The natural system started off strong, but the navy finally reached its peak!

“The future…” Gern frowned.

Im (controlling the body of Nasujuro) slowly raised his newly "restored" right hand.

He spread his five fingers and gently pressed them against Nassshuro Sei's own neck.

Then.....

"Pfft."

With a soft crack, bones broke, flesh tore apart, and with his own hands, he broke the old, bald head of "Nassshuro Saint".

The head of one of the Five Elders was easily torn off from the neck!

There was no blood splattering, but the cut surface shimmered with a black, viscous substance.

After its arrival, this body was merely a puppet temporarily pieced together from energy and flesh.

Im held the head in his palm casually, as if playing with an object.

Then a new, faceless head emerged, with a pointed tip.

Those dark red Rinnegan eyes calmly gazed at the pair of eyes on the head in his palm that had not yet completely lost their luster.

At this moment, eyes were filled with utter astonishment and... a certain knowing despair (perhaps the remnant consciousness of Nasujiro was watching all this through these eyes).

This scene was chilling and eerie, enough to send shivers down the spines of any witness!

It treats one of its most loyal and powerful agents as if it were discarding a broken tool.

Supporting his head, Imna's inhuman voice rang out again, still flat, but carrying a chilling "sincerity" and the condescension of an absolute ruler.

"M said, you are just a slightly special wave, but you will eventually calm down."

“But you are very strong.” He paused, his dark red eyes turning to Gern.

"Stronger than Bim anticipated."

“And these five old guys…” Im glanced at the head in his palm, his tone indifferent, “I think they’re a bit ‘outdated’.”

They can't keep up with the new trends, nor can they handle the new 'variables'.

Im then presented its conditions.

An ultimate temptation that would drive any ambitious person or powerful figure on this vast ocean mad with fear and make them unable to resist.

“Gern Reginald Sigmar, if you wish now, send the ‘Mother Flame’... into Mu’s hands.”

Im slightly raised the hand that was supporting his head, revealing a "gift":

“Mother can grant you…the same ‘blessing’.”

The contract hierarchy was deliberately emphasized.

"It's not the kind of consumable power like 'Hail of Gods'..."

"They're not like the 'Knights of God,' who are guardians who need to take on responsibilities..."

"But rather, the true, complete... 'immortality'."

"Furthermore, through this blessing, your strength will transcend the barriers of your current class and reach a completely new and unimaginable height."

This is not enough!

Im continued to paint a blueprint for the future, a "perfect" future that seemed within easy reach for Gern.

"M will make you, permanently, truly... rule the navy!"

The navy will belong to you completely and utterly!

Become an extension of your will, the cornerstone of your power, free from the constraints of the World Government and the interference of the Five Elders!

Even, if you wish, Mu can bless the natural disasters that befall your subjects!

Let them become the new "God's" Knights!

“Gern Reginald Sigmar”.

Finally, Im, with his hollow yet resonant voice, added the heaviest weight to this temptation, as if announcing the birth of a new monarch.

"You will officially... emerge from a wave that will eventually subside..."

"become……"

"eternal."

Chapter 575 Let's swing our swords at the 'unknown'!

The word "eternity" echoed in the air above the shattered island.

Immortality! Leap in power! Absolute dominance! Eternal existence!

This is the price Im offered.

In exchange for a "blessing" that can be created or replaced at any time, they would gain Gern's submission and the offering of the "Mother Flame."

And he was made to replace the "outdated" Five Elders, becoming a sharper and more effective "tool" or "spokesperson" for the World Government to rule the world in the new era.

A tremendous temptation intertwined with cold-blooded scheming, transforming into the sweetest poison, laid out before Gern.

Gern stood there, still gripping the Eight Desolations Sword tightly in his hand, his face expressionless, simply listening quietly.

Looking at the head belonging to Nasujuro in Im's palm, and at those dark red eyes of reincarnation that seemed capable of devouring all souls.

The sea breeze howled, stirring up smoke and dust.

The islands beneath my feet groaned in despair, while the distant sea surged with towering waves.

A choice was presented to "Skyquake" Gern.

Is it to accept the shackles and gifts of "eternity" and become the new "eternal one" under Im's command?

Or... refuse this "charity" and go over there to stab him?

