allendalepharm Chapter 224 The Death Tide Retreats Temporarily, Sand's Aid
Chapter 224 The Death Tide Retreats Temporarily, Sand's Aid
Chapter 224 The Death Tide Retreats Temporarily, Sand's Aid
The standoff at the abandoned shipyard continues.
Every encounter between King Hassan and the Angel of Death seemed to challenge the sensory limits of those around him.
The boundary between the pitch-black and pale realms blurred and became clearer over time, and space emitted a lament from the very foundations of the world.
It was as if taking another look would plunge one into death, leading to utter ruin.
However, in this seemingly endless war of laws, the Death Angel's dark eyes flickered slightly as he sensed something amiss.
King Hassan's existence is like an ancient mountain rooted in the rules of life and death in this world.
Its power is connected to this world far more closely and deeply than that of this angel of death.
The reason is unknown, but the facts are there.
If the stalemate continues, even if we win, we will inevitably pay an unbearable price and it will alert even more beings in this world.
His goal was to eliminate the anomaly and obtain the Yellow Springs Roadmark, not to engage in a war of attrition with an entity of the same level that he had no chance of winning.
After a violent clash of concepts, the Angel of Death retreated, and the gray-white domain of death receded like a tide.
He stood in mid-air, his dark cloak billowing without wind, and his ancient voice rang out with a hint of cold decisiveness.
"Old Man of the Mountain, your existence is indeed the cornerstone of the law of death. However, my mission must not be desecrated."
"I'll remember what happened today. I will obtain the signpost to the underworld. Even if it's you—"
His gaze passed over King Hassan and locked onto Brook again, his eyes seeming to say, "You've been marked."
Then, he glanced at Luffy, who was still in Nikka form.
"The Child of Destiny—The Drum of Liberation—is also a variable that needs to be examined."
Before the words were finished, the figure of the Death Angel, along with its suffocating aura of death, suddenly became ethereal, as if it were about to merge into the void.
"Mission changed, evacuate." His voice went directly into Lucci's mind, which was already damaged and suppressed by Roger's domineering aura.
Lucci jolted violently, barely managing to regain a sliver of clarity from the crushing force of Roger's terrifying will.
Although he was unwilling, he had an instinctive obedience to the contract with the Angel of Death. He glared at Luffy with resentment and let out a low growl of resentment.
"withdraw!"
The remaining CP9 members were relieved, and Kaku, despite his leg injury, helped up his more seriously injured comrade.
Jabra, Lion Claw, and the others quickly broke free from Zoro and Sanji's entanglement and retreated in a panic like stray dogs in the direction where the aura of the Death Angel had disappeared.
Almost at the same time that the Death Angel decided to withdraw, King Hassan also restrained his soaring death aura and overwhelming sword intent.
He did not pursue, but slowly turned his tall figure around, casting his deep gaze upon Brook, whose breathing was gradually calming down.
He wore a hideous skull mask and a heavy black cloak, his muscles bulging, like a war god returned from hell.
He simply stood there, as if he were the embodiment of the entire concept of death, the manifestation of the end.
The shadows spread beneath his feet, and the air echoed with the wails of countless dead souls.
Brook, the tall skeleton, looked down at the other.
silence.
The suffocating silence even made the Straw Hat crew around them feel awkward.
Suddenly, Brooke tapped his skull lightly with the tip of his cane, producing a crisp tapping sound that broke the silence.
"Wow—!" he exclaimed dramatically, his voice brimming with the joy of discovering a new continent.
"I didn't look closely just now, but the gentleman I summoned, are you also a skeleton?!"
"Hooray! What a coincidence! How exciting—ah, even though my heart can't beat anymore!"
Wang Hassan: "————"
The mask remained cold, and no one could see his expression.
But that murderous aura, powerful enough to make even heroic spirits tremble, did indeed pause for a fleeting, almost imperceptible moment.
Brooke completely ignored the terrifying sense of oppression. He bent down, and the huge height difference made him almost look down at King Hassan. His empty eye sockets curiously examined the other's mask.
"But—your skull shape is really unique! Is it a specially made mask? It looks so hard!"
"Unlike me, my skull is the real deal, you can even use it to make black tea! Want to see my underwear?"
"—Ah, just kidding, although I'm just a skeleton, so I don't have any underwear to show. Yohohoho!"
"Master." King Hassan's voice was deep and calm, yet it carried a power that reached the very soul.
"You used the Yellow Springs as your guide and the thought of protection as your guiding principle to call upon my true name and inherit this destiny. Your will transcends life and death, and deserves praise."
Brooke also straightened up and bowed, his skeleton still cracking slightly from the previous impact.
