Chapter 234: Fighting God Mode · Great Sage Equal To Heaven
As the dust settled, there was no need to debate who the figure floating in the air, surrounded by flame-like clouds, was. That iconic monkey-mask was enough to confirm his identity.
"It... it's Saru!"
"The Zodiac's 'Saru' is still alive!"
Gatz couldn't help but scream into his microphone. His exclamation was echoed by the audience both inside and outside the Corrida Colosseum. After witnessing Saru being tag-teamed by the Three Disasters and then blindsided by Saint Pierre's white bone spears, almost everyone had assumed the Zodiac member was dead.
But the reality before them proved he was not only alive, but transformed.
"Hey! Look! What happened to his body!?"
The sharpest spectators quickly noticed the change. Even Marco, standing among the crowd, looked at the screen with visible shock.
Saru's appearance had changed completely. The "Victory Radiance" that had surrounded him—a golden aura earned by suppressing the country's riots with over two thousand victories—had vanished. Or rather, it had condensed into a majestic set of golden armor.
His arms were encased in ornate guards, his wrists adorned with green kingfisher-patterned gems. He wore a suit of golden chainmail that shimmered like liquid gold and jade. His shoulder guards were shaped like ferocious beast heads, a jade belt wrapped around his waist, and his feet were clad in "Cloud-Walking Boots."
Atop his Sea Beast Mask sat a crown—the Phoenix-Wing Purple Gold Crown. Two long, vibrant red pheasant feathers trailed from it, fluttering in the wind alongside the crimson cape billowing behind him.
Most strikingly, four sockets were built into the back of his armor, each holding a banner. These banners were semi-transparent and illusory, each bearing a massive, ancient character that no one in this world recognized:
[齊] [天] [大] [聖] — (Great Sage Equal to Heaven)
BOOM!
A majestic pressure descended, causing the shattered floor of the colosseum to groan and tremble. High above, the clouds began to swirl, forming a massive atmospheric whirlpool.
"What kind of presence is this...?" Even Marco, who had followed Whitebeard for decades and seen the world's greatest heroes, was rattled.
The three God's Knights looked up at the rising figure, their expressions turning grim. Saint Fabian forgot all about his "collection."
"Impossible..." Fabian muttered, his voice laced with disbelief.
But his words cut short. In the blink of an eye—before the Knights could even blink—Saru vanished.
"Wh—" Saint Qilingorm's long beard whipped in the wind as his eyes widened. In his peripheral vision, a golden streak appeared out of nowhere.
BOOM!
Only then did the sonic boom from Saru's initial movement reach them. Qilingorm had no time to react before Saru's iron staff, wreathed in black-red Conqueror's Haki, came crashing down.
CRUNCH!
Qilingorm's body was pulverized instantly. His Qilin horn snapped and went flying, his armor disintegrated, and his blood and bones were scattered.
VMMM!
An instant later, his figure reassembled through the power of the Deep Sea Contract glowing on his left arm.
"It hurts... this bastard..." Qilingorm's face was twisted with a mix of fury and shock. He didn't have time to vent, however, because as soon as he reformed, Saru was gone again.
"Nightmare Cave: Unbreakable Wall!" Qilingorm roared, activating his ability. Dream fragments surged from his body, forming a massive, pitch-black barrier that encased him like a fortress.
Qilingorm allowed himself a momentary sigh of relief. This "Unbreakable Wall" was a dream construct harvested from the collective subconscious of thousands of soldiers—the manifestation of an "impenetrable fortress."
CRACK!
The relief lasted a fraction of a second. Before his eyes, the "impenetrable" wall began to spiderweb.
BOOM!
The barrier shattered like cheap glass. An iron staff, wreathed in golden flames and Conqueror's lightning, pierced through the debris and struck Qilingorm dead center.
Pfft! He was disintegrated again.
Moments later, he reassembled once more, his expression shifting from anger to absolute terror. In the span of a few seconds, he had "died" twice.
"Fabian! Help me!" the usually arrogant Knight screamed.
"Fourth Shot: Dispatch Shot!" Saint Fabian reacted instantly, waving the glowing light in his hand. The scene within the light centered on Qilingorm, and with a flick of a finger, Qilingorm was teleported across the stage to Fabian's side.
"First Shot: Fixed!"
"Second Shot: Close-up!"
Fabian frantically adjusted the "camera angles" in his hand. Every Den Den Mushi in the arena swiveled to lock onto Saru.
"Screen Lock!" He slammed his hand down.
