After the grandiose explosion, there was absolute silence.
Looking at Angel Island, even though it was still thousands of meters away from the White Sea when it exploded, a large portion of it had been completely wiped out. On Upper Yard, the surviving residents were in a state of shock and fell to their knees in despair.
"Is this the power of... a god?"
The Skypieans did have a form of god worship, as evidenced by the murals in the Birka Temple and the faith in Vearth on Angel Island.
However, from ancient times until now, no one had ever felt a god so close to themselves!
The giant-scale Raigo - Thunder Greeting explosion not only destroyed Angel Island but also plunged the sea surface of the Blue Sea deep into a giant-scale crater.
Gan Fall was now very grateful that the Raigo - Thunder Greeting black sphere had exploded in between the Blue Sea and the White Sea. Otherwise, if it had exploded in any corner of Angel Island, the island would have been completely obliterated!
Zii Zii Sizzle!
Suddenly, a vivid blue lightning flickered beside him, and a tall figure emerged.
"Ah, I'm so tired!"
As soon as Rowen appeared, he plopped down on the ground, panting heavily.
Although he had gone through a major battle, there wasn't a single visible wound on him except for the torn sleeve on his right arm, which had been shattered during the release of the Eight Dragons.
Under the extreme Overload, not to mention the Elementalization of his clothes, he himself couldn't do it. There were three terrifyingly narrow gashes on his chest, a result of Golden Lion Shiki's strikes.
Apart from that, he was covered in bloodstains, bearing witness to the terrifying battle he had experienced!
This was Rowen, the Vice Admiral of Marine Headquarters!
Gulp...! Gan Fall swallowed saliva with difficulty, realizing that his demeanor had unintentionally become extremely subservient. "Vice Admiral Rowen, that enemy, Golden Lion Shiki...?"
"He's probably dead!"
Rowen waved his hand, knowing what Gan Fall was worried about. "Rest assured, even if he's not dead, he won't be causing any waves in his lifetime."
"Wouldn't you say so, Admiral Kizaru?"
Admiral?!!
Gan Fall was suddenly shocked and followed Rowen's gaze.
Sure enough, in the empty space that had been devoid of anything just moments ago, stood a tall and lean figure. The yellow attire almost made Gan Fall mistake him for the famous Golden Lion Shiki of the Blue Sea.
However, seeing the corpse he was holding in his hands, Gan Fall breathed a sigh of relief.
"Well, he's indeed dead, I can guarantee that. But before long, the Fuwa Fuwa No Mi (Float-Float Fruit) will reappear somewhere in the sea, and that will be troublesome."
Pu Tong!
Kizaru tossed the charred humanoid corpse onto the ground and then glared at Rowen with a malevolent look on his face. "Vice Admiral Soryu, you've caused quite a bit of trouble this time!"
The giant-scale Raigo - Thunder Greeting explosion, while not causing harm to a Logia user, had directly dispersed Kizaru, turning him into countless light particles.
What was even more frightening was that Kizaru's position at the time was not advantageous. He was pushed into the sea along with the surge of the explosion before he could reconstitute his body.
Fortunately, the destructive power of the Raigo - Thunder Greeting was powerful enough to obliterate the seawater, preventing him from being directly submerged and meeting an untimely demise.
Rowen deduced these things himself, after all, Kizaru couldn't have dived into the sea to retrieve Golden Lion Shiki's nearly unrecognizable humanoid corpse. It could only be said that Golden Lion Shiki's body, before falling into the sea, happened to hit him.
So, when Kizaru brought up the Float-Float Fruit, Rowen rolled his eyes, choosing to remain silent, as if he hadn't heard a thing.
Kizaru: "..."
Hiss!!
This brat!! Well, anyway, there are plenty of lice, and it doesn't itch. It's just a Float-Float Fruit. If any pirate finds it, Rowen can handle it himself.
Muttering in his heart, Kizaru turned to the respectfully waiting Gan Fall and said,
"By the way, Gan Fall-San, I think I'll need your help in apprehending some pirates. This is Angel Island, and as Marines, we don't have any jurisdiction here."
"That's only... natural..."
Gan Fall breathed a sigh of relief. The Kizaru in front of him was even more terrifying than Rowen! Who knows how much pressure he was under after witnessing the extremely destructive power of Rowen's Raigo - Thunder Greeting.
