novelraw Chapter 445 445: Whitebeard Kneels in Thanks for the Godly Pan
Chapter 445 445: Whitebeard Kneels in Thanks for the Godly Pan
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Several blinding flashes of white light filled the center of the tavern. The participants of the battle royale dungeon crashed haphazardly onto the wooden floorboards.
Doflamingo was the first to scramble up. He frantically patted his left leg and back, finding neither the agonizing pain of being run over by a Jeep nor the searing burns of the fire. Exhaling a long, heavy breath of stale air, a fine sheen of cold sweat broke out across his forehead. Losing his String-String Fruit and his Haki, returning to an ordinary human dominated by firearms... the terror of that experience still left his heart pounding.
"Fufufufufu... What a hellish game." Doflamingo let out a dry laugh.
He looked toward the bar. Blake, holding a steaming cup of black coffee, watched the top-tier powerhouses of the pirate world with profound amusement. Doflamingo instantly dropped his usual rebellious, arrogant smirk. Pinning his arms sharply against the seams of his pants, he bowed deeply.
"Lord Blake, I've made a fool of myself before you."
The majestic Warlord of the Sea, a man with a bounty of 340 million Beri, was currently bowing as subserviently as a servant.
Kaido's massive frame sat up from the floor. He roughly touched his large horns, then looked down at the perfectly intact black scales covering his body. Having his head blown open by Akainu's rusted sickle in the dungeon, only to be burned to ashes by Whitebeard at the end... he never wanted to experience such a suffocating death a second time. Rising obediently, Kaido walked over to his designated security guard position by the tavern door. He respectfully lowered his arrogant head toward the bar.
"Manager, I have returned."
Sengoku, Garp, Akainu, and the others also picked themselves up from the ground one by one. Garp grinned, rubbing his right ankle—the exact spot where Benn Beckman had shot straight through with the Kar98k.
"My bones are completely fine! Those iron sticks called guns are pretty interesting!" Garp burst into his signature booming laughter.
Sengoku shot him a furious glare, reaching out to straighten his disheveled Marine Fleet Admiral coat. Whitebeard, carrying his massive Murakumogiri, took large strides toward the front of the bar. Stripped of his usual towering arrogance, the Emperor stood as straight as an eager student.
"Your Excellency Blake, that final fire was exhilarating. It's just a pity this old man couldn't survive to the very end."
Everyone's eyes immediately began to scan the tavern. They were searching for the sole winner who had cowardly camped in the sewer to claim the final victory. Borsalino sat in a wooden chair in the corner. Legs crossed, he held a freshly brewed cup of hot tea in his hands, unable to suppress the smug, wretched grin plastered across his face.
"Oh my, what a terrifying battlefield. I was nearly scared to death by you monsters."
"Borsalino, you are a Marine Admiral! How dare you hide in a stinking trench to avoid battle?!" Akainu clamped down on his cigar, his face as black as the bottom of a pot.
Kizaru simply curled his lip, taking a slow, deliberate sip of his tea. "Sakazuki, the rules never said we couldn't hide. The last man standing is the winner; those were Boss Blake's rules."
At the mention of Blake's name, the tavern immediately fell silent. Even the explosive Akainu obediently shut his mouth. No one dared to cause a ruckus in Blake's presence. Setting down his coffee cup, Blake curled a finger and rapped lightly against the solid wood countertop. The crisp tapping echoed through the pin-drop silent tavern.
"The Erangel Battle Royale Dungeon is officially concluded. I will now distribute the rewards for the top three."
Everyone's breathing hitched, their eyes turning red as they stared at Blake. They had experienced firsthand just how absurd the dungeon rewards could be—these were godly powers capable of completely overturning the world's balance. Blake pulled up the system panel that only he could see, glancing over the final calculation data.
"Third place: Monkey D. Garp."
"I'm actually third?" Garp paused, pointing a thick finger at his own nose.
Blake nodded, his tone as flat as water. "Even though you were burned to death by Whitebeard, your bare-handed kill count ranked third in this battle royale. Furthermore, your survival time was very high. Your reward is a Conceptual Weapon from Erangel: the [Miracle Med Kit]."
A cluster of light—radiating a soft green glow and shaped like a first-aid kit—flew from Blake's fingertips and vanished directly between Garp's eyebrows. Garp closed his eyes, digesting the information flooding his mind. A second later, his eyes snapped open. Flashing a wide grin, he suddenly, without warning, punched his own left arm, producing a muffled thud. Under the shocked gazes of the crowd, a massive, vivid bruise instantly formed on his arm.
"GARP! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!?" Sengoku roared.
Garp didn't care. With a mere thought, a faint green light flashed over the bruise. In an instant, the bruise vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed.
"Ohoho! This is way too interesting!" Garp trembled with absolute excitement. "This thing is called the [Miracle Med Kit]. As long as I have a single breath left, it doesn't matter how severe the injury is—I can heal it instantly! And after every heal, my overall strength and speed will experience a massive, short-term surge! If I open the Eight Inner Gates and use this ability to tank the damage backlash... Punching straight through the Red Line with a single fist might actually be possible! Wahahaha!"
The pirates in the room inhaled sharply in unison. A monster who was already impossible to beat down now possessed instant regeneration and power amplification? How were they supposed to fight that? Ignoring the crowd's shock, Blake continued reading the results.
"Second place: Edward Newgate."
Whitebeard perked up, taking a step forward.
"At the final moment, you detonated a bucket of high-purity gasoline, simultaneously eliminating five top-tier powerhouses in one stroke, including yourself. You secured the highest kill count of the match. Your reward is a Conceptual Weapon from Erangel: the [Guardian Pan]."
As soon as he spoke, a palm-sized, ancient-looking, pitch-black miniature pan materialized out of thin air and drifted slowly to stop in front of Whitebeard. The tavern fell deathly silent. Kaido, Doflamingo, Akainu... everyone wore expressions of utter disbelief. Giving the World's Strongest Man a... frying pan? What kind of absurd reward was this?
However, the moment Whitebeard touched the pan, his expression shifted from initial shock, to absolute astonishment, and finally, to indescribable, ecstatic joy. He reached out his massive hand and gently gripped the small pan. With a single thought, the pan expanded instantly in his grasp, transforming into a colossal black shield over three meters in diameter, more than large enough to cover his entire body. The surface radiated a profound, abyssal luster, seemingly capable of swallowing anything.
"This is... absolute defense?" Whitebeard muttered, a slight tremble in his voice.
He could feel it. This pan could block and reflect absolutely any attack he could imagine—be it slashes, energy blasts, or even the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit itself! His first thought wasn't to use it for offense, but for protection. On the battlefield, as long as he held this pan, he could prop up an absolute safe haven for his "sons" standing behind him! To him, this was infinitely more precious than any power that merely enhanced his destructive capabilities!
"Gurararara... Gurararararara!" Whitebeard let out an earth-shattering roar of laughter, filled with unprecedented joy and satisfaction. "Your Excellency Blake! I am truly, incredibly fond of this gift!"
Planting Murakumogiri heavily against the floor, Whitebeard dropped to one knee, offering his deepest, most solemn bow of gratitude. Blake waved his hand, signaling Whitebeard to rise.
"Finally, the first place of this battle royale. And the sole survivor."
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