At this moment, the black walls had already risen ten meters from the ground, and the 300-meter shockwave unleashed by Whitebeard was now right in front of them.
Even if they were Seastone walls, a mere ten-meter height could never block such a terrifying shockwave—300 meters in diameter and crackling with black lightning.
If this advanced Conqueror's Haki-infused attack struck the inner city, it would at least eliminate a significant number of elite Marines and destroy the activation mechanism for the Seastone walls behind the inner wall, halting the ascent of those terrifying structures.
At a height of ten meters, most pirates could find a way to scale it.
But if it rose to 30 meters, no one except the top officers would be able to break through.
If this advanced Conqueror's Haki attack succeeded, aside from the area pinned down by Oars' "corpse," the Whitebeard Pirates would gain an additional breakthrough point.
This was the most advantageous solution Whitebeard could devise for the current situation on such short notice.
His gaze remained fixed on the direction where the advanced Conqueror's Haki shockwave was headed.
Suddenly, two terrifying magma fists, each 100 meters in diameter, collided with the vibrational shockwave.
The point of impact was precisely 100 meters in front of the Seastone walls.
Standing atop the inner wall, Akainu simultaneously unleashed two Great Eruptions with his arms, infusing them with Haki while avoiding any interference from the Seastone walls.
However, the shockwave continued to inch forward slowly.
Witnessing this, veins bulged on Akainu's forehead as he rapidly mobilized his Haki and pushed his magma abilities to their absolute limits.
Finally, he halted the vibrational shockwave right before the Seastone walls.
"Huff~" Akainu took two heavy breaths.
The Admiral couldn't help but acknowledge Whitebeard's formidable attack power.
But so what? Times had changed.
Brute force alone was no longer sufficient.
The Seastone walls had fully risen.
At the rear of the bay, hundreds of Pacifistas, 10,000 elite Marines, and Admiral Kizaru blocked the Whitebeard Pirates' retreat.
Surrounding them, thousands of large-caliber cannons aimed at the pirates gathered on the icy center. Those with insufficient range targeted the ice surface itself.
As for the Marines left on the ice? Though 10,000 had already fallen, the remaining 40,000 had withdrawn to the rear from hidden positions before the Seastone wall enclosure had fully formed.
Hundreds of Marine prodigies and Vice Admirals had simultaneously unleashed large-scale attacks, buying time for the other Marines to retreat.
...
Seconds later, a despair-inducing encirclement was complete.
Seeing this, Akainu felt immense satisfaction!
Gathering power in his arms, he unleashed an even more powerful magma assault toward the sky. This attack felt particularly satisfying since there were no Marines left below.
As for the Shichibukai—they were all strong enough to fend for themselves.
"Ryusei Kazan"
Under the terrified gazes of the pirates, larger and more numerous magma meteors than the previous wave descended from the sky.
Simultaneously, hundreds of laser beams shot toward the Whitebeard Pirates from their rear.
A dazzling golden light soared into the air.
"Awakening Technique: Solar Flare Incarnation."
Kizaru transformed into a golden sun, raining endless lasers downward.
From the heights of the inner wall, thousands of massive cannons simultaneously began bombarding the Whitebeard Pirates.
Under such intense suppressive fire, the fate of the Whitebeard Pirates was almost sealed.
Even if strong individuals could protect some of the pirates, how long could they possibly hold out?
Whitebeard activated his Tremor-Tremor ability, slamming his fist into the sky and creating a spiderweb-like spatial fissure a kilometer in diameter above their heads.
The spatial fissure acted as an absolute defense, blocking the lasers and magma raining down from above.
But it could only protect an area of about a kilometer.
As for the lasers firing from behind and the cannonballs from all sides, Whitebeard could do nothing.
Experts like Buggy, the division commanders, and allied captains could only protect a few dozen people around them.
The Whitebeard Pirates, under the terrifying firepower of the Navy, were walking straight into a dead end called death!
...
A few minutes later.
The bay, which had been frozen, had mostly melted, and the magma falling into the sea had boiled the water.
Countless pirates lost consciousness from the scalding heat after falling into the sea.
The ice beneath Whitebeard's feet was also on the verge of melting due to the high-temperature seawater.
Once Whitebeard fell into the water, the kilometer-wide spatial fissure barrier would vanish, and the pirates hiding beneath it would be pushed to the brink.
