Happy New Year!
.........
Liltotto possesses the ability of The Glutton.
She can devour others, and during the digestion period, she can even wield the abilities of those she has consumed.
Furthermore, Saint Ju Peter possesses an immortal body!
This means that unless Liltotto uses Conqueror's Haki to assist in the digestion, she can never fully digest Ju Peter within her body! Once "digested," Ju Peter will simply regenerate!
Under these circumstances, Liltotto is effectively able to use Ju Peter's abilities without limit! Combined with the characteristics of the Mirror-Mirror Fruit, she can even transform directly into Ju Peter's likeness!
This was exactly what Beltz discussed with her before he left. Now is the perfect opportunity to infiltrate the inner circle of the Five Elders! By devouring Ju Peter to transform, she doesn't even need to be personally branded with the Depths Covenant by Imu.
Technically, devouring Saint Saturn would have been ideal. As the God of Science and Defense, he oversees all scientific defense affairs, including eight hundred years of research conducted by the World Government. When Beltz spoke to her, he hoped she could devour Saturn.
However, the second option was Ju Peter, whose transformation is a Sandworm. Since the Sandworm also possesses devouring capabilities, it synergizes perfectly with Liltotto's own power, allowing for even greater strength after the transformation.
Between the two, Liltotto chose Saint Shepherd Ju Peter. She believed that even if she devoured Saturn, she wouldn't be able to take over the complex scientific research and secrets as seamlessly as the real Saturn; it was better to choose a power that specifically enhanced her own.
The other four Elders, however, were clearly unable to accept this outcome. They said angrily: "Spit Ju Peter out!"
"No."
But at that moment, a voice rang out directly in Liltotto's mind. Judging by the sudden, stunned reaction of the other four Elders, they had clearly received the same notification.
"Imu allows it."
It was Imu's voice!
Liltotto seemed to have guessed Imu would say this. A smile played on her lips as she said, "See? Your boss has allowed it. You shouldn't have any objections now, right?"
Beltz's guess was spot on. After being humiliated like this, Imu would be utterly disappointed with the current combat power of the Holy Land. Just like in the manga, where the fire in the Holy Land led Imu to seek combat power in the land of giants, he would certainly be desperate for powerful individuals to join his ranks now.
Although Liltotto had taken out one of the Five Elders, her strength was superior. Desperate for military power, Imu was unlikely to refuse her joining.
The faces of the four remaining Elders were unsightly, but they dared not disobey Imu's will. They could only suppress their rage, looking as if they had swallowed filth, and said: "We follow the will of the Creator who made the world."
"Well then, fellow stars, let's get along well from now on."
Liltotto gave a faint smile and reverted to her original form, her golden wings vanishing. Ju Peter remained in her stomach awaiting digestion, giving Liltotto a sense of fullness.
One has to say, the taste of the Five Elders is really not all that great. She looked up, gazing in the direction Beltz had departed.
Next... what will you do?
According to Beltz, even if Imu agreed to her joining, she had to be careful. Imu might secretly use the Depths Covenant on Ju Peter to influence her. Liltotto would naturally be cautious, but with Beltz's Subconscious ability and Ginny's Memory Fruit powers, they could ensure no issues would arise in the mental realm. Furthermore, he could take her back to his own world; with these two safeguards, it was worth taking the risk.
The most important factor was that Beltz had become stronger! Since his strength now surpassed Liltotto's, he possessed the ability to rescue her and bring her back if she ever lost control.
And just one person likely wouldn't be enough. In the great battle just now, several members of the the Knights of God died. Having witnessed Beltz's power, Imu would likely take further action, creating a demand for even higher combat power. He would probably be even more impatient to move against the King of the Giants, wouldn't he?
She wondered if Beltz's side could handle what was coming...
After leaving Mary Geoise, Beltz flew all the way back to the Second God Valley with Ginny. Having just gone through a major battle, his consumption was high, so he wasn't flying particularly fast.
Fully unleashing Mujou Shougyou Shoukaku by deeply combining his Dragon-Human form with the Vollständig state placed an immense load on his body and stamina. However, the Azure Dragon Fruit grants the user a massive boost to stamina—one of the reasons the fruit is so powerful.
Before he even reached Kuma, news from the sky had already spread across the world. Although the World Government wanted to suppress the story, it was already inevitable. Such a massive event in Mary Geoise simply couldn't be hidden! It wasn't just a building or two streets; more than half of Mary Geoise had been turned into ruins! Even a large number of Celestial Dragons had died!
Under these circumstances, who could keep it a secret? Even if the World Government used its authority to suppress the news, the news tycoon Morgans was a man who feared nothing for the sake of a viral story!
In short, the news of the Holy Land being destroyed by Beltz... was everywhere! People across the entire world were practically boiling with excitement!
Heavens! Those were the Celestial Dragons! When Beltz killed the Fleet Admiral before, they were surprised, but it was nothing compared to this shock! After all, in the eight hundred years of World Government propaganda, the Celestial Dragons were Gods! Now, Beltz was slaughtering Gods like they were chickens!
This... this was simply insane!
At this moment, Beltz had become the most heinous criminal in the world! Previously, his bounty was 2.6 billion Berries, which was already extremely high for this era. But after this new bounty poster was released, his reward reached an unprecedented and staggering 5.2 billion Berries! He became the first pirate in history to break the 5 billion Berry mark! His bounty had doubled in an instant!
A 5.2 billion Berry bounty! How exaggerated was that in this era?! But compared to what he had done, these 5.2 billion Berries were completely deserved! He had destroyed the Holy Land!
