Lloyd cast an indifferent glance at the suddenly agitated Sea Kings surrounding him before turning to Shirahoshi.
"Shirahoshi, what are they shouting about?"
Shirahoshi frowned as she relayed the Sea Kings' words. After listening, Lloyd let out a faint, disdainful smile and fixed his gaze on the enormous pufferfish-like Sea King at the center.
"It seems you beasts have misunderstood something. I am not standing beside your king. Your king is the one following me."
The instant those words left his mouth, Lloyd's eyes widened slightly.
An overwhelming torrent of black Conqueror's Haki erupted from his body, accompanied by violent dark purple lightning. The surrounding sea churned violently as though struck by a devastating storm, and every Giant Sea King shuddered as if an invisible colossal fist had crashed into them.
Despite the terrifying pressure, Shirahoshi remained completely unaffected.
Standing only a short distance from Lloyd, she felt none of the crushing force released by his Conqueror's Haki. It was a clear demonstration of the extraordinary precision and mastery he possessed over the supreme Haki.
After countless battles and mastering the unique sword technique, King's Sword, which further refined the control of Conqueror's Haki, Lloyd's spiritual pressure had reached an astonishing level, even surpassing that of his younger brother, Shanks.
Dark purple lightning danced endlessly around him while black mist rose like an abyss behind his back.
Compared to the Giant Sea Kings, whose bodies stretched for thousands of meters, Lloyd was no more than a speck of dust.
Yet at that moment, every Sea King felt as though they were facing the sea itself.
The overwhelming pressure was enough to suffocate even these ancient monsters.
Still, these were not ordinary Sea Kings.
They had survived since the era of Joy Boy, eight centuries ago, and had witnessed a war that reshaped the world. Their wills were not so fragile that they would surrender after a single display of Conqueror's Haki.
Recovering from their shock, their massive eyes turned crimson.
Their gigantic bodies twisted violently, stirring countless ocean currents that tore through the deep sea like raging hurricanes.
Yet regardless of how violently the currents raged, Lloyd remained perfectly motionless, suspended exactly where he stood.
Originally, he had intended to protect Shirahoshi himself.
However, when the violent currents reached her, they mysteriously softened into gentle streams, completely incapable of disturbing her in the slightest.
Seeing this, Lloyd gave a slight nod.
As one of the Ancient Weapons, Poseidon, Shirahoshi clearly possessed abilities beyond merely communicating with the Giant Sea Kings.
Since she was in no danger, Lloyd could deal with the Sea Kings without restraint.
Wrapped inside a sphere of endless darkness, his body slowly rose until he hovered directly above the battlefield where every Giant Sea King's gaze converged.
The next instant, limitless darkness burst from behind him.
It transformed into several enormous black tentacles that spiraled behind Lloyd like a gigantic black sun suspended beneath the sea.
At the same time, every Giant Sea King opened its abyss-like jaws and charged directly toward him from every direction.
Lloyd narrowed his eyes.
He had not asked Shirahoshi to summon these Giant Sea Kings solely to help guard Mary Geoise.
He had another purpose.
He intended to determine whether these ancient creatures would truly obey Shirahoshi's commands and stand completely on his side.
Eight hundred years ago, they had fought alongside Joy Boy.
If they could not be controlled, then they had to be eliminated before the final war began. Otherwise, these colossal monsters might suddenly assault the Red Line from beneath the sea at the most critical moment.
A cold killing intent flashed across Lloyd's eyes.
The gigantic dark tentacles shot outward simultaneously, piercing toward the charging Sea Kings.
The Giant Sea Kings possessed not only enormous bodies but also remarkable intelligence.
The majority instinctively twisted their bodies, narrowly avoiding a direct collision with the strange black tentacles.
Only two failed to react in time.
Although the tentacles appeared soft, the instant they made contact, they transformed into pitch-black spears.
They pierced deeply through the Sea Kings' enormous bodies.
Massive torrents of blood poured into the ocean, dyeing the surrounding sea crimson.
The two heavily wounded Sea Kings released agonized roars.
Meanwhile, the remaining Sea Kings had barely escaped the initial attack when the black tentacles abruptly changed direction.
Like gigantic serpents, they wrapped tightly around the colossal creatures, locking their bodies in place and preventing them from advancing even an inch.
Watching the struggling Sea Kings, Lloyd sneered.
"Disobedient beasts deserve only slaughter. I imagine your flesh tastes even better than that of ordinary Sea Kings."
Although Lloyd could not understand the language spoken by the Sea Kings, they clearly understood human speech.
Hearing that Lloyd intended to butcher and eat them only fueled their fury.
Fear instantly transformed into savage rage.
One enormous Sea King with a long bird-like beak erupted with terrifying strength, forcibly breaking free from the restraints.
Its snake-like body coiled tightly before suddenly shooting forward through the sea like a massive arrow, spiraling toward Lloyd while dragging an enormous whirlpool behind it.
Lloyd merely smiled with contempt.
"Hmph... A beast that doesn't know its place."
He slowly raised one hand toward the charging Sea King.
A rapidly expanding vortex of darkness formed in his palm.
"Darkness Strangulation."
A terrifying gravitational force exploded from the black vortex.
The bird-beaked Sea King, together with an enormous volume of seawater, was violently dragged toward the darkness.
The instant its gigantic beak touched the vortex, it was shredded into countless fragments by the destructive power of darkness.
Its massive head followed immediately after, reduced to minced flesh in a fraction of a second.
An ancient Giant Sea King that had survived for countless centuries died instantly.
Lloyd, however, did not completely destroy its body.
The moment the Sea King's head vanished, he released the technique.
Its enormous snake-like corpse remained floating through the sea.
Just as he had said earlier, Sea King meat was an extraordinary delicacy.
A single creature of this size contained enough meat to feed an entire nation for several days.
Allowing it to go to waste would be foolish.
Later, he could simply have Admiral Aokiji freeze the carcass for storage.
Still, frozen meat could never compare to fresh meat.
Freshly butchered meat was always superior.
As that thought crossed his mind, Lloyd's gaze shifted toward the remaining Giant Sea Kings with growing amusement.
He even considered capturing them alive, leaving them barely alive before having Admiral Aokiji freeze them.
Whenever he wished to eat, he could simply thaw one, slice off fresh meat, and preserve the rest.
It seemed like a perfectly efficient arrangement.
Just as Lloyd was seriously contemplating turning every Giant Sea King into a living food reserve, Shirahoshi, who had remained silent until now, suddenly cried out with a voice that echoed through the ocean like the song of a mermaid.
"Stop! All of you!"