On the other side, the Marines, seeing the pirates begin to retreat, also launched a pursuit—only for Marco to suddenly appear. In a lightning-fast charge, he struck down a member of the God's Knights in an instant.
Soon after, the system's mechanical voice echoed in his mind:
"Defeated God's Knights member, Saint Marcus Durandt. Reward: 7000 attribute points."
"Killed God's Knights member, Saint Marcus Durandt. Reward: 5000 attribute points."
Another 12,000 points were added to his total. With the previous 4,000, Marco's attribute points now reached 16,000.
"Marco…" The sight of him caused the nearby Marines to visibly panic.
The pirates, however, were overjoyed—especially the Phoenix Pirates. Marco didn't waste a second. "Retreat quickly. Vegapunk has already escaped, so there's no need for us to fight to the death with the World Government here. The commanders stay with me and cover everyone else's retreat."
"Yes!"
At Marco's arrival, the eyes of the Marines and the God's Knights narrowed. Most of the pirates had already broken away, but those who remained were all captain-level pirates—the elite among them.
Marco watched the pirates pulling back. All around them, the battlefield was carpeted with bodies, Marine and pirate alike. The Three Emperors Alliance had paid dearly for this battle.
He looked across at the Marines. When they had first arrived, there had been 30,000 of them. Now, fewer than 10,000 were still standing. The scale of the slaughter spoke for itself.
"Even if we retreat, we have to make the World Government feel some pain first."
As he spoke, Marco released a furious wave of Conqueror's Haki. It crashed over the Marines like a tidal wave. In an instant, they began collapsing in droves, falling like harvested wheat, row after row.
When the pressure faded, only a few dozen Marines were still on their feet. Marco's Conqueror's Haki had knocked out ninety-nine percent of the enemy in a single burst; the weakest of those still conscious had at least Rear Admiral-level strength.
On the other side of the battlefield, Kaido was also preparing to withdraw—but Imu moved to block his path. Imu's gaze fell on Kaido, who was managing to hold off Saint Warcury and Saint Garling at the same time, and a faint glimmer of appreciation flashed in his eyes.
"Although you are not as good as Marco," Imu said coldly, "among the insects, you can be considered a talent. Mu will give you a chance. Submit to mu, and mu can grant you the status of a World Noble."
Kaido glared up at Imu suspended in mid-air, his expression dark. He had already been hard-pressed by Saint Warcury and Saint Garling, and now the king of the world, Imu, had appeared as well. Even if this wasn't Imu's true body, Kaido could clearly feel the terrifying aura pouring off him.
But Kaido's arrogance and stubbornness left no room for hesitation.
"Worororo! Even Marco refused—how could I agree? Besides, the thing I despise most in this life is those damn Celestial Dragons. Nothing but trash. I am Kaido of the Beasts."
Kaido's roar faded into the air. Imu's expression turned to ice as she said calmly, "That's truly a pity."
"To turn down Lord Imu's invitation… what a foolish human," Saint Warcury sneered. In his eyes, this was a once‑in‑a‑lifetime chance for Kaido to ascend even higher, and Kaido had thrown it away. Utter stupidity.
Even for the sake of his own life, he should have at least pretended to accept. Not that it would have mattered—Imu would have branded him on the spot.
"Indeed. The thoughts of insects are truly beyond understanding," Saint Garling said coldly. "If that's the case, then we'll just kill you."
Imu, however, cut in with a frigid tone. "No. His strength is quite good. Killing him would be a waste. The World Government lost many specimens this time. Mu will turn him into mu's war slave."
Hearing this, Saint Warcury's expression shifted into respectful admiration. "So that's it. As expected of Lord Imu. This time, Saint Mars was killed by Marco, and two members of the God's Knights died as well. If Kaido can be made into one of the God's Knights, it will completely make up for the losses. However, Kaido's power is overwhelming. He probably won't be obedient."
"Then just leave him with his last breath," Imu said, voice still icy.
At his peak, Kaido couldn't be controlled. But if he were crushed to the brink of death—barely clinging to life—then he would be completely within Imu's grasp.
Kaido's gaze hardened. A terrible premonition crawled up his spine, the instinctive dread of prey locked onto by a hunter. A chill ran through him as he growled, "If you want to make me your war slave… then catch me first!"
With that, Kaido shot into the sky. Surrounded by Imu, Saint Warcury, and Saint Garling, he didn't dare force a decisive battle—he had no choice but to run.
Saint Garling, slightly weaker than him. Saint Warcury, slightly stronger. And Imu, whose power far surpassed his own. Against these three together, he had no hope of victory. Escape was his only slim chance.
"King, take your men and fall back now!" Kaido roared as he flew toward the edge of the island. At the same time, he bellowed at Imu and the others, "If you want to kill me, then come!"
"Don't even think about escaping." Imu, Saint Warcury, and Saint Garling launched after him immediately. There was no way they would allow Kaido to get away.
Elsewhere, Big Mom stepped onto Thundercloud Zeus, lightning crackling beneath her feet, and grinned wickedly. "Mama, Mama… I'm done playing with you. Katakuri, I'll leave the rest to you."
Then she turned to provoke the enemies behind her. "Gorosei, if you want to kill me, then come! I am not that easy to kill."
Big Mom veered away from Egghead Island, thunderclouds roaring beneath her feet. Since the Gorosei wanted her dead so badly, then let them chase. She could fly; at worst, it would turn into a contest of speed.
