"Female monkey?!" Momousagi's eyes flashed with fury at Edie's condescending insult, her blood boiling in anger. She clenched her fists, almost trembling with rage.
"Who the hell would kneel to someone like you?" she spat defiantly, struggling to rise despite the searing pain in her abdomen. Earlier, Zishu's Advanced Haki-infused kick had caused serious internal damage, the kind that wasn't visible but left her body weak and shaking.
As the pain intensified, her legs gave out, and she collapsed back to the ground. Yet, despite the agony, she clutched her sword, Jinpira, tightly, her gaze never wavering from Edie's calm, smirking face. "If you want to catch up with the others, you'll have to step over my dead body first!" she declared, gritting her teeth in defiance.
Edie's expression remained tranquil, though the corners of his mouth curled into a slight smirk. He admired her spirit, her unwavering resolve in the face of death. She has potential... worthy of training, he thought.
"Is that so?" Edie said softly, raising his hand. At the tip of his left index finger, a brilliant red electric light began to swirl, forming a small ball of energy. It started as the size of a grain of rice but quickly expanded. Within moments, it was the size of an egg, crackling ominously.
Momousagi's eyes widened in recognition. This... this is the same attack that brought Fleet Admiral Kong to his knees! One blow had been enough to knock Kong out of his Mythical Zoan form and back into his human body. Fear gripped her heart, but her expression remained stoic, refusing to show even a hint of weakness. She knew, in her current condition, there was no way she could dodge the attack.
"Kill me if you want, but I'll never beg for mercy," she said firmly, her voice trembling but resolute. She gripped Jinpira so tightly her knuckles turned white. "This is a Conqueror's move, isn't it? How does someone like you, whose Haki isn't even that strong, possess such overwhelming power?"
Despite the fear gnawing at her insides, she stood tall. Her pride wouldn't allow her to back down, even in the face of death.
Edie could barely contain his amusement. She's terrified, he thought, but her brave facade impressed him nonetheless. Keeping his calm demeanor, he responded, "Why, you ask? That's a question worthy of a female monkey." His words, though calm, continued to grate on her nerves. She bit back the desire to lash out at him, knowing she was in no condition to fight.
"Your courage is commendable, so I'll explain in terms you can understand," Edie said, his tone dripping with condescension. "You can think of Haki as the 'physical strength of the soul.' Just like your body's physical strength, it regenerates over time with rest."
Momousagi's mind raced, trying to comprehend his words as the red energy orb in front of her grew ever larger, now pulsating ominously.
If he hits me with this, I'm finished, she thought, her heart pounding.
"Just like you, at your peak, your soul's strength was about 48 billion," Edie continued nonchalantly. He wasn't entirely sure if that was her absolute limit, but during their battle, her energy level had reached that number. Still, it was only half of Shenhou's.
"And typically, for every point of soul strength consumed, you cause one point of damage to your opponent," Edie explained, his eyes gleaming with amusement. "But my red flash is different. It amplifies the damage at the cost of permanently sacrificing part of my soul's strength."
Momousagi's breath caught in her throat. "What's the multiplier?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
Edie chuckled softly, his cold laughter echoing in the air. "Ten times."
Ten times?! Momousagi's heart pounded in her chest. Even though she didn't fully understand the mechanics, the sheer scale of power he described was terrifying.
Edie continued, enjoying her shocked expression. "The attack I used against your Fleet Admiral consumed 10 billion of my soul's strength, but it delivered a blow worth 100 billion in damage. It's about Equal to Kaido sacrificing all defense for a single, all-out attack. Yet even that wasn't enough to kill Kong. The Resilience of a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit is indeed formidable."
Momousagi's eyes widened. "Your Haki... it can unleash ten times the damage?" she muttered, still unable to fully grasp the enormity of what he was saying.
Edie smiled faintly. "That's correct," he said, relishing her disbelief. He knew she didn't understand the true nature of his abilities, but it didn't matter. The concept of ghost particles and the energy they unleashed was far beyond her comprehension. It was akin to nuclear fission—a process in which a heavy atomic nucleus splits, releasing energy far beyond what ordinary reactions could produce.
Of course, the cost was high. With every use of the red flash, Edie permanently lost part of his soul's physical strength. Replenishing those ghost particles would require him to spend time in his cloning warehouse. Though time wasn't a major issue, the expense was. That's why he preferred not to use red flash unless absolutely necessary.
Like now.
He wasn't actually interested in killing Momousagi—he merely wanted to intimidate her, to show her the vast gulf in power between them.
"So," he said, his voice still eerily calm, "do you understand now?"
Momousagi, still trembling, nodded weakly. "Understood," she muttered absently, though her mind was still reeling from everything Edie had just revealed.
The red flash at Edie's fingertip expanded to the size of his fist, radiating thousands of blinding rays of light, threatening to explode at any moment. But before Edie could activate it, a thunderous boom echoed across the battlefield.
It wasn't Edie who triggered the explosion.
From within the ice coffin, Wuma and Weiyang, working together, struck at the already weakened Fleet Admiral Kong. Wuma's Tremor Fruit-fueled punch obliterated the frozen crystal prison crafted by Aokiji. Kong, unable to withstand the force, spat blood as his body shot out like a ragdoll from the shattered ice coffin, sent flying into the distance.
Far away, Garp and the others were fleeing when they felt the shockwave. Alarmed, they stopped and turned, belatedly realizing something was wrong.
"Gion is missing!" Chaton exclaimed in shock.
