One Piece: Rayquaza of the Beasts Pirates

The biting cold air and the raging laser beams intertwined once more, striking Kane's back precisely.

However, neither freezing air nor lasers could penetrate that crystalline sheen; they were completely ineffective.

"How is this possible..."

Gion's pupils contracted sharply, but her strong combat skills allowed her to instantly suppress her shock. "Don't stand there! Chase them!"

Upon hearing this, Jiaji stomped his foot, and the explosive force of "Shave" propelled him to chase after the passage.

"and many more!"

Kizaru's deep voice suddenly rang out, carrying an unusual urgency.

Suddenly, he pulled out a specially made encrypted Den Den Mushi from his pocket and held it to his ear.

The brief words from the other end caused the usually lazy and carefree general's face to darken visibly, like dark clouds gathering before a storm.

He abruptly hung up the phone.

"Head to the Mother of God's Flame Project laboratory immediately. Vegapunk is in trouble—we've fallen for their trap, this is a diversionary tactic!"

Let's go back a little earlier.

The noisy chatter of Vegapunk pestering Enel with questions woke York from his slumber.

"Um... what happened?"

She sat up, rubbing her sleepy eyes, and her blurry vision quickly focused.

Enel, surrounded by his main body and several other clones, suddenly came into view.

She was suddenly startled, and all sleepiness vanished.

Soon, she learned the whole story from Vegapunk himself.

When the other clones learned that Vegapunk and Kane had reached a deal to break away from the World Government's control, they all expressed their willingness to follow the original body and pursue true scientific freedom and ideals.

"Let's join hands and create a new future!"

Vegapunk was not surprised by the clones' decision.

They share the same memories, and even though their personalities have slightly different, he firmly believes that the pure heart that yearns to use technology to benefit all mankind and explore the unknown is the same.

Under the control of the world government, this ideal is destined to remain unrealized.

However, lost in his excitement, he failed to notice the fleeting panic in York's eyes beside him.

"Ouch! I need to go to the toilet, it's time for me to poop!"

York suddenly spoke up.

Vegapunk had no suspicions, but urged, "Go and come back quickly! Although I have temporarily overwritten the nearby surveillance cameras with normal loop recordings, it may not be able to hide it for long. The guards in the monitoring room may discover the anomaly at any time."

"Understood! I'll be right back!" York nodded hurriedly and jogged out of the room.

Enel subconsciously glanced at York's hurried departure and vaguely sensed that something was wrong.

Seeing that neither Vegapunk himself nor his other clones showed any reaction, he suppressed his doubts.

Kane said this old man is the smartest person in the world... so there shouldn't be any problems, right?

the other side.

York, who hurriedly left the lab, didn't even head towards the restroom.

She walked faster and faster until she was almost running in the empty corridor.

She rushed straight out of the core research area, ignoring the surprised looks from the researchers along the way.

Just to be on the safe side, she ran all the way to a secluded corner where no one was around before stopping, panting heavily.

Leaning against the cold metal wall, York's feigned innocence had vanished, replaced by a twisted expression of determination.

"Don't blame me, it was you who betrayed the World Government."

She pulled a Den Den Mushi (a type of electric scooter) from her inner pocket, intending to contact the only person who could help her at the moment.

"Admiral Kizaru! Help me! The Beasts Pirates have broken in!"

York burst into tears.

Only after receiving a positive reply from Kizaru did she feel relieved enough to hang up the phone.

Goodbye, Vegapunks! I am the only Vegapunk!

York glanced one last time in the direction of the laboratory, then turned and left without looking back.

Just then, a cold voice rang out, making her feel as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.

"What do you think should happen to a traitor, York?"

Chapter 198 York Dies! A Helpless Kizaru

York mechanically, inch by inch, turned her head back and saw the figure she least wanted to face at that moment.

Enel was leaning against the shadows at the corner, his arms crossed.

Those perpetually half-closed eyes held only a cold, indifferent gaze, as if looking at a lifeless object.

"Mr. Enel...?"

York swallowed hard, and almost instinctively, his face instantly put on that innocent, bewildered smile again: "I... I said I just got lost, would you believe me?"

