Chapter 331: Chapter 331: Sword Cleaves the Sunlight Tree, Wrath of the Sea!
Chapter 331: Sword Cleaves the Sunlight Tree, Wrath of the Sea!
Along with Shamrock’s cold voice resounding in the deep sea.
A terrifying slash tore out from the three hideous canine mouths of the rapier named ’Seven Sins’, which had transformed into a Hellhound.
BOOM!
The seawater was instantly torn apart, and a torrent of destruction swept across nearly everything within sight, swallowing and scattering even the radiant light emitted by the Sunlight Tree Eve.
That slash, with a power so massive it was simply incomprehensible, rapidly headed towards the giant tree standing in the deep sea.
The next moment...
Rumble!
The brilliant light of the Sunlight Tree Eve dimmed in the deep sea—its trunk was abruptly engulfed by that world-destroying slash, and violent ocean currents submerged the tree’s body in an instant.
A massive tremor erupted from the deep sea, beginning to transmit to the surroundings using the seawater as a medium.
That was a shockwave.
This strike from Shamrock had actually formed a tide constructed out of a slash out of thin air in this deep sea.
BOOM!
Countless corals and seaweed clinging near the Sunlight Tree Eve were reduced to fine powder out of thin air beneath this wave.
Countless deep-sea fish swam away from this place in terror, but their massive bodies were still inevitably torn apart.
Blood dyed the dark seawater red in an instant.
Yes.
Shamrock’s goal had been very clear from the very beginning.
He came here to destroy the Sunlight Tree Eve.
Of course, in the eyes of almost everyone in the world, this goal itself could be said to be inconceivable.
After all, the Sunlight Tree Eve was a legendary tree equally famous as the Treasure Tree Adam.
Theoretically, its size was simply not something a living creature could destroy relying on individual strength—even the Giant race or the Ancient Giant race could not possibly do it.
But...
"!!!"
Right now, as the endless ocean currents and the terrifying slash dissipated.
The Fish-Men could see it clearly.
The current appearance of the ’Sunlight Tree Eve’, which stood above Fish-Man Island and had supported its existence throughout the long years of the past.
The light on its body had now vanished, revealing the tree trunk that only existed in the legends of the Fish-Men.
That massive trunk emitting a warm radiance was similar to the legends of the people—the Sunlight Tree Eve was a mother tree, always radiating a gentle light.
But on that straight and sturdy trunk, a massive slash mark had already appeared!
That slash mark almost cut through more than one-fifth of the Sunlight Tree Eve’s trunk. From the rift of that slash, golden sap was frantically spewing out.
VMMM!
Within the trunk, the light transmitted from the sea surface flickered and dimmed continuously, as if this tree was crying for help.
"Eve is actually..."
Upon seeing this scene, whether it was Neptune, the three Princes, or all the Fish-Man soldiers witnessing this, their eyes nearly split open in rage and horror.
"Your Majesty, a seaquake—a violent seaquake just occurred on the island, and many buildings in the lower districts have collapsed!"
And right now, from a Transponder Snail on Neptune’s body, the Minister of the Left, who had just received orders to stay on the island, cried out in alarm.
"..."
Neptune’s expression had already become grim to the extreme.
Not just him, the expressions of the three Princes and the Minister of the Right were also extremely grave at this moment.
Of course, they understood.
Fish-Man Island existed relying on the Sunlight Tree Eve—the Sunlight Tree Eve provided sunlight and oxygen for Fish-Man Island, while its root system itself was the foundational basis for Fish-Man Island’s existence.
And the seaquake occurring on the island was exactly caused by Shamrock’s strike just now that slashed and wounded the Sunlight Tree Eve.
In other words...
"Royal Father, stop that bastard—if he is allowed to continue attacking Eve, Fish-Man Island will..."
"Prepare for battle!"
At this time, Fukaboshi had already let out a roar of anger.
Every single Fish-Man soldier gripped the tridents in their hands, their eyes turning red.
But...
"Stop!"
Neptune’s roar exploded by everyone’s ears like thunder!