"Yohohoho—thank you so much for your help. If you hadn't arrived in time, my companions and I would probably already be—"
Wang Hassan nodded slightly, interrupting him, and turned his gaze to Luffy, who was panting heavily.
"Young man, the will to liberate resides within you, the very core that stirs up the vortex of fate."
"
"Your path is destined to be accompanied by both endings and rebirths."
His words were like a prophecy, obscure and difficult to understand, yet they inexplicably made Luffy feel a sense of heaviness.
"Hey, Skeleton Uncle, what you're saying is so hard to understand!" Luffy scratched his head.
"But thank you for helping us drive away that dangerous guy!"
Zoro and Sanji breathed a sigh of relief, but their vigilance remained; the oppressive presence of this Heroic Spirit was simply too strong.
Roger dissipated his Conqueror's Haki and laughed heartily, "What an amazing guy! This ocean is never boring!"
Usopp collapsed to the ground, patting his chest in lingering fear: "I'm saved!"
Wang Hassan said no more, facing the city, his figure gradually becoming transparent.
"Where fate brings us together, we find ourselves here. I will become your sword, Master. But danger is not far off."
His final words of advice, along with his last silhouette, vanished into the wind.
"He said the crisis is not over yet—" Sanji's worried voice rang out.
Luffy slapped his forehead, his expression changing drastically: "Oh no! Ace! Robin and the others are still at Franky's house!"
That terrifying guy must have gone to find them!
As Luffy and his crew frantically rushed back, the atmosphere outside Franky's House was equally tense.
Nami is currently dealing with several investors who seem to be the most sincere.
She demonstrated exceptional economic acumen, attempting to acquire maximum resources while minimizing future obligations and risks.
Chopper helped organize some material lists.
Robin sat quietly in the corner, flipping through history books borrowed from the Water Seven Library, but the terrifying atmosphere outside made her feel vaguely uneasy.
Ace and Karna stood guard at the entrance and the main passage.
Ace frowned, glancing frequently towards the northeast, where the terrifying energy fluctuations emanating from made him extremely anxious.
Karna stood like a golden statue, his aura calm, his Sun Wheel Spear pointing diagonally at the ground, but the invisible heat emanating from his body indicated that he was on high alert.
Crocodile, with a cigar in his mouth, leaned against the wall in the shadows, seemingly indifferent to everything.
Tescatlipoca, meanwhile, produced a strangely colored drink from somewhere, sipping it slowly with a smug, almost theatrical smile on his face.
Suddenly, Karna abruptly raised his head, and the Sun Wheel Spear instantly burst forth with scorching light: "Enemy attack!"
Before the words were even finished, several figures broke through the loose defensive line formed by the Franky family thugs at an extremely fast speed and directly entered the core area!
It was the returning Angel of Death, Lucci, and all the members of CP9!
The Angel of Death had a clear objective; his gaze instantly locked onto the other people present who were related to the anomaly—especially—Tescatlipoca!
His heart skipped a beat when his gaze met Tescatlipoca's inscrutable, amused look!
He sensed an even more unfathomable chaos and divinity.
This was a huge variable that made him feel intensely apprehensive.
However, this is also quite reasonable.
"Ace! Die!" Lucci didn't care about anything else; his eyes were bloodshot with the rage of revenge.
He went straight for his greatest enemy, unleashing the full power of the Six Powers Secret Technique, and pounced on Ace like a mad tiger!
He knew that as long as he captured Ace, he wouldn't have to worry about the Straw Hat Pirates not obediently submitting!
"Madman, Fire Fist!" Ace retorted without backing down.
A giant, blazing fist met Lucci's fierce attack, and the two instantly clashed, flames and finger guns colliding wildly!
Karna was firmly locked in place by the aura of the angel of death.
Although the Angel of Death is wary of Tescatlipoca, clearing anomalies has a higher priority.
He once again conjured that conceptual Death Scythe, and the gray-white domain attempted to expand to suppress Karna.
"Sun, transform into armor (Kavacha & Kundala)!"
Without hesitation, Karna revealed his golden armor, and a powerful defensive field fiercely clashed with the rules of death, producing a piercing friction sound.
He couldn't directly confront the concept of death like King Hassan, but with the absolute defense of his golden armor, he managed to withstand the deathly encroachment of the Death Angel for a short time!
The sun-shaped spear, carrying the purifying fire of karma, pierced the angel of death, forcing him to be distracted.
However, the remaining CP9 members pounced on Nami, Robin, and Chopper, who were almost powerless to resist, like hungry wolves!
"Nami! Robin! Chopper!" Sanji's roar seemed to travel across space.
