Chapter 1509 Artoria's Reminiscences 1
Edward Newgate stood like a mountain at the bow of the Moby Dick, his weathered eyes fixed solemnly on the figure that shone like the sun in the direction of the execution platform—Artoria Pendragon.
A warm and magnificent golden light, like a tide, enveloped the entire naval camp. Every sailor bathed in this light seemed to be infused with fearless courage and unwavering faith.
Their injuries were not expected to worsen for the time being, and the morale of the navy was soaring. The defense line, which had been teetering on the brink of collapse under the pirates' fierce attack, was instantly stabilized.
It unleashed a powerful counterattack, forcefully holding back the offensive of the Whitebeard Pirates and their allies, and even pushing them back.
Watching his sons struggle against the navy enhanced by the golden light, he began to find it difficult.
Watching the pirates' loose formation retreat step by step under the Navy's fearless counterattack, getting further and further away from the execution platform instead of getting closer, Whitebeard's brows furrowed tightly.
The leadership qualities of the knight girls—this kind of large-scale, direct influence on mental and morale enhancement and physical strengthening of the entire group—was something Whitebeard had only witnessed in the extremely distant past, during the Battle of God Valley, after living most of his life and traversing the world.
However, that time, it was some kind of evil and insane force that turned a group of people into monsters who didn't recognize their own family.
Whitebeard suddenly let out a laugh with a complex meaning, a laugh that carried a hint of emotion, a hint of vicissitude, and a hint of playfulness at fate.
Through the golden light before him, he seemed to see the distant past, "Roger..."
He muttered to himself, his voice barely audible to himself, "Sometimes when you live long enough, you can see all sorts of strange things. Such beautiful scenery, it's a pity you, you bastard, won't get to see it."
His gaze swept across the battlefield. Bathed in golden light, the three naval admirals had shaken off their previous dejection, their eyes becoming even sharper and more determined.
Especially that magma brat Sakazuki, whose aura was even more dangerous than before he was injured. The balance of the entire battlefield was rapidly tilting towards the Navy because of this suddenly appearing female knight.
Can't wait any longer!
Whitebeard took a deep breath, his chest bulging high. He lifted the massive naginata, Kumogiri, with one hand and slammed it heavily onto the deck with a dull thud, like the sound of a war drum.
He gathered his strength, and his booming voice, loud enough to drown out the clamor of the battlefield, resounded like thunder, echoing throughout every corner of Marineford, carrying an undeniable air of command and urgency:
"Shiki, if you don't show some real skill, your father and sons are really going to be pushed into the sea to feed the fish by the Navy today!"
Nowadays, anyone with a brain knows that to defeat the Navy head-on, Artoria must stop emitting light; otherwise, no pirate will survive. A group receiving a direct buff is simply too overpowered.
The breathtaking scene of Marineford bathed in golden light, captured by Yamato's broadcast, left viewers around the world, watching on various split screens, speechless with astonishment.
Onigashima and the Beasts Pirates never imagined that the Navy had such a trump card up their sleeve. It turns out that Sengoku had kept Artoria hidden for so long, just waiting for this day to use her.
"Artoria, if she survives, she will be a major threat to all pirates, including the World Government. The Five Elders will be losing sleep again."
Foz-Foe couldn't help but joke about his former employer, saying that he was very happy whenever the World Government suffered a setback.
In the eyes of many pirates, the knight girl's abilities are simply a natural fit for the Navy, allowing the Navy to fight in large-scale battles. How can a disorganized pirate group possibly win?
Fortunately, the Navy's reach can only temporarily stabilize the first half of the Grand Line, while the scattered branch bases in the second half do not pose too much of a problem for pirates.
Kaido was holding a huge bowl of liquor, taking a big gulp of the strong liquor inside, the hot liquid running down his bushy beard.
His enormous, bell-like eyes reflected Artoria's holy figure and the golden light that enveloped the battlefield. Instead of reverence, they revealed an excitement mixed with reminiscence and violence.
"What a distant memory."
His deep voice, like muffled thunder, echoed in the empty hall. The wine swirling in the bowl seemed to reflect another blood-red world—the Valley of the Gods, the earth-shattering battle that determined the fate of the world many years ago.
“Imu has monsters with similar abilities to you,” Kaido muttered to himself, but what appeared in his mind was a scene completely opposite to the holy light before him.
A twisted, dark, and ominous black energy enveloped the battlefield. Humans corrupted by that power lost their minds and transformed into crazed monsters that knew only how to kill.
That kind of evil transformation that forcibly distorts will and stimulates life potential is so similar to the way that knight girl strengthened the navy with leadership qualities on the Marineford battlefield today.
One is righteous, the other evil; one is light, the other darkness. Yet they are of the same terrifying nature, capable of rewriting the rules of battle on a massive scale.
"It's just that one turns people into madmen, and the other turns people into madmen like warriors." To Kaido, both of these powers are merely tools for top-tier powerhouses to manipulate the world. They are essentially the same, equally interesting, and equally worthy of destruction.
The members of the Beasts Pirates had no idea what their leader was doing, drunkenly. Those who survived the God Valley Massacre were destined to become great figures.
Kaido was not frustrated by the unpredictable nature of the battle; on the contrary, he was trembling with excitement.
What he craves is not a one-sided massacre, but a deadly battle that is evenly matched and can push him to the brink of defeat. He hopes that more strong warriors will emerge in this battle, because only through tempering on the edge of life and death can Kaido's strength be further enhanced.
They even hoped that Artoria would perform well so that Whitebeard could have a not-too-bad ending. It wouldn't be so hard to accept that the future Fleet Admiral would be a woman.
In the midst of this extreme excitement, an even larger, deeper, and more terrifying figure quietly emerged in the depths of Kaido's mind.
The man who once gathered together countless thugs, including himself, with the intention of overthrowing the world—Lox D. Giebeck!
That name itself was a taboo of an era, a symbol of power.
Kaido's laughter gradually subsided, and a complex recollection, which even he himself was unaware of, flashed in his eyes.
"Rocks was a little unlucky," Kaido muttered to himself, referring to the name he hadn't uttered in a long time.
If that unrestrained, ambitious, and unfathomably powerful Rocks hadn't perished in God Valley, but had lived to this day, he would have brought some joy to this world.
Kaido wanted to fight Rocks again, but unfortunately, the dead cannot be brought back to life.
