Buster Call Begins, Descent of the Tree Realm

The sound of bullets tearing through the air had already vanished.

Spandam slowly poked his head out from behind cover. The subordinate he had dragged over was already cold.

And through that despicable tactic, he had survived.

Spandam's eyes widened as he stared in disbelief at Roya slowly walking toward him.

His lips trembled. His once-arrogant expression had turned deathly pale.

"W-What kind of power is this?! Who the hell are you?! How could someone like you appear in the West Blue?!!!"

Spandam screamed hoarsely at Roya.

His eyes were wide with rage, but they were filled with spreading panic.

Meek before the strong, merciless before the weak—that described people like Spandam perfectly!

Roya slowly walked toward Spandam. Every step felt as though it landed heavily on Spandam's heart.

By then, Roya had arrived near the Tree of Knowledge.

[ Ding, congratulations to the host for checking in at the Tree of Knowledge. Obtained: Wood Release—Descent of the Tree Realm! ]

As the system's electronic voice faded, Roya arrived before Spandam.

Spandam collapsed onto the ground in terror. "Y-You stay away! If you, if you come any closer, believe it or not, I'll press this!"

As he spoke, Spandam took a Golden Den Den Mushi from his chest.

When Olvia saw the Golden Den Den Mushi in Spandam's hand, her heart suddenly jolted!

"Roya, that is the Buster Call button. Once the Buster Call is activated, all of Ohara will become ruins!"

Upon hearing Olvia's words, Spandam seemed to regain his confidence. He threatened Roya, "That's right, this woman is correct. Get down on your knees and apologize to me now, or the moment I press the Buster Call, this entire island will vanish from the map in no time! This represents the Navy's overwhelming offensive power!"

Roya's expression beneath his hood remained exceptionally calm.

Roya raised a hand. "Binding Spell No. 4—Gray Rope!"

A rope-like beam of light appeared out of thin air before Roya. In the world of Bleach it belonged to, this Binding Spell was used to bind and capture opponents. Both Rukia and Renji Abarai had used it!

But now, before Spandam could react, Roya used Gray Rope to snatch the Golden Den Den Mushi directly into his hand.

Feeling the weight in his hand disappear and seeing the Golden Den Den Mushi in Roya's hand, Spandam's confidence instantly vanished. His earlier self-assurance seemed to plunge into an abyss and shatter completely!

His only trump card had been effortlessly taken by Roya. He panicked—completely panicked!

Olvia, holding Robin in her arms, let out a breath of relief at the sight.

But then Olvia's pupils suddenly contracted. "Roya, are you insane?! You actually pressed the Buster Call button yourself!!!"

Everything happened too quickly, so quickly that even Spandam could barely process it.

But when he saw Roya press the Golden Den Den Mushi, despair was immediately followed by hope. He laughed, then burst into wild laughter. "You pressed it! You actually pressed it! Do you really want Ohara destroyed that badly?! Hahahaha! How stupid can you be?! Now let me show you the Navy's strongest offensive force!"

Spandam had not expected things to turn around so quickly. He felt like he was back in control!

More importantly, Roya was truly too stupid. How could someone that foolish possibly be his match?

At that thought, Spandam's heart swelled immensely. After all, this was a Buster Call!

Olvia's expression also turned exceedingly grave!

At that moment, the thousands of soldiers, dozens of colonels, and five vice admirals aboard the ten warships outside the island—

—received the signal from the Golden Den Den Mushi and advanced toward Ohara.

Cannons thundered from the ships, and countless slashes flew through the air. Among them were attacks from two admiral candidates!

"Meteor Volcano!"

"Ice Age!"

After receiving the Buster Call order, neither of them held back. They immediately unleashed their most powerful strength.

The sky was filled with terrifying attacks.

Olvia and Robin both closed their eyes. They had clearly held the winning hand just moments ago, yet they had never expected Roya to do this.

They could already imagine how devastated and ruined the island would become!

Spandam laughed madly. "This is what you get for provoking me! Now go to hell and enjoy the cruelty of death!"

Amid Spandam's wild laughter, the corner of Roya's mouth lifted slightly, though no one could see it beneath his cloak.

Roya slowly raised a hand and slammed it hard against the ground!

"Wood Release—Descent of the Tree Realm!"

As Roya's words fell, the surging vitality contained within Wood Release immediately poured into the Tree of Knowledge.

The roots of the Tree of Knowledge burst straight out of the ground, continuously intertwining to form a massive wall of roots!

That enormous defensive wall stretched for miles across the island, effortlessly blocking every attack from the Buster Call.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Countless bullets, shells, slashes, and even Aokiji and Akainu's full-powered attacks failed to break through the defensive wall formed from the Tree of Knowledge's roots.

Every attack that landed upon it was offset and restored by the surging vitality of Wood Release.

As the smoke from the Buster Call's first wave of attacks cleared, Spandam, who had just been brimming with confidence again, stared at the scene before him and instinctively swallowed. He had never witnessed anything so astonishing!

His lips quivered before he finally forced out several words. "H-How is this possible?! The Tree of Knowledge... came alive!"

It was not only Spandam. Even Aokiji and Akainu outside the island stared at the scene in shock.

Both of them furrowed their brows tightly. That strike just now had been among their strongest techniques!

Yet such tremendous power had been effortlessly stopped by this root-like defensive wall.

"What exactly is this defensive wall?!"

"Whatever it is, anything on this island that obstructs us is evil that must be eradicated!"

Magma continuously surged from Akainu's arm. "Besides, it is nothing more than a tree! I refuse to believe my magma cannot burn it! Meigō!"

With a punch, vast amounts of lava scorched the air, and the extreme heat made the air itself seem distorted!

With a loud boom, Akainu's magma fist smashed heavily into the defensive wall formed by the Tree of Knowledge...