"Are you all going out to seek death?"
"Everyone, you are not allowed to attack—return to the island immediately."
His massive body instantly blocked the front of all the warriors, his trident held horizontally.
"That guy’s power... he is a ’monster’, going up there now offers absolutely no chance of winning!"
His eyes were similarly filled with bloodshot anger, yet there was also a bizarre calmness.
That was the calmness brought about by the insight gained from long experience and having seen too many powerhouses.
He had seen Harald, he had seen Whitebeard, he had seen Gol D. Roger, he had seen Garp—Neptune had met the heroes of this sea across the past few eras.
So, he knew very well.
That young monster who suddenly descended... was a powerhouse of that exact same tier, an immovable force.
No, judging from the power displayed, he was highly likely even stronger.
To put it bluntly, if that strike from just now happened merely one more time... the soldiers of Fish-Man Island would be completely wiped out.
"But Royal Father..."
And right now, Fukaboshi was similarly gritting his teeth.
They knew Shamrock possessed terrifying power, and even the hands of many Fish-Man soldiers gripping their weapons were trembling right now.
But...
"If this continues, Fish-Man Island..."
He gritted his teeth.
"I know!"
Neptune interrupted his son’s words: "But as long as the Fish-Man race still exists, Eve won’t be destroyed so easily!"
As the King of the Fish-Men, he clearly knew more secrets than Fukaboshi—especially the secrets regarding the Sunlight Tree Eve.
As if to corroborate his words.
VMMM!
Right at this moment, a dazzling light shone brightly once again.
The Fish-Men instinctively raised their heads, their gazes looking in the direction where the Sunlight Tree Eve was located.
Shamrock also watched the scene in front of him with a cold expression.
Right now, at the edge of that massive rift that had originally almost cut one-fifth of the way through the Sunlight Tree Eve’s waist.
From Fish-Man Island below, specks of light resembling fireflies continuously gathered.
These specks of light converged and merged into the Sunlight Tree Eve.
Thus, visible to the naked eye, that severed tree trunk actually began to knit itself back together under the infiltration of this golden light—that spewing golden sap was drawn back and staunched by an invisible force, and the massive wound healed rapidly at a speed defying common sense.
After seeing this scene, Shamrock frowned, a chill appearing in his eyes, and he unhesitatingly swung the rapier in his hand again.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
Accompanied by his swings, intense slashes burst forth from within the three Hellhound mouths once again, slicing open the trunk of the Sunlight Tree Eve once more.
However, in just a few moments, the trunk of the Sunlight Tree Eve continuously healed itself yet again.
And the most crucial part was...
"The slashes hit, but its ’presence’ hasn’t weakened in the slightest."
Shamrock could sense this point.
But this didn’t puzzle Shamrock for long.
As one of Imu’s current spokespersons, having already learned most of the world’s secrets, he quickly deduced the source of the Sunlight Tree Eve’s current state.
"It is ’wishes’."
At the same time, Neptune also whispered to his eldest son to explain that ancient, inherited secret.
"The Sunlight Tree Eve is a tree born inheriting the ’wishes’ of the Fish-Men."
"It is the mother of the Fish-Men, and also the guardian of the Fish-Men, ensuring that the Fish-Men have a homeland in this world."
That was a record originating from the most ancient era.
The Fish-Man race and the Giant race—these two groups that had once established merits in the founding of the ’Great Kingdom’, shared a common characteristic.
They both had an ’Ancient Weapon’ among them.
At the same time, neither of them had a homeland belonging to themselves.
So the first King bestowed seeds to let their homelands sprout—this led to ’Elbaf’ and ’Fish-Man Island’.
And the very existence of these trees relied on... the ’wishes’ of these two races.
Unless, like the Treasure Tree Adam, the Source Energy of Lineage Factor within was completely devoured through Loki’s ’Nidhogg Fruit’.
Otherwise, as long as the Fish-Man race and the Giant race still existed, as long as their wishes could still be heard by the tree.
Then the Treasure Tree Adam and the Sunlight Tree Eve would never wither and die.
