A fierce wind howled, whipping up dust. The mottled giant crater was riddled with cracks, and blood stains marked the center—silent testimony to the immense force behind the blow that had just been struck.

The Five Elders, the highest authority of the World Government, stood lined up across the vast plaza. Their faces were grim, and their gazes carried an overwhelming sense of weight and tension.

"We can see it."

"He has indeed mastered some unfathomable power."

"His physical state is clearly in an eerie, high-speed operation."

"..."

Even without Nusjuro's warning, the other Five Elders could immediately tell the immense power behind Daren's punch. This far surpassed the strength he had shown six months ago on Philseque Island. And yet, this only deepened the Elders' confusion. Could a mere human truly experience such an exaggerated leap in power in such a short time?

Now, they understood why Steel Bone Kong hadn't stopped Daren earlier. In this state, even Kong would have been at a disadvantage against Rogers Daren.

"What a headache you old fossils are... No matter how many times you're knocked down, you just keep coming back," Daren spoke, his voice cutting through the tense silence.

Standing atop the Celestial Stairway, he looked down at the Five Elders with a mocking smile.

"But now I understand. This 'immortal body' power... it doesn't actually belong to you."

Saint Saturn, in his half-human, half-ghost form, responded coldly:

"This is our power by nature. As 'gods,' we are inherently immortal."

"You, on the other hand, have forced a power—one strong enough to affect the outside world—into your own body, attempting to trespass into the forbidden realm of the gods to gain forbidden strength... Do you truly believe we cannot see that this state of yours won't last long?"

"The rotating magnetic field, the violent energy—compared to all this, even the Indestructible Body seems fragile... This power doesn't belong to you."

"Is that so?" A reckless grin spread across Daren's lips as he raised his hand. Clenching his fist, he crushed the black-purple lightning in the void.

"Seems you still haven't understood what I'm saying."

The moment his words dropped,

BOOM!

Daren's body suddenly dropped. As his knees bent, the ground at the summit of the Celestial Stairway cracked and crumbled. Countless rocks exploded and scattered as his figure shot forward, leaving behind a streak of violet-blue light. The shockwave he carried shattered the entire white marble staircase into pieces, obliterating it completely!

Saint Saturn, in his Gyūki form, flinched and quickly looked up. A black combat boot tore through the air, dragging crimson-black lightning like a war axe as it descended with devastating speed!

The Elders couldn't react in time; they could only watch helplessly as Daren's boot aimed for Saint Saturn's skull.

"Because neither your instinct for battle nor your mastery of your abilities can possibly match the vastness of your eight-hundred-year-long lives!"

BOOM!!

The boot came down!

Saint Saturn's entire head was violently crushed into the ground by Daren's kick, creating a massive crater. His spider-like lower body flipped up in response. A massive explosion of blood mist filled the air as his eyeballs bulged and his pupils dilated, his skull and neck bones shattering into pieces.

Crack! Crack!

Deep cracks spread like black serpents, covering nearly half the plaza in an instant.

Seeing this, Doflamingo, who had retreated into mid-air, trembled with excitement, licking his cracked lips. He understood now. The ancient fools—the Five Elders—hadn't mastered the future-seeing ability of Observation Haki! Otherwise, they wouldn't have been so passive!

Godfather had been right. While the Five Elders were undeniably powerful—more so than most in the world—considering their staggering eight-hundred-year lifespans, they seemed incredibly... "mediocre"! The future-predicting ability of Observation Haki, the binding power of Conqueror's Haki... At least for now, the Five Elders had none of these!

In other words, their natural talent had certainly been enough to bring them to the pinnacle of the World Government's power, but they were nowhere near the absolute top... Otherwise, with their immense lifespans, they would've certainly mastered the ability to foresee the future. And yet, they had something far beyond that—an unbreakable "Immortal Body"—a power even the strongest, including Whitebeard, Kaidou, Big Mom, Garp, or even Pirate King Gol D. Roger, could not claim! This power transcended innate talent, relentless effort, or even time itself.

The reason for this was now crystal clear. The "Immortal Body" power did not belong to them—it had been bestowed upon them by someone else!

Stussy, who had long since retreated to a distance, couldn't help but raise her arm to block the oncoming gale. Beneath her alluring mask, the corners of her eyes twitched repeatedly. Only now did she truly grasp what kind of terrifying monster Daren had transformed his body into.

"You're asking for death!"

In that instant, the other Five Elders launched their enraged assault. Eerie black flames swiftly engulfed their forms, and monstrous creatures, each as tall as skyscrapers, rose from the ground.

Sandworms slick with green slime and gaping maws lined with razor-sharp teeth. Itsumade—monstrous bird heads, colossal wings, claws like blades, and grotesque serpentine bodies. Fengxi—massive beasts with four tusks, bodies covered in speckles. Bakotsu—stepping on cold flames of the underworld, radiating death.

A hellish aura surged forth, intertwining within the plaza beneath Pangaea Castle. The air crackled as a dense storm of thunder erupted.

"This is the sacred ground of Mary Geoise! We shall never allow a sinner like you to act with impunity upon this holy soil!"

Shepherd Ju Peter's sandworm avatar opened its terrifying maw, roaring as a powerful suction surged from its jaws. Daren, still mid-fall, froze in mid-air. Before he could react, the sandworm swallowed him whole.

Success!

The sandworm's body began to writhe, as if activating some digestive ability. But the very next second—

Sssshhh!!

A gaping hole suddenly exploded in its abdomen, spewing out vast amounts of yellow-green viscous fluid.

Roar!!

The colossal sandworm let out a wail of agony.

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