If Queen knew what Blackbeard was thinking at this moment, he would definitely regret not giving King some specially made Plague Bullets, so that King could reduce Blackbeard to ashes.
When the Marines set their sights on him, he endured it. Pirates being wanted by the Marines was a common occurrence. Even without these matters, he would have become wanted sooner or later.
When the World Government set their sights on him, he endured it.
It was just taking the blame, after all. He had already gotten used to it. Although that "Only Alive" bounty was clearly targeted at him, there was nothing he could do about it. He became the scapegoat but received corresponding rewards in return.
However, if the news that Blackbeard is also after him reached Queen's ears, he would absolutely blow up on the spot.
Just a mere Blackbeard—what right did he have to target him?
But for now, Queen didn't need to worry about such matters, because at this very moment, King was launching an indiscriminate assault on the Blackbeard Pirates.
Pteranodon were flying creatures from the Cretaceous period. Large Pteranodons could have wingspans reaching up to twelve meters, soaring through the skies as they hunted fish in the water and small, weak animals along the shore.
Meanwhile, Aerodactyl was the dominant ruler of the ancient skies. It was said to be a fierce Pokémon that soared across the vast ancient skies while letting out high-pitched cries. Anything that moved could potentially become its target.
Once again, Blackbeard experienced the agony of being burned by flames. He couldn't understand—why could every single Devil Fruit user in the Beasts Pirates ignore his Dark-Dark Fruit? Likewise, Ace didn't understand why, when Blackbeard grabbed him, his own ability had become completely unusable.
Yet when King was grabbed by Blackbeard, everything still played out as expected.
With Van Augur's example before them and Blackbeard's warning following after, the other members of the Blackbeard Pirates had also begun prioritizing self-preservation—commonly known as running for their lives.
"I'll start with you, then."
King's gaze flickered back and forth a few times before finally locking onto Laffitte.
The dim-witted-looking Burgess, the perpetually near-death looking Doc Q—in King's eyes, neither of them could escape. Only Laffitte, who was capable of flying, had the greatest chance of fleeing.
And so, he decided to deal with the one most likely to escape first.
With a flap of his wings, in just the blink of an eye, Laffitte found himself shrouded by a shadow—an enormous claw was reaching for him.
In terms of kicking techniques, King wasn't as skilled as Shayna, but that didn't mean he was incapable. Since his Beast Form was that of a pteranodon, he had his own way of utilizing his legs.
King had never adhered to any fixed combat style—his entire body was his weapon.
In the original timeline, when he learned that Big Mom and her pirate crew were invading Wano Country via the waterfall aboard their flagship, the Queen Mama Chanter, he transformed into a Pteranodon and went alone to the ship, kicking it off the waterfall. This was also his most glorious moment before he became known as the Beauty Calamity*. [TN: Chinese-Fan created word. For more information: https://www.sohu.com/a/502792900_120524641 ]
Laffitte flapped his wings desperately, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not escape King's relentless pursuit. The razor-sharp claws were getting closer and closer.
Realizing that escape was impossible, Laffitte swiftly turned around, channeling Armament Haki into the tip of his cane and thrusting it toward King's claws.
Crack.
A crisp sound echoed—Laffitte's cane snapped in two.
Haki had its limits. Once depleted, it required time to recover.
Aside from a very select few, most people would never choose to coat their entire body in Armament Haki. Instead, they would concentrate it on a single point. That was exactly what Laffitte had just done.
A small amount of Haki reinforced the weapon, while the majority was focused at the tip of the cane. Yet even as the cane shattered, King's movements remained completely unaffected.
Instead, it left the sky scattered with many white feathers.
"Wings aren't meant to be used like that."
Among the Lunarians, they first learn to crawl, then to walk. Once they can run, they begin learning how to fly. This instinct is ingrained in their very survival. When it came to flying via wings, King could confidently claim to be an undisputed authority.
"Stop right there!"
Just as King was about to deal a killing blow to Laffitte, Blackbeard suddenly rushed up from below. His left hand swirled with darkness, creating a powerful gravitational vortex that ensnared King's movements in the sky, while his right fist, now equipped with a claw blade, slashed upward toward King.
Blackbeard had no desire to fight King, but he couldn't just stand by and watch his entire foundation get destroyed. He had no choice but to act.
Unlike King and Laffitte, who could fly, Blackbeard had reached this height purely through physical skills. His back constantly emitted black smoke, and shattered debris shot towards King like cannonballs.
However, such an attack didn't even make King feel the need to dodge.
A Lunarian's greatest source of pride wasn't their ability to manipulate flames or flying—it was their tenacious vitality.
The flames on their backs represented their condition. As long as the flames were burning, their defensive power was immense. These ordinary attacks wouldn't even come close to breaking through their defenses.
That said, Blackbeard's appearance provided Laffitte with a moment of respite, allowing him to get away from King's onslaught.
"Still have the guts to attack me?"
"I've spent decades scheming for my dream—there's no way I'm letting you ruin everything here!"
"Black Vortex!"
Faced with Blackbeard's attack, King chose not to make direct contact. Instead, he flapped his wings and pulled away, having already understood the nature of Blackbeard's ability from their previous contact.
Although being touched by Blackbeard didn't seem to have much effect—he could still fly freely in the air—King didn't want to let Blackbeard limit his ability in any way.
"If you've got the skills, try stopping all of this—Imperial Flames!"
Rock Slide fused with flames, and even more powerful Draco Meteor that rained down from the sky.
While it wasn't as destructive as Akainu's Meteor Volcano, the burning boulders covered an enormous area.
Whether it was Blackbeard in front of him, Laffitte trying to widen the distance, or Burgess and Doc Q frantically fleeing, all of them were caught within the fiery rain.
"Black Hole!"
Blackbeard had no choice but to expand the darkness to block King's attack.
But at that moment, out of the corner of his eye, King noticed something different—on the horizon, three flag posts slowly emerged.
The Marine's seagull flag came into King's view.
Knocked back down to the ground once again, Blackbeard also caught sight of the three incoming warships—and immediately started laughing.
"Zehahahaha! They're here, finally here! Bet you didn't expect this—I've already made a deal with the Marines! Right now, my identity is officially that of a Shichibukai!"
A leopard cannot change its spots—arrogance was ingrained in Blackbeard's nature.
Even though he had suffered countless setbacks because of it, he still hadn't dropped his bad habit.
The arrival of the Marines made him feel as though he now had reinforcements, giving him the confidence to speak boldly once more.
According to the deal between Blackbeard and the Marines, he would hand over Ace in exchange for Shichibukai position.
These Marines, who had been assigned to escort him, would undoubtedly be carrying his Shichibukai appointment letter.
From this moment on, he and the Marines were officially allies.
"Just you wait! One day, I'll make sure to settle this grudge!"
"Why wait for 'one day'? Why not settle it right now?"
King's words interrupted Blackbeard's thoughts. Blackbeard had assumed that upon seeing the Marine reinforcements, King would choose to retreat.
Since Blackbeard had no real way to deal with an aerial opponent like King, he had simply resorted to talking big.
He never expected that even with the Marine warships present, King showed no intention of retreating.
"You—"
"Now that the nuisances have arrived, I'll end this cat-and-mouse game. But you can try and see for yourself—can these guys really save you?"
To prevent any interference, King decided to finish off Blackbeard as quickly as possible.
His body began to change as the pteranodon form was enveloped by a brilliant white light. After the radiance faded, several sharp rocky spikes had emerged across his wings and body.
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