Whitebeard and Marco were beginning to despair.
They had anticipated many of the Navy's encirclement tactics—whether it was an impenetrable defense or overwhelming firepower—and Whitebeard had been confident he could carve a path to survival.
But they never expected the Navy to construct a Seastone wall in Marineford!
Once such a wall was raised, Whitebeard admitted to himself that he couldn't break through it.
There was truly no way around it; no one could have managed it.
Unless he chose to destroy Marineford outright.
Even if there were enough time, the Admirals would never give him the chance to annihilate the island—they would surely restrain him.
The situation was dire to the extreme.
Only a small patch of ice remained, and the pirate ships had all been destroyed under the relentless attacks.
If they all fell into the seawater, they would still have to face Aokiji's freezing cold.
At that point, the entire Whitebeard Pirate Fleet would be turned into human popsicles. What a humiliating way to lose.
Even if a few of the strongest could survive this encirclement, how could their dwindling numbers possibly confront 90,000 elite Marines and a host of Navy powerhouses? Both Marco and Whitebeard let out a sigh.
It was just too difficult.
Once Aokiji refroze the bay after they fell into the water, their last hidden ship—the Moby Dick lurking beneath the sea—would have no chance of breaking into the inner bay.
Little Oars' feigned death and lurking would also be completely wasted.
"The Marines is truly terrifying."
"Ace, it seems we might not be able to save you after all."
Just then, Buggy flew over to Whitebeard's side. He was cursing under his breath.
"Damn it, Ray sent people to rescue me and told me to come here to help you Whitebeard Pirates! But where the hell is he? He's way too late. I can't hold out much longer."
Hearing Buggy's muttering, Whitebeard looked puzzled.
"Red-Nosed brat, didn't the World Government say that Ray is dead? Why are you saying he's coming to Marineford?"
Buggy was completely baffled by this.
He, Crocodile, and the others had only broken out of prison yesterday.
The pirate ship they seized after escaping had no broadcast function, so he hadn't heard the news that Ray was dead.
After hearing from the division commander that Ray had died on the Sabaody Archipelago a week ago, Buggy began to think.
Buggy had grown a bit smarter since his time in Loguetown.
At the very least, he now knew how to compare timelines and wouldn't make the ridiculous mistake of mistaking Luffy for Roger's son.
After pondering for a moment, he came to a conclusion.
"Ray definitely isn't dead."
Whitebeard's expression shifted slightly upon hearing this.
He, too, hoped Ray would come.
With another Yonko-level powerhouse, Ace would have a chance to live.
Out of curiosity and anticipation, he still asked, "Why do you say he isn't dead?"
Buggy hesitated for a moment before giving his answer. "The timing doesn't add up. The people who came to rescue me received Ray's orders six days ago. And they were with the Straw Hat Pirates at the time. But the news said the Straw Hat Pirates were wiped out seven days ago."
Upon hearing Buggy's response, Whitebeard, Marco, and the other division commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates widened their eyes.
"This... sounds like he should still be alive, but why aren't they coming?"
"Could it be that they're too injured to make it?"
"No way. Ray would never break a promise. If he sent Buggy first, it means he's definitely coming."
"I hope he arrives soon. I don't think the ice below can hold for more than three minutes."
Whitebeard naturally heard his sons' discussion, but there was nothing he could do.
If the ice shattered and there was still no good plan, he would have to leap over and fight the Marines himself.
He could only hope that Marco and the others would be able to rescue Ace in the chaos.
Just then, a dangerous alarm from the Marines suddenly sounded from behind them.
Scout Marines shouted frantically over the transponders.
"Enemy attack, enemy attack!"
"Another pirate fleet is approaching!"
The alarm broadcast through the loudspeakers echoed across the entire island, and Whitebeard and the others could hear it clearly.
They listened intently.
A dozen seconds later, the scout Marine's voice began to tremble.
"The approaching forces: The Beautiful Pirates. The Beasts Pirates. And, confirmed to have been annihilated... the Straw Hat Pirates!"
The information carried by the voice that swept across Marineford was simply overwhelming.
Sengoku, Akainu, Kizaru, and Aokiji's minds went blank.
Simultaneously stunned were Kong, stationed at the rear of Marineford, and Saint Garling.
"Aren't they supposed to be dead, Saint Garling?!"
"Under the killing move powered by 'Sacred Light,' it's impossible for them to survive."