Orion words, though spoken lightly, exploded like thunder in the ears of the five God Knights behind Gunko.
The God Valley incident from thirty-two years ago had long been erased from history.
Not only the event itself, but even the island where God Valley was located had disappeared from the map. Because of this, even within the Marine Headquarters, only a handful of people knew about this incident.
Aside from Garp, who had participated in the God Valley event, even Fleet Admiral Sengoku was unaware that they had taken part in that hunting game.
Most importantly, they were certain this was their first time meeting Orion. Even if Garp had told Orion about the incident, there was no way Orion could have recognized them so quickly upon meeting them!
Not only did the five God Knights show expressions of disbelief, but the three Admirals standing behind Orion also looked up at him in surprise.
Although they were now Admirals of the Headquarters, when the God Valley incident occurred, they were only in their teens or early twenties.
The youngest, Kuzan, was just eleven years old.
Thus, they had no knowledge of the God Valley incident. Even as they grew and eventually became Admirals, they only became aware of some unusual information through classified documents related to Rocks, the former ruler of the seas.
But none of that mattered.
What mattered was that even they, the three Admirals of the Headquarters, were unaware of the God Valley incident. Yet Orion, who had only been a Vice Admiral before, not only knew about it in detail but also named the five individuals before him as participants in the God Valley hunting game.
This made them feel, inexplicably, as if they were still young in front of Orion!
"You actually know about the God Valley incident!" After a brief moment of shock, the long-haired woman beside Gunko took a step forward.
The skeleton man reflexively gripped his scythe, while the hooded man immediately retreated, holding his spear in a combat stance.
Facing their reactions, Orion took a calm step forward and said indifferently.
"I told you, you bunch of trash aren't qualified to negotiate with me. Return to the Holy Land immediately and have the Five Elders come to speak with me in person."
After a slight pause, Orion suddenly changed his tone and dropped a bombshell.
"No, the Five Elders didn't send you. You came to Marine Headquarters through a teleportation array. Am I to understand that it wasn't the Five Elders who sent you, but—Imu!"
Hearing the name "Imu" from Orion mouth, all six members of the God Knights, including Gunko, turned pale.
"Damn it, you actually know about Imu-sama existence!"
"You know too much!"
As the words rang out, a glint of killing intent flashed in the eyes of the group.
Gunko, the leader, quietly activated her Devil Fruit ability. A massive arrow wrapped in bandages materialized out of thin air, hurtling toward Orion at an astonishing speed.
The sudden attack caught everyone off guard—the three Admirals standing behind Orion, as well as Gion, who was just a step away from him.
First, they were unfamiliar with the name "Imu." They hadn't expected that merely uttering this name would provoke such a desperate and reckless attack from the enemy.
Although Gion was aware of Imu existence, she hadn't anticipated that it would be so taboo that simply mentioning the name would instantly ignite an immediate attack.
At that moment, she finally understood why Orion had warned her not to rush into investigating the secrets of the Flower Room and Imu.
"Do you think the light of a firefly can compete with the brilliance of the moon?" Before the three Admirals and Gion could react, Orion voice suddenly filled with killing intent.
In the next second, Orion reached back and grabbed the hilt of the long sword at Gion waist.
The moment Orion gripped the hilt and drew the blade, a visible surge of black-and-red Conqueror Haki erupted. However, the Conqueror Haki didn't emanate from Orion body or feet but strangely radiated from the scabbard itself.
Before the blade was fully drawn, the terrifying Conqueror Haki had already enveloped the rooftop.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The massive arrow that had just shot toward Orion shattered into pieces under the overwhelming force of the Conqueror's Haki, instantly turning to ash and scattering in the air.
Watching her arrow disintegrate into dust, Gunko pupils contracted, and she exclaimed in shock.
"Conqueror's Haki!"
"No, that's impossible!"
The long-haired woman beside Gunko widened her eyes in disbelief.
"It's even stronger than Rocks' Conqueror's Haki from back then. Who are you?"
"Damn it, I can't hold on!"
The other two members of the Holy Knights felt as though their bodies and souls were being torn apart the moment the Conqueror's Haki enveloped them. Unable to move, they were overwhelmed by an unprecedented sense of fear.
Under the horrified gazes of the God Knights, Orion, still gripping the hilt, didn't hesitate. He swiftly and decisively drew Gion sword from its scabbard.
Hum—
As the blade left the scabbard, an even more domineering wave of Conqueror Haki erupted from Orion, swirling with rolling flames and surging toward the God Knights like a tidal wave.
Accompanied by a low-frequency vibration in the air, both Gunko and the other five members of the God Knights could no longer withstand the pressure. They were forced to retreat uncontrollably.
"Get out of here!"
"Tell Imu that from now on, it's not just Nika they need to fear—it's me, Orion!"
With those words, the long sword, now infused with Conqueror's Haki enhanced to its highest level by the system, slashed horizontally.
In an instant, a fierce gale swept across the rooftop, and thunder rumbled ominously in the sky. A visible shockwave rippled through the air, mixed with the black-and-red Conqueror's Haki, engulfing Gunko and the other five God Knights.
"Ugh—!"
Just as a few uncontrollable screams rang out, the six members of the God Knights who had just arrived through the teleportation array were swept up by the Conqueror's Haki. Like six cannonballs, they were sent flying upwards, soaring towards Mari Geoise atop the Red Line.
"!!!!!!!"
The three Admirals standing behind Orion all widened their eyes in shock at this moment.
Although they were unaware of the strength of the God Knights who had suddenly appeared on the rooftop, the sheer terror of the Conqueror's Haki Orion had just unleashed far exceeded their expectations.
It was worth noting that among the known users of Conqueror's Haki, even the Pirate King Roger, who had been executed in Loguetown sixteen years ago, couldn't have sent people flying so high and so far with just his Conqueror's Haki.
At this moment, whether it was Sakazuki, Borsalino, or Kuzan, they were all utterly awestruck by Orion power.
They finally understood the source of Orion confidence in launching this coup. It wasn't the officers and soldiers who had chosen to pledge their loyalty after receiving Orion help over the years—it was Orion himself, who possessed the qualities of a king.
After sending the six God Knights flying with a single strike, Orion casually sheathed his sword back into Gion scabbard.
He then turned and looked down at the warships approaching outside the walls of Marineford, saying indifferently.
"Borsalino, sink those warships. They're an eyesore."
"Roger that!"
Borsalino snapped out of his stunned expression and decisively activated his Pika Pika no Mi ability, leaping into the air.
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