Totto Land Archipelago.
Outside Cake Island.
Countless pirate ships continuously sailed in from all directions, filling the entire sea.
The entire island was surrounded.
This grand spectacle was even more overwhelming than the Marine's Buster Call.
On the island, only a dozen or so of Linlin's children remained by her side.
Besides them, no other subordinates could be seen.
For days.
Due to the Flying Pirate Crew's coercion and encirclement.
Her Big Mom Pirates were almost at their wit's end.
The territory she had painstakingly conquered was also gradually devoured by Golden Lion.
Now.
She only had the Cake Island beneath her feet, which had yet to be fully constructed.
This battle with the Flying Pirate Crew had almost completely shattered her confidence.
Although Linlin had already somewhat realized that there was a gap between the forces she currently commanded and Golden Lion's Flying Pirate Crew.
But after truly fighting a battle.
Linlin realized that the gap was not'some', but a huge chasm between heaven and earth!
As the Captain, her overall strength was no match for Golden Lion.
She had a brief fight with Golden Lion a few days ago, and she still had unhealed injuries.
It was that battle where Golden Lion used his Devil Fruit to unleash a tsunami, almost completely wiping out all her fleets.
That's why she was in such a miserable state now.
In terms of high-end combat power and senior cadres within the pirate crew.
The Flying Pirate Crew had Silver Axe, Black Charcoal Cicada, Kurozumi Semimaru, Kilpstad, and others.
What about her side?
Besides Long Bread, there was no one else capable of fighting.
And in terms of low-end combat power, the pirate forces, there was even less comparison.
The current Flying Pirate Crew alone had over 200,000 pirates.
Golden Lion, having received the immense financial resources of the Rocks Pirates, also equipped his subordinate pirates with a large amount of weaponry and numerous warships.
Now, when fighting against her pirate forces, the opponent didn't even need to get close.
They only needed to unleash a furious barrage of cannon fire.
Like a Buster Call, they launched a saturation bombardment on the island where she was located.
At this moment, Linlin also understood.
She was probably unable to contend with a newly risen pirate overlord like Golden Lion right now.
To truly contend with the opponent, she would have to wait at least another decade or so, until all her exceptionally talented children had grown up.
As she was thinking this.
The Flying Pirate Crew fleet, which had completely surrounded Cake Island, had already launched a bombardment on the island under Silver Axe's command.
In an instant.
Above the sea of the Totto Land Archipelago, there was nothing but the endless roar of cannon fire.
Countless dark and heavy cannonballs were fired from hundreds of pirate ships, covering the sky and earth, coming from all directions towards the island.
At this moment, Cake Island was as if it had ushered in the end of the world.
In just a moment.
Countless cannonballs landed on the ground, causing the entire island to tremble continuously, riddled with holes, and sending up countless towering fireballs.
The heat generated by the explosions swept in all directions, causing the air temperature on the island to rise sharply, making it feel like a volcanic crater.
Facing such a terrifying attack.
Even if Perospero, Oven, Daifuku, and others were exceptionally talented, they were now like startled birds, frightened by the apocalyptic scene before them.
Among the crowd, only ten-year-old Katakuri tightly gripped his three-pronged spear, Earth Dragon, standing in front of his brothers and sisters, facing the rain of cannon fire without any fear.
"Everyone, hold on! I've already contacted Carlo! He has agreed to come and support Mama! All we need to do now is hold on until that moment arrives!"
Although he spoke with determination and vigor.
It barely provided some psychological comfort to his brothers and sisters.
But the surrounding scene of destruction was too terrifying.
Some people had already cried out in despair.
"But... Big Brother Katakuri, when will Heavenly King Carlo arrive? Can we really hold on until then? There are so many enemies here, can Mama alone really stop them?"
Seeing his younger siblings with desperate faces and eyes full of fear, Katakuri tore off the scarf over his mouth, opened his fanged maw, and shouted:
"As long as we persevere! There will be hope! Don't give up! Believe in Mama! Believe in Heavenly King Carlo! Believe in me! I promise you! You will all survive! Everyone... everyone will survive!"
He turned his head and shouted at the oldest brothers in the crowd:
"Big Brother Perospero! Oven! Daifuku! You and I, split into four directions, do your best to protect our younger siblings! As older brothers! Even if we die, we must die at the very front!"
"Alright!"
At this moment, the young Katakuri seemed to become the backbone among the dozen or so children, firmly stabilizing their minds that were on the verge of collapse.
Amidst the endless cannon fire, they temporarily stabilized their own morale.
Meanwhile, by the sea not far away, their Mama, Charlotte Linlin, Captain of the Big Mom Pirates, had already gone berserk.