"Damn it…"
"Don't even think about escaping."
Saint Peter and Saint Nusjuro sprouted demonic wings from their backs and shot after her.
Seeing the transformation, Big Mom's eyes widened. "Zeus, accelerate!" she barked, panic creeping into her voice.
"I told you, you can't escape," Saint Nusjuro said coldly.
He gripped the Shodai Kitetsu, and a ghostly green sword aura burst forth as he swung. But the strike wasn't aimed at Big Mom—it slashed directly into Zeus beneath her feet. In a single blow, the thundercloud was carved into dozens of neat squares, dispersing under her.
Big Mom's support vanished. Her massive body dropped from the sky.
"Oh no! Prometheus, save me, quickly!" she roared.
"Okay, Mama!" Prometheus shot forward and barely managed to catch her.
But in that instant, Saint Peter was already upon them.
"Don't even think about escaping!" he bellowed. His maw split wide as he lunged in his giant sandworm form, teeth clamping viciously onto Big Mom's left arm.
"Ahhh! Damn it, let me go!" Big Mom screamed. Her right arm swung down in a heavy blow against Saint Peter, but he tanked the hit without flinching.
"Nusjuro, finish her off!" Saint Peter shouted.
"Leave it to me." A cold light flashed across Saint Nusjuro's glasses. He sheathed the First Generation Oni Whetstone and growled, "One-Sword Style: Iaido—Demon Slayer!"
In the next heartbeat, the sword aura tore through the air, freezing it in its wake. The slash ripped across the sky. When the crushing sword pressure hit Big Mom, blood burst from her body—only to be instantly frozen by an overwhelming chill. The remaining sword aura carved on, streaking over sea and sky. A frozen trail of sword qi, stretching for dozens of kilometers, was etched into the ocean's surface, while the clouds overhead were split clean in half and sealed in ice.
"Ugh…" Big Mom's eyes rolled back as she spat fresh blood. Before the droplets could fall, they crystallized into ice blossoms, and her massive body slipped from Prometheus's grasp, plummeting.
"Mama…" The Big Mom Pirates went deathly pale as they watched.
They were still on Egghead. Their Mama, who had been buying them time to escape, was struck down before their eyes. Katakuri and the others trembled—terrified yet utterly powerless—suffocated by helplessness and despair.
On the other side of the battlefield, Marco felled another member of the God's Knights. The system's mechanical voice echoed in his mind:
"Defeated a God's Knights member, Saint Donquixote Kuzan. Reward: 7000 attribute points."
"Killed a God's Knights member, Saint Donquixote Kuzan. Reward: 5000 attribute points."
Another 12,000 attribute points were added to Marco's total. His stats had climbed to 28,000—just 2,000 short of what he needed to upgrade his Armament Haki.
At that moment, he saw Big Mom fall, and his heart trembled. He hadn't thought she would be taken down so fast.
She was up against two Gorosei at once, and her own strength just wasn't enough. Was she really unable even to escape?
Marco wanted to rush over and save her, but he knew that even if he joined the fight, there was no way he could defeat two Gorosei in a short time. Instead, he turned his gaze on the other God's Knights, his eyes sharpening. To Marco, these God's Knights were walking bundles of experience, and their strength was nothing special. He had to raise his power as quickly as possible.
"Old hag…" In the distance, Kaido stared in disbelief. He had only just begun to flee and hadn't gotten far when he saw Big Mom crushed by the two Gorosei.
In that instant of hesitation, Imu seized the opening and murmured, "Dark Torrent…"
A purple magic circle bloomed before Imu, and from it burst hundreds of arms made of dark energy, all of them latching onto Kaido's massive beast-form body.
Kaido had chosen his full beast form for its speed in the air, never imagining he'd be snared by Imu like this. His enormous dragon body writhed violently, trying to tear free from the shadowy arms.
But at the same time, Saint Warcury also transformed, his body swelling into a gigantic beast. He opened his huge maw and clamped down hard on Kaido's dragon body. Four savage fangs sank straight through Kaido's tough dragon scales.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Kaido howled in agony, blood gushing from his mouth.
In the form of the gigantic Wild Fierce Boar, Saint Warcury said coldly, "Even a dragon's got a weak spot, doesn't it?"
With that, the Fierce Boar jerked his head violently, like a crazed boar worrying a strip of meat.
Kaido's body was torn and shredded by the boar's brutal thrashing. The pain was unbearable. He also opened his great jaws and bit down at the Boar, roaring, "Let go of me!"
"Ugh…" Saint Warcury let out a pained grunt.
Kaido's sharp fangs had punched through the fierce boar's thick hide, injuring Saint Warcury as well—but Nusjuro refused to release his grip.
"Don't get too full of yourself, Kaido." At that moment, Saint Garling's blade flashed down, chopping across Kaido's mouth. The strike split open the dragon's cheek muscles, making it impossible for Kaido to properly open or close his jaws.
"Damn it…" Kaido cursed, feeling his bite strength vanish.
Hovering in the air, Imu looked down and said coldly, "This is the end…"
As Imu spoke, another magic circle formed in his hand. A barrage of pitch-black spikes erupted from it, lancing straight through Kaido's body. The massive emperor's form shuddered, then began to slowly sink from the sky.
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