...
The sky had turned into a purgatory of mythical creatures locked in slaughter.
Saint Mars in his Itsumade form flapped his wings with every beat, stirring up scorching winds and eerie fiery feathers. Its piercing cries sounded as though they could tear souls apart.
Its opponent was Kaido, rampaging across the heavens!
The azure giant dragon Kaido spewed scorching dragon breath—a new technique he had just learned, one he hadn't yet named.
Kaido's claws and fangs relentlessly tried to rip open those burning wings. Big Mom stood atop the thundercloud Zeus, gripping the Emperor Sword Napoleon. Each slash, wrapped in Conqueror's Haki and Zeus's thunder-flame hybrid, came down with overwhelming power and weight.
Every strike forced Itsumade to focus and defend.
Golden Lion Shiki maneuvered at even higher altitudes, controlling dozens of floating wrecked ships and giant boulders. They rained down like meteors, constantly probing for weaknesses in this monstrous creature.
Flames, thunder, storms, slashes, massive rocks…
All kinds of destructive forces collided wildly in the air, exploding and dyeing the sky into a chaotic apocalyptic scene.
On the ground, Saint Warcury in his Houki form was like a moving mountain range. With terrifying tusks glinting coldly, he charged toward Whitebeard and Scopper Gaban in an almost barbaric manner.
Each charge shook the earth and mountains; wherever his tusks passed, rock layers were sliced apart like tofu.
"Gulalala! Now that's got some kick!"
Whitebeard laughed heartily. Murakumogiri, wrapped in the white glow of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, met force with force without dodging. Carrying the might to shatter space itself, he swung fiercely toward the tusks!
"Eighty Oni Leader!"
Scopper Gaban moved with agile grace, twin axes whirling. Relying on astonishing speed and battle instincts, he targeted the relatively vulnerable joints and flanks of Houki. The blades were coated in advanced Armament Haki so dense it was almost tangible!
Each strike left deep gashes. Though Houki's regeneration was astonishing, it couldn't withstand such high-frequency ferocious attacks.
For the moment, the giant beast was being suppressed by two of the sea's top powerhouses. The pure clash of violence turned that entire area into a zone of death.
On the other side, the eerie purple glow of Shodai Kitetsu constantly clashed with the clear, chilling gleam of Rayleigh's long sword, producing ear-piercing rings and showers of sparks.
Saint Nusjuro (skeletal horse) wielded swordsmanship that was bizarre and unpredictable; every strike carried a dead-silent chill that eroded life itself.
Yet "Dark King" Rayleigh stood firm as a rock. Observation Haki fully unleashed, he predicted, parried, and countered with fluid precision. Occasionally, Conqueror's Haki leaked into his strikes, holding his own against his opponent.
Their duel lacked earth-shattering area destruction, yet it was perilous to the extreme. Amid crisscrossing sword energy, the ground was etched with countless bottomless thin slashes.
"Hey, hey, hey! Rocks! I didn't come here to go to war with the World Government!"
Giant King Harald swung his massive sword, temporarily forcing back several God's Knights members who tried to approach. He roared irritably in Rocks' direction.
His heart was filled with regret. Elbaph's goal of joining the World Government now seemed doomed to complete failure because of getting dragged into this inexplicable melee.
However, before his protest could fully fade, the situation suddenly changed!
Saint Shepherd Ju Peter in his sandworm form—his enormous, soft segmented body—did not directly attack the gigantic Harald!
Like a cunning python, he abruptly burst from underground. His blood-drenched maw, carrying an aura of total devouring, lunged viciously toward Harald's fellow giants behind him!
"Watch out!"
"Ah!"
Caught completely off guard, several giant warriors were seized in the sandworm's toothed maw…
Their sturdy armor and tough flesh were like paper before that terrifying bite force. They were instantly gravely wounded, screaming as they collapsed, blood staining the ground red.
"What?!"
Harald's eyes bulged in fury.
He had originally held back due to his status and was unwilling to strike directly at the Five Elders. But the other side clearly didn't care about his restraint at all—they treated him as nothing and attacked his clansmen outright!
"Damn you! Stop it!!!"
Watching yet another young giant warrior about to be swallowed by the sandworm, all of Harald's hesitation and scruples were instantly incinerated by towering rage!
His colossal body erupted with astonishing speed disproportionate to his size. The giant sword—comparable in length to a ship's mainmast—was gripped tightly in both hands.
Mighty, unparalleled Armament Haki instantly coiled around the blade!
With a roar, the giant sword transformed into a black streak that tore through space. With the force to cleave mountains and sever peaks, it slashed down diagonally from above toward the sandworm's closing maw!
"Pfft!!"
A teeth-grinding cutting sound rang out.
Under Harald's furious strike—infused with the full power of the Giant King—the sandworm form of Saint Shepherd Ju Peter was forcibly cleaved in two from the middle!
Turbid, foul-smelling bodily fluids gushed out like a waterfall!
The severed upper half even continued forward a short distance due to momentum before crashing heavily to the ground, convulsing violently.
"That's more like it! Harald!"
Rocks, locked in fierce combat with Saint Saturn, caught this scene from the corner of his eye. Ecstasy flashed in his gaze as he shouted loudly: "See their true faces now? Have they ever treated Elbaph as equals?
Attacking you means they never had any real intention of accepting the giant race!
Now that you've struck back, they have the perfect excuse to completely suppress—or even exterminate—Elbaph!"
"Join me, Harald! Only by overthrowing them can Elbaph truly gain equality!"
Rocks' voice was brimming with incitement.
"Shut up! Rocks! This is all your damn fault for dragging me into this deadly mess!"
Harald's head was pounding. He roared back furiously.
His mind was now a complete mess. Elbaph's dream of joining the World Government had just been utterly shattered by that single sword strike of his.
"Hahaha! Sorry, sorry!"
Rocks laughed heartily, but there wasn't the slightest trace of apology in his tone—only the smug satisfaction of getting what he wanted.
While the two were talking, the Five Elders proved far more troublesome than imagined.
The sandworm body that had been cut in half wriggled madly at the severed ends. Flesh buds squirmed visibly and began reconnecting, healing!
Saint Shepherd Ju Peter's muffled, earth-rumbling voice emanated from the regenerating body: "Giant race… Elbaph…
Although now is not yet the time to completely purge you, since you've heard what you shouldn't and dared raise a sword against the gods… then your crime is unforgivable!"
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