"Prometheus!"
"Zeus!"
"Napoleon!"
"We are here, Mama!"
Linlin ignored the whistling cannonballs around her, her tall figure standing upright on the shore, facing dozens to hundreds of pirate ships ahead, her pink hair wildly dancing in the hot wind stirred up by the cannonballs.
Above her head, a thundercloud and a fire cloud rapidly expanded, instantly growing to a diameter of hundreds of meters.
The thundercloud, under her command, ascended towards the higher sky, beginning to merge with the dark clouds above this sea area, gathering natural lightning.
The fire cloud Prometheus also ascended, flying above their ships under the pirates' palpitating gazes.
With a sharp cry from Linlin—
"Heavenly Fire and Thunder!!"
The next moment.
Streaks of lightning that illuminated the heavens and earth struck down from the clouds thousands of meters high, hitting the pirate ships on the sea one by one.
And Prometheus, continuously expanding to a hundred-meter diameter, like a burning miniature sun, rained down blazing fireballs onto the pirate ships below.
Linlin's two soul Homies creations possessed their own souls and instincts.
Without Linlin needing to divide her attention to control them, they began their large-scale attack on their own.
Meanwhile, Linlin, standing on the ground, took off Napoleon, her Captain's hat, and gripped it with both hands. The long blade in her hand swelled against the wind, transforming into a giant scimitar over ten meters long. She swung it fiercely, slashing forward with a powerful strike.
"Ikoku!!"
The powerful martial art from Elbaf, Ikoku, which can generate powerful shockwaves with immense brute force, unleashed by Linlin, was countless times stronger than that of an ordinary Giant Race member.
With a single slash.
A violent force erupted from the long blade, further imbued with her vast Armament Haki.
A mighty shockwave blasted out, tearing through the sea ahead, instantly shattering the pirate ships in a straight line, reducing them to scattered fragments.
The pirates on board didn't even have a chance to scream before they exploded in the terrifying shockwave, turning into foul-smelling blood mist.
With just one strike.
An empty channel appeared on the sea in front of Linlin.
At least six pirate ships were shattered by her single slash.
This terrifying power immediately caused a considerable commotion among the pirates besieging Cake Island.
However, this commotion instantly subsided with the appearance of a man.
In its place was infinitely rising morale!
A tall man with golden hair draped over his shoulders, two swords at his waist, and a cigar in his mouth, resembling a majestic lion, walked slowly and deliberately in wooden clogs from a pirate ship to its bow, looking towards Linlin, who was fighting alone on the shore.
Seeing the newcomer, Linlin, who was about to raise her Napoleon long blade again for another slash, instantly turned extremely grim.
She gnashed her teeth and glared angrily at the golden-haired man, letting out a startled and furious shriek, somewhat losing her composure.
"Shiki!! You bastard, do you really have no regard for our past and intend to utterly destroy me?!"
"Jie ha ha ha, Jie ha ha ha ha!"
"Linlin!"
Golden Lion, cigar in mouth, stood casually on the bow, looking down at her and laughing wildly.
"It's not that I disregard our past, it's that you yourself can't see the situation clearly and are still stubbornly resisting!"
"Look! Your pirate crew now only consists of you and a few snot-nosed Little Brats. With such meager strength, what do you have to fight me with?"
"Out of consideration for our past as comrades, I'm giving you a chance now, a chance to surrender without being killed!"
"As long as you surrender immediately and voluntarily promise to disband your pirate crew, I can still be merciful and allow you to join my command, making you a high-ranking cadre of my Flying Pirate Crew!"
"Among my pirates, strength is respected! With your power, you can even surpass A Xiong and become my highest-ranking cadre!"
"How about it, Linlin! The terms I'm offering you aren't bad at all, would you like to come aboard my ship?"
"Jie ha ha ha ha! Think it over carefully. Even if not for yourself, consider your children who haven't grown up yet."
Listening to Golden Lion's words, which were ostensibly an invitation but in reality a threat, Linlin almost gnashed her silver teeth to pieces.
"Shiki! You bastard! Still so insidious and shameless! The grand Sky Admiral, actually using my children to threaten me!"
Golden Lion, far from being ashamed of being cursed, laughed wildly with pride.
"Jie ha ha ha, thank you for the compliment! So, Linlin, what's your choice?"
"Make this old woman disband her pirate crew? Become your highest cadre?" A sneer appeared on Linlin's face, her eyes blazing with ferocity. Without a moment's hesitation, she heavily swung the long blade in her hand towards Golden Lion.
"You don't deserve it?! Do you really think you're Rocks?"
"Ikoku!!"