Everyone spun around, eyes widening. There, sitting slumped on the ice like a wounded duck, was Momousagi. Edie loomed over her, red light still sparking ominously from his fingertips. Farther away, Kong's limp body tumbled through the air, having been thrown clear from the destruction of his icy prison.
"When did Gion get left behind? Damn it!" Chaton's voice shook as he saw his beloved on the verge of death. Without hesitation, he made a desperate dash to save her, but Garp's firm hand grabbed his shoulder.
"Let's go," Garp said, his voice heavy with the weight of the situation. "Don't waste her sacrifice."
"GION!" Chaton cried out, anguish tearing through him as he struggled in Garp's grip. But no matter how hard he fought, Garp held him back, forcing him to retreat with the others.
Kizaru, lagging behind them, cast one last glance toward Momousagi. He'd known all along that she had stayed behind willingly. It hadn't escaped him. But he kept silent, recognizing that Edie bore no intent to kill her.
"How terrifying… this man," Kizaru muttered to himself, opting to move on.
Meanwhile, on the battlefield, Momousagi spotted Fleet Admiral Kong flying across the sky. A surge of adrenaline coursed through her veins, temporarily overcoming the agony in her body. Gritting her teeth, she tried to stand, determination driving her to save her superior. But before she could move, Edie's hand struck the back of her neck, infused with Conqueror's Haki. Her strength instantly left her, and her body went limp as her consciousness faded.
Edie caught her before she hit the ice. With a firm grip, he cradled her unconscious form in his arm. As he contemplated his next move, his mind raced. "Should I ransom her back to the Marines? Or perhaps keep her… for training?" A small smirk crossed his lips as he decided it would be better to bring her to Beehive Island. After all, he had a particular fondness for women with proud, unyielding personalities.
Just as he finalized his decision, a powerful slash erupted from the sea, slicing through the ice. Zishu emerged from the waters, dragging Chenlong behind him. The pair landed in front of Edie, water dripping from their bodies.
"Heavenly Father, I've retrieved him," Zishu announced, releasing Chenlong and shaking out the seawater from his soaked white hair.
Chenlong, kneeling immediately, bowed his head low. "I deeply apologize, Father. This failure is mine alone."
Edie, still holding Momousagi, gave a dismissive wave. "It's fine. You've done well. We've achieved our goal."
He wouldn't blame Chenlong. Garp was still in his prime, a far cry from the frail old man he would become in the years to come. Losing ground to Garp was nothing to be ashamed of. The most important objective had been accomplished.
They had successfully repelled the Buster Call, and more importantly, Edie had collected the blood of several Marine elites. Aokiji's blood. Chaton's blood. As for Kizaru? Edie had acquired that sample long ago during the Sabaody Archipelago incident. Kizaru had managed to remain unscathed in this war, skillfully keeping himself out of harm's way, as usual.
And then there was Garp's blood—he couldn't let that go to waste. He would clone it immediately upon returning to the lab.
But perhaps most valuable of all was the woman in his arms: Momousagi.
Finally, there was today's greatest prize—the Fleet Admiral of the Marines, Kong.
Edie cradled the unconscious Momousagi in his arms as he approached the fallen Fleet Admiral Kong. Zishu followed closely behind, a satisfied smirk playing on his lips. Chenlong, relieved that his Heavenly Father had not only spared him but comforted him, felt a renewed surge of loyalty coursing through his veins. Weiyang and Wuma swooped in, joining the group as they gathered around Kong's broken body.
The once-mighty Fleet Admiral was barely clinging to life, his strength completely drained after burning the last of his soul's energy. He lay motionless on the ice, eyes clouded and breath shallow, his final moments upon him. Weakly, he glanced up, his fading gaze landing on Edie and the unconscious Momousagi.
"Was she… left behind?" Kong's voice was little more than a whisper.
Edie's calm voice cut through the silence. "Don't worry. She'll be fine. I like her." His tone was matter-of-fact, almost detached. "It was your decision to burn your soul at the last moment that surprised me. But perhaps you didn't realize… burning your soul is the same as burning away your lifespan. And at your age, there's not much left to fuel the fire."
He paused, watching the dying man with cold curiosity. Edie knew well the power of the Soul-Soul Fruit. It allowed its user to rob people of their lifespan, their very soul energy, just as Charlotte Linlin did in her reign over Totto Land, collecting years from her citizens as a form of tribute. Kong, at his advanced age, had sacrificed what little he had left.
"Yeah?" Kong muttered, a faint grin pulling at the corners of his lips. His gaze drifted upwards toward the bright sky. "My death… it's on the hands of the Five Elders. I knew it the moment I set foot here."
The sun's rays shone brilliantly, casting their warm light across the frozen battlefield. As Kong's vision began to blur, he made a silent wish to etch the sun's light into his memory, to carry it with him into the afterlife. His voice grew even weaker as he spoke one final plea. "Momousagi… she's a good kid. Please… don't… kill her…"
With that last breath, Kong's eyes slowly fluttered shut, his body finally giving in to the inevitable.
"Blah, blah, blah," Zishu sneered, his voice dripping with mockery. "She'd already be dead if that was the plan. Just die already, buddy."
Without hesitation, Zishu raised his sword, Conqueror's Haki surging through the blade, and with a swift motion, he brought it down with a chilling laugh.
~SPLECH~!
Kong's detached head rolled across the ice, his death sealed in one final, brutal stroke.
The Fleet Admiral of the Marines—Kong, the indomitable warrior—had perished in battle.