By the time Marco's stamina was completely drained, a sudden surge of two thousand points flooded back into his body.
The change was immediate and overwhelming, as if he had just downed a powerful stamina potion.
The crushing exhaustion that had weighed him down moments earlier vanished, replaced by a renewed sense of strength and clarity.
Big Mom noticed it at once.
Under normal circumstances, such a subtle shift might have escaped her attention.
But after battling Marco continuously for eight grueling days, with both of them pushed to the brink of collapse, she was acutely aware of every fluctuation in his state.
She could clearly sense that something had changed within him just now.
Marco straightened his posture, his eyes burning with confidence as he looked directly at her.
"Enough with the pointless talk," he said calmly.
"Come on. You're not the only one with trump cards."
Seeing Marco recover so noticeably only confirmed Big Mom's suspicions.
Her expression hardened, her gaze turning sharp and dangerous.
"You won't cry until you see the coffin," she snarled.
"Fine then. This old lady will grant your wish."
When they clashed again, Big Mom quickly realized that Marco was telling the truth.
He really did have something up his sleeve.
Even though she could not understand how, his fighting strength had clearly rebounded.
Unable to hold back her curiosity, she demanded, "How did you do it?"
Marco's lips curved into a faint smile.
"I already told you," he replied.
"You're not the only one with trump cards."
Big Mom's face darkened.
She had never imagined that Marco would be this troublesome, nor that this battle would drag on for so long.
The fight on the eighth day continued deep into the night, yet still no victor emerged.
In the end, both sides withdrew to recover, agreeing to resume their duel the next day.
On the ninth day, both combatants had regained a small amount of strength.
The day before, they had pushed themselves to absolute extremes, squeezing out every last drop of power from their bodies and resources.
Today, they could only fight in short bursts.
The fatigue accumulated over nine days was simply too heavy.
They clashed, separated, and rested repeatedly, taking five breaks in total.
By around nine in the evening, they finally called a halt once more and agreed to continue the next day.
By the tenth day, the toll of continuous high intensity combat was fully apparent.
Even with Marco relying on his resources and Big Mom pushing her very life force, the exhaustion was overwhelming.
After ten days of nonstop battle, both of them struggled just to remain standing.
Their legs trembled, and every breath felt like a burden.
Simply standing still drained what little strength they had left.
At this point, neither Marco nor Big Mom could activate their Devil Fruit abilities anymore.
After a full ten days, both sides had truly reached their limits.
When Big Mom looked at Marco now, deep wariness filled her eyes.
She still had one last option, merging Zeus, Prometheus, and Napoleon, the special Homies created from her own lifespan, to restore some stamina.
But even that would only sustain her for a short time.
More importantly, she did not know whether Marco still had any hidden trump cards left.
For what had begun as a test, a clash of pride, this battle had already gone too far.
She had wasted three months of her lifespan on something that now felt meaningless.
There was no reason to sacrifice even more.
At the same time, the members of the Phoenix Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates grew increasingly tense.
Both captains were utterly exhausted, and victory or defeat could be decided at any moment.
In such a situation, even the slightest mistake could be fatal.
As the sky slowly darkened and night approached, the confidence Big Mom had displayed on the first day was completely gone.
Gasping heavily, she finally shouted toward Marco, who was also struggling to steady his breathing nearby.
"Marco, what exactly do you want?" she demanded.
"State your conditions!"
Marco leaned forward slightly, panting hard as he forced his breathing under control.
"It's simple," he said.
"You only need to say two words. 'I surrender.'"
That was all Marco wanted.
As long as Big Mom admitted defeat, the system would recognize his victory and grant him ten thousand attribute points.
That reward alone was the reason he had endured these ten brutal days.
"What a joke!" Big Mom roared, her anger flaring.
"At most, this is a draw. Neither of us can defeat the other. If this old lady says those words, I won't be able to hold my head high in the Grand Line ever again."
After ten days of fighting, Marco was desperate for a clear victory.
His voice rose with anger as he replied, "This is the necessary condition, and the only condition.
As long as you admit defeat, I'll let go of the matter of you burning our flag.
Otherwise, I won't hesitate to start an all out war against the Big Mom Pirates."
Big Mom's chest heaved as she glared at him.
"Are you threatening me?" she growled.
Marco took a deep breath and answered seriously, "So what if I am?
I have a hostage in my hands right now.
If you refuse, then i would rather drag everything down with him."
It was a bluff, but Marco had no other choice.
He was genuinely afraid that Big Mom would push herself even further and fight him to the death.
He had no more trump cards left.
If she truly sacrificed her life force and continued, he doubted he could hold on.
What Marco did not realize was that Big Mom was thinking the same thing.
She, too, had reached her absolute limit and was no longer able to use the power of the Soul Soul Fruit.
Her mind felt heavy, and if not for her iron will, she would have collapsed long ago.
Staring fiercely at Marco, she finally understood just how badly she, and the entire world, had underestimated him.
No one had imagined that Marco possessed such terrifying endurance and strength.
After a long moment of silence, Big Mom finally made her decision.
"Fine," she said heavily.
"This old lady can agree to your terms.
But I also have two conditions."