radicalducati Chapter 210 The Claws Hidden in the Shadows, the World Shakes
Chapter 210 The Claws Hidden in the Shadows, the World Shakes
Chapter 210 The Claws Hidden in the Shadows, the World Shakes
The birth of the Tears of the Clouds is like a drop of ink, brimming with the colors of chaos, splashed onto the perfect yet cold canvas of Indra's order.
The hazy humanoid figure, composed of pure clouds and radiance, merely pointed, and the thunderous giant hand containing the law of destruction disintegrated and vanished silently, like a pencil drawing erased by an eraser.
This is not a clash of forces, but a denial at the level of existence, a mockery of established facts by possibility.
A brief silence fell over the depths of the sobbing valley.
Only the pure cloud bead emitted a soft light, and the cloud tear suspended in the air echoed in the cave with a gentle, sobbing sound.
That was not sadness, but a newborn life's bewildered whisper to an unfamiliar world.
The sun's flames flickered slightly around Karna as he gripped his spear tightly, his face beneath his golden armor utterly solemn.
He could sense that the essence of this newborn being before him far surpassed that of ordinary heroic spirits, and even touched upon some kind of origin.
"————Conceptual Life Form————Born from the sorrow and hope of the Sky Island, catalyzed by the power of chaos————"
Ace pulled down his hat brim, flames dancing at his fingertips, his eyes burning: "What on earth did that Tescatlipoca guy create?"
"Now is not the time to study this!" Kidd interrupted irritably, manipulating the metal to push aside several rocks that had become loose due to the earlier explosion.
"That bastard Indra won't let this go so easily! This thing can only block once, can it keep blocking forever?"
His worries immediately became a reality.
In the sky, Indra's will, after a brief pause, transformed into a raging inferno.
The sky over the entire Sky Island darkened completely, no longer filled with rolling thunderclouds, but as if it had been splashed with thick ink, and a suffocating pressure enveloped the surrounding area.
In this extreme darkness, the beam of light from the Golden Bell flickered like a candle in the wind, tenacious yet insignificant.
"Heretics—rebellion—deserve divine punishment, to be utterly eradicated—now you all deserve to die!"
The cold divine oracle no longer echoed in his mind, but transformed directly into tangible sound waves, causing the entire sky island to tremble.
On Angel Island and Apayado, all the remaining glass of the buildings shattered, and countless chosen people of God covered their ears and knelt on the ground in agony.
On the ruins of Shandia, Luffy and his crew had just gathered together to prepare for a breakout when they were forced to remain rooted to the spot by an even more terrifying pressure.
"Damn it—has this guy gone mad?!" Zoro gritted his teeth, plunging three swords deep into the ground to steady himself.
Roger looked up at the sky, his Conqueror's Haki activating on its own, forming an invisible barrier to protect the people around him, but his expression was more solemn than ever before.
"This is really like stirring up a hornet's nest. It seems that a portion of this guy's true form will have to descend upon us."
As if to confirm his words, the thick, inky sky began to spin, forming a huge vortex.
At the center of the vortex, the golden lightning no longer flickered, but flowed and converged like lava, gradually outlining a blurry yet incredibly massive shape.
It was a gigantic face made of pure lightning energy, the face of Indra!
Although it was only a partial manifestation, its power already surpassed all that had come before.
Meanwhile, at Marineford, the Naval Headquarters.
The atmosphere in Marshal Sengoku's office was equally heavy.
The giant projection Den Den Mushi was playing an extremely unstable and snowy video of the first half of the Grand Line.
Those were the last images transmitted back by the observation equipment launched urgently by the Naval Science Unit before its destruction.
The pillar of light from the golden bell, and the thunder that began to gather, sending shivers down one's spine.
"What exactly is that thing—what kind of anomaly has occurred on Skypiea? And is it related to Heroic Spirits?" Sengoku rubbed his temples, feeling a splitting headache.
Staff Officer Crane stood before him.
"Polsalino has already gone, and Sakazuki—" Staff Officer Tsuru glanced at the silent Sengoku, and did not continue.
Sakazuki's fate was also a top secret within the Navy's high command.
"Where's that old man Garp?!" Sengoku seemed to suddenly remember something, and hurriedly picked up the Den Den Mushi, his tone irritated.
"Vice Admiral Garp and Admiral Aokiji left headquarters without permission three days ago and headed to the first half of the Grand Line!"
"Nonsense!" Sengoku slammed his fist on the table.
"This happened three days ago? Why are you only reporting it now?!"
The messenger on the other end replied tremblingly, "I'm so sorry, Fleet Admiral Sengoku! It was Vice Admiral Garp—"
"Neither of them is a relief! Tell Momousagi and Chaton to strengthen security at headquarters, especially regarding the guarding of Arjuna the Avenger!"
