Chapter 140: The Battle of the Valley of the Gods Begins
Once the order was given, the messenger quickly relayed the Fleet Admiral's command. In a short time, all officers ranked Vice Admiral and above had assembled.
Garp, Sengoku, Zephyr, and others arrived as well, their faces grave. Everyone sensed something terrifying and out of control was about to happen.
Standing at the bow of his ship, the Fleet Admiral addressed the gathered officers without delay: "Rocks has personally led all the top pirates under his banner to an island—where, coincidentally, a group of Celestial Dragons is currently located. They've just sent us a distress signal."
He then took out two sheets of life paper, each divided into five parts—ten in total—and distributed them to individuals with Admiral-level strength. Garp, Sengoku, and Zephyr each received one.
After distributing them, the Fleet Admiral's expression turned serious. "Currently, only three former Admirals and five CP0 elite guards are stationed on the island.
Your task is to reach them with utmost speed. You must arrive before noon today. Move out—now!"
Without giving anyone time for questions, the Fleet Admiral launched himself toward the Valley of the Gods using Moonwalk.
…
High above the beautiful and quiet Valley of the Gods, Luo Han and the others had already passed the encircling mountains and were closing in on the massive palace.
When they were about ten kilometers away, Luo Han, seated on the deck, let a smirk appear at the corner of his lips. They're here, he thought.
Whoosh! Two massive slashing waves shot up from the ground below, slicing cleanly through the ships controlled by Luo Han and Golden Lion.
The ships were split clean in two, their cuts smooth. But no one aboard panicked—they had already expected an attack. No one attempted to block it.
Luo Han, Cole, and Whitebeard jumped off the ship along with the others. Boom, boom, boom... they landed on the island's soft grass.
Looking around, Luo Han saw that Rocks and his twelve crewmates stood at the front, facing the palace. From there, someone was approaching.
Through his spiritual sense, Luo Han detected eleven incoming enemies—seven of whom were Admiral-level.
Step step step... The eleven figures quickly arrived, forming up primarily against the Rocks Pirates. But their eyes were focused solely on Rocks—everyone else was ignored.
"Rocks…" The CP0 Commander's face was grim. Using Observation Haki, he'd already confirmed who was present. Can we really hold them off until reinforcements arrive? he wondered anxiously.
Facing them were nineteen top pirates: Rocks' original crew, Whitebeard, Blue Demon, Golden Lion, John, and others—all possessing Admiral-level strength or more. Holding them off seemed impossible.
But remembering the Five Elders' orders, the CP0 Commander cast his doubts aside. He focused solely on Rocks. If we can just delay him...
Boom! Seven attackers charged at Rocks—three clad in red steam led the charge, four CP0 members followed, and six Vice Admirals brought up the rear. They completely ignored Whitebeard, Golden Lion, and the others standing calmly on either side—none of whom made any move to help Rocks. In fact, some even looked eager for something to happen.
A red-steaming Admiral raced forward. As he charged, his arms morphed into blades, crossing into an X to slash at Rocks.
"Hmm? That Fruit… it turns the body into blades? Who had that in the future again…?" Luo Han furrowed his brow, trying to recall, but came up empty.
At that moment, the eleven from the World Government collided with Rocks' group. As they struck, the CP0 Commander's eyes narrowed. Just as he was about to intervene, the original members of the Rocks crew were suddenly attacked by an unseen force—stalling them momentarily. The six Vice Admirals engaged to hold them off.
Then the remaining attackers advanced—clang! boom! crack!—all their strikes landed within 2.5 meters of Rocks.
Despite the power of the attacks, the shockwaves couldn't even make him flinch. He stood like a mountain, unfazed.
Watching this, the CP0 Commander thought, So this is the power of Rocks...!
Indeed, Rocks' special Armament Haki technique was similar to Luo Han's psychic armor mode.
Rocks furrowed his brow. These World Government dogs want to trap me here? That won't do.
He raised his right fist and punched forward. A cylindrical shockwave, like Elbaf's legendary spear strike, burst from his hand. Space twisted as ripples spread out.
"Watch out!" the CP0 Commander shouted as Rocks attacked.
Six attackers scattered, but one—the blade-bodied former Admiral—crossed his arms to block it.
Clang! Swish...! The Admiral was pushed back a hundred meters, gouging a ten-meter-wide trench into the ground. But he held his ground.
Boom boom... The CP0 Commander and the others quickly regrouped around him.
"You alright?" the Commander asked.
Huff... huff... The blade Admiral reached up to wipe the blood from his mouth—but the blood had already evaporated into black ash. He gave up and chuckled. "If a Navy Admiral burning his life away still couldn't block that... we might as well just kill ourselves now! Haha!"
The CP0 Commander sighed in relief. If they could block Rocks' attacks, maybe they could delay him long enough. As long as those others don't interfere, he thought, glancing at Luo Han and the rest.
"But we can't let our guard down. This state—burning our life force—can only last six hours at most. If the battle gets too intense, maybe only an hour," added another Admiral with slicked-back hair.
The CP0 Commander nodded and said quickly, "We hold him for four hours. By then, the Navy's monsters should be here. Just keep Rocks busy.
Looks like Blue Demon, Whitebeard, and the others don't plan to help him. You guys attack, I'll handle blocking the rest of the original crew."
"Understood!"
Just as they finished planning, Rocks and his twelve crewmates charged forward.
Rocks had no time to waste—he wanted to reach the massive palace. That was where his goal lay.
"You bastards just going to keep watching?! Not gonna help me?!" Rocks roared mid-charge. If it weren't for the urgency, he'd have killed them all.
"Rocks, this is your fight. We wouldn't dare intervene," John said, waving dismissively.
Golden Lion and the others simply smiled, pretending not to hear. But the fire of greed in their eyes was growing—they were clearly waiting for a certain signal.
"Damn it!" Rocks cursed. He hadn't expected them to be this unreliable. With a snarl, he met the fist of the slick-haired Admiral head-on.
CLANG! The air distorted violently. The ground caved into a massive crater, cracks spreading outward in jagged lines half a meter wide.
(END CHAPTER)
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