In that instant, a torrent of crimson energy converged upon the wings. The wings themselves became the nexus, forming a spherical shield that enveloped Shanks completely.
Boom!
As the purple lightning spear struck, the sheer force of the thunderous blow sent the Candelabrum Dragon plummeting downward. But then, an even more intense crimson light erupted, and Shanks managed to stabilize his form. The two energies collided with a deafening roar.
Countless shockwaves swept across the landscape.
The fierce winds whipped at Ryuuto's face. He couldn't help but stare at his opponent and remark softly, "I have to admit, the power Shanks wields is truly extraordinary."
"But that was just the appetizer."
"Are you ready for what comes next?"
"Myriad Thunder Ascendant Dragon: Purge the Mortal Coil!"
With Ryuuto's furious roar, the very ground beneath him shattered. Within a five-hundred-meter radius centered on him, innumerable bolts of purple lightning burst forth. The terrifying, destructive aura condensed to its absolute limit, and for a moment, the sky and earth themselves changed color.
The members of the Red Hair Pirates watched this scene in utter shock, their vision filled with nothing but the endless sea of violet light.
"Captain!" Benn Beckman murmured, a seed of doubt sprouting in his mind. Had he been wrong to let Shanks fight? A wave of regret washed over him.
"Luffy, I'm so powerless! There's no way I can beat Ryuuto... What am I supposed to do?" Zoro's right hand, gripping the Wado Ichimonji, was corded with bulging veins. For the first time, he felt the crushing weight of an insurmountable opponent. His usual resolve to face any challenge alone had vanished, because the battle between Ryuuto and Shanks had already transcended the realm of mortals. He would have to stand as a mortal against gods.
Usopp had already been thrown to the deck by a powerful blast of wind, his eyes wide with terror.
The horrifying spectacle seared itself into everyone's mind.
Then, in the blink of an eye, the bolts of world-ending lightning began to converge, rapidly forming the roaring shape of a thunder dragon.
Roar!
As the thunder dragon fully materialized, it seemed to come to life. Its intelligent eyes flashed with brilliant light as it let out a furious roar at the Candelabrum Dragon that was Shanks. A torrent of destructive energy spewed forth, hammering against the spherical shield like a thousand blades.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
A cacophony of collisions rang out, sounding like the shattering of metal.
Boom!
Under the immense pressure, Shanks's form sank instantly, driven straight into the ground and carving out a crater dozens of meters deep.
"No, I can't keep defending! I can't block it! The power of this thunder dragon is just too terrifying. A single breath has this much force... I can't even imagine its full strength," Shanks thought frantically.
"If this is how it is..."
"Then I'll have to bet everything. The time has come to use that forbidden technique."
Inside the shield, Shanks watched the relentless assault with growing horror. A ruthless glint entered his eyes as he cast aside all hesitation. He would do whatever it took to survive.
Roar!
The crimson Candelabrum Dragon let out a furious roar. It spread its wings wide and shot up from the ground, shattering the spherical shield in a blast of pure force. An even more potent aura erupted from its body as it raised its head, glaring defiantly at the thunder dragon and, not far from it, Ryuuto.
"What is he planning?!"
"Destroy him!"
Ryuuto didn't understand, but it didn't lessen his intense desire to kill Shanks. With a sharp downward slash of his right hand, the terrifying, two-hundred-meter-long thunder dragon roared and charged.
In that same instant, a wave of mystical energy pulsed from between the Candelabrum Dragon's vertical pupils. Ancient, cryptic runes materialized out of thin air, slamming into the space directly in front of him. The patterns, composed of black and white, seemed to hum with an otherworldly power.
All of this happened in a flash.
"Gaze of the Nine Hells!"
As Shanks's roar echoed, the spot struck by the mystical runes exploded with a brilliant crimson light. Then, space itself seemed to corrode. The world trembled, and the heavens warped.
Boom!
