"Found an opening—Ikoku!"
Big Mom, Wang Zhi, and Silver Axe kept pressing Shiki relentlessly. With her providing aerial support, Shiki's Devil Fruit abilities weren't as troublesome as they usually were.
Moreover, they were fighting inside a natural tunnel. Even though the tunnel's ceiling was quite high, the dense stalactites hanging down gave Wang Zhi and the others an advantage.
Soon, Shiki was having trouble keeping up.
Charlotte Linlin seized an opening. She stood atop the thunder cloud Zeus, wielding the great blade Napoleon in her hand.
This was a peculiar sword formed from her bicorne hat.
Though it wasn't one of the legendary Supreme Grade Swords, it was no inferior to one.
This living blade released a terrifying black slash under Big Mom's command, flying straight toward Shiki.
Shiki was already bearing the combined assault of Wang Zhi and Silver Axe—he had no time to react and could only stare helplessly at the incoming slash.
In his desperation, he controlled the rocks he had already affected with his ability, hastily forming a wall in front of him.
But unfortunately, such a defense couldn't possibly block Charlotte Linlin's strike.
The thick earthen wall was sliced apart as if it were made of paper.
It didn't even weaken Ikoku's power in the slightest.
Just as Shiki thought he would have to rely on Armament Haki to tank the hit, a white light instantly tore through the air!
An extreme cold spread through the already dark and damp cavern in an instant.
"BOOM—"
The slash was cleaved apart by the white light, splitting into several fragments that scattered into the walls.
Shiki still hadn't processed what had just happened—he could only stare wide-eyed at the unfamiliar white-haired man.
Though, speaking of which, Ren's style of dress was actually quite similar to Shiki's.
"Who are you!"
On the other side, Charlotte Linlin's anger and dissatisfaction were far more obvious.
If it weren't for this guy who suddenly burst in, her attack just now would have at least injured Shiki.
It might not have killed him immediately, but sometimes victory and defeat are decided by the accumulation of wounds.
"Never seen this face before. Shiki's new recruit?"
Wang Zhi's expression was also grim. They had been just moments away from taking Shiki down.
Once Shiki was eliminated, he and Silver Axe could team up to take out Big Mom too—then he and Silver Axe could split the treasure between them.
Even if Silver Axe planned to betray their agreement later, the two of them were evenly matched. With some luck, he might even be able to claim all the treasure for himself.
But now, the balance of power had clearly shifted.
Although this man had only blocked one of Charlotte Linlin's slashes, he already possessed the power to change the outcome of the battle.
'I have no idea where Shiki found a subordinate like this!'
Wang Zhi couldn't help but think with a twinge of jealousy.
Shiki: I don't know either.
Actually, Shiki was even more bewildered than they were.
But at this point, Ren's identity didn't really matter anymore. What mattered was that he was standing on Shiki's side.
With someone fighting alongside him, he wouldn't lose.
And unlike John, Shiki wasn't a cheapskate. If this man truly stood with him, he didn't mind sharing the treasure.
Of course, it would be even better if he could use this cooperation as an opportunity to recruit the man into his crew.
"Gyahahahaha! Looks like your plan is about to fail!"
Shiki laughed heartily, looking smugly at Big Mom and the others before turning to Ren.
"I really owe you one, kid. If not for you, I would've been done in by those three."
"How about it? Team up with me and take them all out?"
"That brat John's treasure—how about we split it between the two of us!"
Hearing Shiki's words, Big Mom also realized that Ren most likely had no connection to Shiki, and was fighting for his own interests.
This gave her the idea of sowing discord.
Charlotte Linlin immediately put on a fake smile, trying to persuade Ren to abandon his alliance with Shiki.
"Mamamama, teaming up with that old lion isn't a wise choice. Be careful or he'll chew you up bones and all."
"Shut up, Linlin! I'm no cheapskate!"
Shiki was so furious the hair on his back was practically standing on end. Then, ignoring Big Mom's group entirely, he extended an invitation directly to Ren.
"Kid, what's your name? How about you just come with me and rule the world?"
Shiki said boldly, "If we succeed, you'll be a World Noble too!"
"The Marines and the World Government let those ugly Celestial Dragons ride on everyone's heads—it's sheer stupidity!"
"Only the strongest power can rule the world! Rocks failed four years ago, but I won't fail!"
"Well? Think about it!"
"You can call me Sesshomaru."
After a few seconds of silence, Ren finally answered Shiki's first question.
"As for the rest, Mr. Shiki, let's not bother with such flights of fancy, shall we?"
Overthrow the World Government?
Ren knew full well that this wasn't something Shiki could accomplish.
He had both the strength and the presence for it, but unfortunately, he wasn't the protagonist.
In truth, his strength wasn't sufficient either. To stand against the World Government, Ren figured it would take at least all four Yonko combined to have a chance.
A single Emperor's crew couldn't possibly do it—let alone Shiki's Golden Lion Pirates, whose mid-tier fighting strength couldn't even compare to a future Yonko crew.
Hearing this, Shiki didn't get angry.
Regardless, at least for now, this man was still on his side.
He certainly didn't want to provoke the guy and end up going from a three-on-one to a four-on-one.
Although the situation had changed again, Big Mom didn't continue trying to sway Ren.
That wouldn't serve Ren's interests. Splitting the treasure between two was certainly better than splitting it four ways.
And so, the battle resumed once more.
The Golden Lion directly took on Wang Zhi and Silver Axe—these two together were even more troublesome than Big Mom.
Ren had no intention of going all out. He was only allied with Kaido, not selling his soul to the man.
"Emperor Sword: Hahavanjin!"
The blade of Big Mom's Napoleon burst into fierce flames as she slashed violently toward him!
Ren was using Morley's sword to avoid being recognized.
But in reality, he had been overthinking it. The cavern was extremely dark—nobody would notice the design of a relatively small sword under these conditions.
The icy cold air and flames collided, instantly releasing an intense burst of steam.
White mist swept through the cavern, obscuring everyone's vision.
But no one was rendered unable to fight because of it. Observation Haki allowed people to battle even without relying on sight.
[
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