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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 178: Ice and Fire
At noon on the second day, Vivi boarded a vessel at the port, setting sail towards the horizon.
Standing on the ship, Vivi glanced at her bodyguard, a World Government Agent whom Aokiji had insisted accompany her. In the distance, she could see Baroque Works' Bounty Hunter.
I hope this works.
Vivi squinted her eyes, quietly waiting.
After the vessel had traveled for some time, a figure appeared in the distance, riding a bicycle and keeping pace with the sea vessel.
With every distance he covered, the surface of the sea beneath his tires would freeze into ice, allowing him to ride smoothly across the frozen expanse.
His right hand was equipped with a black Transponder Snail, capable of intercepting nearby signals; as long as he was close enough, he could eavesdrop on phone conversations.
Occasionally, he would pull out a Life Card to determine his position.
This figure was Aokiji. After Vivi's request to meet with the president of Baroque Works on Elven Island, he had followed her there.
"This is really troublesome."
Aokiji rode his bicycle, looking somewhat irritated as he checked Vivi's Life Card and adjusted his direction.
Time passed slowly.
Alabasta was not far from Elven Island, only about two hours away.
Soon, Vivi arrived at the island. She stepped onto the Coast and nervously asked the guard nearby, "Is the President in?"
The guard nodded and replied, "The President is inside."
"Alright."
Vivi took a deep breath and walked deeper into the Coast.
In the depths of the Coast stood a series of white buildings. Upon entering one of these buildings, she saw two figures: Heckler and Xiaqiu.
"Greetings, President."
Vivi slightly bowed, her expression somewhat tense.
Heckler smiled and asked, "I wonder why Princess Vivi is so eager to meet?"
"I have something to discuss with the President regarding the establishment of a second casino."
Vivi began to slowly explain her prepared speech.
Meanwhile, in the distance, Aokiji was riding his bicycle, gradually approaching. After traveling a short distance, he spotted a ship docked on the shore.
"Is that the place?"
Aokiji gazed at the distant island where the Sea Vessel was located, and the Life Card pointed in that direction. "In that case, let's..."
"There's someone on the Surface of the Sea."
The guards on the island were alert, scanning their surroundings. Suddenly, they spotted Aokiji's figure in the vast ocean. As they watched him plunge his hands into the water, one of them shouted, "Quick, sound the alarm and notify the president!"
The guard immediately called out.
But in the next moment, the Surface of the Sea visibly began to freeze, spreading toward them.
With a whoosh.
Just as the guard blew the horn, its melodious sound carried through the air, but the freezing mist quickly reached the edge of the island, encasing him in ice.
Not only him, but all the guards at the island's perimeter and the Sea Vessel on the Surface of the Sea were also frozen solid.
Even the ocean itself was enveloped in frost, extending far into the distance, with no end in sight.
"Ice Age."
Aokiji slowly exhaled a breath of cold air, grounding himself before leaping toward the island.
"That's an alarm. What happened?" Heckler jolted awake, looking into the distance. "Is there an enemy attack?"
At that moment, someone burst through the door, shouting loudly, "The sea, the sea is frozen!"
"The sea is frozen?" Heckler paused slightly.
The guard replied, "That's right, Sea Vessel, the Surface of the Sea, and even the guards at the edge of the islands are all frozen. What should we do?"
Frozen Surface of the Sea?
Who could accomplish such a feat other than Admiral Aokiji?
"But how did he find his way here?"
Xiaqiu looked at Vivi, whose expression changed. She subtly replied, "I don't know anything."
"Who else could have brought an admiral here besides you?" Heckler said coldly.
"Die."
Xiaqiu charged forward, opening his massive jaws to bite at Vivi.
Vivi immediately stepped back. Faced with the giant mouth, she was about to turn to sand when a figure appeared in front of Xiaqiu and raised a hand.
The tall figure lifted his right hand and pressed it against one of Xiaqiu's teeth.
Thud.
Xiaqiu's figure came to an abrupt halt, the immense force dissipating into nothingness. In the next moment, icy tendrils spread along Xiaqiu's teeth.
Crackle.
The ice emerged, swiftly enveloping Xiaqiu's body and transforming it into a massive ice sculpture.
"This is bad."
Heckler, witnessing this scene, realized he was no match for the general. He planted his feet and suddenly leaped backward, propelling himself away with great speed.
"Trying to run?"
Aokiji saw this and instantly vanished, reappearing behind Heckler in just a few movements. He reached out his right hand toward Heckler.
But just as his hand was about to make contact, a wave of scorching heat surged forth.
"Crossfire."
