The simple probing ended.
"Interesting."
Imu raised his head, his eyes beneath the black robe shining terrifyingly.
The spreading black flames contracted, no longer in their previous slow, surging state. Black flames swirled around Imu, and the surrounding air seemed to crackle and pop as if it were burning.
Imu's black mist contracted, and Conqueror's Haki Inazuma coiled around it, transforming him into a sharp blade as he charged forward at lightning speed.
Roy's Telekinesis Domain was instantly shaken by the impact, and the transparent Telekinesis barrier seemed to develop fine cracks.
Roy frowned, his Telekinesis gathering again, preparing to forcefully suppress Imu's counterattack.
But Imu had already disappeared.
Black Flame left an afterimage in its original position, but its true form had already appeared in front of Roy, and the divine weapon Black Blade cleaved down.
The speed of this strike was absurd; even with Roy's Observation Haki, he only managed to catch a glimpse of the blade's reflection.
"Sizzle!"
Roy turned to the side.
The blade grazed his nose as it slashed down, tearing a strip of fabric from his black trench coat over his shoulder.
"So fast!"
A bead of cold sweat trickled down Roy's forehead as he inwardly berated himself for his carelessness.
Knowing full well that Imu was a powerful being who could control the world for eight hundred years, they still carelessly allowed him to get close.
Moreover, Imu also possesses the bizarre ability to turn others into puppets.
"Too careless!"
Roy drew his Shusui Water, and with a swift motion, slashed at Imu's wrist.
With a flick of his wrist, Imu drew his Black Blade horizontally, and the two swords collided in mid-air.
"Clang--!"
The sound of metal clashing was so sharp it felt like it would pierce eardrums. Black flames and blue light exploded simultaneously, sending the two men flying back dozens of meters.
Roy steadied himself in mid-air and shook his slightly numb wrist.
Imu's power was much greater than before; the Conqueror's Haki contained in that strike was so solid it felt like a physical entity, causing a sharp pain in Im's hand.
"That's more like it," Roy muttered, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
Imu gave him no chance to catch his breath, and the second strike followed immediately.
This time it wasn't a straight slash, but a horizontal one. The blade energy, wrapped in black flames, sliced towards Roy's waist like a black crescent moon.
Roy's thoughts began to stir.
Instead of taking the blow head-on, he focused his Telekinesis into a transparent guiding force, deflecting the force just before the blade energy touched his body.
The black crescent moon flew past Roy's waist and crashed into a distant mountain wall, splitting the entire wall in two and sending rubble flying everywhere.
Imu swung his sword repeatedly, each strike enveloped in a solidified Conqueror's Haki. Even before the sword light arrived, the ground below was already slashed with countless deep grooves by the wind from the sword.
Roy moved through the flashing blades, his figure elusive, his Telekinesis surging from all directions, deflecting Imu's attacks time and again.
Sometimes the blade was only three inches from his throat, yet it could never penetrate.
Imu's nineteen-eyed ribbons began to dance wildly, fighting against the Telekinesis, emitting a teeth-grinding squeaking sound.
Roy realized that things couldn't continue like this.
His Telekinesis was being depleted very quickly, and Imu's Conqueror's Haki was far too overpowered. If he dragged this out any longer, he would be the one to suffer.
Roy's figure disappeared into the void.
Taking advantage of Imu's missed strike, Roy reappeared behind Imu.
Shusui slashes out with a backhand stroke.
A fierce slash pierced Imu's back.
The chaotic Mental Shock, accompanied by the chaotic Gravity Singularity condensed at the tip of the blade, was a double attack of Mental Shock and physical destruction, like a red-hot iron bar piercing into Imu's body.
Imu turned to block, but it was too late; he plummeted to the ground like a meteor.
"Boom--!"
Imu's body crashed into the scorched earth, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Everyone on the battlefield held their breath at the same time.
Kaido stopped holding the Hassaikai, and Bullet also stopped in his tracks.
Loki and Luffy lay on the ground, struggling to lift their heads and look in the direction of the smoke and dust.
The smoke and dust gradually dissipated.
Imu knelt on one knee in the center of the deep pit, head bowed, black blood dripping from the wound on his lower back, hitting the ground with a sizzling sound.
His black robe was mostly torn, revealing skin so pale it looked unnatural.
"Is it over?" Yamato asked Hawk Eyes quietly from a distance.
Roy was suspended in mid-air.
His Observation Haki was constantly at full power, locked onto Imu's presence.
Something's not right.
In Roy's perception,
Imu's aura did not weaken; on the contrary, it surged at a frenzied rate.
As if summoned, the black flames on the ground began to converge madly toward Imu.
Black mist surged out of Imu's body uncontrollably, like a flood bursting its banks, filling the entire deep pit in just a few breaths.
Imu's back hunched over.
Roy's pupils contracted.
With his Observation Haki, he clearly sensed something wriggling on Imu's back.
Then, two enormous, jet-black dragon wings tore through flesh and emerged from Imu's shoulder blades.
The moment the wing membrane deployed, the airflow across the entire battlefield was disrupted.
Dark red patterns flowed across the dragon's wings, pulsating like blood vessels, each pulse accompanied by a chilling, malevolent aura.
Imu's scalp then split open as well.
Two pairs of curved demon horns emerged from his forehead, their surfaces shimmering with a lava-like light, like flames brought up from the depths of hell.
His arms began to change.
Starting from the fingertips, the skin quickly darkens, the fingers lengthen, and the nails become like knives, continuing all the way to the elbows before stopping.
The black mist around him condensed on his body, forming a solid armor that enveloped his entire body.
His body swelled, his black robe ripped apart, revealing his chest covered in black scales.
Imu slowly straightened up.
His eyes turned into two black suns, and the evil aura spread out as if it were a tangible thing, stirring the clouds above Elbaf into a huge black vortex.
The ground was shaking, and the air was groaning.
Kaido's hand holding the Hassaikai was trembling slightly.
But Roy could see clearly that it wasn't fear.
That was excitement.
Kaido's lips were twitching upwards, his pupils were shrinking, and his dragon tail was unconsciously slapping the ground behind him.
"Ha ha ha ha--!"
Kaido suddenly threw his head back and laughed loudly, the sound sending the surrounding rocks flying.
"That's more like it! That's the power of King of the World!"
Bullet grinned, his fangs gleaming coldly in his White Tiger Model.
Ace stood at a distance, flames burning uncontrollably around him, his eyes fixed on Imu after his transformation.
Luffy struggled to sit up on the ground, coughing up blood as he stared at the dark figure, his fighting spirit undiminished.
Roy hovered in mid-air, his smile slowly fading.
Looking down at the completely transformed entity, he felt real pressure for the first time.
"So this is the real you," Roy whispered.
Imu spread his wings and raised his head.
His voice came from all directions, like an echo surging up from the deepest part of hell.
" Roy, you'll regret everything you've done."