The phenomenon lasted less than a second before a final, thunderous crack resounded. Space shattered, and a colossal suction force erupted from the pitch-black rift that had been torn in reality. The winds howled, kicking up countless stones and debris from the ground.
The sky darkened, the clouds churned, and sand and stone flew through the air. It was a scene straight out of the apocalypse.
Not only that, but the crimson-glowing runes that had shot from the Candelabrum Dragon's eyes flew straight into the spatial rift.
"Ryuuto, let's be destroyed together!"
"Let's descend into the Nine Hells together!"
Having completed the technique, Shanks relaxed, his body shaking with crazed laughter directed at Ryuuto. It was a laugh of three parts confidence, three parts madness, and three parts resignation.
He was truly out of options.
This technique, Gaze of the Nine Hells, was a skill buried deep in the Candelabrum Dragon's memories, one not to be used lightly. Though its power was astonishing, it was indiscriminate, a wide-area attack whose consequences could not be controlled.
Shanks glanced at Luffy, still clutched in his claws, then hurled him forcefully toward the Red Force.
"Luffy, I hope I haven't bet wrong!" Shanks thought to himself.
He then roared at his ship, "Beckman, retreat! Get Luffy and the others out of here!"
Everything happened in an instant. By the time Shanks had done all this, the thunder dragon was already upon him.
It engulfed him completely.
"Captain!"
Benn Beckman, Lucky Roux, and the others cried out in agony. His words had sounded like a final testament. They knew, with certainty, that Shanks had prepared himself for death.
Suppressing their grief, they spun the ship's helm with desperate speed, sailing away from the island as fast as they could.
But Shanks couldn't see it.
To unleash the Gaze of the Nine Hells, he had abandoned all defense, taking the full force of Ryuuto's Myriad Thunder Ascendant Dragon head-on.
The moment the thunder dragon made contact, savage bolts of lightning slammed into his body. The attack had armor-piercing properties, and the power surged deep inside him, causing him to spit out a large mouthful of blood. Then the massive body of the thunder dragon crashed into him, slamming the Candelabrum Dragon violently into the ground.
Boom!
The impact blasted a crater nearly a hundred meters in diameter into the earth.
Splat!
Shanks, in his Candelabrum Dragon form, coughed up another gout of blood.
He felt as though his internal organs had been pulverized.
"Ugh... It hurts! Even this demonic body can't take it!" Shanks thought, his eyes fixed on the dissipating form of the thunder dragon.
The thunder dragon had fulfilled its purpose. Its body was breaking down, dissolving back into arcs of purple lightning.
Ryuuto, however, stared with a grave expression at the spatial rift. He had never imagined that Shanks possessed a skill that could not only inflict a time-like corrosive damage but could also shatter space itself. And from within that rift, Ryuuto could feel terrifying presences rapidly approaching.
Violent, bloodthirsty, deathly, destructive...
A medley of auras intertwined, and Ryuuto could sense their immense power.
This was the Candelabrum Dragon's ultimate technique—Gaze of the Nine Hells, a forbidden art. It could tear open a direct rift to the Nine Hells, releasing the terrifying entities trapped within.
Awooo!
Before the greater horrors could emerge, a pack of hellhounds, their hides covered in bristling, needle-like fur, leaped out from the portal. Their fangs were bared, their eyes glowed a malevolent red, and a savage aura rolled off them in waves. They stared hungrily at Ryuuto, waiting for the perfect moment to pounce.
Roar!
As more hellhounds poured out, an alpha wolf at their head let out a howl, and the entire pack charged.
"Well now, they certainly live up to their reputation as pack animals. Dozens, even hundreds of them... it's quite a spectacle."
Ryuuto shook his head and commented dryly.
"Chidori Stream!"
With a sharp cry, he unleashed a torrent of purple lightning that erupted from his body in all directions.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Countless impacts rang out as the savage purple lightning illuminated the darkened world. A moment later, the ground was littered with the fallen bodies of the hellhounds. They were charred black, smoke pouring from their mouths as they lay twitching on the ground.
