Before Whitebeard could regain his footing, Gern surged forward again, closing in!
But Whitebeard was still Whitebeard!
Even at such a disadvantage, his battle instincts drove him to unleash the swiftest counterattack!
He forcibly twisted his body, the muscles in his arms bulging as he swung Murakumogiri with ferocious force!
Whooom!!!
A dense white halo instantly enveloped the massive naginata blade, concentrating its destructive quake power to an extreme degree.
With a furious roar, he unleashed a crescent-shaped slash powerful enough to tear space apart, sweeping it horizontally at the pursuing Gern!
Faced with a slash that would put even an Admiral-level fighter on full alert, Gern's eyes remained calm.
Because Gern was no Admiral! No Emperor, but a king!
And so, his heart remained utterly unruffled.
"Edward Newgate, as you are now, you can no longer make me feel... the threat of a 'king'!!"
The instant the quake slash was about to strike him, Gern neither dodged nor blocked.
He merely raised his elbow, driving his flesh-and-blood body straight into the side of Murakumogiri's blade with pinpoint precision!
Clang!! Crack-! The air shattered.
A slash powerful enough to shatter mountains was stopped cold by Gern's brutally unreasonable elbow strike.
At the same time, Gern never paused!
At the moment of impact, his fingers snapped around Murakumogiri's shaft!
An irresistible, terrifying force surged through the weapon!
"Come here!"
Whitebeard's entire body was forcibly dragged toward Gern, utterly beyond his control!
The distance between them vanished in an instant!
With Whitebeard within arm's reach, Gern clenched his right fist again, compressing the vibration particles.
"Heavenquake: Star-Piercer."
Gern coldly uttered the move's name, then drove his fist into Whitebeard's unguarded chest.
There was no sound.
The instant his fist connected, the space along its path seemed to distort and collapse ever so