Starting with One Piece, a Multiverse Simulation

But when the cold wave subsided and a figure clad in full blue armor and wielding a long, crystalline blue sword appeared, Tatsumi and the others fell silent.

"You bastard, I'm going to kill you! Kill you!"

The moment Lubbock saw that figure from his memory appear, he instantly went into a hysterical frenzy, his eyes filled with boundless murderous intent and rage as he looked at Dr. Fashion!

If Wood had died in battle, Lubbock and his men would have been saddened and angry, but they wouldn't have gone mad. However, Dr. Fashion's act of turning the dead into weapons was undoubtedly the greatest disrespect and defilement to warriors.

Not only did he kill his best friend, but he also used his best friend's corpse to trample on his dignity. If Lubbock can continue to tolerate this, then he really is not even human.

"How about it? This is my latest work, and also my most satisfying masterpiece to date. Isn't it great?"

Looking at the expressions of the Lubbocks, Dr. Fashion could roughly guess what they were thinking, but he simply didn't explain. In fact, it was more accurate to say that this was exactly what he had initially wanted to achieve.

"You bastard, I'll tear you to pieces!"

Upon hearing Dr. Fashion's words, the hot-blooded young man Tatsumi could no longer tolerate it and immediately charged towards the other party.

However, compared to Tatsumi, there was a figure wielding a long sword who was obviously faster. Although the distance was greater, he caught up with Tatsumi in an instant and together they slashed at Dr. Fashion in front of them.

Akame is not good with words, but when it comes to valuing her companions, she is no less than anyone else, so she is also extremely angry at this moment.

"Ding------!"

However, Dr. Fashion remained calm and composed in the face of Tatsumi and Akame's combined attack. Just as Redback Shrike and Murasame approached Dr. Fashion, a figure suddenly appeared in front of them and used a blue longsword to block their attacks.

And that wasn't all. After blocking the spear Redback Shrike and the longsword Murasame, Modified Wood delivered another swift kick, aiming directly at Tatsumi's abdomen, sending him flying backward like a cannonball.

Then, with a swift and skillful maneuver, he used his blue longsword to deflect the red-eyed Murasame, followed by a powerful punch that sent him flying.

Tatsumi and Akame, who were sent flying by a punch and a kick respectively, flew out in different directions and slid a long distance on the ground.

Almost at the instant Akame and Tatsumi were knocked away, the air flashed with cold light, and a large number of sharp steel wires instantly enveloped the modified Wood's body.

Unfortunately, the opponent seemed to have anticipated this as well. With one hand forward, the modified Wood used the ability of the "Winter Knight" to create four thin ice walls around his body.

Although the ice wall of this magnitude could not stop the 'Cross Tail's' cutting, the mere moment of delay was enough for Modified Wood to leap away from the original trap.

"Brand, hurry up and do it now!"

Even without Lubbock's reminder, Brand, who had been poised to act, had already moved. The instant the modified Wood's body was about to leap forward, Brand's body also shot out, and he gripped the tiger-headed spear in his hand, smashing it directly down towards the modified Wood!

"clang------!"

A sound like a resounding bell echoed through the air, and to Brand's astonishment, his opponent was still able to parry his attack under such circumstances.

However, Brand's long-awaited attack was clearly not so easy to withstand. As the tiger-headed spear and the blue longsword collided in the air, sparks flew, and the ground beneath Wood's feet cracked.

The powerful shockwave that followed sent him flying back nearly ten meters in an instant!

In the instant that he knocked back the modified Wood, Brand also felt a numbness in his arm, and the tiger-headed spear in his hand almost slipped from his grasp, but fortunately he managed to hold it tightly again.

That's right, the tiger-head spear in Brand's hand is not an ordinary weapon, but it's not an Imperial Arms either. After all, Imperial Arms are not something you can just pick up anywhere; there are only 48 of them in total, and even the Revolutionary Army can't easily find a substitute.

The tiger-headed spear in Brand's hand is called the "Tiger Roar Spear." It is one of the weapons used by the ministers. It is named "Tiger Roar" because it is accompanied by the sound of a tiger's roar when it is fired, and its ability is to release shock waves through high-frequency spear vibrations.

Compared to the "Imperial Arms", the "Minister Arms" all have very obvious flaws, and this "Tiger Roar Spear" is no exception.

