Chapter 13: Subduing the 'God'

BOOM—!!!

Lightning danced wildly over the ruins, heat and destruction intertwining into chaos.

Enel knelt on the scorched earth, lightning crackling across his body, a twisted grin of madness and desire on his lips.

In his ears, every sound suddenly became crystal clear: The tremors of the sea of clouds, the heartbeat of soldiers, the flow of lightning, the quivering of air... Every pulse, now within his perception.

BOOM!!

Lightning surged around Enel, his aura skyrocketing to its peak!

"HAHAHAHA!!!"

"These are the ears of GOD!!!"

"—Watch closely, mortal!!"

Enel raised his hands high, lightning erupting violently from his fingertips!

His entire body transformed into a vortex of lightning, soaring towards the sky with devastating thunderous pressure, charging straight at Guts who hovered mid-air.

Facing this thunderous assault.

Guts merely lifted his cold gaze.

HUM!!!

With himself at the core, an invisible domain rapidly expanded.

Within the web of his perception, Enel's heartbeat frequency, electric arc and attack trajectories all appeared as clearly as if they were played in slow motion.

Guts lightly tapped his toes, and the surrounding airflow collapsed and erupted.

'Blast Pressure Step·Flowing Shadow Consecutive Flash'!

BOOM!!!

Multiple shockwaves exploded, leaving afterimages crisscrossing the air.

Guts' figure streaked like a black meteor, sliding and shifting with such speed that even the trajectory of lightning couldn't catch him.

Enel roared as he darted through the lightning, only to strike shattered air again and again!

"What kind of joke is this?!"

He could clearly hear Guts' next move, yet he couldn't land a hit.

His lightning-speed attack had failed!

Immediately, he detonated his entire electric domain, attempting to create a massive chain lightning attack!

BOOOOM!!!

A dense web of blue lightning chains erupted, weaving a net of Death.

But—Guts coldly struck back.

'Counter Pressure Oscillation·Blast'!

BOOOOM!!!

The air instantly compressed and expanded—violently shattering the storm of lightning chains in reverse.

The dense barrage of lightning was utterly destroyed by layers of invisible air pressure!

As the lightning chains dispersed, genuine terror surfaced in Enel's eyes for the first time.

"Air… can actually suppress lightning?!!"

But there was no time to think!

The next moment—Guts moved.

His right fist surged with Armament Haki, covering it completely!

Flowing like molten rock, scorching and oppressive.

The fist's edge was black as iron, surrounded by swirling air.

'Compressed Air Cannon·Armament Extreme Strike'!!!

BOOOOM!!!

A single devastating punch, amplified by compressed air and Armament Haki, formed a terrifying explosive impact!

Striking Enel squarely in the chest!

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK—!!!

Air exploded.

Lightning tore apart.

Enel's chest caved in, his Lighting form instantly collapsing.

His entire body, wreathed in broken arcs of electricity, was sent flying like a ruined meteor—hurled hundreds of meters through the sky.

BOOOOM!!!

Debris flew, lightning exploded and the sea of clouds trembled violently.

Enel slammed into the ruins, his fate unknown!

But Guts didn't stop.

Hovering in the air, he slightly retracted his right hand. A vortex of ultra-compressed air formed at his fingertip.

'Shigan·Air Split Penetration Strike'!!!

The Shigan was one of the Rokushiki techniques, but in Guts' hands, it was fused with the power of the Air Air Fruit.

Every strike wasn't just a fingertip thrust—it was a Compressed Air Bullet!

Carrying the dual destruction of spatial shockwaves and air annihilation.

BOOM!

Guts moved instantly, landing before the ruins.

His right finger flicked out!

WHOOSH!!! CRACK!!!

The air was torn apart into a sonic trajectory—thin as a needle but carrying enough force to shred metal!

The strike pierced precisely into the unstable, lightning-charged area of Enel's chest.

BAM!!!

Enel coughed blood as he was sent flying, completely incapacitated.

Amid the ruins, residual electricity flickered, and the air hummed faintly.

Enel, charred and trembling, knelt on the shattered clouds, his lightning dimmed beyond recognition.

He lifted his head, his blurred vision catching only a black figure striding through the smoke.

Guts walked with steady steps, his uniform flapping violently, his cape cracking like a Death traversing the broken sky.

Behind him, the entire sky island seemed to fall into silence.

Guts looked down, his gaze as cold as distant stars.

"Even the air cannot resist you, yet you speak of dominating the skies?"

"Calling yourself a God? You're nothing but a weakling."

His voice was low, yet it struck Enel's shattered pride.

Enel clenched his fists, trembling all over, a mix of humiliation, rage, shame and fear swirling within him.

But deeper still, an uncontrollable awe—and desire—rose within him!

A desire for power!

A desire—to become truly strong!

But..... at that very moment—

BOOM!!!

Conqueror's Haki suddenly erupted from Guts!

In an instant!

An invisible pressure, as if the skies themselves had collapsed, came crashing down towards the ground.

Across all of Skypiea—whether Skypiea soldiers, Shandian warriors, extremist fighters, civilians, or even Puck and his elite troops watching from afar—

All but a handful of the most resolute collapsed as if struck by lightning, faces pale, eyes vacant, knees slamming to the ground.

The White Sea fell into a suffocating silence.

Puck leaned against the ship's railing, muttering with a grin.

"Tsk tsk… When the boss gets serious, it's like a natural disaster."

On the ruins, Enel stood frozen, drenched in cold sweat, his knees crashing heavily onto the ground.

His heart felt as if it would be torn apart by this intangible will of a king!

Gritting his teeth, he looked up at Guts with trembling eyes, his soul screaming madly within—

'Submit! Yield! Or face certain Death!!'

Guts stepped forward slowly, his presence like the embodiment of judgment.

Looking down at Enel, he spoke calmly.

"You want to be a god?"

"You want to rule the skies?"

"Pathetic."

"In the real world your little lightning tricks are nothing more than a joke any real powerhouse could crush with a single hand."

Enel's pupils shrank, his gaze locked onto him.

Guts sneered, his voice dropping lower, like thunder driving into the soul.

"Listen well—On the blue seas, there are at least two thousand people stronger than you by a hundred—no, a thousand times."

"The true powerhouses—the Marine Admirals, the Four Emperors… Which among them cannot overturn seas and skies?"

"You hole up in this sky island, bullying a bunch of weakling and dare call yourself a god?"

"This is nothing but the arrogance of a frog in a well."

Enel's body trembled slightly, his face turning ashen.

Guts' voice hammered down.

"You want true strength? You want to dominate above the skies and beneath the seas?"

"Then follow me."

"Absolute Justice will lead you out of this rotting, narrow sea of clouds!"

"Otherwise—Stay here, and rot into dust along with this White Sea."

A long silence followed.

Enel trembled violently, his nails digging deep into his palms, drawing blood, yet he felt nothing.

Under this overwhelming pressure—Pride? Dignity? Arrogance?

All were utterly shattered into dust before a true power.

Finally.

Enel lowered his head with great difficulty.

He pressed his forehead heavily against the shattered White Sea.

His voice was hoarse and shaking, yet crystal clear.

"As you command…"

BOOM!!

The remnants of the White Sea's mist trembled faintly.

The future God of Skypiea—at this moment, had completely submitted!

Sworn under the banner of Absolute Justice!

...

High above the ruined White Sea, Guts stood with his hands behind his back.

His silhouette, like a rift in the sky, stretched across the skies.

In the distance, Puck and his soldiers stood at solemn attention.

And true justice—

Is about to cleanse this long-corrupt world!