Chapter 160: The Strongest!

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Mary Geoise.

"Idiots!" Saint Marcus Mars frowned, irritated, but his hands moved swiftly. These two were valuable assets, part of their fighting force. Losing them before they could fully demonstrate their abilities would be a waste.

A massive green clock materialized behind him, its hands spinning in reverse.

The grievous wounds on the two Army Admirals, the near-fatal slashes that had nearly cleaved them in two, began to mend, their internal injuries reversing until they vanished as if they had never existed.

This was Saint Marcus Mars's power, the source of his confidence, the ability that allowed his forces to fight with reckless abandon.

A time-manipulating power even more potent than spatial manipulation. The power of Temporal Rewind.

He could restore anything within his range to a specific point in time. As long as they weren't killed instantly and remained within his temporal domain, any injury could be reversed.

"Cough… Cough…"

The two Army Admirals coughed violently, their eyes snapping open, filled with rage.

"Damn it! I almost died! I won't forgive him for this humiliation!"

"Both of you, stop this reckless bravado. Admit it, none of us can defeat him alone. He really is the Strongest." The Stoic, Hulking Admiral spoke gravely.

"You're the one who's being defeatist! So what if he's strong? He's still just a man. And all men eventually tire. With the Elder's healing, we can wear him down."

A cruel smile spread across the faces of the two near-death Admirals, their eyes gleaming with a renewed, if slightly deranged, enthusiasm.

"hahaha… Hunting the world's strongest monster, eh? This is getting interesting!" Isaac, flexed his repaired body, a predatory grin stretching across his face as he viewed Ian as his prey.

"What are you waiting for?! I've got him! Attack!" One of the Army Admirals roared from the heart of the battle.

The blood-soaked earth churned and rippled. The Admiral emerged from the ground, his earthen hands clamping around Ian's ankles like iron shackles.

The figure before Ian dissolved into mud. The Dice-Dice Fruit activated. Ian's index finger transformed into a razor-sharp blade, a flash of cutting intent radiating from it.

With a flick, the earthen hands crumbled and dissolved into mud, devoid of blood. More hands erupted from the ground, coiling around Ian like venomous snakes.

"A Logia user, huh? You must be new to this power. Otherwise, you wouldn't be bothering with a Seastone battlesuit." Ian narrowed his eyes.

The Mud-Mud Fruit, the power of the Supernova Caribou, had fallen into the World Government's hands. They had gone to great lengths to prepare for him.

Logia users could transform into their element, becoming intangible to physical attacks. However, they weren't invincible.

"How long do you intend to hide?" Ian asked.

A blizzard swept across the battlefield, freezing the ground solid, including the moisture within the mud.

While Ian currently wielded Monet's Snow-Snow Fruit, a power inferior to Aokiji's Ice-Ice Fruit, his immense spiritual pressure allowed him to amplify its effects far beyond its normal limits.

"Ground Secco (Eroding Cycle!)"

Crocodile's Sand-Sand Fruit manifested, transforming the frozen ground into swirling sand. With a deafening roar, the earth cracked and split. The sand coalesced into solid rock, encasing a desiccated corpse within.

"Cough!"

The Army Admiral coughed painfully, his body reeking of decay as he was forced from the earth. He coughed up black blood, his face grim and covered in dust.

To prevent Saint Marcus Mars from reversing his injuries, he activated his Bomb-Bomb Fruit, his hand clenching tightly.

The rock around him exploded into sand as he perished, his soul instantly devoured by Ian, fueling his template fusion.

He had tried to resist, but Ian's overwhelming spiritual pressure had crushed his will.

"Cough! You call that 'got him'?!" Isaac coughed up blood, glaring at the scene. "That bastard… he's a monster!"

The other two Admirals, who had narrowly escaped death, no longer held any illusions of superiority. Only shock and fear remained.

❁❁❁❁

"Allow me." Another Admiral stepped forward, stopping about a hundred meters from Ian. He slammed his hands onto the ground. In a flash of green light, his body began to transform, growing exponentially, his legs merging with the earth.

In moments, he had become a towering tree. Ian scoffed, his form blurring as he appeared before the colossal tree.

He pressed his hand, wreathed in flames and lightning, against the trunk. With a crack, the tree exploded into splinters. But the transformation had just begun. The fragments, upon touching the ground, took root, sprouting into new trees.

The once barren landscape transformed into a lush forest, its branches swaying ominously.

"Green Bull's Mori Mori no Mi (Forest-Forest Fruit). I must say, the World Government's intelligence network is quite extensive." Ian mused, his brow raised slightly.

Now, even this power had been acquired by the World Government.

Rustling sounds filled the forest. It wasn't the World Government's forces moving, but the forest itself. Sentient branches and vines snaked across the ground, weaving a deadly net around Ian. But before they could reach him, they were incinerated by the intense heat and lightning radiating from his body.

"It's useless. This is my Infinite Forest Domain!" Aramaki's voice echoed through the trees. "Is that all you've got?" He sneered, confident in his power.

