In the distance.
Deputy Indigo and the other members of the Sky Pirates who had rushed over from nearby were stunned.
"Hey, am I seeing things? Are you... are you kidding me..."
"Master Shiki... was hit by a punch..."
"Just one punch?"
Many people trembled all over and subconsciously took a few steps back.
They couldn't believe what they were seeing.
The legendary pirate who was once as famous as Roger and Whitebeard, the Golden Lion Shiki who had single-handedly destroyed half of Marinford... the admiral of the Sky Fleet whom they admired and respected from the bottom of their hearts, who they wanted to follow to conquer and control the world...
couldn't even take a punch from Shano!
—
In the deep pit.
The Golden Lion was breathing heavily, his eyes went black, and he almost fainted on the spot. He struggled to stand up and half-knelt on the ground, blood constantly oozing from the corners of his mouth.
It hurts!
It hurts so much, it hurts like a piercing pain!
Ever since escaping Impel Down, how many years… how many years had he not felt this level of pain!
He lowered his head, staring at his deeply sunken chest, his eyes filled with disbelief.
"How is it possible… this kind of power…"
Golden Lion suddenly looked up, staring intently at Shano in the air, gritting his teeth. "How the hell did you do that?!"
He recognized that punch!
It was Garp!
Garp's signature move, how could he actually do it, and the power he unleashed was no less than Garp at his peak!
"What, have you finally recognized the difference?"
Shano looked down at the Golden Lion from above, saying indifferently,
"It seems that Charlotte Lingling was still holding back when fighting you. She doesn't know\... the legendary Golden Lion, the legendary hero of the past, is long dead!"
"In his place, there's nothing more than a maggot, full of resentment towards the World Government, yet afraid to even confront it head-on. He only dares to hide in the gutter, working like a cunning worm, using the innocent civilians of the East China Sea as a punching bag!"
Not worth mentioning!
"..." The Golden Lion stared at Shano, his breathing seemingly stagnant at that moment.
What did this brat call me?
Maggot...
Maggot???!!!
Those two words, like a ferocious tiger or a poisonous insect, gnawed furiously at the Golden Lion's heart. His eyes instantly turned red, bloodshot, and his whole body trembled uncontrollably.
"Maggots?"
A vein bulged on the Golden Lion's forehead, and he spat out the cigar in his mouth with a spit, roaring angrily:
"You little brat! How dare you... Why? How dare you call me that!"
His plan was correct!
Even if there really was something wrong, it wasn't the place for this little brat, barely born when Roger died, to point it out!
Boom!
Along with his rage, a terrifying aura suddenly erupted from him!
"The East China Sea is just a starting point."
The Golden Lion slowly stood up from the deep pit, blood flowing faster and faster from the wound on his chest, but his aura continued to rise.
"Stop being so self-righteous! My ultimate dream has always been to dominate this sea, this entire world!"
Oh?
Shano raised his eyebrows slightly and said calmly, "Finally, you've shown some strength? Alas, it's all self-deception... This level is far from enough."
"Whether it's enough or not is not up to you to decide!!!"
The Golden Lion sneered, suddenly extending its arms and clasping them together before its chest!
"Lion's Might - Earth Roll!"
Boom!
The entire floating island suddenly began to tremble violently.
The ground seemed to writhe as if alive. Countless pieces of rubble and dirt shot up into the air, coalescing in the air. In an instant, they transformed into seven or eight giant lion heads, nearly a hundred meters tall!
Roar!
These beasts of earth and stone bared their fangs, biting at Shano from all directions.
Shano fell from the air to the ground, and faced the giant lion heads biting at him fiercely, not even bothering to raise an eyelid.
"Is that all?"
He crossed his arms across his chest, not even bothering to adopt a defensive stance, and let the first stone lion pounce and devour his head fiercely—
Snap!
The stone lion's fangs shattered instantly, and then its entire head, as if struck by the hardest metal in the world, cracked from the top, crumbling in the blink of an eye.
Immediately afterwards, the other stone lions followed, roaring.
The outcome was identical.
The moment they touched Shano's body, the stone lions exploded one after another, turning into a cloud of dust.
Under the Golden Lion's incredulous gaze, they scattered and fluttered down.
"Don't embarrass yourself with these childish mud-playing tricks."
Shano remained motionless, shaking his head.
"Try to change your signature moves, Shiki. Or perhaps nothing will work. Your Haki is as weak as your convictions... Whether it's Armament Haki or Conqueror Haki, without the powerful Haki, the power of the Floating-Floating Fruit alone cannot pose any threat to me!"
The old man seemed unable to even wield Conqueror Haki.
In his mind, the outcome of this battle was predetermined from the start.
But having an opponent this weak is truly too boring.
"..."
Golden Lion stared at Shano, his expression darkening. He was silent for a moment, then suddenly took a deep breath and shouted,
"Kid! Your physique is indeed formidable! But don't be too arrogant. I'm not just a user with special abilities, I'm also a renowned dual-blade swordsman!"
