The sky was shrouded in dark clouds, and whirlpools howled within them. A terrifying, powerful force was brewing.
Beneath the darkness, the sailors in blue-and-white uniforms looked up at the sky in panic.
They didn't know where the danger was coming from, but everything was saturated with the aura of death and destruction.
Finally, the massive vortex in the clouds fully formed, and a thick pillar of light descended upon the earth.
In an instant, the sky and land changed color.
Several towering figures stepped forward and did their utmost to resist the devastating beam of light.
But meteorites were reduced to ash. Iron fists crumbled to dust. The golden Buddha was but a fleeting glimmer. The purple lightning was nothing before the pillar of light.
The land was reduced to nothingness. Millions perished. All prosperity faded like a dream.
After a moment, the light disappeared.
The land had vanished without a trace, leaving behind a massive, bottomless abyss.
No matter how much seawater poured into it, it was like a mud ox sinking into the sea. Nothing changed.
Caelan withdrew from Stussy's body and leaned against the headboard, his expression dark. "Imu, you finally couldn't sit still. Planning to attack Dressrosa now?"
The vision was clearly a scene of Dressrosa being destroyed by a weapon suspected to be the National Treasure.
It was only because of his Observation Haki, and his deep connection to Dressrosa, that he was able to foresee it in advance.
Luckily, he had this rarely-used Observation Haki. Otherwise, the loss would have been catastrophic.
He could summon Heroic Spirits and resurrect dead comrades.
Reviving Gion, Nami, Shirahoshi, Robin… and thousands of core personnel like Sengoku, Zephyr, Fujitora, Doberman, and others was his mental limit.
But he was helpless when it came to the millions of ordinary soldiers and citizens at Dressrosa, his main base.
After all, the infinite magical energy granted by [Third Magic: Soul Materialization] was infinite in regeneration, not in output.
Supporting millions or tens of millions of Heroic Spirits didn't require doing anything else. Just functioning as a mana generator was already enough to exhaust him.
If Imu really succeeded, it would be a devastating blow.
While the core members above vice admiral level wouldn't be harmed, the loss of millions of elite troops would be irreversible.
Imu, Imu… you really gave me a big surprise.
Murderous intent surged in Caelan's heart. He had made up his mind—Imu would not live through the week.
"Lord Caelan, what's wrong?"
Stussy asked drowsily, concern lacing her voice.
She had worked hard all night and wanted to rest, but seeing Caelan's grim face made her sense that something serious had happened.
Caelan calmed his emotions and said evenly, "Imu knows we're on Egghead. He plans to use the National Treasure to destroy Dressrosa, but my Observation Haki saw it coming."
"What? What do we do now?"
Stussy's ice-blue eyes widened. Her sleepiness vanished instantly.
She had learned about the Celestial Dragons' National Treasure from Vegapunk. It was precisely because Imu wanted to power the treasure with unlimited energy that Saint Garling had been sent to oversee Vegapunk.
According to Vegapunk, the weapon's power was enough to wipe out an entire nation in an instant and even shake the world.
If that thing destroyed Dressrosa, the base Caelan had painstakingly built, she couldn't imagine how furious he would become.
Not to mention, all of Caelan's women were there.
But the key problem now was: how could they help Dressrosa from thousands of miles away?
Even if Caelan were in Dressrosa, how would he defend against a world-ending weapon?
"Don't panic. It hasn't come to that yet."
Caelan stroked Stussy's hair gently. "Since I know it's headed to Dressrosa, I just have to destroy it."
"I'll go back and finish it myself."
His plan was to use the God Slayer Spear to cross most of the New World and annihilate the Celestial Dragons' National Treasure.
In the Lostbelt, Karna, blessed by the Trimurti, could battle Arjuna, who wielded the power to destroy the world.
Even without the Three-Faced God's Cloak, traversing a quarter of the world to destroy the National Treasure was not a challenge.
As the inheritor of the Saintess of the Winter's magical knowledge, he had naturally mastered every secret behind Heroic Spirit summoning.
Not only could he have the women in Dressrosa summon him, he could also use the connection with the Heroic Spirits there to teleport directly.
The danger of Imu's attack lay in the lack of intelligence.
Without information, all he could do was wait in ignorance for Dressrosa to be destroyed and then resurrect Gion afterward.
But now that he had foreseen it with Observation Haki, there was no need to worry.
Although he could simply launch a God Slayer Spear projection from Egghead, this matter was too important. He had to go back and handle it personally.
"I see."
Seeing Caelan already had a plan, Stussy stopped asking questions.
She didn't know how Caelan would travel so quickly from Egghead to Dressrosa, but if he said he had a way, then she believed him. Caelan would never joke about something that mattered so much to him.
"Go to sleep. You worked hard yesterday."
Caelan touched her cheek softly and watched her fall back asleep.
Then he stood and walked to the window, thinking about the arrangements for the final battle while waiting for the arrival of the Celestial Dragons' National Treasure.
Surging magical energy burst forth. With precise teleportation, he used the connection to the Heroic Spirits in Dressrosa to pinpoint its location.
In the next moment, Caelan appeared in Gion's room.
After briefly explaining the situation to Gion, he leaned back on the bed and closed his eyes for a short rest.
He knew the National Treasure would arrive above Dressrosa around eight or nine in the morning, but he didn't know the exact route it would take.
Naturally, he couldn't intercept it midway.
All he could do now was wait for it to arrive, then destroy it with one strike.
And then, the final war would begin.
The entire World Government would fall.
(To be continued.)