The forest reminded Ian of Hashirama Senju's "Wood Release: Mokuton Jukai Koutan" from the Naruto universe. However, this Admiral's forest was far less potent.

Even with powerful Devil Fruits, mastery took time and practice. Luffy and his crew had spent years honing their abilities. The Forest-Forest Fruit, in theory, could achieve a level of power comparable to Hashirama's Wood Release, but it would take time and training.

"Don't get cocky, brat!"

Enraged by Ian's dismissive tone, the Admiral unleashed the full force of his power, the forest writhing around him. But a sizzling sound ripped through the air as the entire forest was cleaved in two, the rings of the trees exposed.

Ian stood calmly, his index finger still extended, the source of the devastating slash.

"Gehehehehe!" A grating laugh echoed from all directions.

"It's useless! I'm immortal! No matter how many times you destroy me, I will regenerate!" Aramaki boasted, the trees reforming, new branches sprouting from the severed trunks. Ian spoke, his voice chilling.

"I'm curious… Can your precious wood regenerate in magma?"

"What do you mean?" Aramaki's voice faltered, a sense of foreboding washing over him.

"This." Ian said simply.

The Heat-Heat Fruit surged within him, a torrent of golden flames erupting from his body. He pressed his hands against the ground.

The earth melted, transforming into a swirling pool of black and red magma.

"AAAAAHHHHH!"

Screams erupted as the forest ignited, consumed by the inferno. In mere seconds, the lush vegetation transformed into a raging firestorm.

The entire forest was reduced to ash, nothing remaining but smoldering embers. The Admiral, consumed by the magma, perished instantly.

Not even ashes remained, leaving nothing for the Saint Marcus Mars to rewind. Ian emerged from the inferno, his body wreathed in flames.

Isaac, undeterred, lunged at Ian, his cybernetic muscles venting steam as he propelled his fist forward with tremendous force.

"Haven't you learned your lesson?"

Ian didn't even look at Isaac. He casually backhanded the cyborg, the air cracking around his hand as the blow landed, sending Isaac crashing to the ground with an earth-shattering boom.

The ground collapsed, forming a massive crater.

Bzzzt!

Two high-pitched whines filled the air, a sonic attack that caused Ian to flinch slightly. "Got him!"

"Die!" The last Admiral shouted triumphantly, two glowing swords, one blue, one red, piercing Ian's body.

But it was only an afterimage. It seemed this Admiral hadn't been granted any special powers, relying instead on technological enhancements and physical augmentations like Isaac.

"Lightsabers? You think you're Jedi?" Ian's mocking voice echoed beside the Admiral. He delivered a swift kick, shattering the man's internal organs.

Splatter!

Blood sprayed across the battlefield as the Admiral's body exploded, beyond any hope of restoration.

A massive shadow fell over Ian. A giant, hundreds of meters tall, swung its massive hand down at him. Ian didn't flinch.

He flicked his index finger, unleashing a devastating slash that ripped through the giant's body, splitting it in two. The giant exploded in a shower of sparks, and Isaac, piloting the massive construct, was thrown clear, grievously injured.

Ian sighed. Isaac's persistence was remarkable, rivaling even Ace's stubbornness. He had spared him once, and now he was back for more, convinced of his own invincibility.

With the fall of the three Army Admirals, utterly defeated by Ian's overwhelming power, not even given a chance for revival, the tide of the battle shifted dramatically.

The remaining World Government forces, including the two Gorōsei and Isaac, were scared.

"Damn it! What kind of monster is this?! We have Admiral-level Fighters, but we can't even retreat?!"

"Is this 'The Strongest' of this era?"

Fear gripped the World Government forces, many contemplating escape.

"Don't be afraid!"

"Just avoid being killed instantly. My power will keep you safe!" Saint Marcus Mars reassured them, his voice lacking its usual confidence.

"Easy for you to say! If we could avoid being one-shot, they wouldn't be dead… You have no idea what it's like facing that monster!" one of the fighters retorted, Isaac nodding in agreement.

"We will join the fight this time," Saint Topman said

"Fine. I'll trust you one more time."

With the Gorōsei joining the fray, a flurry of Devil Fruit powers erupted across the battlefield.

But against overwhelming power, even the most exotic abilities were useless. Explosions of blood and gore painted the sky.

splatter! splatter! splatter!

One by one, the World Government's strongest fighters fell, each dispatched with a single blow. In a matter of minutes, the elite force they had assembled was decimated.

Ian hadn't even drawn his Zanpakuto or unleashed his monstrous awakened form. The remaining fighters began to retreat, their fear amplified by the memory of the slash that had bisected an island in the New World. He was a master swordsman, too.

"Damn... Gorōsei! I'm out of here!" Isaac screamed, fleeing for his life, finally accepting his defeat.

"That monster!"

"Retreat!"

The two Gorōsei, their composure finally broken, turned and fled.

Ian stood calmly, his hands clasped behind his back, as he walked towards them. He unleashed a series of white orbs that struck the fleeing figures, immobilizing them.

The Slow-Slow Fruit.

...

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