Watch carefully!
Boom!
He kicked his broken legs hard, and like a cannonball, he soared into the sky. The two famous swords that served as prosthetic limbs, Yingshi and Muku, glowed coldly in the moonlight.
"Two-Sword Style: Lion's Thousand-Kiri Valley!"
Buzz!
The Golden Lion's slashing speed was incredibly fast. In the instant the words fell, dozens of golden slashes intertwined into a web, illuminating the entire night sky like daylight!
"That's starting to look more like it."
Shano finally piqued his interest, his right hand reaching for the katana Masamune behind him.
Swordsmanship?
Since it's swordsmanship...
then he'd better meet it with swordsmanship as well.
His eyes were cold, and just as the countless golden slashes were about to strike him, the slender blade suddenly unsheathed!
"Divine Retreat!"
Clang!
A simple horizontal slash streaked across the night sky.
The seemingly slow blade flashed, but the moment it contacted the slashing web, it erupted with terrifying power. Black and red lightning exploded, and all the golden slashes shattered at that moment like fragile glass!
How could this be?
The Golden Lion's mouth opened wide, his eyes almost popping out in shock.
It wasn't just the power, but also the sword technique...
this one...
he had seen it before!
"Roger!" He shouted subconsciously, "You actually inherited his beliefs! How come you know everything, little brat!"
As he said this, the terrifying aftermath of the divine avoidance that had not been completely removed also bombarded him.
Puff!
Blood splattered.
Even though the Golden Lion had tried his best to activate the Armament Haki defense, the shoulder blade and collarbone below the neck were still cut with deep wounds that could be seen to the bone.
"Ugh!"
He groaned, staggered back a few steps, and his face turned pale.
The gap... is too big!
At this point, no matter how hard he tried, no matter how unwilling he was, he had to admit that whether it was physical skills, domineering or swordsmanship...
the young man in front of him was far superior to him!
In his current state, he had no chance of winning at all!
"That's about it."
Shano stepped forward slowly, the tip of the knife pointing at the Golden Lion's throat:
"It's no use always shouting about revenge on the world, dominating the world, etc. You can deceive others, but you can't deceive your own beliefs, your heart!"
"If it were Shiki back then, the Shiki who was full of vigor and was truly qualified to compete with Roger, would he run out and try to take advantage of Kaido and me when we were exhausted from fighting, and try to gain fame? Would he pin all his hopes and all his time on something as ridiculous as IQ drugs?!"
"..."
Golden Lion was stunned, speechless.
His gaze gradually blurred, as if lost in some memory.
Shano's words were like a sharp knife, piercing his heart.
Yes.
When had he become so despicable?
Was it after the defeat at the Battle of Et-Wol? After Impel Down's self-destruction?
Or was it during these twenty years of hiding in the shadows, day after day, self-absorbed, pursuing those ridiculous research projects?
"Roger... Whitebeard..."
Golden Lion muttered to himself, a flicker of trance in his eyes.
"One of them is long dead, the other is terminally ill but still fighting to stay alive,"
Shano said coldly. "But whether living or dead, they never gave up their faith, while you, lost in the anxiety of gain and loss, have completely lost yourself."
Lost...?
"Don't look down on me!!!"
Golden Lion suddenly roared, his bloodstained right hand suddenly reaching up to grab the wooden rudder above his head, a glint of determined madness in his eyes.
"I'm... Golden Lion!!!"
Tsk!
Amidst the ripping sound of flesh and blood, he forcibly yanked out the ship's rudder, plucked from the sky during the Battle of Et-Wol and embedded in his skull for decades!
A torrent of blood instantly gushed out, staining half his face crimson.
The Golden Lion's body swayed, nearly stumbling to the ground, but his aura suddenly surged!
"Lord Shiki!"
Indigo, who had been trembling behind a large rock, suddenly widened his eyes, poked his head out, and cried out in terror,
"How can this happen! You can't pull out that rudder! Your wound will..."
"Shut up!"
The Golden Lion smirked, wiping the blood from his face. His previously distracted eyes suddenly became clear and sharp.
"Of course I know. Pulling this thing out will kill me no matter what! But, but! I'd rather die like this, in glory, than be beaten and scolded like a dog by a young scion!"
He continued pulling!
This time, what he wanted to pull out were swords!
The two swords that had accompanied him from obscurity to the pinnacle, dominating the sea!
"Ying Shi! Mu Ku!"
The Golden Lion roared, and suddenly pulled out the two famous swords from his broken legs. Blood spurted out like a fountain on the spot.
His body trembled violently, as if he would fall down at any time.
But in the end, he did not fall down.
I'm back, I'm all back!
"This is... the real me!"
The Golden Lion, who had lost the support of his legs, relied on the power of the Floating Fruit to float in the air.
