The sound of bullets tearing through the air had vanished.
Spandam cautiously peeked out from behind—the subordinate he had pulled forward was already dead.
Yet, through this despicable act, he had survived.
Spandam's eyes widened as he stared in shock at Roya, who was slowly walking toward him.
His lips trembled, his once-arrogant expression now deathly pale.
"W-what kind of ability is this?! W-who the hell are you?! How could someone like you exist in the West Blue?!!" Spandam screamed hoarsely at Roya.
His eyes burned with fury, but terror seeped through them.
Cowardly before the strong, ruthless toward the weak—that was Spandam to the core.
With each step Roya took toward him, it felt like a heavy boot crushing Spandam's heart.
By now, Roya had reached the vicinity of the Tree of Omniscience.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host, on checking in at the Tree of Omniscience. Reward obtained: Wood Release—Advent of the Wood!]
As the system's electronic voice faded, Roya stood before Spandam.Spandam was so terrified that he collapsed onto the ground. "D-don't come any closer! If you take one more step... I swear I'll press this!"
As he spoke, Spandam pulled out a Golden Den Den Mushi from his coat.
When Olvia saw the Golden Den Den Mushi in Spandam's hand, her heart lurched violently.
"Roya, that's the Buster Call button! If the Buster Call is activated, all of Ohara will be reduced to ruins!"
Hearing Olvia's words, Spandam seemed to regain his confidence and sneered at Roya. "That's right, just as this woman said! Now kneel and apologize, or else the moment I press this button, this entire island will vanish from the sea charts in an instant! This represents the Navy's overwhelming offensive power!"
Roya's expression beneath his hood remained eerily calm.
He simply raised his hand. "Binding Path No. 4—Ash Rope!"
A rope-like beam of light materialized before Roya—a technique from the world of Shinigami, used to ensnare and capture opponents. Rukia and Renji Abarai had both employed this Binding Path before.
But now, Roya used Ash Rope to swiftly snatch the Golden Den Den Mushi from Spandam's grasp before he could react.
Feeling the sudden lightness in his hand, Spandam watched in horror as the Golden Den Den Mushi appeared in Roya's possession. His confidence shattered instantly, plunging into an abyss of despair.
His only trump card had been effortlessly taken from him. He panicked—completely and utterly panicked.
Olvia, who was holding Robin, let out a sigh of relief at the sight.
But then, her pupils constricted violently. "Roya, have you lost your mind?! You actually pressed the Buster Call button!!!"
Everything happened too fast—so fast that even Spandam couldn't process it.
Yet, when he saw Roya press the Golden Den Den Mushi, his despair turned into hope. He burst into maniacal laughter. "You pressed it! You actually pressed it! Do you really want Ohara destroyed that badly?! Hahahaha! How utterly foolish! Now witness the Navy's ultimate offensive power!"
Spandam never expected the tables to turn so quickly. He felt invincible again!
Most importantly, Roya was an absolute fool. How could someone so stupid possibly be his opponent?
At this thought, Spandam's heart swelled with arrogance—after all, this was the Buster Call!
Olvia's expression turned deathly serious.
At that moment, outside the island, ten warships carrying thousands of soldiers, dozens of captains, and five vice admirals received the signal from the Golden Den Den Mushi and began advancing toward Ohara.
Cannons roared as countless slashes tore through the air, including attacks from two Admiral candidates.
"Meteor Volcano!"
"Ice Age!"
Upon receiving the Buster Call order, the two held nothing back, unleashing their most devastating techniques.
The sky was filled with terrifying, overwhelming assaults.
Olvia and Robin shut their eyes. Just moments ago, victory had seemed certain—but they never imagined Roya would do this.They could already imagine how devastated and ruined the island would become!
Spandam laughed maniacally, "This is what you get for provoking me! Now go to hell and savor the cruelty of death!"
Amid Spandam's crazed laughter, Roya's lips curled slightly upward, though no one could see it beneath his cloak.
Slowly, Roya extended his hand and slammed it onto the ground.
"Wood Release—Birth of a World of Trees!"
As Roya's voice faded, the surging vitality of Wood Release instantly poured into the Tree of Omniscience.
The roots of the Tree of Omniscience tore free from the ground, twisting and intertwining to form an enormous root barrier!
The massive defensive wall stretched for miles across the island, effortlessly blocking every attack from the Buster Call.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Countless bullets, cannon fire, slashes—even the full-powered strikes from Aokiji and Akainu—failed to breach the root barrier of the Tree of Omniscience.
Every attack that landed was neutralized and healed by the overwhelming vitality of Wood Release.
As the smoke from the first wave of the Buster Call dissipated, Spandam—who had been brimming with confidence moments ago—swallowed hard at the sight before him. He had never witnessed anything so astonishing!
His lips trembled before he finally managed to utter, "H-how... how is this possible?! The Tree of Omniscience... it's alive!"
Not just Spandam—even Aokiji and Akainu outside the island stared in shock at the scene.
Their brows furrowed tightly. The attacks they had just unleashed were among their strongest techniques!
Yet such overwhelming power had been effortlessly blocked by this root-like barrier.
"What kind of existence is this defensive wall?!"
"Whatever it is, anything that stands in our way on this island must be eradicated as evil!"
Akainu's arm bubbled with magma. "Besides, it's just a tree! I refuse to believe my magma can't burn it down! Meigo!"
With a punch, a torrent of molten rock scorched the air, the intense heat distorting the atmosphere.
"BOOM!" Akainu's magma fist slammed heavily into the barrier formed by the Tree of Omniscience...