Luo Tian gazed at the mountain of treasure before him, its golden light shimmering, and couldn't help sighing.
"It's even richer than that batch of Heavenly Tribute."
He released his Observation Haki and carefully scanned every item.
They were all priceless gold, silver, jewels, antiques, works of art, and rare treasures.
But there were no Devil Fruits, Famous Swords, or special weapons.
Luo Tian raised his right hand, spreading his fingers slightly.
"Universal Pull."
Bzz—
An invisible Gravity Field spread over the entire treasure vault like a giant hand.
In the next instant, the gold and silver treasures in the vault rose into the air as if summoned!
Luo Tian used Gravity Manipulation to hurl every treasure with pinpoint precision onto an intact patch of ice nearby.
Clatter—!!!
In the blink of an eye, a mountain of gold dozens of meters high had formed!
"Load it all onto the ship," Luo Tian ordered calmly.
"As expected of Officer Luo Tian!"
"Now we don't have to go down there and haul it all out ourselves!"
"What are you standing around for?! Didn't you hear the order? Get moving!"
At their captain's shouts, more than a hundred crew members swarmed toward the mountain of treasure.
Faced with the mountain of riches, they were thrilled and full of energy.
The entire ice field rang with the clamor of their frenzied efforts.
But just then—
Boom! Boom! Boom—!!
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh—!!
In the distance, cannons roared!
The pirates looked up at the sound and saw countless cannonballs hurtling through the sky like a black meteor shower, densely packed and blotting out the heavens!
The cannonballs' shrill whistle as they tore through the air merged into one continuous roar!
"Cannon fire! We're under attack—!!"
"Could it be the Marines?!"
The crew panicked, shocked and furious.
They were all seasoned fighters, but against a barrage this widespread, they had no choice but to jump into an ice crevasse and take cover.
Luo Tian looked up at the incoming barrage, a crimson glint flashing in his eyes.
Bzz—!
He released his Conqueror's Haki!
In the next instant, every cannonball in the sky detonated at once, three hundred meters from the pirate ship!
Boom boom boom boom boom—!!!
A chain of explosions bloomed in the sky like fireworks, their flames turning the entire heavens red.
"Keep loading."
Luo Tian's calm voice carried over:
"I'll handle this."
Before the words had left his mouth, he had already teleported a hundred meters into the sky.
He stood on empty air as if walking on level ground.
He looked toward the direction from which the cannonballs had come.
A kilometer away, a densely packed army stood in formation across the ice field.
There were at least a hundred thousand of them!
Infantry, cavalry, archers, the Musketeer Squad... every kind of soldier was represented, and their ranks were strict and orderly.
Nearly a hundred heavy cannons stood ominously behind the army, smoke still curling from their muzzles.
This clearly wasn't some hastily assembled force. It was the true elite of Flower Country—the Royal Guard!
At the front of the army, a man stood on a magnificent chariot pulled by eight white steeds.
It was the King of Flower Country!
Gone was the cowardice and disheveled look he'd shown earlier in the palace. He wore golden armor, a jeweled sword at his waist, and a crown on his head. His expression was arrogant, his eyes burning with vengeful fury and greed.
The hundred thousand elite soldiers gave him all the confidence he needed.
Luo Tian teleported to a point a hundred meters in front of the army. Standing in midair, he stared coldly at the king.
"Are you asking to die? I can grant your wish!"
His voice wasn't loud, but everyone heard him clearly.
"You insolent pirate!"
The king bellowed:
"The Glacier Treasure belongs to Flower Country! You pirates think I'm afraid of you?!"
He gripped his sword and pointed it at Luo Tian:
"Luo Tian! No matter how famous you are, you're still just one man."
"I have a hundred thousand elite soldiers and a hundred heavy cannons. I refuse to believe you can withstand—"
A look of madness flashed in the king's eyes:
"If you don't want to die, leave every last treasure behind! Then perhaps... I'll spare your life!"
Even he didn't believe those last words.
But he needed to give himself and his soldiers a "righteous" reason.
Deep hatred flashed in the king's eyes as he looked at Luo Tian.
As the ruler of Flower Country, when had he ever suffered such humiliation? Trampled beneath someone's feet and dragged around like a dead dog, in full view of everyone in the palace...
It was the greatest disgrace of his life!
But when his gaze fell on the countless treasures being hauled away in the distance, his hatred instantly turned to greed.
He'd held back before only because he feared the strength of the Happo Navy and Chinjao.
But now that Chinjao was badly wounded and unconscious, wasn't this the perfect opportunity he'd been waiting for?!
He couldn't let those pirates take the treasure!
"Open fire—blow him to pieces!!"
At the king's command, all one hundred cannons swung around and aimed at Luo Tian once more.
Boom! Boom! Boom—!!
The second barrage was denser and more frenzied than the first!
Cannonballs poured down like a torrential rain, completely engulfing the spot where Luo Tian stood.
And yet—
Luo Tian's lips curled into a cold smile, and a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.
Void Rebound!
He manipulated space, forming an arcing, mirror-like deflection field in front of himself.
In an instant, the paths of every incoming cannonball abruptly reversed as soon as they touched the invisible field!
Like light hitting a mirror, they rebounded precisely along their original trajectories!
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—!!!
The cannonballs rained back down on the army.
The artillerymen stared wide-eyed. Before they could react, they saw the cannonballs they'd fired coming straight back at them.
"No—!!!"
"Run—!!!"
Their terrified screams were swallowed by the explosions.
Boom boom boom boom boom—!!!
Chain explosions erupted amid the army!
Cannons were destroyed, soldiers torn apart, and warhorses bolted in terror. The entire formation descended into chaos.
The king's chariot was overturned by the shockwave. He scrambled out in a wretched state, his crown askew and his face filled with disbelieving terror.
"How... How is this possible..."
He muttered to himself, his entire worldview collapsing in that moment.
How could one man do something like this?
This was beyond anything that could be described as "strong."
This was... the power of gods and demons!
"Everyone, charge—!!"
The king screamed, his voice shrill with fear:
"Whoever kills Luo Tian will receive one billion Beli and be made an Earl! The title will pass down through the generations!!"
Great rewards always drew the brave.
At his words, greed once again blazed in the eyes of the soldiers who had been thrown into disarray by the cannon fire.
One billion Beli! An Earl's title!
Enough to drive anyone mad!
"Kill—!!!"
"For wealth! For a title!!"
Like bloodthirsty wolves, a hundred thousand soldiers roared as they surged toward Luo Tian!
Their footsteps shook the earth, and the ice field trembled violently beneath them.
The cavalry charged at the front, the infantry followed close behind, the archers drew their bows, and the Musketeer Squad loaded their guns...
A sea of dark figures rushed toward that lone figure like a tsunami.
Facing the flood that could swallow everything, Luo Tian merely sneered.
He raised both arms and suddenly punched hard toward the space on either side of him!
He wasn't hitting the air. He was striking "space" itself!
Crack! Crack—!!!
Space shattered like a mirror, groaning!
Countless web-like white cracks spread wildly across the entire area, radiating from Luo Tian's fists!
The next instant—
Heaven and earth shook, and the ice field split apart!
The thick ice instantly burst open with countless bottomless fissures!
The cracks spread like a spiderweb, the widest stretching more than ten meters across!
The charging soldiers couldn't stop in time and tumbled into the crevasses.
Their screams rose from beneath the ice, soon drowned out by the thunderous rumble of collapsing ice.
More soldiers struggled to survive on the floes, but those, too, kept breaking apart and sinking.
Faced with this cataclysmic attack, the hundred thousand soldiers were torn apart like toys.
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