Enel smirked: "Then would you believe me if I said I just happened to be passing by and happened to overhear your conversation with the Marines?"

If it weren't for his wide-ranging Observation Haki, which allowed him to hear people talking, he would have been fooled by York.

"I believe you! Of course I believe you!"

York nodded vigorously, appearing extremely sincere.

The moment her head drooped, the feigned panic in her eyes was instantly replaced by a resolute expression.

She suddenly opened her mouth wide: "Help—!"

Before the word "fate" could even leave her throat, a dazzling blue bolt of lightning struck first, piercing through her chest!

A powerful electric current surged through York's body, causing crackling arcs and acrid black smoke to erupt from his skin.

She stumbled, fell straight forward, and crashed to the ground, where she remained motionless.

Enel stepped forward and looked down at York.

He tilted his head, then suddenly reached out and grabbed York's metal neck.

"Just in case—Lei Metallurgy!"

An even more violent current surged from his palm and poured into York's body.

The lightning brought not only paralysis, but also extreme heat. York's metal surface turned red, softened, and began to drip at a visible speed!

"Hot! Hot! Hot hot hot hot—!!! Stop! You bastard!! How could you whip a corpse like that!!!"

York, who was supposed to be "dead," suddenly let out a piercing howl of pain.

Her limbs began to struggle violently.

In response to her, Enel unleashed an even more surging barrage of lightning.

Within seconds, the dense array of precision components inside York exploded with sparks under overload and high temperature, the alarm sounds became chaotic, and finally fell silent.

The light in her eyes dimmed completely, and her final struggle ceased.

In the last instant before her consciousness completely dissipated, her remaining vocal module intermittently squeezed out a string of words mixed with the hissing of electricity.

“Tch… Tell Vegapunk that self-important original… I, York… never… wanted to… just be one of his ‘clones’…”

As soon as she finished speaking, her body, along with its internal structure, finally melted completely under the sustained high temperature.

All that remained was a pool of sizzling, bubbling molten metal.

Enni stared expressionlessly at the gradually cooling and solidifying wreckage on the ground. He carefully scanned it with his Observation Haki, and after confirming that there were no intact parts left, he flashed with lightning and disappeared into thin air.

The Laboratory of the Holy Mother's Flames.

The atmosphere was heavy and oppressive.

The laboratory's alloy door was completely surrounded by heavily armed guards, with laser cutters and heavy breaching equipment roaring against it and shooting out blinding sparks.

The heavy door groaned under the relentless attack.

Inside the laboratory, everything was in a flurry of activity.

"Doctor! The external defense system has been completely suppressed! According to calculations, the gate can only hold out for a maximum of... thirteen minutes and twenty-eight seconds!"

Edison stared at the rapidly decreasing durability progress bar on the screen, a rare hint of panic in his electronic voice.

The other Vegapunk clones rummaged through the lab benches filled with sophisticated instruments and bizarre creations, disassembling and attempting to temporarily assemble some devices capable of combat or breakthroughs.

"No, time is too tight."

Lilith irritably tossed a half-finished energy gun back onto the workbench, her brow furrowed.

"Then let me do it!"

Atlas, the tallest of the three with half-pink and half-white hair, stepped forward and said firmly, "I have a backup hidden energy source. The power of my self-destruction is enough to open a passage for you! Take this opportunity to rush out with your main body!"

"good idea!"

The Vegapunks quickly exchanged glances and said in unison, "We'll give you an emergency modification to maximize your energy output efficiency!"

Anyway, it's not a big deal for these clones to lose their bodies; their consciousness is stored in the Punk Records.

Once we're out there, we can just build a new one.

Without any unnecessary hesitation or sorrowful farewell, the efficiency of a top scientist was on full display at this moment.

The clones immediately surrounded Atlas, pulling out all their tools and skillfully opening the heavy armor plates on its back to reveal the incredibly complex energy circuits and core inside. They began to race against time to modify it.

However, just as their fingertips touched the internal circuitry—

Boom!

A deafening explosion, ten times more violent than the cutting sound outside the door, suddenly erupted without warning!

In the center of the alloy gate, which was strong enough to withstand the bombardment of heavy naval guns, a huge hole with twisted and rolled edges was suddenly broken open!