The central arena of God Valley glittered with twelve tons of embedded gold. A Celestial Dragon, whip encrusted with diamonds, poked at an iron cage.

"Move faster, you filthy fish!"

Inside the cage, a fishman girl, her body covered in whip scars, mechanically dragged her bloodied tail across the ground. Pale pink froth seeped from the wound.

"Father, look!" a young Celestial Dragon suddenly screamed, pointing at the sky.

Three winged slaves, their wings shackled in iron chains, plummeted from over a hundred meters above. This was the Celestials' favorite pastime Birds Falling from the Sky.

The stands erupted with cheers. The Celestials, heads encased in bubble helmets, clamored to bet on which one would hit the ground first and burst into pulp.

"Boring," another Celestial yawned. He raised his pistol and shot one of the falling slaves in the knee.

"Now that's entertaining."

Marble corridors flanking the arena were lined with living "exhibits":

A giant toddler, surgically stitched with doll limbs.

A mermaid songstress, jeweled collar glinting under the lights her vocal cords had been removed.

"This is our highlight item for today's auction," a servant announced with reverent flourish, lifting a crimson cloth.

Inside the cage curled three young mink children.

"They glow under the full moon perfect as nightlights."

Beneath the cliff to the west of God Valley, inside the third cavern, Roger and his crew silently swept the area with Observation Haki.

None of them were calm.

Roger and Ritter were especially shaken their Observation Haki was the sharpest, and what they perceived chilled them to the bone.

So many faint life signals fragile, desperate, terrified beyond even adult comprehension.

Screams echoed through the forest.

Twenty slaves had been released into a trap-ridden hunting ground, bells tied around their necks, serial numbers carved into their wrists.

"The rules are simple~" the host grinned into a Den Den Mushi camera.

"Our noble guests will use specialized bullets. Hit the numbered area to win a matching prize!"

He kicked a nearby prize box inside were Devil Fruits and slave contracts, carelessly tossed together.

"Number 7! I'm aiming for Number 7's left eye!"

A puff of smoke erupted from a Celestial's rifle.

A long-armed woman screamed in agony a hundred meters away, clutching her bleeding eye as she collapsed.

The camera lens contracted, broadcasting the image live to Mary Geoise.

Ritter felt like he was losing his mind.

This was his first real encounter with the Celestial Dragons.

He'd seen their cruelty in manga before but standing in the middle of it, feeling it firsthand through the lives being toyed with like insects, his past life's values and his current world's reality converged into one thought:

They all deserve to die.

To toy with life so casually… by what right?

He wanted nothing more than to storm the arena and slaughter them all.

Rocks D. Xebec was cruel but were the Celestials any better? No. Not even close.

Suddenly, the Navy flag flying over God Valley's port caught fire.

From the blue flames stepped a man clad in a captain's coat.

Rocks D. Xebec.

Each step he took set the earth trembling.

"Kong!"

His roar shattered every window along the coast.

"You brought your toy soldiers here to die?"

Fifty naval battleships turned their cannons as one but the front ranks suddenly dropped to their knees.

Their shadows were pinned to the ground by an unseen force.

Wang Zhi emerged from the shadows, lifting a Marine vice admiral's severed head with his blade.

"Our captain asked you a question."

The Navy's iron-clad formation crumbled like wet paper before the Rocks Pirates.

Ten top-tier warships were already ablaze on the sea.

"This is the best the World Government can muster?"

Rocks crushed the helmet of a Rear Admiral candidate underfoot, grinding his boot into the man's pulped face.

"You can't even get me warmed up."

Vice Admiral Garp managed to intercept him but anyone watching could tell: Garp was barely holding on.

Then, through the smoke and blood, nine warriors strode forth in perfect unison.

The God Knights.

Each wore a pristine white cape, the mark of the Celestials branded on their chest.

Their presences were like abyssal seas dark, deep, and suffocating.

At their lead was Saint Galen, his rapier crackling with Conqueror's Haki.

He pointed the blade directly at Rocks.

"Rocks D. Xebec. Your crimes end today."

Rocks grinned, his teeth gleaming like a wolf's.

"You mongrels think you can stop me?"

Before Galen could respond, Whitebeard stepped forward.

His bisento, Murakumogiri, surged with the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.

He brought it down with a deafening roar

"Quake Slash: Heaven-Shatter!"

BOOM!

Three God Knights combined to block the attack they were no pushovers.

Galen's eyes widened.

"What?!"

He had underestimated the power of Rocks' officers. He had expected a clean sweep after all, weren't they supposed to be gods among men?

"Hey now, don't pretend we're not here."

The Rocks Pirates were bound together by one thing: Rocks' overwhelming power.

So long as he remained undefeated, their unity held firm.

Should he fall, however, they'd crumble in an instant.

Silver Axe and Wang Zhi struck down two Knights together.

"Shadow Bind: Execution."

CRACK!

Stone shattered as two Knights were sent flying.

They weren't mortally wounded but clearly shaken.

Big Mom cackled atop her thundercloud, Zeus.

"Mama Mama~ Your souls are mine!"

One of the youngest God Knights barely raised his shield before Zeus swallowed him whole.

His scream was cut short.

The first confirmed death.

Galen remained unmoved.

He slashed forward his blade cloaked in black and red lightning, aiming straight for Rocks' throat.

Rocks didn't dodge.

He caught the blade in his bare hand.

Sparks of Haki exploded from his palm.

"Too slow."

CRACK!

The sword shattered in his grip.

Before Galen could react, Rocks' other hand was already around his throat, lifting him off the ground.

"So this is your holy order?"

He grinned, eyes blazing.

"Just a pack of lapdogs."

BANG!

Galen's body slammed into the earth, cracks spidering out for a hundred meters.

Garp didn't even glance at the fallen God Knights.

His target was Rocks alone.

Let the rest fend for themselves.

The older Knights could only hold the line barely against the Rocks officers.

For now, the battlefield reached a fragile deadlock.

But none of the Rocks Pirates were fighting with their lives on the line.

They were biding their time.

And when Rocks sent Garp flying with a thunderous punch, turning toward the auction grounds he saw something that made him smile.

Pirates had broken through the Marine perimeter.

Even with the Knights slicing down wave after wave, they were like a swarm of locusts and they were storming the Celestials' VIP stands.

Those self-proclaimed gods, once high and untouchable, were now scrambling like headless flies.

"Now that's interesting," Rocks licked the blood from his lips.

"Time to drag these so-called gods down from their thrones."

Garp swung at him an iron fist straight to the jaw.

But Rocks caught his wrist mid-strike.

"You're distracted, Garp."

BAM!

His knee smashed into Garp's abdomen.

The Navy's strongest man coughed up a mouthful of blood.

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