The battle between Momousagi and Catarina Devon lacked the raw brutality and savagery of the men's clashes. On the surface, it seemed far less explosive.
Pink mist drifted around the two of them.
Faint sword light flickered within it.
At the same time, nine fox tails whipped through the air like sweeping brooms.
Though their duel didn't look as earth-shaking as the other battlefields, the danger hidden within it was no less deadly.
On Sabaody Archipelago, Luo Xing's gaze calmly swept across the entire battlefield.
Whether it was Aokiji, Kizaru, or even Fleet Admiral Sengoku personally joining the fight, none of it caused the slightest change in his expression.
Only when he saw Momousagi make her move did his brow lift ever so slightly.
Truth be told, although Luo Xing loved beauty and enjoyed collecting all kinds of different flowers, he had never shown mercy to the lapdogs loyal to the World Government.
Take Stussy, the petite queen of the pleasure district.
Or Kalifa, with her black stockings and long legs.
When he killed them, he didn't even blink.
But Momousagi Gion felt different from those vulgar women. That was Luo Xing's first impression of her.
Even from hundreds of meters away, he seemed able to catch the faint pink fragrance around her.
And just like that, Luo Xing found himself tempted to add this pink peach blossom to his collection.
Come to think of it, he had already collected two Marine girls before.
One was Ain, Zephyr's disciple.
The other was the adorable little Tashigi.
Ain had been fine. Because of Zephyr's dying wish, she wanted to live on and see what the future world would become.
She was fairly obedient toward Luo Xing.
When he held her in his arms that night, she hadn't resisted much.
But little Tashigi was a bit too stubborn.
Even after Luo Xing personally taught her swordsmanship for hours, she still resisted fiercely.
The day he left Punk Hazard, Tashigi cried so hard she looked utterly pitiful, gritting her teeth until they nearly shattered.
As considerate as he was, Luo Xing decided he couldn't let Tashigi remain in that state of mind forever. He still preferred his women to be a little happier.
And now, seeing Momousagi—
Didn't Momousagi know Tashigi?
Letting the two women keep each other company sounded like a pretty good idea.
No one knew the thoughts passing through Luo Xing's mind at this moment. Only Perona, floating in the air with her pink twin-tails, vaguely sensed something.
Biting her bright red lips, she thought to herself:
"This bad man is definitely plotting something shameless again!"
"Waaah… I'm such a cute girl, and he still bullied me!"
Thinking of what had happened to her, Perona's eyes turned red, and she started sniffling pitifully.
The first time she met Luo Xing, he had said he was merely a collector driven by interest.
At the time, Perona hadn't understood what that meant.
But just a few hours ago, she had understood completely.
That bad man had suddenly appeared in her room through that strange Anywhere Door.
Then he grabbed her by her twin-tails and bullied her. Waaah, he was just too awful!
Perona had cried miserably back then, but the man had shown no mercy at all.
Even now, her body still couldn't move properly, leaving her able to float only in spirit form.
Hearing Perona's sniffles, Luo Xing glanced at her and said gently:
"What's wrong? Who bullied you?"
Perona angrily turned her head away.
Who else could it be? Wasn't it you, you big villain?!
Luo Xing more or less guessed the reason, but he pretended not to know and continued in that same gentle tone:
"Don't worry. From now on, I'll protect you. Other than me, no one will ever be allowed to bully you again."
Perona's big eyes instantly widened, and her mouth puffed up like a little steamed bun as she glared furiously at Luo Xing.
Y-you… what do you mean, other than you? You still want to bully me?!
Just as Perona was about to explode, Luo Xing's face turned serious as he addressed Moria:
"Moria, go pilot Thriller Bark and charge straight into the Marine fleet."
Moria was the person Perona respected most, so she could only swallow the words that had reached her lips.
Still, her mouth remained puffed up, and her big eyes were filled with grievance and indignation.
Thriller Bark was probably the largest ship in the world, large enough to rival an entire island. Carrying tens of thousands on board would not be a problem.
