Amidst the earth-shattering wails of the Sandworm as its body shattered and collapsed to the ground, Daren's speed exploded to its absolute limit. The pulsating, domineering lightning wrapped around his three-fingered dragon claws, its tail blindingly bright like a meteor, leaving a mesmerizing trail of light in its wake. The raw power it contained twisted the very air around it.

"Damn it!"

"Stop him!"

"We can't catch him!"

"..."

The Five Elders' pupils shrank sharply as they shouted in frustration. But aside from "Sandworm" Saint Peter, who had already burrowed underground in advance, even the fastest among them, "Bakotsu" Saint Nusjuro, was powerless to match Daren's speed. They could do nothing but watch as Daren closed in on Figarland Saint Garling with a velocity beyond human perception.

"Die!"

Saint Figarland Garling roared, swinging his sword. Daren responded with a vicious grin, his dragon claws unleashing overwhelming, world-shattering power.

"Gryphon Divine Welcome!"

"Magnetic Field Rotation: Dragon's Breath!"

The next second, a massive gryphon roared as it flapped its wings, while a chilling dragon unleashed its fury. Two immense shockwaves clashed violently in mid-air. The three-clawed dragon's claws collided with the gryphon's blade, causing an ear-splitting explosion.

Time seemed to freeze for an instant. Then, with Daren and Saint Garling as the dividing line, two violent energy waves erupted in sync—one crimson, the other violet. They clashed and twisted, each devouring the other in a destructive standoff.

"You think you can kill me!? Don't underestimate me, Daren!"

A chilling streak of blood trickled from Saint Figarland Garling's mouth, but he laughed maniacally, his crescent-shaped hairstyle blown apart by the shockwaves. His crimson hair whipped violently in the air, radiating pure arrogance.

"I am…"

His eyes locked onto the dark-haired youth before him, widening as he growled,

"The strongest Celestial Dragon—"

"That sort of thing..."

Daren's mocking laughter interrupted Saint Figarland Garling's words.

As Saint Figarland Garling's eyes began to freeze and contract, twisted blue arcs of lightning seemed to generate an unimaginable rotational force. Daren's right arm bulged like molten lava, muscles rippling with such force that beneath the serpentine flesh, Saint Figarland Garling could even hear the blood rushing through his veins.

This was...

A terror he had never experienced before surged like a nightmare through Saint Figarland Garling's mind, making every pore on his body stand on end and a cold sweat break out on his back.

Staring at the man before him—shrouded in blue lightning, black hair whipping around like a demon god—his eyes glazed over, momentarily lost. It felt as though he had been transported back to that earth-shattering battle from years ago. That battle had crowned him the king of the Celestial Dragons. Yet few knew that it was also the closest he had ever come to death.

This suffocating pressure, coupled with the man's wild, ambition-driven expression, made a single name flash through his mind:

Rocks Vegeta!

"—I've already torn one to shreds!"

In that moment of distraction, Daren let out a cold, savage laugh, his aura expanding once again.

A fist rocketed forward!

Crack! Crack!

Cracks appeared on the surface of the Gryphon Blade, spreading relentlessly across it. Saint Figarland Garling's pupils contracted to the extreme, his heart feeling as though it had stopped in that instant.

"Die!"

The next second—

CRACK! CRACK!

The Gryphon Blade, symbol of the supreme glory of God Valley's ruler, shattered abruptly under Daren's strike, scattering into a sky of flying fragments. The razor-sharp blade was shattered! The hilt bearing the Gryphon emblem was shattered!

Before the Five Elders' trembling eyes, Figarland Saint Garling's right arm, gripping the sword, was also shattered piece by piece under Daren's impact. The gloved palm, the slender forearm, the muscular upper arm with its defined lines, and the shoulder... Neither Haki, flesh, nor bone could withstand Daren's tyrannical dragon claw power. Everything was torn apart like withered wood!

The most terrifying aspect was the sheer speed of Daren's strike. Figarland Garling Saint himself had no time to react, forced to watch helplessly as his entire arm was pulverized into a sky-filling spray of blood... the stench of death closing in on his very heart! This was... a strike that pierced the soul!

"No..."

In that instant, a flicker of terror finally crossed Figarland Garling Saint's eyes. Though he had assessed and predicted Daren's strength through intelligence before this battle erupted, he never imagined that Rogers Daren, unleashing his full power, would be this formidable! Strength, speed, physique, defense, explosive power, Haki... His flawlessly balanced comprehensive prowess forged an overwhelming dominance! Even when besieged by the Five Elders possessing "Immortal Bodies," he handled it with effortless ease.

Initially, he'd assumed that even if the previous God's Knights Corps Captain, Saint Michael, was taken down, Daren would only manage a narrow victory through teamwork or sheer luck. But now it seemed the truth was far more...

Countless thoughts flashed through Figarland Garling Saint's mind as excruciating pain surged toward his heart.

"Enough!"

At that moment, a towering figure burst through the thick dust cloud. Powered by Armament Haki exoskeleton, an unstoppable fist slammed toward Daren.

Boom!

Caught off guard, Daren was sent flying backward by Kong's steel-fisted blow. He soared dozens of meters through the air before his feet finally slammed into the ground, his black combat boots plowing two long furrows into the earth.

"You sure are getting in the way, old man Kong."

Daren wiped the blood trickling from his lip, looked up, and smiled at the imposing figure standing like an iron wall before Figarland Saint Garling, shielding him.

"You've gone too far, Daren!"

Kong panted slightly, his gaze sharp.

As the words fell, five eerie figures materialized simultaneously at his side, lining up in a row. It was none other than the Five Elders, restored to human form and cloaked in black.

A fierce wind whipped up, stirring vast clouds of dust across the earth.

From a distance of over a hundred meters, Daren glanced at Saint Figarland Garling, shielded behind Steel Bone Kong and the Five Elders. The latter clutched the gaping wound of his severed arm, his face deathly pale as he gasped for breath, teetering on the brink of collapse.

"I can't do anything to you lot."

Daren cracked his neck with a sharp pop, grinning widely.

"But do you really think the six of you can stop me from finishing him off?"

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