"Return to the island immediately, open the ’Bubble Shield’ to the maximum limit to buy time."
"Besides that, have all the islanders leave the island completely and hide in the deep sea!"
"As long as our people can be preserved, Eve can still exist—even if this island is destroyed, the Fish-Men can rebuild a new Fish-Man Island in the future!"
Neptune issued the order with a low roar.
Upon hearing these words, hesitation, pain, struggle... various emotions flashed across the faces of the three Princes.
But a moment later, they chose to obey their Royal Father’s orders—they led the Fish-Man soldiers, swiftly retreating downwards and returning inside Ryugu Palace.
"Your Majesty, we should also immediately..."
The Minister of the Right looked at Neptune, intending to escort his Majesty back to the island to evacuate.
But...
"Minister of the Right."
At this moment, he saw Neptune’s serious eyes.
"...Your Majesty?"
An ominous premonition immediately arose in the Minister of the Right’s heart.
He looked at this King in front of him who had already guarded Fish-Man Island for decades: "You..."
"Get the contents of the inner box of the ’Tamatebako’ for me."
Neptune said softly.
"!!!"
But upon hearing these words, the Minister of the Right’s expression truly changed drastically, and panic appeared in his eyes: "You, you cannot..."
What was the Tamatebako?
That was the national treasure of Ryugu Palace on Fish-Man Island.
Stored within it were special drugs known as ’Energy Steroids’.
Creatures consuming the Energy Steroids would obtain extraordinary power, but the price was years off their lifespan and accelerated aging.
After Queen Otohime died back then, due to the massive chaos within Ryugu Palace, someone took advantage of the confusion to steal a portion of the Energy Steroids from the Tamatebako.
Fortunately, the thief did not know—the Tamatebako was actually divided into two parts.
The first was the outer box, which stored the ordinary ’E.S. Energy Steroids’.
And within the inner box, there was an even more special kind of Energy Steroid, named ’Wrath of the Sea’. Its effect was over a thousand times that of an ordinary Energy Steroid, capable of granting the consumer power sufficient to shake the very sea.
That was the most dangerous power of Fish-Man Island, and extremely few people knew of this matter—it could be said that in the entire Fish-Man Island, only he, the Minister of the Left, and Neptune knew of its existence.
And now Neptune’s intention was also extremely clear.
"If you take that drug, you will..."
The Minister of the Right knew very well that the effect of consuming ’Wrath of the Sea’ was countless times more terrifying than an ordinary Energy Steroid. Taking it meant certain death.
"Even if someone must take it, I can do it."
But what greeted him was only Neptune’s calm gaze.
"You won’t do."
"Although ’Wrath of the Sea’ can enhance the consumer’s strength by hundreds or thousands of times, it is also contingent on the consumer’s foundational strength—the stronger the person, the greater the limit they can break through with it."
"Against that guy who is as strong as a monster, I am the only one who has a chance to fight by consuming ’Wrath of the Sea’."
From the moment he made the request, this man who had once been the mightiest of the Fish-Men had already made his preparations.
The power Shamrock displayed had already exceeded his cognition.
So, his life was something destined to be discarded from the very beginning.
While speaking, the actions of the two were extremely fast. They had already arrived inside the Royal Treasury of Ryugu Palace and taken out the Tamatebako.
"Minister of the Right."
And at this time, Neptune only looked at the Minister of the Right—this minister was not merely a subordinate, but a comrade-in-arms who had stood beside him for decades.
"...Your Majesty?"
An ominous premonition immediately arose in the Minister of the Right’s heart.
He looked at this King in front of him who had already guarded Fish-Man Island for decades: "You..."
"Get the contents of the inner box of the ’Tamatebako’ for me."
Neptune said softly.
"!!!"
But upon hearing these words, the Minister of the Right’s expression truly changed drastically, and panic appeared in his eyes: "You, you cannot..."
What was the Tamatebako?
That was the national treasure of Ryugu Palace on Fish-Man Island.
Stored within it were special drugs known as ’Energy Steroids’.
