"Five pieces of trash, and they just died like that!"
Regunus, one of the Eight Kings, cursed under his breath.
"It doesn't matter if the trash is dead, but this pariah… he's different."
"We underestimated him. He's far stronger than we thought."
"Those five idiots weren't exaggerating!"
The other Eight Kings spoke one after another.
"Aiolia was killed by him—we must avenge him!"
"Stay sharp. Don't let your guard down and end up like them!"
A man with jet-black skin and a dark demonic mask stepped forward, speaking in a low voice.
Unlike the other seven, this particular Eight King was the only one wearing a demon mask.
Suddenly—whoosh!
With a flicker of darkness, the Demon King of the Eight soared into the sky, his figure vanishing in an instant.
Massive, pitch-black wings spread out behind him, covering the sky before expanding into a dark demonic domain.
A chillingly evil aura erupted, engulfing all of Mariejois.
"Demonic Light!"
Countless black orbs materialized, transforming into beams of pure darkness that rained down like a hellish storm.
The entire city was bathed in destruction.
Anyone struck by the demonic light—whether Marine or pirate—was instantly reduced to nothingness, leaving no trace behind.
In mere moments, tens of thousands lay dead.
The Demonic Light didn't shatter the earth or cause massive explosions, yet the sheer lethality of its power sent shivers down the spines of all who witnessed it.
And then—
A massive beam of demonic energy descended from the sky, targeting Lucifer.
The space around him froze, and in an instant, the distance of ten thousand meters vanished.
"The power of demons?"
Watching the Celestial Dragons reveal their abilities, Lucifer smirked coldly.
Fate was full of ironies.
Competing with the power of demons?
Lucifer feared no one.
BOOM!
A terrifying demonic aura erupted from his body, sending a shockwave blasting outward.
The Demonic Light unleashed by the Eight Demon Kings was shattered upon impact, instantly dissipating into nothingness.
"Come down."
Lucifer's voice was calm, yet filled with absolute power.
Before the Demon King could react, he suddenly found himself teleported—standing face-to-face with Lucifer.
His body was no longer under his control, like a mere puppet being manipulated.
"You..."
Panic flooded his mind, but before he could speak—
Lucifer simply stretched out his right hand.
It was such a slow, deliberate motion.
Yet, the Demon King felt an overwhelming sense of absolute doom.
His instincts screamed at him to escape.
His mind reacted instantly, commanding his body to move—
But it was too late.
By the time he realized what had happened, Lucifer's hand was already around his throat.
"Zoan: Mythical Beast—Demon Form?"
"Pathetic. Just a cheap imitation of a real demon."
Lucifer's indifferent voice rang in the Demon King's ears, sending an unmatched wave of terror through him.
His body trembled uncontrollably, consumed by pure, primal fear.
"W-Wait... I—"
CRACK!
Before he could finish his sentence, Lucifer snapped his neck like a twig.
Ding!
[Host has slain Estaros, one of the Eight Kings of the Celestial Dragons. +600,000 Killing Points.]
The system notification rang in Lucifer's mind.
At the same time, he could claim the Demon King's Devil Fruit.
As expected, it was a Mythical Zoan—
Zoan: Mythical Beast – Human-Human Fruit, Model: Demon.
A top-tier Devil Fruit with unimaginable power.
Estaros himself had been terrifyingly strong.
Unfortunately for him, he had chosen the wrong opponent.
Against Lucifer, a true world-class powerhouse, he was nothing more than an insect to be crushed.
"Estaros!!!"
"Damn it!!!"
"He killed another one!"
"Everyone attack! Kill this pariah!"
"I'll tear him to shreds and burn his bones to ash!"
The remaining six Eight Kings erupted with fury.
One of them grew larger, instantly transforming into a colossal demonic bull, black flames surging around his body.
Everywhere he passed, space itself warped, rock melted, and anything caught in the flames—whether Marine or pirate—was incinerated into nothingness.
Another sprouted massive wings, soaring into the sky. His form was like that of a winged horse, yet his roar was that of a dragon, sending shockwaves across the battlefield.
One let out a monstrous howl—fangs bursting from his mouth, a tail ripping out from his spine as his body tripled in size, morphing into a terrifying Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Another moved at lightning speed, transforming into a golden bolt of energy, splitting into countless afterimages.
