Giant Sword That Cuts the World

Hawk Eyes looked up at the unchanged Destiny Ship, a trace of disbelief appearing on his face.

He had missed?

No, he knew perfectly well that his slash had hit.

It had not split it apart, but it had not left even the slightest mark. Even Hawk Eyes could not process that result at once.

"Hey, what the hell is going on?" A voice suddenly came from nearby.

It was Zoro.

He had successfully passed through the Heart-Questioning Array.

Something seemed to have protected the group from the aftershock of that slash. At this moment, they were floating in midair under some unknown force, while the small boat beneath them had long since been shattered beyond recognition.

Soon afterward, Luffy woke up as well.

Only Sanji remained hopelessly immersed in the Illusionary Realm. Judging by that lecherous grin on his face alone, it was clear he would not be getting out anytime soon.

However, Shen Mo paid them no attention. His gaze remained fixed on Hawk Eyes.

The next moment.

Dark crimson light surged around Bismarck, who had been standing beside Shen Mo. The dense array of cannons on the ship began to turn, and every muzzle aside from the largest Supergravity Cannon locked onto Hawk Eyes.

In that instant, a chill ran up Hawk Eyes’s spine.

It was the sensation of standing on the brink of death.

His Observation Haki frantically sent him terrifying warnings. He could even see the future—himself being blasted to pieces beneath the bombardment of those cannons!

There was no possible way to evade it.

Hawk Eyes silently raised his long blade. There was no fear in his heart, only regret.

He did not fear death. He merely felt that even if he were to die, he should die by the sword.

"Not bad." Shen Mo’s voice suddenly drifted over from afar. "Though your sword is still weak, the Swordsmanship Heart has already begun to take shape. I’ll give you a chance."

Hawk Eyes looked at the mysterious man, his brow furrowing slightly.

The smile on the other man’s face had not changed, but unlike before, there seemed to be amusement in his eyes now as well.

"If you can withstand one strike from me, I’ll forgive you for attacking the Destiny Ship." Shen Mo slowly raised his right hand.

The moment his words fell.

A terrifying aura burst from his body along with countless Blade Shadows, soaring into the sky.

In an instant, they filled the entire heavens.

His cloak whipped wildly in the wind as his aura continued to rise. More and more Blade Shadows shot forth, carrying radiant light across the sky until even the blazing sun was eclipsed. Hawk Eyes and Zoro both stood frozen in shock.

Every single Blade Shadow was an immensely powerful Sword Aura, echoing the indescribable Sword Intent emanating from Shen Mo.

All of a sudden.

The Blade Shadows filling the sky began to gather above Shen Mo’s head, swiftly forming an enormous sword phantom beyond description. Thousands of meters long, it thrust straight into the heavens, its increasingly scorching white light illuminating the entire sea.

Countless people turned their heads in terror, but the instant they looked in that direction, they felt as though both their eyes and bodies were being torn apart.

Hawk Eyes, standing at the very center, was utterly shaken beyond the limits of his understanding.

He had already felt that terrifying Sword Intent.

This divine sword, as though it should never have existed in this world, was not treating him as its enemy at all. Its will was a Swordsmanship that sought to cleave the sky, split the sea, and sever the entire world itself!

Shen Mo held his palm high.

The divine sword, thousands of meters long, slowly turned, its tip pointing at Hawk Eyes. That motion alone caused his clothes to burst apart and his skin to be torn by fine Sword Aura. In an instant, he became a man drenched in blood, while the sea below cracked open with enormous fissures. Beneath the radiance of the Sword Aura, even the seafloor was clearly visible.

And yet—

Hawk Eyes showed no despair.

He slung his long blade back behind him, spread his arms, and faced the mountain-like giant sword head-on. He even threw back his head and laughed.

To die beneath such a sword would leave him with no regrets.

The corners of Shen Mo’s lips curved upward.

He suddenly waved his hand. The white light slowly faded, and the sharp sword burst apart into Blade Shadows that filled the sky and shot toward the heavens. It seemed to tear open the firmament itself, allowing the light of countless stars to shine through the crack in the sky, forming a breathtaking and shocking sight alongside the blazing sun at the horizon.

Hawk Eyes, now covered in blood, watched the sky in silence.

It lasted only a brief moment.

The sky quickly sealed itself again, returning to an expanse of cloudless blue.

But that scene had already been deeply etched into the minds of everyone present.

"Congratulations. It seems you withstood it." Shen Mo’s voice echoed beside every ear, and the smile on his face seemed to widen further. "What I asked you to withstand was not the sword itself, but the erosion it would bring to your path of Swordsmanship. If you had felt even the slightest fear, cowardice, or collapse, then it truly would have struck your body."

Shen Mo was secretly delighted.

That sword strike had been the result of Twist Reality combined with customized Sword Intent.

He did not want to personally enter battle.

Finding an excuse to display overwhelming strength could settle everything once and for all.

What had just happened could probably be seen throughout nearly the entire East Blue, and even in parts of the Grand Line.

The legend of the Destiny Ship would truly resound across the world because of that sword.

Hawk Eyes had contributed to this.

Shen Mo raised a finger and tapped the air. Hawk Eyes’s injuries healed as though time had regressed, and even his clothing returned to its original state. Then his body, along with those of Luffy and Zoro, slowly rose into the air.

They descended onto the Destiny Ship.

"You three have passed the trial. As I promised, I will grant you the opportunity to fulfill your wishes." After speaking, Shen Mo glanced at the others, who still looked as though they were dreaming. "There are thirty minutes left."

Those words seemed to wake them up.

Amid indescribable shock, many people—even ordinary people who were not pirates—flushed red and rushed toward the Destiny Ship like madmen.

That ship was a domain belonging to a god.

They were now utterly convinced that boarding it could truly fulfill their wishes.

"It seems…" Shen Mo smiled as he looked at the three before him. "You have many questions."

Zoro was already drenched in sweat.

He had witnessed everything just now with his own eyes.

The person before him could no longer be described as merely the strongest. He surpassed even monsters. He was truly like a Sword God.

Compared to him, even the World’s Greatest Swordsman was as weak as an ant.

"You are not from this world, are you?" Hawk Eyes took several steps forward. There was no fighting spirit left in him, yet he remained neither humble nor overbearing.

"That’s right." Shen Mo raised a hand, and chairs and desserts appeared across the deck. Then he sat down first. "I come from beyond this world, from a place called the Omniscient and Omnipotent Merchant Guild."