Last night.
After the NEO Marines seized the Dyna Stone—
Boom!
A blinding flash!
An overwhelming surge!
Flames and clouds of smoke burst into the sky, soaring tens of thousands of meters high, wildly demonstrating an unmatched power of destruction.
The entire island was disintegrating, reduced to dust in the face of this unprecedented and terrifying explosion.
Not far from the center of the blast, a few warships floated on the sea, constantly being pushed back by the raging waves.
Among them was a NEO Marine warship and several official Marine ships.
At the bow of the NEO Marine ship, Zephyr stood quietly, staring at the now-obliterated island in the distance.
"Gion, how do you feel?"
Beside him, his proud disciple who had followed him in leaving the Marines—Vice Admiral Momousagi Gion—couldn't hide the shock on her face.
"Amazing… Just a few rocks destroyed an entire island."
"What kind of unreasonable mineral even is this?"
"With Devil Fruits already existing, Dyna Stone isn't that unbelievable," Zephyr replied calmly.
Compared to the bizarre and truly unreasonable Devil Fruits, Dyna Stone was relatively easy to understand.
"If Dyna Stone already has this kind of destructive power… then what about the ancient weapons?"
Gion couldn't help but gasp. "Those legendary weapons said to be able to destroy the world—how powerful must they be?"
Pluton, capable of sinking an island with a single blast.
Poseidon, ruler of the seas.
Uranus, master of the skies!
What level of power do they truly possess?
In that moment, Gion suddenly understood why the World Government had strictly forbidden any research into the ancient weapons.
Because they were simply too terrifying.
If Dyna Stone—which only held a fraction of an ancient weapon's power—could cause such devastation, then the true ancient weapons… were beyond imagination.
"But, Zephyr-sensei," Gion asked with a bit of confusion, "Why did we destroy that island?"
Was it really just to test the power of the Dyna Stone?
Zephyr remained calm as he replied, "Gion, have you heard of the legend of the End Points? That island was one of them, where Dyna Stone was being stored."
"End Point?"
Gion was stunned for a moment, then her pupils shrank sharply.
"The legendary three islands located at the magma nodes of the New World... If they are destroyed, all the underwater volcanoes in the New World will erupt, turning the entire sea into a sea of fire?"
"This legend... is true?"
Zephyr nodded slightly.
"Zephyr-sensei!!"
Gion grew anxious.
Could it be that, after everything he's suffered, Zephyr-sensei has gone mad to this extent?
There are indeed many despicable pirates in the New World—but even more innocent civilians!
"I used to think that way too."
Zephyr didn't seem to care. He simply spoke calmly.
"But it's meaningless."
"Pirates are just a symptom of this world's true problem. The real root is the World Government."
"As long as the World Government continues to tolerate pirates and rules over the world, there will always be new Pirate Emperors. New Ians will be born."
Zephyr had completely lost hope in the World Government.
In his eyes, Ian was nothing more than a monster nurtured by the Government's negligence.
If they had taken action earlier, how could that man have grown into such an unstoppable force?
"Then, Zephyr-sensei," Gion asked, "What exactly do you plan to do?"
"I'm going to show the monsters of the New World what it means to be afraid."
"To intimidate them?"
"Let's go. That's enough. Things need to quiet down from here."
Time returned to the present—Hive Island.
"So that means... Zephyr has already blown up one of the End Points?"
Ian scratched his head helplessly.
"If he destroys the other two islands, then the entire New World will be wiped out?"
"In theory, yes."
Stussy replied with a bitter smile.
"At that point, the whole New World will be engulfed in flames. Everything will be consumed by fire."
She glanced at Ian, then added softly.
"Of course, Lord Ian, you'll be fine."
Neither flames nor magma held any power against the man standing before her.
"This is getting interesting."
Ian sighed with intrigue.
Zéphyr… could he really be planning to destroy the New World completely, just like in the movie?
Wait a minute.
If these three magma nodes really do exist, doesn't that mean the World Government has always had the power to wipe out the New World at any time?
Ah, no wonder the World Government never really interferes with the pirates gathered in this sea.
They just gave it up, letting the pirates turn it into their own battlefield.
Is that the real reason?
Because they possess the power to destroy the entire New World whenever they choose?
So calculating… so far-sighted.
"If there's any news about Zephyr, let me know immediately," Ian said.
The Government was, of course, desperately searching for Zephyr's whereabouts.
Destroying the New World was a final, desperate move — a last resort they wouldn't take unless absolutely necessary.
At least for now, the World Government had no intention of obliterating the region.
After all, there were still quite a few allied nations located here.
And naturally, the Government wanted to recover the Dyna Stones.
That stuff was highly unstable — a moment of carelessness could lead to catastrophic consequences.
But its destructive power… was terrifying.
Perfect.
Ian was quite interested in the Dyna Stones himself.
Just imagine it: Viola's long-range observation and targeting combined with Kuma's long-distance launching ability — what kind of destructive force could they unleash together?
Did people not understand the deterrent power of intercontinental ballistic missiles?
If he could seize the Dyna Stones from Zephyr's hands, then… there'd be no need to fear the World Government so much anymore.
Just the next day, Morgans brought Ian a fresh piece of news.
That Zephyr guy had contacted him directly, asking him to publish a declaration in the World Economy News.
In this declaration, Zephyr didn't mention End Point at all.
He simply stated that he now possessed a terrifying weapon known as "Dyna Stone."
The other island that was blown to ashes had been the work of this Dyna Stone.
He proclaimed that whether it was the World Government or the pirates of the New World, anyone who continued to act recklessly would face divine punishment delivered by him.
He would use Dyna Stone to reduce them to dust.
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