...
Just as Luffy was being chased like a mad dog by Sakazuki across the ice field, teetering on the edge of life and death, the eerie ritual at the other end of the battlefield also reached its climax.
Within the black cloth, Teach's figure shook violently, as if enduring unimaginable pain, or perhaps performing some blasphemous forbidden rite against the "gods."
[That thick black cloth not only blocked vision but seemed to separate two entire worlds. On the outside, his companions—led by Shiryu and Laffitte—wore grave expressions, vigilantly watching their surroundings…]
Though the Marines and the remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates wanted to intervene, they were held back by the bizarre atmosphere and the ring of powerful enemies, leaving no one able to step forward and investigate.
Those few minutes of waiting felt as long as centuries.
Finally, inside the black cloth, there was first a moment of stillness, followed by an eruption of unrestrained, smug, and wildly defiant sinister laughter!
"Zehahahahaha!!"
[The laughter had barely faded when the black cloth was suddenly flung open! Every gaze fixed on that spot instantly converged on Blackbeard Teach.]
Yet what left them puzzled was that the Teach who emerged seemed largely unchanged—aside from more bloodstains on his face and a slightly twisted expression from manic joy.
"Putting on an act!"
A Marine officer growled lowly, trying to dispel the inexplicable unease in his heart.
Teach paid no heed to the surrounding gazes—whether confused, wary, or filled with hatred.
He strode forward several steps, as if wanting to embrace this battlefield he had turned upside down.
Then, he abruptly spread both arms wide!
"Black Vortex!"
An endless tide of darkness, like a bursting dam, once again surged forth from within his body!
A powerful gravitational field formed in an instant. Nearby Marines and pirates, caught off guard, cried out in alarm as they were swallowed and crushed by the darkness, plunging the scene into chaos.
However, this was merely the appetizer.
Just as everyone was left reeling and disoriented by the sudden assault, an even more mind-numbing, worldview-shattering scene unfolded right before their eyes!
Beneath the screen—not only the participants of the Summit War, but every powerhouse far away in the God Valley era, whether sea-dominating overlords, order-guarding Marines, or the lofty Knights of God…
Their faces were simultaneously seized by an emotion called "utter disbelief"!
They were witnessing something that was absolutely impossible in this world!
[In the scene, Teach suddenly twisted his body, left foot stepping forward, waist sinking low, assuming a stance that made the pupils of everyone familiar with Whitebeard's fighting style contract sharply.]
[That was the exact preparatory pose Whitebeard—Edward Newgate—used when activating the Tremor-Tremor Fruit's power!]
The next instant, Teach's right hand—now enveloped in vibrating light waves—clenched into a fist and smashed viciously toward the air beside him!
"Buzzz!!!"
An invisible shockwave erupted with terrifying force!
The already devastated Marineford plaza, shattered by successive battles, was once more torn apart like fragile crackers, massive fissures ripping through the ground!
In the distant bay, the ice layer shattered instantly, seawater exploding skyward in a terrifying tsunami!
Even the grand headquarters building—symbol of the Marines' absolute justice—groaned under the unbearable strain of this strike, with more than half of its remaining structure collapsing in ruins!
Tremors!
Genuine, authentic tremors!
The Tremor-Tremor Fruit's power, identical to Whitebeard's, and perhaps even more wildly destructive due to its chaotic and unrestrained nature!
"This… you've got to be kidding me—two Devil Fruit powers?! Rocks… is your son even human?!"
The famous sword nearly slipped from Golden Lion Shiki's hand. His eyes bulged wide, that usually arrogant and untamed face now frozen in utter stupefaction…
He felt as though he had been struck by lightning, still unable to accept this fact that violated the fundamental rules of the world.
Inside God Valley, dead silence reigned for a moment before exploding into uncontrollable uproar!
Marine officers exchanged stunned glances, their worldviews suffering an unprecedented shock.
The pirates, after the initial astonishment, had their eyes gleaming with greed, fear, or fanaticism.
The Knights of God—especially Saint Garling—had faces so dark they could drip water. An existence that escaped control and overturned rules was far more dangerous than ten thousand Whitebeards!
Members of both the Roger Pirates and the Rocks Pirates were likewise plunged into immense confusion and shock.
A person can only consume one Devil Fruit in their lifetime—this was an ironclad rule, common sense, the very foundation of the world!
Anyone who violated it would inevitably have their body explode from the conflict between two "devils"!
Yet they had just witnessed it with their own eyes: Rocks' son, Marshall D. Teach, personally shattering that iron rule to pieces!
"Mam-ma-ma-ma~ I really want to know how he did it!"
Big Mom—Charlotte Linlin—broke the brief silence with her exclamation. Her massive body trembled slightly from excitement, her eyes bursting with terrifying brilliance.
"If I mastered this technique, wouldn't I be invincible?!"
In her mind flashed countless possibilities—if she could gather multiple top-tier Devil Fruit powers into one body…
Thinking this, she suddenly whipped her head around and glared fiercely at Kaido beside her, already calculating: if she could seize his Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon…
Kaido, meanwhile, had no attention to spare for Big Mom's provocative stare. Gripping his kanabo, his wide, bell-like eyes were filled with bewilderment and shock as he muttered, "Hmm… two fruits… how is this possible…"
"Teach…"
Rocks murmured his son's name. In an instant imperceptible to others, a deeply complex and unreadable look flashed through his eyes.
It wasn't pure joy or surprise—there seemed to be a trace of… understanding?
"Rayleigh, Scopper… and everyone! Have any of you ever heard of something like this?!"
Roger hugged the young Shanks tightly in his arms, his voice carrying unprecedented gravity as his gaze locked dead on the figure in the screen who wielded both darkness and tremors simultaneously.
That tremor that destroyed Marine Headquarters was no illusion—it was real, genuine power!
Rayleigh adjusted his glasses, his sharp, eagle-like eyes gleaming behind the lenses.
Scopper tightened his grip on his axe.
The entire Roger Pirates fell into deep thought, ultimately shaking their heads one after another.
They had sailed the four seas, witnessed countless wonders and oddities, and explored many lost histories—but a single person bearing two Devil Fruit powers was truly something they had never heard of, never seen!
This had completely exceeded the scope of their understanding of the world.
On the screen above, Teach spread his arms wide, standing amid the ruins and earthquakes he himself had created. Feeling the unprecedented surge of immense power coursing through his body, he unleashed an even more brazen laugh:
"Zehahahahaha!! Did you see that?! This is the power of the new era!!"
"The strongest Logia, the strongest Paramecia! Zehahahahahaha!"
"Starting today, the era dominated by me—Blackbeard, Marshall D. Teach—has arrived!!"
Darkness and tremors—the convergence of these two top-tier powers in a single body brought not only physical destruction…
But a complete subversion of the existing order and the rules of the world.
The outcome of Marineford seemed no longer important!
Because a far more chaotic, far more unpredictable dark future had already begun, pulled open by Blackbeard's manic laughter, its bloody curtain rising.
...