When the "Tiger Roar Spear" unleashes a shockwave, the high-frequency vibration of the spear will also cause vibration damage to the user. It can be said to be a weapon that can injure the enemy a thousand times but also damage the user eight hundred times. Ordinary people can't even handle a few shots.

"This guy is still as troublesome as ever. I still find it hard to imagine how someone like him was ever taken down."

Seeing that Wood had been blasted nearly ten meters away but was unharmed thanks to the Teigu armor, Brand couldn't help but complain.

His teamwork with Tatsumi, Akame, and Lubbock was almost perfect, but even so, the damage they inflicted on the opponent was still very limited.

"And I don't know why, but I always feel that this guy in front of me is a bit off. Although his fighting skills are similar, he always gives me a stiff feeling."

He's a soulless guy after all. If it were before, we probably wouldn't have seen any chance of winning, but now, with his current level, he's perfectly fine.

As a seasoned warrior, Brand had already noticed from their recent exchange that while "Wood" in front of them maintained the same fighting skills and habits as before, he seemed much more stiff.

Not only had his superb swordsmanship lost its fluidity, becoming merely a rigid swinging motion, but even the powerful sense of oppression he once possessed was gone, which made Brand somewhat suspicious.

However, he quickly came to terms with it, after all, they used to be facing a living, breathing Wood, while now it was just an empty shell.

Chapter 436 Esdeath Changes Her Strategy

"No, although we didn't fight for long, I feel that this guy is not the Wood we know at all!"

After hearing Brand's words, Akame, who had been silent all along, got up from a pile of rubble and spoke.

Akame is also a warrior with rich combat experience, and like Wood, she is a skilled swordsman, so she senses more.

In the past, when she fought Wood, she felt not only a powerful sense of oppression, but also a sharp and piercing sword intent. However, when facing this "Wood", she felt nothing at all.

Admittedly, his opponent is exceptionally fast and strong, and even his skills are very similar to Wood's.

But similarity is similarity, and imitation can never reach the same level.

Moreover, Wood's sword aura is terrifyingly strong, so why hasn't the opponent used it even once in the entire battle?

It might be a coincidence if only one person said so, but when two combat experts, Akame and Brand, simultaneously asserted that the guy in front of them wasn't the real Wood, Tatsumi and Lubbock were already mostly convinced.

"Tsk, you still managed to see through it. After all, you were once companions who spent every day together."

But even so, although my creation is not your companion Wood, I have already input his corresponding combat data into it.

He now possesses the same combat skills as your companion Wood, and his Imperial Arm is also "Winter Knight".

This is someone who can fight General Esdeath head-on and be evenly matched. What makes you think you can defeat him with just a few of you?

When introducing his work, the modified Wood, Dr. Fashion looked smug. In his view, his work had actually surpassed Wood as the prototype, and that those people were just ignorant and did not understand the greatness of his work.

Humans have seven emotions and six desires; they fear death, feel pain, and have a sense of dread. But modified humans do not possess these qualities.

Moreover, compared to the frail human body, the cyborg's physique is much stronger, and its combat power is not weakened by physical injuries.

Now, his creation has Wood's corresponding combat skills, as well as a matching Imperial Arms. In addition, the advantages that cyborgs inherently possess are, in Dr. Fashion's view, it should be stronger than the real Wood in terms of combat power.

However, just as Dr. Fashion was basking in the glory of his masterpiece, the reactions of Brand, Akame, and the others left him quite dissatisfied.

When Dr. Fashion frankly admitted that the boy in front of them was merely a cyborg, not the real Wood, Brand and the others visibly breathed a sigh of relief.

The reason they breathed a sigh of relief was partly because they knew Wood might not be dead, and partly because if what they were looking at was just a fake, then the danger it posed to them would be greatly reduced.

"It's all show and no substance, a fake that's all bark and no bite. Don't underestimate real warriors. Something like this, without a burning soul, can't possibly be our match."

Upon hearing Brand's words, Dr. Fashion's anger instantly soared, because the evaluation given was almost identical to that of Esdeath before.

Dr. Fashion didn't understand what "warriors" were, but he was absolutely certain they were just a bunch of brainless guys who only knew how to fight with their muscles.

"Charge! Kill them all!"

Dr. Fashion originally intended to capture Tatsumi and the others alive for modification, but now he has changed his mind. He wants to show these people the true power of his masterpiece.