Fortunately, Kizaru's attitude was still acceptable. At the very least, like Rowen, he wouldn't interfere with the sovereignty of Angel Island.
With Golden Lion Shiki's defeat, the members of the Flying Sky Fleet were completely stripped of their resistance. Their eyes were filled with fear and trepidation as they were apprehended by the God's Officer team, heads hanging low in dejection.
Some pirates who had taken the opportunity to hide in various parts of Angel Island were still putting up a fight. However, ordinary pirates were no match for the God's Officer team, who had their hands free. Bolts of lightning materialized out of thin air, reducing them to charred remains.
After several instances of making examples, the pirates completely gave up resistance and allowed the God's Officer team to bind them.
Having finished this, Kizaru took out a Den Den Mushi, took two pictures of Golden Lion Shiki's unrecognizable humanoid corpse, and then retrieved another Den Den Mushi.
"Moshi Moshi! Fleet Admiral, this is Golden Lion Shiki..."
Sengoku: "..."
What did you say?!!!
...
Several days later, news of the legendary pirate "Golden Lion Shiki" leading an attack on Angel Island, only to be killed by Marine G-10 Branch Head and Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral Soryu, spread throughout the entire sea!
This time, the world was in an uproar!!
Who was Golden Lion Shiki? Before the Pirate Era, he was one of the Three Great Legends, mentioned in the same breath as Roger and Whitebeard!!
He wasn't like the Yonko, who only gained world renown during the Pirate Era. He was a legendary pirate who had reached his peak decades ago!
Moreover, he was the only prisoner to have broken free from the seemingly impenetrable Impel Down of the Marine Headquarters over the past several decades, causing great embarrassment for the Marine Headquarters!
This Great Character, who had vanished for eighteen years, had suddenly met his end at the hands of Rowen.
Suddenly, a colossal wave surged, sweeping across the entire world! Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
"A few days ago, at the moment Rowen killed Golden Lion Shiki, a floating island fell near Gourmet City, Pucci. The island was inhabited by a large group of ferocious beasts, causing significant losses for Pucci."
In the Fleet Admiral's office, the senior members of the Marines gathered together. Tsuru, holding various documents, began to report.
"From the interrogated pirates, we learned that this was indeed the hiding place of Golden Lion Shiki for the past eighteen years. The beasts on the island were trained by him to seek revenge on the world. Garp has already gone there, and handling it shouldn't be a problem."
At this point, Tsuru gave Rowen a deep look.
Who was Golden Lion Shiki? Anyone who had experienced that chaotic era would be familiar with him. Unlike Roger and Whitebeard, Golden Lion Shiki was a schemer, a true madman with ambitions and aspirations!
Even compared to Doflamingo, who was previously referred to as the "Source of All Evil," he lacked neither the boldness nor the courage. He was a pirate that both the Marine and the World Government feared the most, second to none!
Since Golden Lion Shiki escaped from prison, for a full eighteen years, the Marine Intelligence network had devoted at least three parts of its efforts to searching for Golden Lion Shiki's whereabouts.
In the eyes of the World Government, the fact that Golden Lion Shiki was lurking in the shadows was even more threatening than the once infamous Ohara.
But unexpectedly, such a dangerous individual met his end at the hands of Rowen.
It wasn't that Tsuru didn't believe in Rowen's strength, but as an old rival who had fought against Golden Lion Shiki in hundreds of battles in the first half of their lives, Tsuru couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret.
Their era had ultimately come to an end.
First, Zephyr lost his arm, and now Golden Lion Shiki had been killed. One by one, the historically renowned Great Characters fell. It seemed as though an invisible hand had arranged their fates.
'What is my destiny?' Tsuru couldn't help but ponder.
Golden Lion Shiki's fall was by no means the end. No one could say for certain how far Rowen would go in the future.
"With Garp taking action, we don't need to worry about Pucci. However, Golden Lion Shiki's subordinate, Dr. Indigo, revealed some information. I think we have to treat it with caution!"
Tsuru's gaze turned solemn as she took out a document.
Detailed information was distributed to every leader present. After Tsuru spoke, everyone's breath caught in their throats.
Fierce Beast Proliferation Plan!
(End of this chapter)