Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 308 The New King Who Seizes the World!

More than an hour later, the Void Palace of Pongel Castle had been reduced to ruins.

But unexpectedly, this ruin actually only surrounded the location of this Void Palace.

Even the flowers and plants in the courtyard in front of the door were not damaged.

The fallen bricks and stones from the ruins remain on the spot, and the huge halls have collapsed, piling up like a garbage mountain of rubble.

Only the main gate of the hall remained completely undamaged. The area connecting the two side walls had collapsed, but the gate was still closed tightly, as if it were still guarding the ruins inside.

The dust that had been vibrating in the air gradually settled, and soon the doors of the great hall creaked and twisted. Then, an arm stained with blood, its flesh torn open, and a dark aura swirling from its wounds, pushed open the heavy doors of the great hall.

Perhaps it's for the sake of a sense of ritual?

Even though the surrounding walls had collapsed and there were no other obstacles, Bane still chose to walk out through the front door.

His figure gradually emerged from the shadows of the palace gate. When he entered, he was wearing a naval justice cloak and a suit and tie, looking every bit the naval elite.

When he came out, his black hair was disheveled, with dried blood sticking to the ends, making him look rather pathetic. His mouth was a bloody mess, and bright red blood was still flowing down his torn lips. On the festering wound, he was even biting a freshly lit cigarette.

His cloak of justice was nowhere to be found, and his black suit was tattered and accidentally caught on the doorknob. As Bane stepped out, it detached from his body, revealing a black vest underneath that was still not completely intact but barely presentable.

His injuries were very noticeable. There was a horizontal cut on his waist that had shaved off a large amount of his lumbar muscles, leaving his flesh and kidneys exposed to the air, with black smoke swirling around them, as if they were being repaired.

At the same time, a long sword was stuck in the center of his chest. It was the "World" that Im had previously held. This blade named "World" had pierced through Bane's chest and back, with the hilt pressed firmly against his chest muscles. Blood dripped continuously from the flower tassels on the hilt onto the ground.

"Heave-ho." Bane had already walked halfway out of the palace gate, one hand on the door frame and the other behind him as if dragging something.

Soon, with his staggering steps, he walked out of the palace gate, and what he was dragging in his other hand was the somewhat tattered Void Throne.

This magnificent chair, which had been maintained by the World Government for over eight hundred years, now looked as if it had been salvaged from a garbage dump. Its once towering and narrow back was completely broken, and the smooth red silk on it was stained with flickering sparks, burned and tattered.

With a forceful yank, Bane pulled the shattered throne into the courtyard and set it upright. Only then did he catch his breath, feeling the tearing pain from his wounds. His brow furrowed slightly, and his lips twitched, causing the ash from his cigarette to fall to the ground.

"No matter how many times I get injured, it still hurts so much, this damn Dark-Dark Fruit." Bane cursed as he plopped down on the throne. The blade that pierced through his chest and back was stuck above the broken back of the chair, without making any contact, yet it was as if he was nailed to the throne.

As soon as he sat down, he felt much more relaxed. The gentle breeze of Mary Geoise blew by, making Bane's wounds feel cooler. The soft sunlight shone through the thin clouds and fell on Bane's battered body, giving him a long-lost feeling of warmth.

With a slight effort, Bane raised his left hand, missing his pinky and ring fingers, removed the cigarette from his lips, and exhaled a comfortable puff of smoke. Looking at the beautiful flowers and plants in the courtyard, a slight smile appeared on his lips, though the movement of his wound made the smile appear somewhat awkward. He murmured to himself, "Today really is a perfect day to close my eyes. Don't you think so, Im?"

But clearly, no one responded to him.

Im, who once usurped the throne, is now forever buried beneath the ruins of this great hall behind Bane.

But the gentle sunlight and cool breeze felt as if they were welcoming a new king to the world.

Just as the cigarette butt, stained with blood, was about to burn out, hurried footsteps sounded outside the courtyard.

Soon, Garp, Zoro, and the others rushed in, and then they saw a scene that was somewhat absurd, yet strangely harmonious.

A burly man, covered in wounds and bleeding profusely, sat on a dilapidated throne with a sharp blade protruding from his chest. Behind him lay collapsed ruins and an open gate. Sunlight shone on him, casting shadows that gave him a strange, captivating charm—a blend of vitality and devastation.

"Bane!?" Garp was the first to react, then grinned and said, "You weren't this disheveled during the battle with Kaido and Charlotte Linlin. Looks like that Im is quite troublesome."

"More than just troublesome?" Bane grinned, revealing a bitter yet brilliant smile. "He was incredibly powerful. No wonder he's an old guy who's lived for hundreds of years. His domineering aura and skills have reached their limits. If it weren't for my Dark-Dark Fruit preventing him from using that terrifyingly surging life force, I'd probably be the one who died."

"Are you alright?" Zoro stepped forward and asked Bane, who was severely injured and should normally be dead.

Bane glanced at him helplessly and said, "Do I look like I'm alright?"

