Chapter 644: A Special Mark, Lilith's Power!
The moment the battle truly began, the Spear of Longinus in Adam's hand moved like a ray meant to pierce the heavens.
It ignored distance.
It ignored space.
In an instant, it crossed the gap and stabbed straight for Lilith.
Clang!
Metal collided with metal, and a massive shield manifested in front of Lilith as if it had always been there.
Adam's pupils shrank.
"This is… the Shield of Heavenly Prison!"
"How could you…"
Disbelief twisted across his face.
That shield was something they absolutely could not touch. A forbidden object.
Yet here it was, in Lilith's hands.
Had she already built a connection with that being during this time?
Lilith's lips curled into a strange smile, like she was enjoying his shock.
"Adam, why is your plan still unfinished after all this time?"
"And why did you drag Lilith into it?"
"Why did Eve appear?"
"Do you really think nobody can see through what you're doing?"
As she spoke, the spear tip that had collided with the Shield of Heavenly Prison began to corrode, the metal hissing as if it were being eaten alive.
Adam sensed the change and withdrew immediately.
Even if the spear itself would not be destroyed, losing it here would still be a nightmare.
Lilith's gaze turned colder.
"An Adam clone…"
"Since you came all the way here, consider this a gift to the Dragon Hunter Pirates."
"I'm not on God's side."
"And I have no interest in associating with filth like you."
Her voice sharpened, then she looked toward Ryuunosuke.
"Captain Ryuunosuke, watch carefully."
"Next, you'll see the power of God."
"Heavenly Prison Shield, Release!"
She lifted a hand and pressed her palm against the shield.
A violent surge of aura poured into it.
In the next breath, special patterns and symbols surfaced across its metal, crawling like living script.
They were the same kind of marks Ryuunosuke had seen earlier on the altar.
Symbols he could not understand.
Yet even without understanding them, he could feel the result.
Lilith's presence began to climb.
This kind of forced boost usually required time, preparation, and a heavy price.
But within only a few breaths, her aura more than doubled.
At their level, even a tiny increase demanded sacrifice.
And yet Ryuunosuke was watching Lilith turn into something monstrous in real time.
Beside him, Luffy wandered over while gnawing on a huge piece of meat.
"Big brother, that pattern… I feel like I've seen it somewhere."
"It's kinda like… my Gear Fourth!"
Before anyone could respond, Luffy puffed up and activated Gear Fourth on the spot.
With the Infinity Stones and the Essence of Life supporting him, he could switch into it easily now.
And with the green Infinity Stone plus the Essence of Life, he no longer burned away his own life the way he used to.
Ryuunosuke stared at the markings spreading over Luffy's body.
"Hm?"
"It really is similar."
"But if these patterns are connected, is there a way to tell them apart?"
He studied the lines like a researcher staring at a map he could not read.
Luffy blinked.
"I don't think so."
Then his grin widened, like he had just discovered a new game.
"But big brother…"
"I tried controlling the patterns a little, and I made an even stronger move."
"Gear Fourth, Dragon Serpent Form!"
He tossed the remaining meat into his mouth and swallowed it in one go.
Then his body shifted fast.
Muscles that had been stable a moment ago twisted and coiled together like rubber bands pulled too tight.
The markings on his skin dispersed, stretched, and spread.
In seconds, they covered him more completely than before.
Ryuunosuke's eyes narrowed.
"Just like Jin before."
"These special patterns can trigger a qualitative change in attack…"
"Good."
He raised his hand and released Armament Haki.
Ryuo flowed.
Then Conqueror's Haki surged in, the two energies intertwining.
Golden dominance and hardened force blended, and the pressure gathered into lines and symbols, forming marks across his arm.
But the mark Ryuunosuke produced was not the same as the Shield of Heavenly Prison.
His looked older, stranger, heavier.
Something that felt more mysterious, and more dangerous.
"This is… a seal?"
For some reason, the sight reminded him of symbols he had seen in shows and movies in his previous life.
Then his control snapped.
Boom!
The energy erupted instantly, detonating outward.
A violent force blasted everyone back.
The Dragon Hunter Pirates reacted fast, guarding themselves and stabilizing the shockwave before it could do real damage.
Sabo and the Straw Hat Pirates were quickly pulled into a safe area under the Dragon Hunter Pirates' protection.
Luffy, blasted out of Gear Fourth and back into normal form, looked like he had been thrown through a storm.
He pointed at Ryuunosuke, disheveled and furious.
"Big brother, are you trying to kill me?!"
Ryuunosuke grimaced.
"Sorry. I couldn't stop it just now."
He exhaled, then waved his hand like he was throwing the idea away.
"Alright, we're not trying that again."
"Let's just watch the fight."
In the sky, the Shield of Heavenly Prison began to change.
It shattered into pieces of metal, then reassembled into armor that wrapped around Lilith's body.
At the same time, a long sword appeared in her hand.
Magnificent.
Imposing.
The kind of weapon that made the air feel heavier just by existing.
Adam's expression finally lost its composure.
"Damn it…"
He had come thinking this was just a projection that gained consciousness and ran.
He never expected the situation to turn this troublesome.
Lilith's voice drifted behind him.
"Mr. Adam."
"Actually, I didn't want to kill you."
"But you…"
"You probably don't feel the same way I do, do you?"
Adam's spine went cold.
He turned.
Too late.
Slash!
Lilith's greatsword came down in a clean, brutal arc.
Adam's clone was split in two.
His body hung in the air, barely holding together, trying to stitch itself back with frantic recovery.
Lilith's smile turned playful.
She was not going to let him escape like this.
If he had already begun repairing himself, then she would deal with the other issue first, before he could regain control.
She tilted her head, eyes shifting toward the sky on one side.
Then she threw her sword.
It launched like a spear, roaring upward as if it wanted to nail the heavens in place.
Adam's face twisted in panic.
"No!"
"You can't…!"
He forced his mangled body forward, trying to stop it, ignoring his own condition.
But his body would not cooperate.
In this state, he could barely recover, let alone intercept that strike.
A sharp laugh escaped Lilith.
In the next instant, her greatsword pierced straight into the air.
A scream tore down from the sky.
[TL: My new fanfic is out now—One Piece: Pokémon Master of the Seas! Check it out!]
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