Chapter 281: Serious Series: Serious Punch!
Buzz!!
Imu erupted with astonishing energy and in that instant, the entire sky was shrouded in a crimson glow.
The world darkened, and those atop the Red Line felt an overwhelming pressure.
Everyone clenched their teeth, enduring the immense oppressive force.
The red streaks on Imu's body now blazed with a blinding bloody light, turning entirely from their original color to a deep red.
Lightning crackled around him as he charged towards Bob at terrifying speed.
Every step he took on the ground triggered explosive booms.
The crimson lightning wreaked havoc on the surroundings.
Whether they were soldiers of the World Government, the Marines, or even pirates—anyone who came into contact with the red lightning was instantly reduced to a mist of blood.
No means of defense could stop it.
In an instant.
Imu appeared before Bob, his crimson fist hurtling towards Bob's head.
At the same time, Bob's own fist shot forward.
The moment Imu arrived, their fists collided.
Boom!
A dull impact resounded as Imu's fist exploded once more, his body sent flying backward again.
His red-rimmed eyes were bloodshot, tears of blood seeping from them.
Yet, within moments, his shattered arm regenerated from the bloody mist and Imu skidded to a halt, leaving a deep trench in the ground.
The next instant.
Bob tapped his toes, his body flickering like a teleportation as he appeared before Imu.
"Consecutive Normal Punches!"
With a sharp cry, a chaotic storm of fist afterimages rained down on Imu.
Under such a relentless, explosive assault, Imu's body was obliterated—bones and flesh reduced to blood, exploding into a crimson mist in midair.
Only a pair of blood-red eyes remained within the haze.
Buzz!!
The scarlet pupils spun wildly, black and red consuming the irises.
Crimson lightning crackled within the bloody mist, as if binding the scattered blood together.
In an instant.
The mist coalesced under Imu's overwhelming Life Force, restoring his body in the blink of an eye.
"Life Blood Sacrifice!"
A roar like thunder echoed across the entire Red Line.
Releasing his full power, Imu's body swelled rapidly, the red streaks on his skin erupting with blinding radiance.
Leaping into the air, all his Life Force transformed into scorching energy in that moment.
Red lightning crackled around him, mingling with the blood-red glow that solidified into tangible force, casting a dazzling light over the Red Line below.
To the onlookers, Imu now resembled a crimson sun.
Even more blinding than the scorching sun in the sky.
Under his radiance, the entire Red Line deepened into a shade of red as thick as blood.
"It's coming! Th-this is Imu-sama strongest attack!"
"An attack powerful enough to erase the world's largest island in an instant—no, even—"
The Five Elders watched in horror as Imu unleashed his full Life Force into the sky.
They knew—no matter how strong their enemy was, Imu had never once fought with such overwhelming power.
Although this move had never been seen before, its terrifying nature was unmistakable—for it was Imu's trump card, unleashed with all his might.
Before this attack, all things would turn to ashes, and even Bob would be no exception.
"Bob... is finally going to die!" Ethanbaron V Nusjuro's face was deathly pale as he stared blankly at Bob standing on the ground.
He felt an overwhelming sense of relief wash over his body at this moment.
From the era of Rocks until now, this man who had left the World Government utterly helpless was finally about to meet his end at the hands of Imu.
And once again, the World Government would emerge victorious.
*****
In the sky...
The crimson lightning continued to rage as Imu gathered all his energy.
The blood-red hue around him vanished entirely, and the world plunged into darkness.
"Falling Light!!"
With a thunderous roar, the world instantly returned to brightness.
Before Imu, a pillar of light erupted—everything crumbled, space shattered and a force capable of annihilating all things burst forth across the skies.
"If that's how it is!"
"Then I'll use my trump card too!"
Standing firmly on the ground, Bob raised his gaze toward the radiant figure of Imu in the sky.
The fierce winds howled around him, his clothes flapping violently.
His slender frame now seemed divine.
"Ultimate Move: Serious Series!"
"Serious Punch!!"
As his voice echoed...
Bob crouched slightly, his fist drawn back to his side.
A power capable of obliterating everything surged into his knuckles.
The moment the pillar of light reached him, he swung his fist to meet it.
BOOM!!
A deafening explosion shattered the very fabric of space.
The overwhelmingly powerful pillar of light was instantly split in two.
Everything collapsed.
A devastating shockwave erupted, shaking the Red Line violently.
A blinding radiance illuminated the world.
People shut their eyes tightly, feeling only the residual energy wash over them.
Then... Silence.
The light faded.
Slowly, people opened their eyes to witness the aftermath of the cataclysmic clash.
But in an instant...
Every expression froze.
Pupils dilated in disbelief, mouths agape to an impossible degree.
Following their gaze...
At the summit of the Red Line, before Bob...
The distant crimson peaks and jagged cliffs had been flattened into a vast plain.
Seawater surged violently into the newly formed land, as if the apocalypse had arrived.
And in the sky, the clouds had vanished entirely, leaving only an endless expanse of blue.
Yet, if one looked further, they would realize the clouds hadn't disappeared—they had been forcibly split apart.
"Imu... is he dead?!"
"Was that punch something a human could even throw?!"
"My God! The mountains were leveled in an instant—even the clouds in the sky were blown away!"
"Wait! Look up at the sky!"
"..."
Viewers watching the live broadcast were stunned into silence, their minds reeling from the spectacle.
But just as they were processing the shock, someone suddenly looked up and noticed the clouds in the sky spreading apart, dividing into two halves.
In mere seconds, the sky was split cleanly down the middle—as if combed into a perfect part.
There was no doubt that Bob's punch on the Red Line just now had directly affected them, even though they were thousands of miles away.
"This is Bob's true power!"
"Enough to shake the entire world."