Chapter 46: Jaya Is Erased!

On the other side,

Doflamingo stood in a concealed corner, his sharp gaze fixed on his pirate ship as it shuddered under the bombardment of Marine artillery.

Both the deck and the stern had been blasted apart by cannon fire.

Although the two shells hadn’t inflicted fatal damage and the ship could still sail, such blatant provocation had undoubtedly crossed his bottom line.

"Fufufufufufu! Well done, Marines!" he roared, barely containing his rage. "So what if you’re the Marines? Since we’re already here, we’ll sink a couple of warships before we leave!"

The moment Trebol heard that, he nearly lost his footing.

"I-I say, Doffy, now isn’t the time to act on impulse!" he hurriedly warned, his voice filled with anxiety.

Diamante frowned as well and tried to reason with him.

"The Marines actually issued a Buster Call, and they clearly know the chances of the Whitebeard Pirates being here are almost nonexistent.

"That means there’s definitely an Admiral aboard one of those Vice Admiral-class warships.

"If we engage them head-on, getting out safely will become extremely difficult."

Faced with the persuasion of his two executives, Doflamingo took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the fury boiling inside him.

He knew that staying calm was the most important thing right now.

After a long silence, he finally ground out a single word through clenched teeth.

"Retreat!"

The order was given, and everyone immediately rushed toward the pirate ship.

Bellamy followed behind without saying a word.

He understood very well that silence was the best option in a situation like this.

If he accidentally angered anyone, the consequences would be disastrous.

The air was thick with tension and oppression as everyone moved carefully, afraid of causing unnecessary trouble.

Deep within the former base, Marshall D. Teach (Blackbeard) stood alone in the empty laboratory.

The surroundings were silent, broken only by the distant roar of cannon fire.

He looked around.

The floor was littered with scattered papers, but aside from that, nothing of value remained.

Outside, the battle was growing more intense.

The thunder of artillery became louder and louder. It was obvious that the Marines intended to destroy Jaya itself.

When Teach learned this, his mood darkened even further.

Especially after hearing that the Marines had issued a Buster Call on the entire island, the flames of anger within him erupted instantly.

"Damn Whitebeard! And those damned Marines!"

His eyes were filled with hatred and unwillingness.

The volcanic surge of emotion caused his breathing to become ragged, his face flushing red.

In the end, the overwhelming emotional shock became too much.

A mouthful of blood sprayed from his lips and splattered across the cold floor.

"As long as I, Teach, am still alive, I won’t let any of you have an easy life!"

His voice echoed through the empty laboratory, carrying boundless fury and determination.

Faced with the approaching danger, he knew that staying here would only make him an easy target.

Thus, at the very last moment, he chose to flee this place filled with memories.

After all, remaining behind would accomplish nothing except waiting to be captured.

"You bastards! Even after leaving, you still managed to screw me over!"

Before departing, he roared at the empty room and disappeared into the darkness.

Along the shoreline, most of the pirates had completely given up hope.

They realized in despair that no matter where they ran, relentless attacks followed them.

The cannons seemed to have eyes of their own, tracking and bombarding them with terrifying precision.

Their ships had already been reduced to wreckage.

The entire island was blanketed by overwhelming firepower.

There was nowhere left to escape.

"Damn it! Let’s fight these Marines to the death!" one pirate bellowed, his eyes burning with rage.

"Nobody gets to judge me! I’ll be the Pirate King!"

"A bunch of trash shouting about justice! Lapdogs of the Celestial Dragons! Open your eyes and look—who are the real parasites of the sea?!"

The Kun Kun Pirates joined the curses, directing sharp criticism at the corruption and hypocrisy behind the Marines.

However, no matter how high their morale rose, their resistance was meaningless before the Marines’ crushing firepower.

Shells rained down endlessly.

One pirate after another vanished into smoke and flames.

At the same time, Jaya was completely wiped out amidst the ferocious bombardment.

The island was erased from the map.

The once-thriving land was reduced to nothing but ruins and debris, becoming yet another sacrifice to war.

On the outskirts of Skypiea, Angel Island.

The sun shone brightly while a gentle breeze swept across the shore.

A large group of people advanced toward the island, their numbers making it impossible to go unnoticed.

Clearly, they had no idea about the fierce battle raging far below.

Especially Ace.

At the moment, he was completely absorbed in a new toy he had discovered—a Dial he had picked up.

" Ron, look at this! This thing is amazing!"

Ace exclaimed excitedly while holding the seemingly ordinary Dial.

"It can absorb my attacks and even fire them back!"

As he spoke, he pressed the Impact Dial against his chest and prepared to test it again.

Then, the unexpected happened.

Boom!

A tremendous force suddenly exploded from the Dial.

Ace’s chest was instantly pierced through.

Yet no blood flowed from the wound.

Instead, crimson-blue flames burst forth from the injury—the unmistakable flames of the Bird-Bird Fruit, Model: Phoenix.

As the flames burned, Ace’s body rapidly recovered.

The severe injury healed at an astonishing speed and disappeared almost completely within moments.

"Haha! This is incredible!"

Ace was overjoyed, as though he had discovered a priceless treasure.

He carefully tucked the Impact Dial away and turned toward Ron.

" Ron, where’s that Reject Dial you said was ten times stronger than an Impact Dial? I’ve been searching forever and still can’t find one."

His eyes were filled with anticipation and impatience.

Ron looked up with a smile.

Ahead, the outline of Angel Island gradually came into view.

The sea breeze brushed against his face as he answered calmly.

"Special Dials like those aren’t easy to find.

"The utility-type Dials were collected by the island’s residents long ago.

"Finding even a single Impact Dial was already very lucky."

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