"I have a feeling that that bastard Blackbeard, who's suddenly disappeared without a trace, won't let this opportunity slip by!"
Staff Officer He sat calmly, but a hint of worry lingered in his eyes.
Given the current situation, it's uncertain what kind of unforeseen events Garp's impulsiveness might trigger.
Just as Sengoku had predicted, in a shadowy area of the Grand Line, the Blackbeard Pirates' ship sailed like a ghost.
Inside the cabin, Marshall D. Teach looked at the compass in his hand, which was trembling slightly and exuding an ominous aura.
This is a Mystic Code created by the Count using the rules of the Holy Grail War and the magic loop that Blackbeard obtained in Alabasta. It can roughly sense the fluctuations of powerful Servants and the energy related to the Holy Grail.
"Hahaha!! Can you feel it? Indra's rage, and—that wondrous new power!"
The black-bearded man spread his arms wide, laughing wildly and triumphantly, "Sky Island is getting more and more lively!"
Behind him stood the count, draped in a black cloak and exuding the air of a nobleman of the night, a cold smile playing on his lips.
"Indra's full arrival will inevitably attract all attention. And his weakness, his son whom we have transformed, is currently imprisoned in the Navy's cage. This is a golden opportunity."
On the other side, a Columbus dressed in Renaissance sailor's clothes, his eyes filled with a mixture of greed and cunning, licked his lips.
"Naval Headquarters—that place is usually a treasure trove, Admiral. If we get that Avenger, we'll hold the key to defeating Indra, and even more."
A glint of ambition flashed in the black-bearded man's eyes: "Zhehahaha! That's right! But Marine Headquarters isn't so easy to break into."
"We need more troops—that idiot Gecko Moria, anyway, the corpses he dug up are exactly what we need!"
"It seems the Cross Guild is also waiting for us to go find Moria," the Count casually reminded him, a hint of amusement in his voice.
"Let's see who's outsmarting whom! Hahaha!" The black-bearded man said nonchalantly.
"Move out! Destination: the Devil's Triangle! Before heading to Marine Headquarters, let's deliver a big gift to our allies!"
The situation on Sky Island has reached a critical point.
Indra's partial manifestation of the thunder god's face, its oppressive power suffocates all things.
It opened its enormous maw, and endless lightning compressed and condensed within it, forming a lightning core with a diameter of over a kilometer, exuding an aura of destruction.
This is a blow powerful enough to completely evaporate the entire Sky Island from the map!
His attitude was clear: destroy everything to demonstrate the majesty of the God-King!
"We must stop him!" Karna didn't hesitate. His golden armor burned to its limit as he prepared to unleash his Noble Phantasm, determined to fight back even at the cost of everything.
"Hey, hey, this isn't something you can stop with brute force alone!"
Shiki the Golden Lion attempted to control the entire Cloud Valley to escape, only to find that the space was completely locked, and his Float-Float Fruit ability was extremely suppressed by the divine realm.
The Tear of the Clouds hovered in the air. Facing the destructive lightning orb, it seemed to feel an instinctive fear. Its body trembled slightly, and its sobs became clearer.
Although it possesses the ability to negate rules, it does not seem to have strong offensive or sustained defensive capabilities; it is more like a fragile miracle.
It was at this moment of despair.
"Tsk, I really can't stand it anymore." A slightly lazy and helpless voice suddenly rang out.
At the entrance to the Wailing Cloud Valley, space distorted, and two figures slowly emerged.
The person in front rode a strangely shaped mythical beast that resembled a deer but was not quite a deer, held an ancient-looking whip, wore a Taoist robe, and had a young and otherworldly face.
It was none other than Jiang Ziya!
Yang Jian followed closely behind him.
"Your Majesty, why must your actions be so cruel?"
Taigong looked up at the terrifying thunderous face in the sky, shook his head, and gently flicked the God-Slaying Whip in his hand.
There was no earth-shattering noise, only a mysterious and profound fluctuation of law spreading out.
The sphere of destructive lightning, which was being compressed and condensed, seemed to have its violent energy smoothed out by an invisible hand.
The condensation process suddenly slowed down, and even showed signs of instability!
"Jade Void Secret Technique: Soothing Heaven's Wrath," Taigong Wang said calmly.
For the first time, Indra's thunderous face revealed a clear emotional fluctuation.
It was shock and fury!
"It's you again! Eastern immortals, why are you interfering in the affairs of this realm?! Could this also be the decree of that Celestial Venerable?!"
Yang Jian stepped forward, and the Three-Pointed Double-Edged Sword appeared out of thin air in his hand. His divine eyes flashed like lightning, sweeping over Indra's divine face, then glancing at the newly born Cloud Tear and Karna below, before finally fixing his gaze on Indra.
"Your actions have lost the mercy of God and are close to the path of demons. You should follow the will of Heaven and the will of the people."
