"What's more, the Celestial Dragons had even greater resources: Paramecia Devil Fruits that had already been developed, with clear paths for further development; powerful Mythical Zoan Devil Fruits; armor made of Armament Haki; Conqueror's Haki coating their bodies or weapons; and even using Conqueror's Haki for long-range attacks..." Sengoku rattled off nearly everything he knew in one breath.
It was precisely these things that made him deeply wary of the World Government. He did not dare resist them at all.
Boom!
Just then.
A tremendous roar from not far away resounded through the sky, drawing everyone's attention.
Looking up, they saw a ball of light streaking upward through the sky, carrying violent vibrations that seemed capable of tearing space apart.
This slash carried the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, combined with the swordsmanship Whitebeard had unleashed as a great swordsman. Even Hawkeye, the world's greatest swordsman, found his eyes lighting up.
As a pure swordsman, he had always looked down on those who used Devil Fruit powers to enhance their swordsmanship.
But he had to admit that Whitebeard's Vibration Slash, released by perfectly integrating vibrations into his slash, was far more destructive than ordinary sword energy.
Especially when it came to cutting.
If Zhu Mang knew what Hawkeye was thinking, he would definitely give him a thumbs-up before recommending something from science fiction called a Vibration Particle Blade.
And Whitebeard's strike had achieved something similar.
Wherever it passed, space shattered inch by inch, leaving behind a web-like trail of cracks.
And its target...
At that moment, he truly did not move at all, simply allowing it to approach.
"Is he waiting to die?"
"Impossible! He's the man who wiped out tens of thousands of pirates with a wave of his hand!"
"What is he doing?"
"Too arrogant! Even Kaido, one of the Four Emperors, wouldn't dare face Whitebeard's slash like this!"
Only when this Vibration Slash—almost Whitebeard's final swan song—reached him did he move.
He moved!
Zhu Mang raised one hand.
"Let me show you the Armor of Qi I comprehended from Armament Haki!"
Zhu Mang extended two fingers before him, aiming them at Whitebeard's slash.
Qi condensed upon his pressed-together index and middle fingers, compressed to the extreme until it was visible to the naked eye.
Clang!
It sounded like metal striking steel even harder than itself.
Or like a kitchen knife chopping into diamond.
"Hah!"
With Zhu Mang's low shout, Whitebeard's attack—an attack into which he had poured nearly all his remaining strength—was first blocked by Zhu Mang's casually extended sword fingers, then directly dissipated by that shout.
The spatial fractures caused by the vibrations behind it vanished as well.
"This... has to be a joke, right?"
"How is that possible?! That was Pops's attack..."
"He actually neutralized the world's strongest attack with just one finger and a shout..."
At that moment, the jaws of both Marines and pirates dropped in unison, and none of them could pick them back up for a long while.
"Gurararara—cough, cough, cough—" Whitebeard drove Murakumogiri heavily into the ground beside him. His body, already on the verge of collapse, could no longer hold on after that attack. Blood gushed from him wildly as though it cost nothing.
"Pops!" Marco rushed to Whitebeard's side with tears in his voice, supporting him while constantly using Phoenix Flame to heal his body.
Ace, Diamond Jozu, and the others also rushed forward, but realizing there was nothing they could do, they could only stand to one side and watch.
"Marco." Whitebeard placed his other hand atop Marco's head and rubbed his pineapple-like hair. "Remember my words. Take your brothers and sisters, and live well."
He thought again of that tattered, broken homeland.
Over the years, he had sent all the money allocated to him there, but compared to its immense population, it was still only a drop in the bucket.
The people still lived in poverty.
But now, it seemed there was new hope.
He gave the children behind him one last look, a satisfied smile curling across his lips. "I believe this man can lead you to overthrow the Celestial Dragons' evil rule. I truly wish I could see that day come..."
The light in Whitebeard's eyes gradually dimmed until all life finally left them.
"Pops!!!"
Marco and the others broke down in tears.
Above them.
Zhu Mang, who had thought he had pulled off a flawless display, scratched his head.
Damn it, Whitebeard. You let me show off, but you wouldn't even let me finish showing off. How annoying!
Pirates really are all bad!
He descended, glanced at Whitebeard's corpse, and although he was curious why Whitebeard was still standing after truly dying, he was not so thick-skinned as to go over and stab him a few times or study the reason behind it.
He looked down at Marco and the others, thinking that these people seemed completely useless to him.
In the original story, after Whitebeard died, the Whitebeard Pirates were crippled in a single battle by the Blackbeard Pirates led by Blackbeard, and afterward, that idiot Edward Weevil went around killing them off one by one.
Having lived beneath Whitebeard's shadow all their lives, not a single one of them could stand on their own.
Even Marco, who possessed the strength of a Four Emperors commander, only managed to get one foot into the ranks of the Four Emperors later on. He could never truly take that final step.
In that case, what use would they be in the coming war?
After all, he was very lazy.
At most, he would help kill the Celestial Dragons' top combatants, such as Imu and her big treasure, Uranus, perhaps along with the Holy Knights.
As for the Celestial Dragons' loyal CP0, Marine Corps, and the like... if the Marines and the other natives of the One Piece World could not even handle those, then they deserved to be ruled by the Celestial Dragons.
"Go report to Sengoku," Zhu Mang said, leaving those words behind as he prepared to depart.
"What? Report to the Fleet Admiral? No way! I'm a pirate!"
"That's right, Marco! Are you planning to join the Marines? Or side with this monkey-tailed man who killed so many of our brothers, and even killed Pops?"
Sizzle—
Several beams shot through the crowd, directly piercing the bodies of those who had been shouting.
Only as bodies fell one after another did everyone finally snap back to their senses.
The man before them was a terrifying being who had killed tens of thousands, even blown out Whitebeard's full-power attack in one breath!
What right did they have to shout here?
"Heh, still refusing to change!" Zhu Mang sneered. "Looks like I'll have to thoroughly purge you before taking you in... Forget it, that's too troublesome. How about I just kill all of you together?"
As he spoke, Zhu Mang extended one finger, and a qi blast slowly condensed at its tip.
After his soul and body had completely fused, his control over both his body and the qi within it had greatly improved.
He could now use relatively simple attacks like the Spirit Ball technique with great ease.
"No, wait!" Feeling the terrifying energy contained in that palm-sized qi blast, cold sweat streamed down Marco's face. Forgetting even his vow to mourn Pops, he hurried forward to stop him.
Zhu Mang stared coldly into his eyes.
After a while, he dispersed the qi blast.
"Kill everyone who refuses to submit and wants to keep being a pirate. Otherwise, I'll kill all of you!"
Before you continue