Upper Yard, Skypiea
In the dense forest of Upper Yard, Skypiea Island, two factions stood facing each other, roughly twenty meters apart. Each side comprised over three hundred individuals, in a state of uneasy equilibrium. They shared one striking commonality: a pair of white wings adorned each person's back, reminiscent of angels in legends. However, these wings were merely ornamental; they offered no ability to fly, worn purely out of cultural practice.
To be precise, one side consisted of Skypiea's priests, while the other was composed of warriors from the Shandia Clan.
On the side of the priests, their leader was a white-haired middle-aged man, Gan Fall, the former God of Skypiea. At merely 52 years old, he had worried so intensely over mediating the deep-seated hatred between the native Skypiea residents and the Shandia Clan that his hair had turned completely gray. Gan Fall, clad in a set of knight's armor, wielding a mounted spear, and riding his Pegasus, Pierre, spoke with a frown, "Shandia warriors, why can't we release our hatred for one another?"
On the guerrilla side, their leader was a shirtless young man, wearing gray leather pants, holding a blazing Blaster, war paint on his face, and waist-length red hair. This was Wyper, a descendant of the great warrior Kalgara from four hundred years ago! His greatest hope was that the Shandia Clan could reclaim their homeland, light the Shandora lamps, ring the Golden Bell, clear the grievances of Kalgara's warrior friend, Noland, and inform the people on the blue sea that Shandora still existed!
Gan Fall's words provoked an inexplicable surge of amusement in Wyper. These Sky Island inhabitants had not only occupied their homeland but had also pushed them to survive in the cloud sea beneath the Sky Island. Now they claimed they wanted to resolve their hatred? Thinking of this, he couldn't help but shout, "Gan Fall, former God of Skypiea, since you wish for us to release the hatred we've harbored for four hundred years, then simply remove yourselves from this land and never enter here again!"
Hearing that, Gan Fall immediately shook his head without thinking and refused, "I apologize! This offer from you, I cannot accept." The most valuable thing on "Sky Island" was not currency or gold. The so-called gold, which looked beautiful, held no real meaning to the people of Sky Island. In the island's depths, amidst the ancient city of Shandora, were tracts of gold-plated buildings, and the priests of Sky Island felt indifferent after seeing them too often. On "Sky Island," the most valuable thing was "Vearth," which was the material called soil on the blue sea. On sky islands above 10,000 meters, only with Vearth could they grow vegetables, fruits, trees, and other vegetation. Those sky islands without Vearth had long been in poverty and hunger.
After Gan Fall successfully occupied the position of God of Skypiea, he successively offered Vearth to his people on Angel Island, allowing them to live a more prosperous life. If he lost the land beneath his feet, what would he use in the future to ensure his people lived a prosperous life?
"That's the problem. Then there's nothing more to discuss!" Wyper snorted coldly, raised the weapon in his hand, and aimed it at the other side. Standing behind him, Laki, Genbo, Braham, and others, who were in their prime, also raised their weapons and prepared to fight to the death. The moment these Shandia Clan partisans set foot on Upper Yard, Skypiea Island, they were determined to fight to the death. The land beneath their feet was their homeland, and they would reclaim it at any cost! This was not only their hope but also the last wish of their ancestors!
Bang bang.
It was at this moment that a slender, silver-haired young man, clad in a black leather suit and with a white half-mask on his face, emerged from a large tree with a gentle clap of his hands. Behind him, a green-haired youth and a blonde woman followed.
"You all have your own opinions and your own persistence... How about, let me get involved too? I have an offer. Let me be the new God of Skypiea, how about that?"
"Who are you?!" Gan Fall and Wyper exclaimed in unison, both frowning, their voices filled with displeasure, staring at the silver-haired youth.
"I am your God!" The corner of Sephiroth's mouth curved slightly, outlining a mysterious smile.
The next moment.
Boom!
A mighty and majestic Conqueror's Haki aura burst forth from his body and indiscriminately enveloped everyone present in an instant. After a few days of Silvers Rayleigh's teachings, Sephiroth could now almost freely release his Conqueror's Haki power, but he was still a little confused about partial release.
Plop! Plop! Poof!
Whether it was Skypiea's Priests or the Shandia guerrilla forces, they all rolled their eyes, lost consciousness, and fell onto the grass. Instantly, out of over six hundred people, only Gan Fall and Wyper remained standing.
Standing behind Sephiroth, Gild Tesoro and Stella, being too close when he unleashed his Conqueror's Haki, had their consciousness briefly blanked and nearly fainted themselves. After a moment of daze, Wyper looked around, he found all the members of the guerrilla force had fallen to the ground.
"What did you do?!" Wyper raised the Blaster in his hand, aiming it at the mysterious silver-haired youth.
"Gild Tesoro, Stella, take them both down for me!" Sephiroth's eyes narrowed slightly, he commanded the two people behind him. Finally, he added, "Be careful, don't kill them!"
"Roger!" Gild Tesoro and Stella replied in unison, immediately charging towards the two people across from them.
"Damn it! Don't underestimate us!" Wyper roared, pulling the Blaster's trigger, and firing a shot.
Boom!
Blue flames spurted towards the three people.
"Blizzard!" Stella raised her hand, and an ultra-low temperature Cold Cyclone instantly swept out, snow scattering everywhere, immediately transforming a fifty-meter-diameter area into a world of ice and snow. The blue flames spewing from the Blaster were also instantly extinguished by this sudden blizzard.
Gild Tesoro saw that the Blaster in Wyper's hand could spew flames. In order to keep Stella's Yuki Yuki no Mi ability from being overwhelmed, he immediately said, "Stella, leave the old man to you, I'll take care of this cannon-wielding man!"
"Alright!" Stella showed no childishness, with a pair of snow-white wings spread on her back, she charged towards Gan Fall.
"Snow Cube!" She waved her hand, instantly creating a hemispherical snow cube, trapping Gan Fall inside. Then, her body merged with the snow cube, and she launched an attack on the enemy within the snow cube.
On the other side, the golden armor that Gild Tesoro wore beneath his clothes rippled like liquid, covering his entire body with a layer of golden scales. This was an ability he had just developed with his Goru Goru no Mi! Although Gild Tesoro hadn't mastered Armament Haki and Observation Haki, under Sephiroth's guidance, he had developed a technique to cover his entire body with golden scales. These scales could significantly increase defense and offense, allowing him to ignore bullet shots from some light firearms, which gave a partial effect similar to Armament Haki.
Gild Tesoro moved quickly and fought with Wyper. With his astonishing defense, he directly ignored the opponent's punches and kicks and knocked the opponent to the ground in three or two blows with a head-to-head approach.
Meanwhile, Stella played it safe and could elementalize at will. Without Armament Haki and lacking other Haki abilities, Gan Fall was quickly defeated by her. The dome-shaped snow cube disappeared, revealing a layer of snow on his body, and Gan Fall lost consciousness.
Sephiroth, watching the battle between Gild Tesoro and Stella, nodded with satisfaction, and his two subordinates could now almost handle the situation.
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