'Tsk—'
At that moment, in the upper reaches of the Grand Line, ten thousand meters above the sea near the Sky Island called "Dras," a giant, uninhabited island cloud was sliced open by a massive, dazzling slash, leaving an alarming scar that would make anyone break out in a cold sweat.
'Huff… huff…'
With a piercing gaze and powerful aura, El flapped his wings and soared, wielding the gleaming Great Halberd and unleashing powerful slashes.
'Swish—swish—'
The cold gleam of the weapon was accompanied by a fierce, whistling sound that filled the air. Each slash cut through the giant island cloud, approximately ten kilometers wide, severing it piece by piece.
"No wonder they call him El-sama."
"Truly impressive!"
From a distance, Thundercloud Zeus and Sun Prometheus watched with awe and admiration as El-sama effortlessly unleashed enormous slashes, cutting apart the massive cloud island in such a short time.
A towering, youthful, and beautiful female giant looked at the tall, majestic, winged figure with a passionate and admiring gaze. "Of course, El is the man who's going to become King of the World!"
She, along with Linlin and the rest of the Fallen Angel Pirates, firmly believed in El's grand ambition—to create a powerful, dreamlike nation that would lead them all to overthrow the corrupt World Government. One day, he would ascend the Empty Throne and become the true ruler of the world.
"Gerd—"
El smiled as he spoke. "The rest is up to you!"
"No problem, leave it to me!"
Thundercloud Zeus flew forward as Gerd leaped onto the freshly carved island cloud, confidently patting her chest. Without hesitation, she placed her hands on the island, her eyes glowing with rippling light, and a visible aura of soul energy radiated from her.
"With my soul, I give you new life—rise as a living island, Atlantis!"
At that moment, Gerd, wielding the powers of the Soul-Soul Fruit, infused part of her own soul into the giant cloud beneath her.
'Shhh—'
The massive island cloud quaked, and the "ground" shifted, forming a colossal, humanoid face that looked at Gerd with delighted eyes, calling out to her in a booming voice, "Gerd-sama…"
"Atlantis, open wide… and consume these souls!"
As Gerd hopped onto Thundercloud Zeus's back, a massive bundle of gathered souls she had harvested transformed into an enormous, eerie-looking loaf.
"Whoa…"
"A feast of souls!"
Zeus and Prometheus drooled. Though these weren't Gerd's personal soul fragments, the sheer quantity was overwhelming, enough to create a significant change. If they could consume that many souls, they would undoubtedly grow stronger.
"Yes!"
Overjoyed, Atlantis opened its massive mouth and began to devour the souls. Its body merged with the surrounding clouds, causing it to grow even larger.
"Don't worry; there'll be plenty for you two when the time comes," Gerd said, smiling as she patted both Prometheus and Zeus.
"Yes, Gerd-sama!"
As sentient beings, Zeus and Prometheus had their own personalities. While they lacked complex human desires, their instinct to evolve pushed them to crave the massive soul energy before them.
'Rumble… Rumble…'
With a tremendous roar, the enormous, personified island cloud floated upward. Its thick cloud cover stretched hundreds of meters, a breathtaking sight.
"Gerd-sama!" shouted the colossal cloud homie, Atlantis, in a booming voice.
"It looks like things are going well!" El's towering form landed on the giant cloud and smiled.
"Hehe, it might even exceed expectations. Especially since it now contains the soul of a Navy Admiral, it's essentially a mobile war fortress with formidable attack power!"
Gerd leaped nimbly onto the cloud, excitement gleaming in her eyes as she spoke to El. Though not initially created as a battle-type homie, Atlantis was turning out to be quite powerful, thanks to the immense quantity of souls it had devoured, including the soul of an Admiral known as Iron Claw.
As a giant homie, Atlantis not only held electrical properties, releasing powerful currents, but could also unleash massive attacks due to its colossal size. It now possessed strength surpassing even the highest-ranked homies like Zeus or Prometheus.
"Oh? That's wonderful…"
El raised an eyebrow, clearly pleased. Surveying the vast, white "land," he said with satisfaction, "Now we just need to make a few adjustments, and the airborne fortress project will be complete!"
He planned to move in ample "land," converting this floating island into a livable area complete with a massive castle, entertainment, living facilities, and robust defenses. Atlantis's innate electrical power would serve as an endless energy source for these structures. As a highly intelligent homie, Atlantis could defend itself and attack autonomously, perhaps even evolving into a super weapon on par with the legendary Pluton battleship one day.
"Hey, listen up!"
Just then, Sun Prometheus flew up to Atlantis, hovering proudly as he declared, "Atlantis, Zeus and I are your Senpais. From now on, you're our apprentice!"
"That's right!" Thundercloud Zeus added, echoing Prometheus.
"Ha! I won't listen to you two little pipsqueaks. I only follow Gerd-sama's orders!"
Fed by an overwhelming supply of souls, the massive Atlantis, though appearing innocent, had a glint of cleverness in its eyes as it looked down at the comparatively tiny Prometheus and Zeus. But when it came to Gerd, its creator, Atlantis was reverent and obedient.
"You little—"
"Why, you…!"
The two homies were furious, transforming into their demon forms, one blazing with fire, the other crackling with lightning.
However, the sight didn't faze the colossal Atlantis. With one enormous breath, it blew the smaller homies away.
"Too arrogant!"
"Zeus, let's teach it a lesson!"
Enraged, Zeus and Prometheus prepared to grow larger and confront the disrespectful newcomer.
"Ha! I'm not afraid of you little runts!" Atlantis boasted, its colossal form turning jet black as electrical sparks flickered across its surface, its mouth crackling with lightning.
'Zzzap!'
The sky lit up as a massive bolt of lightning charged toward the two homies, who retaliated in their gigantic, demon-like forms with powerful attacks of their own.
'Boom!'
Thunder and fire collided, and powerful shockwaves rippled out.
"Blast… this thing…"
Zeus and Prometheus, visibly frustrated, prepared for an even more powerful assault, unwilling to concede.
"I'm not afraid of you two tiny runts!" Atlantis taunted.
Just as they were about to continue their brawl, Gerd intervened and stopped them.
"You three, knock it off already…"
She planted a firm kick on Atlantis's massive head, hands on her hips, as she scolded the three bickering homies. "You need to get along—got it?"
"Yes, Gerd-sama…"
Despite their frustration, neither Zeus nor Prometheus dared defy her.
"Impressive power…" El smirked, watching the homies' skirmish.
Individually, Atlantis was stronger than either Zeus or Prometheus, thanks to the vast quantity of souls it had consumed, including those of an Admiral and thousands of Navy elites.
"Gerd-sama, where are we heading now?" asked Atlantis, eager to test its newfound powers.
"Hehe, we're heading down to the Blue Sea to meet up with Linlin and the others!"
~~~
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