Chapter 440: The Great Reversal
At such close range, Teach didn't even have time to react before he was struck by Ian's Lightning Spear!
The straight bolt of lightning, like a sharp javelin, instantly pierced through the muscle group above Teach's collarbone, leaving behind a blackened, scorched hole. At the same time, powerful electric currents surged through Teach's entire body.
Teach let out a miserable scream, so shrill that it seemed as if he was trying to roar the excruciating pain out of himself.
If pain could truly be shouted away like that, then no one in this world would ever die from severe injuries...
Falling to the ground, Teach was now foaming at the mouth, his entire body convulsing. Still, this guy was incredibly tough—being hit by the current of the Lightning Spear, he somehow managed to stay conscious, though the physical reactions were unavoidable.
It was as if Teach's brain had been short-circuited by the electricity in that moment. He couldn't think about anything else; only one thought kept echoing in his mind: "Why? Why can't I catch Ian!?"
It wasn't just Teach who was stunned—Ian was also somewhat bewildered. After instinctively firing the Lightning Spear and taking Teach down, he felt a sense of shock. He hadn't expected Teach's Dark-Dark Fruit ability to have no effect on him.
By now, the entire world knew that the Seven Warlord Black Dragon Ian was a Pay-to-Win Fruit user, and Teach believed the same. But if Teach knew the truth, he would probably be crying tears of blood.
Rumors can kill...
Teach was still wondering where things had gone wrong. Why could he even catch Ace, a Logia user, but not Ian?
An ability that had always worked flawlessly had suddenly failed, dealing a heavy blow to Teach's confidence. This scene especially reminded him of the time back on the Whitebeard Pirates' ship, the Moby Dick, when Ian had stabbed him. As a result, Teach began to lose his composure.
He struggled to control his convulsing muscles, trembling as he stood up, and then shouted at Ian, "I don't believe it! I absolutely refuse to believe it! I won't let you become my nightmare! I am the man who will conquer the world, and I will not allow someone like you to exist!"
Though he said this, there was no denying that, in that moment, Teach felt a genuine fear of Ian.
There was no helping it. Ever since meeting Ian, Teach had first been stabbed through the heart by Ian's blade, and now even his prized Dark-Dark Fruit power was useless against Ian. It seemed like Ian always had the upper hand over him. If this continued, Ian would truly become the greatest nightmare of his life. If Teach were to see Ian and react like a mouse seeing a cat in the future, it would be a devastating blow to his ambitious spirit.
Teach couldn't allow that to happen. After shouting at Ian, he pulled a test tube from his pocket, downed the liquid inside in one gulp, and then roared at Doc Q, who was hiding nearby, "Doc Q! Make your move!"
Doc Q, the Death God, was a member of the Blackbeard Pirates, but he had always appeared as a pitiful figure on the verge of death, trembling as he walked and occasionally coughing up blood, making one wonder if he might drop dead at any moment.
With such a demeanor, Doc Q was certainly not a main combatant of the Blackbeard Pirates. His public role was merely the ship's doctor of the crew.
So when the battle began, like Robin and Reiju on Ian's side, he had temporarily stayed out of the fight. Now, finally hearing Teach's call, he coughed a few times, took an apple from the basket beside him, and tossed it toward Ian and Teach's position!
Ian was taken aback. What was this guy doing throwing an apple over?
But before the apple even hit the ground, it suddenly exploded!
The exploding apple didn't harm anyone, but a thick green mist spread through the area as the apple burst. Ian only inhaled a single breath before immediately realizing what was happening.
The green mist had a pungent, bitter almond smell—clearly toxic!
However, it was too late for Ian to hold his breath. He had already inhaled some of the poison, and a strong dizziness surged through his mind.
Sensing the danger, Ian quickly activated his Twin Heaven Return Shield, enveloping his body to expel the poison from his skin.
The rejection force of the Twin Heaven Return Shield prevented Ian from being further corroded by the poison, but Ace, who was standing close to Ian, wasn't so lucky. He had also accidentally inhaled some of the poison, and his legs gave way, causing him to collapse to his knees.
Ian couldn't worry about Teach anymore. He rushed over, grabbed Ace, and tried to pull him out of the poison's range.
But Doc Q's poison apple was meant to cover for Teach. While Ian and Ace were hindered by the poison, Teach, who had already taken an antidote, activated his Dark-Dark Fruit ability.
"Dark Abyss!"
Thick shadows spread rapidly from Teach's feet as his ability activated, quickly covering a large area of the ground. When these shadows touched the surrounding buildings, the structures began to slowly sink into the black mist.
Teach's Dark-Dark Fruit power was still in the development and exploration stage. He wasn't yet proficient with this technique, which was why he had Doc Q assist him, buying time to activate his ability.
If one thought the Dark Abyss could only absorb inorganic objects like buildings, they would be gravely mistaken. When the shadows on the ground reached Ian and Ace's feet, Ian suddenly felt a powerful suction pulling him and Ace downward!
Ian felt as if his feet were sinking into quicksand, his entire body uncontrollably descending. Realizing the danger, he tried to break free.
But there was nothing solid beneath his feet to push off from. The eerie black shadows were like a massive black mouth, relentlessly sucking them in.
It wasn't just Ian and Ace—Reiju, Robin, Matthew, and Dorry, who had been watching from the sidelines, were also caught in the effect. Teach's Dark Abyss had an enormous range, and all six of them were being dragged down by his power.
"Fly! I have to fly up!"
Ian thought, as black flames rose from his right wrist, a Black Dragon Wave ready to go.
But just as he was about to devour the Black Dragon Wave and spread his Flame Wings to take off, another shadow appeared above. Burgess, seizing the opportunity, hurled another large boulder at Ian's head, pressing both him and Ace directly into the shadows.
The timing was so perfect that it was hard to believe it was just a simple coordination among the Blackbeard Pirates.
In truth, this was the case. Long before deciding to steal Ian's Pay-to-Win Fruit power, Teach had already discussed with his crew how to deal with Ian.
Teach was a schemer—this was evident from how he had stolen the Dark-Dark Fruit in the first place. Ian was a Seven Warlord, so Teach couldn't afford to be careless. Before this, he had practiced this kind of coordination with Doc Q and Burgess, and now he was using it directly against Ian.
Ian hadn't even released his Black Dragon Wave before being crushed into the shadows by the boulder Burgess threw...
As for Reiju, her combat suit had jet boots that could allow her to fly, but just as she tried to take off, Van Augur fired two shots at her. Those two shots disrupted Reiju's plan, preventing her from flying up in time.
And once she couldn't fly, she couldn't escape the powerful suction of the Dark Abyss. So Reiju and Robin screamed as they were pulled into the shadows as well.
Matthew and Dorry were even worse off—they had no power to resist this technique at all.
And so, all six of them—Ian, Ace, Reiju, Robin, Matthew, and Dorry—were completely sucked into the shadows on the ground, seemingly wiped out in one fell swoop...