Carl's technique was clearly inspired by Doflamingo's "God Thread: 16 Holy Bullets," but in this timeline, Doflamingo was no longer the wielder of the String-String Fruit, so he had never developed such an attack.
Staring at the eight dark, gleaming spikes behind Carl, Luffy's face showed a stunned expression. Only now did he realize—what had he been feeling proud of just now?
He had barely managed to block one of Carl's casual attacks after struggling with everything he had. Was that really something worth celebrating?
Now, facing an attack at least eight times stronger than before, how was he supposed to block it?
With his life?
He'd probably owe Carl a few more lives at that rate.
At this moment, Luffy instinctively thought of Joy Boy, but Joy Boy remained silent, as if he were mocking him. This deepened Luffy's sense of humiliation.
Carl raised a single finger and slowly rotated it. The eight dark spikes behind him surged forward, pointing directly at Luffy.
Luffy swallowed hard. The wound on his shoulder was still bleeding, reminding him that even in his current Nika form, he could not withstand those dark spikes.
If he were struck in a vital area, even the "Drums of Liberation" wouldn't be able to save him.
Before he could figure out how to respond, a scream from Lindbergh reached his ears.
In the distance, Lindbergh staggered backward, and a furry arm fell from the sky, landing before him.
Holding a long sword engulfed in purple flames, Lucia stepped forward, her face appearing eerily cold in the firelight. Like a Valkyrie, she approached Lindbergh one step at a time.
Having lost another arm, Lindbergh could barely maintain his balance and collapsed onto the ground.
As Lucia drew closer, despair surfaced on Lindbergh's face.
From the initial explosion to the subsequent close combat, the Revolutionary Army had suffered devastating casualties. Now, badly injured, he had to face Lucia—an Admiral.
Koala had been right. Today was the end of the Revolutionary Army.
He hadn't expected the situation to turn around so quickly. Not long ago, they had been attacking Garp. But now, the Marines had completely encircled them with overwhelming force.
Watching Luffy struggling against Carl, Lindbergh's last mental defenses collapsed, and he muttered in a daze,
"We still couldn't do it... How much longer will this world be ruled by those damn Celestial Dragons...?"
Swish!
A cold blade pressed against Lindbergh's neck. He looked up in confusion and met Lucia's eerie purple eyes, filled with a gaze of utter disdain, as if looking at garbage.
"A bunch of rabble... You really thought you could challenge the rule of God?"
Lindbergh let out a bitter laugh.
"God... You mean the Celestial Dragons?"
"You misunderstand. The only one worthy of the title of God is our Young Master."
As soon as she finished speaking, a streak of purple light flashed.
A bloodied, furry head flew into the air.
Blood sprayed from Lindbergh's severed neck as his body collapsed onto the ground.
His death marked the fall of the last high-ranking Revolutionary Army officer, sounding the final death knell for their faction.
The few remaining revolutionaries, still resisting in vain, could no longer hold out. The advancing Marines cut them down on the spot, turning them into nothing but minced flesh. Their fates were gruesome beyond words.
Now, from Fleet Admiral down to the lowest soldier, the Marines were almost entirely composed of hawks. Any enemy had to be marked beforehand—otherwise, the default was to leave no survivors.
This time, not only did they leave no survivors, but they didn't even leave intact corpses.
Because they all carried a burning hatred—they wanted revenge for Vice Admiral Garp!
On the battlefield, only Luffy and the hidden Nami, Chopper, and Brook remained. After the total annihilation of the Revolutionary Army, Nami and the others were soon discovered.
Brook and Chopper immediately stepped forward to protect Nami. Chopper quickly pulled out a Rumble Ball, about to swallow it when Luffy suddenly shouted,
"Chopper! Rumble Ball!!"
Chopper froze for a moment, and in that instant of hesitation, Luffy stomped the ground with all his strength, launching himself like a white flash toward Chopper.
At the same time—
The eight dark spikes exploded forward, chasing after Luffy. He had to twist and contort his body repeatedly to dodge them, but the gap he had created earlier was quickly closing.
Seeing the situation, Chopper had no time to hesitate. He quickly pulled out a handful of Rumble Balls and tossed them into the air.
Luffy immediately widened his mouth, diving forward to swallow them all in one gulp.
The moment he swallowed them, the eight dark spikes pierced into his back, emitting sickening squelching sounds.
Nami's eyes widened in horror as she screamed,
"LUFFY!!!"
Luffy's eyes clenched shut, his blood staining his back red.
Carl narrowed his eyes, pressing down with his palm. The dark spikes carried Luffy downward, slamming him into the earth. His figure disappeared into the rising dust and debris.
Moments later, a blinding white pillar of light erupted from beneath the ground, piercing the sky.
Around the pillar, countless streaks of Conqueror's Haki crackled like lightning. Within the light, a figure could be seen, standing tall.
Carl clicked his tongue, raising a single arm. A tide of darkness surged around him, converging into a massive black pillar mirroring the white one. The darkness engulfed Carl completely.
In that instant, heaven and earth were divided—one pillar black, the other white—like the descent of the divine.
Space twisted eerily, and from within the dark pillar, a black sword shot out, aiming straight for the white light.
With a thunderous explosion, the white pillar shattered into fragments of light, scattering into the air. Luffy reappeared before everyone's eyes.
His head was lowered, his hands tightly gripping the black blade. From his wounded palm, instead of blood, thick white steam rose.
The black sword trembled violently before melting into a dark liquid, retreating back into the black pillar.
As the light and darkness retracted, they condensed into two jet-like streams of black energy, hovering behind Carl. He held the cursed blade, Muramasa, and quietly observed Luffy.
Luffy slowly raised his head. His eyes had become two orbs of glowing white light.
Across his exposed skin, cracks like fissures glowed with an eerie white radiance.
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+200 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg