"Doflamingo is dead?"
"Likely!"
"What a shame."
"Such a good pawn, gone just like that."
"However, there's an experimental subject here, burning through its potential."
"Somewhat anticipated."
"But compared to Edward Weable, I lament the experimental subject Crocodile even more."
"He was a piece of trash. If he had taken that serum, he might have held on."
Inside a laboratory deep within an island in the latter half of the New World.
Two figures, through a large screen, watched the ongoing battle, conversing casually.
Now, they looked upon the burning Edward Weable with a degree of anticipation.
...
On the battlefield.
Edward Weable, whose height had been close to seven meters, was now only two meters tall.
Compared to his formerly massive physique, he had become quite slender.
However, this slenderness was filled with muscle and a defined musculature.
Furthermore, Edward Weable's appearance had changed drastically.
His long hair flowed, and the crescent-shaped white beard remained, giving him a somewhat peculiar look.
But if this were all, it wouldn't be the most striking aspect.
What was most attention-grabbing was his powerful aura.
Miss Bakin, panting heavily, looked at the greatly transformed Edward Weable and burst into excited laughter.
"Hahaha!"
"As expected of my son."
"You succeeded, you pulled through."
"Kill him, kill him."
"Spare no one who wants your life."
Edward Weable's eyes were now sharp and cold.
His icy gaze fell upon Miss Bakin.
With just a glance, Miss Bakin felt immense pressure, as if facing a deathly gaze.
It felt like she could die.
Miss Bakin's face stiffened, her mouth agape, but she dared not speak further.
Edward Weable's gaze shifted away from Miss Bakin and then fixed on Olaf.
*Swish!*
With incredible speed, he charged forward, vanishing in an instant.
Olaf, wielding the Shadow War Axe, stared at the transformed Edward Weable, his eyes filled with fighting spirit.
Seeing this, he raised his axe and swung it towards the left.
"Kill!"
*Bang!*
Edward Weable's black fist squarely blocked Olaf's strike.
*Bang!*
Edward Weable retaliated with a lightning-fast punch, hitting Olaf squarely in the abdomen.
The intense pain made Olaf's eyes widen instantly.
"Fight!"
With a roar, Olaf endured the pain, grabbing his axe with his other hand and swinging it towards Edward Weable's neck.
*Clang!*
It sounded like an axe hitting a hard stone, emitting a piercing noise.
Olaf was somewhat shocked by this.
This fellow's physical body had become terrifyingly formidable.
Edward Weable countered with a punch.
"Brutal Strike!"
Olaf was not to be outdone. The two exchanged blows, fighting ferociously.
The icy landmasses around them continuously fractured due to the collision of their unleashed powers.
Their combat auras were no less intense than the battles of Garp or Yujiro Hanma.
"Hahaha, this is how men should fight."
Olaf, an S-class warrior with maxed-out Observation and Armament Haki, a berserker who grew stronger as he fought.
Facing a formidable opponent like Edward Weable, he unleashed his full power.
In their back-and-forth exchange, a victor could not be determined in a short time.
As for whether he might fight himself to death, Olaf was not worried.
Not to mention the existence of Senzu Beans, even with the move 'Ragnarok,' Olaf was confident he could defeat Edward Weable.
"Kill!"
"Kill!"
Edward Weable, without weapons, used his hands and feet as his arms.
Benedict glanced at the ongoing battle between the two, showing no intention of joining.
Although Edward Weable's transformation had surprised him, his current concern was the Devil Fruit users.
Thus, Benedict's gaze turned towards Zodov, who was being pursued by Aishi and was constantly retreating, attempting to disengage from the war.
"Damn it!"
Zodov had been keeping an eye on Benedict.
Seeing Benedict flying towards him, he dared not conceal himself any longer and immediately brought out his trump card ability.
Zodov's body exploded, transforming into cards, countless of them.
Not only that, but within a radius of several miles, whether warriors, objects, or even icebergs, all were enveloped by cards.
Some objects had even transformed into cards.
"Another Devil Fruit user whose power has awakened."
Benedict, seeing this, knew that the opponent still had hidden strength.
And now, Zodov was hidden among the cards.
"His aura is also concealed?"
Benedict was somewhat surprised.
This fellow's ability seemed to incorporate elements of transformation and substitution techniques.
What made Benedict even more concerned was that these cards scattered everywhere, with many falling onto the Xuanwu Marine soldiers or World Government soldiers.
Therefore, it was difficult to ascertain which one was Zodov's true body.
"His concealment methods are quite remarkable."
"Sima Yi, come here." Benedict said through his real-time strategic communicator.
Sima Yi, who had already targeted Sakarski, immediately moved upon hearing Benedict's words.
"Use your ability to find the hidden card person," Benedict instructed the arriving Sima Yi.
Hidden in the shadows, Zodov, transformed into a card, hid on a soldier's clothing. If one looked closely, they could see a pair of eyes, cautiously watching Benedict.
Seeing Sima Yi appear, Zodov felt an underlying unease.
As the soldier fought, he subtly began to move.
On the other side.
Sima Yi also began to activate his ability.
"Domain of Desolation."
Dark purple energy rapidly spread out.
The card world created by Zodov was quickly being covered, and it was also expanding further, including the location where Zodov was currently situated.
In an instant, Zodov felt his Devil Fruit power being suppressed.
He instinctively glanced back and clearly saw his card world collapsing.
His Devil Fruit power was gradually disappearing.
Understanding this, Zodov stopped hiding. In his card form, he traversed the battlefield and quickly fled.
Benedict, hovering in the sky, swept his gaze across the surroundings and quickly located the rapidly departing card.
Benedict's lips curled into a smile, and he vanished instantly.
"Got you, Card Man."