A mighty shockwave once again erupted from the long blade in her hand, tearing through the sea ahead and blasting towards Golden Lion, who stood at the ship's bow.
However, facing such a terrifying slash.
Golden Lion still stood there calmly, without any attempt to dodge.
Nor did he draw his sword to attack.
He just stood there, looking down, even having the leisure to take a puff from his cigar.
Just as the slash tore through the sea in front of the pirate ship, about to hit the ship beneath him.
A transparent barrier appeared out of thin air at the bow of the pirate ship, blocking Linlin's Ikoku.
The shockwave slammed into this transparent barrier, instantly erupting with an earth-shattering roar and stirring up a massive gust of wind.
And then... there was nothing else.
The barrier showed no sign of breaking.
The pirate ship, protected by the barrier, was also completely unharmed.
Golden Lion's golden hair behind his head swayed, and the smile on his face became even more arrogant and wild.
He suddenly shouted loudly.
"My lads!!"
"All forces, attack!"
"Let this ignorant woman see that even on land and sea, my Flying Fleet is invincible!"
"Kill!! Take her down for me!!"
At Golden Lion's command.
On the hundreds of pirate ships on the surrounding sea, deafening roars and cheers erupted.
"Long live Boss Shiki! Boss Shiki is invincible!"
"The Flying Fleet is invincible!"
"Kill! Kill! Capture Big Mom alive!"
For a moment.
Countless muzzles were aimed at Linlin, unleashing an endless barrage of cannon fire, turning her and the hundreds of meters of coastline around her into an ocean of flames and explosions.
At the same time.
Thousands of pirates, faces flushed, shouted and brandished their swords as they charged down from the pirate ships, rushing forward one after another to kill Linlin.
Ranged and close-quarters combat unfolded simultaneously.
However.
The powerful offensive of the Flying Pirate Crew did not take effect immediately.
As a large number of pirates landed for close-quarters combat.
Linlin, in her fury, finally fully revealed her powerful side.
Above her head, a thundercloud and a fire cloud hung high, raining down endless lightning and fireballs, shattering wave after wave of the charging pirate army.
With a wave of her hand, black souls peeled off from her grasp and scattered onto the ground in front of her.
The next moment.
The earth bulged, growing strange human and beast faces.
Mud spewed forth, rapidly condensing into giant mud golems and rock golems, shouting 'Mama' as they charged into the pirates, rampaging fearlessly.
These golems were soul Homies created by Linlin by separating a small part of her soul.
With her actions.
Hundreds of Homies quickly formed around her on the ground.
The numbers grew larger and larger.
And they were all fearless, unafraid of blades or guns.
After a round of charges.
The offensive organized by the Flying Pirate Crew was not only quickly halted, but also showed signs of being routed by a large number of Homies.
On the pirate ship, Golden Lion watched this scene from afar and couldn't help but shake his head.
"Charlotte Linlin, that woman is too terrifying. We've pushed her to this point, yet she alone managed to cut off our offensive."
He turned to look at the man with the giant axe on his back.
"Xiong, it's your turn. Remember, there might only be one chance. If that woman reacts and gets angry, we might be the ones in trouble."
"Hmm, watch me!" Silver Axe grinned, grabbed the giant axe from his back, squatted, and leaped, launching himself from the ship like a cannonball towards the shore.
Before he even landed, he turned back and shouted, "Everyone listen! Fire at me!"
Hundreds of pirate ships on the sea, as if long aware of his plan, turned their cannons and aimed at Silver Axe on the shore, unleashing an overwhelming barrage of cannonballs.
In an instant.
Silver Axe's figure was engulfed by countless cannonballs.
"Boom boom boom—!!"
Clusters of scorching explosions erupted on Silver Axe's body.
Amidst the rolling smoke, Silver Axe's cries of pain could be heard, along with his increasingly deep roar, like that of a giant beast.
When the a dozen-second bombardment ceased.
On the coastline, which had been bombed into scorched earth, Silver Axe's previous figure, less than two meters tall, had vanished.
In its place was a muscular giant, over twenty meters tall, with muscles bulging like blocks of magma.
In the giant's hand, the huge door-sized axe was now so miniature it was smaller than one of the giant's palms.
Seeing this, the giant simply threw the axe away, turned, reached into the sea behind him, pulled out a massive Ship Anchor, and with a clang, snapped the thick chain. Gripping the anchor tightly, he strode towards Linlin, who was being surrounded and attacked by the pirate army.
The giant was, of course, Silver Axe.
After taking the full brunt of the damage first, allowing his karmic power to accumulate to its maximum and his strength to reach its strongest form, the power he now possessed was indescribably immense.