"Hahahahahahaha..."
"That was nothing but an appetizer!"
Seeing this, Shanks let out a sinister laugh, taunting Ryuuto relentlessly. But his movements drew the attention of the remaining hellhounds, who immediately turned and lunged at him.
Roar! Roar!
The sound of tearing flesh filled the air.
"Son of a bitch!"
Shanks couldn't hold back a curse. A brilliant crimson light erupted from his body, blasting the few hellhounds away from him.
"Cough... Dammit! I almost forgot!"
Coughing, the Candelabrum Dragon beat its wings and soared into the sky.
But Ryuuto was faster. He had grown tired of Shanks's antics.
"Rushing Thunder Fist!" he roared, his figure blurring as he closed the distance. A massive, solidified fist of purple lightning slammed viciously into the right side of Shanks's face.
Smack!
The immense force shattered several of Shanks's teeth, and his massive body was sent flying.
"Laugh? What's so funny?!" Ryuuto said with a sneer, clapping the dust from his hands. He couldn't figure Shanks out anymore. The man was acting like a lunatic.
Roar!
Then, a heaven-shaking roar echoed from the rift. Two giant arms grabbed the edges of the spatial tear and ripped it wider. An ugly creature, clad in armor and looking like a cross between a man and a demon, charged out.
"An Asura?"
Ryuuto couldn't help but think of the familiar name upon seeing the figure.
Following it was a creature with nine heads, strongly resembling a dragon. Its nine maws constantly spewed torrents of putrid brown water and bright yellow flames.
"A Jiuying?"
Ryuuto was stunned. This Gaze of the Nine Hells actually contained the legendary creatures of the underworld.
"This shouldn't be possible! According to this world's logic, the underworld is just another layer beneath the World Tree. How can beings this powerful exist in the Nine Hells?"
But it wasn't over.
Behind the Asura and the Jiuying, another creature slowly emerged. It was covered in golden fur and resembled a bipedal lion. Its body shone with a metallic luster, and upon closer inspection, one could see it was covered in countless tiny scales.
"A Golden-Furred Hou? The legendary beast said to tear dragons apart with its bare hands?"
Ryuuto felt like his world was being turned upside down.
These three colossal figures stood over a hundred meters tall. Their mere presence radiated an overwhelming aura of savagery.
"What... What are those things?"
Though he was a great distance away, Perospero watched the three titanic figures through a spyglass, his mind reeling in shock.
When I get back, I'm never leaving again, he thought to himself. This world has gone mad. How did it become so alien overnight?
Benn Beckman and the others weren't far enough away to need a spyglass, and their shock was no less profound. They knew their captain was strong, but could he really summon beings of this caliber at will? Then again, if these creatures were uncontrollable, it would make sense. Beckman glanced at Luffy, who was now conscious on the deck, and a grim understanding settled in his heart.
"Shanks, I never thought your abilities were so arcane that you could actually open a passage to the Nine Hells! But I saw those hellhounds attack you too. How do you plan on handling this situation?" Ryuuto's voice boomed like thunder, questioning the distant Shanks.
"Worry about yourself!" Shanks retorted, flapping his wings to stay aloft. His face was a mask of pure insanity. "Don't you dare die to them. I've already claimed your life, and I'll be the one to take it!" Everything was proceeding just as he had anticipated. While this was his first time using Gaze of the Nine Hells, he had already witnessed this scene in the Candelabrum Dragon's memories.
"It has been centuries. I did not expect to see you again," the Asura's form, which flickered between solid and ethereal, slowly turned to face Shanks. "You seem to have grown weaker."
Clearly, the Asura was familiar with the Candelabrum Dragon.
Shanks, however, had no such memories. He remained silent, watching the scene unfold as he readied himself for battle.
Screech!
With a piercing cry from the Jiuying, its body vanished in a blur of motion. When it reappeared, it was already right in front of Shanks.