"What is this?"
Whether they were fighting or not, everyone at this moment stopped their actions and looked up at the sky.
This pressure emanating from the will of the world made everyone feel suffocated.
"Roar~"
Just then, a dragon's roar, as if from ancient times, suddenly came from underground behind Mary Geoise. The roar, reaching the ground, was like a demon from hell, instantly attracting the lightning in the sky.
Crack—!
A huge bolt of lightning converged into a beam, like a giant spear descending from the heavens, fiercely plunging downwards.
But the silver light, which followed the roar, seemed to disregard the lightning spear's existence, piercing directly through it and soaring upwards.
"Roar~"
Within the ocean of lightning, the silver light was like a fish swimming freely in the sea, undisturbed by the ferocity of the lightning.
When the dazzling light disappeared, what appeared before everyone's eyes was a scene that made the entire world tremble.
In the ocean of lightning, a silver giant dragon, so vast that its borders were unseen, occupied the entire sky, filling the field of vision of everyone witnessing this spectacle.
At this moment, the world fell silent, utterly speechless.
"What is this?"
Shanks and others gathered together, all looking at Kuina.
Although no one had ever seen Uranus, everyone knew that Uranus was definitely not the giant dragon in the sky.
The overwhelming pressure displayed by this creature, which seemed to belong to a different world entirely, left no room for doubt in anyone's mind that the dragon overhead possessed the power to truly destroy the world.
The Heavenly King Uranus was powerful, but not so powerful that its mere aura could render everyone incapable of resistance.
"I don't know either."
Kuina shook her head, then, as if by telepathy, turned to the void beside her, a touch of tenderness appearing in her eyes, "But someone knows. You should ask him!"
As she spoke, Kouta's figure silently materialized beside Kuina.
"This is Imu, the true Imu, an extraterrestrial being who has surpassed this world, from another world."
Before anyone could ask, Kouta directly provided the answer.
Even though they had expected something extraordinary, everyone was still shocked by this revelation.
"Can he be defeated?"
Luffy did not look at Imu, but instead asked the question that concerned him the most.
He didn't care who Imu was; he only cared if the young man before them could win.
Facing such a powerful being, against whom there seemed to be no hope of victory, he could only place his hope in Kouta.
"No problem."
Kouta nodded nonchalantly and then took a step forward, instantly appearing in the sky.
"Alright, you are now free, and you should uphold your promise and leave."
Kouta looked directly into the dragon's eyes and spoke calmly.
As his voice echoed, the pressure from the giant dragon and the sea of lightning vanished as if they had never been.
The disappearance of the oppressive aura allowed those in the Holy Land Mary Geoise, who had been forced to their knees, to stand up. They then all cast grateful glances towards the small figure standing with his back to the world.
"Leave?"
The massive dragon's head seemed to find the words incredibly amusing, a strange smile appearing on its face.
"Leave? Why should I leave?"
"Having been delayed here for a thousand years, my homeland may have already been destroyed by those despicable pirates."
"Since my homeland is destroyed, I will use this world to replace it."
Imu's dark red pupils were fixed on Kouta, showing no intention of fulfilling the agreement he had previously made with Kouta.
Kouta responded with an "Oh," indicating understanding.
Then, he reached down with his hand. Zankuu, held by Kuina, seemed to be drawn by some force, transforming into a streak of light and "whooshing" towards the sky.
Kouta's fingers closed, perfectly grasping the hilt of Zankuu.
He looked calmly at Imu and said faintly, "Since you don't want to leave, then you shall not leave!"
"How should I put it!"
"Actually, I don't want to let you go either!"
Azure blue eyes clashed with dark red pupils. Neither spoke, but an extremely oppressive aura surged from them towards each other.
The collision of their auras was like two bouncing balls, carrying immense impact, instantly dispersing the sea of lightning that enveloped the sky, revealing a massive circular hole.
Even though it was daytime, everyone could see the twinkling stars in the night sky through this opening.
At this moment, the heavens truly parted.
Without a word, in Imu's view, although Kouta's spatial abilities were troublesome, how could someone who had just entered the 'Xing Jing' (Star Realm) possibly be an opponent for her, who had long since entered the 'Xing Jing' and was about to step into the 'Yu Jing' (Universe Realm)?
This was why she chose to break their agreement and stay.
This world would never escape the law of the jungle; the weak were only fit to be appendages or slaves of the strong. The universe was this cruel.
"Roar~"
Imu let out a roar, lifting its head. Its gaze shifted from Kouta, then it suddenly lowered its head. From its massive mouth, golden light had begun to shine.
A colossal sun was burning within, and as time passed, it was undergoing a qualitative change from quantitative growth, affecting the space around the sun, causing this entire sky to distort.
Ignoring Imu's attack, Kouta looked down at the ground. He knew that he couldn't let this sun fall onto the ground behind him.
The energy contained within it had already far exceeded the limits of this world. This thing was like a true comet, capable of completely altering the overall structure of the world below.
Kouta's lowered head suddenly snapped up. He took a step, and in an instant, he was beneath Imu's massive dragon head.
He intended to use this moment of Imu's charging to attempt to kill it.
Sheathing his sword, Kouta crouched slightly, adopting a drawing stance.
"Zan·Kuu!"
A cold blade light directly sliced through space. A black line flashed past, leaving a black line in the sky, as if leading to hell.
This black line stretched from beneath the giant dragon's head across the entire sky, unaffected even by light or the sun within the dragon's mouth.
However, none of this had any effect on Imu. Its massive eyeballs rotated, fixing on the figure described beneath its head, while the sun in its mouth did not diminish.
"I am indeed a living being, but I am not the tangible form you see. I am a true 'ion organism' that can change shape at will and roam anywhere in the universe."
As the words fell, the black line that had even cleaved the void was bizarrely smoothed out as the dragon's body converged, causing its body to re-unite.
Imu was unharmed.