A pillar of flame swept in, arriving right in front of Aokiji.
"Fire Fist Ace?"
Aokiji snorted coldly, his movement pausing as he pressed his right hand against Crossfire.
Tap, tap, tap.
Flames continuously crashed against Aokiji's hands, extinguished by the ice that formed from the cold. The fire melted the ice into water, which then evaporated into steam, continuing to fend off the flames.
As the fire vanished, steam rose, and Heckler had already appeared in the distance.
Aokiji, however, had no time to pay attention to him and instead looked further away.
"Fire Fist Ace," Aokiji said coldly.
"Kuzan Admiral."
Ace slowly walked out from the distance, adjusting the brim of his hat with a smile. "I never expected to see you here."
Aokiji regarded Ace and replied, "I didn't expect Fire Fist Ace to be here either. So, are you going to help them?"
"They saved my life."
Ace smiled and said, "Of course I will help them. Otherwise, wouldn't I be ungrateful?"
"It seems there's one more person to deal with today."
Aokiji exhaled sharply, and the breath instantly froze, falling to the ground.
"Is that so?"
"Ace smiled and said, 'Let's give it a try then.'
With those words, Ace's right fist suddenly shot forward. Before the motion was complete, flames erupted from his fist and arm, growing larger until it transformed into a massive flaming fist aimed at Aokiji.
'Ice Block Bird.'
Aokiji extended his right hand, releasing freezing air that formed a blue Ice Bird in front of him. It gradually grew larger, freezing everything in its path as it charged toward the flames.
Boom.
The Ice Bird collided with the Fire Fist, shattering into countless shards of ice that blocked the oncoming flames.
The heat from the fire vaporized some of the ice, but the chilling air that spread out began to extinguish the flames.
Not only that, but the ice turned into steam, which then refroze, continuing to obstruct the fire.
Swish.
As the surrounding flames surged, the temperature on both sides rose steadily.
Crack.
Xiaqiu broke through the ice, glanced at the distance, and dashed away.
Meanwhile, Heckler had already made his escape, disappearing into the horizon."
"Don't let them escape."
Seeing this scene, Aokiji's expression darkened as his left hand suddenly pressed down.
Crackling sounds echoed.
The ground quickly froze, icy air spreading outwards, chasing after Xiaqiu and Heckler. It also surged forward from the ground, rising in segments to extinguish the flames below, then surged up to form cliffs that crashed towards Ace.
"Very good."
Just as the ice was about to touch Ace, flames began to swirl around him, transforming into a massive pillar of fire.
"Fire Pillar."
Boom.
The fire pillar shattered the cliffs, and Ace spread his arms wide, the fire pillar morphing into two gigantic wings of flame that extended into the distance, instantly melting the ice.
Aokiji swung his right hand horizontally, and suddenly two Ice Dragons roared out, continuing their pursuit into the distance.
Meanwhile, the icy air from his left hand continued to form cliffs that charged towards Ace, reaching him in an instant.
But at that moment, Ace suddenly opened his mouth wide and forcefully exhaled.
Boom.
A massive flame erupted, transforming into a Phoenix Head that pecked at Aokiji's head, shattering ice cliffs in its wake, but it gradually began to fade away.
"I can't win."
Seeing this scene, Ace's expression darkened as flames suddenly appeared around his body, swirling around him.
These flames spiraled inwards, eventually converging above his head to form a gigantic fireball.
The fireball continued to condense until it became bright white.
"Great Flame Ring, Flame Emperor."
As Ace's voice rang out, the fireball shot towards Aokiji, expanding as it flew. Taking advantage of this moment, Ace dashed off into the distance.
"Such powerful energy."
Aokiji sensed Ace's movement, and as the flames erupted before him, he raised and lowered his hands, gently rotating them.
"Ice Roar."
With Aokiji's voice, freezing air enveloped his body, transforming into a colossal lion's head towering over a hundred meters. Just as the fireball was about to explode, it opened its massive jaws and bit down on the fireball.
Boom.
The fireball detonated, flames spreading in all directions and instantly tearing apart the lion's head as it expanded.
But the freezing air behind him continued to spread, gradually covering the flames and preventing an explosion, keeping it from detonating.
"Impressive, Admiral."
Ace was astonished by the scene behind him. Even if Blackbeard faced this move, his ability could only absorb the flames, merely countering them rather than stopping an explosion like Aokiji could.
Of course, Ace didn't want to engage in a battle with Aokiji; he was already running towards the distant island.
However, after covering some distance, a sudden chill enveloped him as a figure quickly approached.
"Here we go again."
