relaxed tense up again. The somewhat orderly line began to fall into chaos.
"Don't panic. I'm not a Marine or a Celestial Dragon. Can you help send a few more people away?"
Nereus's voice spread throughout the clearing, laced with a faint trace of Haki to stabilize the panicked crowd.
Behind Nereus, scattered groups of people followed—ordinary folks he had saved along the way.
"Okay, no problem! Please wait a moment; I'll send everyone away!"
Seeing that the newcomer wasn't an enemy, Kuma breathed a sigh of relief. Wiping the sweat from his forehead caused by nervousness and continuous ability usage, he agreed decisively.
Saving one more person was one more life saved—that was Kuma's only thought right now.
"Lord... Lord Nereus!! You are Lord Nereus, right?! I am... never mind, you definitely don't know my name, but it's so good to see you..."
At this moment, a Fish-man suddenly squeezed out from the crowd beside Kuma. It was the shark Fish-man who had told Kuma about Nereus's reputation earlier.
Seeing Nereus appear, he seemed incoherent, stepping out from the crowd in excitement.
"It's me. Don't worry. You're safe now. I'll take you home."
"Yes, sir!!"