One took the form of a black-scaled dragon with twin horns, unleashing torrents of hellfire from its maw.
And the last transformed into a Nine-Headed Red Phoenix, wrapped in scarlet flames, radiating endless hostility.
Each of the Six Kings possessed either Ancient Zoan or Mythical Zoan Devil Fruits, coupled with frightening supernatural abilities.
Though none were Logia, their power far surpassed most Devil Fruits.
And without exception—
All of them had awakened their abilities.
At the same time, they activated their Armament Haki domains.
Their immortality had granted them centuries of training, and each was a peerless genius, having stepped into the pinnacle realm of Haki.
Three of them even unleashed their Conqueror's Haki domains alongside their Armament Haki.
BOOM!
In an instant, nine different Haki domains surged outward, swallowing all of Mariejois.
Lucifer stood at the center of it all, bearing the brunt of the combined onslaught.
The moment the domains expanded, thousands of Marines and pirates exploded into clouds of blood, their bodies obliterated instantly.
The sheer pressure of their Haki fields alone was enough to wipe out an army.
Even elite Marine Vice Admirals struggled to withstand the overwhelming force.
Nine domains had been unleashed—
And all of Mariejois trembled beneath their might.
The remaining 300,000 Marines were instantly killed, along with the tens of thousands of pirates who had followed Lucifer.
In the blink of an eye, Mariejois had been transformed into a living purgatory.
Corpses littered the ground, and rivers of blood flowed through the ruins!
Boom!
With a wave of his hand, Lucifer unleashed both his Armament Haki and Conqueror's Haki domains.
While resisting the suppression of the nine enemy domains, he also took action to rescue the remaining high-ranking members of the Nether Pirates.
The lower-ranked pirates of the Nether Pirates had been almost completely wiped out—only the elite cadres survived.
Rescued by Lucifer, they gasped for breath, their faces pale.
Just moments ago, all of them had brushed past the jaws of death.
Had Lucifer not acted in time, they too would have perished!
"Unbelievable… horrifying!"
"What kind of power is this?!"
"This must be the Haki domain the captain mentioned!"
"It's far more terrifying than I ever imagined!"
The surviving cadres trembled with lingering fear.
Only now, after truly facing such overwhelming power, did they understand its sheer terror.
In the face of that absolute might, which transcended everything, they had been utterly powerless—unable to resist, unable to escape. All they could do was await death in despair.
Tens of thousands of pirates had been slaughtered, but Lucifer remained indifferent.
The weak would die—it was an inevitability.
There was no shortage of pirates in the world. As long as he gave the word, another Nether Pirates crew could be formed in an instant.
But the Marines… that was a different matter.
No matter what, Marines were not mere cannon fodder.
Perhaps, in the eyes of the Eight Kings, Marine soldiers were nothing more than ants—insignificant lives whose deaths were meaningless.
But to the Marine leadership, they were more than just numbers.
Each of them was a living, breathing warrior—loyal to the Marines and devoted to their cause.
If they had died fighting against pirates, it would have been an honorable death.
But now, they had been slaughtered by the very Celestial Dragons they were sworn to protect.
A cruel irony.
"NO… NO… NO!!!"
Sengoku's predecessor, Kong, stared blankly at the blood-soaked battlefield beneath his feet.
His eyes were empty. His heart filled with despair.
Hundreds of thousands of Marines—the entire might of the Navy—had been annihilated in an instant.
With them gone, the Marines no longer truly existed.
An uncontrollable surge of rage, grief, and killing intent burned in Kong's chest.
He grieved for his fallen soldiers.
They had fought bravely, giving their lives for the World Government and the Celestial Dragons—but in the end, they had been slaughtered by the very same people they had sworn to protect.
What were they fighting for?
What were they protecting?
What was the purpose of their sacrifice?
Kong had always known about the wickedness of the Celestial Dragons.
He had long harbored resentment toward them.
But he had never once doubted justice itself.
Until now.
At this very moment—
His belief in justice… shattered.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You can visit my Patreon page:
Patreon.com/PhoeniXcel
There are 2+ advanced chapters available for you to read.
Your support would be greatly appreciated.
Check out my new Marvel fanfic!
[Marvel: Starting as a Time Criminal, Stealing Powers]