Pfft...
Once the blade left his body, the wound could no longer be contained, and a crimson pillar of blood erupted.
Like a fountain, it sprayed into the air before splattering onto the surrounding ice, forming a shocking pool of blood.
At the same time, a trickle of blood flowed from the corner of Whitebeard's mouth, trailing down his pale chin.
Yet, in that very instant, Whitebeard moved as if uninjured.
His Murakumogiri, which had been swinging backward, was swiftly retracted in front of him.
Simultaneously, Whitebeard's left hand shot out, seizing Lancelot with blinding speed.
The movements were so fast no one could react in time.
Lancelot was shocked.
He'd never imagined that Whitebeard, despite his severe injuries, could still possess such speed and power.
However, amidst his shock, a twisted sense of excitement welled up within Lancelot.
As his strength had continuously grown, fewer and fewer people could pose a threat to him.
In fact, there might be no one left in the world capable of breaching his seemingly impenetrable defense.
For instance, aside from Oden and himself, no one else had managed to leave a scar on Kaido.
And now, his own physical resilience surpassed even Kaido's.
So who could possibly inflict a wound on his body?
Thus, Lancelot found himself anticipating it.
He wanted to know if Whitebeard's terrifying brute strength, combined with the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit and unleashed at full force, could break through his formidable defense.
While Lancelot's mind wandered, Whitebeard slammed him into the hard ice layer beneath his feet.
With a sharp crack, the ice shattered instantly, and Lancelot's body was buried deep beneath the frozen surface.
Yet, this was only the beginning.
The next second, Whitebeard unleashed his Quake Ability without hesitation.
BOOM...
A deafening roar echoed, as if the entire world trembled.
This strike carried the force of a thunderbolt, with unparalleled power and might.
This was Whitebeard's signature move—the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit!
In the original story, Whitebeard had used this technique to teach Blackbeard a lesson. With just one blow, Blackbeard was severely injured.
In that instant, Blackbeard's eyes glazed over, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, a testament to the astonishing power of this attack.
Even Akainu had suffered from this move, slammed beneath the ice layer and nearly meeting his end.
This time, the one enduring this terrifying strike was Lancelot.
An indescribable, excruciating pain washed over him, as if all his internal organs were about to be shattered.
He was unable to withstand this immense force, and a mouthful of blood shot out like an arrow.
However, Whitebeard's assault didn't end there.
He immediately grabbed Lancelot and hurled him into the distance like discarding trash.
Boom…
With a deafening crash, Lancelot slammed into the wall of the naval port like a meteor, the terrifying impact feeling as though it could tear the world apart.
The wall could no longer endure such tremendous force and collapsed once more, sending rubble and dust flying in all directions—a spectacularly chaotic scene.
Yet, this was already the second time Lancelot had crashed into the wall.
This left him feeling humiliated, stirring deep frustration within him.
Without hesitation, and before the onlookers could even recover from the shock of seeing him sent flying once again, he unleashed the full extent of his power.
The rubble and stone blocks that had been pressing down on him were lifted as if by an invisible force, instantly blasted away.
Lancelot pushed off with his legs with explosive force, propelling himself into the air like a cannonball.
His speed was swift as lightning, and in the blink of an eye, he'd soared to mid-air.
Then, as if walking on solid ground, he began taking rapid, consecutive steps in the air.
Each step seemed to tread upon empty space, yet he used the resulting recoil to propel himself forward at an astonishing velocity.
His target was none other than Whitebeard in the distance!
At this moment, Lancelot finally understood another formidable aspect of Whitebeard's Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
His own body was indeed resilient—even Whitebeard's full-powered attacks couldn't breach his external defenses.
However, this was merely surface-level protection; his internal organs weren't nearly as indestructible.
Whitebeard's Quake Ability could directly damage the body's interior.
Thus, although the previous strike wasn't a critical blow, the injury was far from light.
Now he also understood why Whitebeard held the title of the world's strongest.
While he might not be able to break through Kaido's exterior, he could still inflict internal damage on Kaido.
Otherwise, given Kaido's stubborn and aggressive nature, how could he have tolerated Whitebeard overshadowing him for so many years?
But upon careful reflection, it made sense… Kaido was hailed as the strongest creature, yet the title of the world's strongest remained in Whitebeard's hands.
That alone spoke volumes.
…
At this very moment, Akainu could no longer maintain his composure.
Lancelot's performance had been far too dazzling, especially that last kick, which had nearly brought about the grand finale
It made Akainu's heart almost leap out of his throat.
His emotions were complex—a mix of joy and shock.
What delighted Akainu was that if Lancelot's kick had truly succeeded, the war would undoubtedly have ended in a decisive victory for the Marines.
For Akainu this was the outcome he most desired.
Yet, he was also startled, because that kick had almost spelled the end for his own ambitions as well.
After all, the words he'd spoken to Squard earlier weren't entirely fabricated.
In truth, Akainu's statements to Squard were a blend of truth and falsehood.
Such half-truths are often the most convincing, precisely because they contain elements of reality.
For instance, the need to accumulate sufficient merit.
Akainu knew all too well that in this fierce battle, he had to achieve enough merit to have any chance of attaining the coveted position of Fleet Admiral.
Although both he and Aokiji were Admirals, and his merits even surpassed Aokiji's to some extent, the problem lay in the fact that he wasn't a member of the Dove Faction.
This alone almost guaranteed that he could never become the next Fleet Admiral.
It was important to note that whether it was the current Fleet Admiral Sengoku, the Vice Admiral and Chief of Staff Tsuru, the Marine hero Garp, or the former Fleet Admiral and now Commander-in-Chief of the World Government's combined forces Kong—all were figures of the Dove Faction.
These individuals held extremely high status and influence within the Marines, and their perspectives and decisions played a crucial role in shaping the direction of the Navy.
Even the Five Elders, the highest authority in the World Government, couldn't ignore their proposals.
And he, clearly, wasn't a member of the Dove Faction.
In an environment dominated by the Dove Faction, his ambition to stand out and ascend to the position of Fleet Admiral was nothing short of a pipe dream.
In contrast, Aokiji was more aligned with the preferences of these Dove Faction leaders.
Not only was Aokiji powerful, but his temperament and principles also resonated more closely with the Dove Faction, making him the ideal candidate in their eyes.
Thus, he understood that this war held extraordinary significance for him.
Only by achieving sufficiently outstanding merit could he prove his strength and worth before the Five Elders.
He narrowed his eyes, his gaze sharp as if it could pierce through the smoke and chaos of the battlefield, locking onto his target—Whitebeard.
Then, with a sudden burst of force from his legs, he shot forward like an arrow from a bow, leaping into the air and charging swiftly toward Whitebeard.
His movements were decisive, without the slightest hesitation, for he knew full well that in the midst of this intense battlefield, nothing could showcase his merit more effectively than directly defeating Whitebeard.
More importantly, Whitebeard had just suffered a severe blow, making this the perfect opportunity to strike while he was vulnerable—an opportunity he absolutely couldn't miss.
However, the most critical point was that if he didn't act decisively now, this immense and easily attainable merit would likely be snatched away by Lancelot.
That was absolutely not the outcome he desired.
Although his speed couldn't match the lightning-fast pace of Kizaru or Lancelot, it was still remarkably swift.
Yet, no matter how desperately he tried to catch up, he couldn't overtake Lancelot, who had already surged ahead.
After all, at this very moment, Lancelot had already rushed before Whitebeard like a bolt of lightning.