Snap.
Sage's snapping fingers sounded unexpectedly abrupt in the silence.
"Great God of Liberation."
The voice was soft, but it entered the ears of these people as if judgment had arrived.
The sky was enveloped by thunder and lightning, the descending bolts like beams of light, transforming into thunderbolts as thick as barrels, spreading outward from Sage until covering the entire fortress.
BOOM!!!
The thunder fell, blinding everyone's eyes.
Fullscreen AOE!!
Too many people?
Using Supreme King is an expression of inexperience.
The true way to deal with large numbers is to use the most primitive force to shatter their lives, break their fighting spirit, turning them all into cowards who don't even dare to face him!
After the blinding thunder blazed for a while, it gradually weakened, and those headless bodies lying on the ground directly carbonized under the thunder, turning black. As the fierce wind blew, the charred bodies broke apart into dust.
The area in front of Sage was cleared again.
But there were still injured individuals who resisted the thunder's might. After all, besides the ordinary pirates captured one-on-one by the Navy, Impel Down also held dangerous individuals requiring multiple warships and Vice Admirals to capture.
These people maintained a defensive stance, barely withstanding Sage's attack, and upon managing to defend themselves, they turned tail and fled, each retreating with all their might to the edge of the fortress.
"Run!"
"We can't fight, completely not a match, no, it's not even a question of being able to win; it's completely impossible to face! This guy is a monster, a devil! Run fast, you'll die!"
The pirates fled in panic, completely losing their will to fight.
If one doesn't think of fleeing when facing a strong opponent but instead chooses to battle till death, it means the opponent isn't strong enough, not overwhelmingly so, thus giving rise to hope.
Only when facing an opponent, one loses even the courage to make a move; that is power reaching an extreme.
As for when one doesn't even have the courage to escape when faced, that is transcendence.
Sage now belongs to the latter because...
"I told you, you can't escape."
Sage smiled faintly, glanced at the sea with profound meaning, and said, "Just now, I went into the sea, you know."
Some quick-moving pirates reached the fortress edge, boarded the ships, swiftly set sail, and even took out massive oars, directly paddling the considerable ships away, intending to escape the fortress.
But just as these ships had barely set out to sea, the water below began to shake violently.
Splash!
Boom!
In an instant, a giant mouth emerged from the sea and crushed the ship into pieces, swallowing the people within along with it.
That was a Sea King, a crocodile-shaped Sea King, its mouth the size of five warships. After swallowing the ship, it lay on the sea surface, revealing a pair of red eyes, chilling the hearts of those at the fortress edge to the depths.
Within the surrounding sea, dense shadows drifted below the surface. Amidst the rolling waters, the colossal forms of these shadows occasionally revealed themselves.
Sea Kings!
Every single one is a Sea King!
This fortress is surrounded by Sea Kings!
"Bad luck has other uses too, like me; if transcended, it can naturally be used as a double-edged sword."
Sage exposed a mouthful of white teeth, saying grimly, "Only the victor, only the final victorious captain, can leave here. The small fry can only serve as fodder for the Sea Kings!"
Prior to the seaquake caused by Teach, he had nine ways to resolve the problem!
At least nine ways!
Why choose to liberate and dive into the sea? It was to create an inescapable forbidden zone!
Those restless Sea Kings attracted by his plunge into the sea are now drifting outside the region. If not kept at bay by the Supreme King's Haki, these Sea Kings would land and destroy everything here should it cease.
This was his plan!
No one can escape!
Not even his own subordinates.
He and Teach, only one can survive, only the victor can rely on the haki of the Supreme King and formidable strength to carve a path through the Sea King blockade and lead the remaining victors away.
If both of them died, then only a few could escape from here.
Sage's thoughts were straightforward: if he's gone, O'hara will crumble, it will inevitably disintegrate.
However, Lily would definitely prevent this from happening; her strength can't protect everyone. Trying to forcefully preserve everything would result in her failing to protect even herself.
Rather than letting Lily exhaust herself defending his legacy, only to be defeated through various factions scheming, it's better to collapse from the start. This way, when Lily retreats, facing the loss of elite forces, she can only inherit what she can and use this preserved strength to secure some territory in the vast sea.
In the end, the scenario becomes her emerging as a new 'Four Emperors,' whereas Sage becomes like Rocks, gradually prohibited by the world and forgotten.
If Teach perishes, his men won't be able to leave either. Even if Sage doesn't have time to deal with everyone, the Sea Kings lingering outside would make sure these people perish at sea, ensuring not a single one escapes.
Van Augur?
His Fruit Ability has limitations, and there's no landing spot around the G1 Fortress.
Or rather, during his approach, all potential landing points, such as reefs, single palm islands, etc., are gone.
Forced Instant Teleportation will still lead to perishing at sea.
"The only ones left are the complete side."
Sage mused, looking towards a direction ahead, "You think so too, Teach."
His perspective now had no more obstacles; those in his way either turned to ash or fled only to end up perishing at sea.
But at the very front stood a rugged man, appearing there, his head slightly bowed, dressed in kingly attire, but with the collar wide open, revealing unruly chest hair.
"Zehahaha..."
Teach slowly raised his head, revealing a gap-toothed grin, chuckling softly, "That's right, Sage. Choosing here was to determine a victor. Sorry, I said earlier we would wait until the world is carved up entirely to settle, but I realized that day won't come. You've blocked my path completely, so I can only do this!"
Saying this, he walked forward, one hand glowing white, the other emitting black smoke, "Though it doesn't differ much from my plan. I originally thought my opponent would be the Straw Hat, as he is the 'Sun God,' after all. It's a bit tricky facing you."
Sage looked at the approaching Teach, glanced at the crooked crown on his head, and sneered, "That doesn't suit you, the rugged pirate attire suits you better; you're not fit to rule, Teach."
"Don't use your concept of rules to interpret me."
Teach laughed, "The rule of the sea should be someone like me; you are the anomaly, Sage. Sometimes, I truly wish you'd join me and become my true Aibo!"
He extended his hand, "Last chance, Sage! Really not considering joining my side? Once our plan succeeds, the world will be ours! You want to do business, want to rule, no problem at all! I can give you half the world, no, even all of it, provided you are beneath me! You acknowledge my rule, swear allegiance to me, I'll acknowledge your power, stand by you!"
"Eliminate you, and it's all mine!" Sage grinned maliciously.
"Zehahaha, that's a pity! Once I defeat you, I'll tell you before your grave how I ruled the world! After all, before our quarrel, our cooperation was excellent!"
Teach then pushed forward his fist, where white light and darkness merged into chaos, fiercely smashing forward.
"Then fight! Aibo!!"