Giant Beast?

Kuzan shouted, throwing a fierce punch with his right fist. As the force of the punch surged, a massive ice bird condensed out of thin air.

The ice bird spread its wings, spanning dozens of meters. It radiated bone-piercing cold, its icy blue feathers glimmering with a ghostly chill as it shot toward the magma fist in the sky.

Before long, the ice bird had risen level with the magma fist, one blue and one red.

The two faced each other in midair, like overlords from two different worlds refusing to yield.

The powers of ice and fire collided violently in the air, producing sharp hissing sounds.

Kuzan stared fixedly at Sakazuki, his eyes full of provocation.

Sakazuki showed no weakness either, shooting him a fierce glare as he muttered, "That freezing brat."

Doberman and the others stood beneath the clash of ice and fire. First, the heat from the lava scorched them until sweat poured down their bodies, then the chill radiated by the ice bird froze them until they shivered. Tormented alternately by blazing heat and freezing cold, they felt utterly miserable.

Then, the enormous magma fist exploded with a thunderous blast, turning into countless scorching chunks of magma.

At the same time, the giant ice bird burst apart, splitting into numerous smaller ice birds.

For a moment, flames soared across half the sky, explosions ringing out one after another like a grand yet terrifying fireworks display.

The other half of the sky was engulfed in frost. Every cannonball that touched the small ice birds froze instantly, then turned into ice shards and drifted down in flurries. The entire sky was sharply divided into the colors of ice and fire, creating a magnificent yet bizarre sight.

"Now's our chance! Move!"

Doberman shouted, forcefully kicking off the ground. He stepped through the air in rapid succession like a black bolt of lightning, charging toward the pirate ships in the sky.

The Marines behind him followed suit, their figures flashing and leaping through the air.

Before long, Doberman was the first to board a pirate ship.

His feet landed firmly on the deck as his hawk-like eyes swept over the surrounding pirates.

"Pirates, are you ready for your grandpa's wrath?"

His voice was low and filled with menace.

Seeing this, the pirates aboard the ship revealed savage expressions, the weapons in their hands gleaming coldly.

"Brothers, the Marines are here! Kill them!"

With an angry roar, the pirates surged toward Doberman like a tidal wave.

Meanwhile, Mu Chen stood in the back streets, looking at the battle raging around the harbor before glancing at the strangely deserted streets around him.

Borsalino likewise watched the distant sky, then turned to Mu Chen. Pursing his lips, he teased, "Mu Chen, it seems your plan wasn't all that accurate!"

Mu Chen furrowed his brows, his heart full of doubt. Had I really guessed wrong?

Was Golden Lion really just planning a direct assault?

But now that things had come to this, there was no other option. If it truly was a frontal assault, at least he no longer needed to worry about the civilians in the back streets.

"Looks like I was overthinking it. Then I'll go help on the battlefield."

Mu Chen spoke calmly and prepared to set off.

Borsalino watched Mu Chen's retreating figure and helplessly shook his head. His body began to turn into specks of light, clearly preparing to use his ability to reach the battlefield as quickly as possible.

Just then, a dull rumble suddenly came from above the streets. Everyone looked up to see a circular Floating Island slowly appearing.

The Floating Island was tightly enclosed by iron cages, their bars gleaming with a cold metallic sheen.

"Mu Chen, Zhiyuan, look at the sky!"

Jiaqi's eyes widened as she stared fixedly upward, her voice filled with shock and fear.

Qi Yuan's gaze instantly turned grave when she saw the suddenly appearing Floating Island. Remembering what Mu Chen had said earlier, she felt a sense of foreboding rise within her.

At that moment, the light that Borsalino had been about to dissolve into slowly condensed back into his body. He too looked at the Floating Island in the sky, a trace of gravity flashing through his eyes. Then the corners of his mouth curled up slightly as he muttered, "Huochan, you really were right. How terrifying."

Mu Chen stared at the Floating Island, a powerful sense of danger welling up inside him. So the ICU serum already existed?

He had still clung to the hope that Golden Lion had not developed the IKO serum. But upon seeing this Floating Island, he knew that the strange beasts Golden Lion had raised were about to bring yet another disaster upon Marineford—and one far more terrifying than the Flying Fleet.

Meanwhile, Golden Lion, who was fiercely battling Sengoku, caught sight of the Floating Island appearing over the back streets from the corner of his eye. A smug smile appeared on his face.

"Sengoku, why don't you take a look behind you? Hahaha!"

He laughed loudly, his laughter full of mockery and ridicule.

Hearing Golden Lion's laughter, Sengoku felt a sense of foreboding rise in his heart. He glanced behind him from the corner of his eye, and when he saw the massive Floating Island, his brows instantly furrowed deeply.

That was the direction of the back streets, where hundreds of thousands of defenseless civilians lived!

At that thought, the rage in Sengoku's heart erupted like a volcano.

"Golden Lion, you're not human! You're actually attacking civilians—you're nothing but a beast!"

Sengoku roared, his voice filled with fury and despair.

Golden Lion Shiki was not moved by Sengoku's words in the slightest. Instead, he laughed even more wildly.

"Hahaha, Sengoku, I told you—I'm going to destroy all of Marineford!"

"So what if they're civilians?"

"I want all of Marineford to disappear! I want to prove that I'm stronger than Roger!"

His eyes were as cold as frost, devoid of the slightest emotion.

Sengoku trembled with rage, veins bulging across his forehead.

"Golden Lion!"

He roared and immediately unleashed his full strength.

Buddha Shockwave!

The railings around the Floating Island above the back streets slowly lowered.