As he strode forward, the Homies army charging at him was shattered in large swathes with a casual swing of his anchor.
Silver Axe began to charge forward.
He even put away his anchor.
But even so, merely running at full speed, no Homie doll could stop his advance; they would burst apart upon impact.
Even the lightning and fireballs striking from the sky were ignored by him.
The pockmarked earth thudded beneath his feet.
Silver Axe ran faster and faster. A dark luster quickly covered his colossal, giant-like body, coiling around the anchor in his hand, which he then swung in a full circle and brought down violently upon Linlin!
A strong gust of wind swept across.
Silver Axe's overwhelming, violent power crashed down upon her.
But Linlin was not afraid in the slightest.
"Hmph! Silver Axe? You're not worthy of fighting me, you old hag! Get lost! Let that bastard Shiki come himself!"
She gripped her blade with both hands, ready to unleash a powerful strike at Silver Axe.
Before the long blade was even truly swung.
A terrifying aura had already erupted from her body, transforming into tangible black and red lightning that spread in all directions.
Wherever the black and red lightning passed, the charging pirate army fell in swathes.
And Linlin, with this earth-shattering, terrifying momentum, wielded her long blade, wrapped in black Armament Haki, about to strike Silver Axe's face.
She intended to cripple Silver Axe, Golden Lion's capable subordinate, with a single strike!
"Haoshoku... This intensity, she's almost able to use Haoshoku Coating, isn't she? As expected of the only woman among the four Captains, truly formidable, Linlin!"
Silver Axe's arm muscles bulged, his eyes gleamed with ferocity, and he forcefully brought the black anchor in his hand down on Linlin's head.
At the same time, he suddenly roared, "Shiki! What are you waiting for? Act now! Kill her son!"
As soon as Silver Axe uttered these words, the poised Linlin was stunned, a flicker of outrage appearing in her eyes as she turned to look at Golden Lion's pirate ship.
However, she did not see Golden Lion.
Instead, she saw Katakuri, being held in mid-air by a pirate.
Beside him, Kurozumi Semimaru grinned menacingly, holding a short blade across Katakuri's neck, ready to slice it.
Katakuri was held tightly, fear in his eyes, struggling desperately and calling out for help in a panic.
"Mama! Mama! Save me! Please save me!"
"Katakuri! You bastards! Let him go, you hear me!"
Seeing her greatest masterpiece, Katakuri, whom even Carlo considered to have extremely high potential and Haoshoku, being captured, threatened with harm, and even death.
Linlin's heart was completely thrown into disarray.
She was shocked, angry, and panicked, so anxious that she immediately abandoned Silver Axe, instinctively moving to rescue him.
Just then!
"You fell for it!"
A small figure suddenly darted out from behind the flustered Linlin, releasing a giant ghost with a wave of his hand, which plunged into Linlin from behind.
It was Kilpstad, who had not appeared until now!
"Negative Ghost!! Super-sized! Fall into a negative state, Linlin!"
As the super-sized Negative Ghost entered her body, Linlin's body trembled violently, she lost her composure for a moment, her knees buckled, and she fell to the ground with a thud.
"I... I'm so useless, I want to die... Sister Mama, I can't find you, I can't beat Shiki, and I can't save my children. Someone as useless as me... might as well die..."
The moment she fell into an extremely negative state, Silver Axe's anchor, swung with all his might, also slammed down directly onto Linlin's body.
The next instant.
With a thunderous explosion!
The black anchor hit Linlin squarely on the forehead.
The steel anchor, over ten meters long, weighing tens of tons, and wrapped in Armament Haki, twisted and shattered on Linlin's head.
And Linlin's head was finally breached, gushing blood from Silver Axe's powerful blow.
She herself was sent flying back like a cannonball, plowing a straight furrow in the ground with her back!
"What a hard head! As expected of Iron Balloon, this physical defense is probably superior to even ordinary Haki defense, isn't it? Linlin, you truly are a monster."
Silver Axe, whose hands were numb from the shock, couldn't help but exclaim as he watched Linlin, whom he had sent flying.
On the ground several hundred meters away, Linlin, with a broken head and feeling somewhat dizzy, struggled to get up, but she didn't look at Silver Axe. Instead, she looked at the pirate ship.
Then, she saw the Katakuri she was worried about suddenly transform into Golden Lion, then into a seductive woman, who smiled at her.
Linlin was stunned, then suddenly realized.
"It's you! Black Charcoal Cicada! You damned woman, you've been behind all this? That bastard Shiki never even came, did he? Damn it!! Mama will kill you!!"
A demonic, violent aura erupted from her body.
Linlin's eyes were bloodshot, and she charged forward like a madwoman, gripping her long blade.