Luo Xing led his criminal army, joined forces with the zombie army aboard the ship, and advanced toward the Marine fleet.
That meant the battle for Sabaody Archipelago had officially entered its fiercest stage.
Thriller Bark loomed dark and oppressive, like a ghost ship sailing out from hell itself, carrying with it a dense aura of darkness and death.
Even the fifty-thousand-strong army led by Kong felt unease at the sight of such a monstrous ship.
Even Kong, battle-hardened and still formidable in old age, had to take a deep breath.
Luo Xing was finally moving in person. Victory or defeat would be decided here!
He did not dare hesitate and immediately ordered dozens of warships to line up and begin firing in unison.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Hundreds upon thousands of cannonballs blasted through the air, hurtling toward Thriller Bark.
Luo Xing stood with his hands behind his back, completely unmoving.
Behind him, Enel burst into laughter.
"Three Hundred Million Volts — Thunder Net!"
A massive net formed from lightning enveloped all the cannonballs at once and blew them apart.
Enel then transformed into a streak of lightning and rushed toward the Marines, cackling wildly.
"You worthless insects! To dare oppose Lord Luo Xing—accept the punishment of a god!"
He directly unleashed a thunderstorm.
Countless bolts of lightning rained down from the sky.
Crack!
A thick bolt struck one of the warships, instantly setting it ablaze. The Marines aboard were charred black on the spot.
While clashing swords with Shiryu, Kizaru glanced over from the corner of his eye.
"The Rumble-Rumble Fruit really is terrifying. Even my Glint-Glint Fruit can't suppress it."
Kizaru had fought Enel before.
Lightning and light had proven hard to distinguish in victory or defeat.
Kong's face darkened with rage.
If this thunderstorm continued bombarding them, no number of warships would survive.
The former Fleet Admiral and current Commander-in-Chief of the World Government's military forces decided to step in personally.
Wrapped in blazing fury and overwhelming Haki, he shot toward Enel like a cannonball, roaring:
"Get down here, you thunder bastard!"
As Thriller Bark and the Marine fleet closed in on one another, the fifty thousand Marines and Luo Xing's criminal and zombie armies finally clashed head-on.
The shouts of battle shook the heavens.
The stench of blood spread across the sky, and the surrounding sea turned red.
And most of that blood belonged to the Marines.
Though the Marines outnumbered Luo Xing's forces five to one, the criminals and zombies under Luo Xing's command were all fearless monsters, each capable of taking on ten men at once.
The savage criminals and grotesque zombies tore through ordinary Marines as if they were nothing but paper.
If things went on like this, it was only a matter of time before the Marines collapsed.
Aokiji, who intended to contend for the position of Fleet Admiral, could not allow that to continue.
He leapt upward, broke away from Sanjuan Wolf's harassment, and landed on Thriller Bark.
Then he unleashed a wide-area freezing technique against the criminal army and the zombie army.
Aokiji was clearly planning to freeze them all to death.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Ice spread rapidly outward from beneath his feet, freezing dozens of criminals and zombies in moments.
But just as Aokiji was about to continue—
A colossal figure, vast as a mountain, crashed down from above his head.
Aokiji's expression changed in shock.
Who was it?
Sanjuan Wolf?
Impossible. With that giant's size, there was no way he could jump that high, nor catch up this fast.
Aokiji looked up—
And his face filled with horror.
That mountain-like figure was indeed not Sanjuan Wolf, yet its size was almost equal to his.
But its speed and agility were far beyond anything Sanjuan Wolf could ever compare to.
Then came a roar like rolling thunder:
"Six Powers Secret Technique — Six King Gun!"
A giant fist smashed downward, instantly pulverizing Aokiji's body into fragments.
The terrifying force even blasted straight through the deck of Thriller Bark.
Who else could possess such size, speed, and power—
If not the strongest zombie of all, Oars, created using Rob Lucci's shadow and a Dragon-level monster cell?
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