"Got it, Mom!"
Weevil sniffed loudly as he swung his naginata upward before bringing it crashing down toward Lucas.
This strike was even heavier and more ferocious than the last.
The piercing whistle of the blade tore through the ruined town.
"Admiral Lucas, watch out!"
Vice Admiral Momonga’s expression changed drastically. Seeing Lucas still standing motionless, he hurriedly shouted a warning.
Not far away, Miss Bakkin wore a smug smile.
Lucas, however, appeared completely unfazed.
Boom!
A brilliant golden light erupted from Lucas’s body.
The descending naginata was stopped instantly.
The violent shockwave spread outward like a hurricane.
A five-to-six-meter-tall Thousand-Armed Guanyin rapidly materialized around Lucas, bathing the entire battlefield in golden light.
"A Devil Fruit user?"
Miss Bakkin looked momentarily surprised before sneering.
"No wonder a mere rookie Admiral dares to be so arrogant."
"Let’s see how capable this newly appointed Admiral really is."
"Weevil, get serious!"
"Don’t worry, Mom!"
"I’ll kill him and show Dad how strong I am!"
Weevil replied in his dull, booming voice.
His naginata let out a shrill metallic cry as he swung it down once again.
Slash!
A flying slash over ten meters long ripped through the ground and surged toward Lucas.
Everything in its path was torn apart with overwhelming force.
Vice Admiral Momonga had already retreated over a hundred meters away.
Watching the attack, his nerves tightened once more.
Had one of the other three Admirals been here, he wouldn’t have worried in the slightest.
But Lucas was still a newcomer.
He couldn’t help feeling uneasy.
After all, he had personally experienced the terrifying power behind Weevil’s slashes.
Before he could say anything, however, two figures suddenly appeared beside him.
"Vice Admiral Momonga, we’d better get farther away."
Smoker supported him as they rapidly retreated.
"I thought Admiral Lucas might hold back because of Weevil’s status."
"But since they attacked first..."
"That’ll greatly reduce Admiral Lucas’s psychological burden."
Meanwhile, the arriving Marines began evacuating the wounded civilians.
The bizarre scene left both Miss Bakkin and Cavendish thoroughly confused.
Reduce his psychological burden?
What was that supposed to mean?
Still remembering the painful lesson he’d learned earlier, Cavendish wisely chose to retreat with everyone else.
But after moving only a dozen meters, he looked back—
A giant golden hand had already reached out through the air and seized the incoming flying slash.
Boom!
The enormous slash came to an abrupt stop.
The next instant—
The golden fingers clenched.
The ten-meter slash shattered into countless fragments.
Violent winds exploded in every direction.
Cavendish’s pupils shrank.
Before he could recover from the shock—
Hundreds of golden hands blossomed behind Lucas like a blooming lotus.
An endless rain of fists poured down upon Weevil.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Weevil, who had been charging straight in, froze as countless attacks filled his vision.
He hurriedly raised his naginata and swung it wildly.
In an instant, his blade collided head-on with the barrage unleashed by the Hundred-Type Guanyin.
Explosions erupted one after another.
The resulting shockwaves shredded everything within a hundred-meter radius.
Even after retreating several hundred meters away, Momonga could barely follow the exchange with his eyes.
He had just stopped to watch—
Only for Smoker to drag him even farther away.
An absurd thought surfaced in Momonga’s mind.
Even from several hundred meters away... we’re still not safe?
Miss Bakkin’s expression also stiffened.
In her eyes, this newly appointed Admiral should have been easy prey.
Weevil was supposed to crush him effortlessly.
Instead...
Every attack had been blocked.
This was completely beyond her expectations.
Still, there was no turning back now.
Even if Weevil was about to become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, he had to earn some prestige first.
Gripping her cane tightly, Miss Bakkin snorted.
"Hmph!"
"So this is all a Marine Admiral can do?"
"You’re lowering the standards for Admirals!"
"Is that so?"
Lucas replied calmly.
He looked toward Weevil, who was still locked in combat with the Hundred-Type Guanyin.
Golden light burst from Lucas’s body once again.
But this time—
The golden radiance was instantly dyed crimson.
"Wrath."
The single word left Lucas’s lips.
The crimson aura condensed into a towering, eight-meter-tall Wrathful Vajra.
The moment it appeared—
Countless hidden fists emerged from thin air.
With furious eyes glaring wide open, the Wrathful Vajra unleashed an overwhelming barrage toward Weevil.
Combined with the relentless assault of the Hundred-Type Guanyin—
The two colossal manifestations descended together like twin guardian deities.
An unstoppable storm of fists and palms engulfed Weevil completely.
Moments later—
Hundreds...
Then thousands...
Of strikes finally broke through his defense.
They slammed directly into his chest.
BOOM!!
The tremendous force blasted Weevil away.
Like a cannonball, he flew several hundred meters before crashing headfirst into the town’s bell tower.
A massive shockwave swept across the ruins.
Miss Bakkin was completely dumbfounded.
Was this some kind of Guanyin-and-Vajra double-team beating?
Everything unfolding before her had exceeded even her wildest expectations.
Watching the endless barrage continue pursuing Weevil, she hurriedly shouted,
"Weevil!"
"Use all your Armament Haki!"
"These attacks are nothing more than a tickle to you!"
"Yes, Mom!"
Weevil struggled back to his feet.
Jet-black Armament Haki rapidly spread across his body.
At that exact moment—
An indescribably terrifying aura erupted from Lucas.
Crimson Conqueror’s Haki burst forth like a tidal wave.
Even thousands of meters away, Vice Admiral Momonga’s face turned pale.
The nearby Marines staggered under the pressure.
Looking up at the colossal crimson qilin coiling across the sky, everyone felt a chill run down their spines.
An overwhelming sense of impending doom washed over them.
Was this really Haki?
It felt less like Haki...
And more like a natural disaster.
Most terrifying of all—
From beginning to end...
The newly appointed Admiral hadn’t taken a single step.
Standing beneath the Haki Beast Manifestation herself, Miss Bakkin’s face turned deathly white.
As someone from the previous era, she wasn’t particularly powerful.
But she certainly knew how to judge strength.
Looking at the crimson qilin dominating the heavens, she hurriedly cried out,
"Admiral Lucas!"
"Weevil is the World Government’s chosen candidate for the Seven Warlords of the Sea!"
"He’s just a child!"
"You can’t do this to him!"
"A child?"
Lucas took another sip of strong liquor.
"I know."
"He’s just a child."
"I haven’t even lifted a finger."
He glanced toward the crimson qilin overhead and said calmly,
"It just seems..."
"...that even the heavens can’t stand to watch anymore."
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus Chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus Chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 70+ Chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/Sagamaster789