"It seems you have chosen the path of death," Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro said, his eyes cold and merciless.
Another member of the Gorosei looked at Marco with equal indifference and spoke in a chilling tone.
"We kindly offered you, a mere mortal, the chance to become a god. Countless people dream of such an opportunity, yet you refuse to cherish it. What a pity."
Marco's lips curved slightly into a mocking smile.
"I have no idea what kind of drug you injected to raise your strength so much," he said casually, "but power gained through external means never lasts long. So tell me, how long can that boost actually last?"
"Seven days."
Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro answered without the slightest hesitation.
Marco blinked.
"What?"
For a moment he thought he had misheard.
Seven days?
An injection that could maintain such a terrifying increase in power for an entire week?
Normally, drugs that temporarily enhanced strength only lasted minutes or hours at best. But the enhancement the Gorosei had obtained could last seven days. It sounded absurd.
Even so, Marco still suspected that Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro might be bluffing.
Seeing the doubtful look on Marco's face, the Gorosei sneered with obvious disdain.
"Do you think what we injected was some inferior drug?" one of them said coldly. "You underestimate us far too much."
"We are gods."
"How could we possibly rely on the medicine used by mortals?"
Marco raised an eyebrow slightly.
Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro spoke again, explaining calmly.
"What we used is known as the Blood of God. It enhances our strength purely and completely."
"There are no side effects."
Marco's expression shifted slightly.
"Blood of God?" he repeated.
Then he asked with a hint of curiosity.
"Is that the blood of you Celestial Dragons?"
The Gorosei did not answer him.
Instead, Saint Marcus Mars spoke coldly.
"Enough. We have already told you more than necessary."
His wings slowly spread behind him.
"Since you refuse to submit, there is only one outcome left."
"We will execute you."
The moment he finished speaking, Saint Marcus Mars opened his mouth and unleashed a torrent of scorching flames directly toward Marco.
The temperature was terrifying.
Marco immediately took flight, soaring into the air to avoid the blazing attack.
At the same moment, Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro and Saint Topman Warcury rushed forward at incredible speed.
Marco quickly sensed the difference.
Their speed, strength, destructive power, defense, and even their Haki had all increased dramatically. Compared to their power during the battle at Whole Cake Island, the difference was enormous.
Even compared to their previous appearance at Egghead, they now felt like entirely different opponents.
Marco had barely risen into the air when Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro suddenly vanished.
In the next instant, he appeared directly behind Marco, moving with astonishing speed.
The blade in his hand carried an icy chill as it slashed toward Marco's back.
Boom.
Marco reacted instantly, raising his fist to block the strike.
His fist collided with the blade in midair, and at that moment the sky erupted with violent Conqueror's Haki.
Red lightning burst outward from the clash.
The crackling energy spread across the battlefield, striking the ground and surrounding buildings, shattering them apart as if they were made of glass.
Just as Marco finished blocking that attack, another danger appeared.
Saint Topman Warcury's arms transformed into massive boar like limbs, and he unleashed a devastating shockwave.
"Divine Impact!"
Marco raised his left arm to defend himself, but the force of the attack was overwhelming.
The shockwave slammed into him and blasted him straight through the dome structure of the island, sending him flying far into the open sky.
Seeing this, the Gorosei immediately pursued him.
"They're fast," Marco muttered as he stabilized himself in the air.
The three Gorosei were already chasing him at terrifying speed.
Marco quickly rose higher into the sky, but Saint Marcus Mars was already capable of flight. With his enormous wings, he was the first to catch up.
Behind him, the other two Gorosei were not far behind.
Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro suddenly grew a pair of enormous demonic wings from his back.
At the same time, Saint Topman Warcury's monstrous form sprouted a pair of skeletal wings from the back of his centaur like body.
With powerful flaps, both of them rose into the sky.
Marco stared at them in disbelief.
"Seriously?"
He could not help but curse under his breath.
"They can do that too?"
Not only had they used drugs to enhance their strength, now they had suddenly grown wings as well.
What kind of monsters were these people?
In just a few moments, the three Gorosei had surrounded him in the sky.
Marco's expression gradually turned grim.
Originally, he believed that after raising his Conqueror's Haki to a legendary level, he might finally have the ability to break the Gorosei's abnormal immortality.
But now the situation had changed.
The Gorosei had also grown far stronger through the power of the mysterious drug.
Marco was not even certain whether legendary Conqueror's Haki could break their immortality, and with their strength increasing so dramatically, severely injuring them would become far more difficult.
The three Gorosei did not speak again.
However, their movements were perfectly coordinated.
Almost simultaneously, they launched a fierce attack.
Marco's expression hardened.
Black flames burst out from his body as he unleashed his full power and began to counterattack.
The battle between the four figures in the sky instantly became terrifying.
Every collision of fists, claws, blades, and wings created a violent explosion of Conqueror's Haki.
Red lightning spread wildly through the sky like a raging storm.
The thunder like bolts crashed toward the ground, shaking the island.
Below them, the battle between the Marines and the pirates had gradually come to a halt.
The overflowing Conqueror's Haki from the battle above swept across the entire island.
Marines below the rank of Rear Admiral could not withstand the overwhelming pressure. One after another, they collapsed unconscious.
The same thing happened among the Phoenix Pirates.
Pirates whose strength had not reached the level of vice captain were also knocked out by the terrifying Haki.
The battlefield fell strangely silent.
Both sides could only look up at the sky.
"Is this... a battle between gods?"
A Marine Rear Admiral in his thirties stared upward in shock.
Every time the figures in the sky clashed, red lightning exploded outward like artillery shells. The lightning struck the ground and blasted massive craters into the earth.
Under such terrifying Conqueror's Haki, it was already a miracle for ordinary people to remain conscious.
Ace stared at the battle above, his expression tense.
Beside him, Yamato also frowned in confusion.
"Why do the Gorosei look different from last time?"
Standing opposite them was Admiral Ryokugyu, Aramaki.
When he looked at the Gorosei in the sky, his eyes were filled with fanatic admiration, like a devout believer witnessing the power of his gods.
He burst into twisted laughter.
"Kekeke... of course they look different."
"You think what you saw before was the true power of gods?"
"This is their real strength."
"How could the power of gods ever be compared to that of mortals?"
Ace let out a scornful laugh when he heard that.
"If they're really so powerful," Ace said confidently, "then why don't they fight Marco one on one?"
"Why do they need three people to gang up on him?"
Aramaki's expression immediately darkened.
"You brat," he said coldly, anger flashing in his eyes. "You're about to die and you still dare to talk big."
"This time the Five Elders are using their true power."
"Don't think you'll be as lucky as you were at Whole Cake Island."
"Today every one of you will die."
He pointed toward the battlefield with a cruel smile.
"Not just Phoenix Marco."
"Vegapunk will die."
"And all of you worthless pirates will die as well."
"You can all go to hell."
As he spoke, countless vines suddenly erupted from Aramaki's feet.
The thick vines spread wildly across the ground before surging forward toward Ace and Yamato like a living forest.
Ace's body ignited with blazing flames.
"None of us are dying today," Ace roared.
"The one who's dying is you."
With that, Ace thrust his arm forward and unleashed a massive wave of scorching fire toward Aramaki.