"Whoa! Don't come any closer!" Chopper was so frightened that he transformed into human form, waving his furry fists, but was easily swatted away by Jabra's claw.
Nami swung her Clima-Tact, trying to create a mist, but it was all in vain under Kaku's precise storm strikes.
Robin watched as CP9 charged towards them, especially Lucci's crazed yet familiar gaze, the shadow of Alabasta looming over her.
Ohara's nightmares and his deep-seated fear of the World Government surged into his mind in an instant.
Her face was pale, and her arms, crossed over her chest, trembled slightly, as if she had lost the courage to resist.
A flicker of despair crossed his eyes, as if he were preparing to give up the struggle and resign himself to fate. "This time—is it still no use—?"
Just as Kaku's Tempest Kick was about to strike Nami, and Jabra's claws were about to grab Robin...
"Hmph, a bunch of noisy flies—they're disturbing my peace and quiet."
A cold, hoarse voice, accompanied by the faint sound of flowing sand, rang out from the shadows in the corner.
In the next instant, countless yellow sand grains, as if they had come to life, surged wildly from the ground and from the cracks in the walls!
They quickly coalesced into two enormous sand arms, one of which precisely caught Kaku's gust of wind kick and crushed it!
The other one stood like a barrier in front of Robin, firmly blocking Jabra's claws!
"What?!" Kaku and Gabra were shocked.
Lucci caught a glimpse of this scene during a break in his battle with Ace, and his pupils constricted sharply: "Crocodile?! You—"
'
Crocodile had somehow stood up straight, the cigar in his mouth glowing red, and the golden hook in his right hand gleaming coldly.
He looked at Lucci and the others with cold eyes, as if they were a group of ants.
"Are my employees someone you can touch?"
His actions were not motivated by a sense of justice or friendship towards the Straw Hat crew, but rather by a cunning scheme and an instinctive desire to protect what he owned.
Robin was his important archaeologist and the key to his and Tescatlipoca's search for the Poneglyphs. He would not allow anyone else to touch it.
Moreover, does Lucci, this bunch of stray dogs of the World Government, even deserve to be arrogant in front of him?
Tescatlipoca watched Crocodile make his move, his smile growing even deeper.
He gently swirled the wine in his glass, making no move to interfere, as if admiring Crocodile's helper, who was driven by a desire for domination rather than protection.
This perfectly aligns with his appreciation for trials.
During the confrontation between the Angel of Death and Karna, they also noticed the changes happening here.
Although the opponent did not make a move, Tescat Ripoca's strength should not be underestimated.
More importantly, he sensed that King Hassan's chilling aura was rapidly approaching from the direction of the abandoned shipyard!
Don't stay here for long!
"Mission terminated, evacuate!" The Death Angel issued the order decisively without hesitation.
He gave Tescatlipoca and Crocodile a deep look, especially at the former, his eyes filled with vigilance.
Immediately, the pale aura completely subsided, and his figure vanished instantly, like an ink droplet merging into water.
Lucci received the order, though extremely unwilling, but the departure of the Death Angel meant they had lost their greatest support.
Facing Ace, Karna, Crocodile (whose condition is unknown but who is clearly not to be trifled with), and Luffy and Roger who are about to return, there is only one way out for them: death.
"Let's go!" Lucci squeezed out the words through gritted teeth.
He feinted a move to force Ace back, and then, along with the remaining CP9 members who were filled with resentment and humiliation, fled Franky House in the same panic as when they arrived, disappearing into the intricate waterways.
The battle came to an abrupt end.
Nami and Chopper, still shaken, clung to each other.
Robin stared blankly at the sand hand that had been blocking her way and was gradually dissipating, then looked at Crocodile, who had retracted his golden hook without any expression.
Her eyes held a complex expression as she whispered, "—Thank you, Mr. O."
Crocodile simply snorted, lit another cigar, and walked back into the shadows as if nothing had happened.
Ace extinguished the flames and breathed a sigh of relief.
Karna put away his golden armor, his gaze sweeping over Crocodile and Tescatlipoca, remaining calm.
Those investors who were previously negotiating terms were now terrified and ran away in a panic.
Some of these creatures crawled under the table, while others scrambled away. But a few bolder ones, or those with ulterior motives, were secretly filming the whole thing with video Den Den Mushi (snail phone).
They knew that these video materials involving the battles of top-tier heroic spirits would be priceless if sold to the World Economic Journal or certain powerful forces.
With the temporary departure of the angel of death.
Above Water Seven, the oppressive aura of death and the waves of liberation finally dissipated completely.
However, everyone knew that this was just the beginning.