Chapter 279 - CHAPTER 279:I've Been Defeated

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At the center of the battlefield—

Rocks stared at Ayr with surprise and disbelief in his eyes.

"What an overwhelming power, Ayr! I truly didn't expect that since the end of the Valley of the Gods battle, you'd grow to this extent. I believe it now... You have the strength to suppress even me!"

Though the fight hadn't even started, Rocks already knew—there was no chance of victory.

The sheer momentum radiating from Ayr was enough to completely crush his fighting spirit.

"So... do you still want to continue, Rocks?" Ayr asked lightly, floating calmly in midair.

"Of course," Rocks replied with a grin. "Let me experience that terrifying strength firsthand. If you believe I'll submit to your power, then prove it!"

Despite knowing the gap between them, Rocks still wanted to feel it for himself.

This was Ayr—the strongest man in the world today. What kind of strength did he truly possess?

"Defend yourself, Rocks," Ayr said calmly. "I don't want you to die the moment you've returned to life."

This was the first time Ayr fully released the power of the Sage of Six Paths mode since arriving in this world.

Even he wasn't certain how terrifying his strength now was.

But what he did know was this—he possessed the kind of power that could erase nations... possibly even the world itself.

"!!!"

Rocks let out a roar, cloaking himself in a powerful layer of top-tier Armament Haki, fortifying every inch of his body.

In the next instant, he charged straight at Ayr.

Ayr responded in kind—wielding the Six Paths tin staff, he blitzed forward at a speed nearing that of light.

The two titans collided in an instant.

"Cut!!!"

Rocks gripped Zanjin, his legendary blade, with both hands. The veins in his arms bulged as he channeled his monstrous strength and layered both Armament and Conqueror's Haki onto the weapon.

Raw, terrifying energy poured from his body into the sword.

Rocks didn't rely on flashy techniques—he had only one move.

A single, decisive slash!

He brought the blade down in a massive arc toward Ayr—a strike so powerful it looked as if it could cleave the heavens and split the sea, imbued with destructive force enough to annihilate all.

CLANG!!!

Ayr raised his Six Paths staff and met the blow head-on.

A deafening clash of power echoed across the battlefield.

The impact was catastrophic—the ground beneath them quaked as if struck by a cataclysmic force.

From the center outward, the island cracked and tore apart, ripped into two clean halves.

Even the atmosphere itself trembled under their power.

Dark clouds swirled violently above them, casting the sky into shadow.

Rain began to pour, followed by thunder, and then hailstones the size of fists.

The New World's chaotic weather was pushed to extremes, shifting rapidly—sunlight, storms, lightning, and ice all within moments.

It wasn't natural. It was the result of their power—two conquerors, reshaping the very climate through sheer force.

Not only had they split the island—Ayr and Rocks had torn into the world itself.

"So... strong!!!"

Rocks' pupils shrank. The next moment, he was blasted back, sent flying hundreds of meters.

His body smashed through building after building, leaving a path of devastation behind.

"Come on! You've got to be kidding me! Rocks got blown away in one hit!?"

"That power... it surpasses even what Ayr used during the Battle of the Holy Land, Mariejois!"

"This monster—if he were a Marine, the pirate era might've ended overnight!"

"But unfortunately... this unreasonable, godlike existence is a pirate—our enemy—and someone we Marines have no hope of defeating!"

Kizaru and the others, watching from a distance, were beyond horrified.

There was no questioning it now—Ayr's current strength was beyond comprehension.

They were shocked, terrified... and overcome with a deep, helpless despair.

The other major pirates of the New World were merely "troublesome" to Marine HQ.

But Ayr? Ayr couldn't be called "troublesome."

He could only be described as—invincible.

Rocks, buried in the rubble, lifted the debris off his body slowly.

Ayr appeared instantly before him, descending like a god of judgment.

"Do you want to continue, Rocks?" Ayr asked again, expression unchanged.

He had yet to use many of the powers granted by the full Sage of Six Paths transformation.

For now, he had only used the Six Paths staff.

Rocks stood up, brushing the dust off his shoulders. He glanced at his wounds, then at Ayr—and smiled.

"You know, Ayr... in the middle of this battle, someone came to mind."

Ayr remained silent, listening.

"Do you remember that moment—after the Hive Island campaign—when you and Edward were with me, and we intercepted the Celestial Dragon fleet? Among them was that old scholar from Ohara... the one who spoke of a prophecy."

Rocks narrowed his eyes.

"He said someone from the Rocks crew would rise to become the ruler of the world."

"I thought... of course, it must be me—Rocks D. Xebec!"

"But after I lost to Roger and Garp at the Valley of the Gods... I began to doubt. Maybe he wasn't talking about me."

"Now, after clashing with you today—I'm sure."

"That prophecy... wasn't about me."

"It was about you, Ayr."

"You... are the one destined to rule the world."

In the early days, ever since forming the Rocks Pirates on Hive Island, Rocks had dreamed of total world domination.

He viewed everyone—his crew, his enemies, the Marines—as pawns in his path to power.

He gathered only the strongest, never seeking companionship—only conquest.

But that dream was shattered during the Valley of the Gods incident.

Now, even though he had returned from death...

After just one battle with Ayr—he understood.

He still couldn't fulfill that dream.

The man before him—Ayr—was untouchable, invincible, and even evoked fear in Rocks' heart.

"So, tell me, Ayr... do you want to keep fighting?"

Ayr's expression didn't change. His heart wasn't moved by Rocks' words.

After all, he had long accepted the truth.

With the system in his possession, he would one day become the undisputed ruler of the sea.

That was the destiny he had seen from the moment he crossed into this world.

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