"We were fighting the last of the Five Elders, Nassou, and we were about to finish him off when he suddenly let out a wail, his body billowing black smoke, just like Satan in Eghardt, and died instantly. That's when we knew you had won." Zoro said softly, looking at Bane's injuries.

"I told you, I will definitely take this throne, so how could I possibly lose?" Bane patted the armrest of the Void Throne with his severed finger and laughed.

"Huh?" Dragon said in surprise, "If you hadn't told me this was the Void Throne, I almost wouldn't have recognized it. I clearly saw it here last year."

"Compared to the throne," Zoro reached out and grasped the hilt of the sword in front of Bane's chest, a hint of curiosity in his expression. "This sword looks quite unusual."

"This sword was Im's sword when he was one of the twenty kings more than eight hundred years ago, and it was called The World. Now, it is stained with the blood of two generations of kings, so it is worthy of the name. You..." Bane grinned as he introduced it to Zoro, but before he could finish speaking, Zoro pulled The World out of his chest.

"Damn it!" Bane cried out in pain, clutching the bleeding wound on his chest, and cursed, "Damn it, it hurts so much! It hurts so much I don't even want to pull it out!"

Zoro completely ignored Bane, raising the World in his hand to examine it in the sunlight. Crimson blood flowed down the blade, staining his hand, but he showed no disgust. His eyes gleamed with excitement as he said, "What a fine sword! When I return to the East Blue, I'll give it to Kuina as a gift in exchange for the Wado Ichimonji."

After a slight pause, a look of longing flashed in Zoro's eyes as he said, "Now that she has this world, she won't be so lonely down there, will she?"

Bane, who had originally wanted to force himself to kick Zoro, fell silent upon hearing this and sat on the throne, no longer moving.

Soon, one after another, the rest of the people arrived here.

Zephyr stepped forward and looked Bane over with some concern, then breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It seems he's alright."

Bane?

Teacher, how did you know I wasn't seriously injured? I was practically dying!

"Indeed, as long as he's not dead, everything's fine." Fubuki nodded seriously, then looked at the ruins and said, "Where's Im's body? I still want to see what he looks like."

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

"That's a pity. In the instant of his death, he quickly decayed, turned into ashes, and became one with this ruin forever," Bane said, shaking his head.

Without lingering there, Nami quickly arrived with the medic and hurriedly bandaged Bane's wounds.

Bane needs to rest due to his injuries, but the matter of Mary Geoise is not over yet.

After defeating the Five Elders, Boa Hancock immediately joined the Revolutionary Army in storming into the House of God, where she frantically slaughtered all the Celestial Dragons inside. Tesoro, holding the head of a Celestial Dragon in his hand, knelt before the furnace burning the corpses of slaves, weeping and wailing, as if he had finally released all the anger and sorrow that had been building up in his heart.

Garp found his beloved grandson Monkey D. Luffy imprisoned in the secret underground cell of Pongel Castle. The kid hadn't been mistreated at all; when Garp found him, he was still sleeping.

Under Stussy's guidance, Zephyr also found the Steelbone Commander, who was in poor mental condition but had not been abused, in the prison at the CP headquarters.

The Holy Land Guard of Mary Geoise was annihilated, the Knights of God were completely wiped out, the Celestial Dragons were subjected to a frenzied reprisal, and some unlucky but fortunate slaves were freed.

This ancient land of Mary Geoise, so ancient it's hard to tell whether to call it a holy land or hell, has officially been taken over by the Navy.

In fact, considering its influence and geographical advantages, it was discussed back in Melvure that if Mary Geoise could be properly preserved, it would be appropriate for it to continue operating as the central institution of the New World government in the future.

The only regret is that, despite a meticulous search, the ancient weapon Uranus, which appeared once and then vanished without a trace, has still not been found.

Perhaps the Five Elders and Im knew where it was hidden, but the problem is that the Five Elders are dead, and Bane didn't have enough time to ask about it when he was fighting Im.

I suppose even if he asked, Im wouldn't answer him, would he?

Still sitting on that throne, feeling Nami standing behind him, carefully cleaning the dust and dirt from his small, unbandaged wounds, Bane suddenly laughed.

"Nami," Bane called out.

"What is it?" Nami asked casually as she used a cotton swab to remove the bits of debris from the wound under Bane's earlobe.

"I've only been sitting on this throne for a short while, but I'm already tired of it. What should I do?" Bane asked with a chuckle.

"Tired of it?" Nami asked in surprise. "Don't you have any patience at all?"

"Thinking about it carefully, being the king of this world doesn't seem so interesting. Or perhaps, there's nothing left on this ocean that can attract me anymore." Bane leaned against Nami's gentle embrace and whispered, "Once we've settled these matters, shall we go and see the other equally wonderful worlds?"

"Just the two of us?" Nami asked with a hint of teasing in her eyes.

"You little thief, trying to ditch Fubuki and Robin again, huh?" Bane teased, then added, "Now it's time to fulfill my promise to everyone and lead them to conquer the other world!"

(End of this chapter)