After listening to Broly's words, Smoker, Bastille, and the two hundred Marines around them instantly had their pupils shrink, forgetting even to breathe.
Even if they racked their brains, they never would have thought that there was someone in this world who dared to speak to the Five Elders with such a mocking tone.
But amidst the shock, a wave of confusion also flooded their minds—Im? Who is that?
On the other end of the Den Den Mushi, in the Room of Authority, the Five Elders and Kong were also plunged into extreme astonishment.
The Five Elders looked at each other, disbelief surging in their eyes: Where exactly did Broly learn the name "Im," a title unheard of even by the vast majority of Celestial Dragons?
In just a few seconds, the astonishment was completely swallowed by monstrous anger.
St. Jaygarcia Saturn was the first to slam the table and stand up, shouting angrily with his old voice, "Who do you think you are? How dare you be so disrespectful to Lord Im! Do you really think our World Government is afraid of you?"
Extreme anger overwhelmed his reason, making him temporarily forget the terrifying strength Broly had displayed earlier, enough to crush everything.
This wasn't strange—for hundreds of years, they had been accustomed to the world bowing and submitting to them. How could they tolerate someone suddenly appearing and daring to shit on their heads?
As soon as these words came out, the Den Den Mushi, which had just been mimicking Broly's grinning laughter, suddenly fell silent as if its throat had been choked.
Just as the Five Elders were wondering why Broly suddenly fell silent, his nonchalant voice came from the Den Den Mushi again: "You called Brother Luo, and Brother Luo was very happy. But Brother Luo didn't like your tone just now."
Broly paused, the smile in his voice fading, leaving only absolute deterrence. "Now, I'll give you ten seconds. Tell me immediately which one of you Five Elders spoke so rudely just now. That way, I'll only kill him—otherwise, I'll slaughter all five of you."
These words smashed into the ears of Smoker and the others, no longer describable by mere shock.
Their bodies went numb, and their blood seemed to freeze into ice.
They thought Broly rejecting the positions of Admiral and Fleet Admiral one after another was already the peak of arrogance, but they didn't expect that to be just an appetizer. At this moment, he was truly showing limitless arrogance.
"You!" Saturn's anger was ignited again, but just as he roared out one word, he heard the Den Den Mushi in front of him mimicking Broly's extremely indifferent tone and starting to count: "1, 2, 3..."
The remaining curses were forcibly stifled in Saturn's throat. A chill named fear was crawling madly up his spine.
His tone was dry, putting up a strong front but weak inside: "Don't think you can really be invincible in this world! Let me tell you, the power possessed by the World Government, which has ruled this world for eight hundred years, is not something a three-year-old child like you can imagine!"
But Broly couldn't be bothered to pay attention to his bluffing. The counting sound from the Den Den Mushi continued unhurriedly, like a dull knife cutting at the nerves of the Five Elders one by one.
Beads of cold sweat rolled down from the Five Elders' foreheads, smashing onto the smooth floor.
They didn't want to admit it, but the fear of death had already gripped their souls, chilling their spines.
"7, 8, 9..."
The moment the count reached 9, the lips of the other four Elders moved in unison. Someone subconsciously swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing, clearly truly considering betraying Saturn.
But having worked together for hundreds of years, even if they were all scum who treated human lives like grass, there was still a bit of camaraderie left. They really couldn't bring themselves to push a companion out to die in front of a room full of colleagues.
Just as Broly was about to count to ten, the heavy door of the Room of Authority was suddenly pushed open, and a middle-aged voice broke the deathly silence: "He is St. Jaygarcia Saturn."
The six people in the room turned their heads violently, only to see a middle-aged man with a crescent-moon hairstyle walking in slowly, exuding the arrogance of someone long in a high position.
Saturn's eyes turned red instantly, and he roared, "Figarland Garling! What do you mean?"
The newcomer was none other than the current Supreme Commander of the Holy Knights, the "King" who was once active in God Valley—and also Shanks' biological father, St. Figarland Garling.
Kong withdrew his gaze and glanced at the Den Den Mushi on the table, seeing that its eyes were already tightly closed, clearly indicating the call had been hung up.
Garling crossed his arms, a disdainful smile curling on his lips, his tone devoid of any respect for the Five Elders: "I just can't stand seeing you acting like cowards."
Even though the Five Elders ranked above him, his tone was full of undisguised contempt: "So what if I reported your name? With the deep-sea pact granted by Lord Im, plus the myriad forces of Mary Geoise and Marineford blocking the way, it's hard to say if he can even touch the edge of Mary Geoise, let alone kill you."
Saying this, Garling turned to look at Kong, his tone suddenly becoming cold and hard: "The Marines are to enter the highest state of alert immediately to strictly prevent that kid from invading. At the same time, I will notify the Holy Knights to be ready for battle. Broly? Hmph, I'll make sure he never returns!"
Kong responded with "I understand" and strode past Garling, leaving directly.
But in his heart, he secretly criticized: Is this guy serious, or is he deliberately posturing?
Whether the combined forces of Marineford and Mary Geoise could take down Broly was still debatable, but based on the strength Broly displayed in Loguetown, even if they could take him down, the Marines would suffer heavy losses.
Yet when Garling mentioned Broly, he spoke as lightly as if mentioning a small-fry pirate with a bounty of a few hundred Berries, casually saying "take him down"—he was just a guy who picked up scraps in God Valley; did he really think he was invincible?
Hearing Garling's words, the Five Elders' suspended hearts relaxed slightly.
In any case, if Broly wanted to come to Mary Geoise, he had to pass through Marineford first.
No matter how strong that kid was, facing the full force of the Marine Headquarters, he would surely exhaust most of his strength, right?
By the time he really reached Mary Geoise, he would be a spent force, and maybe they could take the opportunity to capture him.
As for how many Marines would die? They didn't care at all.
Thinking of this, Saturn's tense nerves also relaxed a bit.
Meanwhile, at the eastern harbor of Alabasta.
The two hundred Marines on the ship dared not breathe loudly, watching helplessly as Broly hung up the Den Den Mushi.
Broly hooked his finger at Bastille and asked nonchalantly, "Did you bring the Eternal Pose?"
Having heard Broly's series of shocking words with his own ears, even though Bastille was a famous hawk in the Marines, he dared not refute in the slightest at this moment. He hurriedly took out the Eternal Pose and handed it over.
Broly weighed it in his hand twice, tapping the casing with his fingertip: "Does it point to Marineford?"
There were two types of Log Poses—one needed to stay on an island for enough time to absorb the local magnetic force before automatically pointing to the next island; the other permanently locked onto a fixed target.
Bastille nodded repeatedly in explanation. What he handed to Broly was the latter, and the target was indeed the Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
Broly put away the Eternal Pose. In the next second, an extremely violent wave of air exploded from the soles of his feet. His long black hair was blown upright by the energy, flamboyant like a hedgehog.
Accompanied by this explosive aura that shook the harbor, his figure suddenly rose from the ground, turning into an afterimage and disappearing at the end of the sky in the blink of an eye.
Smoker, Bastille, and the others were dumbfounded, their chins almost hitting the deck, only one thought remaining in their minds: He can fly?