Creatures consuming the Energy Steroids would obtain extraordinary power, but the price was years off their lifespan and accelerated aging.
After Queen Otohime died back then, due to the massive chaos within Ryugu Palace, someone took advantage of the confusion to steal a portion of the Energy Steroids from the Tamatebako.
Fortunately, the thief did not know—the Tamatebako was actually divided into two parts.
The first was the outer box, which stored the ordinary ’E.S. Energy Steroids’.
And within the inner box, there was an even more special kind of Energy Steroid, named ’Wrath of the Sea’. Its effect was over a thousand times that of an ordinary Energy Steroid, capable of granting the consumer power sufficient to shake the very sea.
That was the most dangerous power of Fish-Man Island, and extremely few people knew of this matter—it could be said that in the entire Fish-Man Island, only he, the Minister of the Left, and Neptune knew of its existence.
And now Neptune’s intention was also extremely clear.
"If you take that drug, you will..."
The Minister of the Right knew very well that the effect of consuming ’Wrath of the Sea’ was countless times more terrifying than an ordinary Energy Steroid. Taking it meant certain death.
"Even if someone must take it, I can do it."
But what greeted him was only Neptune’s calm gaze.
"You won’t do."
"Although ’Wrath of the Sea’ can enhance the consumer’s strength by hundreds or thousands of times, it is also contingent on the consumer’s foundational strength—the stronger the person, the greater the limit they can break through with it."
"Against that guy who is as strong as a monster, I am the only one who has a chance to fight by consuming ’Wrath of the Sea’."
From the moment he made the request, this man who had once been the mightiest of the Fish-Men had already made his preparations.
The power Shamrock displayed had already exceeded his cognition.
So, his life was something destined to be discarded from the very beginning.
While speaking, the actions of the two were extremely fast. They had already arrived inside the Royal Treasury of Ryugu Palace and taken out the Tamatebako.
"Minister of the Right."
And at this time, Neptune only looked at the Minister of the Right—this minister was not merely a subordinate, but a comrade-in-arms who had stood beside him for decades.
"After I die, you and the Minister of the Left must assist Fukaboshi in ascending the throne."
He said in a deep voice.
"I am not sure why the Government suddenly made a move against Fish-Man Island, but looking at the situation, they intend to at least destroy Eve—this destines that we can no longer fulfill Otohime’s long-cherished wish."
"If I defeat that person and Fish-Man Island survives, then please immediately lead the Fish-Men with Fukaboshi to join Whitebeard’s forces."
"If I am defeated in battle, you and Fukaboshi must quickly evacuate the Fish-Men and hide, trying to save as many people as possible."
He was clearly already making arrangements for his afterlife.
Speaking to the end, he took a deep breath and looked seriously at the Minister of the Right: "And finally — promise me this: find Shirahoshi, no matter what."
That was his final, and most important request.
Shirahoshi—his most precious treasure, his most beloved daughter, and at the same time the hope of the Fish-Man race.
No one knew better than Neptune how important that innate power Shirahoshi possessed was to Fish-Man Island—in this berserk era, in a situation where he would inevitably die and Fish-Man Island would inevitably be unable to join the wheel of the world, the existence of ’Poseidon’ was the cornerstone of Fish-Man Island’s survival.
But at the same time, this was also the part that broke his heart.
He never wanted his kind-hearted daughter to become a ’weapon’.
Just as he had never utilized Shirahoshi’s power to do anything over the many past years.
He only ever wanted to protect her from harm.
But right before his eyes, he had no choices left.
"She is the Princess of Fish-Man Island. I believe... she will become the hero of Fish-Man Island."
"..."
The Minister of the Right could no longer speak.
He similarly looked at the monarch he had begun serving since his youth.
After a long while.
"Yes... Your Majesty..."
He said with a trembling voice.
"Mm."
Neptune nodded in satisfaction.
He seemed to want to say something more, but it was already too late to speak.
The next moment, he seemed to sense something and abruptly raised his head.
Right at this moment...
Shamrock, above the deep sea, was already looking down with lowered eyes.
(End of Chapter)
☆☆☆
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