Showdown with Magellan

Blackbeard Teach's predicament was unknown to Sal and the others. Instead, they encountered an interesting figure on the second level.

Buggy the Clown, the red-nosed man who had once served as an apprentice pirate aboard Roger's ship.

Roger had once thought highly of both him and Shanks. After all, the two had dared to fight the adult Blackbeard when they were children. The only thing Roger had not anticipated was that Shanks would fulfill his expectations and become one of the Four Emperors, while Buggy had been ruined by his obsession with treasure hunting.

Buggy the Clown was currently brimming with spirit. Somehow, he had found himself a red cape, and hundreds of elite pirates followed behind him. When he saw Sal and the others appear, he swaggered over with the gait of a man who recognized no kin.

"Straw Hat, just as expected of you. You carried out our plan brilliantly. Oh, and this one..."

Buggy patted the dazed Luffy on the shoulder, wearing the air of a superior praising a subordinate for a job well done. But when he got a clear look at Sal, his words caught in his throat. A sense of familiarity welled up within him. He could not remember who Sal was, but he looked incredibly familiar.

Sal greeted him first.

"I've long heard of you, Buggy the Clown. As expected of Red-Haired's childhood best friend, you actually led a group of prisoners to seize Impel Down."

"..."

Before Buggy could even ask how this stranger knew about his past, his underlings behind him had already erupted again.

"Captain Buggy is actually the brother of one of the Four Emperors, Red-Haired! So Captain really did deliberately seize Impel Down!"

"Long live Captain Buggy! Long live Captain Buggy!"

The endless flattery made Buggy feel as if he were floating on air. He could only maintain his unfathomable pose, planting his hands on his hips and declaring loudly.

"Hahaha, it's nothing worth mentioning. He's only one of the Four Emperors. The reason I came to Impel Down was to rescue freedom-seekers like you. I will lead you across the New World!"

"Captain Buggy, I'll follow you for the rest of my life!"

The countless pirates were either overwhelmed with excitement or moved to tears. Even Sal had to admire Buggy. Though Buggy lacked overwhelming strength, his luck and personal charisma were truly remarkable.

The people around Sal were baffled by the stir Buggy had caused. Was this weak-looking red-nosed guy really one of the Four Emperors' best friends? Had he truly come to Impel Down with such a grand purpose?

After soothing his subordinates, Buggy finally studied Sal carefully. Only when the image of his captain buried deep in his memories surfaced did he understand whom Sal resembled. Although the captain in his memories had been over forty years old, they really did look alike. Could they be the father and son of legend?

With that question in mind, Buggy asked.

"This friend looks unfamiliar. May I ask your name?"

"Augustus D. Sal. Nice to meet you."

A sudden scream from behind interrupted them. A Purple Venom Dragon was relentlessly devouring the Newkama, and anyone touched by its venom rapidly died.

The sudden change sent many into panic, because that unmistakable venom made it abundantly clear that Impel Down's warden, Magellan, had arrived.

Ever since becoming warden, this man had been the prisoners' nightmare.

Magellan, radiating murderous intent, walked toward them step by step. The Poison Dragon behind him split from one into three, efficiently attacking the crowd. Every second, more than a dozen people were poisoned.

Ivankov was the first unable to hold back. Those dying were all Newkama, citizens he had worked hard to gather. His long eyelashes blinked toward Magellan.

"Hee-haw, Death Wink!"

The shockwave generated by his wink was easily blocked by the venom dragon. It blasted crater after crater into its body, but caused no real damage.

The venom dragon then charged at Ivankov in midair. With nothing to push off against in the air, Ivankov used the shockwave from his wink as propulsion to evade the attack.

Ivankov returned to the group, but his expression was grim. In their first clash, he had been completely suppressed. Magellan, wrapped in venom, was an excellent counter to most enemies.

Ivankov had no means of defeating Magellan.

With the situation critical, everyone launched attacks without hesitation. Crocodile was no exception, gathering yellow sand in his hand and hurling it at Magellan. The sand transformed into blade-like edges that sliced everything into two.

"Desert Spada!"

The desert blade only severed one venom dragon's head before being neutralized. Crocodile's expression darkened as well. Though sand could take countless forms, its single-target damage was simply too low to shatter Magellan's venom defenses in one blow.

Two more venom dragons split from Magellan's body. Five venom dragons danced wildly, and even against everyone's combined assault, he did not fall behind in the slightest.

Sal loosened his neck, intending to test Magellan's strength himself. Before leaving, he invited Buggy.

"Buggy, want to attack together?"

"..."

Magellan's offensive had already frightened Buggy stiff. Asking him to join in was no different from asking him to die. Even a little venom would be enough to kill him.

Just as Buggy was caught in a dilemma, unable to think of an excuse to refuse,

Sal had already changed his proposal and charged toward Magellan alone.

"Forget it, Buggy. You should stay behind and organize everyone's retreat. The rear needs an important figure like you to hold it down."

Buggy was greatly relieved. He spoke to his subordinates in an arrogant tone.

"Magellan is nothing. I don't even take him seriously. But since they're confident they can handle him, I'll grant them their wish."

Sal truly intended to elevate Buggy. He really wanted to know how far Buggy could go. Would he still become one of the Four Emperors like in the original story?

Luck was a mysterious thing. Once was luck, but if he could still become one of the Four Emperors after his life experiences had changed, then it would not be luck alone.

With all the venom dragons tied down, Sal quickly appeared before Magellan. Dark-red Haki coiled around his fist as he swung directly at his enemy's chest.

"Conqueror's Coating, Serious Punch!"

Magellan had already noticed the powerful Conqueror's Coating around Sal's hand. Caught off guard, he could only cross his arms and use Armament Haki to block.

"Boom..."

Their collision erupted with dark-red lightning, accompanied by venom splattering everywhere. Even with his arms crossed in defense, Magellan was sent flying back dozens of meters by the Conqueror's Coating-covered punch.

Just as Magellan endured the pain in his arms, a massive cannonball suddenly flew toward him from the front, more than ten meters in size.

A sense of foreboding made Magellan's pupils contract. The cannonball exploded at close range with astonishing force, and a small mushroom cloud rose from inside Impel Down. The violent explosion made Impel Down shake several times.

This was the ability of Byrnndi World, known as the World Destroyer. As the user of the More-More Fruit, he could magnify and alter his own speed, as well as the speed and volume of objects he touched, by a hundredfold.

As the smoke from the explosion dispersed, Magellan's figure was revealed. His clothes were tattered, and his body bore many wounds. This combined attack had truly injured him.

Magellan's face darkened as an enormous volume of red venom continuously poured forth, eventually forming a venomous skeletal Giant with only an upper body, dozens of meters tall.

"Venom Demon!"

Sal flung off the venom clinging to his body. Though this incarnation would not be poisoned to death, the venom's presence intensified its consumption. It had less than three minutes left.

And Magellan's ultimate move, Venom Demon, left our two major combatants with no way to act.

Jinbe's Fish-Man Karate lacked long-range techniques, while Crocodile's yellow sand corrosion had little effect on venom, which was essentially liquid. Even if the two joined forces, they likely would not be Magellan's match, unless Jinbe used Fish-Man Karate in the sea to control the water currents.

Or if Crocodile possessed top-tier Armament Haki and infused it into his sand, he might be able to break through Venom Demon's defenses.