Chapter 202: Bombarding the Holy Land Mary Geoise (Part 1)
And all of this happened in an instant!
Snap!
From afar, on the giant tree root, the CP0 youth's clothes, shoes, and white mask finally dropped from the air!
"Luo Han!"
"Brother Han!"
Ellis and Cole shouted at the same time, both noticing something was wrong with Luo Han.
Stepping forward, Cole placed himself in front of Luo Han, vigilantly watching the black-masked CP0 elder on the distant root. Though filled with killing intent, he didn't charge; his priority was protecting Luo Han.
Ellis moved behind Luo Han, the power of nature surging around her as she reached out to heal him.
"No need!"
Luo Han raised a hand, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead with relief. "I'm fine now."
In his spiritual sense, the gray mist had been blocked by his Perfect Armament Haki and had dissipated after a while.
It seemed the mist had targeted only Luo Han!
He could feel from it a mix of regret and resentment.
"Are you really alright?" Ellis asked, still worried as she stared at Luo Han's now-aged face.
She could tell that the life force Luo Han had lost wasn't just equivalent to aging a dozen years on the surface—it was far more than that.
Step step—Sora and Akatsuki had also reacted by now and took up positions around Luo Han, guarding him from further attacks.
"I'm fine."
With a thought, Luo Han used his telekinesis to gently move Cole aside, then stepped forward and looked coldly at the CP0 elder. "The World Government really does have deep reserves. A one-hit-kill Devil Fruit ability… I almost died at the hands of some no-name grunt."
Whoosh! Luo Han exhaled, and his face darkened.
If it weren't for him developing his Perfect Armament Haki on his last night at Fishman Island…
He would have died today. His previous Haki wouldn't have been able to block that gray mist at all. Even the single trace that entered had cost him over 30 years of life.
Had any more gotten in, he would've been a dead man.
"That was no 'no-name grunt'!"
The CP0 elder growled coldly from afar. "Hawk was CP0's youngest squad leader, with the power of a Navy Admiral!"
"It's a pity… even a powerful warrior like him couldn't kill you, Blue Demon, despite sacrificing all of his life force."
The elder mourned "Hawk" while inwardly cursing the Five Elders.
They had claimed that this was one of the trump cards of the World Government, a one-hit-kill ability that no one but Rocks could withstand.
And yet… seeing that Luo Han's face only aged slightly, the elder grew furious. Compared to the loss of a power equivalent to an Admiral, the damage Luo Han took was negligible.
"A desperate strike from an Admiral? Not a bad trade, I guess."
Luo Han shook his head. He had lost over 30 years of his life. If he couldn't find the Pure Gold from the lanternfish later, he might be the first transmigrator to die before the main story even began, remembered only in legend.
This thought weighed heavily on him. He narrowed his eyes and stared at the CP0 elder.
"If you all came to kill me, then you can die with him!"
As he spoke, Luo Han used "Shave" and instantly disappeared from the ship, charging at the CP0 elder.
"Brother Han!"
"Luo Han!"
Caught off guard, Cole and Ellis were stunned for a moment before rushing after him, shouting in worry.
They had been shaken by the strange and deadly Devil Fruit ability—knowing Luo Han's strength, it was terrifying that there was an attack he couldn't defend against.
Aside from Rocks in the early stages at God Valley, they'd never seen this before. By the end, even Rocks couldn't penetrate Luo Han's defenses.
That's why they didn't want him taking unnecessary risks—who knew if CP0 had more of these overpowered abilities?
If another hit landed, Luo Han could be finished!
As Ellis and Cole chased after him in concern…
The CP0 elder, seeing Luo Han charge, didn't try to escape using his Devil Fruit power.
Instead, he immediately activated the final move of the Six Powers: "Life Return – Burn Mode."
Instantly, his entire body turned red, emitting scalding steam. His mask and clothes were incinerated by the heat, revealing a muscular body and… a very ordinary old man's face.
"Starting in full-burn mode, huh?"
Luo Han sneered. He had seen this mode before during the God Valley incident. It was an all-out attack fueled by burning one's life—unleashing a final strike before death. It was the strongest attack, but also guaranteed suicide.
"Let's see if you can break through my Perfect Armament Haki!"
Brimming with confidence, Luo Han let out a low shout and struck downward at the elder with a powerful right punch.
No words, no hesitation—the CP0 elder leapt up, meeting Luo Han's punch with his own.