In an instant, the world was in an uproar.
"This guy..." In Wano, Shiki looked at the newspaper and couldn't help but say, "What is he doing? Why did he suddenly target Mary Geoise? What did the Celestial Dragons do to him?"
Shiki knew Beltz always looked down on the Celestial Dragons, but under normal circumstances, he wouldn't do something like this unless they had actively provoked him. Beltz had said recently he was going out to bring back money—is this how he brings it back? That guy... he didn't go and loot the Celestial Dragons' private coffers, did he?
But Shiki could only say Beltz did a beautiful job; he had long been annoyed by those fat-headed, big-eared wastes. However, because of this... wouldn't Beltz's bounty be higher than his own now?! Shiki's current bounty wasn't even 4 billion, while Beltz's had hit 5.2 billion, over a billion more than his! How did that make sense?!
"This guy, going to do something like that and not calling me along." Shiki said this, then couldn't help but burst into his trademark "Ji-ha-ha-ha" laughter. "I'm really starting to like you more and more."
"It's this guy again!" On the Roger Pirates' ship, Roger looked at the newspaper and said, "This time he targeted the Holy Land. This guy really has a lot of nerve."
"There's something strange about him..." Rayleigh said from the side. "Why would he suddenly move against Mary Geoise?"
"What reason do you need? He's just annoyed by the Celestial Dragons," Gaban said, also standing by Roger. "With the way the Celestial Dragons act all day, they probably offended him somewhere."
"I'm getting more and more interested in him," Roger said. "A man like that, working under Shiki is a total waste of talent."
"No way, you want to invite him onto the ship? Don't forget his bounty is 5.2 billion now! Higher than yours, the Captain!"
"Hahaha! So what? Sooner or later, mine will be higher than his!" Roger replied with total confidence. The kings of the sea always held absolute confidence in themselves. "He's been stealing all the spotlight lately! We need to work harder too!"
"So you really did it in the end..." In Ohara, at the Tree of Knowledge, Professor Clover muttered, "But is it a bit too early now?"
Ever since he knew Beltz was a remnant of the Great Kingdom, he knew Beltz would eventually clash with the World Government. He just didn't expect that in only three-plus years, he would head to the Holy Land; this was tantamount to declaring war. Was it too early? Although Beltz's achievements were impressive—killing a Fleet Admiral and taking out Celestial Dragons—Professor Clover knew very well that this alone wasn't enough to overthow the World Government. Exposing his strength too early might instead allow the government to prepare in advance.
Across the entire world, almost everyone was discussing Beltz. And Beltz himself had finally rushed back. When he returned to the Second God Valley, the people on the island already knew what he had done, and they looked at him with eyes full of worship. Their hometown was destroyed by the World Government; now Beltz had destroyed the Government's Holy Land. This made them, who already adored him, worship him even more.
"Big Brother Beltz! Ginny!"
Kuma was even more emotional. When he saw Beltz return with Ginny, he was so moved he had tears in his eyes, rushing over to hug her! In his heart, Ginny had become his most important family; if he lost her, he really wouldn't know what to do! Fortunately, Beltz had stepped in to help once again!
"Alright, alright, you two can talk slowly later," Beltz said. "But for now, what you need to do is leave this place."
"Leave?" Kuma, crying with joy, was stunned.
"Yes. I did something like this; the World Government will definitely not let me go. By extension, you two will definitely be wanted. Staying here will only make this place unsafe. I'll take you to Wano; you can rest there for a while."
Ginny, however, shook her head. "Big Brother, don't help us this time."
Beltz was surprised and asked, "Ginny, what do you mean?"
Ginny looked up at Beltz and said, "Big Brother, we don't want you to be our babysitter. We want to become strong too!"
After being captured, Ginny realized the importance of power even more. She also realized that if she always relied on Beltz, she would never become strong. So she said, "Let Kuma and me go out to sea on our own. With Kuma's fruit, we won't be in mortal danger. We both need our own adventure to grow on the sea!"
Kuma immediately added, "That's right, Big Brother, we have to become strong! Let us go out to sea ourselves; we never want to lose each other again because of our own helplessness!"
Beltz pondered for a moment after hearing this. "Hmm. Although you are still young, in this cruel world, the earlier you train, the better you can adapt. Since you've said so, I won't force it. But if you encounter danger you can't handle, you're always welcome to come to Wano to find me."
"Yes!" Kuma nodded heavily.
Beltz looked at the other citizens who were gazing at him with admiration and nodded to them in response to their expectations. Then, he transformed into the Azure Dragon and flew straight off the island! He couldn't stay here for long; if the World Government discovered him here, the people on this island would also be destroyed! This time, the government would surely retaliate frantically, but Beltz wasn't afraid. Destroying the Holy Land was only the first step of his plan. To announce the return of the Great Kingdom to the Holy Land and the Celestial Dragons, there was a second step!
He was now heading to Punk Hazard! Because he already knew that the giant robot Emet was hidden there!
Emet was a companion of Joy Boy from eight hundred years ago. One hundred and seventy years ago, he had once attacked the Holy Land. He didn't succeed; at the time, Saint Saturn, who was already the God of Science and Defense, did not follow orders to destroy him but secretly hid him away. Emet contained too many scientific mysteries for any scientist to give up.
But Beltz didn't just have his eye on the scientific value. He also knew that within Emet, there was a Conqueror's Haki Knot left behind by Joy Boy, storing his Maximum Grade Conqueror's Haki!
That was Joy Boy's Conqueror's Haki! Is there any symbol better than that to announce the return of the Great Kingdom?!