The figure of Joy Boy, the previous 'God of Liberation,' emerged in Kenji's mind.
Although 'God of Liberation' was merely a title on the surface, Joy Boy indeed possessed the ability to revert the Five Elders to their original forms, and it was an aged Conqueror's Haki stored for hundreds of years!
Such power was a height that even the Legendary Pirates of the current era were far from reaching.
Kenji vaguely felt that such Conqueror's Haki had surpassed the human level.
"The Conqueror's Haki has completely materialized... Hmm, the Pressure of All Things trait has also been merged."
Kenji raised his hand, somewhat wanting to test just how divine this divine Conqueror's Haki truly was.
"The new trait should possess the power of Pressure of All Things. It shouldn't be weaker than Joy Boy's Conqueror's Haki… right?"
Although Kenji himself felt that the newly generated trait was very powerful, out of a rigorous attitude, he thought it would be better to test it on the battlefield.
At this moment, a gasp and a cry of complaint suddenly came from not far away.
Loki was seen struggling to get up while shouting in pain, his body covered in wounds, big and small, like breaches in a dam, gushing blood.
He looked like a blood gourd. However, he still managed to stand up, even picking up the giant hammer, as he did so.
"Damn it, I'll remember this grudge!" Loki looked at the exit of the Temple in the distance, his eyes filled with deep hatred, hissing in a low growl.
Evidently, the physical and mental blows inflicted by the God's knights earlier were too intense.
Due to his overwhelming emotions, Loki, after an angry roar, began to gasp heavily due to his injuries.
At the same time, some Giant warriors in the Temple also started to get up one after another.
It was Harald and two other Temple Guards who were relatively less injured.
The other Giant warriors lay in pools of blood, completely unable to move.
"You… are an Admiral?"
After Harald got up, he didn't rush to call for people to treat his subordinates. Instead, he stared intently at Kenji.
That expression, it could be said, exuded the same emotion from inside out: vigilance!
Kenji didn't quite understand. He had just helped repel a powerful enemy, so what was the meaning of this vigilant expression?
Was this an old tale of an ungrateful person playing out?
"Is this situation what you wanted?"
The next moment, Harald gasped and spoke again, questioning him.
"What situation?" Kenji frowned, not understanding.
"Hmph! You can't fool me!" Harald sneered.
"I know very well the relationship between the Marine and the World Government!"
"You are all in this together!"
At this point, he seemed to have aggravated his wounds due to his excessive emotions, coughing violently and spitting out a large amount of clotted blood before continuing:
"Now, I just want to know, why?"
"Did the Marine and the World Government conspire to do this… Is it to completely control Elbaph?"
"If that's your purpose, then I can answer you now: Never!"
After saying that, he coughed up blood again.
Across from him, Kenji also felt like spitting blood.
Good heavens, I went through all that trouble to save you, and not only did I not get a single word of thanks, but I was also subjected to a conspiracy theory.
Well, although this conspiracy theory sounded reasonable and plausible... you should at least say "thank you" first, right?
"Do you think the Marine is just a subordinate of the World Government?" Kenji's expression turned cold, and he sneered.
"I can tell you, the Marine will never be anyone's puppet!… At least I'm not."
Seeing Harald's disbelieving expression, Kenji himself felt that his words lacked credibility.
So, he decided to drop the pretense and lay his cards on the table.
"Heh heh, if I wanted to deal with you, I wouldn't need anyone else to come and put on a show!"
As he spoke, an invisible aura emanated.
It wasn't the merged and evolved Conqueror's Haki, but merely the release of ordinary aura.
When the invisible aura spread throughout the hall, permeating the entire space, all the Giants present, except for Harald and Loki, instantly stiffened and became unable to move.
Harald, on the other hand, suddenly narrowed his eyes, a hint of shock appearing in his wary gaze.
Just then, Loki, who was nearby, quickly turned and stopping Harald, explaining urgently, "This Admiral is not an enemy, he truly came to help us solve the problem."
"I saw earlier that Charlotte had already been defeated by him. The villagers of Sun World were also unharmed."
Hearing Loki's explanation, Harald's expression remained sharp, but the faces of the other Giant warriors present softened.
At this moment, all the Giant warriors in the Temple who could still move turned toHarald, awaiting the King's command.
"Hmph! Loki, don't be deceived by appearances!" Harald first reprimanded Loki, then sneered at Kenji.
"You don't think such an explanation will make me believe you, do you?"
"You likely conspired everything behind the scenes, so I…"
Kenji directly raised his hand to interrupt, saying impatiently, "Believe it or not! Explaining to you is superfluous!"
Saying that, a deep dark colored light flowed around Kenji's body.
It was the merged and evolved Conqueror's Haki! Its color was deeper than ordinary Conqueror's Haki.
The more obvious change was the pressure.
The power source of Conqueror's Haki is the user's own spirit, the so-called intimidating enemies with spirit.
And at this moment, the Conqueror's Haki released by Kenji had undergone a qualitative change, transcending human limits, directly acting upon the mind.
Kenji hadn't truly released his Conqueror's Haki yet. He was merely controlling it to flow around his body.
And Loki, who was closest, was already affected, his body instantly stiffening, his internal power completely dormant.
The sudden drastic change startled Loki, who wanted to scream but found he could no longer make a sound.
Gradually, he felt his five senses being progressively stripped away, and even the hammer, which could summon thunder, became completely cold and lost its effectiveness.
The other Giant warriors farther away didn't feel too much. After all, they were already stunned and unable to move by Kenji's aura.
Just as the atmosphere in the hall fell into a dead silence, Kenji slowly extended his palm.
Across from him, Harald suddenly sneered, "Hmph! You won't let me finish my sentence, there's indeed a problem!"
"But, I must tell you, playing with schemes and tricks will never be recognized by the Elbaph Giant Tribe!"
"What we recognize is only pure strength! Therefore…:"
"Your strength, I acknowledge it!"
"As the King of Elbaph, I agree to cooperate with the Marine!"
"Don't misunderstand, it's merely because your strength as a warrior is enough to earn our respect!"
Kenji: "..."
(End of Chapter)
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