VMMM!
The same invisible binding force that had neutralized the Three Disasters descended upon Saru.
"It worked!" Fabian roared. "Pierre, he's locked down and weakened! I'm sending you in. Finish him!"
Fabian flicked the scene toward Saint Pierre.
"Dispatch Shot: Actor Transfer!"
"Close-up Shot: Lead Actor!"
Pierre vanished and reappeared directly in front of Saru, his aura flaring with power.
"I've got him!" Pierre snarled, already mid-charge. Beneath his black armor, a blood mist erupted. Countless jagged bone shards protruded from his body, aimed at the "immobile" Saru.
"God-Killing Spear: Rapid Fire!"
The bones launched like a barrage of harpoons. But then...
"Good coordination," a calm voice said.
Pierre's heart skipped a beat. Through the gaps in his armor, he saw Saru move. Golden flames flowed around the monkey-masked warrior. Without even looking up, Saru simply swept his crimson cape forward.
BOOM!
The billowing cape acted as a physical shield, swathes of fabric swatting away every bone projectile as if they were mere flies. In Pierre's horrified gaze, Saru swung his staff in a wide arc.
"FABIAN!?" Pierre screamed, feeling betrayed. You said he couldn't move!
The God's Knight was smashed into paste, his armor and body obliterated by the strike. He recovered instantly via the Deep Sea Contract, but Saru didn't give him a second to breathe, bringing the staff down again.
"Save—!" CRUNCH. He was smashed again.
"SAVE ME!"
Suddenly, a gargantuan roar echoed from the heavens. A shadow larger than the entire island of Dressrosa fell over the colosseum.
"Nightmare Cave: Leviathan!"
Qilingorm had summoned his ultimate creation—a beast so massive it looked capable of swallowing the sea. It opened its cavernous maw, gathering water into a high-pressure cannon.
BOOM!
A golden staff-shadow, appearing to pierce the very heavens, rose from the ground and struck the beast's jaw. The Leviathan, a creature that could cause global tsunamis, was swatted away like a broken kite. It didn't even have time to scream before it shattered into millions of dream fragments.
"Fabian! Pull Pierre back, NOW!" Qilingorm screamed through gritted teeth.
"Dispatch Shot!" Fabian teleported Pierre back to their side.
The three God's Knights stood together once more, just as they had at the start. But the atmosphere had changed completely. They were panicking.
"Leviathan couldn't even take one hit..." Qilingorm's voice trembled. That summon had cost him an immense amount of stamina and dream-slaves.
"My God-Killing Spears couldn't even scratch his cape," Pierre added, his confidence shattered. "And I can't reflect his attacks... even with Conqueror's Haki, that shouldn't be possible."
"Fabian, this is your 'Stage'!" Pierre turned to his leader. "What is happening!?"
"I don't know..." Fabian hissed, staring at Saru.
In Saru's eyes, the glow of the system's Fruit Encyclopedia flashed:
[Target Identified: Saint Jaygarcia Fabian]
[Fruit: Paramecia · Director-Director Fruit]
[Description: Designates an area as a 'Stage.' The user controls 'Actors' through camera shots.]
[LV5 Fighting God Mode Effect: Ignore all control and negative status effects. All attacks bypass defensive conditions.]
The Knights had prepared a perfect trap. Fabian's stage control, Qilingorm's dream summons, and Pierre's vector manipulation made them an invincible team.
But against Saru's current form, none of it mattered.
BOOM!
Saru swung his staff casually. The speed was so great that space itself seemed to lag behind. The upper bodies of all three Knights were pulverized in a single sweep.
The shockwave from the swing continued outward, turning into a hurricane. The clouds in the sky were wiped clean, and even the approaching "Birdcage" of razor-sharp strings shattered for a moment before slowly regenerating.
Doflamingo, watching from his throne, raised an eyebrow. "Fuffuffuffu... what terrifying power."
Behind Saru, the four banners—the Fighting Seals—glowed with intensity. This was the pinnacle of the Fighting God Fruit: [Fighting God Mode · Great Sage Equalling Heaven].
"I heard my Boss mention you," Saru said, resting his iron staff on his shoulder. He could feel the infinite power surging through his veins. "You call yourselves the 'God's Knights.'"
He pointed the Jingu Bang at the three Knights as they desperately reassembled their bodies.
"I heard you call yourselves Gods," Saru said with a predatory grin. "And as it happens... what I love killing most in this world are 'Gods' like you!"
☆☆☆
-> 30 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you