Time slows down at this moment.

Im waited, seemingly very patient, because this choice seemed to him...

It should be obvious to any "mortal".

After all, even Harald, one of the Five Elders, willingly chose to kneel before them back then!

........

The silence lasted for a long time.

Accustomed to lording over time and all living beings, viewing everything as pawns, Im was intrigued by Gern's prolonged silence and his delayed "wise" choice.

(In its view, kneeling in submission and offering up the Mother Fire is the only reasonable answer.)

This was the first time he showed signs of emotional fluctuation.

A slight ripple of displeasure.

Then that hollow, inhuman voice rang out again, its tone still flat, but now carrying the impatience of someone in a superior position.

“Gern Reginald Sigmar”.

“Hmm, I think…” The dark red Rinnegan narrowed slightly, “You shouldn’t hesitate.”

This is already a final ultimatum and a mild warning from "God".

However, the moment Im finished speaking...

"Heh...hehe..."

A low, suppressed laugh escaped from Gern.

Immediately afterwards, the chuckle amplified, turning into a carefree, unrestrained, and even slightly crazy and liberating loud laugh!

"Hahaha... Hahahahahaha!!!"

Gern laughed heartily, his shoulders shaking with laughter, and his eyes welling up with tears.

Laughter echoed across the desolate island, filled with utter mockery and disdain for Im's allure of "charity" and "eternity"!

"What...are you laughing at?" Im's voice showed obvious doubt and coldness for the first time.

It couldn't understand why this mortal would laugh in the face of such "generous" conditions.

Gern slowly stopped laughing, raised his head, and his dark purple Conqueror's Haki was no longer in a passive defensive state.

Instead, it erupted with a roar, soaring into the sky, standing in opposition to Im's intangible and immeasurable majesty!

“I’m sorry…” Gern’s voice was clear and firm, each word carrying immense weight, “I’ve made you misunderstand, old man.”

He grinned slightly, revealing his snow-white teeth:

"A great giant once told me... We have stood up!"

“So—” Guern’s voice suddenly rose.

"I'm used to being in charge... I'm not used to being someone's 'eternal slave'!!!"

The words "be in charge" and "slave" were emphasized so heavily that they clearly demonstrated his attitude!

Before he could finish speaking...

"Boom!!!"

Gern pushed his Observation Haki to an unprecedented extreme!

It's not about predicting, but about capturing future trajectories!

Without even swinging the Eight Desolations Blade, the space where the blade pointed had already become highly condensed.

The vibrating particles, released in advance along the "future attack trajectory," spontaneously twisted and tore apart, forming fine, pale cracks!

The next moment...

"Heavenly Tremor - Divine Sense Slash!!!"

Gern's figure, along with the Eight Desolations in his hand that was already synchronized with the "future slash trajectory," skipped the movement process entirely.

He appeared out of thin air in front of Im!

A flash of light!

It was not a physical strike, but a "divine thought" strike that condensed all of Gern's will, domineering aura, and shock!

Wherever the blade left its mark, the space, and even the energy and matter that constituted the body of "Nasu Shoulang Sheng," were forcibly divided and severed!

"Shh!"

A soft sound.

In Im's palm, the head belonging to Nassuro Sei was held, and on the neck of the newborn head below, a perfectly smooth cut appeared.

Im's head fell to the ground with a thud.

Gern's figure had already appeared behind Im (the headless body), still in the posture of slashing with his sword.

He could clearly sense that dark red energy was surging wildly at the severed neck of the headless body behind him, repairing and reorganizing itself.

The head that fell to the ground was undergoing the same change.

“You…” Im’s voice seemed not to have stopped when his head hit the ground, and continued to come from some other dimension.

"Made a wrong choice."

However, Gern slowly turned around, his face not showing any seriousness, but rather a smile as if he had seen through some kind of truth.

He shook off the non-existent "stains" on the Eight Desolations Blade and looked at the body and head that were being repaired.

"Is that so?" He tilted his head slightly, savoring the feeling of that last stab.

"actually……"

"After that slash, I discovered..."

The smile on Gern's lips widened, and his fighting spirit burned to its peak.

"You don't seem... as 'terrifying' as I imagined!"

The test is over! The fear is gone!