"One Piece:The True Codex"Chapter 350: Tearing Apart
As William spoke, steam continuously poured from his mouth. He uttered just one sentence to Moria before unleashing his self-created technique, "Viper," causing high-temperature, high-pressure steam to erupt from his palm.
Moria's neck seemed to have been stuffed with an air bomb, and the explosive steam severed it instantly. Strangely, no blood flowed from the wound this time.
Simultaneously, after William activated "Viper," the shadows of both him and Moria, cast on the wall a few steps away, suddenly writhed. Moria's shadow transformed into his actual form, clutching his wounded neck as he fell from the wall.
The "Moria" whose neck had been severed by William had unknowingly been swapped with Moria's shadow.
Moria's Shadow-Shadow Fruit allowed him to manipulate the shadows of others, and naturally, he could control his own shadow. Moria named his shadow "Shadow Mage," which could act as a clone, materialize to fight, and change shape at will according to his desires.
Moreover, Moria himself could swap positions with the "Shadow Mage" at any time. When William's sneak attack succeeded, Moria quickly realized the danger and swapped places with his shadow to evade William's lethal strike.
The most troublesome aspect of Devil Fruit users lies in their myriad abilities, often achieving feats beyond ordinary imagination.
Had William not disguised himself for a sneak attack and instead chosen to confront Moria directly, even if he possessed greater strength, Moria's slippery fruit ability would make killing him far from simple.
Though Moria's physique had begun to deteriorate, he was still a seasoned figure. Compared to his subordinates, who were stunned by the sudden turn of events, Moria reacted swiftly. Upon hitting the ground, he immediately lunged toward the bewildered Absalom.
"Get me out of here!" Moria said with difficulty, clutching his neck and spraying blood onto Absalom's hat and cheeks. The sight of blood quickly snapped Absalom back to reality. He grabbed Moria's large hand, and the two vanished from the spot.
Before disappearing, Moria didn't forget to call out to the "Ghost Princess," Perona.
Meanwhile, as Moria sought help from the invisible Absalom, the shadow clone whose neck William had severed transformed into countless bat-shaped shadows. These shadows swirled back toward William, gradually closing in to envelop him.
William, originally standing on Moria, fell mid-air as the shadows dispersed. He kicked out with both legs, sending two high-temperature steam slashes toward the webs binding Gin and Selkirk.
The slashes melted through the webs like a hot knife through butter, freeing Gin and Selkirk. Gin held his breath and activated "Iron Body," remaining unharmed as the slash hit him. Selkirk grunted, though William had restrained his power, the scalding steam was still uncomfortable.
"Next time, let me handle it myself!" Selkirk couldn't help but remark as they both broke free from the webs.
Meanwhile, after freeing Selkirk and Gin with two kicks, Moria's shadow clone had closed into a box-like formation, trapping William inside.
At that moment, Moria and Absalom vanished from the room. Perona, shaken from her stupor by Moria's call, stepped back and waved her hands, summoning several negative ghosts from within her to attack the black box containing William. The intangible ghosts passed through the box.
A tremor echoed from within the box, causing everyone in the room to feel the floor shake. Selkirk ignored this, slightly swaying as he lunged at Perona, while Gin narrowed his eyes, tilting his head to listen closely.
William was a Logia-type Devil Fruit user, and both Gin and Selkirk had seen how Perona's negative ghosts affected Brook. They didn't believe William would be harmed by these troublesome ghosts. Clearly, Moria intended to use his subordinates' abilities to buy time for his escape, and Gin wasn't about to let him succeed.
Absalom's ability made people and objects transparent, not truly "disappear," and carrying the heavy, severely injured Moria created quite a commotion. Gin's ears twitched as he pinpointed their location, then stomped the ground forcefully, shattering the marble floor with immense strength, propelling him toward the balcony.
At the balcony door, Gin delivered a powerful whip kick toward the seemingly empty space ahead.
Boom!
Gin's whip kick was so fast and powerful that it caused the air to explode in a series of booms, like a typhoon sweeping through the room, rattling the glass windows. The crew of the Starlight, bound by webs, felt the wind sting their faces.
"Ah!"
A scream erupted from the seemingly empty space in front of Gin.
Absalom, having undergone surgery by the mad doctor Hogback to implant beastly muscles, foolishly tried to withstand Gin's whip kick with his shoulder while attempting to escape with Moria. He didn't anticipate the excruciating pain as the kick landed, followed by the sound of tearing muscles and breaking bones, forcing a scream from him.
Absalom barely managed to throw Moria toward a window on the opposite side of the balcony before his body flew backward like a cannonball.
Mid-flight, the ground beneath him suddenly shook twice before erupting like a volcano, sending a white column of steam skyward, enveloping Absalom and continuing upward, piercing through the ceiling and the entire building.
The intense heat from the steam column made it hard for Brook to breathe, prompting him to roll away desperately, landing beside Karslana, who lay there as pale as a corpse.
Inside the steam column, Absalom, exposed to the scorching heat, let out a series of inhuman screams.
After being trapped in the black box, William punched through the floor, falling to the level below. Emerging from the steam column, the steam suddenly contracted, drawing into William like a whale sucking water.
William's eyes were bloodshot, his skin reddened from the "Overheat" state. He grabbed Absalom's arms, his fingers claw-like, digging into Absalom's shoulders, embedding into his muscles. With a low growl, William exerted his strength, producing a sickening tearing sound.
Under the horrified gazes of everyone in the room, William ripped Absalom's arms from his shoulders, then delivered a kick, sending the now-silent Absalom flying.
(End of Chapter)
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