Clang!
At the moment of impact, the elder felt as if he had hit a wall of solid steel. The full force of his strike rebounded back at him, combined with Luo Han's immense power.
Boom!
Before he could even say a word, the elder's body exploded into a bloody mist from the sheer force of the blow.
Rumble!
The force from the elder's exploding body blasted into the tree root, leaving a five-meter-deep crater that reached the deep sea.
Step step step! Luo Han landed from the air just as Ellis and Cole arrived at his side.
"Luo Han!!!"
Ellis , full of anger, scolded, "Can you stop being so reckless? What if they had another strange ability? What would you have done then?"
"You think I don't know the state of your body?! Don't forget what my power is!"
"Your life source has already lost at least—mmph!"
Luo Han silenced her with telekinesis and whispered using Kyoka suigetsu beside her ear: "Don't say another word about my life force—I'll find a way. Just don't bring it up right now." He then released the telekinesis.
Ellis shot Luo Han a heavy glare, then turned away in silence.
"Don't worry, Ellis . I'll be more careful from now on," Luo Han smiled. From now on, like Rocks, he would cover himself in Armament Haki whenever entering unknown places.
Before, he hadn't understood why Rocks was always fully coated in Haki.
Now he knew: with Devil Fruit powers that could kill in an instant, if you weren't prepared, you'd be dead before you could react.
Only by always keeping Haki active could he avoid such a fate.
"Brother Han, what now?" Cole stepped forward, eyes cold.
Seeing the icy intent in Cole's gaze, Luo Han's own eyes flashed with a sharp chill.
He understood what Cole meant—he wasn't going to just walk away. They had to do something in return.
Luo Han agreed. It was time to give the World Government and the Five Elders a lasting impression. From the moment they set out to sea, they'd been passively enduring attacks.
This time, Luo Han wanted to go all out—no holding back until he was satisfied.
"Cole! This time, give it everything you've got!"
He added solemnly, "And I mean everything!"
Cole's true form had never been used in battle. Now was the time to show the world—he wasn't just a beastman, but the Beast King, king of all beasts!
"Understood!"
Cole nodded heavily, then asked, "What do we do, Brother Han?"
"Hold on."
Luo Han turned to Ellis and said firmly, "Head back to the ship for now. Cole and I need to leave the World Government a painful memory."
"Alright."
Ellis nodded, but reminded him gravely, "Don't take too long. Don't forget, Aishi and Shao are still on this island. If strong World Government or Navy reinforcements arrive, you know what that could mean."
"Understood."
Luo Han nodded, then said to Cole, "Follow me!"
Whoosh whoosh! Luo Han and Cole shot up into the sky.
…
At that same moment, in the Five Elders' office at Mary Geoise—
A CP0 intelligence agent burst in, visibly flustered.
"Five Elders, we've lost all contact with the agents monitoring the ship—including the Den Den Mushi!"
The agent trembled with fear. "From what we can tell… they've all been killed!"
"What did you say?!"
The elder with the cane shouted, "All of them? What about Hawk and Luo? Have you contacted them?"
The other Elders also looked on grimly.
Hawk and Luo had been hiding in a layered dimension this entire time—an ability granted by Luo's awakened Layered Fruit. They had used it to remain hidden for over ten days, monitoring the situation from a separate layer of space.
The outside world couldn't see them—not even top-tier Observation Haki could detect them.
Normally, even Den Den Mushi couldn't contact them. If contact had gone through now, it meant they had exited that space… and that Luo Han had already…!
"Reporting, Five Elders—contact was made, but no one answered!" the CP0 agent stammered.
"Hmph!"
A powerful aura burst from the Five Elders and vanished just as quickly.
Thud! The CP0 agent dropped to his knees, trembling. For a moment, he felt like he had entered hell—his life no longer his own.
"You may go," the sword-wielding elder said.
"Yes, sir!"
The CP0 agent stood at attention and hurriedly left.
Terrifying. As soon as he got back, he was going to request a transfer.
"Damn that bastard who said working as an intel officer for the Five Elders meant high pay, great benefits, and quick promotion due to daily contact with the top brass…"
Now outside the Five Elders' office, the CP0 agent wiped the cold sweat from his brow and cursed the liar who spread that rumor.
Benefits? He had just stared death in the face! The Five Elders were terrifying—utterly terrifying.
(END CHAPTER)
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