He held the sword in both hands, his body covered in blood. The domineering aura that had not been fully released for a long time completely erupted at this moment, and countless thick and terrifying black and red lightning bolts leaped wildly around his body.
"Come on, brat!"
The Golden Lion laughed wildly, crossing his swords before swinging them vigorously to the sides.
"I'm a stubborn old man like you, a young man, and I won't listen to your lectures. So much for you! From now on, I'll show you the true might of a lion!"
With this movement, a terrifying, almost twisted force spread out in all directions!
Seas of clouds, lakes, sand and gravel, mist... all seemed summoned, boiling violently or rising into the air, condensing into countless giant lions, all imbued with an extremely rich Armament Haki.
"Secret Technique: Lion's Might!"
Roar!!!
The countless dark, furious lions raised their heads and roared in unison. Amidst earth-shattering roars, they pounced simultaneously.
They shattered the void, devouring even light in their path. The entire massive floating island wailed under the weight of this force.
And it wasn't over yet!
The Golden Lion grasped his swords with both hands, pouring all his strength, along with the domineering black and red lightning swirling around him, into his twin blades. Ying Shi and Mu Ku suddenly blazed with dazzling golden light.
"Two-Sword Style: Lion's Song: Myriad Worlds!"
Swish!
A golden slash, piercing heaven and earth, suddenly erupted, following closely behind the mighty lions and heading straight for Shano. Wherever it passed, space warped and clouds shattered, as if clenching the entire world in two!
"I finally feel it..."
Shano stared silently.
That legendary aura...
"As a token of my respect for your final spirit, I'll also give it my all."
He sheathed the sword.
Then, with a grin, he solemnly extended his right fist and clenched it.
Boom!!!
A dazzling cross-shaped black and red lightning suddenly erupted from Shano's right fist.
The supremely powerful Conqueror's Haki and Armament Haki blended perfectly at that moment, forming a spiraling storm of destruction from the fist's edge in an instant!
Even the clouds of the night sky were stirred by this momentum, scattering in all directions, reflecting the radiant, boundless Milky Way.
"This move is the latest technique I've developed recently, combining old man Garp's Galaxy Impact with my own boxing techniques."
Shano raised his head and spoke in a deep voice. "Golden Lion, you are the first to witness this move, and you are worthy."
He knew nothing about swordsmanship, so he could only imitate the Divine Protection he had received from Red Hair, without any modification.
But his boxing skills... were different!
From that small orange orchard, he had practiced countless boxing techniques since childhood, enduring countless hardships and sweat, honing countless calluses, and gritting his teeth step by step to reach his current state.
He was the world's only true boxing master, on par with Garp, a true master of the art!
Therefore, Galaxy Impact can be improved at will, blended and complemented with other boxing techniques, and reborn into a new move that is more suitable for oneself and can burst out with full power!
Its name is...
"Galaxy—"
As Shano roared, the muscles in his right arm expanded to their limit, veins bulging like a dragon. The already shattered ground beneath his feet collapsed completely, and a web of thick, spider-web-like cracks spread out, spreading to the edge of the entire floating island.
"Hang upside down!"
—Boom!!!
The moment his fist swung out, time seemed to stand still.
Immediately, a black-red beam of light, over a hundred meters in diameter, pierced through the sky and earth, shattering everything in its path like a mirror.
The charging giant lions in armor-colored armor were vaporized the moment they came into contact with the beam, leaving not even a trace of residue.
The golden slash that followed did create a brief stalemate, but that was all.
In a few seconds, the golden sword energy shattered piece by piece, while the thick black-red beam of light, with its might remaining almost undiminished, completely engulfed the Golden Lion, its arms outstretched and roaring.
"Lord Shiki!!!"
Indigo cried out in grief, tears streaming down his face.
Farther away, many of his men, who had already fled to the edge of the battlefield, turned their heads and shuddered at the sight. Some covered their faces and wept, others wailed.
Smoke and dust filled the air for a long time before dissipating.
The Golden Lion's mangled body now lay quietly at the bottom of a crater over a hundred meters deep.
His arms had completely vanished, and a horrific, penetrating wound stretched from his chest to his waist, revealing the earth beneath.
Yet, a smile of relief played on his lips.
Seventeen years...
seventeen years of fleeing, those ridiculous seventeen years of plotting revenge...
all over.
And now, he was free.
The old era would eventually pass, and he didn't know where the new wave would lead. But there was no doubt that the name shining at the crest of this wave was Shano...
and perhaps the entire future era would also be called Shano!
To die at the hands of this fellow\...
wasn't such a shame!
"Hahaha, Roger... I finally get to see you..."
With a final whisper, this legend of the past stared at the sky with wide-open eyes and a laugh. His body gradually stiffened and he fell silent.
Snap.
Ying Shi and Mu Ku, stuck at the bottom of the pit, suddenly seemed to have reached their limit. They simultaneously buckled and broke, falling gently to the ground.