"This newborn spirit, containing the will and power of all living beings in this world, should not be annihilated."
His voice was not loud, but it carried an awe-inspiring divine power, rivaling Indra's oppressive aura.
"That guy is—the one who defeated Arjuna in Alabasta?!"
Nami hid behind Karna, looking at the newly appeared Taigong Wang and Yang Jian, feeling like her brain was about to explode.
These beings from different mythologies possessed power forms that she couldn't comprehend at all, but she knew that Yang Jian's strength was outrageous. Ace and Kid also stopped what they were doing and watched the two newcomers warily.
The enemy of my enemy is not necessarily my friend. In this chaotic situation, any variable needs to be carefully considered.
The appearance of Taikomochi greatly relieved the pressure on the Sky Island.
However, he clearly could not completely counter Indra's full-force attack and could only delay it for the time being.
"Erlang, the Heavenly Emperor has a profound foundation and is closely connected to the laws of this world. Forcibly killing him may cause ecological collapse. We need to find his weakness," Taigong Wang transmitted his voice.
Yang Jian nodded slightly, his divine eyes scanning the scene, instantly seeing through numerous threads of cause and effect.
"This junior suspects that the flaw lies in his son, the heroic spirit named Arjuna. The karma between father and son is deeply intertwined, forming a shackle."
Just as the situation on Sky Island was briefly deadlocked due to the intervention of Taigong Wang and Yang Chuo, and everyone's attention was drawn to the confrontation between the gods in the sky.
Unbeknownst to anyone, in the Weeping Cloud Valley, an area that had become unusually soft and swamp-like due to the explosion of the Mother Nest's core, a barely perceptible shadow was quietly creeping.
That is—the spirit of Blackbeard, a shadow of the Earl. This guy somehow managed to sneak into this place!
His goal was not to fight, but to the pure white cloud bead that floated in the air, radiating a pure life force.
Just as Cloud Tears' attention was drawn to Indra and Taigong Wang, and Karna, Ace, and the others were also focused on the sky, Shiryu made his move like a ghost!
He held a specially made black box in his hand and suddenly covered the cloud bead with it!
"Oh no!" Robin was the first to realize something was wrong and exclaimed in alarm.
But it was too late!
The black box closed, instantly swallowing the pure white cloud pearl!
The moment the Cloud Pearl was taken away, the suspended Tear of the Cloud let out a mournful cry, its hazy form fluctuated violently, becoming extremely unstable, as if it would dissipate at any moment!
"Damn it!!" Ace roared, his fiery fist instantly slamming towards Shiryu's location.
The count's figure appeared in the flames. He sneered and used the force of the flames to retreat rapidly, while throwing the black box into the air.
"Mission accomplished, Contractor. I'll accept this power."
In mid-air, a spatial rift suddenly opened, and a black-bearded man in a black coat reached out and caught the box steadily.
"Well done, Earl!" The black-bearded man's voice was filled with satisfaction. "With this essence of the Heart of the Clouds, we only need one last piece to complete our puzzle."
"Blackbeard!!" Luffy's voice came from afar. He, Zoro, Sanji, and the others had finally broken through the outer defenses of the divine soldiers and arrived at the entrance of Cloud Valley, just in time to witness this scene.
"Hahaha!! Straw Hat Boy, we meet again!"
Blackbeard's loud laughter came from behind the spatial rift.
"Thank you for drawing all of Indra's firepower for us! I accept this generous gift! Next, we're going to pick up an old friend, and then—we'll go to Marine Headquarters to retrieve our key man! In this new era, there are no ships capable of carrying you!"
Before he could finish speaking, the spatial rift suddenly closed, and Shiryu's figure once again merged into the transparent void and disappeared.
As the core essence of the Cloud Tear was taken away, its light rapidly dimmed, its mournful cries grew weaker and weaker, and its very existence began to become transparent.
Indra's thunderous mask roared deafeningly. Whether it was due to Blackbeard's theft or the obstruction of Taigong Wang and Yang Jian, his destructive thunder sphere began to accelerate its formation once again!
Taigong Wang and Yang Jian looked solemn, raising their God-Slaying Whip and Three-Pointed Double-Edged Sword simultaneously, preparing to face the impending divine punishment.
Luffy glared in the direction where Blackbeard had disappeared, then looked at the destructive attack about to fall from the sky and the Cloud Tear about to dissipate. In his Nika form, his eyes burned with an indomitable flame.
"Tescatlipoca—is this the chaos you wanted to see?" Karna whispered, his sun-wheel spear pointing to the heavens.
The fate of the Sky Island, the struggle between various forces, and everything else have been pushed to the peak of an unpredictable turmoil!
Tears have fallen, a raging storm has arisen, and deeper shadows are gathering from all directions.