They were no longer at each other's throats over who would take Caesar. Now, they had a common enemy, a shared goal.

And both sought the same thing—maintaining the pride and dignity befitting commanders of an Emperor of the Sea.

After all, they were renowned across these seas, feared and respected, yet they had been humiliated by an unknown upstart. Such a blow could only be erased with blood—by killing Lance and using his life to restore their honor.

"Coward, he's my prey, don't get in my way!" Jack the Drought said coldly.

"Your prey? Hmph…!!!"

"Whoever kills him first gets him!" Cracker retorted.

For anyone else, facing both Jack the Drought and dozens of Biscuit Soldiers at once would mean instant panic, their face turning pale. The mere reputation of these top commanders of an Emperor of the Sea was enough to terrify most, let alone standing before them in battle. That overwhelming pressure could crush a man's will to fight entirely.

But Lance stood firm. Faced with their combined assault, his expression remained calm and composed.

"Let's see just how far my power has come!"

This time, Lance didn't dodge—he met Jack's massive scythe head-on, swinging his fist.

With Armament Haki hardening, his fist turned black like steel, taking the shape of a roaring lion's head as it smashed toward the scythe.

"Not dodging?"

"Then I'll send you straight to hell!"

Seeing Lance hold his ground, Jack's eyes flashed with bloodlust. Blood vessels bulged as his strength surged even further.

[War Destruction]

Boom!

The clash released a titanic shockwave, shattering what remained of the nearby buildings.

Pfft!

Taking the hit head-on, Lance's arm shattered, exploding apart in a spray of blood.

"Boss Jack wins!"

"Who dares challenge Boss Jack in strength? That's suicide!"

"He's serious now—this guy's done for!"

"Notice? Those white threads weakened! Now's the chance—get him!"

Beast Pirates rushed forward, breaking free from the weakened threads, aiming to finish Lance.

"What's this?" Jack mocked.

"Just one hit and you can't take it? Weakling."

"With this level, you dare challenge me? Laughable."

Lance retreated rapidly, his arm destroyed.

Jack's strength… truly formidable. Even after absorbing the power of many strong foes—including Beast Pirates—Lance still couldn't match Jack's raw strength.

"Seems I haven't devoured enough. Time to take down those awakened Zoans too."

Zoan users were famous for strength, endurance, and stubborn battle power. Until now, Lance had only killed ordinary ability users. Now, he set his sights on awakened ones to push his power to the next level.

"Jack, I'll admit—you're strong in brute force," Lance smirked.

"But soon… that edge will be gone."

Bandages shot from Lance's body, hooking into place.

Nearby, a humanoid monster feasting on a corpse suddenly unraveled in bandages—and Lance stepped out of it completely unharmed.

Infinite Replacement.

Infinite Resurrection.

"Let's start with you awakened ones."

He locked eyes on several ability users with two small, black demon-like horns—symbols of Zoan awakening.

These weren't like Paramecia awakenings, which demanded high skill and power. Zoan awakenings were relatively easy; even the Impel Down jailers were awakened Zoans. But the Beast Pirates' users were different. Their artificial Zoan awakenings were rare—only those with the horns were truly awakened, and they were far stronger than Impel Down's guards.

"Time to feel the pain of a thousand arrows piercing your heart!"

[Thousand Arrow-Heart Piercing Feathers – Thread]

With a wave of his hand, thousands of Haki-coated threads erupted from the ground, forming flamingo-like wings that encircled every awakened Zoan present.

"What is this?!"

"Threads from the ground!"

"Look! He's not dead—there he is!"

"No way… didn't Jack blow off his arm? How's it back?!"

Everyone turned, faces going pale when they saw Lance whole again.

"Don't look around… everyone gets a share!"

"Now, welcome your deaths!"

Murder flashed in Lance's eyes as his fingers moved.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Thousands of threads shot in from all directions, stabbing through the awakened Zoans before they could even react.

(End of Chapter)

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