A tremendous rumbling sound came, and the entire floating island began to tremble violently.
"Ah?! What's happening? What's happening!!"
Feeling the earthquake-like situation, Luffy couldn't help but shout out.
The next moment, a sense of weightlessness hit them, and everyone staggered, swaying several times.
"The island is falling!!"
Sanji shouted.
Without a moment's hesitation, everyone kicked off hard, stabilizing themselves in midair with Moonwalk as they watched this massive floating island plummet downward, its speed increasing rapidly.
Like a meteor, the island crashed directly into the sea not far from Hachinosu.
The next second, a terrifying shockwave spread, unleashing a massive tsunami hundreds of meters high that roared outward in all directions.
The gigantic tsunami struck Hachinosu, sweeping away everything on the island.
Within a short time, the entire island was completely submerged.
Looking down from the heavens above, no trace of Hachinosu could be seen.
It was only after a long while, as the tsunami slowly receded, that its outline gradually reappeared.
As for Golden Lion's original floating island, it had now sunk beneath the sea.
Descending from the sky, Kyle landed beside the others, holding the unconscious Golden Lion in one hand, while his two swords had long been tossed into his system space.
"Kyle, who's that guy you're carrying?"
Luffy asked curiously, staring at Golden Lion.
"Golden Lion Shiki!"
Kyle replied flatly.
"Golden Lion Shiki? Who's that?!"
Luffy scratched his head, looking completely bewildered.
It wasn't just Luffy; the others were also gazing at Kyle with puzzled expressions.
Seeing this, Kyle wasn't surprised at all. The history concerning Golden Lion had been deliberately erased by the Marines, so ordinary people wouldn't know his name.
Amidst everyone's confusion, Kyle began to explain:
"Golden Lion Shiki—a great pirate who sailed the seas actively ten or twenty years ago!"
"One of the legendary pirates, whose renown in that era rivaled even that of the Pirate King Roger and the World's Strongest Man, Whitebeard!"
"After the Pirate King Roger turned himself in, he even stormed Marine Headquarters alone, was ultimately defeated by the old man and Garp working together, and was locked away in Impel Down!"
"Huh?!"
This revelation left everyone utterly stunned.
"If that's the case, there's no way we wouldn't have heard of his name!"
Law frowned slightly.
Kyle glanced at him and said calmly:
"What's the rush? I'm not finished yet!"
"After his capture, he was imprisoned in Impel Down's sixth level, the Infinite Hell!"
"But that bastard Golden Lion is a ruthless man. To escape, he didn't hesitate to sever his own legs, which were locked in seastone cuffs, and used the power of the Float-Float Fruit to break out of that supposedly 'impregnable' prison."
"This jailbreak was the first in Impel Down's history and caused the Marines to lose immense face!"
"So, to protect their reputation, they tried to erase the fact of his escape from history!"
"That's why it's normal you don't know about him. Only some of the older generation of strong fighters are really familiar with this incident."
...
After this explanation, everyone showed expressions of sudden understanding and murmured softly:
"I see!"
Suddenly, Zoro seemed to think of something. He abruptly turned his head and fixed his gaze on Kyle, staring intently as he asked:
"Didn't you just say this guy was a great pirate once on par with Whitebeard and Roger?!"
"Then by defeating him, doesn't that mean you now have the power to defeat Whitebeard?!"
Zoro's tone carried intense surprise, and this statement successfully horrified the others, who all turned to stare at Kyle with looks of utter shock.
Although they knew Kyle was strong, they never imagined he was this strong!
Had he reached the world's top already??
Kyle couldn't help but glance at Zoro, and after a long pause, he uttered:
"It's a shame you didn't become a novelist with that imagination!"
"I said they were legendary pirates on par with each other twenty years ago, not now!"
"I don't have the confidence to claim I can beat Whitebeard!"
"Golden Lion was certainly formidable at his peak, but the man I defeated now isn't at his peak!"
"You saw the hole in his head and his severed legs yourselves. After all these years, Golden Lion's strength is nowhere near what it once was!"
"In terms of power, he's only slightly stronger than Wang Zhi, still within the range I can handle!"
"I never expected that going out to capture Wang Zhi would also let me bag Golden Lion on the side!"
"Come on, is there anything you all want? As long as it's not too excessive, I'll go apply to the old man for it!"
"I've captured two great pirates from the old era; if the old man doesn't kowtow to me a few times, he's being unfilial!"
Kyle spoke with a smile.
This remark made everyone's eyes light up.
With their mission completed so flawlessly, heading back to the Marines would definitely earn them major prestige.
Moreover, their reputations would be reported in the news by then, and pirates worldwide would come to know them.
Mm!! Not bad, very not bad!!
While everyone was immersed in the excitement of their impending fame, Kyle seemed to sense something and shifted his gaze slightly downward.
He saw heads popping up one after another from the sea surface below. Judging by their clothes, they were without a doubt all the pirates under Golden Lion's command.
Kyle glanced at them briefly, then casually waved a bolt of lightning.
In an instant, the lightning struck the sea below.
In that split second, all the pirates, like fish electrocuted, stiffened instantly.
Their eyes rolled back, foam spewed from their mouths, and then, one after another, they floated on the water like dead fish.
Having done this, Kyle descended toward Hachinosu.
He would have those pirates bundled up and transported back once the reinforcements he called for arrived.
Kyle landed on Hachinosu, casually tossed Golden Lion aside, rubbed his chin, and a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes.
He felt like he had forgotten something.
What exactly was it?!
Hmm…
Kyle pondered deeply. After a long while, it was as if a lightning bolt flashed through his mind, and his eyes widened slightly.
His figure instantly transformed into purple thunder and vanished from the spot, reappearing before the now-ruined Hachinosu prison.
After casually blasting away the piled-up debris, he walked toward the exposed entrance.
Hachinosu's prison was built underground, so surface battles generally wouldn't have much impact on it.
But Kyle wasn't entirely certain; he had to go check whether King Hariza and the others had kicked the bucket or not.
Otherwise, if the mission to rescue the king ended with the king himself dead, that would certainly be interesting!!
Before long, Kyle spotted King Hariza and his companions.
There was King Hariza, cuddling affectionately with one of his consorts, surrounded by other members of the royal family.
Kyle: …
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