Upon receiving the order, the modified Wood charged out once again and slashed at Tatsumi. However, upon learning that the person in front of him was just an ordinary cyborg and not the real Wood, Tatsumi calmed down considerably. Instead of dodging, he met the attack head-on.

After a round of gun and sword fighting, Tatsumi was quickly defeated, but Brand and Akame immediately stepped in to support him.

Facing two extremely powerful individuals from Night Raid, the cyborg, infused with Wood's combat skills, handled the situation with ease. However, he overlooked the fact that someone else on the field had been concealing their presence since the beginning.

Although Akame and Brand were engaged in a fierce battle with the cyborgs, their bodies kept moving in a certain direction without making a sound. Meanwhile, Tatsumi turned around and went to find Dr. Fashion, and in order not to let the other party get in the way, he engaged in a fierce battle with him.

"In the end, they are just empty shells with skills and strength, lacking the ability to think for themselves and the methods to apply those skills. They can only use moves rigidly. What is there to fear about such an enemy?"

Akame and Brand launched a joint attack. Because Wood's fighting style was a "standardized" attack rhythm with no variation, it was quickly familiarized by combat experts like Akame and Brand.

At this moment, one of the two was responsible for a feint attack, forcing the modified Wood to passively use programmed moves to defend against the attack, while the other seized the opponent's weakness and inflicted physical damage on him.

Generally speaking, after suffering losses because of such tactics, one should try to change the way or rhythm of the fight. However, unfortunately, the modified Wood does not have such logical thinking ability; he can only fight according to the way the program is set.

When faced with an attack from something, Wood would use something else's moves to defend against it. Fighting in this "formulaic" way, in the hands of Akame and Brand, it would naturally quickly become a toy.

"To be honest, even though it's just an empty shell, Wood's fighting skills are truly outrageous. He talked big before, but if it were a one-on-one fight, we might not be a match for this thing."

Brand's sentiment is simple: even though he and Akame used a combination of feints and sneak attacks to fight the modified Wood, they were only able to successfully ambush him and inflict damage about 30% of the time.

Wood's reflexes and combat skills are too amazing. Often, after blocking one of the two people's feints, he can block the other person's sneak attack while his body is in a semi-stiff state.

Add to that the Winter Knight's amazing defensive capabilities and the cyborgs' tireless stamina, and in a one-on-one situation, Brand and his group would truly be no match.

No, it should be said that even though it's now two against one and they're constantly inflicting damage on the other side, the situation is still extremely tense.

Akame's Murasame was alright, but Brand's weapon, the "Tiger Roar Spear," was something that would inflict heavy damage on both sides. Even with his strong physique, he couldn't withstand such prolonged exhaustion.

After a long and fierce battle, they finally achieved their goal, forcing Modified Wood into the trap that Lubbock had prepared long ago.

Just as Wood sensed danger and tried to use the "Winter Knight" to create ice to block the steel wire of the "Cross Tail," Brand, who was already prepared, swung his high-frequency vibrating tiger-headed spear.

"You only know how to fight according to the usual procedures, but we are not you. Don't think you can escape a second time by using the same methods!"

"Crack——————!"

The high-frequency vibrating tiger-headed spear struck the newly formed ice wall, accompanied by a crisp cracking sound, and the shockwave shattered the ice wall into pieces.

Large swathes of ice fell from the sky like shards of glass, and without the ice as a barrier, the steel wires of the Cross Tail instantly bound the modified Wood's body and hoisted him into the air.

Then a cold light flashed through the air, and the red-eyed man who had fallen from the sky sheathed his sword and stood there. With a gushing of blood, a head fell from the sky.

After being beheaded, the 'Winter Knight' reverted to its original longsword form and was retrieved by Akame, who planned to return it to Wood later.

As for the battle between Tatsumi and Leone, it came to a final close after Akame and the others finished their fight.

Leone, in cooperation with Sheele, first located the core of the biological Teigu "Hundred-Handed Giant" and destroyed it, and finally defeated Seryu with a two-on-one advantage.

Tatsumi and Dr. Fashion, who had been given hormones, were initially in a fighting chance, but when he saw his masterpiece being killed by Akame and the others, he was heartbroken and was killed by Tatsumi who pierced his heart with a spear.