She was about to reach the shore.
In her fury, her terrifying aura and might were such that even Silver Axe might not be able to stop her now.
Just then.
Behind Silver Axe, a group of pirates grinned and spread out, exposing the children they had captured to Linlin's sight.
From the distant pirate ship, Black Charcoal Cicada's wild laughter echoed.
"Linlin! Don't say I didn't warn you, these children aren't me transformed."
Linlin's charging footsteps halted. She clearly saw Katakuri, Perospero, and others being held by pirates from the Flying Pirate Crew, with sharp blades held to their necks.
Some of the children, startled, immediately burst into tears, crying out for Mama, but were hushed by Katakuri, who was also captured.
"Everyone, don't cry! Don't make noise! Don't distract Mama! We are the Charlotte Family, we must not be a burden to Mama! Believe in Mama! She will definitely win!"
"You damned brats! You're caught and still acting arrogant!" The pirate holding Katakuri roared in anger, his long blade slipping and cutting a bleeding wound on Katakuri's neck.
Katakuri's feet were clearly shackled with Sea Stone handcuffs, preventing him from using his Devil Fruit.
"Katakuri! Perospero!"
Seeing this, Linlin's rage grew even stronger.
The cruelty and bloodlust in her eyes also intensified.
Finally, she completely lost control, like a madwoman, ignoring the lives of Katakuri and the others, directly roaring, drooling, and with bloodshot eyes, she charged at Silver Axe.
Katakuri saw her state and immediately cried out, "Oh no! Mama's hunger pangs has flared up!"
Facing such a crazed Linlin, Silver Axe showed no fear; instead, a victorious smile appeared on his face.
"An hunger pangs? In this state, though you might not fear pain and might even become stronger, can you truly fight when you've lost your reason, Linlin?"
He took a small step, moving a few paces to the side, opening a gap.
Behind him, an Icebreaker with paddle wheels violently crashed onto the shore from the sea.
On both sides of the Icebreaker's bow, thick pipes were mounted, aimed at Linlin, who was indiscriminately attacking friend and foe, and sprayed thick jets of water.
Struck by the steam-pressurized water jets, Linlin's body immediately weakened, and under the washing and impact of the water jets, she gradually lost strength and collapsed.
What was sprayed from these pipes was, in fact, seawater!
Seeing this, Silver Axe couldn't help but grin.
"Combat isn't just about who's stronger; brains are also very important. I admit your strength is immense, Linlin, but your intelligence, your combat IQ..."
"It's far inferior to Shiki's."
"What are you all standing around for? Go and shackle her! Remember to use plenty of Sea Stone, lest she breaks free. This woman is an absolute monster."
"Yes!"
Immediately, a large group of pirates, clutching Sea Stone handcuffs and Sea Stone chains, rushed forward and wrapped them around Linlin, who was continuously being drenched by seawater, completely depriving her of the strength to resist, binding her with numerous Sea Stone chains.
Seeing this, Katakuri and the others were utterly despairing.
The pirates of the Flying Pirate Crew, however, let out victorious cheers.
"Woohoo! The Big Mom Pirates have been completely defeated by us!"
"Did you see that? This is the power of the Flying Fleet! Capable of anything, anywhere!"
"Who are we going to fight next? The Sky Pirates, or the Whitebeard Pirates, or the Roger Pirates?"
Amidst the thunderous cheers, a pirate, unable to contain his excitement, asked Silver Axe.
Silver Axe retrieved his axe, slung it over his shoulder, and grinned. "That depends on Shiki's plan, but from what I see, Shiki's next target might be Carlo's Sky Pirates. After all, no matter what, Carlo is still easier to deal with than Newgate, even if his bounty has reached the world's highest, he's still too young."
Silver Axe's words had just fallen.
Suddenly, he felt something was wrong.
The wind in the heavens and earth had, at some unknown point, begun to blow more fiercely.
The sky also grew darker and darker.
Although the sound of cannon fire had long ceased.
But a dull rumbling sound once again continuously echoed in the sky.
That was not the sound of cannon fire.
That was the sound of thunder.
At the same time.
A massive shadow, descending from the distant heavens, enveloped Cake Island and the surrounding sea.
A strong sense of unease welled up in Silver Axe's heart. He slowly raised his head and looked at the sky above.
Reflected in his dilated pupils was the figure of a brilliant golden giant bird, tearing through the sea of clouds, its wingspan covering the sky.
Seeing the golden giant bird, as if cast from gold, Silver Axe's mouth twitched.
"No... no way, it comes right after I say it? Weren't you just back, still in Dressrosa? Does it have to be this fast?"