Chapter 548: Clash of Titans: Fire, Steel, and Destiny

“Im, centuries ago this sea was at the cutting edge of technology. So why did things regress so badly under your rule?”

Karl slammed his fist into the dragon’s head as he spoke.

“Whoosh!”

Clang!

A tail over a thousand meters long lashed out at the crucial moment, but Karl’s trusty halberd appeared just in time to block the blow, though the sheer power behind it sent him flying.

“My goal? Naturally, complete control over the world.”

“Centuries ago, I discovered advanced technology could stand up to Devil Fruits—sometimes surpassing them. As I tightened my grip on this land, there was simply no room for technology to grow anymore.”

As she spoke, Im suddenly looked up toward the clouds where Vegapunk was staring back.

“No wonder they call you the greatest mind—your Brain-Brain Fruit let you create such devastating weapons in mere decades. Their power even rivals the Heavenly King, but with much fewer drawbacks.”

Karl flexed his right wrist.

Im’s transformed strength was beyond anything he’d faced. She’d managed to numb his arm even through the halberd.

He realized it had been ages since he’d fought a battle like this.

Boom!

Black flames burst from Im’s body, turning the ground all around into molten lava.

“So that’s it. You want to capture Vegapunk just to suppress science in this world.”

“Exactly. Though I didn’t expect a wild card like you would show up.”

“On this sea, you’re the first to put science above all else.”

There was a trace of regret in Im’s voice.

If she’d known things would end up like this, she never would have let Vegapunk join that organization; she should have just kidnapped him outright.

If things had gone as planned, the Heavenly King’s attack alone would be enough to wipe out Karl and his allies—no deadlock, no stalemate.

“Divine Departure!”

“Bone Fist!”

…

Clang! Crash!

Roger, Garp, and the Red-Haired Pirates, along with Hawk Eyes—all masters of physical combat—rushed onto the battlefield and launched an all-out assault on Im’s legs.

But Im’s body was freakishly tough, even more so than the war machines they’d just fought.

“Thinking ants can bring down an elephant—how utterly naive.”

Their attacks weren’t totally useless, especially the ones laced with Conqueror’s Haki, which left tiny wounds on Im’s body. But those marks vanished almost instantly thanks to Im’s monstrous healing speed.

“Roar!”

She belched a torrent of black flames straight at Garp and the others on the ground.

Instantly, the earth melted into lava, rocks churned, and waves of heat swept across the land.

This was one of her real abilities—a true area-wide killing move. As long as her energy held, she could destroy an entire island in minutes.

But such fire had no effect on Karl—he had the Titan Bloodline after all. For him, these flames were just a way to warm his hands.

At most, they turned the battlefield into a sea of fire while man and dragon clashed relentlessly amid the scorching heat.

“Getting old, huh? I never thought there’d be a fight like this that we couldn’t even join directly.”

Roger mused from one side, a hint of nostalgia in his voice.

No one would have guessed that Im was a Mythical Zoan user; her massive body made every attack nearly unstoppable.

Karl and Im’s fight drew farther and farther from the heart of the plaza.

Mist rolled across the sky, mountains heaved like ocean waves. Some buildings soared high as if thrown by giants while entire swaths of earth caved in, sending hundreds—sometimes thousands—of tons of stone crashing in great surges.

Deep beneath the Red Line, swarms of Sea Kings bared their fangs, relentlessly assaulting the continent’s very foundation.

“What’s happening up there?”

Shirahoshi gazed upwards, hoping she could glimpse the battle raging on the surface.

To shake an entire island like this had to mean something was terribly wrong above. Even her fellow Sea Kings couldn’t manage it—Red Line’s foundations were simply too vast.

After hours of excavation, they’d barely managed to carve out even one percent.

Even with Zunesha helping from the other side, together they’d only cleared about five percent.

Something big must be happening up there. Only that could make this massive island tremble like this.

“Die!”

Im unleashed her deadliest move. Mouth blazing with fire, her dragon claws locked tight onto Karl’s shoulders, tail wrapping around his legs to slam him to the ground.

With her jaws wide open, she went straight for his head.

Crunch!

Karl thrust the tip of his halberd into Im’s mouth. Decades of forging had made this weapon so sturdy that even Im could only scratch faint bite marks onto the spearhead.

Kicking with his hind legs and gripping her tail with his right hand, Karl ripped the tail straight off of Im’s body.

“Roar!”

Im screamed in pain.

Gouts of black blood splattered everywhere, hissing as it hit the ground—eating through earth and stone, dissolving everything it touched.

Realizing their attacks were futile, Roger and the others hurried back to the main battlefield to help Luffy and his crew finish off the war machines and the remaining Five Elders.

Even Whitebeard, Kaido, and Charlotte Linlin rejoined the fight after Karl managed to draw Im away, forcing the Five Elders back as the tide turned across the plaza.

Im’s agonized roar instantly drew the pirates’ attention.

“Is that Karl’s real strength?”

“Even that giant black dragon had its tail ripped clean off by Karl.”

“Father really is the strongest.”

“Suck it up!”

Clang!

With a sharp, clear ring, Karl swung his halberd in a flash and cleaved open half of Im’s head, blood gushing everywhere.

For the first time, Im truly felt the approach of death.

“Why?”

“You didn’t use any special power, but why can I feel my life force draining away?”

Im sensed her very essence pouring out each time Karl’s blade split her wounds. Earlier, the loss hadn’t been obvious since the injuries were small, but now, one blow had taken a tenth of her life force.

She’d thought she was simply healing her wounds, but that last strike alone cost her dearly.

If things kept up, ten more hits from Karl and she’d be dead for sure.

Karl didn’t bother with words—he kept pressing forward, slashing Im again and again with his halberd.

He’d guessed the reason why he could seize her life force so directly.

It had to be the devouring skill from the Liuxing Template.

Legend had it Liuxing was swallowed by the Demon World Mother, Teya, but clawed his way back out—gaining all her original power and becoming the new Demon World Lord himself. It only made sense he carried a trace of devouring power now.