Ace suddenly turned and struck out with his right hand towards Aokiji. "Mirror Flame!"
His right hand transformed into flames and lunged at Aokiji. Aokiji snorted coldly and thrust his left hand forward, unleashing an Ice Dragon that leaped out and gradually grew larger, transforming into a long dragon that collided with the flames.
Aokiji then leaped into the air, stepping lightly as he charged towards Ace.
Using Soru, Aokiji instantly appeared behind Ace, reaching for his shoulder.
At this moment, Ace was still some distance away from the coast.
Facing Aokiji's attack, flames erupted fiercely from Ace's body. The fire soared upwards, morphing into flying birds that swooped towards Aokiji.
Aokiji did not dodge the flames; instead, he activated Armament Haki, enveloping himself completely before appearing right in front of Ace and throwing a punch.
But Ace had already crouched down to dodge, pressing his right hand against the ground.
Aokiji lifted his right foot and kicked towards Ace's abdomen.
Faced with this kick, Ace slapped at Aokiji's incoming foot with his left hand, a flame igniting in his palm that exploded violently.
Aokiji's right foot was covered in Armament Haki, capable of resisting flames and capturing a Natural Element User, but the explosion consumed his Haki and pushed Ace away.
Aokiji paused for a moment before attempting to strike again.
But in that instant, the ground suddenly bulged as if something terrifying was spreading beneath it.
"Hmm?"
Aokiji was momentarily taken aback, quickly retracting his right foot and leaping into the air. Frost began to envelop him, spreading outwards in an attempt to seal off the ground.
"Firefly."
However, Ace stood not far away, emitting streams of yellow Fireflies that flew in all directions.
Boom.
The Fireflies exploded, countering the frost.
As the frost dissipated, the explosions underground began to spread, erupting directly and sending flames soaring upwards.
Beneath the island lay a vast amount of explosives, and Ace had just pressed downwards to detonate them.
Aokiji could stop the explosives from detonating, but once Ace countered his freezing air, he was no longer able to do so.
The explosives erupted, rushing towards Aokiji in an instant, while amidst the flames, Ace unleashed his fists, sending two Fire Fists hurtling towards Aokiji.
In the face of the explosion, ice began to crystallize around Aokiji, forming a massive sphere that continued to grow stronger.
Both Ace and Aokiji were Natural Element Users, capable of transforming into their elemental forms to evade attacks.
However, the flames from the explosion and the shockwave would still harm and scorch Aokiji, even if he transformed into an elemental form.
Thus, he had to condense ice to resist it, while Ace had no need to worry about the flames; instead, he could use the spreading shockwave to transform into fire and ride the wind away.
With a whoosh, Ace landed on the shore near a stone pillar where a boat was anchored.
One section of the boat was frozen solid. With a wave of his hand, Ace thawed it out.
At this moment, without Ace's attack, the explosives beneath the island could no longer be stopped by Aokiji. His feet spread an endless chill as he gradually froze the explosions below.
Simultaneously, he locked onto Ace's position, sending ice surging in his direction.
At that moment, Ace stepped onto the ship, his feet already engulfed in roaring flames as he instantly activated the device at the rear.
Boom, boom, boom.
The cannons of Stern erupted with fierce flames, generating immense thrust. Additionally, the rotating wheels on both sides spun continuously.
Aokiji suppressed the explosion that threatened to engulf the entire island, intending to give chase, but the ship had already shot out.
Whoosh.
Due to the lack of water resistance on the Ice Surface, this ship sailed even faster than it would on water.
"I can't catch up."
Aokiji shook his head regretfully as he observed the speed of the ship.
With its fire propulsion and rotating wheels, the dual-drive system allowed it to reach speeds of one hundred eighty kilometers per hour, exceeding fifty meters per second.
This was already double the standard speed of Soru, and Aokiji found it difficult to match that level.
Even if he could catch up, Ace would be there to hinder him. Whether through freezing air or his own abilities, it would be hard to keep pace with Ace's speed; they would only grow farther apart.
"They got away."
Aokiji clenched his fists and began walking back in the direction he came from. On the Surface of the Sea, he spotted Vivi.
"How did it go?" Vivi asked anxiously.
Aokiji replied apologetically, "I'm sorry, they got away."
"You promised me you would kill them," Vivi shouted. "Now you've let them escape, what about Alabasta?"
"Forget it."
Aokiji sighed and said, "I'll figure something out later. But right now, I need to contact the Navy and head to your outposts to see if I can gather any relevant information."
"I will wait for your results."
Vivi said coldly as she turned and walked away into the distance.
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