Huh?
Wha—what the—?!
"Q-Q-Queen-sama!!!"
"W-w-what the hell is going on here?!"
"This guy's a monster among monsters! Even Queen-sama is—"
"The explosive collar direct hit didn't kill him, and now even one of the veteran All-Stars... Marula, I think I might've been too cocky earlier!"
Inside Skull Hall, the Beast Pirates Crowd erupted in waves of shocked and awed exclamations, their voices rising and falling like tides.
"Fucking insane! Big Bro Luo Xia is absolutely godlike!" Page One's inner gloom completely dissipated as he cheered excitedly.
Choosing to follow Luo Xia as his big brother might have been the best decision of his life. With him leading the way, reaching the pinnacle of life wasn't just a dream.
"Queen's an annoying bastard, but his strength isn't fake. And yet... what kind of monster is that guy?" Ulti couldn't help but mutter to herself.
"No! It's not over yet! Queen won't go down that easily. That man clearly knows it too. Let's go outside and watch!" Black Maria declared.
Under the awed gazes of the Beast Pirates, Luo Xia strode forward, stepping through the collapsed ruins until he emerged outside Skull Hall. His eyes swept the surroundings, but Queen was nowhere in sight.
"Muhahaha! Where the hell are you looking, bastard?!" A booming laugh rang out from above.
Luo Xia looked up just in time to see Queen the Plague hurtling down from a hundred meters in the air, his body swelling monstrously mid-fall.
Zoan Type Dragon-Dragon Fruit Ancient Species Brachiosaurus Form—Activate!!!
In an instant, Queen the Plague transformed into a massive brachiosaurus, launching a devastating headbutt from the heavens.
"Taste my special move—Brachiosaurus Bomb!!!"
The same skull-shattering headbutt that had once left even Emperor Big Mom Charlotte Linlin dazed and disoriented exploded forth.
If this had been the Luo Xia from before, he likely would have dodged. But the current Luo Xia had only one thing to say: Perfect timing.
He stood his ground, tilting his head back slightly, neither dodging nor evading as the brachiosaurus's massive skull crashed down onto his own head.
The sheer weight of the brachiosaurus combined with the acceleration of its fall was unimaginable.
Luo Xia felt as if an entire mountain had been dropped on his head, his knees buckling slightly under the pressure.
BOOM!
CRASH—!
The ground beneath his feet shattered violently, the earth sinking layer by layer.
Cracks spread outward like a dense spiderweb, fracturing the battlefield.
Rocks were flung into the air, only to be pulverized by the ensuing shockwaves before they could even fall, scattering like dust in the wind.
"Muhahaha! Get crushed to pieces under my Brachiosaurus Bomb!" Brachiosaurus Queen cackled triumphantly.
"That was pretty heavy. Even I almost couldn't take it!" Luo Xia remarked—even as he steadily straightened his posture.
"Muhahaha, you'd better—guh?!" Queen's gloating was abruptly cut short.
Because instead of being crushed under his weight, Luo Xia was lifting him up.
You motherfucker, you say you "almost couldn't take it," but your body's standing up just fine?!
As Queen reeled in shock, Luo Xia raised both hands overhead and seized the brachiosaurus's head.
An overwhelming force surged—and with an earth-shaking crash, Queen was slammed into the ground, cratering the battlefield.
Had this been the single-element Fire Dragon Slayer Luo Xia from the Sirius Island days, lifting and throwing a brachiosaurus would have been impossible.
The reason he could accomplish this was naturally because Luo Xia now possessed dual Dragon Slayer powers.
The integration of Armor Dragon Slayer Magic didn't just enhance his defense—it also triggered a secondary reinforcement of his Half-Dragon Body.
Each additional Dragon Slayer Magic he fused with further strengthened his physique, making it no mere fantasy for a human body to rival that of a dragon.
"To think even my Brachiosaurus Bomb couldn't take you down… Honestly, you've slightly exceeded my expectations!"
Queen the Brachiosaurus slowly rose to his feet, his massive frame twisting into an odd posture.
His head and neck, which should have been held high, suddenly stiffened straight, resembling a turtle stretching its neck, while his tail also straightened, aligning perfectly with his neck in a horizontal line.
"UOOOOOH—!!!"
"It's coming! Queen-sama's ultimate move!"
"The true power of the Dinosaur Devil Fruit!"
The members of the Plague Faction erupted in excitement.
"Muhahahaha! Kid, feast your eyes! This is the power of the ruler that dominated the world for over a hundred million years—the true, unaltered might of the brachiosaurus: Brachio-Serpent Dragon!"
The moment his words fell, Queen the Brachiosaurus split in two—his bulky torso remained in place while his elongated neck and tail shot forward like an ancient titanoboa, coiling around Luo Xia in layers of constriction.
"Muhahahaha! You let your guard down! This is what a brachiosaurus really is!"
Having landed his attack, Queen the Plague couldn't help but burst into triumphant laughter again.
Luo Xia: "..."
What the hell kind of brachiosaurus is this?!
The Beasts Pirates under the Four Emperors were all masters of absurdity—they could die, but they couldn't go out without putting on a show.
And Queen the Plague was the cream of the crop, truly living up to his title as the Art Calamity with his myriad talents.
Though Luo Xia had known about this move beforehand, experiencing it firsthand still amused him enough to draw a chuckle.
"What's so funny?!" Queen scowled.
"Sorry, just remembered something amusing," Luo Xia waved dismissively, signaling him not to mind it.
"Still putting on airs even at death's door? No one has ever escaped the Brachio-Serpent Dragon! No matter how skilled they are with Armament Haki, their bones and organs will be crushed under this pressure—they'll never stand again!"
The serpentine body tightened further, its muscles bulging like jagged rock formations.
Queen poured all his strength into the constriction, intent on crushing Luo Xia's body inch by inch under the serpent's coils.
But… to his shock, Luo Xia's body was as hard as steel, showing not the slightest sign of deformation.
No—
Even steel would warp under his power.
This guy was practically diamond!!!
Had that "sparkly" diamond brat from Whitebeard's crew kicked the bucket?
Queen couldn't help but wonder if Luo Xia had somehow inherited the abilities of Jozu, the Third Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates.
"Even if you're diamond, I'll shatter you today!"
Gritting his teeth, Brachio-Serpent Queen turned his gaze toward the remaining brachiosaurus torso not far away.
"Y'know, kid? For a normal brachiosaurus, the leftover legs would be nothing but useless appendages—but I'm a scientist! My body's equipped with a 'Brachiosaurus Launcher'! The moment I mention it, it'll lock onto you and fi—"
BOOM!
A missile shot out from the brachiosaurus torso at lightning speed, striking Brachio-Serpent Queen head-on.
KABOOM!
A plume of explosive smoke billowed into the air.
"Idiot, I was just explaining to him how this Brachiosaurus Launcher works..." Queen grumbled, having been backstabbed and accidentally injured by his own invention.
Before he could finish speaking.
Boom!
Another explosion rang out.
The Brachiosaurus Launcher fired a second time, blasting Queen to smithereens.
"Huh?"
"Wait wait wait!"
"Lord Queen, just shut up already!"
"Please stop explaining anything!"
The watching Plague Faction pirates collectively facepalmed.
"HAHAHAHA, what an idiot... That moron Queen, this is killing me... HAHAHA" Ironhead girl Ulti laughed so hard she started crowing.
"Damn it!" The ash-covered Queen felt utterly humiliated.
Just then, he felt a sharp pain in his neck - to his shock, Luo Xia, who should have been tightly bound by his 'snake', had broken free of the coils and walked out.
"That was quite the show. Let's move on to the next act."